Massive X - the thread

[martinjuenke]

Rubato?

[martinjuenke]

[v1o]

I've barely used anything else in the week that it's been out. The track I'm working on now will probably end up being mostly MX (and a little bit of the original Massive here and there). Well, and bass guitar and vocals and percussion sounds from other things, of course. MX has spoiled me a bit...obviously I have a much, much larger selection of sounds for the original Massive, but the more I use MX, the more going back to the OG almost feels like the sonic equivalent of having experienced HD video and then going back to SD. The effects play no small part in that, of course, making such a big and enveloping stereo field.

When the original came out, it already had some areas where it was ahead of the Virus TI (the thing to which everything got compared in those days), but the Virus still kind of had an overall edge in terms of just having a little more weight to the sound and better effects. It's a different story now...imo, MX is the overall better sounding synth. It's maybe what I might have imagined a next-generation Virus with more up-to-date filters, better audio rate modulation and even better effects sounding like if one had ever materialized.

I know, what am I thinking, making a serious reply in this thread? We now return you to your regularly scheduled shenanigans (always nice to find an excuse to use that word).

So you think the Access Virus has finally been topped ten years after the release of the first Massive. That’s a very long time, the Virus has hardly changed over the years. MX definitely excels at complex sounds and cinematic sequences. But I’m not so sure it beats the Virus as an everyday trance synth. Not heard enough EDM plucks, punchy basses and trance super saws from MX to make a definite conclusion there. Trance was of course almost the signature of the Virus TI in the early 00’s.

[v1o]

It doesn't browse user presets... cause there is no directory structure. I cannot organize files according to type of sound. They are all just thrown in one folder and that's it. I consider that non functional

You can consider a cow a horse, but that doesn't make it so.

And you can consider that thing in MX to be an actual browser and that doesn't make it so.

it is a browser, just not a very good one. but you can 'browse' presets and you can group together your own. joseC's suggestion, above, can certainly help as well.

it's not a browser... in a browser you can create directories and organize files... MX is a shoebox, not a filing cabinet.

sorry, it IS a browser; one that cannot (yet) create directories, or organize files the way you want. but you can BROWSE presets; there's some (basic) organization, and you can save your own presets (& browse those).

yes it needs be a lot better, and... yes, it's a browser. a shoebox? try fitting some shoes in it...!

There are far more pertinent issues. Does your operating system have a browser? Why don’t you use that to create directories and organise things? Some DAWs even allow you to browse using their built in browser.

[chk071]

Interesting... wouldn't have crossed my mind to compare MX to the Virus.

Any particular reasons why you compare these? Seem like pretty different synths and approaches to me.

[v1o]

I find myself liking the sound but disliking almost everything else. When I load it up and look at it I don't get that slight buzz of "woop, time to make sounds!" like I do with other synths that I enjoy. Said it before but it feels like I'm staring at medical equipment in a lab or something.

I never found the original Massive to be inviting either. To me an inviting synth is something like Thor. But in any case MX is a grown up synth for experienced users that’s why it reminds you of a lab. It you want something inviting from NI use Super8 or Monark.

[Elektronisch]

Interesting... wouldn't have crossed my mind to compare MX to the Virus.

Any particular reasons why you compare these? Seem like pretty different synths and approaches to me.

Weight and thick, precise, punchy sound. Massive had and has a very in your face sound, kinda like a virus wich is great for making sounds to stand out. Tho original Massive did lacked that sort of clarity TI has, maybe because of internal samplerate, dont know.

I remember after having Virus for few years i heard Adam Szabo (viper aka virus ti emu creator) soundset for Massive, it blew me away how similar those thick and precise, punchy leads and plucks sounded,i thought it really sounded kinda similar to virus. Especialy how close Deepack - The Prophecy lead sounded to original in the song (wich is if i remember correctly guys used Roland Jp for that one)

https://soundcloud.com/adamszabo/adam-s ... e-soundset

[recursive one]

Interesting... wouldn't have crossed my mind to compare MX to the Virus.

Any particular reasons why you compare these? Seem like pretty different synths and approaches to me.

To my ears they sound similar. Dunno, hard to explain... The same kind of "weight", "presence", "punch", whatever. It has some of that organic "sci fi" vibe that makes Virus still very important in psytrance. When i was playing some of the factory patches the first thing that crossed my mind was "omg it might be virus!"

I don't think MX was actually inspired by virus, but it follows the same concept - advanced VA/wavetable hybrid with classy fat sound.

[recursive one]

But I’m not so sure it beats the Virus as an everyday trance synth. Not heard enough EDM plucks, punchy basses and trance super saws from MX to make a definite conclusion there. Trance was of course almost the signature of the Virus TI in the early 00’s.

MX must be definitely capable of that. It doesn't have a dedicated hypersaw oscillator but the global unison it has sounds very nice, in fact i've already made a couple of quite decent supersaw leads in MX.

I think people like Ayin Zahev will soon come up with soundsets covering these bases.

[chk071]

Aye. I rather though MX was compared feature wise. Haven't really paid much attention to similarities sound wise.

Made me watch some more Virus demos on Youtube, BTW. Man... that thing sounds so uber thick and lush.



I'd be damned if i don't hear quite a bit of... wait for it... ALIASING!!!... in that demo.

[v1o]

This is a medical instrument control panel, which connects via USB:

Just relabel the buttons, add a few mod wheels, and a long horizontal ribbon controller at the bottom, and it would make an awesome VSTi controller!

If the "sound" button produces anything else than airhorn, I will be very disappointed

The scale button for changing musical scales, baseline button for making bass lines, frequency button for EQ, those sliders for panning etc etc. There is a missed business opportunity modding this as a DAW controller. Can’t be too difficult to remap the buttons to various DAWs.

[Hink]

5 pages of absolutely nothing pertaining to MX.

Yes, and unfortunately I feel compelled to waste my time reading through all this daily just to see if the manual has yet made an appearance.

i'm reading through it now...if it's not on track by the time I'm done it will be locked or moved

edit: on track now, but fair warning...I dont mind moving it to everything eles but some people want a thread about the synth and not more nonsense so (and why I must say this daily to the same people puzzles me) stay on topic

[vurt]

even has an auto button to write tracks for you.

[v1o]

I'd be damned if i don't hear quite a bit of... wait for it... ALIASING!!!... in that demo.

It’s not aliasing when it’s musical and part of the texture of the sound.

[chk071]

I'd be damned if i don't hear quite a bit of... wait for it... ALIASING!!!... in that demo.

It’s not aliasing when it’s musical and part of the texture of the sound.

Exactly.

A guy from German Synthesizer.de mag called it "Schwurbel" once, which pretty much nails it.