Upcoming Synapse OB-Xa: Obsession

[fmr]

If you can't hear the difference between an authentic Oberheim sound and other synths, and that difference, such as it is, does not appeal to you, then, no, you don't need to be concerned about Obsession.

Yes, many VAs can make sounds that sound similar. No, most VAs can't actually sound like hardware Oberheims, especially as you push the Oberheim aspects, let alone really sound like them rather than an approximation.

Except those weren't the sounds the OB-Xa (or the SEM, or the OB-X, or the OB-8) was known for, nor do they have anything special that would require an OB-Xa emulation, or even that an OB-Xa would have any advantage to give.

I would like to hear these coming out of a real OB-Xa

[recursive one]

I like the Anx' clips, especially that rave siren patch is awesome.

But I've got the feeling that with some clever programming almost all these sounds could have been made in Dune3, I guess with some slight post-processing they would be almost indistinguishable.

An authentic Jump patch is frankly the last thing I would ever need, and overall Dune3 and Diva do a pretty good job as general purpose VAs with extras, so I wonder, what are the advantages of Obsession over these?

If you can't hear the difference between an authentic Oberheim sound and other synths, and that difference, such as it is, does not appeal to you, then, no, you don't need to be concerned about Obsession.

Yes, many VAs can make sounds that sound similar. No, most VAs can't actually sound like hardware Oberheims, especially as you push the Oberheim aspects, let alone really sound like them rather than an approximation.

I see. I never had an oberheim synth myself and never had any special attachment to their sound.

I was listening to various YouTube demos of Obxa, sure it's a very good sounding synth but as i already own Diva and Dune3 it becomes somewhat hard yo justify spending money just to have, say, 5 pct better authencity to a synth I never owned.

I'll surely give the demo a try, actually i used to think the same about Repro.

[abernathy]

I like the Anx' clips, especially that rave siren patch is awesome.

But I've got the feeling that with some clever programming almost all these sounds could have been made in Dune3, I guess with some slight post-processing they would be almost indistinguishable.

An authentic Jump patch is frankly the last thing I would ever need, and overall Dune3 and Diva do a pretty good job as general purpose VAs with extras, so I wonder, what are the advantages of Obsession over these?

If you can't hear the difference between an authentic Oberheim sound and other synths, and that difference, such as it is, does not appeal to you, then, no, you don't need to be concerned about Obsession.

Yes, many VAs can make sounds that sound similar. No, most VAs can't actually sound like hardware Oberheims, especially as you push the Oberheim aspects, let alone really sound like them rather than an approximation.

I see. I never had an oberheim synth myself and never had any special attachment to their sound.

I was listening to various YouTube demos of Obxa, sure it's a very good sounding synth but as i already own Diva and Dune3 it becomes somewhat hard yo justify spending money just to have, say, 5 pct better authencity to a synth I never owned.

I'll surely give the demo a try, actually i used to think the same about Repro.

For me, when I think about emulations of classic gear, a lot of the appeal actually is the limitations/restrictions. I prefer Repro over Diva, because it always sounds like a vintage analog synth (happens to be my preference) while Diva can go into many different territories (a plus for other people). I also get easily overwhelmed with too many options. I demoed Omnisphere, and thought NO!!! Like their tagline: Endless Possibilities. I remember many years ago when GForce first released MTron, and all these people that weren't familiar with the Mellotron were like "what is this? It sounds like crap and the samples aren't even looped?" They didn't get that that was the appeal for other users... Seems like if you like jack-of-all-trades synths, you're already well covered with Dune, Diva etc. and you don't NEED these specialized emulations. I for one can't wait for Obsession!!

[Yorrrrrr]

I don't see much point in comparing an emulation of a vintage hardware analog polyphonic synth, to a modern do-it-all general purpose monster software synth.

[Teksonik]

For me, when I think about emulations of classic gear, a lot of the appeal actually is the limitations/restrictions.

For me having owned and gotten bored with analog hardware synths years ago "limitations/restrictions" hold no appeal at all......

I realize when something is billed as an "emulation" it should emulate but adding new and modern features on top is where the appeal comes in.....

[chk071]

Think I'll give it a go and try to recreate some of the sound in that vid when Obsession is out. Seems like a worthwhile thing, because I really like those sounds.

[abernathy]

For me, when I think about emulations of classic gear, a lot of the appeal actually is the limitations/restrictions.

For me having owned and gotten bored with analog hardware synths years ago "limitations/restrictions" hold no appeal at all......

I realize when something is billed as an "emulation" it should emulate but adding new and modern features on top is where the appeal comes in.....

Well, I was thrilled when The Legend got polyphony, so it's not like I don't want any new features! But for me it's about nailing the sound when you say it is a certain synth, more than adding a slew of new/modern features. I can go to Zebra, etc for that. If you are bored with analog hardware synths, are you really that interested in Obsession? I think of the whole point of Obsession, The Legend, Repro is to have a vintage analog synth ITB.

[TheMaestro]

That said, to me it s the most pointless exercise imaginable.

You'd be right if it weren't that the synth is being presented as an OBXA emulation(?), and that basic sound is literally the one the synth is best known for.

Except, as we've discussed, what's on the record is not the raw sound of the synth that was used and if people are so stupid they don't get that, then they are probably too stupid to notice the difference anyway. The real test is no more than hearing the sound and thinking "that sounds like Jump". If you can do that, you've cracked it, I reckon.

I'm still awaiting examples showing the resonance detail of Synapses effort.

Sorry, I'm not posting examples of anything but surely there is enough to get an idea from the samples Anx has provided? As for being defensive, I have no skin in the game and absolutely nothing to get defensive about. That said, I am hugely impressed by OBSession, the whole is so much more than the sum of its parts so, yes, I think it is absolutely ridiculous that anyone would give flying f**k about just one patch. But this is KVR so it's my bad for expecting anything better.

the best bit is, none of those sounds are in the factory bank

Think of the money you'll make releasing them as a commercial bank!

I don’t think the goal or purpose of an emulation is to just make people “think” it sound like Jump, or any other capabilities of the emulated synth.
If so, you could choose almost any “similar” VST synths.
But if that doesn’t matter to you, why argue?

[BONES]

Is that for you to decide? The FBM synths, for example, don't try to be slavish copies, just to invoke the spirit of the originals. If the current Fury800 thread is any indication, that seems to be enough for a lot of people. In the case of Mono/Fury, I think FBM have made a better VSTi than Korg's more precise Mono/Poly clone. Yes, the anoraks will want to compare it in infinite detail but who knows which approach will ship more units? More importantly, if you can make a better synth by deviating from the original, why the hell wouldn't you? It's not like Tom Oberheim ruled a line under the OB-Xa and said "that's it, this synth is perfect and I don't want to make any more changes, ever again".

[Teksonik]

If you are bored with analog hardware synths, are you really that interested in Obsession?

Yes because despite being marketed as an emulation it does add features not found in the hardware.

[carrieres]

https://soundcloud.com/ccarrieres/test-pad-obsession

[chk071]

I like the Anx' clips, especially that rave siren patch is awesome.

But I've got the feeling that with some clever programming almost all these sounds could have been made in Dune3, I guess with some slight post-processing they would be almost indistinguishable.

An authentic Jump patch is frankly the last thing I would ever need, and overall Dune3 and Diva do a pretty good job as general purpose VAs with extras, so I wonder, what are the advantages of Obsession over these?

If you can't hear the difference between an authentic Oberheim sound and other synths, and that difference, such as it is, does not appeal to you, then, no, you don't need to be concerned about Obsession.

Yes, many VAs can make sounds that sound similar. No, most VAs can't actually sound like hardware Oberheims, especially as you push the Oberheim aspects, let alone really sound like them rather than an approximation.

I see. I never had an oberheim synth myself and never had any special attachment to their sound.

I was listening to various YouTube demos of Obxa, sure it's a very good sounding synth but as i already own Diva and Dune3 it becomes somewhat hard yo justify spending money just to have, say, 5 pct better authencity to a synth I never owned.

I'll surely give the demo a try, actually i used to think the same about Repro.

I guess the point with these emulations is that you can just push a button, and have "that" sound immediately. I'm sure you can get reasonable close with other or general purpose synths, but... I always notice that something is missing, or that it's more difficult to get where I want to.

I.e. same as with your Virus.

[ozinga]

I used to have Matrix 12 and OB-8. When you play a chord you can not believe the power and life coming out of those machines but honestly new generation HW and SW synths excite me more.
Nevertheless I will def. buy the Obsession

[chk071]

I almost bought a Matrix-1000 from Ebay once, when there was a offer for 180 €... seeing the used prices now, I could kick myself hard that I didn't do it.

Not sure if I would have become happy with it though... I think you need an additional programmer to be able to program it properly.

[ozinga]

I almost bought a Matrix-1000 from Ebay once, when there was a offer for 180 €... seeing the used prices now, I could kick myself hard that I didn't do it.

Not sure if I would have become happy with it though... I think you need an additional programmer to be able to program it properly.

Don't think so. The real deal was Xpander and Matrix 12