what do you like and dislike about tone 2 electra2

[Igro]

Below this Frequency some are unable to hear anything, I guess. Lol

[original flipper]

Hi

I demoed Electra with the intension of trying out one of the 'BIG' features - which is being able to load your own samples - unfortunately this feature is not available in the demo!!!

What do users think of this feature - is it possible to manipulate user samples in interesting ways?

[Markus Krause]

Since this thread is really outdated and does not refer to the current feature-set i will give an update. There have been a lot of changes since then.

Electra 2.7.5 (free update)

This update comes with a completely new standalone-version for PC. It also fixes some problems on PC.
The update to v2.7.5 is available for free and is downward compatible with all previous versions. All existing song projects and patches can be loaded without any further steps necessary.

New features (standalone-version for PC):

Added a recorder that can export your jam-session to a wav-file
The BPM-rate can be changed
Added a soft-clipping-algorithm with low harmonic distortion
The current patch can be saved on exit and is reloaded automatically on start
MME-driver support
Midi-through support with output-routing
Added Midi-velocity-curves with multipoint-splines
Optional Midi-transposition with up to +-48 semitones
Optional Midi-channel-filtering
The current BPM-rate, CPU-load and volume is shown on the top-panel
Tooltips are shown on the top-panel


Enhancements (standalone-version for PC):

Lower latencies for the soundcard drivers
More responsive GUI with 120 Hz refresh-rate for smooth knob movements
Many further small enhancements


Fixes (PC-version):

Electra sometimes did not output sound after loading a project in Cubase. It could occur if a patch with mono/legato was used.
The link to the manual in the start-menu did not work.



Electra 2.7 (free update)

The update to v2.7 is a major update, which is available for free. It includes new synthesis modes, many additional effects, enhanced sound, improved performance and lots of new features. Electra 2.7 is downward compatible with all previous versions. All existing song projects and patches can be loaded without any further steps necessary. They will benefit from the enhanced sound quality.

New features:

New effect 'Hyper Unison' which stacks 3,5,7 or 9 voices.
New effect 'Haas Effect' which creates the impression of positioning a sound source.
New triangular waveshaper 'ShapTri' for the distortion section.
New asymmetric waveshaper 'ShapAsy' for the distortion section.
New pulsed waveshaper 'ShapPul' for the distortion section.
New warping waveshaper 'ShapWar' for the distortion section.
New asymmetric waveshaper 'ShapHal' for the distortion section.
New zapping waveshaper 'ShapZap' for the distortion section.
New symmetric waveshaper 'ShapSym' for the distortion section.
New distortion type 'Selfsync' which creates a sub-harmonic sound.
New distortion type 'Degrade' which adds mirror-frequencies to the signal.
New distortion type 'Noise' which mixes white noise with the signal.
New distortion type 'NoiseRM' which ring-modulates the signal with noise.
New distortion type 'Scream' with fractal feedback.
Added support for *.sfz files. They can be imported with the FILE menu.
New sample-oscillator-effect: 'Rectify' distorts a sample.
New sample-oscillator-effect: 'Noisify 2' destroys a sample.
New sample-oscillator-effect: 'Invert' changes the phase of a sample by 180 degrees.
New sample-oscillator-effect: 'Fold' flips the negative amplitude of a sample.
Multi-line tooltips for better readability and more detailed descriptions.
New microtuning-modes '432Hz -32cent','424Hz -66cent','449Hz +33cent' and '457Hz +66cent'.
When multilayer-editing is active the knobs show a red line.
Added drag&drop support for multilayer-editing.
'Quick import sample' does generate a new program name automatically.
'Quick import sample' maps the mod-wheel to vibrato automatically.
'Quick import sample' automatically generates a soft velocity mapping to volume.


Enhancements:

Patches are loading up to 10x faster.
Songs are loading faster.
Drastically reduced CPU-load after switching through the patches.
Enhanced sound of the 'Shape' waveshaper (20x oversampling & removed a click).
Enhanced sound of 'Tube' distortion (10x oversampling).
Enhanced sound of 'Soft' distortion (10x oversampling).
Enhanced sound of 'Crush' distortion (10x oversampling).
Enhanced sound of 'Chorus' and 'Ensemble'. They sound smoother and less detuned.
Enhanced sound of 'Delay','Delay Band','PingPong','Multitap','Delay Diffuse' and 'Delay Dual'. The echo sounds less detuned.
Better default values for some effects.
Enhanced sound of 'Reverb Hall', 'Reverb Cathedral', 'Reverb Big', 'Reverb Plate', 'Reverb Infinity', 'Reverb Glass'. It has a more natural sound with less detuning and the low-end has a more linear frequency response.
Plugin editor can be minimized permanently by clicking the EDIT button.
More linear frequency response above 14 Khz for 'Loudness' and 'Bright' mode.
Enhanced sound, frequency response and phase response of EQ low.
PC version is smarter with selecting directories for saving and loading.
Useless scroll-bars are not longer shown in the standalone version on PC.
Drastically enhanced performance if excessive key-splitting for the oscillators is used.
More detailed descriptions for many tooltips.
The patch browser does react to midi-program-changes.
Parallel and serial filter-routing is easier to set-up.
Fine-tuned the coordinates of some controls and texts.


Changes:

ElectraXmidi.cfg is now stored within the ElectraX_data directory.
ElectraMouse.cfg is now stored within the ElectraX_data directory.
ElectraTooltips.cfg is now stored within the ElectraX_data directory.
Electra2.pdf is now stored within the ElectraX_data directory.
'Smart Unison' has been renamed to 'Chorus White'
'Chorus 2' has been renamed to 'Chorus Standard'.
Sample effect 'Square' has been renamed to 'Quadrature'.
The sinoid-waveshaper 'Shaper' has been renamed to 'ShapSin'.
The effect-parameters do not longer contain a '*'.


Fixes:

Fixed a compatibility problem with recording automation in some hosts.
Fixed a bug with list-selectors on Mac 64bit.
The grid of the step-lfo was displayed incorrectly.
Workaround for a Cubase-bug which sets the window-size incorrectly after 'save a default preset'.
A double-click to the matrix-send-level did not update the modulation-depth-sectors for the knobs properly.
Fixed a possible crash which could happen when the plugin is closed while a tooltip is shown.
Fixed a bug in the fast-sine-approximation on PC.
The check-mark for the patch selector was missing in some hosts after closing and opening the GUI.
Key-range for note-filtering was displayed incorrectly.
Fixed some typos in the tooltips.
Initializing a new patch did not always update the program name correctly.
Fixed a rarely appearing crash that could happen when the patches were switched while a track was playing.
Fixed a crash that could happen if samples are played back with extremely high pitch.
Workaround for a bug of FL Studio on the Mac. A crash could happen if GUI was closed while the browser was open.
Fixed a rarely appearing crash on the Mac that could happen when the plugin was deleted while a tooltip was shown.
Fixed an unlikely crash on the Mac which happened if the plugin was closed immideately after opening the browser.
The ESC key did not work in some hosts.
Fixed some GUI glitches in the browser which could appear if very long names are used.



Electra 2.6 (free update)

The update to v2.6 is a major update, which is available for free. It includes a better user interface, new synthesis modes, enhanced sound and a large number of new features.
Electra 2.6 is downward compatible with all previous versions. All existing song projects and patches can be loaded without any further steps necessary. They will benefit from the enhanced sound quality.

New features:

New synthesis mode: Analog oscillators (Saw, Square, Triangle, Sine, Half Sine, Comb, Pulse 25%)
New synthesis mode: Soft sync (is active if the target oscillator is analog; works well with triangle)
New synthesis mode: Analog pulsewidth modulation (select Analog->'Pulse PW'; PW knob controls the pulsewidth)
New effect: 'Gated Reverb' which syncs to the BPM rate
New effect: 'Gated Reverb Echo' is Gated Reverb with a delay which syncs to BPM
New effect: 'Reverse Reverb' which syncs to the BPM rate
New effect: 'Stereo Width' allows to spread the panorama from mono to surround
New effect: 'Laser Punch' adds additional punch. Use it with a sawtooth to gereate a zzapping 'Rubber Bass' sound
New effect: 'Stereo flanger'
New effect: 'Surround pan' with dolby prologic compatible surround encoding
New filter: 'LP Butter' is an analog modeled butterworth filter with 24dB. The analog knob controls the noisyness
New filter: 'LP Tone2' is an analog modeled leapfrog filter with 24dB. The analog knob controls non-linearity
New filter: 'LP Elliptic' is a digital filter with 40dB slope
The patch browser shows a scrollbar if more than 26 categories exist
Doubleclick on a knob resets it to the default value
Custom Wave->'Load wave' now shows a popup menu with all available waveforms in ElectraX_wavetables
Custom waveforms can quickly be selected with the mouswheel
Custom Wave->'Random wave' generates a random waveform
'Save Wave' exports a wav file with the oscillator's waveform
New Sample effect: 'Phase shifter' creates a very similar sounding sample. It can be used for 'sample clearing', since it makes it difficult to proove the origin of the sample.
New halftone mode for the arpeggiator: 3/4 selects a minor or major third which depends on the root key
'Natural scrolling' support for the mousewheel on Mac
List selectors now have checkmarks
40 additional patches


Enhancements:

Enhanced sound of 'Reverb Hall', especially for for small sizes
Enhanced sound of 'Reverb Room' for small sizes
Enhanced sound of 'Reverb Cathedral'
Slightly enhanced sound of 'Reverb Big' with reduced low frequency rumble
Slightly enhanced sound of 'Reverb Infinity' with reduced low frequency rumble
A hand symbol is shown for text-style parameters which can be altered with the mouse
More detailed description for some tooltips
If tooltips are hidden the info boxes for the knobs are also hidden
Better default settings for Chorus
Better default settings for Ensemble
Mousewheel on PC has a more aggressive focus
No more clipping in the waveform displays
More clean sound of PWM modulation on 'custom wave'
Filter frequency response display is more precise
Higher precision of triangle, square and saw LFO at high frequencies
More linear frequency response of 'Dynamic loud', 'Bright' and 'Loudness'
Init->'Reset All' sets Pitchwheel to +-12
Cleaned up some tooltips
Several small enhancements
More smooth looking waveform displays
Reworked some 'init patch' templates


Fixes:

The timing in 44kHz and 48 kHz samplerate was incorrect
One some PC hosts the mouse cursor showed a wait circle when a knob was moved
LFO 'Fade' did not work with some waveforms
The checkmark 'Multilayer edit' was not shown after closing and opening the GUI
Fixed a denormal in the Reverb effect
Fixed a click that could be audible when volume envelope sustain was set to 0
Monophonic arpeggiators sometimes did not play if keys were hit while loading a patch
'Hold' time in the envelope section was displayed incorrectly
LFO speed text did display a mouse up/down arrow on mouseover
STEP Lfo speed display was incorrect
Modulation depth of knobs could have been incorrect if matrix target was switched


Changes:

Text-style parameters do not longer display a "*"



Electra 2.5 (free update)

The update to v2.5 is a major update, which is available for free.
Electra 2.5 is downward compatible with all previous versions. All existing song projects and patches can be loaded without any further steps necessary. They will benefit from the enhanced sound quality.

New features:

Drag & Drop modulation: Drag an envelope or lfo and drop it to a knob to modulate it
Right-click on a knob opens a menu where you can assign a massive amount of modulation sources
8 additional delay effects: Wide, Fat, Diffuse, Dual, Tape, Echo, Resonator, Reflections
10 additonal distortion effects: Saturate, Soft clip, Hard clip, Rectify, Bitcrush, Warp, Waveshape, Ripple, Amp Sim, Multiband
Stereo sample support for FILE -> 'Quick import sample'
Support for 32 bit wav files
Support for wav files created by LogicX
Support for larger samples
Every layer now can play stacked chords. Select 'Stack' in the arpeggiator and choose a chord
Every layer now can solve chords , which is useful for subharmonics. Select 'Chord root' in the Arpeggiator
New Midi learn algorithm: Right-click on a knob to assign a CC
Hovering the mouse over a knob shows the current parameter value and the modulation source
Modulation depth control on top left of a knob if a source is assigned
Sectors on knobs show the modulation amount
A red sector is shown when clipping of modulation occurs
7 new LFO shapes: 'Square %'
6 new LFO shapes: 'Stair'
Tooltips are shown when the mouse is hovered over a control
Undo/Redo function for sample editor
New mod matrix targets "PitchOct", which allow a seamless tuning of +-1 octave
FILE -> 'Quick save patch' overwrites the current fxp file with new settings
INIT -> 'Clean matrix' removes unused matrix slots
COPY -> 'Arpeggiator' copies all arp parameters of the current layer
COPY -> 'Step LFO' copies all Step LFO parameters of the current layer
PASTE -> 'Arpeggiator' pastes the arp parameters to the current layer
PASTE -> 'Step LFO' pastes the Step LFO parameters to the current layer
HELP -> 'Show version info'
HELP -> 'Download updates'
More available halftones for the arpeggiator
49 new patches (NewSoundsV2.5)


Enhancements:

Drastically enhanced sound quality of frequencies over 10Khz
More linear frequency response
More punchy volume envelope
Enhanced sound of most reverb types
More inituitive parameter names for automation
.rnk files are stored within ElectraX_sounds now
Patch rankings are written immideately on change
Slightly enhanced sound quality for very large samples
Enhanced sound of FM
Enhanced sound of Sync
Higher precision of high frequencies for Wavetable oscillator
Higher precision of high frequencies for Custom Wave osciallator
More linear frequency response for fractal oscillators
Optimized performance and sound of hypersaw oscillators
Enhanced sound of distortion
Enhanced sound of the filters on high cutoff and resonance levels
Enhanced sound of the effects
No more missing frequencies above 13 kHz
More smart algorithm for the microtuning
Rearranged FILE menu
More precise knobs
Slightly less RAM required
Enhanced some graphics
More high-end frequencies for 'dynamic loud' mode
More precise LFOs
Enhanced sound of the Multitap delay by adding a low cut filter
Enhanced sound of the PingPong delay by adding a low cut filter
Activation dialog is now also available in German
More intuitive handling of sample markers
Various small enhancements


Fixes:

Workaround for a bug in Orion, which caused a crash on scrolling through the automation parameters
The volume of the first 1ms of a song render could have been to low
Aliaser was detuned in 96kHz
Midi learn did not work on layer 2-4
Fixed a compatibility problem when knob circular mode was selected in some hosts
Fixed a bug in loudness, which did not sound right
Autotuning samples does not longer reset the halftone settings of the osc


Changes (just cosmetical):

Renamed "Bass boost" mode to "Analog boost"
Renamed "Reverb Band" to "Reverb Plate"



Electra 2.1 (free update)

The update is free and downward compatible with v2.0.

New Ultrasaw oscillators (PW controls detuning):

4 new oscs 'Hypersaw Vir 3x-9x' which can sound like the Hypersaw of the Virus
New osc 'Supersaw JP' which has been inspired by the famous JP 8000
New osc 'Supersaw clean' (same as above, but without disharmonic aliasing)
New osc 'Supernoise' with a lush and creamy sound
New osc 'Hypersquare 9x' with 9 detuned squarewaves
New osc 'Hypernoise 9x' with a lush and creamy sound


New effects:

Vocoder Pro is a high-end vocoder with 20 bands. The design is inspired by the legendary EMS 3000.
Vocoder SVC has been inspired by the famous SVC 350.


New features:

The effect parameters of all 4 insert effects can be modulated with the matrix. This can be used to create very unique sounds. Please note that not all possible routings make sense.
Additional matrix target 'FX Mix' controls the dry/wet level of the insert effect
Additional matrix targets 'FX Par1-4' control the effect parameters
The new sound mode 'scientific' turns Electra2 into a precise signal generator
The new sound mode 'LowCut 140Hz' cleans up the mix by removing low frequencies from Pads, Keys and Leads
The new sound mode 'HighCut analog' simulates the muffled sound of analog synths and cleans up the mix by removing high frequencies from bass sounds.
Additional patches which use the Supersaw OSCs: Electra 2.1 now ships with 1240 sounds
236 additional waveforms


Enhanced sound:

The Vocoder effect has been replaced by an enhanced one
Smart oversampling of the existing Ultrasaw osciallators
More linear frequency response
Replaced 'Reverb Hall' and 'Reverb Room' with better sounding algorithms
High frequencies of 'Delay' and 'PingPong' effect


Enhanced GUI & interface:

Mousewheel support for patch browser
Better performance when patch browser is open
Midi CC assignments are shown on top of the knobs
Midi learn is more intuitive to use (right click on a knob)
Menus are not longer closed automatically after 10 seconds
Display of the new Ultrasaw oscs shows spread
Switching synthesis mode does auto-set PW to a useful value


Further enhancements:

Reduced RAM use by 30%. This allows to load 4 additional instances in 32 bit mode.
Faster loading of patches.
Reduced CPU use on patch loading.


Bug fixes:

Fixed a problem with the LFO sync in song mode which could appear in some hosts
Fixed a rarely appearing crash after loading a patch and then selecting 'init'->'reset all'
Fixed a problem with saving the midi learn configuration when several instances were opened and closed at the same time
Fixed a possible GUI glitch after loading a patch
Fixed a possible crash which could happen with some very old hosts
Fixed a problem that could happen if tone was routed in the matrix
Background grid of step lfo was not displayed correctly
Fixed a bug in 'Loudness' where high frequencies were boosted in a slightly incorrect way
Dialog box was opened twice if a double click was used to load a wav to osc


Changes:

Renamed 'Loudness' to 'Dynamic loud'
Renamed 'Bass boost' to 'Dynamic bass'
Renamed 'Analog' to 'Bass boost'
Renamed 'Psychoacoust.' to 'Loudness'

[DoubleTake]

All the updates, yet the browser still can not see beyond one level subfolders?
Is this just a demo limitation?

[Chipi]

This synthesizer sounds better than synthesizers that cost 5 times more and I can get huge sounds better than from a Yamaha Montage or a Korg Kronos that you can barely visualize the display and navigating between editing pages is terribly difficult. With Electra v2.7 everything is on the plate served in front of me.



Impressive editing menu designed with criteria and knowledge of what the modern musician needs from a great synthesizer.

Version 2.7 has greatly improved the quality and audio of this great synthesizer. The four independent layers that can be grouped together creating warm and analogous sounds is impressive.

Hopefully they can improve somewhat the process of uploading samples and edit it with some window that can be detached from the original interface , and also improve the process of saving sounds as I have lost many that once saved when you 'upload' do not sound, simply dumb/silent/no sound , I think it must be a glitch or bug somewhere in the chain of saving under Windows 10.



Everything is on one page making sound creation simple and fast. It has a flavour/taste and a Spirit of the Analog Era but also a professional polished sound that makes it unique. Highly recommended!

[magicmusic]

Since this thread is really outdated and does not refer to the current feature-set i will give an update. There have been a lot of changes since then.
......

yes there come alot of changes but it is still not able to load and save arp presets. other tone2 synths can do this

[Chipi]

Since this thread is really outdated and does not refer to the current feature-set i will give an update. There have been a lot of changes since then.
......

yes there come alot of changes but it is still not able to load and save arp presets. other tone2 synths can do this

--- v. 3.0 maybe?


I would like a programming option to be able to navigate through the sounds and copy 'Layers' without leaving the sound I'm programming, that would make it wonderfully easy to create new sounds, also a small specific sample editing window would be great, the current one is tiny, direct import of Stereo samples without leaving a preset when you edit it, a parametric equalizer and two effects per layer and two global FXs would be fantastic, as for the sound quality of Electra 2, it is magnificent and very few virtual synthesizers come close. ..

[MISSY]

REQUEST To TONE2 ~ I've just downloaded all demos AGAIN and I'm just having a look around the NEW Ray Blaster and Warlock and Liking what I hear SO FAR but that autonomous woman stating PLEASE SUPPORT TONE2 and buy every minute or so is REALLY REALLY annoying and I know that you will say well just buy it but I want to have a look around, I mean can't you just put silence there or something ? I just feel like uninstalling them all and moving on, AGAIN. It's just overpowering repetitive and beyond annoying if I'm going to spend 200 NZD EACH or whatever but your prerogative I guess. I gave up last month for the same reason as I got beyond ratty but thought I would try again as I've unwell in bed 8 days and have just spent money with Acoustica Mixcraft 10 Pro and Reason's Rack Extensions and have money spare. I'll buy Analog Lab V by Arturia this week because I've got all of those demos and there's no interference at all. I HUMBLY request you change that annoying voice to a silence insert so I can have a realistic demo with a view to purchase. Thank you, Steph NZ

[MISSY]

8 hours later have uninstalled them all due to annoying copyright reminder but loving the little I have heard of the synths so I'm going to see if I can buy some Tone2 software on eBay and bypass this interfering American Tone2 woman ! Have a fabulous day.

[BBFG#]

Be aware that any second hand purchase of their software becomes NFR and therefore yours forever.
Also be very careful of eBay sellers with this particular brand as the lower price often is illegal software that will really leave you feeling screwed.

If you're not buying directly from them, skip eBay and choose one of the reputable dealers you run across here.

[Korg Supporter]

Be aware that any second hand purchase of their software becomes NFR and therefore yours forever.
Also be very careful of eBay sellers with this particular brand as the lower price often is illegal software that will really leave you feeling screwed.

If you're not buying directly from them, skip eBay and choose one of the reputable dealers you run across here.

Or you can wait until Black Friday to get Icarus, Electra, and Gladiator from Thomann for roughly $75 each!

[MorpherX]

Dislike:
1. It's not possible to copy/paste layers between instances
2. It's not possible to load layers directly from the browser to the selected layer
If a user loads a layer fron the browser the complete preset is overwritten.
The dev should have a look at Xphraze vsti, there it is perfectly solved.