Have Modern VST Instruments Replaced Your Hardware Synths ?

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'Anything goes' is not my motto. I have very clear views and won't shy away from judgment.
so you think that for instance The Dark Knight soundtrack to sound mediocre, since it is using some “mediocre VST technology from 2005-2012“ and it would surely have sounded so much more better with some analog from the 60's, 70's or 80's?
Hans Zimmer and his team surely must be fools or masochists as they chose something so mediocre sounding as one of their main sound sources.
The GAS is always greener on the other side!

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vurt wrote: Wed Jan 13, 2021 9:31 pm do you use all the keys?
or just the fat ones?
all of them, at the same time :band2:

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FapFilter wrote: Wed Jan 13, 2021 9:35 pm
'Anything goes' is not my motto. I have very clear views and won't shy away from judgment.
so you think that for instance The Dark Knight soundtrack to sound mediocre, since it is using some “mediocre VST technology from 2005-2012“ and it would surely have sounded so much more better with some analog from the 60's, 70's or 80's?
Hans Zimmer and his team surely must be fools or masochists as they chose something so mediocre sounding as one of their main sound sources.
I don't know that soundtrack, so I can't say anything about it.

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AnX wrote: Wed Jan 13, 2021 9:26 pm from my cold dead hands....

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The red version sounded warm :hihi:
The blue version sounded cold 8)

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FapFilter wrote: Wed Jan 13, 2021 9:35 pm
'Anything goes' is not my motto. I have very clear views and won't shy away from judgment.
so you think that for instance The Dark Knight soundtrack to sound mediocre, since it is using some “mediocre VST technology from 2005-2012“ and it would surely have sounded so much more better with some analog from the 60's, 70's or 80's?
Hans Zimmer and his team surely must be fools or masochists as they chose something so mediocre sounding as one of their main sound sources.
Zimmer is solely responsible for ruining several good films I've seen in last 10 years.... appaling work, never understood the plaudits..... all subjective tho.... :roll:

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AnX wrote: Wed Jan 13, 2021 9:35 pm
vurt wrote: Wed Jan 13, 2021 9:31 pm do you use all the keys?
or just the fat ones?
all of them, at the same time :band2:
Volumina is already 58 years old (starts at 2:00)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=as63uqY5FBs

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e-crooner wrote: Wed Jan 13, 2021 7:55 pmMany artists did have access to Fairlight, Synclavier etc.
Maybe many of the artists you remember but not a whole lot of those I was into at the time - Spizzenergi, Wall of Voodoo, The Danse Society, etc. Those things were beyond the reach of independent artists back then, you had to have the backing of a major record company and they had to believe you could make money for them before they'd indulge yo in any of that stuff.
After all, most of them didn't record their music at home like today, but in studios, many of which had such expensive gear. Yet, they continued to use Rolands, Oberheims etc. as well. Why?
You already answered that question - because they only had access to the good stuff in the studio They couldn't take it on the road with them, so if they'd written something on their MS-20, why wouldn't they play it on that in the studio?
NOVAkILL : Asus RoG Flow Z13, Core i9, 16GB RAM, Win11 | EVO 16 | Studio One | bx_oberhausen, GR-8, JP6K, Union, Hexeract, Olga, TRK-01, SEM, BA-1, Thorn, Prestige, Spire, Legend-HZ, ANA-2, VG Iron 2 | Uno Pro, Rocket.

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In answer to the OP title question:

Of course not. Neither are my hardware instruments replacing the software. They compliment each other well. So why would I dismiss half of what is available unless circumstances forced me to?

They all have their limitations, especially software where what and how much you can run can be dependant on a how much your system can handle at once?

Still waiting for the three OSs to sell a "DAW and music only" so that all the resources are dedicated to just that (Linux seeming the closest to that ideal).
And that networking them together would be as easy as a single cord between them. (Like MIDI did for us in the '80s.)

(And I didn't sell my memorymoog until '94 when feeding the family became more important.) That is also my single argument to why no software should ever be NFR.

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BBFG# wrote: Wed Jan 13, 2021 11:38 pm They all have their limitations, especially software where what and how much you can run can be dependant on a how much your system can handle at once?
Not that I want to argue this vs. that, but... that's just not an argument when you can only run one instance of your hardware synth in any case. Opposed to dozens of instances you can usually run of your software synth.

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Then again, owning so many whatever synths does not make one a good mix/sound engineer.

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vurt wrote: Wed Jan 13, 2021 8:34 pmtalking heads for example, had you said psycho killer, while i love the track, i can imagine it in an ebm setting, so wouldn't have been as interested regarding what you had done with it.
Ah, I see now. I'm not doing them EBM style, I am doing them pretty much as they were. That's the only way I could see to do a lot of them. So they pretty much all have BM-Vice drums, which is a mix of classic 80s drum machine sounds, and there are also a lot of guitars from Ujam's various guitar instruments. In fact, Blitzkreig Bop is just BM-Vice, VB-Rowdy, VG-Iron and VG-Carbon, not a synth sound in sight, and it's awesome.
with a bit of luck, you might get out to perform this year :tu:
probably lots of aus gigs rather than world travel for now.
I think travel, when it does come back, is going to be prohibitively expensive for a long time. I am resigned to the fact we will probably never again travel to perform. It will be Sydney or nothing, I reckon.
AnX wrote: Wed Jan 13, 2021 9:26 pm from my cold dead hands....
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I think I gave mine away. I couldn't find anyone willing to pay actual money for it, even with the strap-on kit.
e-crooner wrote: Wed Jan 13, 2021 8:41 pmIf a synth does not sound great and pleasant to my ears, I don't feel like using it in the first place.
Whereas I am likely to think that maybe I am doing something wrong. It's more about the limits of an instrument for me and both the SH101 and Ju06 I owned were far too limited to be of any real value in my set-up. Decent enough at what they did but all that was in too narrow a range. I'd probably feel the same way about a real SEM, too, even though I absolutely love bx_oberhausen.
ReleaseCandidate wrote: Wed Jan 13, 2021 8:53 pmMy point is that that the sound 'quality' (almost) doesn't matter if the 'music' is good.
Great music is also great when played with a less quality instrument or badly recorded/mixed. Actually that is a sign of great music. If your music depends on the 'quality' of your sound, your music isn't what's good, but your instruments are :P
Absolutely and you don't have to look any further than the vast majority of popular music today. Compare anything in the Top 40 today with Soft Cell's version of Tainted Love and you'll see what I mean. Technically, Tainted Love sounds pretty awful but it remains an absolute classic nonetheless and still fills dancefloors 40 years on. Mind you, a lot of what I still think of as a shitty sound is now revered as "classic". e.g. It does my head in that anyone would want a TR606, my first ever drum machine and a worthless piece of garbage, yet Behringer thought it was worth making a clone.
e-crooner wrote: Wed Jan 13, 2021 9:22 pmStill, an irritating voice can ruin a song, Anita Baker is one such case. I strongly dislike her slurring, whining voice on higher notes, and the great music as such can't really compensate for that.
I'm like that with R.E.M. They are a band I should really love but I cannot stand Michael Stipe's whiny, twangy drawl.
NOVAkILL : Asus RoG Flow Z13, Core i9, 16GB RAM, Win11 | EVO 16 | Studio One | bx_oberhausen, GR-8, JP6K, Union, Hexeract, Olga, TRK-01, SEM, BA-1, Thorn, Prestige, Spire, Legend-HZ, ANA-2, VG Iron 2 | Uno Pro, Rocket.

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chk071 wrote: Wed Jan 13, 2021 11:43 pm
BBFG# wrote: Wed Jan 13, 2021 11:38 pm They all have their limitations, especially software where what and how much you can run can be dependant on a how much your system can handle at once?
Not that I want to argue this vs. that, but... that's just not an argument when you can only run one instance of your hardware synth in any case. Opposed to dozens of instances you can usually run of your software synth.
I get that. But I can run several pieces of hardware without taxing the CPU really at all. It's the closest thing to running multiple computers in sync. Add to that the multiple VSTs and the result on the CPU is very manageable.

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Replaced? No. Augmented? Yes - and then some!

I still have my 606 - missing the battery cover, but otherwise in great shape! Used the hell out of it back-in-the-day for both rhythmatix cheese; and as a substitute for a metronome. Several years ago I learned in a convo with an astute GC employee that there are (were?) chips that could be swapped out in a 606 that dramitixly changed the sound. Maybe somewhat of a circuit bent situation - I never pursued doing that, but might if the chips are still available - at least take a look at the circuit. Love that little machine - has 1000's of hours on it; but all things ITB has made me really lazy :hihi:

imho circuit bending is really the way to approach SOME "vintage" (garbage :hihi:) gearsz

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excuse me please wrote: Thu Jan 14, 2021 12:28 am Then again, owning so many whatever synths does not make one a good mix/sound engineer.
that's irrelevant though, because the same could be said for software or hardware.

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BBFG# wrote: Thu Jan 14, 2021 1:13 amBut I can run several pieces of hardware without taxing the CPU really at all.
That's a nonsense argument. I'll guarantee I can run three times as many instances of my VSTi as you have hardware synths and it won't tax my laptop's CPU at all.
NOVAkILL : Asus RoG Flow Z13, Core i9, 16GB RAM, Win11 | EVO 16 | Studio One | bx_oberhausen, GR-8, JP6K, Union, Hexeract, Olga, TRK-01, SEM, BA-1, Thorn, Prestige, Spire, Legend-HZ, ANA-2, VG Iron 2 | Uno Pro, Rocket.

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