What is the must have synth(s) of the past three years.

[] Peter:H []

Might sound weird but it is Bitwig!
Bitwig is as much a Modular Synth Environment as it is a DAW... take even the most simple synths they provide ... you can set them all to Unisonon and control whichever param you want per unisono-voice... And then comes even some more sophisticated stuff and then there comes The Grid which is purely amazing. Check out the Videos on their page ... here's one pick for you, but there's quite a few more: https://www.bitwig.com/learnings/modula ... /#repeater

[Cinebient]

The only one stands out for me is Plasmonic.

[Rabid]

Thanks for the interesting replies. I just downloaded FL for the first time in a few years. Was shocked at how many of the instruments that I had purchased over the years from them are no longer active.

[Dencheg]

None

At least you could have advocated some 3-year fresh stuff from your signature. Let's say e.g. Dune 3 for example. It's not u-he and it's one of the most significant releases in last 3 years.

[Dencheg]

None

At least you could have advocated some fresh stuff from your signature. Let's say e.g. Dune 3 for example. It's one of the most significant releases in last 3 years.

[wagtunes]

None

At least you could have advocated some 3-year fresh stuff from your signature. Let's say e.g. Dune 3 for example. It's not u-he and it's one of the most significant releases in last 3 years.

The thing is, I have learned over time that in the context of a mix, the synth almost doesn't matter except in fringe cases. Most of the time you're EQing all the character out of a synth just to get it to fit in the mix properly. Between that, compression, saturation, reverb, delay and what have you, in most cases, you can't even tell what synth is being used.

I've offered to prove this time and time again but nobody wants to take me up on the challenge.

Most of my songs, you'd be stunned to find out what synths I use that sound so thin and washed out in order to compliment the song and not stick out like a sore thumb.

But that's another conversation for another day.

[pdxindy]

None

At least you could have advocated some 3-year fresh stuff from your signature. Let's say e.g. Dune 3 for example. It's not u-he and it's one of the most significant releases in last 3 years.

The thing is, I have learned over time that in the context of a mix, the synth almost doesn't matter except in fringe cases. Most of the time you're EQing all the character out of a synth just to get it to fit in the mix properly. Between that, compression, saturation, reverb, delay and what have you, in most cases, you can't even tell what synth is being used.

I've offered to prove this time and time again but nobody wants to take me up on the challenge.

Most of my songs, you'd be stunned to find out what synths I use that sound so thin and washed out in order to compliment the song and not stick out like a sore thumb.

But that's another conversation for another day.

Of course you are talking about your music. Doesn't mean it is the same for everyone.

[mholloway]

For me it's (surprisingly) Softube's Minimoog, Model-72. Bought it on sale and fell completely in love. For my tastes, in my opinion, it's superior to all other Moog emulations (and yes I have The Legend). All my programming on it comes out richer, thicker, rounder, fuller than similar attempts made on every previous Moog emulation. It's magical.

But now I'd also have to say -- TAL J-8.

[Dencheg]

double post

[xalama qo]

Not sure if anyone mentioned this, because it's a few years old, but TAL Bassline-101 is superb for pattern creation and pulling the midi file into other DAW tracks to trigger other synths. Or in Live you can route the midi output to another synth track if you want to tweak the pattern while triggering another synth.
TAL-Mod is also excellent but doesn't have drag-drop of midi pattern to DAW track iirc.

[xalama qo]

Oh, and KarmaFX Modular 2. Absolutely mind-blowing since v2. A great visual step sequencer similar to TAL Bassline-101. Massive sounds, Very comfortable large GUI to work in, and you can minimize all those scope displays if that's not your thing.
On sale now until end of March. No, I don't work for them

A lot of the demo tracks on the website sound overly compressed and high-passed and fatiguing as a result, so do yourself a favor and skip past those tracks to others which showcase individual sounds or filter sweeps. You get a better idea of the synth's character in those. Then download the demo to check it out yourself. And then realize you can use all that as an insert effect to process audio or other synths!!
Yeah but Reaktor...? I find KFX Modular's workflow a lot more immediate, and with the MSEGs you can craft modulated effects that rival Cableguys Shaperbox. It's all very accessible without having to dive into deeper layers as in Reaktor. To be totally transparent I haven't upgraded to R6 yet and my only experience with Blocks is Blocks Wired in Reaktor 6 Player, so I really have no idea about the Blocks limitations when fully tweakable.
But, at the risk of getting flamed for being lazy, KFX Modular has a "real" preset system, and that counts for a lot in my little production world

[wagtunes]

None

At least you could have advocated some 3-year fresh stuff from your signature. Let's say e.g. Dune 3 for example. It's not u-he and it's one of the most significant releases in last 3 years.

The thing is, I have learned over time that in the context of a mix, the synth almost doesn't matter except in fringe cases. Most of the time you're EQing all the character out of a synth just to get it to fit in the mix properly. Between that, compression, saturation, reverb, delay and what have you, in most cases, you can't even tell what synth is being used.

I've offered to prove this time and time again but nobody wants to take me up on the challenge.

Most of my songs, you'd be stunned to find out what synths I use that sound so thin and washed out in order to compliment the song and not stick out like a sore thumb.

But that's another conversation for another day.

Of course you are talking about your music. Doesn't mean it is the same for everyone.

Right, and I was asked "What do "I" think are the must have synths". Not what John Doe thinks or Betty Boop thinks. Me. So I answered the question from MY point of view. Certainly can't answer from anyone else's point of view. So if answering from MY point of view is irrelevant, then the question itself is meaningless. Who cares what anyone thinks is a "must have" synth?

Finally, I don't think anyone here is going to die or can't make music if they didn't own a particular synth. To suggest anything like that would be utterly absurd. In fact, the things in this life in general that we "must have" are relatively few.

[glokraw]

The big stores have candy aisles, cookie aisles, and cracker ailes,
and obesity is a huge problem. Sometimes the glut of synths seems like those aisles,
attempting to satisfy some rogue appetite, with the newest size shape and color
of (sonic) sugar. If composers and chefs have one thing in common, it's that
they can make something special with just the basic ingredients.

[Scrubbing Monkeys]

My 2 cents......
To complement what you have.

Ana 2
https://www.sonicacademy.com/products/ana-2
A wavetable, subtractive synth with sample oscillator.
Because it sounds good and is very easy to program. Also it has a great Arp and chord function....very inspirational.
Buy on sale...about $60.00

Toy Box blocks for Reaktor.
https://www.toyboxaudio.com/
Total modular block system.
They are very well thought out. I recommend these because of the sound quality is top tier and it's modular. Think Monark sound with ultimate flexibility.

They have a free pack that is a great representation and worth having. They also have frequent 30%off sales.

[CrystalWizard]

None. Plamonic looks promising and somewhat unique though.
With NI and U-he you are very well set. I could probably go with that for years, heck Reaktor alone could be years of fun and adventure. I would add either Kaivo or the AAS collection, neither of which is new.