Is Omnisphere 2 still worth it?

[LoveEnigma18]

I bought Omni as a 'welcome back' to myself after an absence from making music. Loved it and had a great time with the phenomenonal presets for about a year.

However, it's far too 'big' a synth for me to enjoy programming, I like simpler stuff when making my own sounds, so Spectra gave me permission to sell and I did fine out of the deal.

In short, if you want it and can afford it,buy it, I honestly don't think you can lose and life is short.

Thanks for the feedback. It's good that Spectrasonics allows license transfer for the original owner, else I would never even think about buying it.

I agree. If I am able to afford it, I am going to buy it soon.

[LoveEnigma18]

A question for Omnisphere 2 and FL Studio users...

How do the parameters look like in the FL Studio browser when you click "Browse parameters..." from the plugin's wrapper menu?

[Hellfog]

Omnisphere is so expensive and hard to resell that you should probably spend about 6 months from the time that you decide you want it, just looking for reasons NOT to want it.

I get your point. The $50 transfer fee and NFR makes it a little difficult to resell, but I have seen people selling it successfully between $300 to $375 (all inclusive). The problem is there is no demo, so only way is to buy and try. I will definitely make sure that I do want it before I purchase it.

You can try if you can get Omni Used.

Yeah, I thought about this initially, but it's a hassle for such an expensive software and it would be better to get new so that if at all it does not work out, I have the option to resell it in future. Also, mostly the difference between new and used is about $100 only.

Only 100 dollars ? I guess it depends where you buy it.

[Captain]

I guess everything about Omnisphere was already said (more or less), but here's some of my thoughts anyway. I have used Omnisphere since before it even existed, kind of It started its life as Atmosphere in the early 2000's. This was more like a "pure" rompler, and probably a big reason why some people still think of Omnisphere as "just a rompler". Atmosphere quickly became one of my most used instruments, and the same has continued with Omnisphere up to this day. So everything I say here is not biased, it's SUPER biased!

Random thoughts, in no particular order:

- One of my favourite hobbies is to sit down at the DAW, open Omnisphere, start with a clean patch and empty mind, then start randomly browsing the endless soundsource library, until I find something cool. Then just start messing with it, maybe turn on granularity, some effects, etc. After a moment, I might very well have a new patch that I couldn't even imagine a moment ago. Yeah, you can do the same with many synths, but Omnisphere's relative simplicity combined with the HUGE soundsource library just does it for me.

- One of the best tools in Omnisphere is Sound Match, which lists patches similar to the one you currently have loaded, sorted by descending similarity. It's an absolute life safer with a huge library like this (and it also works with 3rd party sounds, assuming they are properly tagged), and I use it all the time to find the sounds I need.

- As others here said, it's super cool that you can use Trilian and Keyscape through the Omnisphere GUI & engine. For example, I have used the Trilian electric bass sources with the granular engine to create some really cool hybrid plucked / bell-like instruments.

- Omnishere was never meant to be a sampler or a competitor to something like Kontakt. They did add user sample import at some point (due to popular demand, I guess), but it's very limited, just a single sample (per layer) and that's it. The playback engine does support zones and round robins and whatnot, but there's no editor for that. Maybe they will make it more extensive, but meanwhile, it's still perfectly usable for toying with your samples and creating something strange/wild/unique (instead of building a multi-sampled acoustic guitar, for example... but there's Kontakt for that).

- I guess some aspects of the engine / GUI / design feel slightly dated... no audio rate modulation, for example. But then, Omnisphere is also pretty CPU friendly, I think. If I want a cutting-edge "analog" sound with all the latest DSP developments, I usually turn to something else. But whenever I need a huge pad for example, Omnisphere is always where I start.

- There are a lot of fantastic 3rd party libraries for Omnisphere. The factory library is already huge, but I'd still recommend checking out sounds from The Unfinished, Man Makes Noise, Hollo, Soundescape, etc, just to name a few. Great stuff.

- I think one reason why there is no "lite" version is that it would make things complicated with 3rd party libraries. As many pathces rely on the factory sample content, there would have to be separate libraries and patches for lite and full Omnisphere.

There. After using Omnisphere (or its predecessor) for almost 20 years on several albums, game soundtracks and other projects, I'm the first to admit that I can't say anything objective about it. But if it still remains the plugin that I often reach for when I just need "a sound", there must be something right about it!

[LoveEnigma18]

@Captain: Thanks a lot for your time and informative post. Great to hear that Omnisphere brings so much inspiration. Brings me one step closer...

[chk071]

... to bankruptcy.

[LoveEnigma18]

... to bankruptcy.

I think I should ask for forum suspension after getting Omnisphere 2.

[syntonica]

Here's my two smallest currency units:

When I was tooling up again with DAWs and plugins, I agonized for months over which "all-in-one" instrument plugin to get. I looked at all the usual suspects and finally decided I liked the overall vibe of Omni the best, so I drove down to Banjo Barn and purchased a copy. I installed and was immediately disappointed!

Who this plugin is for:
If you are a working musician/composer/sound designer/producer/etc. and make enough to where you can just write the cost of on your taxes, or are otherwise rolling in dough, it's a no-brainer. Buy it and enjoy!

Otherwise:
If you enjoy tinkering under the hood of synths to make your own sounds, be aware that Omni has about 17 massive hoods to work under. Omni does Everything quite well, but nothing stellar. Everything is neatly packed into the smaller GUI, menu-style. If it was more Falconesque in the way it only shows what's in use, with expandable sections, I'd be far happier.

If you like having 10,000+ presets, sure. But be aware that 9000 of them are variations of the first 1000. And of those 1000, over half are cinematic in scope.

If you own one of the hardware keyboards that can be used to directly control Omni, technically you can use it as a controller. However, you already have the keyboard that makes the actual noises. It's sort of limiting, actually.

I've two rules now in buying software:

If there's no demo to download and use, it's a hard pass. I no longer buy software sight-unseen or used.

I also look at copy-protection and resale rights. Omni is okay on the first--no dongle, just an internet connection is required. However, resale sucks, especially since I have a hard copy of it (the USB drive thingy). Only one resale allowed with a $50 fee? This is rather harsh considering the lack of demo!

Would I buy again? A definite Nope. If I fit into the wealthy/well-paid professional slot? Probably not, unless it was required for compatibility or collaboration.

If you are truly interested, find a local user that has it where you can play with it for an afternoon. If you already bought it, may your deity of choice have mercy on your soul!

[syntonica]

For the pain involved with programming, Synthmaster plus all the sound packs is still probably the better deal with most of the same features. It's also a download in 100s of megabytes, not download or drive of 70+Gb. SM also is of a similar architecture to the D50 (4 partials in pairs), so it still has the Persing vibe to it. It's more the Omni Lite that some are looking for. It can use samples, but does not have the huge library of burning tubas and speeding violins.

[zvenx]

Of course you are entitled to your pov.
I agree with most of what you said except:

1) I definitely don't think the presets sound like each other at all. at all! .

2) And the point of the hardware keyboard connectivity is not primarily to replicate the hardware.
One of the biggest disadvantages of software synths is you lose the tactile interaction that you would with a hardware.

So instead of building a customized Omnisphere hardware controller, Spectrasonics allows you to use your already purchased hardware (assuming of course you have one of the hardwares that they have done connectivity) to allow that tactile interaction with Omnisphere.

rsp

[zvenx]

You think SM sounds anything like Roland/Omnisphere/Persing vibe?
wow!
rsp

[syntonica]

2) And the point of the hardware keyboard connectivity is not primarily to replicate the hardware.
One of the biggest disadvantages of software synths is you lose the tactile interaction that you would with a hardware.

I'm just saying it's kind of limiting to what you can do in Omni. Many features are not immediately available. If you have a couple of the keyboards supported, then maybe.

[zvenx]

Oh got ya.
Didn't get that from the first read. (or second actually)
rsp

[revvy]

For the pain involved with programming, Synthmaster plus all the sound packs is still probably the better deal with most of the same features. It's also a download in 100s of megabytes, not download or drive of 70+Gb. SM also is of a similar architecture to the D50 (4 partials in pairs), so it still has the Persing vibe to it. It's more the Omni Lite that some are looking for. It can use samples, but does not have the huge library of burning tubas and speeding violins.

I used to joke about 'burning pianos' before I actually owned Omni. If you're prepared to take the time to dig deep its sample library is fantastic.

[Captain]

Heh, I actually wanted to mention the price too: Yeah, it is expensive. But I always think about what you get with the money: Let's say I have used Omnisphere (including Atmosphere) for an even 20 years now. I have no idea how much I have paid for it over the years, but as most of the updates have been free, let's say an even $500. That comes down to $25 per year, or a little over $2 per month. Not bad, when you think of it that way! Of course I can't guarantee everyone will use it for 20 years, but well...