The Most Overrated and Underrated VST/AU (Effects And Instruments)

[BONES]

What the f**k has that got to do with NI's Replika?

[CrystalWizard]

most underated: Reaktor, MAX/MSP

[Ploki]

buy nexus and be done with it. Why do you even engage in synth discussion?

Why would I buy a ROMpler? I like making synth sounds that I CAN USE IN SONGS, not bleeps or endless drones that serve no purpose. And the reason I engage in these discussions is because if I don't, things get worse instead of better. My voice is at least as valid as anyone else's, probably more valid than most, in that I have been doing it for 40 years and we actually release music and play live. i.e. We do what these tools were invented to do.

Because you like synths that have no knobs and you can use in a song nexus fits the bill.

i.e. you think that hive2 is worse than hive1, and i disagree.
Hive is in every song and every soundtrack i made (and released) and i also use Hive2 live - and before that, i used hive1.2 live.
And you think hive sucks f**king ass.
I have tried more or less all synths and there's nothing better out there than hive, and it keeps getting better in my opinion, but you hate it.
So i'm really happy that hive wasn't changed according to your opinion, because you like completely different synths than me.
When i'm in a production session with people i need:
- a good sounding synth
- a solid preset base, tags and favs are a +
- a quick way to make a sound fit (which with hive given its flexibility is by far the easiest)

When i live i need:
- good preset switching support so i can change programs and not load gajillion instances
- low CPU

You also think M1 is bullshit, but it means i can run 40 instances of diva in a project.
I very likely don't need 40 instances of diva, but it means i can use a couple without having to worry that my computer will crap out or havingt to change buffersize and wasting time with settings.

See all of these things imo made u-he synths better, but you think they suck and Union is better, which i think is the most underwhelming synth ever.

so i don't really think that things get universally worse without your opinion

[digitalboytn]

I have tried more or less all synths and there's nothing better out there than hive...

You're entitled to your opinion,but that's a pretty big call and many people will disagree with you

But if Hive and all that honey bee love is ringing your joybells,then you are what they call in the marketing world, a "satisfied customer"

I do agree that when we're in a production situation,we need less pops,squeaks and farts and more staple sounds like basses,pads and keyboards etc

[Ploki]

You're entitled to your opinion,but that's a pretty big call and many people will disagree with you

But if Hive and all that honey bee love is ringing your joybells,then you are what they call in the marketing world, a "satisfied customer"

I do agree that when we're in a production situation,we need less pops,squeaks and farts and more staple sounds like basses,pads and keyboards etc

I do love Hive - it resonates with me, but i also picked it as an example because BONES constantly criticises it

[BONES]

Because you like synths that have no knobs and you can use in a song nexus fits the bill.

No it doesn't, not even close. For a start, it's made by ReFX, who can get f**ked as far as I'm concerned. And I already have the Triton VSTi so I'm covered for ROMpler stuff.

i.e. you think that hive2 is worse than hive1, and i disagree.

Well, you're wrong, something I am sure you don't even notice any more, it's such a common occurrence.

Hive is in every song and every soundtrack i made (and released) and i also use Hive2 live - and before that, i used hive1.2 live.

I can only assume you have very low standards if you can't hear how ordinary it sounds compared to the instruments around it. Or maybe all the instruments you use sound ordinary, who knows? All I know is that it never sounds as good as the instruments around it in my mixes.

And you think hive sucks f**king ass.

No, I think Hive tries to do too much, way more than I need from a single VSTi, and it doesn't hold up well enough in mixes to justify me putting up with it's ridiculously large GUI and annoying workflow. I'd put it at a similar level to something like HY-Poly - a decent enough synth that I struggle to find a use for.

I have tried more or less all synths and there's nothing better out there than hive

Of course there is. Thorn is better than Hive. Saurus is better than Hive. Invader is probably better than Hive, too, and costs five bucks. Hell, TRK-01 Bass is better than Hive and it's free.

and it keeps getting better in my opinion

It keeps get more features but I don't see how that makes it better. Better to me would be to improve the sound quality and/or make it easier to use. Adding features to a synth that is already very full-featured doesn't make sense to anyone but the developer.

- a solid preset base, tags and favs are a +

I just need three or four good starting points - a starter for a bass sound, a fat unison lead, a stringy pad - which I save into the Studio One preset system so they are the only presets I need to deal with.

a quick way to make a sound fit (which with hive given its flexibility is by far the easiest)

Hardly. To make something fit you need exactly one filter and one envelope. More filters and more envelopes just makes it more complicated.

When i live i need:
- good preset switching support so i can change programs and not load gajillion instances
- low CPU

Because your host can't do that for you? Even my Yamaha QX-7 sequencer could dial up the preset I needed, when I needed it.

I very likely don't need 40 instances of diva, but it means i can use a couple without having to worry that my computer will crap out or havingt to change buffersize and wasting time with settings.

As can I on the second-hand laptop I paid $840 for. You don't need to spend up big to get amazing performance in 2021.

See all of these things imo made u-he synths better, but you think they suck and Union is better, which i think is the most underwhelming synth ever.

Which simply proves that your opinion is worthless. "Why?", I hear you say. I'm glad you asked. Your opinion is worthless because you haven't addressed the thing that matters above all else - sound quality. Hive simply doesn't sound as good as the synths I use every day. It absolutely doesn't sound as good as Union and when my bandmate sent me something a couple of weeks ago that used a nice sounding Hive bass patch, it took me about two minutes to replicate it exactly in JP6K, a VSTi that costs $29, and ditch Hive.

And this is exactly why I participate - because sound quality matters more than features or a brand name or a price, yet so many people around here don't get that. They think that if you add features to something, that somehow makes it better, which is absurd. Does putting a great big wing on a Toyota Corolla make it better than a BMW? No, if you want to make the Corolla better, you need to improve the engine and the suspension and the chassis, things that are already there but can always be made better. Similarly, if you want to make a synth better, you need to improve the quality of the oscillators and the filter and the envelopes, things that are already there but can always be made better.

[Ploki]

Saurus crashes on me.
And i do have thorn now!

re: hive not having sound quality - i won't even address that

[recursive one]

Bones, I think sound quality in Hive is amazing, and I'm apparently not the only one who thinks that.

You may dislike the character or it doesn't fit your music, which is fine, but this doesn't make it a bad synth.

[EnGee]

BONES has a bad taste in synths, cars and women! Poor man!

[Erisian]

I think Synth1 was extremely overrated. I never understood what the fuss was all about.

[Norqa]

BONES has a bad taste in synths, cars and women! Poor man!

It could be worse.
He could be driving around in a Robin Reliant with a Bontempi organ in the back while taking orders from a lumberjack.

[Halonmusic]

I think Synth1 was extremely overrated. I never understood what the fuss was all about.

well it is very old but it was one of the most poular freeware synths back then, even today. i love it myself. sure its not for everyone

[vertibration]

BONES has a bad taste in synths, cars and women! Poor man!

Why you gotta throw women in the mix like that Homie? Lol

[waxtrax]

I'm sure this has already been mentioned a bunch, but the free releases from Full Bucket are amazing and underrated in my opinion.

[EnGee]

BONES has a bad taste in synths, cars and women! Poor man!

Why you gotta throw women in the mix like that Homie? Lol

Just teasing