Price aside (and I know it can't usually be set aside), I've found that the Noise Engineering stuff often has a somewhat different sound and very different feel in plugin vs. hardware form. If nothing else, just going from a CV-controlled monophonic oscillator to a MIDI-controlled polyphonic synth voice is a pretty big step.Stefken wrote: Mon Mar 13, 2023 6:52 pm I like the sound of the BIA but this in a digital device. It is code. You can have it in plugin form (so unlimited instances ) for 50 dollars. One hardware unit is 400 bucks.
So, it s in there as not to forget about it, but this is very difficult to justify.
In some cases I found I prefer working with the plugin.
Loquelic I feel is easier to dial in in plugin form -- the hardware has completely separate tuning for the A and B oscillators and if you try to transpose/tune with the knob, you're also affecting the ratio between them which changes the timbre. In the software you can set precise cents/semis/octaves on both so it's no problem.
BIA... when I had the hardware I felt like it always gravitated toward being a badass kick drum, which sounded great but was not what I needed. The plugin form feels like it encourages more variety, somehow. It's totally subjective I'm sure.
Manis Iteritas to me sounds slightly more solid in hardware form than the plugin, and the plugin also lacks a drone mode which annoys me a bit. But I've had some fun rapidly triggering MIDI notes with the Grid to get it to "drone" and do some completely different stuff -- it almost acts like a resonator at times. Overall, I wasn't able to justify keeping Manis in my rack in the face of its competition, so I'm glad to have the plugin.
Cursus Iteritas... it's been a while since I owned it, but my gut feeling is the module has more edge and spiciness to it, where the plugin is more mellow and probably my least favorite of theirs. I wish I could borrow one just to see -- maybe it comes down to usage habits, or maybe it's something about the clock-rate-follows-osc-frequency thing that it does. If I wasn't full of oscillators already I'd think about hunting one down.
Virt Iter Legio I think sounds way better as a module than the Arturia Minifreak models that are theoretically the same algorithm. The plugin is somewhere in between, with the module sounding more solid and also offering phase modulation inputs. I feel like being able to switch it to other firmware at no extra cost boosts the value proposition. On the other hand, Virt Vereor is free...
On the Versio line, I keep two of them in the rack and feel justified in doing so, but at the same time, I use the Ruina, Desmodus and Electus plugins fairly regularly too (but again, Ruina is free).
Yep. Didn't realize it was discontinued though. There's also a VCV Rack port, not officially released but on github.ghettosynth wrote: Mon Mar 13, 2023 7:57 pm Are you talking about Monome's (discontinued but open hardware) Teletype?
