Emulations we are still missing 2023 edition

[vurt]

Yeah, well, I guess it's safe to say that you missed my point entirely if you seek to make fun of what I wrote like that

You can’t say the word “dominated” in reference to an Alpha Juno and not expect people to bring up the song. Or do you not know it?

No, tbh I have no idea what song your refer to... in fact I didn't realize at all that you were alluding to something...

Alpha Juno’s and HS-10’s still sell for $300-400

Not here - not nearly. If that was the case, I wouldn't have said a word. Here in Europe they sell for around 600-800 €/CHF - and Japan is somewhere in between (~500-600).
(But there's also sellers from the US already asking 800-900$ and it is only a matter of time until these traders bought them all up.)

https://youtu.be/hiFTdIUXXlc

[brok landers]

Damn synth-market dominators. They're bigger and bolder and rougher and tougher.

In other words, there are no others.

"I'm bigger and bolder and rougher and tougher..."

[dionenoid]

Alpha Juno’s and HS-10’s still sell for $300-400

Not here - not nearly. If that was the case, I wouldn't have said a word. Here in Europe they sell for around 600-800 €/CHF - and Japan is somewhere in between (~500-600).
(But there's also sellers from the US already asking 800-900$ and it is only a matter of time until these traders bought them all up.)

These are asking prices. When you look at the transaction prices at Reverb for example, you'll see that most go for around 300 euros including shipping, and also take a while before getting sold.

I saw some being sold for 200 - 250 bucks here in Holland. And MKS-50's sold for even less, a mate of mine bought one for 100 euros not too long ago. I got offered an AJ 2 for 50 bucks some years ago, but that one was used live so in pretty poor condition

[zerocrossing]

I was thinking earlier today that it’s kind of weird. No one’s done a Evolver emulation. It’s been 20 years since its release. It’s time.

[Ex Machina]

I was thinking earlier today that it’s kind of weird. No one’s done a Evolver emulation. It’s been 20 years since its release. It’s time.

The Evolver is a really unique sounding synth. However, its architecture is fairly complex and the digital "character FX" so distinctive and gnarly sounding, it might be somewhat challenging to emulate.

I started off with a Poly Evolver Rack, sold that because I wanted more hands on controls, picked up an Evolver desktop but that was still a pain to program, and finally settled on a Mono Evolver Keyboard. IMO, that's the Evolver to get, especially if you can find one of the original encoder versions and not the pots edition.

Check out this "Bad Gear" episode on the Evolver desktop. It's a crack up. But the Evolver demo tracks that AudioPilz jams on towards the end of the video sound awesome.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FiP9xJ_QxHc

[_leras]

I was thinking earlier today that it’s kind of weird. No one’s done a Evolver emulation. It’s been 20 years since its release. It’s time.

Hmmm, not sure it can be done properly just yet.

My MEK is not a perfect synth by any means, but when it’s good it’s fkn brilliant!!

[Ex Machina]

For about 450-500$ you get a brand-new (reverb aside) fully analog 6xpoly desktop synth made in Europe by a small boutique manufacturer that is more flexible, powerful, versatile than the Junos (and certainly much easier to program than the Alphas) but can sound quite similar (yet better (more analog) imo). So yeah....

https://youtu.be/sOjDo6SrhH0

Now you can of course say "but it doesn't sound the same at all!" but that is part of the kind of mythification I just mentioned - it's how this absurd second hand market manages to justify itself. No, of course it doesn't sound the same - because it sounds worse.

I still have my original Juno-60 with the enormous Roland MIDI converter box. Most people would say that the Juno 60 sounds better than the Juno 106. However, I also have an MKS-7 which is a multitimbral, velocity sensitive rack mount Juno 106 and it sounds fantastic. SO much better than any Juno software emulation.

The Nymphes is cold and hard sounding by comparison. Moreover, it has one of the worst synth UIs of all time. Would I pay current prices for a Juno 60 or Juno 106? Probably not. But that doesn't mean these synths don't sound markedly better than the Nymphes. I might even buy a plastic sounding Juno-X before a Nymphes.

This sounds nothing like a Juno 106:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmsf87KdLoU

[wwjd]

For about 450-500$ you get a brand-new (reverb aside) fully analog 6xpoly desktop synth made in Europe by a small boutique manufacturer that is more flexible, powerful, versatile than the Junos (and certainly much easier to program than the Alphas) but can sound quite similar (yet better (more analog) imo). So yeah....

https://youtu.be/sOjDo6SrhH0

Now you can of course say "but it doesn't sound the same at all!" but that is part of the kind of mythification I just mentioned - it's how this absurd second hand market manages to justify itself. No, of course it doesn't sound the same - because it sounds worse.

I still have my original Juno-60 with the enormous Roland MIDI converter box. Most people would say that the Juno 60 sounds better than the Juno 106. However, I also have an MKS-7 which is a multitimbral, velocity sensitive rack mount Juno 106 and it sounds fantastic. SO much better than any Juno software emulation.

The Nymphes is cold and hard sounding by comparison. Moreover, it has one of the worst synth UIs of all time. Would I pay current prices for a Juno 60 or Juno 106? Probably not. But that doesn't mean these synths don't sound markedly better than the Nymphes. I might even buy a plastic sounding Juno-X before a Nymphes.

This sounds nothing like a Juno 106:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lmsf87KdLoU

Can you MIX software to sound nearly completely identical to the original?
I mean REALLY mix with the tools, not just a dab of EQ. I know you can't alter the baser TONE of an oscillator, but software can become NEARLY indistinguishable when adjusted - as every mix does.

[dionenoid]

I was thinking earlier today that it’s kind of weird. No one’s done a Evolver emulation. It’s been 20 years since its release. It’s time.

Had a Poly Evolver rack for a while, which broke down unfortunately. It had some quite unique sounds for a hardware synth, but nothing that can't be done with any proper vsti imo.

I always used it with the editor, so i could use it sort of like a plugin. When it broke down there were already plenty of software synths that ran circles around it, so never really bothered much about it. Always found it to be pretty digital sounding anyway. The distortion was nice tho.

[dionenoid]

Anyways, what i would like to see emulated are Studio Electronics synths : ATC-X, SE1-x, Omega. All pretty fat analog sounding synths, with some nice extra functionality compared to the synths they started off emulating.

[Uncle E]

I still have my original Juno-60 with the enormous Roland MIDI converter box. Most people would say that the Juno 60 sounds better than the Juno 106. However, I also have an MKS-7 which is a multitimbral, velocity sensitive rack mount Juno 106 and it sounds fantastic. SO much better than any Juno software emulation.

Plus, you can assign all voices to the same midi channel and detune them, or put it in 10-voice polyphony mode. Model 84 completely nails the 106 sound, though. Turn up the Sub by itself in Unison mode and Armand Van Helden’s yer uncle.

The Nymphes is cold and hard sounding by comparison. Moreover, it has one of the worst synth UIs of all time. Would I pay current prices for a Juno 60 or Juno 106? Probably not. But that doesn't mean these synths don't sound markedly better than the Nymphes. I might even buy a plastic sounding Juno-X before a Nymphes.

106 prices have come down a lot, especially the HS-60 version. I really recommend the HS-60 because they tend to be in better condition than the 106. Every 106 I’ve ever had needed repairs.

Nymphes has the SSI filter. All the synths that use them (Take 5, 3rd Wave, etc.) have that filter sound, it’s a pretty specific character. It sounds like you wouldn’t like any of them.

[Uncle E]

Anyways, what i would like to see emulated are Studio Electronics synths : ATC-X, SE1-x, Omega. All pretty fat analog sounding synths, with some nice extra functionality compared to the synths they started off emulating.

Omega is a lovely synth. Huge sounding. I would love to hear one with the CS-80 filters.

The switchable filters is what makes the ATC worth emulating. I actually enjoy the interface as a hardware unit but it would be hell as a plugin.

[Ex Machina]

Had a Poly Evolver rack for a while, which broke down unfortunately. It had some quite unique sounds for a hardware synth, but nothing that can't be done with any proper vsti imo.

I always used it with the editor, so i could use it sort of like a plugin. When it broke down there were already plenty of software synths that ran circles around it, so never really bothered much about it. Always found it to be pretty digital sounding anyway. The distortion was nice tho.

Just out of curiosity, what are these software synths that run circles around an Evolver? Do they have four oscillators - two analog and two 12 bit digital featuring Prophet VS waveforms, four LFOs, three envelopes, numerous hard-wired modulation routings, an additional four slot mod matrix, four step/parameter sequencers, dual analog filters with a "split" parameter for great stereo filter effects, FM and ring modulation on the digital oscillators, and all manner of digital sound mangling effects. I've never heard any synth plugin sound as gritty and intense as an Evolver. Nor have I ever come across a synth plugin with an architecture that is this unique. The only thing that comes close to an Evolver is a hardware modular rig that includes a number of digital modules. Reaktor won't cut it. Not even close.

[zerocrossing]

I was thinking earlier today that it’s kind of weird. No one’s done a Evolver emulation. It’s been 20 years since its release. It’s time.

Had a Poly Evolver rack for a while, which broke down unfortunately. It had some quite unique sounds for a hardware synth, but nothing that can't be done with any proper vsti imo.

I always used it with the editor, so i could use it sort of like a plugin. When it broke down there were already plenty of software synths that ran circles around it, so never really bothered much about it. Always found it to be pretty digital sounding anyway. The distortion was nice tho.

Show me a single plugin that covers all an Evolver can do and sound good doing it. Not just the digital oscillators, the DCOs as well. I’m not saying that it can’t be done. I’m saying that I’ve never seen it yet.

[vurt]

i too like the evolvers, but where they a universally loved product? as in, guaranteed to sell lots of licences? or are they more cultish?

ive never really followed media about such things, so it's an honest question.