Waldorf MicroWave as a plugin?

[mi-os]

Microwave plugin sounds good.

I'm a little sad I can't use the PPG3V plugin. For some reason presets don't get loaded correctly in Cubase on my system. I tried everything but lost hope now. I don't have any problem with Largo 1. That one works as expected.

[EfreetiSultan]

The Microwave Plug-In recreates an instrument and its particular sound which has been developed 35 years ago in a time without any DSP chips widely available and without decent PC computing power allowing for realtime synthesis. Instead it used a custom designed chip (the Waldorf ASIC) which is doing the wavetable synthesis in a very particular way no other wavetable synth nowadays is doing. The original hardware has a very special sound much like the PPG had its own sound. That particular sound many musicians enjoy is available from the plug-in since it was missing before.

Modern state-of-the-art wavetable synths like our Quantum/Iridium or the already in this thread mentioned wavetable plug-ins are very flexible. The underlying math is known to most synth developers, so it's more about how do you package all those features into a compelling modern plug-in. If you then combine it with other synthesis methods like we did in Quantum/Iridium and others did in their plug-ins, you have a wonderful tools for sound designers. You have freeware options and commercial options. It's a wonderful spectrum of options the user has these days.

But something was missing to our feelings. There is this wonderful sonic spectrum of pre-DSP digital hardware like very early digital reverbs and delays, take for example the Quantec Room Simulator doing reverb without any audio processor just using discrete digital chips much like the PPG Wave and the Waldorf Microwave 1 which BTW was helped to be designed by Wolfgang Palm himself. In addition to the Microwave 1 only the Waldorf Wave was based on those ASIC chips. The later Microwave / Q / Blofeld generations were DSP based.

Look, there is a whole plethora of plug-ins modeling vintage analogue synths, and the best ones using component modeling techniques to achieve a level of sound quality no general purpose virtual analogue plug-in can achieve. The Microwave 1 plug-in does the same thing just for an early hybrid synth classic.

It has BTW nothing to do with low-fi or degraded sound etc. In fact, internally it runs at 250 kHz sampling rate as the original ASIC did and the 68k CPU based modulators are very unique and impossible to model with traditional synth techniques. It was much more complex to program than traditional modern style wavetable synthesis. It's more related how FPGAs work than traditional DSP math.

There are many great options of state-of-the-art swiss-army-knife wavetable plug-ins. And that's great. But if you want something truly special in sound leading back to the origins of Wavetable synthesis, then the PPG and Microwave plug-ins come into play. You may love the sound, or don't. But many do. And here we are. Peace.

Amen brother.
In fact I think this is the best sounding synth with it's own huge personality since Sylenth1.

[temporubato]

Stuff happens...

Version 1.1.0 beta 1:

New Features:

"Allocation Mode" in Multi Instrument Settings (to be used for mono mode)

Midi CC Mapping
- Learn MIDI CC in context menu
- CC Mapping table in Global with load/save to file

"Fwd Input" option in "Hardware Control" to forward MIDI from DAW to HW
- Useful on Windows where there are almost no multi-client Midi interface drivers.

Import .syx/.mid
- Now also works with cartridge dumps

Installer
- On Mac reboot is removed.

Bug Fixes:

- Failing import does not create user banks with factory sounds anymore.

You can register for beta here:

https://waldorfmusic.com/beta-program/

Betas are for owners only. For demo mode please download official trial version.

[hey212]

Very cool, in depth demonstration of the Microwave plugin from Starsky.

[martiu]

it is my favorite plugin right now

[gentleclockdivider]

Yes it is a great plugin but really something for the die hard microwave 1 owner s
I can get in the ballpark with Tranzistow , setting the wavetables to a low interpolation value and choose overflow in the mixer ( which mimicks the asic bug )
Here is a little test , I used the organsyn wave , detuned and osc 2 one octave lower
One is waldorf microwave , one is Tranzistow
Both are making use of the asic bug ( in tranzistow using the mixer set to overflow )
Synth 1 then synth 2 , repeat same but one octave higher , etc..
https://app.box.com/s/05x08usqn6rr25smvjrpuxjcn10sdlcz

[mi-os]

https://app.box.com/s/05x08usqn6rr25smvjrpuxjcn10sdlcz

The audio file sounds really strange here. There is some kind of distortion/buzzing going on.

[gentleclockdivider]

https://app.box.com/s/05x08usqn6rr25smvjrpuxjcn10sdlcz

The audio file sounds really strange here. There is some kind of distortion/buzzing going on.

Yes that's intentional it's showcasing the asic bug .
When osc's are in the red, they get truncated
This is what happens to a sine wav when in the red ( same thing happens to my yamah tg77 when operators are driven beyond their acceptable max values )

[mi-os]

Sorry, I didn't read your post properly. Do you find that bug musically useful?

[gentleclockdivider]

Sorry, I didn't read your post properly. Do you find that bug musically useful?

Your opening pandora's box
It can be usefull if the wavetable has a lot of harmonics to begin with ,the bug just adds even more for the filter to work on .
If you have a saw wavetable and enable the bug , you get a free erratic pulse thrown in
For soft pads , then no unless you want it to
It was just a showcase of how close tranzistow can get

[Sound_Bear]

Yes it is a great plugin but really something for the die hard microwave 1 owner s

On the contrary. I and probably many others resold the hardware MW 1 despite liking its sound, merely because of its rather inaccessible interface. I'd consider only those who regularly program(med) their own sounds despite that severe shortcoming to be "die hard owners". The plugin on the contrary has the potential to become a success with would-be owners and frustrated ex-owners because it simply adds a good interface.

[Erik_Lucas]

tranzistow is so much worse to program, unfortunately.

[mi-os]

I wonder if Tranzistow has the analog part emulated? I think it's a pretty important part of the Microwave.

[gentleclockdivider]

I wonder if Tranzistow has the analog part emulated? I think it's a pretty important part of the Microwave.

Tranzistow is not a microwave emulation , but soundwise you can get in the ballpark because of it's incredibly deep architecture/synthesis options .
It does have amazing modelled filters and all the wavetables from the microwave/microwave xt + so much more .
The microwave is great but I do prefer the microwave (xenia ) xt

[chagzuki]

So, when is this going to go on sale at a decent discount; will it be black Friday only, or do Waldorf tend to do other sales during the year?