Does anyone NOT like Diva?

[Urs]

Guess what, in Hive we made it part of the ModMatrix.

[zerocrossing]

I tend to follow this cycle with Diva:

1) Be impressed with how good it sounds
2) Wonder what Rectify and StackIndex do
3) Get annoyed at the modulation workflow
4) Not use it for ages
5) Remember it exists
6) Return to step 1

I was informed by KVR that there is nothing wrong with modulating something by add, and I should shut up, or feel the wrath of U-He devotees.

Lol, the whole Modifier section was originally meant to become our version of the MS-20's patch panel, cables and all. I still think it contributed a good deal to Diva's success that we did not go the geeky route and made it just an obscure little set of modifiers that someone sometimes might need a user guide for.

It is a great feature, though I'm not sure if the average cat bothers with it that much. I just feel like it can be presented in a more clear way that's easier for the user to understand and access.

[zerocrossing]

Guess what, in Hive we made it part of the ModMatrix.

Hive presents it in a really nice and clear way, though I don't think that would work in Diva, unless you put a mod matrix in Diva, which would be amazing.

[El°HYM]

Still sounds great despite it's age tho.

Just like the vintage hardware she's modelled after

I heard rumors that it was all discrete components based on ancient alien tinfoil TH technology, as shown by Urs's younger brother recently at NAMM.

[Seafire Mk2]

The sound is OK, but I don't like the mod system. Had the same problem with fxpansion synths. Workflow wasn't pleasant to use.

[felis]

I tried the demo. Thought it sounded good, but it lacked a few things I consider essential, so never bought it.
I still keep an eye on it once in a while to see if it has release velocity as a mod source yet.

[zerocrossing]

The sound is OK, but I don't like the mod system. Had the same problem with fxpansion synths. Workflow wasn't pleasant to use.

I’ve leaned to use both, but neither is a good example of UX design, IMO.

UX design isn’t what a lot of people think it is. A lot of people think finding creative and novel concepts is a good idea, but it’s often the worst thing you can do. I think of it a lot like law. Each case is unique, but also needs to take into account precedent and rules. Even if your design is “better,” you run the risk of confusing your customers. You have to have a really good reason to introduce a novel design, and it has to have a big pay off for the user, or they’re likely to go elsewhere.

Diva sounds really good, so that’s the pay off. One doesn’t need to use the Modifier pane to get great results with it. That’s sort of a “power user” feature that can afford to be a bit confusing. The problem is, there are a lot of great competing analog modeling plugins these days, including Repro, that sound a bit better. What I’d like to see in a future version is an upgraded audio engine and a better modulation system. The one from Hive is pretty great, but I don’t know if it would work. If a mod matrix is wrong, I think my idea of a nested drop-down modulation menu with a secondary element next to the main knob for modulation amount would be less visually clean, but a lot more clear and usable.

[Zipede]

I tend to follow this cycle with Diva:

1) Be impressed with how good it sounds
2) Wonder what Rectify and StackIndex do
3) Get annoyed at the modulation workflow
4) Not use it for ages
5) Remember it exists
6) Return to step 1

May I cordially suggest that next time you add this to your cycle.

3.5) Read manual.

Reading the manual will never let you know what modulating something by "Add" is doing, without going to the Modifications pane, which is annoying. You could get rid of that pane entirely if you had a nested drop down menu for mod sources (LFO1/Invert, Quantize, etc), and a secondary control for mod amount next to the modulated parameter, like many other plugins do. The label would then read something like "LFO1-Inv." or "LFO1-Qt." I once started to mock this up, but the fanboys were so hostile to the idea that their baby might need an improvement that I abandoned it.

I thought the op's comment was light hearted, mine was too. I suppose I've been using Diva long enough that I don't have a problem with the workflow, but anyway.

[vitocorleone123]

No one needs Diva, either, because there's cheaper software synths that sound better -

Can you post at least two examples of similarly targeted products (analog emulation) that can do all Diva can in a way Diva can, cheaper, and sound better? I'm genuinely interested.

Edit: never mind, I see you posted. I think Softube can not compare, but it's fine. Thanks.

If I want a Minimoog sound, I'd turn to Model 72 over Diva because it sounds better and more authentic. If I wanted to mix-and-match oscillators and filters etc. - that's where Diva excels. I'd still use Twin3 or MultiPoly before Diva, though, personally.

I used the Diva demo again recently for quite awhile. I didn't miss it after selling my copy awhile back, and eventually deleted the demo again.

I'd be interested in a Diva v2. But, until then, I can say: I don't like Diva enough to bother still owning and using it, but I still regularly recommend it to some people depending on what they have and are looking for and want to do. It's an excellent software synth to this day - just not one for me.

[wagtunes]

I don't like Diva....
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I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[ksandvik]

Long time ago Diva chewed CPU cycles, but with today's computer that's gone. And yes it's a great SW synth, it sticks to the originals and mixes/matches it with modules so you could have Roland filters with Korg oscillators and so forth.

[zerocrossing]

No one needs Diva, either, because there's cheaper software synths that sound better -

Can you post at least two examples of similarly targeted products (analog emulation) that can do all Diva can in a way Diva can, cheaper, and sound better? I'm genuinely interested.

Edit: never mind, I see you posted. I think Softube can not compare, but it's fine. Thanks.

If I want a Minimoog sound, I'd turn to Model 72 over Diva because it sounds better and more authentic. If I wanted to mix-and-match oscillators and filters etc. - that's where Diva excels. I'd still use Twin3 or MultiPoly before Diva, though, personally.

I used the Diva demo again recently for quite awhile. I didn't miss it after selling my copy awhile back, and eventually deleted the demo again.

I'd be interested in a Diva v2. But, until then, I can say: I don't like Diva enough to bother still owning and using it, but I still regularly recommend it to some people depending on what they have and are looking for and want to do. It's an excellent software synth to this day - just not one for me.

We're also at a weird stage in electronic music where for $220 more that what it will cost you for Diva, you can get a Behringer Pro 800, and have an actual analog synthesizer. Obviously not with a similar feature set, but if accuracy to analog is your goal, it's not like it's the 70s, where an analog synth will cost the same of a pickup truck.

Obviously, both type of synthesizers have different work flows, strengths and weaknesses, but that's fodder for a different thread. Regardless as to your preferences, we have a lot of options.

[wagtunes]

No one needs Diva, either, because there's cheaper software synths that sound better -

Can you post at least two examples of similarly targeted products (analog emulation) that can do all Diva can in a way Diva can, cheaper, and sound better? I'm genuinely interested.

Edit: never mind, I see you posted. I think Softube can not compare, but it's fine. Thanks.

If I want a Minimoog sound, I'd turn to Model 72 over Diva because it sounds better and more authentic. If I wanted to mix-and-match oscillators and filters etc. - that's where Diva excels. I'd still use Twin3 or MultiPoly before Diva, though, personally.

I used the Diva demo again recently for quite awhile. I didn't miss it after selling my copy awhile back, and eventually deleted the demo again.

I'd be interested in a Diva v2. But, until then, I can say: I don't like Diva enough to bother still owning and using it, but I still regularly recommend it to some people depending on what they have and are looking for and want to do. It's an excellent software synth to this day - just not one for me.

We're also at a weird stage in electronic music where for $220 more that what it will cost you for Diva, you can get a Behringer Pro 800, and have an actual analog synthesizer. Obviously not with a similar feature set, but if accuracy to analog is your goal, it's not like it's the 70s, where an analog synth will cost the same of a pickup truck.

Obviously, both type of synthesizers have different work flows, strengths and weaknesses, but that's fodder for a different thread. Regardless as to your preferences, we have a lot of options.

Isn't integrating a hardware synth with something like Cubase a pain in the ass? Don't you need certain things to make them work together? And then where are you gonna put the darn thing when you already have a keyboard controller like a Keylab 49?

[Urs]

Also... I doubt those little things will be around in 55 years, which is my age and that of two of my most vintage hardware units...

[zerocrossing]

No one needs Diva, either, because there's cheaper software synths that sound better -

Can you post at least two examples of similarly targeted products (analog emulation) that can do all Diva can in a way Diva can, cheaper, and sound better? I'm genuinely interested.

Edit: never mind, I see you posted. I think Softube can not compare, but it's fine. Thanks.

If I want a Minimoog sound, I'd turn to Model 72 over Diva because it sounds better and more authentic. If I wanted to mix-and-match oscillators and filters etc. - that's where Diva excels. I'd still use Twin3 or MultiPoly before Diva, though, personally.

I used the Diva demo again recently for quite awhile. I didn't miss it after selling my copy awhile back, and eventually deleted the demo again.

I'd be interested in a Diva v2. But, until then, I can say: I don't like Diva enough to bother still owning and using it, but I still regularly recommend it to some people depending on what they have and are looking for and want to do. It's an excellent software synth to this day - just not one for me.

We're also at a weird stage in electronic music where for $220 more that what it will cost you for Diva, you can get a Behringer Pro 800, and have an actual analog synthesizer. Obviously not with a similar feature set, but if accuracy to analog is your goal, it's not like it's the 70s, where an analog synth will cost the same of a pickup truck.

Obviously, both type of synthesizers have different work flows, strengths and weaknesses, but that's fodder for a different thread. Regardless as to your preferences, we have a lot of options.

Isn't integrating a hardware synth with something like Cubase a pain in the ass? Don't you need certain things to make them work together? And then where are you gonna put the darn thing when you already have a keyboard controller like a Keylab 49?

Life is a continuous stream of pains in the ass and then you die. You get a little choice as to what ass pain you endure, and as ass pain goes, integrating a hardware synth with a DAW is one of the less painful of all ass pain, in my opinion. Now, some would say that having a hardware analog synth is a pleasure in the ass, so if you feel like the ass pleasure is greater than the ass pain, then there's your answer. If not, no need to add hardware or suffer that specific form of ass pain.

I personally find the ass pleasure to be worth the ass pain, for the most part, though I would not get a synth like the Pro 800. Too simple, and too much like good emulations. But I do have a Sequential Prophet 6, which is not emulated in any plugin, and therefore gives me a flavor and feature set that I haven't found in a plugin. All I have to do is plug it's audio outs into my audio interface, and plug its USB out into my computer's USB in. The in and out action isn't pleasurable, but it's over quickly and then I can enjoy the pure pleasure in the ass of it all. Oh, and I set up a "Hardware Instrument" device in Bitwig, which when coupled with the corresponding editor that's nested in the device, it then becomes about the same as using a plugin instrument. It takes up some space, but what else am I going to put on my desk? A potted plant?