So I have Zebra. Now ... What?

[cantaloupe]

There must be something Zebra *can't* do that leaves a hole in one's toolkit plugged by something else? Maybe a good kick synthesizer? But that just seems a bit silly.

Agree about keeping it simple. Why do you assume that you need to "plug holes" in your toolkit? A good toolkit is about focus, intent, know-how, and not about doing every single thing known to man.
The more you spread your focus on meaningless "variety", the worse you get at stuff that are musically relevant, in my experience. Whatever you find lacking with Zebra eventually, you can mitigate with third party effects and some resourcefulness anyway.

Getting experienced with a more limited set of tools is absolutely a good suggestion. In fact it's what I have been trying to focus on ever since I upgraded my speakers and discovered what throwing the kitchen sink in does to your mix. I think this thread came to mind partly as an expression of my paranoia that I might be keeping it *too* simple now. I practically use just Zebra. I am working on a test track to gain experience with the 8010s and Zebra forms most of it. I was even using it for a kick, but I since switched to Khz One (my interest having been revitalized somewhat after the recent One Synth challenge).

Zebra is one of the most flexible and complex synths ever made, i wouldn't worry about keeping it too simple (why would that be a problem anyway?) I honestly think its pretty cool that you are doing most things with it! More people should learn from that.

After owning countless softsynths and modular this and that blabla, i do most things with a primitive monosynth now, and i'm just as happy with the result. Ultimately it isn't about amount of features or breadth, but about going hardcore on a thing you connect with and creating something interesting.

[nosleepdemon]

There must be something Zebra *can't* do that leaves a hole in one's toolkit plugged by something else? Maybe a good kick synthesizer? But that just seems a bit silly.

Agree about keeping it simple. Why do you assume that you need to "plug holes" in your toolkit? A good toolkit is about focus, intent, know-how, and not about doing every single thing known to man.
The more you spread your focus on meaningless "variety", the worse you get at stuff that are musically relevant, in my experience. Whatever you find lacking with Zebra eventually, you can mitigate with third party effects and some resourcefulness anyway.

Getting experienced with a more limited set of tools is absolutely a good suggestion. In fact it's what I have been trying to focus on ever since I upgraded my speakers and discovered what throwing the kitchen sink in does to your mix. I think this thread came to mind partly as an expression of my paranoia that I might be keeping it *too* simple now. I practically use just Zebra. I am working on a test track to gain experience with the 8010s and Zebra forms most of it. I was even using it for a kick, but I since switched to Khz One (my interest having been revitalized somewhat after the recent One Synth challenge).

Zebra is one of the most flexible and complex synths ever made, i wouldn't worry about keeping it too simple (why would that be a problem anyway?) I honestly think its pretty cool that you are doing most things with it! More people should learn from that.

After owning countless softsynths and modular this and that blabla, i do most things with a primitive monosynth now, and i'm just as happy with the result. Ultimately it isn't about amount of features or breadth, but about going hardcore on a thing you connect with and creating something interesting.

All good points, I think for now, I shall soldier on with Zebra. There is so much to it I think it will keep me occupied.

[billcarroll]

If you're looking for inspiration, check out The Unfinished, a.k.a., Matt Bowdler. He has made a couple of decent Zebra patches.

The Unfinished Zebra
https://www.theunfinished.co.uk/shop/zebra-bundle/

[Schnickschnack]

"I have everything I need. What can you suggest me?"

nothing..

[nosleepdemon]

"I have everything I need. What can you suggest me?"

nothing..

I wouldn't ever consider myself knowledgeable enough in any subject to claim that I have everything I need. That's the problem - wondering if I have become too hyper focussed on one tool.

[zerocrossing]

There’s a few paths someone can take when making electronic music. Having a single instrument that does a lot and you know inside and out is definitively fine and can save money and time. I made my music with a single Ensoniq TS-10 (wavetables and sample playback) from 1992 to 2002, though then my music leaned on guitars a lot more.

…but I got bored. One thing I didn’t mention was that in my decade with the TS-10, I was often experimenting with different effects processors to get different and new sounds from my synth and other instruments. I sold the TS-10, which was a mistake because it was still a valid instrument with one of the best keyboards I’ve ever used, and started trying different synth modules, like a Virus C, Wavestation, etc. The DAW became the hub and some time later, Absynth started getting used to augment what my hardware synths were doing. I had a brief stint of going all ITB, but that didn’t last too long and I found that I liked the new analog instruments I was hearing, so I landed on a hybrid setup with some hardware analog and digital software. This is basically where I am today.

I know that with myself, I enjoy the distraction of a new synth or effects plugin. Effects processors generally don’t work for me, though I do have an AxeFX for guitar and UAD Apollo audio interface that acts as a processor as well. I don’t find that learning new gear or software to be a burden. It’s like sand in an oyster. Different gear leads to different results. I also just love sitting down with something new and a cup of coffee and just digging in to see what makes it tick. What trick or character can I exploit to evil ends! The other scientist scoffed at me, but I’ll show them. I’LL SHOW THEM!

Also, I think a lot of people make a lot of noise about learning a new instrument or effect that makes it seem a lot harder than it actually is. I mean, once you have a good grasp on all the major effects and synthesis types, it’s just a matter of learning how the new instrument implements it. A good UI (which I don’t believe that Zebra has) can make this somewhat effortless. When you said that your sounds lean towards analog style sounds and you use Zebra, I had to scratch my head a bit, because to me, that sounds like you’re using a fighter jet to fly from San Francisco to Los Angeles for a short vacation. I think you’d be much better off using a plugin like Repro to get basic sounds, and using Zebra for the more complex tasks. I don’t know if Repro would be best for your music as it’s basically a Prophet 5 emulation. There are plenty of other great plugins that will give you a Moog sound, or Oberheim, Roland, etc. A plugin like Diva can give you a taste of all of those, but the downside is it doesn’t sound nearly as accurate as some of the direct emulations.

So, it’s up to you. You could definitely live out your life with never buying another synth and probably not exhaust Zebra’s possibilities. That sounds like a sort of dull life to me, so if I were you I’d definitely pick up something else. Probably a good analog emulation, like anything modern from Arturia, Softube, U-He, etc. Let your ears be your guide. Oh, and tell your wife that I said it was OK for you to get a Prologue. Tell her that you can’t possibly go on without some actual analog synthesis in your life.

[billcarroll]

Zebra 2 does basic sounds easily, and I believe the OP will get Zebra 3 free when it comes out. There is your second synth right there

If the goal is playing with synths, then buy more synths. If the goes is learning a synth really well so you can create the sound you want quickly, use fewer synths. Everyone has a different goal. What is the OP's goal? That really has to be answered.

You can write great music on a piano, and perhaps many do just based on the simplicity and immediacy of the instrument. The more familiar you get with 1 synth the more this effect applies.

I seem to be repeating myself from 2016

viewtopic.php?p=6549571#p6549571

[nosleepdemon]

There’s a few paths someone can take when making electronic music. Having a single instrument that does a lot and you know inside and out is definitively fine and can save money and time. I made my music with a single Ensoniq TS-10 (wavetables and sample playback) from 1992 to 2002, though then my music leaned on guitars a lot more.

…but I got bored. One thing I didn’t mention was that in my decade with the TS-10, I was often experimenting with different effects processors to get different and new sounds from my synth and other instruments. I sold the TS-10, which was a mistake because it was still a valid instrument with one of the best keyboards I’ve ever used, and started trying different synth modules, like a Virus C, Wavestation, etc. The DAW became the hub and some time later, Absynth started getting used to augment what my hardware synths were doing. I had a brief stint of going all ITB, but that didn’t last too long and I found that I liked the new analog instruments I was hearing, so I landed on a hybrid setup with some hardware analog and digital software. This is basically where I am today.

I know that with myself, I enjoy the distraction of a new synth or effects plugin. Effects processors generally don’t work for me, though I do have an AxeFX for guitar and UAD Apollo audio interface that acts as a processor as well. I don’t find that learning new gear or software to be a burden. It’s like sand in an oyster. Different gear leads to different results. I also just love sitting down with something new and a cup of coffee and just digging in to see what makes it tick. What trick or character can I exploit to evil ends! The other scientist scoffed at me, but I’ll show them. I’LL SHOW THEM!

Also, I think a lot of people make a lot of noise about learning a new instrument or effect that makes it seem a lot harder than it actually is. I mean, once you have a good grasp on all the major effects and synthesis types, it’s just a matter of learning how the new instrument implements it. A good UI (which I don’t believe that Zebra has) can make this somewhat effortless. When you said that your sounds lean towards analog style sounds and you use Zebra, I had to scratch my head a bit, because to me, that sounds like you’re using a fighter jet to fly from San Francisco to Los Angeles for a short vacation. I think you’d be much better off using a plugin like Repro to get basic sounds, and using Zebra for the more complex tasks. I don’t know if Repro would be best for your music as it’s basically a Prophet 5 emulation. There are plenty of other great plugins that will give you a Moog sound, or Oberheim, Roland, etc. A plugin like Diva can give you a taste of all of those, but the downside is it doesn’t sound nearly as accurate as some of the direct emulations.

So, it’s up to you. You could definitely live out your life with never buying another synth and probably not exhaust Zebra’s possibilities. That sounds like a sort of dull life to me, so if I were you I’d definitely pick up something else. Probably a good analog emulation, like anything modern from Arturia, Softube, U-He, etc. Let your ears be your guide. Oh, and tell your wife that I said it was OK for you to get a Prologue. Tell her that you can’t possibly go on without some actual analog synthesis in your life.

That was a fascinating read, and a good counterpoint to other replies here. I do find new instruments to be far more exciting than effects plugins, so I will always steer in the direction of something completely different compared to augmenting what I have. I have been thinking about Repro and Diva, and I may need to experiment with them a lot more to truly gain an understanding of which I prefer. I've never owned an analogue synth, though I have played the Prologue and a couple others, so I have an appreciation for what a delight it is to use and listen to them. But as I'm not tied to the desire to expertly emulate a particular piece of hardware, I also wouldn't approach an analogue emulation from the perspective of whether or not it accurately recreates a sound, only whether or not it has the nuances I believe I hear when a real analogue synth is at hand. From that perspective, Diva might be the one, because it emulates a lot of different hardware combinations and has such a detailed sound. Returning to Zebra for a moment, I'm of the opinion that it has the perfect UI... That might seem a bit mad, especially with how ZebraHZ reeeeeally pushes the boundaries of the original design with the location of the additional filters. But, again, with no 'formal' experience with analogue hardware, the workflow and layout of hardware synthesizers is nothing I am married to. In fact I come from a programming background, so from that perspective the UI and workflow is intuitive. I'd go so far as to say that the layout of Zebra taught me a great deal about the process of synthesis actually.

I'll let the wife know that we'll be doing the renovations later than expected.

[nosleepdemon]

Zebra 2 does basic sounds easily, and I believe the OP will get Zebra 3 free when it comes out. There is your second synth right there

If the goal is playing with synths, then buy more synths. If the goes is learning a synth really well so you can create the sound you want quickly, use fewer synths. Everyone has a different goal. What is the OP's goal? That really has to be answered.

You can write great music on a piano, and perhaps many do just based on the simplicity and immediacy of the instrument. The more familiar you get with 1 synth the more this effect applies.

I seem to be repeating myself from 2016

viewtopic.php?p=6549571#p6549571

Yes, when I learnt that Zebra Legacy would include HZ and the official U-he soundpacks for existing Zebra 2 owners, I opted to buy Zebra 2 more or less immediately to obtain the upgrade path to Zebra 3. I had been umming and aahing about buying a U-he product for a while, and that announcement could not have come at a better time.

[zerocrossing]

There’s a few paths someone can take when making electronic music. Having a single instrument that does a lot and you know inside and out is definitively fine and can save money and time. I made my music with a single Ensoniq TS-10 (wavetables and sample playback) from 1992 to 2002, though then my music leaned on guitars a lot more.

…but I got bored. One thing I didn’t mention was that in my decade with the TS-10, I was often experimenting with different effects processors to get different and new sounds from my synth and other instruments. I sold the TS-10, which was a mistake because it was still a valid instrument with one of the best keyboards I’ve ever used, and started trying different synth modules, like a Virus C, Wavestation, etc. The DAW became the hub and some time later, Absynth started getting used to augment what my hardware synths were doing. I had a brief stint of going all ITB, but that didn’t last too long and I found that I liked the new analog instruments I was hearing, so I landed on a hybrid setup with some hardware analog and digital software. This is basically where I am today.

I know that with myself, I enjoy the distraction of a new synth or effects plugin. Effects processors generally don’t work for me, though I do have an AxeFX for guitar and UAD Apollo audio interface that acts as a processor as well. I don’t find that learning new gear or software to be a burden. It’s like sand in an oyster. Different gear leads to different results. I also just love sitting down with something new and a cup of coffee and just digging in to see what makes it tick. What trick or character can I exploit to evil ends! The other scientist scoffed at me, but I’ll show them. I’LL SHOW THEM!

Also, I think a lot of people make a lot of noise about learning a new instrument or effect that makes it seem a lot harder than it actually is. I mean, once you have a good grasp on all the major effects and synthesis types, it’s just a matter of learning how the new instrument implements it. A good UI (which I don’t believe that Zebra has) can make this somewhat effortless. When you said that your sounds lean towards analog style sounds and you use Zebra, I had to scratch my head a bit, because to me, that sounds like you’re using a fighter jet to fly from San Francisco to Los Angeles for a short vacation. I think you’d be much better off using a plugin like Repro to get basic sounds, and using Zebra for the more complex tasks. I don’t know if Repro would be best for your music as it’s basically a Prophet 5 emulation. There are plenty of other great plugins that will give you a Moog sound, or Oberheim, Roland, etc. A plugin like Diva can give you a taste of all of those, but the downside is it doesn’t sound nearly as accurate as some of the direct emulations.

So, it’s up to you. You could definitely live out your life with never buying another synth and probably not exhaust Zebra’s possibilities. That sounds like a sort of dull life to me, so if I were you I’d definitely pick up something else. Probably a good analog emulation, like anything modern from Arturia, Softube, U-He, etc. Let your ears be your guide. Oh, and tell your wife that I said it was OK for you to get a Prologue. Tell her that you can’t possibly go on without some actual analog synthesis in your life.

That was a fascinating read, and a good counterpoint to other replies here. I do find new instruments to be far more exciting than effects plugins, so I will always steer in the direction of something completely different compared to augmenting what I have. I have been thinking about Repro and Diva, and I may need to experiment with them a lot more to truly gain an understanding of which I prefer. I've never owned an analogue synth, though I have played the Prologue and a couple others, so I have an appreciation for what a delight it is to use and listen to them. But as I'm not tied to the desire to expertly emulate a particular piece of hardware, I also wouldn't approach an analogue emulation from the perspective of whether or not it accurately recreates a sound, only whether or not it has the nuances I believe I hear when a real analogue synth is at hand. From that perspective, Diva might be the one, because it emulates a lot of different hardware combinations and has such a detailed sound. Returning to Zebra for a moment, I'm of the opinion that it has the perfect UI... That might seem a bit mad, especially with how ZebraHZ reeeeeally pushes the boundaries of the original design with the location of the additional filters. But, again, with no 'formal' experience with analogue hardware, the workflow and layout of hardware synthesizers is nothing I am married to. In fact I come from a programming background, so from that perspective the UI and workflow is intuitive. I'd go so far as to say that the layout of Zebra taught me a great deal about the process of synthesis actually.

I'll let the wife know that we'll be doing the renovations later than expected.

Analog is just another flavor. Nothing more. It happens to be pretty fashionable at the moment, but it’s not something you need. I went without them for about 15 years. My favorite are hybrid synths, like the Prologue, though that one is lacking a few things that I need in an instrument. That’s what Zebra HZ is mimicking. It’s great, but I don’t like a lot of things about it, like how the Diva filters are just sort of tacked on. How wavetable presets are married to their modulations.

I know a lot of people love how Zebra works, but it’s always counterintuitive to me. Easy enough to learn, but for some reason, something like Phase Plant, an equally complex instrument, tends to make total sense to me with little time in manuals or tutorials. When I’ve been away from Zebra for a while, I’m always looking for where something is.

[nosleepdemon]

There’s a few paths someone can take when making electronic music. Having a single instrument that does a lot and you know inside and out is definitively fine and can save money and time. I made my music with a single Ensoniq TS-10 (wavetables and sample playback) from 1992 to 2002, though then my music leaned on guitars a lot more.

…but I got bored. One thing I didn’t mention was that in my decade with the TS-10, I was often experimenting with different effects processors to get different and new sounds from my synth and other instruments. I sold the TS-10, which was a mistake because it was still a valid instrument with one of the best keyboards I’ve ever used, and started trying different synth modules, like a Virus C, Wavestation, etc. The DAW became the hub and some time later, Absynth started getting used to augment what my hardware synths were doing. I had a brief stint of going all ITB, but that didn’t last too long and I found that I liked the new analog instruments I was hearing, so I landed on a hybrid setup with some hardware analog and digital software. This is basically where I am today.

I know that with myself, I enjoy the distraction of a new synth or effects plugin. Effects processors generally don’t work for me, though I do have an AxeFX for guitar and UAD Apollo audio interface that acts as a processor as well. I don’t find that learning new gear or software to be a burden. It’s like sand in an oyster. Different gear leads to different results. I also just love sitting down with something new and a cup of coffee and just digging in to see what makes it tick. What trick or character can I exploit to evil ends! The other scientist scoffed at me, but I’ll show them. I’LL SHOW THEM!

Also, I think a lot of people make a lot of noise about learning a new instrument or effect that makes it seem a lot harder than it actually is. I mean, once you have a good grasp on all the major effects and synthesis types, it’s just a matter of learning how the new instrument implements it. A good UI (which I don’t believe that Zebra has) can make this somewhat effortless. When you said that your sounds lean towards analog style sounds and you use Zebra, I had to scratch my head a bit, because to me, that sounds like you’re using a fighter jet to fly from San Francisco to Los Angeles for a short vacation. I think you’d be much better off using a plugin like Repro to get basic sounds, and using Zebra for the more complex tasks. I don’t know if Repro would be best for your music as it’s basically a Prophet 5 emulation. There are plenty of other great plugins that will give you a Moog sound, or Oberheim, Roland, etc. A plugin like Diva can give you a taste of all of those, but the downside is it doesn’t sound nearly as accurate as some of the direct emulations.

So, it’s up to you. You could definitely live out your life with never buying another synth and probably not exhaust Zebra’s possibilities. That sounds like a sort of dull life to me, so if I were you I’d definitely pick up something else. Probably a good analog emulation, like anything modern from Arturia, Softube, U-He, etc. Let your ears be your guide. Oh, and tell your wife that I said it was OK for you to get a Prologue. Tell her that you can’t possibly go on without some actual analog synthesis in your life.

That was a fascinating read, and a good counterpoint to other replies here. I do find new instruments to be far more exciting than effects plugins, so I will always steer in the direction of something completely different compared to augmenting what I have. I have been thinking about Repro and Diva, and I may need to experiment with them a lot more to truly gain an understanding of which I prefer. I've never owned an analogue synth, though I have played the Prologue and a couple others, so I have an appreciation for what a delight it is to use and listen to them. But as I'm not tied to the desire to expertly emulate a particular piece of hardware, I also wouldn't approach an analogue emulation from the perspective of whether or not it accurately recreates a sound, only whether or not it has the nuances I believe I hear when a real analogue synth is at hand. From that perspective, Diva might be the one, because it emulates a lot of different hardware combinations and has such a detailed sound. Returning to Zebra for a moment, I'm of the opinion that it has the perfect UI... That might seem a bit mad, especially with how ZebraHZ reeeeeally pushes the boundaries of the original design with the location of the additional filters. But, again, with no 'formal' experience with analogue hardware, the workflow and layout of hardware synthesizers is nothing I am married to. In fact I come from a programming background, so from that perspective the UI and workflow is intuitive. I'd go so far as to say that the layout of Zebra taught me a great deal about the process of synthesis actually.

I'll let the wife know that we'll be doing the renovations later than expected.

Analog is just another flavor. Nothing more. It happens to be pretty fashionable at the moment, but it’s not something you need. I went without them for about 15 years. My favorite are hybrid synths, like the Prologue, though that one is lacking a few things that I need in an instrument. That’s what Zebra HZ is mimicking. It’s great, but I don’t like a lot of things about it, like how the Diva filters are just sort of tacked on. How wavetable presets are married to their modulations.

I know a lot of people love how Zebra works, but it’s always counterintuitive to me. Easy enough to learn, but for some reason, something like Phase Plant, an equally complex instrument, tends to make total sense to me with little time in manuals or tutorials. When I’ve been away from Zebra for a while, I’m always looking for where something is.

Yeah the additions to ZebraHZ are sort of just smashed onto it, but it's not too bad. I will check out Phase Plant - it looks good, I do use some of Khz's 'snap ins' as VST effects with Reason to plug some holes. The Haas, delay and transient shaper are especially useful. One thing that bothers me, and I know it shouldn't, is how obnoxious the demo video is. That kind of hyper loud wub wub waa waa wzzrt wzzrt oonts oonts bwaamwaamwaam garbage is exactly the opposite of what I want to produce. I want to be able to turn up a track and hear the nuances, not watch my speakers visibly deform as they attempt to play every frequency at once! Regarding analogue, I am not married to it, but I am married to an ideal I think it represents. The ideal is that a device creates a sound that is complex, does not repeat, has some sort of ... character, a pattern in its timbre that gives you a clue to what made it. I suppose you might call it a soul. Analogue hardware does this very well, because of the complexity of the physical processes that produce the sound. I think creating this digitally is fine too, I am not a purist who thinks that hardware is the only way. However right now with digital synthesis, I feel that software that emulates hardware is the best way to produce this sound I love.

[zerocrossing]

There’s a few paths someone can take when making electronic music. Having a single instrument that does a lot and you know inside and out is definitively fine and can save money and time. I made my music with a single Ensoniq TS-10 (wavetables and sample playback) from 1992 to 2002, though then my music leaned on guitars a lot more.

…but I got bored. One thing I didn’t mention was that in my decade with the TS-10, I was often experimenting with different effects processors to get different and new sounds from my synth and other instruments. I sold the TS-10, which was a mistake because it was still a valid instrument with one of the best keyboards I’ve ever used, and started trying different synth modules, like a Virus C, Wavestation, etc. The DAW became the hub and some time later, Absynth started getting used to augment what my hardware synths were doing. I had a brief stint of going all ITB, but that didn’t last too long and I found that I liked the new analog instruments I was hearing, so I landed on a hybrid setup with some hardware analog and digital software. This is basically where I am today.

I know that with myself, I enjoy the distraction of a new synth or effects plugin. Effects processors generally don’t work for me, though I do have an AxeFX for guitar and UAD Apollo audio interface that acts as a processor as well. I don’t find that learning new gear or software to be a burden. It’s like sand in an oyster. Different gear leads to different results. I also just love sitting down with something new and a cup of coffee and just digging in to see what makes it tick. What trick or character can I exploit to evil ends! The other scientist scoffed at me, but I’ll show them. I’LL SHOW THEM!

Also, I think a lot of people make a lot of noise about learning a new instrument or effect that makes it seem a lot harder than it actually is. I mean, once you have a good grasp on all the major effects and synthesis types, it’s just a matter of learning how the new instrument implements it. A good UI (which I don’t believe that Zebra has) can make this somewhat effortless. When you said that your sounds lean towards analog style sounds and you use Zebra, I had to scratch my head a bit, because to me, that sounds like you’re using a fighter jet to fly from San Francisco to Los Angeles for a short vacation. I think you’d be much better off using a plugin like Repro to get basic sounds, and using Zebra for the more complex tasks. I don’t know if Repro would be best for your music as it’s basically a Prophet 5 emulation. There are plenty of other great plugins that will give you a Moog sound, or Oberheim, Roland, etc. A plugin like Diva can give you a taste of all of those, but the downside is it doesn’t sound nearly as accurate as some of the direct emulations.

So, it’s up to you. You could definitely live out your life with never buying another synth and probably not exhaust Zebra’s possibilities. That sounds like a sort of dull life to me, so if I were you I’d definitely pick up something else. Probably a good analog emulation, like anything modern from Arturia, Softube, U-He, etc. Let your ears be your guide. Oh, and tell your wife that I said it was OK for you to get a Prologue. Tell her that you can’t possibly go on without some actual analog synthesis in your life.

That was a fascinating read, and a good counterpoint to other replies here. I do find new instruments to be far more exciting than effects plugins, so I will always steer in the direction of something completely different compared to augmenting what I have. I have been thinking about Repro and Diva, and I may need to experiment with them a lot more to truly gain an understanding of which I prefer. I've never owned an analogue synth, though I have played the Prologue and a couple others, so I have an appreciation for what a delight it is to use and listen to them. But as I'm not tied to the desire to expertly emulate a particular piece of hardware, I also wouldn't approach an analogue emulation from the perspective of whether or not it accurately recreates a sound, only whether or not it has the nuances I believe I hear when a real analogue synth is at hand. From that perspective, Diva might be the one, because it emulates a lot of different hardware combinations and has such a detailed sound. Returning to Zebra for a moment, I'm of the opinion that it has the perfect UI... That might seem a bit mad, especially with how ZebraHZ reeeeeally pushes the boundaries of the original design with the location of the additional filters. But, again, with no 'formal' experience with analogue hardware, the workflow and layout of hardware synthesizers is nothing I am married to. In fact I come from a programming background, so from that perspective the UI and workflow is intuitive. I'd go so far as to say that the layout of Zebra taught me a great deal about the process of synthesis actually.

I'll let the wife know that we'll be doing the renovations later than expected.

Analog is just another flavor. Nothing more. It happens to be pretty fashionable at the moment, but it’s not something you need. I went without them for about 15 years. My favorite are hybrid synths, like the Prologue, though that one is lacking a few things that I need in an instrument. That’s what Zebra HZ is mimicking. It’s great, but I don’t like a lot of things about it, like how the Diva filters are just sort of tacked on. How wavetable presets are married to their modulations.

I know a lot of people love how Zebra works, but it’s always counterintuitive to me. Easy enough to learn, but for some reason, something like Phase Plant, an equally complex instrument, tends to make total sense to me with little time in manuals or tutorials. When I’ve been away from Zebra for a while, I’m always looking for where something is.

Yeah the additions to ZebraHZ are sort of just smashed onto it, but it's not too bad. I will check out Phase Plant - it looks good, I do use some of Khz's 'snap ins' as VST effects with Reason to plug some holes. The Haas, delay and transient shaper are especially useful. One thing that bothers me, and I know it shouldn't, is how obnoxious the demo video is. That kind of hyper loud wub wub waa waa wzzrt wzzrt oonts oonts bwaamwaamwaam garbage is exactly the opposite of what I want to produce. I want to be able to turn up a track and hear the nuances, not watch my speakers visibly deform as they attempt to play every frequency at once! Regarding analogue, I am not married to it, but I am married to an ideal I think it represents. The ideal is that a device creates a sound that is complex, does not repeat, has some sort of ... character, a pattern in its timbre that gives you a clue to what made it. I suppose you might call it a soul. Analogue hardware does this very well, because of the complexity of the physical processes that produce the sound. I think creating this digitally is fine too, I am not a purist who thinks that hardware is the only way. However right now with digital synthesis, I feel that software that emulates hardware is the best way to produce this sound I love.

I’ve been totally turned off to hardcore EDM kiddy marketing too. I totally passed on Dune as another Virus wannabe, but someone convinced me to check it out and I was pleasantly surprised to find it was more feature packed than any Virus and more characterful too, especially now that they’ve included many very well modeled analog filter types.

The best thing to do is to really dig in and kick the tires. Watch as many tutorial videos as you can and spend time trying to break it. That’s where the fun can happen.

[glokraw]

Quite surprised by the nunber of suggestions, thanks everyone; I've a lot to think about now!

Something else to consider, is living a life that leads to inspiration. The people around you can energize or deflate your new music. I try to make every errand an opportunity to encourage someone whose job requires they have some interaction with me. I often bring my Nu-x Mighty Plug and show the security guys that they can have a modern guitar studio on their phone. Or tell a swift grocery-checker that the skills they display are fundamental to being a great musician. I tell people to move on from selfish debbie-downer aquaintances who always say, 'you could never do that'. Some people just want to dominate your free time, because their life is so empty.

[aer72]

Zebra 2 does basic sounds easily, and I believe the OP will get Zebra 3 free when it comes out. There is your second synth right there

If the goal is playing with synths, then buy more synths. If the goes is learning a synth really well so you can create the sound you want quickly, use fewer synths. Everyone has a different goal. What is the OP's goal? That really has to be answered.

You can write great music on a piano, and perhaps many do just based on the simplicity and immediacy of the instrument. The more familiar you get with 1 synth the more this effect applies.

I seem to be repeating myself from 2016

viewtopic.php?p=6549571#p6549571

Yes, when I learnt that Zebra Legacy would include HZ and the official U-he soundpacks for existing Zebra 2 owners, I opted to buy Zebra 2 more or less immediately to obtain the upgrade path to Zebra 3. I had been umming and aahing about buying a U-he product for a while, and that announcement could not have come at a better time.

I have an itch to buy Zebra Legacy because of the insane value for what you get. But at the same time, I pretty sure I'm going to want Zebra 3 when it lands. So my question to anyone here is, do you think Zebra 2/HZ and Zebra 3 will complement each other, or will there be too much overlap. I'm a bit of a minimalist at heart (not in practice I'm afraid), so I don't want too many instruments that practically work and sound the same (if that makes any sence).

[Urs]

It depends on what you do. If you do sound design on an in-depth level, Z3 will be awesome, I'm sure. If you mostly use presets with a few tweaks and edits, it will take Z3 several years to catch up with Z2. In latter case Z2 is pretty hard to beat.

That said, we're going to showcase a matured version of our wavetable and envelope editing tools for Z3 in just over two weeks, during Superbooth. I think we're going way beyond the expectation that Zebra3 will be "Zebra2 but newer". It's more like a vast array of technology in a candy box. I believe that Zebra3 will initially appeal mostly to very skilled sound designers, who'll hopefully pop out good stuff that reflects the work we're putting into it. The learning curve will be steep nonetheless. Hence, it will take quite some time until there's a number of presets and banks that is comparable to Z2.