KVR Audio

loachm · Post by **loachm** » Mon May 22, 2017 11:23 am

...I find the notion, that one synth would eat another with a spoon, really amusing. They're all solid synths with some advantages as well as disadvantages - just like any other synth. But, for instance, saying that Serum would be superior to Massive, is really questionable in my view.

Absynth, FM8 and Massive are still my main synths and up to now no other synth has convinced me that much, that I think, I need to add this or that to my tool box (YMMV, of course). It's true, that they will at least need an update to be useable for HD screens and I think NI will take this into account. I'm confident, that NI will not stop working on these areas, that these three synths are covering. And if someone is really unhappy and mad at NI - there is plenty of fish in the sea, so why worry.

Anyway, since this thread seems to be about looking into a crystal ball, I predict, we might see updates or newer versions or maybe even replacement synths, once Komplete Kontrol has been developed further. I think, it wouldn't make any sense for NI to release synth updates, before they have released a major version for their instrument framework - and Komplete Kontrol is at v1.8 now. (Disclaimer - I don't know jack, but I think the long waiting period for major updates is related to the work on Komplete Kontrol/Maschine - at least this view works for me).

And for anyone else - as long as you're rather interested in synthesis and don't necessarily need polyphony on the other hand, have a look at Reaktor 6 and Blocks. There are some amazing new tools - even some that can do things similar to Massive!

https://www.native-instruments.com/de/r ... how/10543/
https://www.native-instruments.com/de/r ... how/10745/

and have a look at the forth-coming Kodiak Blocks:

https://www.native-instruments.com/en/p ... -6/blocks/

I think, even with just NI stuff, there are enough toys to keep a lot of people busy & happy.

chk071 · Post by **chk071** » Mon May 22, 2017 11:36 am

loachm wrote:...I find the notion, that one synth would eat another with a spoon, really amusing. They're all solid synths with some advantages as well as disadvantages - just like any other synth. But, for instance, saying that Serum would be superior to Massive, is really questionable in my view.

Frankly, i don't think anyone would disagree that something like Monark or The Legend are superior to Steinberg's Model E... same thing with synths which are released 10 years after another synth, which was developed against the home, or studio hardware present at that time. Or, after another 10 years of R & D, which has happened. Of course, it's not always valid to argue like that. E.g. i know that some people prefer the sound of the older Waldorf VA/wavetable synths to the newer generation, say, Largo, Blofeld, or Nave, and, it's absolutely valid to do so, because, there's surely a difference in sound, because the older synths have sort of a airy, soft touch to them, simply because they're not nearly as bright and pristine as the newer Waldorf synths.

One could argue now that bright and pristine is something you have achieved by better antialiasing, and/or a bigger bandwidth, and that that is a technological evolution, but, won't quite cut it, when you were used, and fond of the old sound. Frankly, i don't think it's worth an argument though that, to stick to my example, Model E is inferior to Monark, Legend, Diva. So, that kind of thing has on one hand to be taken with a pinch of salt, on the other hand, in many ways, synth developes did aim to give a better result.

J-909 · Post by **J-909** » Mon May 22, 2017 11:39 am

Just a question, are there any actual rumors on Massive2?

fallacy · Post by **fallacy** » Mon May 22, 2017 12:44 pm

EvilDragon wrote:
bungle wrote:Please, they are legacy, just because NI try to give the impression they have a value by having them for sale, they garner low if any individual sales, they only have them for sale to boost the perceived value of Komplete, that is about as far from rocket science as you can get, no matter what you would have us believe.
Sooo, you have the actual sales numbers from NI? Nice fallacy there.

You called?

EvilDragon · Post by **EvilDragon** » Mon May 22, 2017 1:00 pm

Hahahahah!

chk071 · Post by **chk071** » Mon May 22, 2017 1:02 pm

J-909 wrote:Just a question, are there any actual rumors on Massive2?

Well, this thread is full of them, that's for sure.

loachm · Post by **loachm** » Mon May 22, 2017 2:27 pm

...so, if it was my turn now to deliberately misunderstand something in order to make a quibbling point - is that supposed to mean, that the quality gap between Massive and Serum is as large as the one between Model-E and The Legend?

chk071 · Post by **chk071** » Mon May 22, 2017 2:32 pm

Nono!

I wrote that the example was exaggerated, and the gap between Massive and Serum surely isn't as crucial. I'd nonetheless expect Serum to have some things Massive doesn't, and wouldn't have had, when it was released, simply due to processing power restrictions. If it is MUCH worse, or, if you don't prefer the character of the one over the other left aside. Nonetheless, imagine they would add some Reaktor quality filters in Massive 2 now. Would surely make for a great update.

EvilDragon · Post by **EvilDragon** » Mon May 22, 2017 2:36 pm

Remember the times when Massive was considered a CPU hog?

chk071 · Post by **chk071** » Mon May 22, 2017 2:39 pm

Actually, i was surprised that it uses so much CPU the first time i tried it.

Was expecting it to be less, with a synth from 2007. I read some on the internet then, and read how people complained about it, when it was released, and how it was recommended to use another quality setting than Ultra, hehe. Nowadays, rather moderate in terms of CPU usage, i think.

EvilDragon · Post by **EvilDragon** » Mon May 22, 2017 2:54 pm

Yep... even on Ultra setting, my i7-6700K gulps it like nothing

Bodhisan · Post by **Bodhisan** » Sat Nov 25, 2017 10:46 pm

This was my Black Friday - going back to where I began and almost drowned about three years ago when I knew zilch about synths, but wanted to learn how to do it. Trying to learn on Massive (because my "research" led me to believe buying a used copy of Komplete 8 was my best bang-for-a-buck), for me, upon reflection was like trying to learn how to ski on a pro slope by watching videos...and although I did emulate a few things, I didn't know what the hell I was doing - I didn't even know I was inputting modulation sources when I "stuck this here and then put the number to 7."

This morning I was inspired to reach for Massive for the first time since then, and, gee, what an incredible synth - and I even know what the hell I'm doing. Too, the layout is actually done really well for such an "old" UI.

Best post-Black Friday ever and didn't spend a cent (well, I did spend $18 for a Logic skin, but that was regular price).

boombaxx · Post by **boombaxx** » Tue Nov 28, 2017 6:15 pm

I think it would be nice if massive was released to be compat with Reaktor. It is 10 years old what difference would it make

Echoes in the Attic · Post by **Echoes in the Attic** » Wed Nov 29, 2017 2:22 am

The only standalone plugins they've released in a very long time have been some effects that other developers have created and released under the NI brand. All NI development is under Reaktor, Kontakt and Maschine now.

I really don't think these oldies are getting major updates again.

drdriller · Post by **drdriller** » Tue May 15, 2018 3:43 pm

Massive X is coming with next komplete update.

https://www.native-instruments.com/foru ... 12.328679/

Any news on Massive 2?