Typically I see two advantages of layering:Urs wrote: Wed Aug 09, 2023 5:28 pm Layering is a bit of a pet peeve of mine.
Why should we prevent an LFO from Layer 1 to be reused in Layer 2 and Layer 3 and Layer4? Why shouldn't one be able to send a portion of the audio of Layer 1 to the reverb on Layer 2?
My designs have always been developed with efficiency in mind, and to me the concept of layers seems more like a restriction than an offering.
I understand that layering allows for quick experimentation by combining simple sources in an easy manner. But even that is more difficult to achieve in a single instance of a virtual instrument than in two or more instances in a DAW, where each preset browser can be open at the same time. As in: For quick multi layering you'd need two separate kinds of presets, multis and singles. This drives cost and complexity. I believe it makes the very thing harder to achieve that the user may be seeking.
As for sound design efficiency in Zebra, we are experimenting with UI refinements that let people group modules and show/hide those to various ways to keep focus on what could be seen as a layer - even if it isn't necessarily a layer in the classical sense.
1) Being able to combine a set of sounds that play in different notes/zones. Like say a drum machine or a bass on the left hand and chords on the right hand.
2) Being able to assign a different arp/sequencer for every layer. You could have like a bass playing a single sustained note and a sequence playing on top of it.
Of course Z3 could solve these in alternative ways vs using layers and overcome the limitations you described.
For example, VPS Avenger allows multiple arps/sequencers and these can be assigned to the oscs directly instead of the whole patch.
