KVR Audio

Dúnedain · Post by **Dúnedain** » Sun Jan 10, 2016 11:51 am

What do you think are good synths to explain people unfamiliar with (subtractive) synths the working of a synth?

My vote goes to Logic's ES1. It has a clean interface and has all the basisc and nothing more so you won't get distracted. As an example: it doesn't have HP-filters which would only have made things more complicated. Also a sub osc, giving you a short piece of knowledge about sounddesign. But the best thing (and rather unique I think) are the 2 doubled sliders:
- one for the velocity impact on the filter cut off,
- and another one for the velocity impact on the amp.
Most synths have a single knob for velocity sensitivity together with another knob for the impact for the envelop on the cut-off. Then a single slider with a min and a max makes things much easier to understand IMO.

Also a big fan of Motu's Modulo. There is a lot to modulate over here but Motu managed to show it in a very organized and easy to understand way. Tabs for LFO and envelopes and instead of a modulation matrix they gave that one tabs as well making it easier to understand for newbies. After all a modulation matrix is more complicated than tabs where you can select amounts for destinations. Wish there was something like this as an AU.
(the interface flaw they made btw is the LP12 LP24 BP HP section, just like the LFO and ENV tabs it suggest they can all be active at the same time)

whyterabbyt · Post by **whyterabbyt** » Sun Jan 10, 2016 12:36 pm

Dúnedain wrote:What do you think are good synths to explain people unfamiliar with (subtractive) synths the working of a synth?

Tyrell N6. Simple layout, left to right ordering of the basic building blocks, modulators organised clearly, all relevant UI elements together and clearly differentiated, ADSRs with sliders, enough options to actually get a feel for the breadth of subtractive, free, not locked to any given platform.

My vote goes to Logic's ES1. It has a clean interface and has all the basisc and nothing more so you won't get distracted. As an example: it doesn't have HP-filters which would only have made things more complicated. Also a sub osc, giving you a short piece of knowledge about sounddesign. But the best thing (and rather unique I think) are the 2 doubled sliders:

IMO, that has a terrible interface; there's no visual distinction between the blocks at all; the UI elements are all over the place, and legends are barely discernable, in an inconsistent variety of fonts and styles. Totally built for 'looks' over useability. I also think that it would be better to have more filter options as the idea should be understanding subtractive synthesis not low-pass filtering. Multiple filter types would be just as much a ' a short piece of knowledge about sounddesign' as the sub, and just as useful to know about as the multiple cutoff slopes offered (and is more than 'the basics'), so I disagree with your logic there.

AnX · Post by **AnX** » Sun Jan 10, 2016 12:41 pm

What he said. The ES1 looks awful. Dont think a beginner would do very well with that.

chk071 · Post by **chk071** » Sun Jan 10, 2016 12:44 pm

Yeah, i agree on ES1, seems very unclear.

TAL-Noisemaker IMO is one of the easiest and clear synths to learn subtractive synthesis really:

Mutant · Post by **Mutant** » Sun Jan 10, 2016 12:52 pm

Any emulation of the Minimoog.
It is a very simple synth, but it sounds good enough to keep non-synth-nerds interested.
http://www.elektrostudio.ovh.org/?lang=en
or
https://web.archive.org/web/20131106203 ... eLUXUS.zip

Nielzie · Post by **Nielzie** » Sun Jan 10, 2016 2:03 pm

FabFilter One?

Simple, but clear and effective.

matamoris · Post by **matamoris** » Sun Jan 10, 2016 2:04 pm

I find Retrologue to be the most intuitive analog-style synth. There's something about the GUI that just works for me. Logic's Retro Synth is also fairly straightforward.

layzer · Post by **layzer** » Sun Jan 10, 2016 2:37 pm

Charlatan. hands down for learning subtractive synthesis. good gui and sound and free.

Chris-S · Post by **Chris-S** » Sun Jan 10, 2016 3:17 pm

I think good old Synth1 is easy enough also for beginners.

It has all the modules a modern subtractive synth should have and all is on one page.

thecontrolcentre · Post by **thecontrolcentre** » Sun Jan 10, 2016 3:21 pm

AD Basic

http://www.audiodamage.com/effects/prod ... ?pid=AD033

fwsuperhero · Post by **fwsuperhero** » Sun Jan 10, 2016 3:51 pm

Basic is the best but not the perfect because lfo -> filter is in filter section but other lfo connections are in its own section.

I would say that Tal Bassline is the best tutorial synth. Then it would be Basic ... Charlatan ... Korg Polysix and also MiniBit from AudioThing.

jsp1979 · Post by **jsp1979** » Sun Jan 10, 2016 4:05 pm

I've always thought FAW Circle 2 would be a good one. I like how it traces the ADSR envelopes as they are applied so you can easily see the effect they have.

And I agree that ES1 looks horrible. It's like the old version of Linplug's Chronox3.

ere2learn · Post by **ere2learn** » Sun Jan 10, 2016 4:15 pm

Noisemaker or Charlatan gets my vote

Yorrrrrr · Post by **Yorrrrrr** » Sun Jan 10, 2016 4:33 pm

Aside that it can go as complex as you want, DUNE 2 is pretty straightforward and easy. That's what I used to learn.

Dasheesh · Post by **Dasheesh** » Sun Jan 10, 2016 4:46 pm

+1 for Basic. I have never played with it and don't know if it does the job, but that is the whole reason and purpose behind it and Audio Damage is a good company with good sound.

Best tutorial synths