Is Omnisphere 2 still worth it?

[LoveEnigma18]

Depending on what you have or don't have now could make it either worth it or expensive overkill.
You mentioned NI instruments though, and in the kontext of Kontakt, you could easily spend Omni's FMV price on one quality Kontakt library. And if you're a preset and/or simple preset layering person, then sure, it's probably worth it. But I often read how others more often turn to another plugin for their analog emulations. And almost as often it seems they only use that part of it to prove it could if they wanted to.
As far as the GAS, you could wait for version 3, and then pick up version 2 on a dump when Spectrasonics announces a 'grace buy period'.

MRP is $499. MAP is $479.00.
FMV should be closer to $430.00 new. And far less on a 'dump' during a new version announcement where some stores want to move the stock.
And remember that buying it used makes it NFR.

Solid advice. I did not know about the grace period part and buying old stock when 3 comes out. I am probably not too desperate for it and could wait, as it seems that Omnisphere 3 could be due next year going by the trend (O1 in 2008, O2 in 2015, O3 in... 2022? ), but I wonder if at all there will be the third iteration. Going by the improvements/updates it has received since the release of Omnisphere 2, what more could be added that would make it worthy of 3?

I am thinking that the next contender for major upgrade is Stylus RMX. I would be surprised if they release Omnisphere 3 next year.

Yes, I do understand that it becomes NFR, and there's also a $50 transfer fee if you want to transfer as an original owner - some things that I don't like about Spectrasonics.

[LoveEnigma18]

UVI Falcon seems too complicated for me, so definitely not interested in it. I would definitely buy Omnisphere 2 over it.

I like to work with straightforward synths (also non-modular) and I rely on presets for major part. Over the past few years I have improved my understanding of working with synths and have always been a preset tweaker. I don't intend to delve too deep in any synth.

From what I already own, Pigments 3 and Equator 2 seem to be the best alternatives for me right now. I should probably explore them more first. They sound excellent, have variety of synthesis options - not much concerned about effects, as I don't use onboard effects much, but the onboard effects on these two are pretty good.

Komplete 13 has some great Kontakt libraries, especially some of the Play Series instruments, which are great.

I think the main advantage of Omnisphere 2 is that it seems to have a lot of bread n' butter, high-quality and readily usable presets in various categories, but this is just an assumption based on some videos I have seen.

There are three options w.r.t Omnisphere:

1. To wait for a year and see if Omnisphere 3 is announced.
2. By selling of some plugins that I don't use, I could generate some cash for getting Omnisphere 2 now.
3. Will allow some time for GAS to subside and I might as well forget about it completely.

[LoveEnigma18]

So, I just realized that the last Omnisphere update (2.6) was released over 2 years ago. I was assuming it was a recent update. Looks like there could be a major update in near future then?

[zerocrossing]

You have to look at Omnisphere like a “Swiss Army knife.” In this way, it is not comparable to a dedicated wavetable synth or even the Pigments and other multi-engine synths of the world. It’s both awesome because you can clip your toenails and open a bottle of wine with it, and hobbled because it’s not as good as a any quality dedicated tool at it’s job. While that might seem like an argument against it, when you have the feature set that Omnisphere has in one easy to use package, you get some synergy that I’ve not found in other instruments, including Falcon. To people who say it’s difficult to work with, I urge them to spend a moment watching a few tutorials. The right-click-assign method of working will become second nature to you in a few minutes and you’ll soon wonder why this isn’t copied more. Also, the included library is full of interesting samples and there’s presets galore for those who don’t want to get their hands dirty with programming.

My only wish is that they’d implement MPE and include some better analog filter models. Maybe touch up the distortion effects to bring them up to modern standards. Pretty minor stuff, though.

[Kinh]

Hugely overhyped synth imho, especially considering alternatives available now.

such as?

Assuming, you don't want/need all of the sample content, then something like Pigments is a good contender imo. It does VA, FM, wavetable and granular just like Omnisphere, but the workflow/programming is miles better, for me personally and the sampler is a bit better too, you can load up to 6 samples for round robin effects, rather than just the one in Omnisphere. The filters are nice enough, the effects aren't quite as good imo, but I have plenty of good third-party offerings, as I expect most other people do too. It is considerably cheaper too, $99 on sale ($69 if you have one of their freebies).

Don't get me wrong, I don't think it's a bad synth, I just don't have a raging hard on for it like most people seem to here and in other forums/groups I frequent.

whoda-you talkin' bout? Aint no synth better dan Omni

[Examigan]

So, I just realized that the last Omnisphere update (2.6) was released over 2 years ago. I was assuming it was a recent update. Looks like there could be a major update in near future then?

One of those 2 years could have been a delay caused by Covid, not sure though.

Also one thing to consider is any 2.x updates are free (last time I checked anyway) so if you buy it now and a new 2.x update appears (2.7, 2.8, etc.), you should be able to download it at no cost.

[pdxindy]

Sorry in advance if this question is a cliche. But I am asking this to try to avert my GAS for it and also a question in general whether Omnisphere 2 is worth getting today.

- Considering there are lots of great instruments available these days
(synths: Massive X, Pigments 3, Equator 2, V Collection, etc. and tons of Kontakt libraries as part of Komplete or 3rd party libraries), what makes Omnisphere 2 special?

- Is it the huge number of high-quality ROMpler type of sounds or the possibilities with its engine?

- What (genres) is it actually best for?

- Can it replace all these instruments in terms of sound creation possibilities and number and type of sounds/presets?

I am sure Omnisphere 2 owners and fans will be slightly biased towards it, but I am looking for an unbiased opinion. If I own the above instruments, does it make sense to get Omnisphere 2 - of course from your point of view.

What are you lacking? When you are creating music, are there sounds you want but don't have? Is that list of synths above what you already have?

I think Massive X has a higher sound quality than Omnisphere. Then again, I like audio rate modulations and the MX feedback.

I would much rather take the cost of Omnisphere and put it towards a set of simpler synths that really meet my interests. Plasmonic, Bazille, RePro, Vital... they all do stuff that is not possible in Omnisphere. So it all depends on your interests, cause what Omnisphere does, it does very well, but there is also plenty it doesn't do. There is no generic answer to your question.

[cryophonik]

OK, I'm biased because I've owned and used Omni as one of my main synths since the day v1 was released, so I won't offer my opinion. However, I would say that waiting for v3 is probably a waste of time. Spectrasonics is awesome at providing free and amazing version updates that usually add features and sounds, but very slow in releasing new versions.

[starflakeprj]

My opinion is that I can't really justify the pricing on Omnisphere (as an individual product). Same goes for Nexus. Otherwise I think I own pretty much everything else, with a few exceptions. So if I would have been smart, I would have stopped myself from buying a couple of other synths and bought Omni instead, because it is a great synth.

[ghettosynth]

I think Massive X has a higher sound quality than Omnisphere. Then again, I like audio rate modulations and the MX feedback.

Higher sound quality than Omnisphere? Really? MassiveX? From NI? That MassiveX? Better than Omnisphere?

[BBFG#]

As a general rule -
Definitely wait for GAS to subside.
And I usually sell off things I'm not using as a "cost averaging" towards anything new I'm considering to help justify it. And then there's store considerations too. Some do in-cart discounts and others have gift card promotions where they give you percentage discounts for pre-buying.

But be aware that Taxes and VATs are the most talked about scheme in just about every government right now. Your prepaid discount gift card could easily only pay for a portion of that.

One other thing to consider is the yearly KVR auction in October (if they do it again). Spectrasonics has historically donated and not only can you get a good price (without tax/VAT & shipping), but knowing it goes to do some other good helps my mind justify whatever the final price is.

As far as other synths go, depending on the sound you're looking for...

I find HALion to be the better Swiss Army Knife. Might wait to see what their new licensing scheme is. If having to choose between those two, HALion has far more use than Omni for me.

If the whole psychoacoustics is a thing for you, then consider Tone 2 synths. Gladiator and Icarus especially can hit and in someways, exceed the Omni sound.

If psychoacoustics is not a thing for you, consider Rob Papen Blue 2. Like Omni, it doesn't focus on pianos, but great pads and synths.
If it's just about synth though, I'll show my fanaticism for u-He once again, as I feel they are the top-notch sound that grabs me the best. And to add Pigments 3 to those will click many of the synthetic boxes...

[gnu23]

I'll offer an imperfect, but reasonably accurate analogy.

Blizzard, creators of World of Warcraft, had a maxim in its development teams: "We don't release until it's ready."
Neither does Spectrasonics.

I've used Spectrasonics tools since Stylus and Atmosphere. If I had to pick a "best" in my collection of synths, it'd be Omnisphere hands down. Still. No question in my mind. Would I buy Spectrasonics again? Yes. Now? Yes.

Just my $0.02 US. Your mileage may vary.

[perpetual3]

I think Massive X has a higher sound quality than Omnisphere. Then again, I like audio rate modulations and the MX feedback.

Higher sound quality than Omnisphere? Really? MassiveX? From NI? That MassiveX? Better than Omnisphere?

I would agree that MX has better sound quality than OSphere.

[ghettosynth]

I think Massive X has a higher sound quality than Omnisphere. Then again, I like audio rate modulations and the MX feedback.

Higher sound quality than Omnisphere? Really? MassiveX? From NI? That MassiveX? Better than Omnisphere?

I would agree that MX has better sound quality than OSphere.

You should probably get a demo of Omnisphere. The thing with Omnisphere is that the sound quality is excellent, everything is high grade. A tool like Omhisphere can make or break your ability to sell a record. I mean, you sell just one record and it will pay for the software. You can't get a better return on your investment than that. You know what I'm saying?

[cryophonik]

Not sure I see Massive X being a direct competitor or alternative to Omnisphere. Those two are different enough that they easily play happily together IMO.