Purity

So, I just got my hands on the brand spanking new Purity. Purity is in many ways an extension and improvement of Luxonix previous synth Ravity and they share many of the same pros and cons.

Like Ravity, purity atempts to emulate a hardware rompler very closely and does so with some success. If you like the way you work with a roland or korg rompler, you should definitely check Purity out.

Where Ravity only emulated the patch layer of a rompler, Purity takes it a step further by adding an over arching combi structure. This means you can have several patches loaded at the same time, arrange them in key and velocity zones and have them respond to different midi channels. Or, you can have several patches playing together as layers.

It's a very versatile setup, that should work whether you prefer multitimbral synths, or (the standard VST) one-synth-per-track style which would give you 16 patch layers.

The second largest difference with respect to Ravity, (and most romplers) is the built in sequencer. Again the word is versatile. It can serve as a regular sequencer for melodies and drum loops, but also as sort of pattern arpeggiator that plays the incoming notes.And given that each patch has its own sequencer you can use it to build casio style auto accompaniments.

It's not 100% obvious how the sequencer works at first, but that's to be expected given it's capabilities. Once you get it, it adds a whole new dimension of fun and inspiration.

Filters, effects, presets and the over all structure of the synth all look/sound good and self explanatory to me. But given that I have spent so much time with Ravity, I may not be the best judge. There are a lot of controls on screen, all clearly labeled, but I suppose a newcomer to the realm may find it bewildering at first.

Moving on.
At the heart of any rompler is the sample rom, which is Purity's weakness. About half of the sounds come directly from Ravity, and the other half are base samples for GM sounds. The quality varies. I like the Ravity sample set very much, so I have nothing against it returning here.

I am a little disappointed over the new additions though. I hoped that Luxonix would take the opportunity to add some kick ass samples of acoustic instruments, which was Ravity's big weakness.

The GM samples are OK, but nothing more. They work in a mix, but most of them won't do for anything more critical. Again, it's the acoustic type sounds that are not really up to today's standards.

The quality of the rom samples obviously carries over to the patches, so if you are looking for some top notch GM sets, look elsewhere. Atleast for the time being. The sample rom can be updated so it's possible that addtional sample sets will be released. Time will tell.

Having said all that, I still _love_ the sound of Purity. I have no need of emulating 'real' instruments. What I want is a tool for crafting new sounds that are inspiring and unique. The kind of sounds that can carry a whole track, and Purity delivers that.

So, if you are looking for a GM player or the best piano ever, Purity will disappoint you.

If you want a creative tool with both character and charisma, Purity will make you happy.Read Review