Product Reviews by KVR Members
All reviews by Tronam
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Though the architecture is extremely simple and not very flexible, it does have it's own biting character that may be useful at times and the CPU utilization is extremely low by today's standards. There could be times when this kind of instrument may be exactly the kind of thing you need to dial up a sound very quickly and want a no-nonsense user interface without numerous menus or pages filled with parameters.
I do get the impression that this is attempting to fill the shoes of a poor man's 303 or Novation Bass Station and while it can produce some of those kinds of textures, the quality of the oscillators and filter is not really there to emulate those very faithfully to me.
One criticism of the knobs is that they are circular motion controlled, so they're a little funky to use (to me, anyways) unless your host offers global control over this behavior.
If you're looking for a freeware bassline instrument, this may have what you're looking for. After all, it's free, so what have you got to lose?Read Review
I do get the impression that this is attempting to fill the shoes of a poor man's 303 or Novation Bass Station and while it can produce some of those kinds of textures, the quality of the oscillators and filter is not really there to emulate those very faithfully to me.
One criticism of the knobs is that they are circular motion controlled, so they're a little funky to use (to me, anyways) unless your host offers global control over this behavior.
If you're looking for a freeware bassline instrument, this may have what you're looking for. After all, it's free, so what have you got to lose?Read Review
Cheeze Machine
Reviewed By Tronam [all]
March 6th, 2002
Version reviewed: 1.3 on Windows
This is a small, focused and unassuming virtual synth with one purpose only: cheesy string pads!
It's a lot of fun to play with and harkens back to the string machines of the 70's made famous by folks such as Jean Michel Jarre (among many others). The string sounds are not intended to be of "orchestral" quality or nature, but more a simulation of the unique timbres of early era synthesizer simulated strings. The sound quality is excellent and it's very easy to program.
Though the raw oscillators are pretty fixed, you have enough control over the chorus, phaser and reverb to create a good variety of swirly pad sounds. I did have a few issues with changing the settings live, even locking up my host (Orion PRO) a couple of times, but this only seemed to happen when making big changes in the number of voices or in the chorus.
Bottom line: It sounds good and it's free, so there's no reason not to have it in your VST folder, unless you simply dislike this kind of sound. Though I wouldn't necessarily call it a one-trick-pony, it's certainly designed for a certain style of sound and is by no means an all rounder.Read Review
It's a lot of fun to play with and harkens back to the string machines of the 70's made famous by folks such as Jean Michel Jarre (among many others). The string sounds are not intended to be of "orchestral" quality or nature, but more a simulation of the unique timbres of early era synthesizer simulated strings. The sound quality is excellent and it's very easy to program.
Though the raw oscillators are pretty fixed, you have enough control over the chorus, phaser and reverb to create a good variety of swirly pad sounds. I did have a few issues with changing the settings live, even locking up my host (Orion PRO) a couple of times, but this only seemed to happen when making big changes in the number of voices or in the chorus.
Bottom line: It sounds good and it's free, so there's no reason not to have it in your VST folder, unless you simply dislike this kind of sound. Though I wouldn't necessarily call it a one-trick-pony, it's certainly designed for a certain style of sound and is by no means an all rounder.Read Review
Triangle I
Reviewed By Tronam [all]
March 6th, 2002
Version reviewed: 1.1 on Windows
It's free and a product by rgcAudio, so you might as well stop reading this and just download it. René's instruments are always musical and of high quality. This is certainly no exception. You could look at it as the little brother of the polyphonic Square I, another of his highly regarded older generation virtual analog synths.
Being a monosynth, some of the most common uses for Triangle is bass and lead sounds, which it handles well. The filter on this little guy has a very warm, musical quality to it that is kind of rare in the virtual world. Though I'm sure it is capable of aggressive sounds, it definitely seems to lean towards sweeter, gentler timbres. The newer engine instruments such as Triangle II and Pentagon I seem better suited for more powerful, edgy, aggressive sounds.
With 3 oscillators, 4 LFOs, built-in effects, more advanced control features like aftertouch sensitivity and various other features, it is surprisingly flexible for a freeware instrument.
Bottom line: It has a unique sound, lovely little musical filter and is free. Definitely a worthwhile download.Read Review
Being a monosynth, some of the most common uses for Triangle is bass and lead sounds, which it handles well. The filter on this little guy has a very warm, musical quality to it that is kind of rare in the virtual world. Though I'm sure it is capable of aggressive sounds, it definitely seems to lean towards sweeter, gentler timbres. The newer engine instruments such as Triangle II and Pentagon I seem better suited for more powerful, edgy, aggressive sounds.
With 3 oscillators, 4 LFOs, built-in effects, more advanced control features like aftertouch sensitivity and various other features, it is surprisingly flexible for a freeware instrument.
Bottom line: It has a unique sound, lovely little musical filter and is free. Definitely a worthwhile download.Read Review
Pentagon I
Reviewed By Tronam [all]
March 5th, 2002
Version reviewed: 1.2 on Windows
This is now my favorite synth, soft or otherwise.
I wasn't as impressed with this when 1.0 came out. I have to say the number one reason I waited so long to but it is the demo "fade out" business -- it drops the volume to nil every few seconds, making it really tough to bond with.
As a Trangle user, I got a little overwhelmed by all the knobs. If you're afraid of knobs too, don't fret. The Pentagon comes with a ton of really good presets that cover a huge spectrum of sounds. I have since made a few new ones myself -- it isn't too hard to program once you get your hands dirty.
One thing I don't see much mention of in other reviews is the portamento features and overall MIDI-friendleness of this synth. It is amazing to do solos with. RgcAudio calls it their 'performance synth', and I couldn't agree more. I come from the age of whammy-bar guitar solos, and I can come pretty close with this thing.
Bottom line: it makes so many cool sounds you can't miss. It won't replace all your synths, but it'll take you to a new level. If you like warm, fat, analog synths you won't regret getting this beast.Read Review
I wasn't as impressed with this when 1.0 came out. I have to say the number one reason I waited so long to but it is the demo "fade out" business -- it drops the volume to nil every few seconds, making it really tough to bond with.
As a Trangle user, I got a little overwhelmed by all the knobs. If you're afraid of knobs too, don't fret. The Pentagon comes with a ton of really good presets that cover a huge spectrum of sounds. I have since made a few new ones myself -- it isn't too hard to program once you get your hands dirty.
One thing I don't see much mention of in other reviews is the portamento features and overall MIDI-friendleness of this synth. It is amazing to do solos with. RgcAudio calls it their 'performance synth', and I couldn't agree more. I come from the age of whammy-bar guitar solos, and I can come pretty close with this thing.
Bottom line: it makes so many cool sounds you can't miss. It won't replace all your synths, but it'll take you to a new level. If you like warm, fat, analog synths you won't regret getting this beast.Read Review
