Is anyone still using one of the old Emu Ultra units?
My musical partner recently got hold of an e5k, for peanuts. I might have the possibility of grabbing an e6400 and am tempted.
There always seemed to be some magic about the sound of those machines, vs. current generation samplers.
I think it was possible to transfer samples via MIDI, without going SCSI - right (albeit slowly)?
Any pluses / minuses you can think of?
Thanks!
Some thoughts here:
i bought an e6400 non-ultra unit. it came stuffed w/emu factory libraries which are actually really good. i bought chicken systems translator6 pro and a SCSI2SD and it’s mostly trivial to format sounds correctly for the emu.
the Ultra units can support wav files if you install the right EOS OS. they have faster CPUs as well and standard basic FX. the non ultra units have no effects and can’t read wav files.
i like it. i sounds lush and musical. lot’s of modulation and great filters. it really has a great sound. the converters are just so good and musical sounding. there’s some magic there.
the only samplers i’d owned prior to the emu were an akai S2000 which is the most basic vanilla thing on the planet and a Yamaha A4000. that was 20 years ago or more. i always wanted an emu but never had the cash so it was now or never.
i don’t use it all the time but i enjoy it when i do. the pads and stuff are ridiculous. drums are punchy and big and loud.
The e6400 Ultra I was watching (actually being sold by a friend) has gone.
That probably makes the decision for me. Phew!
I used a 6400 for years when I was doing D&B. Besides the quality converters and overall fidelity, what really makes this series shine are the Z-plane filters. Crazy sound-shaping possibilities.