Hydrasynth from ASM

The Lounge Other Gear
#787

Thanks for that fattyparts – i want to watch this, i’ll book some time for it later – it’s a hour and twenty minutes long. So there must be some good stuff. I’m sure they talk about the latest firmware. What else?

I ran across another patch release. There is such an incredible range with the HS – you can make some really strange stuff if you want. But that’s not what this new patch collection is about. Push-Pull has release 32 of the very nice sounding patches, called “The Classic Collection”. It’s $10 for these, and i say it’s worth it. Nice playing in the demo too. (The demo is ten minutes long.)

1 Like
#788

I’m a long time listener of BeatPPL, there shows are really great and well worth delving through. there’s a really great one with Simon from Elektron, primarily focused on the Digitone. i only watched half of the AMS one which mainly covered the origin story, going to watch the rest later.

i was just this very morning looking for the Push Pull bank, will listen later!

1 Like
#789

i must say, AMS are one of the coolest synth companies, their interviews always want to make me want to support them!

has anyone updated yet? over on GS people have been complaining a bit about certain bugs, need to make sure first before i go through with it.

1 Like
#790

On the beatppl interview:

43:45
Glen says … that they are busy working on the next few things planned for ASM over the next four years.
So that’s good they’re doing some long term planning, and perhaps some blue skying too, while still doing development too. Nothing specific is mentioned of course, although elsewhere in the interview Glen does issue a “not confirm nor deny” on something Cory asked in specific.

24:35
They go over the new firmware.

1:07:00
Glen was liking the Osmose, and had an opportunity to play it and experience it.

10:00
Glen talks about the small loop quick turn around development cycle and how Chen helped make that work.

17:40
Flux asked about current delivery, and apparently there is a shipment to the US just about to be taken off a ship.

They also talk about the Classic patch bank from Push-Pull.

As far as loading the new firmware, unless it’s a one way deal, that you can’t return from, my basic philosophy is just do it. (Are your sources fattyparts, saying they bricked the HS?)

I loaded it.
ADDED: Note – There is a new version of the Updater 1.8.1 that you need to put on your computer to do the update. And as always read the notes and instructions!

The phazdiff is really great, i’m liking it especially running a slow morphing wave table into it and then using slow out-of-sync modulations on the phazdiff parameters. “No One Steps Into The Same River Twice.”

Next planned experiment is to apply poly-aftertouch to phazdiff.

I am using the Violet noise, at the moment but i think my color will change with my mood. (The suggestion in the interview for HS merch with T-Shirts in the seven noise colors is a good one.) There are distinct differences to the separate noises.

1 Like
#791

New product: HYDRAMORPH – Morphing control software for the HS that allows you to externally control and morph 366 parameters (maybe more) in a patch. It is currently under development, and is scheduled for release mid-May. This is third party software not developed by ASM. It is done by John Keston of Audio CookBook. The software (at least at the moment) is limited to the Mac only. In addition to control i think it will likely be able to do some editing functions as well. For instance it has a way to set values for the Step LFO that are quantized to note pitch if you are using the Step LFO to control pitch. (I’ve done this manually and worked out the math for this as well, but it is fiddly.)

On sale for pre-order now, at $40 USD, which will go up to $50 when released.

ADDED: There is now a Windows 10 version of this too.

I still expect that ASM will have an editor, but it has not been formally announced.

#792

Does the hydra synth have a drone mode or midi hold? Like on the prophet 6. You play some notes and then press “hold” button and the prophet is holding the notes (as long as you have sustain turned up). Didn´t find it yet on the hydra.

1 Like
Hydrasynth from ASM - Tips, Tricks and Queries
#793

I’m pretty sure it has a “Sustain” button which you can use to either Sustain a note or hold an Arp if it’s active. It should be a function in the Arpeggiator section

#794

Yep. Hold shift and press Latch.

1 Like
#795

What I also find really nice is that you can design OSC1 and when you keep “save” pressed while pressing “osc1”, then “osc2” you can get 2 identical complex oscillators. When panning them hard left and hard right in the mixer section and slightly changing some parameters on them it ends up producing nice stereo effects. It’s a really incredible synth. I wish there was something like that with an Elektron sequencer embedded :slight_smile:

1 Like
#796

Which is the same as a latching footswitch like the Hosa FSC-501 or the Boss FS-5L plugged into the Sustain Pedal Input.

Captain Obvious

It would be easy enough (and cheaper) to make the same sort of thing from parts. I’d like a locking sustain pedal like on some pianos, where you push it down and to the side to lock it.

I always have a sustain and an expression pedal plugged into the HS.

#797

Think I prefer the desktop version, looks absolutely fab. Great video love it :+1:

1 Like
#798

You liked that, here’s another one you’ll probably love too.


One patch, no arpeggiator. Good choices on camera and lighting with this.

The HSD and HSK are both great, it just depends in the margin between them what you want.

3 Likes
#799

Oooh, I dig that. :grin:

(Subscribed)

#800

Ah now this is absolutely what I love I could listen to this stuff all night… sounds like my fav online listening channel here:

SPACE DREAMS

I love the sound design possibilities of this synth Iv’e worked with and designed sounds for many synths hardware and software but this one has me excited. I can only afford the desktop version tho and tbh I have other KB’s to control the module so I save space here.

I’m just curious about the FX on the synth… are these demos showing the internal FX? If so they’re the best Iv’e heard on a synth.

Iv’e found 2 shops that have Hydra available at £799… Tomorrow I might just go for it and also produce a bank of sounds.

Rob

#801

In this case, as far as i can tell from the notes with the video, they’re just using internal effects. Of course people do all kinds of things in other videos, multi-track, and add stuff in a DAW or whatever. But what’s built-in is powerful and can be used as is.

The effects chain at the end is Pre-FX -> Delay -> Reverb -> Post-FX. For each part there are multiple options. Tthere are 8 FX types, 5 delay types, and 4 reverb types. And all this can be modulated and controlled via the mod matrix and custom macros. There is also tremendous power in the 4 mutants too, and plenty of options with the filters as well, and also in the way you can manage a stereo signal.

Like i said both the HSD and the HSK are great in their own ways. If you really like your other keyboards and are comfortable with that interface that’s worth a lot. The poly-aftertouch/MPE keys on the HSK are very well done even used just as a controller. The integration with the ribbon controller is special too. The wheels are v.g. too but aside from the control you have through the mod-matrix, you could do the wheels other ways and be fine. To me the HSK is well worth the signicant price margin over the HSD – i didn’t really realize that until i had had the keys for a while. But you can’t go wrong with either.

2 Likes
#802

I sure do like the look of the KB but it’s like £500 more than the desk top version. I also think the desk top looks pretty cool. Love them pads. For me it’s the sound that counts and as far as I know they both knock out the same sound. At £799 the desk top is a steal IMO.
I’m gonna have the rest of the day listening to more demos on YouTube and I’ll probably end up ordering it tomorrow IF I don’t see anything else I fancy in the meantime however I doubt I will. The only other desk top I have been looking at was the Modal Argon 8 desk top.

I have to say tho that the demos you’ve posted in this thread are absolutely fantastic and I’m basically sold on the Hydra digital or not :+1:

1 Like
#803

rob_lee –
The sound engine, effects, etc are all the same between the HSD and HSK. The primary differences in function that affects the sound beyond the poly-aftertouch keyboard vs poly-aftertouch pads, is the ribbon controller (with three modes), the immediate access to more controls particularly with the filters and arpeggiators, and the Chord Mode accessed with the Chord Button.

The Chord Mode is a difference that often gets missed. Read the manual section on that. One of the most common ways to use that is in a generative fashion, by creating a shape (i.e. sparse, compact, bass with chord, spread, guitar-like, or cluster) and then use the note and scale voice functions to quantize the notes. The note and scale voice quantize works both on the HSK and HSD, but does not quantize the midi notes sent with either. Also you do have the access on both the HSD and HSK to the two arpeggiator modes that plays chords, but don’t confuse those with the Chord Mode that is only on the HSK.

When you use the HSK Chord Mode with the arpeggiator, it plays chords in the arpeggiated patterns, which again is interesting particularly with the voice scale and key set. If you use the HSK Chord Mode together with the arpeggiator chord modes, you get chords of chord, which means usually a mess where you run out of voices and so you generally try to avoid that.

ADDED: Combining the two chord modes is possible with the latest firmware.

Once the HSK Chord is set it stays remembered while power is on, but is not stored with a patch. You can go in and out of HSK Chord Mode and the chord is remembered. You can change patches and the chord you set is remembered. Again this is particularly useful when used with a voice scale and key.

About poly-aftertouch and MPE. You don’t have to have performance abilities on a conventional heyboard beyond an intermediate level to use this effectively, either with the synth or as a controller. There are many times you play things slower and rely on poly-after-touch pressures to get expression. The same principles can be applied with the HSD pads.

2 Likes
#804

Thanks for that. I think the Hydra will be getting purchased in the next day or so.

1 Like
#805

You’ll be happy with it. Built like a tank and sounds amazing, I’ve had mine for months and I am still learning new stuff. For making your own sounds it is really intuitive and hours have been lost fine tuning a sound. Unison mode sounds really fat. I layer up the sounds with a Digitone and damn, nearly getting into Serum sounding territory.

3 Likes
#806

Thanks guys I’m sold… Just bought the desktop, hope I’m gonna have loads of fun with it.

4 Likes