Looking for a tabletop synth (digital)

Rabbitfrog · 2015-04-09T02:47:36.000Z

""Sinner6"":

Just to be clear the OSC oscillators (on EMX2) are VA modeled, as are the multiple filter types.

Not sure I know what VA modeled is (I know regular VA)

But if you never heard of ROMplers it’s the synths that made those extremely lush pads back in the 90s. The Roland JD 800 is a beast.

The waveforms aren’t generated, so there is no oscillation. Which is actually a good thing since it frees up DSP and allows for complex algorithms, effects, voice routing and polyphony in the double digits.

The current trend for monophony and oscillation is just a backlash to a decade of making music on presets.

To my ear ROMplers make the best and warmest pads, a sort of balance between digital sound and (unpure) analog. Of course it’s hard for a modern musician to find space for them. These pads ocupy a lot of sonic frequencies and timbres leaving room for little content. That’s why they were mainly used in atmospheric drum and bass where they just needed to add drums and some bass. But entire ambient albums were usually made on these.

Why did I divert so much… Oh yeah! King Korg, I imagine that beast of a synth has a ROM engine in it as well?

Sinner6 · 2015-04-09T04:41:00.000Z

Yes, I am aware of the difference, as I have an EMU PX-7, which is also a ROMpler. What I meant was that the synths use VA oscillators, while the drums are PCM samples, many of which are multi-sampled. So it does both.

TokyoDisco · 2015-04-09T09:20:57.000Z

Still leaning toward a Blofeld?

I love the sound of it and also am thinking of getting one again…
but this would be my 3rd time. I had the white KB and the black KB versions and both times I had erratic encoders. I remember one of them was so bad you could turn the knob around 5 or 6 times before the value would change. That’s the only thing I’d watch out for on them.

Otherwise it sounds so great with the MnM.

vos · 2015-04-09T11:10:52.000Z

The current trend for monophony and oscillation is just a backlash to a decade of making music on presets.

??? I don’t think so

A MonoMachine could be interesting -
or a second-hand K 2000 - K 2500 - Module - very good for Pads and it has a good sequencer inside … I have a K 2500 ( sample -based ) - it has great FX and you can use these on external gear + a sampler ). With a little luck you can find them at very low prices.
Ciao…

Stickhit · 2015-04-09T11:41:07.000Z

The new Roland JD-Xi sounds hot to my ears, just need a bit more desk space.

insidestraight · 2015-04-09T11:59:42.000Z

Do yourself a favour and check out these two Blofeld videos:

Skip to the end of each if you don’t feel like watching the whole process… amazing sounds!

zfigz · 2015-04-10T01:27:20.000Z

Since everyone is on the topic of the Blofeld, can anyone recommend some OS X applications to program the Blofeld? I know there are at least a couple, just want to see if anyone has any experience with them.

thx

Tornfrayed · 2015-04-10T02:06:29.000Z

""zfigz"":

Since everyone is on the topic of the Blofeld, can anyone recommend some OS X applications to program the Blofeld?

thx

Patch Morpher is dope but it’s an App.

TokyoDisco · 2015-04-10T04:40:57.000Z

monstrumFeld?

glaciertree · 2015-04-10T11:45:09.000Z

""zfigz"":

Since everyone is on the topic of the Blofeld, can anyone recommend some OS X applications to program the Blofeld? I know there are at least a couple, just want to see if anyone has any experience with them.

thx

personally, I haven’t seen the need for an editor. Of course, I try not to use a computer with the synths most of the time anyway. But the display on the unit is quite helpful. For example, as you edit an ASDR envelope for the Filter, you can see a graph of the envelope displayed and changes as you adjust the parameters.

zfigz · 2015-04-10T15:01:12.000Z

""glaciertree"":

[quote=“zfigz”]Since everyone is on the topic of the Blofeld, can anyone recommend some OS X applications to program the Blofeld? I know there are at least a couple, just want to see if anyone has any experience with them.

thx

personally, I haven’t seen the need for an editor. Of course, I try not to use a computer with the synths most of the time anyway. But the display on the unit is quite helpful. For example, as you edit an ASDR envelope for the Filter, you can see a graph of the envelope displayed and changes as you adjust the parameters.[/quote]
Yeah, I owned a Blofeld a few years ago for a couple of years. I loved it, but ended up selling to try to do the same stuff ITB. At that time, there was no editor, but I didn’t have any issues programming. I was just thinking of what was out there in case I wanted to have the option to do it.
I also have the Tetra, which “has” to be programmed via a computer (unless you like painfully digging into menus), so was just looking into options for the Blofeld.

koshimazaki · 2015-04-10T15:07:15.000Z

Why not Monomachine?
Seem perfect for what you want to do.
Interface is the best out there.

zfigz · 2015-04-10T15:09:41.000Z

""koshimazaki"":

Why not Monomachine?
Seem perfect for what you want to do.
Interface is the best out there.

I think he doesn’t want to go that route because it’s not multitimbral + polyphony at once.

Rabbitfrog · 2015-04-10T15:43:15.000Z

""koshimazaki"":

Why not Monomachine?
Seem perfect for what you want to do.
Interface is the best out there.

Because a large portion of MM is dedicated to analog emulation and I already have an A4, seems like an overkill to get MM to only use Wavetable and FM+ synth engines.

zfigz · 2015-04-10T15:51:06.000Z

""Rabbitfrog"":

…seems like an overkill to get MM to only use Wavetable and FM+ synth engines.

Agreed…as much as I love the MM, I don’t think you should get it for your purposes.

Zymos · 2015-04-10T16:06:00.000Z

[quote=“” Tornfrayed""]

[quote=“zfigz”]Since everyone is on the topic of the Blofeld, can anyone recommend some OS X applications to program the Blofeld?

thx
[/quote]

Patch Morpher is dope but it’s an App.[/quote]
And an excellent app it is! Highly recommended for anyone who owns both an iPad and a Blofeld.

AdamJay · 2015-04-10T16:12:28.000Z

""Rabbitfrog"":

[quote=“koshimazaki”]Why not Monomachine?
Seem perfect for what you want to do.
Interface is the best out there.

Because a large portion of MM is dedicated to analog emulation and I already have an A4, seems like an overkill to get MM to only use Wavetable and FM+ synth engines.[/quote]
Just going to play Devil’s Avocado here and say that Monomachine has one of the most digital sounding analog emulations out there.

I get hardly any overlap at all between my A4 and my MnM. They are very, very different, especially the filters which is most of the sound.
The flexible routing and bussing alone make MnM a completely different animal, not to mention the additional LFO per voice. One of many ways I use it is as a digital modular of sorts.

And don’t forget the SID engine. It’s a bit more tame than a SidStation, and you can avoid the video game sounds if you like. It’s another tool in the shed that can take you to very interesting digital places.
VO-6 engine shouldn’t be overlooked either. Aside from giving one word answers to Wheel of Fortune puzzles, it can create incredibly unique atmospheres.

You’re going to get what you’re going to get (probably a Blofeld), but I think it’s puzzling for a lot of MonoMachine users to watch a thread about a table top digital synth on the Elektron forum, and have the one table top digital synth that Elektron makes be quickly dismissed.

Geneoart · 2015-04-10T16:33:27.000Z

Bloefeld is not in the same class as a Virus, NL or MnM. Yes the Bloefeld has a ton of voices and is 16part multi timbral but it lacks outputs. Thats a huge turn off and kind of defeats the purpose of being muti timbral. Yes it sounds great, I’m not knocking the sound but if you want a synth that can truely be a swiss army knife you should set your sights higher. Bloefeld is a ferrari engine stuck in a kia body.

zfigz · 2015-04-10T16:34:24.000Z

""Geneoart"":

Bloefeld is not in the same class as a Virus, NL or MnM. Yes the Bloefeld has a ton of voices and is 16part multi timbral but it lacks outputs. Thats a huge turn off and kind of defeats the purpose of being muti timbral. Yes it sounds great, I’m not knocking the sound but if you want a synth that can truely be a swiss army knife you should set your sights higher. Bloefeld is a ferrari engine stuck in a kia body.

I record to stereo, so that’s not an issue for me.

Geneoart · 2015-04-10T16:50:48.000Z

Thats kool but you are stuck in the box with stereo, unless you record one track at a time. Just saying with individual outs you get way more flexibility. It really depends on your recording style. I like all my tracks running at the same time and separated. Perform my song while recording then go back to tweak and adjust. I don’t arrange or sequence on the computer so that also plays a role in my preferences.