For sure, and then right after the holidays…NAMM!!!
There’s a saying in electronic new product development:
You can have it quickly, you can have it cheap, and you can have it good. Pick two.
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Does anyone have some concrete info on the sequencer?
Seems like it is SH-101 style, with 512 steps, and 4 motion lanes, but there are 100 memories, which probably means it is disconnected from the patch memories (i.e. you can take a patch and apply any saved sequence to it, and vice versa).
But is it latching only (MoPho style)? Or will it receive midi transport commands?
I like to think that this, with the Analog Keys (as a drum machine with maybe one mono synth part) is a great 2KB electro performance rig, but this really depends on the functionality of the sequencer.
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under the Overbridge…
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Let’s keep things on topic, please.
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Music only video from KnobCon really takes you inside the Argon 8. Sounds great!
11 minutes long video from Jim for Sonic State. AKA Earmonkey Music.
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Increasingly in synth land ‘ you can have it early and we’ll just work on the firmware for another six months trying to implement basic features. ‘
Not necessarily modal , just in general. Though the old devices that cost ££££’s didn’t start off so stable.
Recent simpler devices seem to be better.
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I agree. It seems like we are living in a firmware update culture now, where people want and expect firmware updates, even if it is not needed. I’ve seen many comments on forums and social media when a new product is announced, and people say things to the effect of “It looks good, but let’s see if they update the firmware”. No product is ever finished. So for a company, even if a product is 100% complete, they would almost want to remove 20% of the features right off the bat, and then slowly add those in. Or, just get the base product finished, with minimal advertised features, and continue working on it and cranking out updates on and off throughout the lifespan of the product. That way, it looks like you are always working on it. Phone companies do this with new features, video games do this with their downloadable content. Nothing is ever complete…
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This comes from the startup / silicon valley world and the mantra of “fail fast” / Agile methodology and the term “Minimum Viable Product.” Basically, push out something, find out what works and what doesn’t, then iterate. It has it’s merits when applied correctly, and on the right types of products (works great for software), but may or may not carry over well to hardware. One drawback, as you mention, is when people get accustomed to constant updates beyond acceptance, to where they are expected.
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There are a few differences with firmware / downloads .
Bug fixes … I expect some bug fixes , if it’s a game , synth , phone … but its a blatantly broken feature that annoy me most , or issues that are so easy to find that it’s hard to comprehend why the item ships or why there isn’t a day1 fix… it’s going to damage the company .
DLC for games is partly a way to make some money during the period of developing a new game.
They’re also released to ensure people don’t take their game and trade it in . Companies earn money from new sales , nothing from 2nd hand / traded game.but you’ll need original disk to play dlc or multiplayer.
I do also perceive that developing a PS4 games is massively more complicated than most synths. But I’ve never been involved in developing a synth , and some of the games I’ve been involved with have certainly had issues that needed bug fixing , even after 100’s of members of QA testing for 6 months + during end phase of many games.
We used agile but certainly didn’t release MVP/fail fast mindset.
Massively off topic.
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interesting dilemma between the hydra and the argon
i prefer less lcds than more … all comes down to sound and depth though, whilst retaining immediacy.
are they closely similar in terms of synth fundamentals but just in different clothes?
this looks cool but is just another synth that makes me wonder why waldorf won’t reissue the mwxt
Funny you mention that. I was just talking to someone the other day about how this reminds me of the microwave.
It looks like the step recording is tied to the arpeggiator. So likely latching style and transposing by key. The only thing I’ve seen demoed with the actual sequencer is all real time. Which is a bit strange. You’d think they would just keep the arp conventional and implement a sh style sequencer that can be clocked. Maybe they have. Who knows. 4 lanes of motion recording though. That’s awesome.
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I hope they have an SH style sequencer. It would be cool if they added chord memory, and an option to advance by clock/trigger.
The tone of discussion is different on the Hydrasynth and Argon threads. They’re both on development past the date of release. In one case it’s future development, and in the other it’s completing the product.
Based on my reading of the Glen Darcey interview (see Hydrasynth thread), and what I’ve seen/read so far about Argon. I don’t think they’re closely similar.
The interview goes into a fair amount of detail regarding the Hydrasynth architecture, the Mutators, Wavescanning, etc.
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Yeah i agree with you GovernorSilver. Early on looking at the two but not to any depth i thought they were very similar. Especially with the confusion of the early unveilings. But now they seem very different to me.
Jim the reporter from Sonic State did sound only videos of both at Knobcon. Argon – Hydrasynth. Those are a good place to begin a comparison. Having the same guy play both, with the same amount of experience on both, makes for a good comparison.
The user interface and functions are very different also.
I think both will sell well ultimately, but the buyers will pick one or the other with certainty, based on their specific need.
I actually bought (preordered) the Hydrasynth the day before the Argon was announced, and felt initially some doubt/regret, until i looked more closely. I’d picked the right one for me.
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thanks - they are both interesting. Currently slightly biased towards the Argon, as a Craft/Skulpt on steroids: though I wonder if they have a desktop planned which could be more appealing if it is compact and well featured on the knobs front.
Hydra desktop also looks interesting but I’ll have to look at the overall architecture as I’d lumped them both together but sounds like they are quite different. Looking for a broad sound design synth rather than just merely a wavetabler with so-so filters and lacking body.
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I also think they are both great and interesting synths. The Hydra sounds like it is more expansive in sound design from what I have heard so far. And one of the reasons could be because of the variety of filters, which sound good. For me, the core sounds that I have heard from the Argon appeal to me a little more, so I am leaning that way. But I will say, that it would not be inconceivable for me to own both eventually. They are both competitively priced, and the sounds I have heard between the two definitely differ enough.
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I’m liking the overall sound of this much better than the Hydrasynth to be honest. Sounds much more raw and powerful.
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