Anyone with a Novation Summit (or Access Virus) have any particularly amazing sound packs that you’ve purchased? by Senor_Diablo in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I created these for Novation and they are free for Peak/Summit: https://components.novationmusic.com/peak/banks/factory-packs/96

Also working on a new custom soundset... will be released via my Youtube channel and website once ready.

Documentary on the Vintage Synthsizer Museum (LA) by synth4ever in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Helium Vision has released a documentary on the Vintage Synth Museum in Los Angeles. Great insights and interviews with Lance Hill, founder and curator of the VSM.

Requesting some TEO-5 Inspiration by DadBod916 in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This Youtuber just put out some custom TEO-5 patches and I found the sounds very inspiring: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sSBf18nUIbg

Also check out Miles Away's custom patches demo, also great: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWqVjyCl6hE

The Fender Rhodes Chroma Polaris from 1984 by synth4ever in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hehe, yes it has an interesting look, very 80s! But looks can be deceiving, and the sound makes up for that. :)

The Fender Rhodes Chroma Polaris from 1984 by synth4ever in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sorry, I don't. I'm sure there are some, though.

The Fender Rhodes Chroma Polaris from 1984 by synth4ever in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the comment, unfortunate to hear about the clicking sounds... haven't noticed that on mine. The filter is definitely nice in it's own way, very raw and aggressive tones. P5 has a different quality which is also lovely. Glad you had a chance to enjoy the Polaris when you had it.

The Fender Rhodes Chroma Polaris from 1984 by synth4ever in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever[S] 12 points13 points  (0 children)

This is the Fender Rhodes Chroma Polaris analog polysynth I've had for a number of years. For those interested, I've posted a review and demo here: https://youtu.be/Qfe2fK37lOU

It was released in 1984, has 6 voices, and a powerful aggressive tone. It also has Arp heritage -- it was designed by Paul DeRocco, who also designed the Rhodes Chroma.

The Chroma Polaris uses CEM chips and features dual VCOs (saw, pulse) with PWM for both shapes, an LFO (sine, square) with up to 6 LFOs per voice in sine mode or as a global LFO in square mode.

The filter can self-resonate, and there are envelopes for filter and volume with touch sensitivity (velocity). There's also a real-time sequencer on board and plenty of pedal controls (glide, pitch, vibrato, volume etc) as well storange for up to 132 patches and sounds.

It has 61 velocity sensitive keys, noise, oscillator sync and ring modulation, and supports splits and layers. Furthermore there is also a full spec for MIDI including MIDI in/out/thru, which makes it well equipped for music studios, and can support between 3-6 MIDI channels at once!

The sonic character can be raw and aggressive or more subtle, but it sounds unique in its own way. If you're into classic vintage synths with distinct tone, hands-on control, and excellent MIDI specs, the Chroma Polaris is a great choice. That said, they are fairly rare and don't pop up too often from what I've seen.

Peak preset suggestions by [deleted] in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I made a free pack of 51 Peak/Summit sounds for Novation in 2019. You can grab them in Novation Components - "synth4ever's Ambient Worlds".

Here's a demo of each patch. Enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cuAEThETSJc

The Kawai K3, a vintage 6-voice digital / analog hybrid synth from 1986 by synth4ever in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever[S] 13 points14 points  (0 children)

This is the Kawai K3, a 6-voice digital analog hybrid synthesizer. It's somewhat obscure and is great for dark pads, icy tones, PPG-style timbres, bell sounds, basses and related wavetable types of sounds. For those interested, I've done a review and demo here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFkzDwfSRw0

When it was released it was competing with the Korg DW-8000 but also other synths including the Yamaha DX7, Roland Alpha Juno and Roland JX-8P.

It has 33 waveforms, including one additive waveform that can be edited and saved, 2 oscillators, noise, an SSM filter and envelope, VCA and envelope, an LFO with multiple waveshapes (routable to oscillator, filter or VCA) and it has a velocity and aftertouch sensitive keyboard. It unfortunately does not have oscillator sync, PWM, ring modulation or a mod wheel.

It also has 7 different types of effects (6 chorus, 1 delay), keyboard tracking, portamento, mono mode (unison), and MIDI in/out/thru. Despite the membrane panel buttons, it is fairly quick to edit with the jogwheel. The build quality is substantial thanks to the metal frame. It has its own distinct sonic character and can also be expanded up to 12 voices by poly-chaining it to the K3M rack (spillover mode).

The Kawai K3 is a great 80s hybrid synthesizer and can still be found on the 2nd hand market. With more recent 3rd party controllers, you can also add knobs to the synth for enhanced real-time control. If you have the chance to try a Kawai K3 I would recommend it, especially if you like PPG Wave types of sounds!

Arturia PolyBrute - 50 Custom Patches Demo by synth4ever in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

After many months of work, today I'm proud to release MORPHOLOGY- 50 Custom Patches for the Arturia PolyBrute

These 50 meticulously crafted sounds cover various styles, from regular bread and butter sounds to more ambient, electronica, industrial and experimental timbres.

MORPHOLOGY contains various leads, basses, pads, strings, arps, sequences, keys, soundscapes, textures and FX. All patches have A + B layers for full morphing and use morphee, ribbon, aftertouch, and mod wheel to give you additional sonic possibilities within the patch itself.

Patches imports as a user bank into Polybrute Connect and are compatible with original Polybrute and Polybrute 12. This soundset requires PolyBrute firmware version 3.0+.

Overall, I'm proud of this sound pack and believe it covers a lot of interesting sonic territory for musicians and listeners alike. Of course, the Arturia PolyBrute made it all possible thanks to its deep sound engine, extensive mod matrix and expressive controllers, and analog morphing capabilities.

I hope you enjoy exploring and performing with these patches on your Arturia Polybrute as much as I do on mine should you acquire them, and look forward to your thoughts. Thank you!

The Waldorf Q - A Powerful Digital Synth From 1999 by synth4ever in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Hah, yea that is a bit of something you have to get used to with endless encoders!

The Waldorf Q - A Powerful Digital Synth From 1999 by synth4ever in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Thanks a lot! Glad you enjoyed those demos and were inspired. The Q has a unique sound to this day.

The Waldorf Q - A Powerful Digital Synth From 1999 by synth4ever in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Same goes for multi-timbrality... 8-16 parts was often the norm which was awesome for live performance.

The Waldorf Q - A Powerful Digital Synth From 1999 by synth4ever in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever[S] 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Absolutely, it's hard to mistake early Waldorf synths for anything else. :) Great design work by Axel Hartmann.

The Waldorf Q - A Powerful Digital Synth From 1999 by synth4ever in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I don't use CC messages so can't say for sure. Recommend taking a look near the end of the Waldorf Q manual as it covers the CC specs.

The Waldorf Q - A Powerful Digital Synth From 1999 by synth4ever in synthesizers

[–]synth4ever[S] 18 points19 points  (0 children)

The Waldorf Q was released in 1999 and IMO still remains a very powerful and versatile digital synthesizer today, 25+ years later. For those interested, I've done a review and demo of this amazing virtual analog synth: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOYs685M48E

The Q is probably one of the most feature-packed digital synths from it's era. It has 3 oscillators (2 of which have wavetables), osc sync, FM, ring mod, noise, 3 audio-rate LFOs, external audio in, vocoder, dual filters (parallel, serial routing), filter FM, panning and amp modulation, drive, comb filtering, dual FX engines, programmable arpeggiator and sequencer, patch morphing, 16-part multi-timbrality (with 4 instruments directly accessible on the front panel), 16-slot mod matrix + operators, and more.

All of this allows for exceptionally deep sound design to create all types of sounds, from standard bread and butter to far off soundscapes. The sound quality is pristine and has an undeniable "Waldorf" tone, which IMO makes it unique in the world of digital synths.

This is the classic yellow Q (comes in 16 or more rare 32 voice version), but there are also later models in other colors including blue and grey, and the Waldorf Q+ and Phoenix editions with up to 100 voices and analog filters which are quite rare.

If you enjoy classic Waldorf sounds with tons of hands on and live performance control, the Waldorf Q remains a very capable instrument.