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OTHER DISCUSSIONS => General Synthesis => Off Topic => Topic started by: LoboLives on February 09, 2018, 11:01:45 AM

Title: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: LoboLives on February 09, 2018, 11:01:45 AM
I'm trying to figure out what would be the best Reverb to get for my synths/drum machine.

I was considering either the MXR Reverb or EHX Holy Grail Max.

The Strymon Big Sky and Eventide Space are good but I think they might be a bit overly complicated or get way too spacey. I'm just looking for one that's warm and doesn't suck the bottom end out. I noticed on my Tempest when I run it through the Room Reverb on Studio One the bottom end really dies out.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: dslsynth on February 09, 2018, 11:40:03 AM
I was about to suggest Eventide H9 as it can do more than just reverb. If you get H9 Core version you can buy the effects you need as you decide you need them. Or go for H9 Max to enjoy the full power of the Eventide algorithms as they are released.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: chysn on February 09, 2018, 02:24:27 PM
Hall of Fame is excellent. The TC pedals have this “TonePrint” system, which lets you make comprehensive changes to effect parameters on a computer and then load them back to the pedal.

Try this if you’re considering something like Holy Grail.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: Shaw on February 09, 2018, 04:15:46 PM
The best Eventide box you can afford. 
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: DavidDever on February 09, 2018, 07:09:10 PM
I'm trying to figure out what would be the best Reverb to get for my synths/drum machine.

I was considering either the MXR Reverb or EHX Holy Grail Max.

The Strymon Big Sky and Eventide Space are good but I think they might be a bit overly complicated or get way too spacey. I'm just looking for one that's warm and doesn't suck the bottom end out. I noticed on my Tempest when I run it through the Room Reverb on Studio One the bottom end really dies out.

The Strymon El Capistan is actually _really_ good and has none of the gorgeous sheen that the Big Sky exhibits. I've also tried the Flint, which seems to be quite different as well, and a bit more lo-fi oriented.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: John01W on February 09, 2018, 10:41:53 PM
The best Eventide box you can afford.

+1
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: LoboLives on February 10, 2018, 06:56:06 AM
Anyone have any experience with the Vermona reverbs at all? Those seem to really the ones I’m gravitating towards.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: Sacred Synthesis on February 10, 2018, 02:35:57 PM
I was interested in the Vermona reverb for a while, but they obviously have that retro shallow springy quality.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: Paul Dither on February 10, 2018, 02:59:37 PM
Sacred Synthesis is right in that Vermona reverbs are only interesting for those who are looking for spring reverbs. That means that they're sonically very specialized and don't serve well as universal reverbs. But if the sonic flavor of a spring reverb is everything you're looking for or you're going for that 1950s/1960s Sci-Fi vibe, then you can take a closer look at those.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: Shaw on February 10, 2018, 03:28:26 PM
https://youtu.be/Rhu6rzV1rX0 (https://youtu.be/Rhu6rzV1rX0)
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: Paul Dither on February 10, 2018, 03:33:18 PM
https://youtu.be/Rhu6rzV1rX0 (https://youtu.be/Rhu6rzV1rX0)

Yeah, you can't go wrong with a nice Gretsch and a spring reverb.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: LoboLives on February 10, 2018, 07:49:54 PM
I was speaking to Alan Howarth over the weekend and he said he would use Furman FV1 Spring Reverbs for the Carpenter soundtracks and interestingly enough the factory patch Carpenter Square in the Prophet 6 has one of the dual effects as Spring Reverb. Perhaps it may be something to investigate. I just find a lot of the Eventide and Strymon stuff seem to be really washy and sometimes it drowns out the fundamental notes. I get that’s an effect used for a lot of ambient stuff but I never figured it be Spring Reverb that I gravitated towards for synth...guitar...yeah...but synth...wow.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: Paul Dither on February 11, 2018, 02:59:06 AM
I was speaking to Alan Howarth over the weekend and he said he would use Furman FV1 Spring Reverbs for the Carpenter soundtracks and interestingly enough the factory patch Carpenter Square in the Prophet 6 has one of the dual effects as Spring Reverb. Perhaps it may be something to investigate. I just find a lot of the Eventide and Strymon stuff seem to be really washy and sometimes it drowns out the fundamental notes. I get that’s an effect used for a lot of ambient stuff but I never figured it be Spring Reverb that I gravitated towards for synth...guitar...yeah...but synth...wow.

Interesting info about the Furman FV1. I would have assumed something like early Lexicon devices instead. But I guess as long as you're careful with the settings and the springy-ness doesn't jump to the forefront of the sound, it can work well.

The thing about most Eventide and Strymon demos is that the reverbs are pushed to an extreme for—like you said—typical ambient sounds or the stereotypical recreation of such. That says little about the quality of such boxes at all, though, it only shows that they can emulate those kinds of characteristics too, like Shimmer et al. They can all be used in subtle manners as well. So I'd say it's mostly a matter of how these boxes are being represented in YouTube videos as opposed to how they have to sound all the time.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: Sacred Synthesis on February 11, 2018, 08:11:05 AM
I feel the same way about the Strymon and Eventide reverbs.  They sound just a little too good.  But, as Paul said, it's the way they're redundantly used in YouTube videos.  The depth of the effect applied is so extreme that the music and patches become lost in the undertow.  It's hard to find a tasteful and restrained use in the demonstrations, such that the music is enhanced, rather than made irrelevant.  But they are both fine effects.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: Paul Dither on February 11, 2018, 08:21:29 AM
I think in most cases it would already help to adjust the dry/wet balance. The context of most video demonstrations is also important. Most of the time, only a single instrument or track is used in conjunction with the reverb effect. That's not the reality of a mix, in which you would also try to make sure to create a virtual space for each single instrument on top of positioning it in the stereo or surround panorama. Otherwise the whole thing would end up sounding rather flat, muddy, or homogenized without any real depth at all.

In particular for solo, rhythmic, or percussive instruments and sounds, a reverb can also quickly become the enemy of precision. Sometimes it makes more sense to use a subtle delay instead.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: Sacred Synthesis on February 11, 2018, 12:39:31 PM
The question is, which reverb sounds best at moderate volumes?  The Strymon and Eventide sound wonderful when the music is utterly drenched in effect, but what about when using effects in a more tempered way? 
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: LoboLives on February 11, 2018, 01:06:08 PM
Moog Audio deals with Vermona and said they have some reverb units at the store...looks like I'll be taking a trip down there this week and run a synth through it (Likely a Moog Sub 37) I kind of got a notion that I'll pull the trigger on one of them just got to decide which.


Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: Manbird on February 11, 2018, 10:21:16 PM
Oddly or not, I've settled into using my RE-20 mainly as a reverb unit. So simple, so old-school - Want reverb? Turn up the dial. Not a lot of finessing possible, just basic grunty reverb, but quite sweet sounding. I rarely use the RE-20 as "tape echo," mostly cos when I do, it reminds me it ain't the real thing, one of which I have back at my dad's. But yes, I'm quite fond of the sound and the lack of options regarding the RE-20 reverb.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: megamarkd on February 11, 2018, 11:28:53 PM
I've been using a Zoom MS-70CDR that does all the delay tricks including huge reverb.  Lots of emulations of classic 'verbs.  They all sound great to my ears, but I'm also very happy with Zoom effects in general.  I own a couple of Zoom multitrack recorders and the effects on them prompted me to buy the delay so I didn't need to run the recorders as effects units when not recording.

I was speaking to Alan Howarth over the weekend....

He's not still doing that crazy stuff revolving around mystical tuning frequencies that cleanse the soul (or whatever)?  I'm hoping not, it's not included on his personal website which is a good sign.
It's sad when good trusting people get taken by smooth-talking hucksters and put their good name on pseudo science products.  Hurtak is definitely making a buck from it all still....
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: LoboLives on February 12, 2018, 01:36:03 AM
I've been using a Zoom MS-70CDR that does all the delay tricks including huge reverb.  Lots of emulations of classic 'verbs.  They all sound great to my ears, but I'm also very happy with Zoom effects in general.  I own a couple of Zoom multitrack recorders and the effects on them prompted me to buy the delay so I didn't need to run the recorders as effects units when not recording.

I was speaking to Alan Howarth over the weekend....

He's not still doing that crazy stuff revolving around mystical tuning frequencies that cleanse the soul (or whatever)?  I'm hoping not, it's not included on his personal website which is a good sign.
It's sad when good trusting people get taken by smooth-talking hucksters and put their good name on pseudo science products.  Hurtak is definitely making a buck from it all still....

Not that I’m aware of. He’s mostly playing live and doing conventions. Shame he’s not being asked to do more soundtracks, I think his non Carpenter stuff like Retribution is his best work.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: Sacred Synthesis on February 13, 2018, 10:48:17 AM
One reverb I've been increasingly appreciating is the DigiTech Polara.  It has that deep ethereal quality that goes so well with synthesizers. The price is $150.

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=DigiTech+Polara+and+synthesizer
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: maNŒuvre on August 21, 2019, 05:00:36 PM
I love my Source Audio Ventris. Almost as much as Nick Batt loves his! I used to have an H9 and Big Sky, but felt they weren’t so suited to synths.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: jg666 on August 22, 2019, 03:34:54 AM
I’ve not looked into external effects before but this has sparked my interest. A dumb question here maybe :) Do all these external boxes accept a stereo input from a synth? Do you connect the 2 outputs of the synth to the box and then take 2 outputs from the box to the mixer?
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: maNŒuvre on August 22, 2019, 04:39:34 AM
Basically the answer is yes. Unless you’ve bought a mono Reverb pedal. The Ventris has some patches that utilise a mono input/stereo out. And some programs that use stereo in and out. Either way I have mine with stereo jacks set in, and out, to the aux channels on my mixer.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: jg666 on August 22, 2019, 04:52:30 AM
Basically the answer is yes. Unless you’ve bought a mono Reverb pedal. The Ventris has some patches that utilise a mono input/stereo out. And some programs that use stereo in and out. Either way I have mine with stereo jacks set in, and out, to the aux channels on my mixer.

Thanks :)
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: LPF83 on March 17, 2024, 09:52:23 AM
For a few months now I've had a Meris Mercury X.. I definitely give it a thumbs up for synth usage.

In a nutshell it has the spacey/ambient reverb algorithms of the Mercury 7, plus the traditional ones of the Chase Bliss 1978, plus a few more...  not to mention all of the other modulations and dynamics FX you can add.

Sounds incredible!

It's actually much more than just a reverb pedal, it's really more like a programmable multi FX unit.  On the surface that may not be an attention grabber, but what's brilliant about it is HOW you program it.  The UI design is such that you can achieve your goal quickly using the knobs once you've wrapped your head around how it works (which only takes a few mins). 

It's not an inexpensive pedal, but considering what you get I believe the price makes sense.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: seqpro3 on April 02, 2024, 04:23:27 PM
I use an Eventide space . I also use a Roland space echo pedal. I use the Roland space echo pedal on my OBX8 and the Eventide Space on my Sequential Pro 3 and I use the Eventide Timefactor  on my Minimoog Voyager.
Title: Re: Best Reverb for Synths
Post by: Elric on April 02, 2024, 11:28:40 PM
I have a Midiverb II