Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...

Razmo

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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #20 on: October 28, 2015, 11:32:24 AM »
By the way... have you used the GT with USB connection? and does this work reliably? I suppose there are custom drivers for the USB right?
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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #21 on: October 28, 2015, 12:25:35 PM »

Second, the GT has modern connectivity... it's has USB for computer, and USB for data...

The XT has USB for this as well, the connector is on the front. You could mount the internal or external drive via a USB and also use audio and midi over USB including sampling from USB. Unfortunately the audio/midi driver has not been updated for a while so doesn't work with 'modern' operating systems, something you will also find on the GT I guess.

I must admit I would't mind a GT though, they were always so expensive though. The price you have been offered sounds good.

Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #22 on: October 28, 2015, 12:28:16 PM »
By the way... have you used the GT with USB connection? and does this work reliably? I suppose there are custom drivers for the USB right?

I guess it is the same as the XT, the drive mounting is class compliant so no driver is needed.

Audio and midi over USB needs the driver which hasn't been updated for a while (ever!) for macs, for windows I think they are ok with Win 8 and before.


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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #23 on: October 28, 2015, 12:54:14 PM »
Ahh... yes I recall now that you needed a specific driver on the XT to get transfers working, not just MIDI... Actualy the only thing I need is that it will connect with MIDI, but could just as easily use the MIDI DIN... even if I need multi client capabilities, I have found that E-MU's 1X1 MIDI cable has custom drivers that will work with ANY class compliant MIDI device, and be multi client capable... so I'll just use that driver with it, if I cannot get the custom one working here... besides, I'm still on Win7 and have no intention of swapping until absolutely necessary.

Using the GT as an audio interface is not on my list at all, so that I really don't care about at all...
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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #24 on: October 28, 2015, 12:56:27 PM »
Even if I cannot get those drivers working for some reason, I don't care if I can just use a USB stick to transfer them anyway... I'd just get two sticks... one for samples alone, and another for saving banks... problem solved, and then use USB via the E-MU drivers.
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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #25 on: October 28, 2015, 01:48:18 PM »
Even if I cannot get those drivers working for some reason, I don't care if I can just use a USB stick to transfer them anyway... I'd just get two sticks... one for samples alone, and another for saving banks... problem solved, and then use USB via the E-MU drivers.

For file sharing the USB will just work, you go into system on the Synth and tell it to mount the internal memory and a drive will appear on the computer, no driver needed.

Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #26 on: October 28, 2015, 03:02:09 PM »
By the way... have you used the GT with USB connection? and does this work reliably? I suppose there are custom drivers for the USB right?
Yes, there are custom drivers for USB connection with the computer, for USB Audio and MIDI.

There's no need of any special connection for transferring sounds from the USB stick, you can even navigate folder within the GT - this is where it is specially more accessible than the XT/v1.

I've worked with USB Audio almost every time, in there's absolutely no problem with it. I've never had any problem to sync MIDI either. The original outputs are way hotter than the USB though...

I know you don't want to use it as audio interface, but I'd like you to remember that the V-Synth can make incredible sounds by coupling external instruments with it. You can use the external audio as an "oscillator", and process it with the whole COSM/FX inside the GT. This is one of the things I miss about it... missing my GT a lot to be honest...

Well, that's it.
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Razmo

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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #27 on: November 01, 2015, 11:52:49 AM »
It's done... just paid for the V-Synth GT, and it'll be delivered tomorrow... looking forward to using this for some serious Ambient stuff...  :)

And very soon, the next thing I'll be getting is the KORG WaveDrum Global Edition, for some serious physical modelling percussion that allow for live playing/recording... after this I'll be searching for a Yamaha VL-70m to get some serious bowed string/flute physical modelling as well... and then... some sort of FM synth later... probably I'll find an FS1R again for that task... and then I should be well off in Ambient land...  :)
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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #28 on: November 01, 2015, 12:57:19 PM »
Congratulations Razmo! I think you'll love it!!

Don't judge it by the internal presets. You can get far better sounds by using your own samples.
There's only a few presets that I love. One of them is called "Analog Bed", a beautiful arpeggio+brass sound - even "replicated" it with my Ambika.

Please, feel free to ask anything you want. I had a great experience with it and surely had a lot of fun. Learned a lot about it, and I can even dare to say that I used 80-90% of what it is able to do - it's a lot! I'm missing it now, even if it doesn't belong with what I'm doing musically speaking, it was a joy to create all imaginable sounds.

Cheers!
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Razmo

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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #29 on: November 02, 2015, 02:33:01 AM »
Congratulations Razmo! I think you'll love it!!

Don't judge it by the internal presets. You can get far better sounds by using your own samples.
There's only a few presets that I love. One of them is called "Analog Bed", a beautiful arpeggio+brass sound - even "replicated" it with my Ambika.

Please, feel free to ask anything you want. I had a great experience with it and surely had a lot of fun. Learned a lot about it, and I can even dare to say that I used 80-90% of what it is able to do - it's a lot! I'm missing it now, even if it doesn't belong with what I'm doing musically speaking, it was a joy to create all imaginable sounds.

Cheers!

Yeah... I'll love it I'm sure... afterall I did have the XT version for some time, so I know most of how it sounds and what it can do... I just happened to sell the XT in a period where only analog did the trick with me... this is changing to about 50/50 now, since I started doing Ambient music... I jus realized that if I want the textures needed for Ambient music, I have to have some good digital machines as well, preferably some very expressive ones, and some that allow the usage of samples... so the V-Synth GT was self-written so to speak... that's also why I'm getting the WaveDrum... very expressive physical modelling technology there... so much I'm beginning to wonder if I REALLY need my Tempest... I don't do any dance related music anymore, and when I carefuly listened to the samples of Tempest the other day I realized, that they really did not hold much in the genre that I need... that leaves only the synth engine, but that's pretty close to the Poly Evolver and Prophet 08 anyway...  and when I do layer recording... I don't really see it's use anymore... but I've decided to wait and see before letting it go again... I've done too many regrets regarding Tempest in the past, so...

I know about the internal presets by the way... they are basicaly the same as on the XT... some of them are good, but a lot of them don't really suit my needs, so yes, I'll be using my own samples... that's why I am so fixated on the ease of data communication with the GT.... I'll be loading and saving a lot, swapping samples from PC to GT, so it just HAS TO work. I already sampled all the wavetables from my Microwave, and all the VL sounds of my EX5 before they go, so that I can use them with the GT, and I have lots of plans on sampling real-world things using microphone too... weather, bells etc.

I'll most likely post some of my experimentations in here along the way  :)

« Last Edit: November 02, 2015, 02:36:23 AM by Razmo »
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Razmo

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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #30 on: November 02, 2015, 11:31:36 AM »
My first "impact" with the V-Synth GT ... 30 minuttes of live playing some 50 presets... nothing processed, just raw output from the GT.

I'm pretty pleased with the synth so far, even before having started messing around with my own samples...

http://razmo.ziphoid.com/V-SynthGTTest.mp3
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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #31 on: November 03, 2015, 07:30:33 AM »
Enjoying hearing it once again. What a brilliant synthesizer!

It's actually pretty sad that I had to let it go... it was for a good cause though, got me a Prophet 08 with it. I only wish that I got the module version, so I could get the Prophet 12 keyboard, which is something I'm still considering, even having an Ambika. I just think that the 12 is a complete performance synth that no other hybrid or analog can touch.

Can you give me some input about it? What have you been doing with your P12?

Enjoy your new GT! Please post anything done with your own samples... I'm curious to hear it.
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Razmo

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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #32 on: November 11, 2015, 09:47:01 AM »
Messed around a bit with my V-Synth GT... been reading somewhere that itīs not so good for bass... so tried making some punchy and boomy bass preset, and I don't really see the problem... would not mind using the V-Synth for bass tracks  :)

Was made using the analog modelling part of V-Synth... no samples used in the following example:

http://razmo.ziphoid.com/V-SynthBassTest.mp3

This synth has a really hot output! and a very present low end!  8)

I did notice though, that initialy, the attack part seemed a bit "flat" and not so punchy as I'd have liked... I found out that the reason is that when the envelope is routed to the cutoff at maximum, it clips a bit... lowering just a bit made the sound a hell of a lot more clean and punchy sounding  ;) .. maybe that's why some feel it does not do bass well?
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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #33 on: November 13, 2015, 04:23:15 AM »
I've heard you sound, but I still think that it isn't quite up to some other VAs (Virus TI for example), that have a better and more defined low end.

Cool sound anyway! :)

The envelopes inside the V-Synth GT are slow for punchy sounds. That's why I like it more as a pad and FX machine than for traditional sounds. There's also a lot of beautiful piano-like and metallic sounds inside it, one just has to dig deeper and find it!

Cheers!
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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #34 on: November 13, 2015, 05:15:29 AM »
I've heard you sound, but I still think that it isn't quite up to some other VAs (Virus TI for example), that have a better and more defined low end.

Cool sound anyway! :)

The envelopes inside the V-Synth GT are slow for punchy sounds. That's why I like it more as a pad and FX machine than for traditional sounds. There's also a lot of beautiful piano-like and metallic sounds inside it, one just has to dig deeper and find it!

Cheers!

The punch can be partly enhanced with a dedicated parameter in the oscillator section... and yes, it does have a certain VA quality to it's sound... or rather a digital character in my opinion... I also think it depends on what kind of sound you are after... On my speakers, the bass on V-Synth is so prominent, that the bass ports makes my hair wave when loud, even the speaker's limit LEDs start going off... it's sub sonic frequencies for sure...

But it's not "analog bass"... and I will not use it for that, and actualy I'm going to use it for pads and other FX stuff... that's my main use for it, along with weird mangled vocals.

Someday I'll get a good analog monosynth to take care of the bass department... I'm still waiting for a new rackmount from MOOG actualy... most preferably the Sub37 in a rack format or the like... I'm not much for their older rack-machines as they're way too limited in modulation and flexibility... the Sub37 is a bit more complex, and that's what I want.

Besides... I'll be getting a used Yamaha VL-70m very soon... for physical modelling, and I allready have a BC3 wind controller, so  that'll be cool  :)
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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #35 on: November 15, 2015, 05:42:40 AM »
Allright... a lot of changes is taking place in my studio at the moment... en general, I'm going to move to a smaller apartment at some point, and thus need to slim down the selection of synths that I have... Also, I've begun making music in Audio Layers (as stated previously), so I do not need a huge amount of synthesizers anymore. I need basicaly, a single synth for each type of synthesis, so the choice has fallen on eight synths maximum.

The synths need to be geared toward my Ambient projects to come, so it'll be a mixture of digital and analog, so that I can get as many types of synthesis as possible.

Iīm concentrating mainly on polyphonic flagships, mainly to get as flexible synth engines as possible, and as many voices as possible, so a lot of my monosynths has now been sold. Also, I want to get rid of old quirky synths, as I donīt have time to fiddle around with repair and quirky MIDI specs etc.

Another requirement I've set up is that most of the synths must have USB connectivity... I'm tired of huge spaghetti-lumps of cords lying everywhere, so getting rid of MIDI interfaces is a must as well... only a few synths I cannot have with USB connectivity will "survive" the cleanup, and be replaced as soon as alternatives pop up in the future with USB.

Currently, my setup is:

1. Roland V-Synth GT - working as master keyboard, and sampling engine mainly.
2. Yamaha VL-70m - working as physical modelling engine for wind/brass/plucked etc. realistic synthesis
3. Yamaha Reface DX - working as FM engine, and small handy controller as it can rest on my desk next to computer
4. DSI Prophet '08 - working as analog polyphonic engine... will swap this with a P6 when I have the funds.
5. DSI Prophet 12 - working as hybrid allround-synthesis engine.
6. MOOG Sub37 - working as analog monosynth engine, mainly for bass and leads with a character
7. ?
8. ?

Two synths remain unknown for now... whatever catch my GAS I suppose  :)

Some of you probably notice that two synths are missing on the list... Poly Evolver Rack and Tempest... yes... they are being sold... I don't need an Evolver anymore, as the P12 can do much of the same, so it has been sold... I'm finaly free from thinking about MIDI bugs!  ;D ... some may say it's not a wise choice... and my GAS still weeps, but I don't need it! ... Tempest has always been a thorn in my side honestly... BUGs still present, bad MIDI implementation, and serious transient problems in my opinion... also, that kind of sound it does best, is not what I need for my Ambient projects, and the samples in it is not of those I DO need... it has also been sold.

I'll be getting a MOOG Sub37 very soon.. .most likely ordering it next week when the funds from Tempest and Evolver ticks in from the buyers... This means I'll have two keyboard, but that's ok... in fact it's nice to have two, if you want to play one synth with one hand, and another with the other hand, and I really need the amount of live tweakability the keyboard offers... The Sub37 will be my only analog monosynth, so it needs to have ultimate analog character capable of creamy deep basses, and be modern with preset storage and MIDI specs worthy of my attention... Sub37 does just that  8)

I'll also get a VL-70m later this month... found a really good price on a used unit, and I allready have the BC3 breath controller to use with it... looking forward to that...

And next purchase... presumably soon too, is the Reface DX.... there are many other FM synths and more capable, especialy the FS1R, but I want USB connectivity, so Reface it is...

At some point, I'll probably get a P6 to swap with my P8... mainly because of it's sound, but also because it has built in effects, and USB connectivity (P8 does not)... only bad thing is that the engine of P6 is less complex, and it does not have the ability to layer two presets as far as I know? ... but I'll live... I can do those sounds on P12 instead.

That's about it for the update in my studio... I'll probably be back soon, ranting about the Sub37  ;D
« Last Edit: November 15, 2015, 05:48:33 AM by Razmo »
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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #36 on: November 15, 2015, 02:41:03 PM »
Hehe! Yet another GAO event! Sad to see you sold your Evolver and Tempest as both are great machines.

Anyway, speaking of Evolver: Any chance I could convince you to post your Evolver presets now that you don't need them anymore? ;) 8)
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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #37 on: November 15, 2015, 02:55:11 PM »
Currently, my setup is:

1. Roland V-Synth GT - working as master keyboard, and sampling engine mainly.
2. Yamaha VL-70m - working as physical modelling engine for wind/brass/plucked etc. realistic synthesis
3. Yamaha Reface DX - working as FM engine, and small handy controller as it can rest on my desk next to computer
4. DSI Prophet '08 - working as analog polyphonic engine... will swap this with a P6 when I have the funds.
5. DSI Prophet 12 - working as hybrid allround-synthesis engine.
6. MOOG Sub37 - working as analog monosynth engine, mainly for bass and leads with a character
7. ?
8. ?

Wow, that's quite a change. Choosing one synth per type of synthesis makes sense. I would have never guessed that you'd get rid of your Evolver though. In fact, I think you're the first of the 'traditional Evolver users' here that says the Prophet-12 coupled with a Prophet '08 or a Prophet-6 can take over its duties. (Don't worry, I'm not accusing you of heresy.) I'd be curious to hear what you think about the Sub 37 and its MIDI implementation.

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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #38 on: November 15, 2015, 03:00:40 PM »
Hehe! Yet another GAO event! Sad to see you sold your Evolver and Tempest as both are great machines.

Anyway, speaking of Evolver: Any chance I could convince you to post your Evolver presets now that you don't need them anymore? ;) 8)

Sure... but I don't have that many that I created myself to be honest... but I've attached them to this post.  :)

Please note that it's an actual .rar archive, but this forum does not allow for that type of file, so you have to rename it to .rar first.
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Razmo

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Re: Razmo's Gear Rant Thread...
« Reply #39 on: November 15, 2015, 03:04:44 PM »
Note that a few of the patches from the above attachment use the sequencer, but they play when you hit a key, with a reset on every keystroke (the way I prefer sequences to act on Evolver) ... So make sure you are either supplying Evolver with a clock signal, or have it set to use internal clock... also preferably set the global settings so that it uses Patch settings, rather than global ones.
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