looking to purchase a synthesizer.
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Posted on Mar 27, 2003 10:59 pm
stupe
Member Since: Apr 03, 2002
hi, does anyone have any recommendations for synthesizers? i am looking to spend around 300 or more (depending on value). for a good synthesizer with several voices, with strong points in strings (cello) and stuff like that because ive heard some bad strings sound playing around with the keyboards they have at target and best buy. just wondering if anyone has any recommendations. noize i know you are good with this stuff. can you point me in the right direction? i'll mainly want to do acoustic guitar songs with some soft strings in the background on choruses and stuff.
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juesContributor
Since: Dec 30, 2002
Mar 28, 2003 04:22 am Hey Stupe,
Okay, first off if you are after good string sounds then you will probably want a wavetable synth over an analouge modelling one.
Secondly - what _type_ of synth were you after? A keyboard, a rack unit or a soft-synth to use in your sequencer.
Finally - here's one reccomendation for you, if you can - try to get hold of a Roland JV1080 on Ebay, it's an old wavetable synth but it's not half bad, you get buckets of sounds on it and from what I've seen of it's bigger brother (The 2080) the string sounds are pretty good.
Failing that - you may actually want to consider getting hold of a second hand sampler (Akai S2000) and then aquiring a Strings Sample CD-Rom.
jues.
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Mar 28, 2003 05:10 pm Hey Stupe, jues made osme great recomendations, as well as BLue. But I use an older E-Mu synth called the Proteus Orchestral. It can be found used only since it is many years since they built them. But the string and other sounds are dead on. You can probably find one for under $200.00 if you look.
I use several E-Mu synths and love them. They are sticklers for true life sound. So that is probably my first choice. But like jues said the JV series stuff from Roland is loaded with patches. I believe the 1080 had somehitng like 5 banks of sound, if not more.
stupeMember
Since: Apr 03, 2002
Mar 28, 2003 10:06 pm hey thanks for the responses guys. i am really interested in the proteus orchestral noize. but my only confusion is that its a rackmount unit. how do i control it? do i have to buy a keyboard controller?
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Mar 28, 2003 10:18 pm Yes, wither that or you can step write the notes in your sequancer. There are tons of cheap controllers out there now. Look at musicians friend. Or even hit ebay, the chik we are all seeming to be bidding on stuff from has several. She even has an M-Audio Oxygen 8 for about $80.00 or less if you can win a bid cheaper. It is a really nice controller I believe it is like 2 octaves and it will get you buy very nicely.
stupeMember
Since: Apr 03, 2002
Mar 29, 2003 12:55 am cool, would you guys recommend buying a keyboard synthesizer, or a rack synth and plug a keyboard controller into it? could keyboard synthesizers act like controllers too if you wanted to add a rack synth to it? would you recommend a keyboard + synth combo like the ROLAND RS 5?
i am really looking forward to getting a good synth so your feedback is very valuable. looking for pro string sounds kinda like vanessa carlton songs. ehehehe
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Mar 29, 2003 09:39 pm Hey Stupe, yes the RS5 is a nice set of keys. It will work as a controller for sure. It has a nice sound set and is also pretty tweakable. that is a great way to start out, and yes you will be able to add rack synths later and control them with the Roland. You will just have to go into the Roland and trun off local control. That way the recording software is what is controlling the notes that it plays and you will not get a midi echo.
stupeMember
Since: Apr 03, 2002
Mar 29, 2003 11:58 pm thanks noize. also i had a question about midi controllers. do i plug in the controller to the rack synth through the midi in and midi out? kinda like a 1/4 instrument cable on a guitar amp? also a lot of the controllers say stuff like "windows 98" and "USB" are those controllers designed for using the keyboard with the computer only? or can they be also hooked up with a hardware external rack synth and be played live in a non computer environment? i have my eye on the roland PC series (controllers).
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Mar 30, 2003 08:10 am As long as they have midi jacks on them besides having the USB, they will be fine to use a controllers live or whatever. I am looking at that M-Audio 61 key to have something portable to take with me. It has an onboard USB interface and also midi. If you tell me which Roland controllers you are looking at I can find the specs and let you know what exactly they will do.
But as a rule almost all the keys out there that say they are a controller will be midi capable since that is really the standard for midi control.
stupeMember
Since: Apr 03, 2002
Apr 19, 2003 10:12 pm just a lil update on the post i started last month. i ended up getting the roland rs-5 for convenience reason. i'll probably be looking in the future for some expansion racks like the emu virtuoso. the roland sounds pretty good on its own though.
Apr 19, 2003 10:38 pm Do any of these modules have a REALLY good piano voice? I would really like to find a good, natural sounding piano that can be MIDI controlled. (It would take me forever to record even the simplest piano track otherwise.)
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Apr 20, 2003 11:05 pm The E-MU units have very good piano sounds. Alesis also has a unit called the Nano Piano module, and it as well has some decent sounds. The other option is to find a software application known as Unity Piano. I am not sure who makes it, but I will look for the software disc and see if it is on there and post back here.
Apr 21, 2003 10:26 am bitheadz makes the unity. i think..
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Apr 21, 2003 04:15 pm DUH he says to himself. That would explain the funky looking logo with the letters bh in it. I know I am getting old but I guess I shoulda remembered taht one.
Thanx for saving my forgetfull hiney again Jamie.
Apr 21, 2003 05:05 pm this one's free. the next one's gonna cost ya ;O)
i know this is little off subject, but concerning VSTis, i love the sound of the MDA Piano www.mda-vst.com/ and i like the price even more. it's FREE! as long as the MDA Piano isn't too up front in the mix most people can't tell that it's synthesized.
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Apr 21, 2003 05:49 pm Thanx Jamie, I gotta put that one up in the links section too.
Apr 21, 2003 06:15 pm you don't have MDA Piano?? I'm shocked! That thing is awesome!
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Apr 21, 2003 06:32 pm I do, just not installed right now.
stupeMember
Since: Apr 03, 2002
Apr 24, 2003 06:38 pm hi guys. just another question here, i was wondering what are SAMPLERs? there was some talk of them earlier on this thread. is a sampler something that you "sample" a track from a sound from, then it acts like a voice on your synthesizer? for example if i loaded a Bell sound called bell.wav into the sampler will i be able to have different notes with that bell sample?
juesContributor
Since: Dec 30, 2002
Apr 24, 2003 06:53 pm bingo - give the man a prize :)
Samplers also combine this practice with "analouge" features such as filters, evnelopes and LFO controls - samplers can be used to make very expressive and downright crazy sounds.
You can pick up a second hand Akai S series sampler fairly cheaply as well :)
jues.
Noize2uCzar of MidiAdministrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002
Apr 25, 2003 11:54 pm To add to jues post, yes stupe you can put in a sample of a bell and it will cahnge pitch or what not pending on where you play it on the keyboard. You can sample any sound imaginable and turn it into an instrument. Want a whole choir to sing for you, simply sample a voice and there you go.
You will however need to make note, that samplers are not all alike. some of them use propietary sound formats. But most give you the ability to start with a wave file and go from there. And as jues said, you can twist it at will into whatever you see fit.
