BiGGG BaSS

[monstertruck]

i'v never owned a keyboard and would like to buy one mainly for recording onto computer. i want huge bass and bass drum synths and all sorts of cool sounds and effects that could maybe be toyed with and distorted all on the keyboard. Am i crazy or is this possible and mainly what brands and models would i be looking for

[Chriss]

if you want it all in one box then you have to get something like the Yamaha RS7000, where you'll have a synthesizer, a sampler, a sequencer and alot of effects and filters...
find out more at www.yamahasynth.com

[barefoot]

You say it's for recording into the computer, right? So an "all in one" unit isn't necessarily the best thing for you. Great tweakable SOUNDS are what you need.

Depending on your budget I would suggest one of these for great bass and lead sounds:

Korg MS2000 ~ $750 USD
Nord Lead 2 ~ $1100
Access Virus kc ~ $2000
Novation Supernova II ~ $2400

(Virus and Supernova can also do much much more than just bass and lead)

barefoot

[Badger]

The Waldorf Microwave XT in there, too.

[Krakit]

If it's all for recording on computer, you'd be better off getting a soft synth and a MIDI controller.

Here's a little interesting number that was just brought to my attention:

Click Me

Carl

[barefoot]

Originally posted by Krakit
If it's all for recording on computer, you'd be better off getting a soft synth and a MIDI controller.

I disagree. I've searched high and low and I can't find a soft synth anywhere that even comes close the sound quality of the hardware synths mentioned here.

Well, there is the Access Virus TDM, but that requires a Mac, Pro Tools, and a Mix Card - say $12, 000 altogether.

barefoot

[laj35]

Hey Barefoot, what's your opinion on the FM7, or the Pro 52??? Mind you I'm a big advocate of hardware synths being more full and fat than softies but those two are decent IMO.....



Laj

[barefoot]

Originally posted by laj35
Hey Barefoot, what's your opinion on the FM7, or the Pro 52??? Mind you I'm a big advocate of hardware synths being more full and fat than softies but those two are decent IMO.....

Doulp!

Obviously I spoke out of school. I just checked out the FM7 and Pro-52 demos and they sound pretty good - for what they are.

I would never recommend the FM7 for bass unless maybe you're in an 80's revival band or something, but from what I hear in the demo it definitely makes some excellent DX7 sounds. I guess I didn't bother checking this one out because I already have a DX21 - far from a DX7 but with multi tracking I can pretty much get any of those DX'y sounds I might want on rare occasions.

The Pro-52 doesn't sound as impressive as the FM7, but it's pretty good for a soft synth. Obviously that "DX digital" sound is easier to pull off than an analog Prophet 5 sound.

Still, I don't think either of these qualifies as having "BiGGG BaSS" sound, but they could have their place in one's arsenal.

Thanks Laj!

barefoot

[Badger]

Well, if it did a prophet sound accurately, it would do great bass. Man I miss my old prophet.

I never understood the atraction of the DX7. I broke down and bought one back in the 80's, because everybody said you had to have one. I wound up trading it for a mirage sampler. I hated the way it sounded. That synth did more to destroy the art of synth programming than any other. It was just too hard for the average joe to wrap his brain around FM. SO everybody who had one sounded the same. I could, but I didnt want to.

[laj35]

Yup, I love the FM7 in particular barefoot, though you are right it's not really great for bass sounds, but hard edged, and warm pads are all over the place. The Pro 52 supposively does a good job of emulating the old prophets, so it is definitely pretty solid for basses, though I find it to be pretty limited in variety of sounds, compared to the FM7 atleast. Check out the Jungalist for a soft, bass-ridden softy, that's pretty much all that puppy does.....



Laj

[barefoot]

Originally posted by Bdgr
....I never understood the atraction of the DX7..... That synth did more to destroy the art of synth programming than any other. It was just too hard for the average joe to wrap his brain around FM. SO everybody who had one sounded the same...

There have always been a lot of talented and motivated people out there, so I'm not convinced that lack of programming skills was the problem with FM. I messed around quite a bit with my DX and found that there were certain sounds it did well and many it did not. For example variations on that, now cliché, "new electro" sound are very brilliant and detailed. Of course, it was used to death in shitty R&B ballads, so it's difficult for me to listen to now, but it really is a high quality sound. Those bell like and shimmery crystal like sounds are where the DX shines IMO.

I'm not sure if this was all a function of the nature of FM synthesis or a function of how the algorithms and hardware were specifically implemented, but there was definitely a distinctive sound the worked for FM and you couldn't deviate far.

Originally posted by laj35
....I love the FM7 ....hard edged, and warm pads are all over the place....

I just did a quick demo and I didn't hear much in the way of "warm pads", and never have from anything resembling a DX. But I dig your stuff Laj, so obviously something is working for you.

barefoot

[Badger]

I managed to program a few sounds that didnt sound too much like everybody, but unlike say a prophet 5, you cant just sit down with one and start twisting knobs till it sounds like what you want. Most people were totally unwilling to learn(and I dont blame them), so they used the sounds that came with it, or bought a cartridge. I remember a guy calling me up wanting to rent my DX-7 for a piece he had written and a sequenced(and then his DX broke). He wanted to rent my mine to record. He was totally shocked when I told him that I didnt have any of the factory sounds in my DX. I considered it cheesy to use ANY sound back then that someone else programmed(unless it was imitation of a real sound, like a piano or clav or something), and the first thing I did when I got a new synth was wipe it out and reprogram it. Whoever wound up with my prophet T8 gots some really unusual stuff.

I later got a Casio VZ10-M, which does FM(although not called that), but its much more flexable. No fixed algorythms, and diferant wave forms for the operators. If you want FM sounds, these things are the way to go, and they can be had pretty reasonable. They were part of Casios failed attempt at the pro arena.