One Synth Challenge #73 special: Synthmaster (Jasinski wins!)

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ontrackp wrote:I agree with wagtunes, I think the GUI is ugly. I bought this synth a while ago because it sounds great, but dealing with the poor interface is irritating so I almost never use it. That being said, I'm glad there is a mac compatible synth this month and I'm looking forward to participating.
What exactly is poor about it? I like to hear from different perspectives.

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YES!!! Synthmaster was my workhorse for 1.5 years until Mutools came out with their MFO. This is going to be fun! :3

I actually modified a custom skin for SM so it looks pretty for me :D

Can't wait to see what's in store!

Dakkra
My Setup.
Now goes by Eurydice(Izzy) - she/her :hug:

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I have to chime in about the optimization and CPU usage: It's phenomenal.

Simple patches use minuscule CPU. The memory requirements are middle level. I can get more than 100 instances in 32 bit before memory pooping out (using the init patch - single notes). I could have easily gotten several hundred in 64bit.

:love: :love: :love: :love: :love: :love: :love: :love: :love: :love:

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Quick Question:

I already own SM Factory and am wondering if I am able to use the FX version for processing on say a master channel?

Dakkra
My Setup.
Now goes by Eurydice(Izzy) - she/her :hug:

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bjporter wrote:
Tjgoa wrote:What are the demo limitations, can I save presets or would I have to just stream some waves. Thinking of installing the demo so I can tweak some patches..

Synthmaster Demo (Not player of course) limitations are listed here on this page: http://www.kv331audio.com/synthmasterfaq.aspx
Thanks, should have just did the search myself :hihi:

Just in case anyone else is wondering. Here ya go :
SynthMaster DEMO
What are the limitations of SynthMaster Demo version ?

SynthMaster Demo version is identical to SynthMaster except the following limitations:

1) Saving presets is disabled
2) The demo stops working after 15 minutes
3) Comes with 350 factory presets
High Quality Soundsets for Lush-101 | Hive | Electra 2 | Diversion | Halion | Largo | Rapid | Dune II | Thorn | and more.

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bjporter wrote:
wagtunes wrote:Let me tell you something about the full version that you might find off putting. At least many people have expressed these feelings though I personally love the synth.

The GUI is ugly as sin. Because the synth is so deep, it takes a while to get around it. Finding things, at first, is not easy. Some find it difficult to program and just end up using the presets. If you're not into programming, none of this will matter to you. The browser is, IMO, excellent and it's easy to find the sounds you want as everything is categorized.
Very interesting perspective. I thought it was a phenomenal design, but it's very different from other synths, which means it requires a bit more thought before going 'to town' on preset design. The layer tabs seem to make it much more complex, but is that because of the layer tabs (which so many options inside)? Not sure. It had so much power it was bewildering at first... maybe part of the problem... or maybe a blessing?

BTW, wagtunes, is there a way to search the presets in Synthmaster? I see Player has a handy search box.
I guess you could call it a search.

If you go to the Browser tab, you'll see 6 columns

Instrument Type
Attributes
Music Style
Author
Bank
Preset

Check off what you're looking for in each column (or leave a column blank) and what turns up in the Preset column is what you're left with.

It's okay. But like I said, most of the time I just program from scratch so I don't use it much. But I'm sure it's good enough to find what you're looking for.

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Here are some of my issues with the interface:
- it's crowded. While the layout is logical, the combination of knob style and small text makes for sub-standard visual feedback.
- the color is terrible. There is only one color -- and changing skins simply changes the color from the obnoxious shade of green to orange to a neon blue. I don't care to spend any time re-working a synth interface so I'm not interested in third party skins unless I can super easily download and install them.
- matrix. Hard to follow -- if it was not for the "automatic" display mode (which is fantastic) it would be almost impossible to see modulation patching.
- pitch control -- the coarse pitch control does not detente in semi-tones. In between each semi-tone there are a number of seemingly random values. I've requested that the coarse tuning be made simply semi tones, like every other synth ever made, several times on the support forum, but no response so I gave up.
- crazy small display of parameter values at the top of the screen
- the multi-page scheme for layers is confusing to me -- this is more of the visual feedback issue. It's easy to tweak the wrong layer.

I could go on, but as I'm not in front of the synth I will leave it as this.

However, all this being said -- this synth sounds fantastic, and has HUGE sound making capabilities.

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Yes so the demo for full version is same as before, very choppy playback. I remember there was a way to minimize this, can someone help me real quick with the settings please. This is happening in Orion, will check my other daws to see if its the same effect.

Edit* All good in Studio One and Fl Studio.. Seems like its only an Orion issue then. nm
Last edited by Touch The Universe on Mon Mar 02, 2015 2:17 am, edited 4 times in total.
High Quality Soundsets for Lush-101 | Hive | Electra 2 | Diversion | Halion | Largo | Rapid | Dune II | Thorn | and more.

TTU Youtube

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ontrackp wrote:
However, all this being said -- this synth sounds fantastic, and has HUGE sound making capabilities.
Very interesting!

With the version numbers being close to 3, maybe we'll see a big update on the horizon, and some tweaks to the GUI? :hyper:

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wagtunes wrote:
bjporter wrote:
wagtunes wrote:Let me tell you something about the full version that you might find off putting. At least many people have expressed these feelings though I personally love the synth.

The GUI is ugly as sin. Because the synth is so deep, it takes a while to get around it. Finding things, at first, is not easy. Some find it difficult to program and just end up using the presets. If you're not into programming, none of this will matter to you. The browser is, IMO, excellent and it's easy to find the sounds you want as everything is categorized.
Very interesting perspective. I thought it was a phenomenal design, but it's very different from other synths, which means it requires a bit more thought before going 'to town' on preset design. The layer tabs seem to make it much more complex, but is that because of the layer tabs (which so many options inside)? Not sure. It had so much power it was bewildering at first... maybe part of the problem... or maybe a blessing?

BTW, wagtunes, is there a way to search the presets in Synthmaster? I see Player has a handy search box.
I guess you could call it a search.

If you go to the Browser tab, you'll see 6 columns

Instrument Type
Attributes
Music Style
Author
Bank
Preset

Check off what you're looking for in each column (or leave a column blank) and what turns up in the Preset column is what you're left with.

It's okay. But like I said, most of the time I just program from scratch so I don't use it much. But I'm sure it's good enough to find what you're looking for.
Click the Browser tab, and at the top right (above the list of presets) is a search field you can use.
:wink:

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Examigan wrote: Click the Browser tab, and at the top right (above the list of presets) is a search field you can use.
:wink:
Somehow i'm not seeing that :shrug:

Maybe I need to update or something. I swear I saw it one time...

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dakkra wrote:I already own SM Factory and am wondering if I am able to use the FX version for processing on say a master channel?
Hm that is a good question... I would vote yes, but a past OSC when Zebra 2 was allowed, Zebra FX was not, but this predated Brian's reign of the OSC, so ultimately have to leave it up to him... perhaps, though, if the player doesn't include it, to be most fair, we should vote it out?
Last edited by z.prime on Mon Mar 02, 2015 4:07 am, edited 1 time in total.

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dakkra wrote:Quick Question:

I already own SM Factory and am wondering if I am able to use the FX version for processing on say a master channel?

Dakkra
Thanks Zprime, I missed this question. I think we should follow the zebra precedent: Synthmaster FX isn't valid, as it is not "freeware and easily available" as a 3rd party FX.

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bjporter wrote:
dakkra wrote:Quick Question:

I already own SM Factory and am wondering if I am able to use the FX version for processing on say a master channel?

Dakkra
Thanks Zprime, I missed this question. I think we should follow the zebra precedent: Synthmaster FX isn't valid, as it is not "freeware and easily available" as a 3rd party FX.
Fair enough, thanks for clearing that up!

Dakkra
My Setup.
Now goes by Eurydice(Izzy) - she/her :hug:

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ontrackp wrote: - pitch control -- the coarse pitch control does not detente in semi-tones. In between each semi-tone there are a number of seemingly random values. I've requested that the coarse tuning be made simply semi tones, like every other synth ever made, several times on the support forum, but no response so I gave up.
I'm don't have SM anymore, but if I remember correctly adjusting the coarse pitch with the mouse wheel (place pointer over the knob and scroll) rather than clicking and dragging will detune by simple semitones. It's weird and unintuitive, but at least you don't have to repeatedly fiddle with the stupid thing trying to get it to land in a musically useful position.

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