Novation Bass Station II

[maschinelf]

Bought a BS2.

[Ingonator]

I got a new Bass Station II yesterday and love it (FWIW i also got a Waldorf Pulse 2 and love this too...) and alraedy posted in another thread but this one seems to be more proper to post this:

I just found my new Bass Station II did not have the latest firmware version installed and i had a problem when playing the arpeggiator from an external keyboard.

In the latest firmwar this seems to be fixed and with a combination of teh FUNCTION and the LATCH (in the Arp) buttons you could select between IN and OUT now. This will switch between external Arp Input (aso from a host/DAW) or sending the Arp to the MIDI OUT. Both seem to work now.

This is not activated automatically, you have to use the combination of the FUNCTION and LATCH buttons. if you hold the FUNCTION button and press LATCH twice it will switch to the OUT mode.
The settings seems to be kept while you browse trough patches but is lost if you power the unit off so you have to activate it again next time..

Installation of the firmware is done at the installation of the Librarian software where this is asked after installing the software.
The Librarian download is available at your Novation account after registration of the Bass Station II serial there.

With the latest firmware it also seems to be possible to save patch names with the Patch/Sysex data. The names of your own patches could be edited in the librarian software.


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My older posts about my Bass Station II (from yesterday) could be found here:
http://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic ... 2&t=462340

[Ingonator]

While i started doing patches with my new Bass Station II (currently got more than 20 patches) i just started using the Osc Sync and also combined it with the Acid filter (= 24dB diode ladder LPF).
There do not seem to be many vintage and also newer synths that offer combining Osc Sync with a diode ladder LPF. Another one is maybe the Boomstar 3003.
In the BS II you could easily compare the sound to a "normal" 24dB LPF) in (Classic mode) and the difference could be quite big, especially when using high Resonance amounts.

For doing Osc Sync the Bass Station II offers quite a lot of waveforms like Sine, Triangle, Saw, Square, variable Pulse and also PWM which in this way should be difficult to find with other hardware synths, especially in combination with the filters of the BS II (24dB Diode Ladder LPF + 12db/24dB LPF, BPF, HPF multimode filter).

For proper Sync sounds having an option to use an envelope for pitch modulation is quite essential and the BS II offers it for both main Oscs. For Sync sounds also the Distortion and/or Overdrive are really nice features.


Besides all that also havingb an option for a 24db BPF like in the BS II (besides the 12dB version) seems to be quite rare in hardware synths. Mostly the multimode filter or at least the BPF seem to be 12dB. Changing a Bandpass filter to 24dB could make a huge difference which also seems to be the case in the Bass Station II.
By combining various waveforms, Osc Sync, the Bandpass filter and some other features of the synth (e.g. Ring mod, Filter FM, Overdrive, Distortion) you could get some quite interesting results. With Sync you coudl do more than the "typical" Sync sounds known from e.g. a Prophet 5 or Jupiter 8 (while those classic Sync sounds are very nice too).

[Aries85]

Is anyone trying to multitrack BSII?

When patch its LFO modulated and LFO is not retriggered by keypress, multitracked recording has phasing issues (quite expected). I wonder if there is a way to reset or retrigger LFOs via MIDI just before recording starts.

BS II is my first analog hardware synth and maybe there is something I have missed.

[Katelyn]

Is anyone trying to multitrack BSII?

When patch its LFO modulated and LFO is not retriggered by keypress, multitracked recording has phasing issues (quite expected). I wonder if there is a way to reset or retrigger LFOs via MIDI just before recording starts.

BS II is my first analog hardware synth and maybe there is something I have missed.

I don't know how to retrigger the LFO via MIDI but it should work to go to the next patch and then back to the one you want to 'reset' the position of the LFO to the start, I've done that before. I also almost always lock the LFO to the tempo and use something like dotted notes or triplets and so I know it works at least when combined with that to switch away and then back to it.

[Buka]

just bought it, great synth!

[Ingonator]

just bought it, great synth!

I just got it since a short time but i love it and alraedy mad a bunch of my own patches with it.
Seems to be a real "workhorse" synths with great soudn and tons of features.

One thing i just noticed concerning the design (while of course this is not very important...) is that the USB cable delivered with the Bass Station II seems to have the same blue color as parts of the panel, the octave buttons and the bottom of the synth and this also seems to be similar or at least comparable to the blue color of the old Bass Station (and also the Bass Station plugin that i got too).
Somehow this seems to show attention to detail at Novation as they could have just added an usual black or grey USB cable.

[Shabdahbriah]

just bought it, great synth!

I just got it since a short time but i love it and alraedy mad a bunch of my own patches with it.
Seems to be a real "workhorse" synths with great soudn and tons of features.

One thing i just noticed concerning the design (while of course this is not very important...) is that the USB cable delivered with the Bass Station II seems to have the same blue color as parts of the panel, the octave buttons and the bottom of the synth and this also seems to be similar or at least comparable to the blue color of the old Bass Station (and also the Bass Station plugin that i got too).
Somehow this seems to show attention to detail at Novation as they could have just added an usual black or grey USB cable.

It's a seemingly small thing, but I noted that "detail" factor also. I've had mine for just a few weeks, and am grinning like a fool every time I turn it on. Was completely underwhelmed by the original, but BS-2 is inspiring, immediate, and fun for me. I haven't even loaded the editor/OS update yet, but could not be happier with my purchase.

[Buka]

Anyone managed to midi sync the Bass Station arp with external gear and how u did it?

I'am trying to sync BS2 with X-Station as a master midi clock and cant make it to work.

thanx for any help

[sqigls]

I cant get the OS to upgrade successfully, or for the librarian to work. Unfortunately i just lost about 50 patches
What is the best editor/librarian to buy?

[Buka]

I cant get the OS to upgrade successfully, or for the librarian to work. Unfortunately i just lost about 50 patches
What is the best editor/librarian to buy?

i had the same problem. u have to install librarian+firmware update a couple of times until it works.

Sucesfull update lookes like this: LCD on the BS2 have rotating lights during update and BS2 restarts itself

cheers

[sqigls]

cheers
i might have to try it on a Windows computer.
I'm a bit freaked out i'm gonna brick it.

[Buka]

Anyone managed to midi sync the Bass Station arp with external gear and how u did it?

I'am trying to sync BS2 with X-Station as a master midi clock and cant make it to work.

thanx for any help

"ARP notes" in the ARP setting on the X-station has to be set to "I+E"(internal+external) so the notes are sent to BS2 over midi cable

cheers

[Katelyn]

Speaking of issues for some time now sometimes my LED freaks out when the MIDI USB cable is moved around too much where it's connected and it sometimes messes with the values. It's done it a few times when not using the MIDI USB cable but just using the power source that came with it and a cheap guitar amp cord.

Not sure what causes it and havn't found out looking online the few times I've looked. It took one decent fall when I first got it (wasn't me for the record who did it), and another time someone shoved it and the USB MIDI cable got knocked kinda loose against the wall. I think it started after that, it was noticeably looser but as I said I've observed it even when not using the USB cord. And yes I've tried many different USB cords.

It's starting to make me paranoid that there is something serious I got to fix but I would die if I had to actually fix any hardware issue. Give me any computer and I can deal with just about issue given enough time hardware or otherwise. But a synth? I've never even seen the inside of one before IRL! I just use them I don't know anything about their actual hardware.

[sqigls]

yeah mine does that too