Phase Plant released

VST, AU, AAX, CLAP, etc. Plugin Virtual Instruments Discussion
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how is everyone getting on with this? I ended up getting Hive 2 - man i am so glad i did that. That synth clicked with me i a way that phase plant didnt...but i am still curious

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Is there keyfollow for filter or osc? just downloaded it today and am enjoying it a lot. I think Hive has much more depth in the Wavetable department but I like the GUI and workflow much better in Phaseplant… It does seem less like a wavetable synth and more just a glorious modular VA.


Any plans for more development in the future? add a dedicated FM operator module or something of the sort

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Nleif wrote: Thu Jun 13, 2019 7:56 pm Is there keyfollow for filter or osc? just downloaded it today and am enjoying it a lot. I think Hive has much more depth in the Wavetable department but I like the GUI and workflow much better in Phaseplant… It does seem less like a wavetable synth and more just a glorious modular VA.


Any plans for more development in the future? add a dedicated FM operator module or something of the sort
There should be a key track mod source in the Utility category. Assign that to filter cutoff. The osc key track by default, but if you want to increase the amount you can assign the aforementioned mod source to osc pitch.
Always Read the Manual!

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exmatproton wrote: Thu Jun 13, 2019 1:24 pmHave fun loading up 16 (or 24, or whatever polyphonic count you want) one voice synths and wire everything so that you get the same result... :dog:
As I explained, that's the very death of fun but eminently doable. It probably wouldn't take any longer to achieve, either.
It is not applied to each oscillator, but each voice. So if you want to work with, let's say, 20 voices, you'll need 20 mono synths and wire all env's, lfo's, s/h's etc ... ..
Each of the synths will have it's own "env's, lfo's, s/h's etc...", I won't need to wire anything.
I've done something similar to make REPRO-1 polyphonic...6 voices costs me this:
Then you've done it a stupid way (or your host makes it seem like a stupid way). That's also a different thing.
PieBerger wrote: Thu Jun 13, 2019 1:02 pmHive 2 IS limited, by design, beside how good it sounds, it's one of the best things about it. It can't do audio rate modulations, it has a small, fixed number of oscillators/filters, limited routing capabilities. Hive is a wonderful synth, my favourite, although I think Phase Plant is going to give it some strong competition, at least until Zebra3 comes around, but there's only so much that can be done with it. I'll repeat again that it's limitations are not necessarily a negative, but they are there.
Every synth has it's limitations and they are all there by design. But that's just a fact, it has no practical implications in the context in which we use these things because all those limitations can be overcome external to the instrument. e.g. Want two separate signal paths? Add another instance. Want an oscillator waveform not in your instrument, use a different instrument with that waveform. Nobody needs just one synth to do everything, it complicates things of rio benefit.
Workflow and modulation. What if you want to adjust the amp envelope, with your suggested multiple-instance solution, that's a whole lot of tedious tweaking, especially for 3 and above voices, it would also be a pain to program chords would it not?
So in those situations you come up with a different solution. Nobody needs this one-size-fits-all approach, it's stupid.
Having a separate MIDI channel for each note in a chord, would be madness and a major workflow killer.
No, that would be MPE. But, again, you find a solution that fits the situation. If you are playing chords, you are unlikely to be using per voice modulation anyway, so it becomes a moot point. At most you might want to hold a chord with your left hand while you play a modulated version of the same sound with your right. That would be two instances without MPE or one instance with.
For someone so fond of Hive and it's efficient workflow, I find it odd that you would propose such a clunky alternative here.
No, that actually explains my position - efficient. A different synth for every occasion so you can play to each one's strengths.
With regards to modulation, as an example, you could enable poly FX for lane 1 add the distortion Snapin (for a cleaner effect in polymode), keytrack the depth so that higher notes are less distorted and therefore less harsh/shrill, but lower notes can still be grungy/beefy, have that signal feed into lane 2 which is also poly, add a delay with feedback modulated by a random device, so that each voice has a slightly longer/shorter tail and finally feed that into lane 3 in global mode with a sweeping filter and reverb, that effects all voices simultaneously for a more coherent/glued together sound. Imagine trying to achieve all of that, using multiple single synth instances :o
You're concentrating on the process when what matters is the result. Give us the sound you end up with, in the context in which it needs to work, and there will be a dozen people who can achieve the same result a dozen different ways. It's the nature of the beast.
NOVAkILL : Asus RoG Flow Z13, Core i9, 16GB RAM, Win11 | EVO 16 | Studio One | bx_oberhausen, GR-8, JP6K, Union, Hexeract, Olga, TRK-01, SEM, BA-1, Thorn, Prestige, Spire, Legend-HZ, ANA-2, VG Iron 2 | Uno Pro, Rocket.

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BONES wrote: Fri Jun 14, 2019 2:05 am As I explained, that's the very death of fun but eminently doable. It probably wouldn't take any longer to achieve, either.
Just load in 1 synth, press 'poly' and add some FX and some mod's, is as long as opening the amount of synths which is the same as the amount of voices (24 for instance) and apply the same to each synth? Ofcourse not
BONES wrote: Fri Jun 14, 2019 2:05 amEach of the synths will have it's own "env's, lfo's, s/h's etc...", I won't need to wire anything.
If you have such a synth with all these effects build in AND where one can route all modulators to the FX parameters. Then ofcourse it is doable. However, it takes so much more work, that i think this PhasePlant solution is great! And yes, you need to apply all modulation sources to the FX PER SYNTH. Instead of just wire 1 mod to 1 effect.
BONES wrote: Fri Jun 14, 2019 2:05 amThen you've done it a stupid way (or your host makes it seem like a stupid way). That's also a different thing.
Well, to make a monophonic synth polyphonic, there are ofcourse multiple ways of doing that in a DAW. I chose this approach, because this way it isn't a preset (or snaphsot, or whatever) inside the DAW itself. It is actually something one could load up and save presets for, apart from a project for instance. It is "a new intrument" this way. With everything patched up. In all ways of doing this, 1 control has to be routed to the 6 synths. I don't see any other way, and since you didn't explain another way, i don't think you have another solution for this either.

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I like the layout concept. I really like the sound source panel. I am not as in love with all of the snapins yet.
Monster though. Can do things a lot of synths cant.
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exmatproton wrote: Fri Jun 14, 2019 5:38 amJust load in 1 synth, press 'poly' and add some FX and some mod's, is as long as opening the amount of synths which is the same as the amount of voices (24 for instance) and apply the same to each synth? Ofcourse not
It will always depend on what you are trying to achieve. I might be able to do it with a single instance of DUNE, for example, using its layered architecture and multiple signal paths. Or I might have to set up 24 separate synths. But if I have to do that, so will you. The difference is you will be doing it inside a single instrument, I'll be doing it outside. I don't see where you're saving any time or effort, we will both have to set up 24 separate signal paths. Think of it as if it were drums - setting up a kit with 24 drum sounds in Battery or setting up 24 single drum tracks doesn't really require any extra effort, one way or the other. Or a Sampler with 24 separate outputs and a 24 layer multi-sampled instrument versus 24 samplers with a single stereo output and 24 single layer instruments. It's just about where you decide to add your complexity.
If you have such a synth with all these effects build in AND where one can route all modulators to the FX parameters. Then ofcourse it is doable. However, it takes so much more work, that i think this PhasePlant solution is great! And yes, you need to apply all modulation sources to the FX PER SYNTH. Instead of just wire 1 mod to 1 effect.
Or you start with the same patch in every synth and it's all in sync from the get-go. In Orion I would just clone the channel as many times as I needed to, I'm sure there is something similar in Cubase to achieve the same end.
I don't see any other way, and since you didn't explain another way, i don't think you have another solution for this either.
That's because it's not something I would ever need to find a solution for as I have a folder full of polyphonic VSTi I could use instead. If I had to, I could probably rig something up in EnergyXT inside Orion or Cubase or I could merge a set-up into Orion from another project (which is something I doubt Cubase can do). I think I only have a couple of monophonic plugins anyway (TRK-01 and RePro 1) so it's never going to come up. I will always choose simple solutions, which means choosing a polyphonic synth where I need multiple voices. Or if I want to simulate unison, I can add a chorus effect.

That's where I see the real advantage of Phase Plant - keeping things simple - where you see it the other way - making things way more complex than they probably need to be.
NOVAkILL : Asus RoG Flow Z13, Core i9, 16GB RAM, Win11 | EVO 16 | Studio One | bx_oberhausen, GR-8, JP6K, Union, Hexeract, Olga, TRK-01, SEM, BA-1, Thorn, Prestige, Spire, Legend-HZ, ANA-2, VG Iron 2 | Uno Pro, Rocket.

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DavidCarlyon wrote: Thu Jun 13, 2019 5:19 pm how is everyone getting on with this? I ended up getting Hive 2 - man i am so glad i did that. That synth clicked with me i a way that phase plant didnt...but i am still curious
After some initial grumbling about the short demo period and pricing, I decided to actually give it chance and try the damn thing and truly, I'm glad that I did. It is an excellent synth and a perfect fit for my sonic tastes, workflow and approach to sound design.

I generally prefer to work with more simple synths, especially those with good UX/workfkow; Hive is my favourite/go-to synth because of this, so I was a bit apprehensive snout getting into a deep, open ended synth like PP. Personally, it's the fastest, most intuitive and fun to work with "super synth" I've ever used.

I really like how it's complexity is fully scalable, much like Zebra and programming simple patches is just as quick as it is in Hive. I like that for the most part, it's a single page synth with most of important parameters visible at any one time. The modulation system is very well implemented and complex routing can be set up in and remains visible/accessible on the main interface, which is a step up from say Serum, where it's very visual/intuitive system completely falls apart when you start modulating other modulators and or FX and you have to spend half you time in the mod matrix to set up and manage the routings, losing sight of the main synth page in the process.

The FX are very good indeed and I especially like that with the complete bundle you have can Slice, a fully fledged parametric EQ right there in the synth as a Snapin, that can have its parameters modulated in real time too!

I tend to gravitate more towards edgy, digital sounds and to my ears PP really excels in this area. I write psytrance and it's really a perfect synth for the genre. Wavetable combined with PM, random mod source and Trance gate Snapin, makes it very easy to make a lot of the crunchy and bubbly sequences/sounds that are popular in modern styles right now, especially on the harder edged, night/twilight side of things.

In terms of criticisms, I think it could do with a few more filter types, either as Snapins or generators. I'm not a huge fan of having an overwhelming choice to choose from, but at the very least switchable slopes and maybe a few esoteric ones, like Serum has for example. These are coming in a future update, but they definitely missed a trick not to include prev/next buttons for wavetable/sample selection and the ability to save custom LFO shapes with the day one release. Same for not including keyboard modifiers to snap to X/Y grid in the LFO editor; it makes programming arp sequences more tedious that it needs to be.

Overall a fine synth that I very much look forward to using in my production. I really feel that to get the most out of it, you need the full works bundle and since I can't afford it right now, I'll be subbing until such a time that I can, but it's a reasonable price, with no contract and they seem like a decent company, deserving of my support, so I'm happy to do so.
Always Read the Manual!

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PieBerger wrote: Sat Jun 15, 2019 7:36 am
DavidCarlyon wrote: Thu Jun 13, 2019 5:19 pm how is everyone getting on with this? I ended up getting Hive 2 - man i am so glad i did that. That synth clicked with me i a way that phase plant didnt...but i am still curious
After some initial grumbling about the short demo period and pricing, I decided to actually give it chance and try the damn thing and truly, I'm glad that I did. It is an excellent synth and a perfect fit for my sonic tastes, workflow and approach to sound design.

I generally prefer to work with more simple synths, especially those with good UX/workfkow; Hive is my favourite/go-to synth because of this, so I was a bit apprehensive snout getting into a deep, open ended synth like PP. Personally, it's the fastest, most intuitive and fun to work with "super synth" I've ever used.

I really like how it's complexity is fully scalable, much like Zebra and programming simple patches is just as quick as it is in Hive. I like that for the most part, it's a single page synth with most of important parameters visible at any one time. The modulation system is very well implemented and complex routing can be set up in and remains visible/accessible on the main interface, which is a step up from say Serum, where it's very visual/intuitive system completely falls apart when you start modulating other modulators and or FX and you have to spend half you time in the mod matrix to set up and manage the routings, losing sight of the main synth page in the process.

The FX are very good indeed and I especially like that with the complete bundle you have can Slice, a fully fledged parametric EQ right there in the synth as a Snapin, that can have its parameters modulated in real time too!

I tend to gravitate more towards edgy, digital sounds and to my ears PP really excels in this area. I write psytrance and it's really a perfect synth for the genre. Wavetable combined with PM, random mod source and Trance gate Snapin, makes it very easy to make a lot of the crunchy and bubbly sequences/sounds that are popular in modern styles right now, especially on the harder edged, night/twilight side of things.

In terms of criticisms, I think it could do with a few more filter types, either as Snapins or generators. I'm not a huge fan of having an overwhelming choice to choose from, but at the very least switchable slopes and maybe a few esoteric ones, like Serum has for example. These are coming in a future update, but they definitely missed a trick not to include prev/next buttons for wavetable/sample selection and the ability to save custom LFO shapes with the day one release. Same for not including keyboard modifiers to snap to X/Y grid in the LFO editor; it makes programming arp sequences more tedious that it needs to be.

Overall a fine synth that I very much look forward to using in my production. I really feel that to get the most out of it, you need the full works bundle and since I can't afford it right now, I'll be subbing until such a time that I can, but it's a reasonable price, with no contract and they seem like a decent company, deserving of my support, so I'm happy to do so.
That was a really good summation, thanks. It seemed balanced and fair.
I actually think you are probably completely on track with that.
I am sure if I got into it properly, I would come to love the workflow.
However, I do think you also touched on why I didn’t get on with it - filters. I am not somebody who needs loads of filters...just good filters. Take Hive 2 for example (which I recently got and fell in love with instantly) in terms of LPF, it just has 12db and 24db, BUT they sound amazing.
The thing that makes it further confusing is that kilohearts literally make other filters! They could have made the ladder filter available in the filter section surely!

Maybe I will try it again. My dem has probably run out. Ur I do agree, you need all modules really.
I already have a number of mega synths, though I do think this one has its own thing for sure. I suppose the other thing for me is that I am moving away from the super digital sounds and back to more analog type sounds.

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Agreed about more filter types, that's my favorite part of dune 2 that I can choose between models and get different sounds per patch.

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Nleif wrote: Sat Jun 15, 2019 1:09 pm Agreed about more filter types, that's my favorite part of dune 2 that I can choose between models and get different sounds per patch.
YES! And with Dune, each filter actually does sound A) amazing B) different and unique from other models.

To a large extent, this is also true of ANA2.
Hive doesn't have a selection of LPF's but theone that is there is so good it doesn't matter. I just cannot say i fell in love with phase plant filters in the same way. Will try again tonight and see if i fall in love.
I do love the idea and i like that they have basically taken the Melda concept and done it on one window - ambitious and cool...that is what i have always liked about kiloheartz.

For me personally (and i know this is just my wish) i would have loved to see more emphasis on the analog components. Everyone is doing wavetables now. but to me the synths that are really stunning everyone sonically are the ones like Dune 3 and Hive 2 - where they have wavetables etc, but they have seriously authentic analog tone.
That is where it is at for me now. Even using falcon hasn't been the same since i got those two - as i just think the sound has gone up a level. YMMV

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The sound of phaseplant as a VA is wicked, it does feel like a step up compared to my usual affairs. The Oscillators really have a lot of something pleasing.

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^The most inuitive and streamlined workflow I see :v

BTW. you can set up note-following modulation in Serum way easier, even though it's not explicit feature.
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Thinking about getting this for those nice FM/PM features, not for the snapin stuff. Already have some nice synths (mostly wavetable stuff), but no dedicated FM synth. Any thoughts, warnings or recommendations?
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