Native Instruments Massive X Synth - Sequel to Massive (Out Now!)

[dblock]

I did find that with the old Massive, I could use eco mode, put a little eq and saturation on it and it would sound pretty close to Ultra mode. I may try that on Massive X if I need to.

[EvilDragon]

You cannot really externally impact the lower amount of aliasing and artifacts that is the result of switching to Ultra mode, though...

[ghettosynth]

Actually my quote was,"...as long as it's technically and financially feasible to do so "without" compromising the direction they choose to take." but I take your point.

Well I wasn't trying to misquote you, or argue really, just saying that I am willing to bet that it was a strategic choice that did weigh all factors and I don't, at all, think that it's going to backfire on them.

I think that this is what many people want to see from NI, leading edge, non-Reaktor based synth plugins. TBH, I wasn't really interested until Ed started talking about the CPU consumption and how choices were made with respect to sound quality that rules out old CPUs.

Just out on a limb speculating, I wonder if this is developed in a traditional compiled language or if it is built on a next-gen Reaktor platform? I suspect the former, but we wouldn't know if that wasn't the case.

[pixel85]

As a Cubase user with a simple bouncing audio function + custom scripts I read these comments with peace of mind knowing that I can work effectively with just one instance of MX (I'm not a fan of classic freeze option and I don't see it as effective workflow)

[dblock]

You cannot really externally impact the lower amount of aliasing and artifacts that is the result of switching to Ultra mode, though...

oh yeah, I realize it wouldn't be an actual technical replacement for ultra but rather a poor man's version of ultra say, ultra light, and that's to my own ears at that.

[dblock]

Actually my quote was,"...as long as it's technically and financially feasible to do so "without" compromising the direction they choose to take." but I take your point.

Well I wasn't trying to misquote you, or argue really, just saying that I am willing to bet that it was a strategic choice that did weigh all factors and I don't, at all, think that it's going to backfire on them.

I think that this is what many people want to see from NI, leading edge, non-Reaktor based synth plugins. TBH, I wasn't really interested until Ed started talking about the CPU consumption and how choices were made with respect to sound quality that rules out old CPUs.

Just out on a limb speculating, I wonder if this is developed in a traditional compiled language or if it is built on a next-gen Reaktor platform? I suspect the former, but we wouldn't know if that wasn't the case.

No problem. I'm sure they think all this stuff through I mean, they've been around half as long as I have. They must be doing something right. They'd be smart to insolate themselves from obsolescence. The competition is fierce. I'm all for non-Reaktor based plugins for sure.
As far as the CPU stuff is concerned, I get what I can use and in some cases,can only use at times because of CPU concerns and if NI and the like progress with their products faster than I progress with my system, I don't begrudge them keeping up with or trying to stay ahead of the times. I'm just driving this car until I need to get a new one. Eventually,I'll have to get a new one but for now, "How CPU intensive is it?" will be a pretty standard question with most new products for those of us still driving that old car.

[ew]

Massive 1 had a special place in the market. It was marketed as a Drum & Bass synth, and turned out to be THE wub wub machine for EDM genres. I definitely think they should have made it more light on CPU, if it really is that hard on it. It WILL have a impact on popularity and sales, you can be sure about that.

That's a funny statement; Massive was considered *the* CPU killer when it first came out.

By your rationale, it shouldn't have the success it did. Yet, here we are...

ew

[Noumena]

yeah.... i think that those of us that were actively using massive when it first came out remember. massive wasn’t the anything synth for years after its release. when it came out i could use > 50% cpu for 8 voice polyphony. i had a relatively fast machine at the time. a 1.2 ghz core 2 duo. everyone. literally everyone was outraged at the cpu cost AND completely blown away by a soft synth that was no compromise and as good or better than anything in hardware. before massive things were different. it was a long time ago, though, so many don’t remember that.

(not for nothing when kontakt 1.0 was released it was pretty much the same deal. cpus were so slow then that 16 voice of poly on a sampler would use most of a cpu. people bought dedicated machines, sometimes a LOT of them to run 16-32 voices of kontakt. i’ve got >1000 notes of polyphony on my modest laptop today.)

[Noumena]

and, hey ew!!! nice to see you. been a minute.

[chk071]

Fair enough. I'll pull my point then. I first used it many, many years after the initial release, and, yes, it's quite expensive for such a old plugin, so, must've been hard on the CPU's at that time.

I still hope devs will always consider CPU, and never sacrifice it completely for sound quality. Whatever that means. As i mentioned elsewhere, for me, it's rather about character than brutal accuarcy in emulating every poop coming out of analog synths.

[ghettosynth]

Here, you don't even have to look far, there's plenty of complaining about CPU usage right here on KVR (no surprise there.)

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=157144&hilit=Massive+CPU+hog


I think this is from another thread, but this is gold....

I don't know why people can't stop bitching about the CPU use. I've been using the demo since it came out, with a 1.7G P4. Maybe it's cause I'm used to having to bounce and freeze already, but I like the sounds enough that I dont care how much CPU it takes. And in medium quality, which still sounds great, I can easily use 3 or 4 voices in realtime and along with other lighter synths, with no problem.

I think that pretty much nails the coffin shut on understanding how NI thinks about new synths in terms of being forward thinking.

[zerocrossing]

It’ll be great!

We’re all doomed!

Pick one.

Those don’t seem mutually exclusive to me.

[zerocrossing]

I think that this is what many people want to see from NI, leading edge, non-Reaktor based synth plugins.

Massive X was what finally got me to upgrade from Komplete 8, so I’d say a big yes to that.

[Vectorman]

Yes, big +1, nice to see them finally doing another major standalone synth release.

Those threads from 2006 are a real time capsule, aren't they? I recall I was still using a Pentium 4 when Massive came out so yeah, it used up the CPU fast. I also remember thinking that it was a step up in overall sonics from the other software I was using at the time. With all that's come along in the interim and the much slower pace at which CPU power increases now, I suppose it's harder to deliver some leap-frogging increase in sonic fidelity to make jaws drop than it was when the original Massive arrived. But I do still hope that they've managed to create something that will in some way stand out and command attention once again.

[dblock]

Yes, big +1, nice to see them finally doing another major standalone synth release.

Those threads from 2006 are a real time capsule, aren't they? I recall I was still using a Pentium 4 when Massive came out so yeah, it used up the CPU fast. I also remember thinking that it was a step up in overall sonics from the other software I was using at the time. With all that's come along in the interim and the much slower pace at which CPU power increases now, I suppose it's harder to deliver some leap-frogging increase in sonic fidelity to make jaws drop than it was when the original Massive arrived. But I do still hope that they've managed to create something that will in some way stand out and command attention once again.

It's not only harder to deliver some leap-frogging increase in sonic fidelity to make jaws drop than it was when the original Massive arrived,the competition has increased tremendously since 2006. It was alot easier to stand out then than it is now even if you come up with the goods.