In my very humble opinion DSP and Virtual software cannot presently replace
hardware equivalents. As someone said though, they often compliment
extremely well.
I personally don't think that virtual Eq's, reverbs or compressors sound the
same or as good as the hardware items they mimic. On the other hand, if you
can't afford Focusrite Eq or an 1176 why not try the plug in.
Likewise, I've heard some great sounds created on Kyma, Super Collider and
even Reaktor but at the end of the day I don't think you can beat the feel
and unpredictability of the real thing. Of course it's possible to turn at
least two knobs on a Serge module at the same time resulting in all kinds of
unpredictable results. I've yet to find software that does that
successfully.
Two things that can't be understated either.
1. The pride of owning a classic instrument. Have you ever lusted over
anything virtual for more than a couple of days after you've bought it?
2. Soul.
Many 'real' instruments have hidden depths IMO. The gritty sound of some
synths and outboard, yes even the hum or hiss. Again, the unpredictable
nature of the electronics. It all adds character in my opinion. All these
elements that come natural to a system like Serge have to be laboriously
programmed into software.
Although on a slight tangent, a prime example would be the previously
mentioned Kurzweil K2XX's. It never ceases to make me crazy that in order to
add a little envelope release to a sound you have to scroll through a couple
of edit pages and enter more than two values in more than two separate
fields.
I want to make music, not be a computer programmer.
CW
hardware equivalents. As someone said though, they often compliment
extremely well.
I personally don't think that virtual Eq's, reverbs or compressors sound the
same or as good as the hardware items they mimic. On the other hand, if you
can't afford Focusrite Eq or an 1176 why not try the plug in.
Likewise, I've heard some great sounds created on Kyma, Super Collider and
even Reaktor but at the end of the day I don't think you can beat the feel
and unpredictability of the real thing. Of course it's possible to turn at
least two knobs on a Serge module at the same time resulting in all kinds of
unpredictable results. I've yet to find software that does that
successfully.
Two things that can't be understated either.
1. The pride of owning a classic instrument. Have you ever lusted over
anything virtual for more than a couple of days after you've bought it?
2. Soul.
Many 'real' instruments have hidden depths IMO. The gritty sound of some
synths and outboard, yes even the hum or hiss. Again, the unpredictable
nature of the electronics. It all adds character in my opinion. All these
elements that come natural to a system like Serge have to be laboriously
programmed into software.
Although on a slight tangent, a prime example would be the previously
mentioned Kurzweil K2XX's. It never ceases to make me crazy that in order to
add a little envelope release to a sound you have to scroll through a couple
of edit pages and enter more than two values in more than two separate
fields.
I want to make music, not be a computer programmer.
CW