FINALLY, Looks like Analog Laboratory might be replaced in my soft synth arsenal. Modeled after one of the most prized synths of all time and very hard to access even in its hay day. This unit was actually the precursor to the soft synth, basically the first synth to employ a computer to run the program, this synth still goes for $100,000 and is extremely rare. Well now the masses get to experience it in its full glory with UVI’s Darklight IIx.

UVI is very pleased to present Darklight IIx, a brand-new UVIinstrument inspired by one of the most mythical Computer Music Instrument of the 80?s.

Costing upwards of $100 000, the desirable dream machine of the 80?s was unattainable by most.

Used by countless prominent artists, including Peter Gabriel, David Bowie, Michael Jackson, Kate Bush, Herbie Hancock, Jean Michel Jarre, Thomas Dolby and many more, it remains a highly regarded and sought after instrument. We took our obsession to the next level, creating a complete set of instruments, sounds and sonic tools deeply inspired by the original digital monster. A unique, hybrid process of exhaustive multi-sampling, analysis, and advanced scripts for audio processing allowed us to not only capture the original character of this machine but to enhance its ability with a host of today’s most powerful analog modeled filters, LFOs, envelopes and effects–packaged beautifully in an old-school interface.

I could NOT be more excited about this synth and it’s available now so go get it!

Price: $199 You need UVI Workstation of Mach5 Ver 3 to run it.

For more info, click HERE

June 21st only if you like Arturia’s Facebook page HERE, you get a free version of their minimoog software. HURRY

Tone2 has quickly started offering new sound sets for their stellar synth Saurus. This package focuses on more vintage analog sounds. And even some of my sources hint that there will be a modern soundset coming sometime in the future as well. This package however gives us alot of the “days of yore” synth emulations like the Jupiter and Moog.

Taking you on a journey through an analog world, the Analog soundset digs deeper into Saurus’
offerings with a strong emphasis on authentic vintage sounds.

A collection of 200 classic synth sounds including emulations of the Moog, Oberheim, Jupiter,
Arp Solina, Clavinet and many others that suit almost every style of Electronic music.
Let Analog take you back to a time when these machines were at the center of every studio and
now be the source for your creative productions

Enjoy its warm strings, expressive brass, dirty leads, squelchy basses, screaming synths, vibrant
pads and just let it inspire you.

 

I have already reviewed Saurus (HERE) AND there is a contest to see who can make the best track with Saurus presets.

Price for soundset: $49.00
For more info, click HERE

So I’ve reviewed Tone2 Software (HERE) so now it’s your turn. Tone2 is giving you a demo of the “Best of Both Worlds” synth Saurus and if you appease them by producing a killer track with factory presets, you win a copy. Simple as that! Here are the terms and conditions

Tone2 is running a demo write contest to see what You can do with Saurus’ factory presets.
A nice chance to show your producing skills and win some Tone2 products. Anyone can enter!

How?

Download the Saurus demo from our website (HERE) and produce a short vintage demo
song using only the factory presets. Already got Saurus? no problem, we encourage Saurus owners to
compete as well.

The three best songs will be picked by us, win a prize and featured in the new Saurus product MP3 demo.

Prizes

1st prize: The winner of the best song wins a $250 credit to spend in the Tone2 shop

2nd prize: The winner of the second best song wins a $200 credit credit to spend in the Tone2 shop

3rd prize: The winner of the third best song wins a $100 credit credit to spend in the Tone2 shop

Everyone else: Not among one of the three winners but still have a good song? anyone who did not win
but whose song is still used in our demo receives a free BiFilter2 license.

For more info please visit the contest web page HERE

Look guys! Everyone’s favorite in-studio friend has come back with more tricks! Technical Grammy award winning Celemony (in reality every vocalist should share their Grammy with them as well) has updated its critically acclaimed pitch and time editing software to Version 2.1 for Editor, Essentials, and Assistant. This update comes with a few performance enhancing features as well as some visual toys to make correcting self absorbed obliviously untalented a little more enjoyable.

In addition to Melodyne’s pitch correction, which is used and valued all over the world, Melodyne editor offers additional editing functions that make day-to-day music production simpler and inspire users to greater heights of creativity in their handling of audio. Released at the end of last year, Version 2 brought extended timing tools, comprehensive scale functions and – like the smaller editions – Rewire support. With Version 2.1, Celemony has now introduced further improvements from which all three editions benefit.

Version 2.1 brings workflow improvements, including a new zoom function and an intelligent compare function in ARA mode. Other improvements result in enhanced reliability and performance. These include the ability to reduce the maximum number of undo steps in order to reduce RAM consumption. A variety of bug fixes enhance both stability and compatibility: the program’s interaction, for example, with Cakewalk Sonar and Presonus Studio One. The update from Version 2.0 to Version 2.1 is free of charge and recommended to all users.

You may remember in THIS review that I stated one of my complaints was that Reason didn’t allow plug-ins. Well they’ve sorta listened and have now started allowing developers to make plug-ins that go with their program. This ensures that each “rack extention” you get is up to spec with Propellerhead’s meticulous standards of sonic perfection. You know what… I actually can get behind this. How many times have you bought a program, and it completely ruin your DAW? COUGH… COUGH (Analog Laboratory). Well Reason is allowing people to take a swing at making great versions of synths and processing for their DAW. It’s a proud time for this site that I single-handedly am responsible for a HUGE decision like this. Sure its delusional and probably wrong, but I want this win.

I have a love / hate relationship with software synths. It seems everyone makes one and most of them sound like those old midi ringtones cell phones used to have. Also everyone claims that theirs replicates “vintage synth sounds” but all they seem to do is throw a low pass filter on the preset and call it good. Don’t get me started on the user interfaces. I see too many companies controls overlooked and your experience suffers for it. I know it has nothing to do with sound, but the look and feel of a program can definitely make it more enjoyable to use. So basically to sum up my rant, I am very picky with soft synths.

So how does Tone2′s Saurus stand up to my pessimistic litmus test. Well surprisingly well…

Tone2 is a European company that is behind the scenes in more areas than most audio software manufacturers. When your resume includes BMW, Disney, and a medical facility for “particle acceleration,” you’ve got my attention. Someone else who has been documented as having their full attention is Skrillex (He uses Gladiator).  So when Tone2 sent me over a copy to get my hands on this new “best of both worlds synth,” I immediately jumped at the opportunity. Saurus is a VST / VSTi / AU virtual synth that works in both 32 and 64 bit environments. It implements what Tone2 calls “True Analog Modeling Technology”, a system they themselves have created. This gives the synth, its old school street cred with the warm analog sound we have all decided we want again after the sterile synth debacle of the mid to late 90′s. They have also implemented quite a few distinct types of filters to add to the already great analog sound you can get from this piece of software.

All technical jargon aside, this synth runs great. It integrates into other programs nicely without a hitch. Analog Laboratory could use a lesson in that. The sounds simply inspire. You can tell the presets were painstakingly created with the user in mind ie: you don’t get those everyday presets that most companies throw in there for filler. I found myself having to stop the actual review process to create new material, which is the ultimate testament to any piece of gear. I’m a huge fan of rhythmic synth sounds to use as base layers and their gate and arpeggio section is extremely easy to use as well as versatile. You can take a factory preset and make it all your own within seconds of simply using those two features. I especially like how intricate you can go into the gating process without having to click through a bunch of menus. It’s all simply right in front of you.

The browsing feature is very simple as well, giving you an option to choose by section by clicking on the screen, or by the Program and Bank buttons. The buttons make searching for sounds much easier whereas, if you know the sound you want, pulling it up is right there by clicking on the LCD screen above it. Organization is key.

When it comes to making your own presets, I prefer this one over 90% of my other soft-synths. I’m no pro when it comes to sound design but with Saurus, everything is just… right there. They’ve taken the guess work of extra knobs out of the equation and traded it for seamless simplicity. You don’t always have to control every aspect of the sound design process to get unique sounds, so just let the brains at Tone2 handle the technical stuff. Just sit back and enjoy the sound design process. All buttons and knobs are very clearly labeled and organized in a truly obsessive fashion (in a good way). The GUI is very appealing too. They didn’t let the quality of the synth program outshine the look either. Just like you usually are more reticent to buy an album if the artwork looks shoddy, the same goes for software. If your eyes get tired, you get tired. Kudos to Tone2 on making it both beautiful and beautiful sounding.

My only complaint is the Pad section of presets and that it isn’t a standalone for Mac. I usually jump off from one preset and tweak it until I’m happy with it, but I found that most of the pad sounds were very similar. I love depth and detail and space in my pads, but these seem to just be right on the verge of being there, but I just couldn’t get the to sound like I want. The leads…. perfect. The Arpeggio and Gate section… perfect. The Chip section… extremely useful. I just wish they had more presets in that bank.

Overall… I love the program. It truly is a great synth that captures modern and vintage sounds all in one program. Also, it’s extremely cost effective quality, coming in at just $120.00 US. Your wallet and wife won’t be complaining too much, given that other synth programs like this are double the cost. A huge hats off to the guys at Tone2 for not charging more, they very easily could’ve.  So if you’re looking for a new weapon to add to the arsenal, I would be completely confident saying to go ahead and buy this world class synth.

Price: $119.00 USD
Compatibility:
PC: Windows XP / ME / 7 / 8 / Vista (32 bit or 64 bit); Intel Pentium4 compatible CPU
Mac: Mac OSX 10.5 or higher; PowerPC, G4, G5 or Intel Mac (32 or 64 bit)

PC formats: 32-bit VSTi, 64-bit VSTi, standalone
Mac formats: 32-bit VSTi, 64-bit VSTi, 32-bit Audiounit, 64-bit Audiounit; Univeral Binary

For more information, click HERE.
To buy, click HERE