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Comment by aikah | Hacker News Reader

And get a real synthesizer instead of a VST. Though synthesis will be a bit more restricted, nothing replaces the pleasure of learning by tweaking real knobs on a synth.

My first synth was a digital one , a novation nova, a bit cold sounding but it had nice features though it lacked of FM synthesis ( so no "piano sounds" ). Back then the Access Virus was the shit .

But today analog synths are really cheap, no need to spend 2000$ on a broken old Juno or a Moog. People doing electronic music today and wanting to buy real gear have no idea how lucky they are.

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IMO hardware synth value is mostly for the interface. Analogue filters and amplifier can be nice to add colour and while software doesn't emulate smp/distortion variations yet, it's fine enough for most people.

For a beginner, a midi keyboard controller with tactile faders (not endless encoders! these are horrible.) is a solid standard and affordable set up.

VSTs and DAWs are at a point where real time synthesis and effects work as well as hardware synths on a normal computer.

Recommendations; Propellerheads Reason, Native Instruments FM8 (excellent 8 osc FM synth engine with fantastic easy UI), Ableton Live (sample focused DAW, with VST and routing support). MPC like devices or midi grids like the Ableton Push/APC40 are nice, but they seem to very greatly in velocity/key-push sensitivity.

Warning: beware dumping money into more and more instruments assuming you're missing out on sounds - it will never end and often too many choices will never let you focus.

While I like my Access Virus B, I found sunvox[1] to have such a nice interface it has almost entirely displaced the Virus as my general-purpose synth.

Full modular synthesis is so much fun.

[1] http://www.warmplace.ru/soft/sunvox/

I started 3 months ago on my synthesis journey. Currently I only have the following: Korg MS2000B (polysynth), Ableton Push (controller), SH 101 (monosynth), 88 key piano, and an Elektron Machinedrum (for drums). Got everything I need.

I started off by:

1) Reading the manuals

2) Reading the Sound on Sound series "Synth Secrets". There's an amalgamated PDF of all the series on Reddit if you search for it.

I have all the tools I need to create music on the fly and it's fantastic. I can't even imagine what it would be like working with old computers, patch bays, analog sequencers ETC. I listen to things like Aphex Twin and it boggles my mind how complex his beats are, especially the stuff from the early 90's when he was only like 20.

Super pumped to be learning this in 2015. Sure a Jupiter 8 cost $1k in 1989 and is $10k now, but you don't even need one at all.

I have a Virus and a microBrute. Maybe I'll get a subphatty or something like that these days. It's great to play with real knobs. But when it comes to making a real track I prefer the vsts. Diva is simply amazing. Monark is so close to a real moog. The convenience of not bouncing/recording to audio track is importand to me. The sound quality of the VSTIs these days is good enough. And if my stuff doesn't sounds good - it's on me. Not the tools and the synths.

Do you have any recommendations? I happen to know how DAWs work, but have no clue when it comes to analog synths.

(this is from the sidebar in /r/synthesizers, there's lots of other good sources:) http://thesynthesizersympathizer.blogspot.com/2015/03/buying...

Good knobby starters (analog or virtual analog) Mini/microbrute (except there's been QC issues), bass station II, MS20 mini, ms2000, Radias, jp8080 or 8000, SH201, ... Roland made a few others 5-12 years back which i can't remember.

tho for many people, it's easiest to borrow a mac with Logic Pro, which has some nice synth models (or ableton suite, which has at least a couple plugins). And borrow a controler with lots of pots, encoders and faders, Novation SL mk 2 or maudio axiom (i think both come with software premaped to Logic or ableton analog/operator)

Arturia's Minibrute is a nice analog for not all that much money.

Or you can get some top quality VST for ~$2-3k (like Nexus 2) and a MIDI-controller with a plenty of knobs where you can map anything you wish for your sound synthesis in a DAW, far more versatile for your creative expression than most physical synths ;-)

For many starters Mininova or Microkorg would be totally sufficient, with exotics like Korg Kaossilator for additional creativity.

IMO the best setup nowadays is to have an ultrabook, a few pads/MIDI controllers, a mixer and maybe a studio 88-key MIDI keyboard if you really need it, that's it. Plenty of people are using 2-3 iPads for their whole live music production as well.

> map anything you wish for your sound synthesis in a DAW

1) It's a pain to set up, and unless you'll bother to populate your default project template with every VST you have (and if you have Reaktor or Kontakt, with every virtual instrument inside that VST), you'll have to do it every time.

2) Doesn't get you the full feel of the real thing. Instead of a knob that has min and max positions and is in the exact position you expect him to be, you have a plastic thing that will not give you any real tactile feedback.

3) It omits a lot of sweet limitations of physical gear. With real synths, I personally prefer simple machines that you can, or better, have to patch from memory: (1) every time you set the sound up, you're forced set it up a little bit different to your liking, so the patch evolves over time and (2) you have to get imaginative in a live situation, and sometimes play the synth while you're in process of going from one setup to another.

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