Odyssey

Well,obviously if you want pure analog warmth, you have to buy an analog synth.

Interesting.
If I took an original Odyssey, a Korg copy, a Behringer copy, an expensive VST emulation and a cheap VST emulation and played you a range of typical bass sounds from them while you were blindfolded with headphones on, and asked you to identify the real "authentic" one, do you think you'd have a cats chance in hell of telling which-was-which ?

Repeat this experiment with any "warm" OG Authentic synth you'd care to name, I think you'd get the same result.
The answer is no, you wouldn't stand a chance.

What's more it doesn't matter. Different production runs of the Odyssey didn't sound like other production runs.

In a roundabout way, what I'm trying to say is it doesn't matter if the MPC Odyssey doesn't sound like an original Odyssey as other original Odyssey's didn't sound like it either, and none of the synth navel gazers knew anyway.

If it makes a noise you like use it, if doesn't, well...don't.

But... if somebody likes it... even if it is believed to be for possibly imagined reasons... then do they realistically still like it, even if you don't find their reason valid?

For a one to one comparison though, I am pretty confident I could hit at least 90% accuracy determining somebody playing a Moog Voyager vs a Virus TI, while I, as a listener, was blindfolded. Are there cases where you could trick me, I'm willing to accept it, but I've owned both for years and know the bulk of the character for both.

I get your challenge/stance, and largely agree with it... but there are just some synths I will reach to for specific sounds. I guess given infinite choice, you'll get overwhelmed and make it impossible to really pinpoint a sound, but within a limited scope I suspect people could learn specific synths.

At the end of the day though, if you think it sounds good, then it is good.

Neurone wrote:

Well,obviously if you want pure analog warmth, you have to buy an analog synth.

Interesting.
If I took an original Odyssey, a Korg copy, a Behringer copy, an expensive VST emulation and a cheap VST emulation and played you a range of typical bass sounds from them while you were blindfolded with headphones on, and asked you to identify the real "authentic" one, do you think you'd have a cats chance in hell of telling which-was-which ?

Repeat this experiment with any "warm" OG Authentic synth you'd care to name, I think you'd get the same result.
The answer is no, you wouldn't stand a chance.

What's more it doesn't matter. Different production runs of the Odyssey didn't sound like other production runs.

In a roundabout way, what I'm trying to say is it doesn't matter if the MPC Odyssey doesn't sound like an original Odyssey as other original Odyssey's didn't sound like it either, and none of the synth navel gazers knew anyway.

If it makes a noise you like use it, if doesn't, well...don't.

I never tried an original Odyssey, so I really couldn't understand which is which on your test.
Honestly I never care about analog or digital, I use analog pedals and digital pedals or analog synths or digital synths and sometimes I even forget if a pedal or a synth is digital or analog.
So I would be a very bad choice for these tests.
Today I was going deeper with this Odyssey plugin and I found it has a very weird and interesting filter, it behaves differently from the filters I am used to. You can actually change the timbre drastically with the filter.
Also ADSR is very powerful.
You put those parameters on qlinks and you can play with them and change the sound.
Nice.

...

For a one to one comparison though, I am pretty confident I could hit at least 90%

I've tried it with a range of my friends, some of whom have been making music with synths for 40 years.
Nobody gets above 18%.
They all said exactly what you said.

One of them, who owns not only a minimoog but a polymoog too, consistently identified the Behringer Poly D as the real thing.
Not a happy person.

The comparison I gave for the 90% of the time was the Virus TI and the Moog Voyager...

I am not personally familiar with a minimoog, polymoog, or poly D... so I agree, you will fool me every time.

in general vsts have a flat sound; somehow they seem flat and sterile; hardware synths can sound cold and too clean also but the hardware synths still benefit from the A/D conversion.

I often find that many synths dont sit well with samples off the rip and thats what i look out for; whereas microkorg or other hardware modules tend to mesh more easily with samples

jpeg wrote:in general vsts have a flat sound; somehow they seem flat and sterile; hardware synths can sound cold and too clean also but the hardware synths still benefit from the A/D conversion.

I often find that many synths dont sit well with samples off the rip and thats what i look out for; whereas microkorg or other hardware modules tend to mesh more easily with samples

What's your opinion about Hype?
I am going deeper on it, some sounds (bells, pulses, pads, strings) stand just right on the mix.
I don't find it very deep for editing, this macro window is a bit confusing and not many options, but some presets (if you switch off delay and reverb immediately) are definiteltly on FM or rompler territory.
I am still trying to understand the exact way Hype works, what kind of Synth is it.
But anyway, bells and strings and pianos are just excellent.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l31RXiVSI9s?t=2807

Gives insight to the various Odyssey sounds across 3 models

The Odyssey plugin will not use modern modelling techniques which is why it can easily run on the MPC standalone. VST synths with better modelling like u-He Diva uses a lot more CPU due to this. This doesn't mean it's bad though, the tiny differences are unnoticeable once you add drums and more elements to the song. It's for sure good enough to make professional music and my favourite synth on the MPC

I often use a very old Minimoog emu called Minimonsta, instead of using Diva, just because I can run more instances while still sounding good. Just an example.

With Hype, I pray they add more envelopes and lfo's. I would also love a modulation matrix. We need more filter types too. It has promise, but at the moment if we are all honest, it has very limited sound design options. If it was a vst synth that wasn't made by Akai/air for MPC, nobody would use it or even want it in its current state, as there are better options out there for what it does. Sorry to be negative but hopefully Akai reads

EDIT: This site doesn't seem to handle YouTube time stamps.
46:43 Designing the Odyssey
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l31RXiVSI9s?t=2807

Gives insight to the various Odyssey sounds across 3 models[/quote]


The same video progresses to the Solina, with both Odyssey and Solina featured
1:01:14 The Strings Ensemble
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l31RXiVSI9s?t=3634

BoxBeater wrote:The Odyssey plugin will not use modern modelling techniques which is why it can easily run on the MPC standalone. VST synths with better modelling like u-He Diva uses a lot more CPU due to this. This doesn't mean it's bad though, the tiny differences are unnoticeable once you add drums and more elements to the song. It's for sure good enough to make professional music and my favourite synth on the MPC

I often use a very old Minimoog emu called Minimonsta, instead of using Diva, just because I can run more instances while still sounding good. Just an example.

With Hype, I pray they add more envelopes and lfo's. I would also love a modulation matrix. We need more filter types too. It has promise, but at the moment if we are all honest, it has very limited sound design options. If it was a vst synth that wasn't made by Akai/air for MPC, nobody would use it or even want it in its current state, as there are better options out there for what it does. Sorry to be negative but hopefully Akai reads

Yeah that what I meant with limite options on Hype.
I couldn't believe I cannot change LFO shape, I thought I was missing something but it's just a fixed shape LFO.
And also sometimes ADSR just doesn't change anything, maybe it depends on the oscillator you are using.
For sound design is really too limited.
It looks more like a preset machine or a rompler, but I like pianos and mallets and bells and strings, very useable and good sounding.
As with Roland synths, all presets are drowned in reverbs and delays, something I never liked, it makes all presets sound too digital, I switch them off immediately.
So If I understood correctly, Hype is a hybrid of FM, wavefolder, sample based and VA.
Not bad.
But I agree, it could be improved with more modulations, lfo and envelope parameters.

So far I like Hype more but I do not like the style of Mixer they used.

Paul's insight, sounds juicy

About some of these synths.. For me, both TubeSynth and that 'bass' whatever it is called, is a waste of space on my MPC..

I also agree that TubeSynth sounds very cold and digital as is..

But not only do we have plugins on the MPC to counter that, but you could send TubeSynth through some analog outboard gear, like Analog Heat, to give it some nice warmth + this gives you far more control of just how that is going to sound, compared something that just has it as an unavoidable default..

And you can layer all these synths, and if you are doing pads for example, you can create really intricate, complex stuff.. so it's not as if there's no potential..

But one thing I wish were possible for all these synths, is for there to be a built in option to double up the synth, so that you've got up to 8 instances of the same thing without having to go through the hassle of layering afterwards..


This would really boost the efficiencyof sound design, because you hear the changes instantly by the press of a pad, as you tweak, because it's all triggered simultaneously..

And there may be a faster way, I have not really looked into this.. But the way I do it currently is to record whatever it is, then copy that track and swap plugin to have the same thing played by different synths, and then go to tweak..

But yeah, it's not particularly as fast and efficient as when you simply change oscillators within a synth. . And being able to double up right inside the plugin would bring that efficiency.