Fairlight-CMI

--- In Fairlight-CMI@yahoogroups.com, "M.J.B." <yazzofever@...> wrote:
> So, to recreate the Fairlight, would be in my mind DISAPPOINTING, 
just like the Jupiter 8v, minimoogv, whatever VST program out there, 
that sounds like software synths, with buzzy noises mostly for 
today's' plastic sounding music.
>
I'd agree in principle with the points you've made, but as a user of 
several VST instruments I feel I have to comment on this last point.

Yes, VST instruments are full of buzzy noises, and there's a lot of 
plastic-sounding music around.  But the buzzy noises in VSTs are due 
more to bad programming than to anything inherent in the instruments, 
and people are making plastic-sounding music with real analogue as 
well as with VSTs.

I have the Arturia MiniMoogV, Moog ModularV, 2600V and CS80CV, as 
well as Korg's Legacy MS20 and many others.

The MiniMoog sits beside my `real' Moog and complements it very well. 
Each makes sounds the other doesn't really manage.

The Modular V makes a lot of sounds that are quite unlikely - 
including some of my favourite bells and plucked strings - as welllas 
rich and complex synth sounds.

The 2600V is a rich, organic sounding instrument that's become one of 
my favourite synths and has a character I can't quite get with 
anything else. It sounds far better than Timewarp's more accurate 
emulation, once you get into programming it deeply.

I use the CS80V less than the others, so far at least, but I did a 
demo with it that surprised the person I sent it to. She doesn't like 
digital generally, including digital studios. She was surprised the 
demo had been anywhere near a computer.

I think a lot of the problem with VSTs is that not enough people have 
really dug deep into what they can offer. Also, providing an 
emulation of another synth has a downside: any copy is always going 
to be less than the original because it'll never quite make it. The 
upside has got to be other features and/or a distinct and individual 
sound character. And some VST synths offer that in abundance.

For me, these emulations aren't a cheap substitute for the real 
thing. They aren't in the case of the MiniMoog - there's room for 
both.  In the case of the MS20 I sold my original hardware MS20 and 
kept the VST. In the other cases I strongly expect I'd keep the VSTs 
if I had the hardware synths they're based on, especially in the case 
of the ARP 2600.