Jupiter80, Kronos, Nord Stage 2, or VST Komplete,Omnisphere?

[I AM]

seems like you guys are trying to milk a dead cow... and probably that cow is male )))

this synth was introduced several months ago and still no complete specs only vids, where sound comes from camera mic... some even trying to discuss it's sound, according this videos...

isn't here's too much topics for the synth that nobody even touched ?

[b3keys]

MMMMMMMMMMMMMOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

[secret Roland agent]

seems like you guys are trying to milk a dead cow... and probably that cow is male )))

Hmmm . . . I thought it looked like that cow was enjoying it way to much!

[Quinnx.]

Artemiy wrote

you will never look back.

So are you now more fond of soft synths?

[audioird]

Good idea Artemy !! Thank you ! I'll give omnisphere a try before I take any decision.

For instance, on Komplete, if you take scarbee (the E piano) the clavinet will take a few seconds to load and 450 Mo of RAM. That is a lot for only one instrument. (I got a 4 core i5 and 4Go RAM).

Is it the some with Omnisphere ?

About the style of music, it will be rock/funk/pop & a few electro sounds.

[Artemiy]

Good idea Artemy !! Thank you ! I'll give omnisphere a try before I take any decision.

For instance, on Komplete, if you take scarbee (the E piano) the clavinet will take a few seconds to load and 450 Mo of RAM. That is a lot for only one instrument. (I got a 4 core i5 and 4Go RAM).

Is it the some with Omnisphere ?

About the style of music, it will be rock/funk/pop & a few electro sounds.

Both Omni and Kontakt can stream samples off the hard drive, so they need to only preload a bit of the data. However, I never used this feature intensively.

The issue is, the "turn on and it works" aspect of dedicated synths is great and if you do a lot of instrument switching, this is the best solution. A live software setup must be much, much more planned and organized technically. It's a lot of work, although the result is... well look at any serious electronics music gig :-)

[PauloF]

The owner's manual is not yet available.

Perhaps we have different definitions of the word "available," my friend.

If you guys will keep secret Roland agent distracted, I will procure the manual.


By the way, does anyone know what "Jupiter-80 Owner's Manual" looks like in Japanese?

Sure Grammar, please look for 木星- 80取扱説明書 and you will be in business !!! ;-)

[PauloF]

Good idea Artemy !! Thank you ! I'll give omnisphere a try before I take any decision.

For instance, on Komplete, if you take scarbee (the E piano) the clavinet will take a few seconds to load and 450 Mo of RAM. That is a lot for only one instrument. (I got a 4 core i5 and 4Go RAM).

Is it the some with Omnisphere ?

About the style of music, it will be rock/funk/pop & a few electro sounds.

Both Omni and Kontakt can stream samples off the hard drive, so they need to only preload a bit of the data. However, I never used this feature intensively.

The issue is, the "turn on and it works" aspect of dedicated synths is great and if you do a lot of instrument switching, this is the best solution. A live software setup must be much, much more planned and organized technically. It's a lot of work, although the result is... well look at any serious electronics music gig :-)

Awesome demos !!!

"a Day at the Races"LoL

Lyle Mays - Duo #1

Jordan at Namm

[realtrance]

audioird,

I'd say one thing you'd have to think about before plunging into purchase of any new instrument is, what are you after?

Are you after being able to really dig in to synthesis in all its technical glory and diversity, to come up with original sounds, full of interesting modulation and motion, or extremely playable as a distinctive, never-before-heard electronic solo lead? Then JP-80 might not be for you; Artemiy's recommendation of Omnisphere and a Macbook Pro setup is an excellent one, if you want to proceed on that route, and Komplete7 (or 8, which may be on the way this year?) as well. Maybe even Ableton Live 8 Suite thrown into the mix. Yikes! You'll never sleep again.

Are you more familiar with non-electronic instruments, and is your musical practice based more on the emulation of such instruments? Do you like to play more than twiddle and fiddle? If you pick up a guitar do you just strum it and sing along, or do you spend hours tuning it and listening to the sounds of individual string vibrations, getting ever more sullen with every oscillation of a string and wishing you had a better guitar? If you strum and sing, get a JP-80. If you're a twiddler-fiddler who still primarily likes to play more than dive into deep, complex modulation routings on a patch, get a JP-80, there's plenty to twiddle and fiddle about with on it, yet you'll get great musical results quickly and easily if you want to strum and sing without all the fuss and muss. :)

Hope that helps! There are two directions you can go in here, the JP-80 serves one of them more than the other.

[Leh173]

I'd say in a home studio environment a software based setup will deliver far more power and flexibility than any hardware I know of, of course you have to be prepared to work in a computer workflow type way. Crossing that world into live though, like Art says, is much more complicated. Performing live with a laptop requires a lot of preparation work, and also can be fiddly to set-up whereas hardware is much more immediate, yet limited. Also the build quality of hardware synth generally will outlclass any MIDI controller by a long way. So it's up to what you want to achieve. I have been using a fully MacBook Pro Logic Studio/Mainstage based rig for home and live for years. At home it's brilliant, but live I find it to be not my thing, as it requires a lot of setting up at gigs due to all the different components you need, and I personally do not like the keyboard feel of any semi-weighted MIDI controller on the market (my 20 year old Roland D-70 and my DX7 have much better build quality and key action) and is not as immediate for rehearsals and writing with a band, so I am moving back to hardware for live, maybe with a laptop for extending my sound set. the JP-80 and Fantom X/G are the only things on the market I seem to be drawn to for this task, though I'm sure the Kronos will be good, but from what I have read, Korg have simply built their own Atom based PC running Linux and software into their usual keyboard and case, but it's still basically a software synth and MIDI controller, just a convenient Korg packaged one. I'm not a huge Korg fan and already have software that does the same job already so it may not be for me, and the Fantoms, etc just look more fun to play anyway.

Generally I think it's a mistake to expect hardware to do what you do in software though, so we all have to think about what we need to do on hardware, and live with the limitations. They're too different to really compare. A glass half full type attitude. I still use my JP-8000 all the time at home and live and nothing I have in software sounds like it and it's hardware interface inspires me. Still the SuperNatural approach may be a good point of difference to all the other hardware boards and software. Time will tell.

I don't know why people think the Supernatural stuff in the JP-80 a recycled technology from 20 years ago, because to my mind it obviously is a newer development, since V-synth GT.

[Quinnx.]

I don't know why people think the Supernatural stuff in the JP-80 a recycled technology from 20 years ago, because to my mind it obviously is a newer development, since V-synth GT.

It would be a new development if we did not already have this stuff before the jp80.
but it was already there.
to me the jp is like 10 steps forward and 8 steps back.

but yes.. software base studio is now the future and hardware gear needs to complement this..
The G and the V-xt is for me the best complement to any future setup.
It will be along time before these puppies loose their usefulness both in and out of the software base studio.

[Leh173]

I'll reserve judgement on the JP-80 until I play one. But there has been not synth that has had all voices high quality like the JP-80 promises to have so how is it a step backward? Everyone disses ROMplers and this is a step away from that. If this board solves the problems associated with 100% PCM soundset like they're saying, then it is something I'm interested in. Sure "SuperNatural" technology appeared in bits and pieces before in the last few years, but never on this scale. Perhaps it should have been a new Fantom workstation though... Hard to know until it's out.I can understand their motivation to make a really powerful live board, especially if we're all using computers to do the "workstation" part.

I agree about the combination of hardware and software. The G and/or your V-synth GT + Laptop would rock.

[audioird]

For the price announced : 2900 €, as a "Live" keyboard (it is), when I'll try it, I will look for :
- can it cover all the sounds I need
- easy editing for splits, layers, controlers, effects, main synth parameters
- what can be changed to prepare the sounds I'll need (synth editing, VA and PCM)

Clavia Nord Stage 2 : 2900 € (73 compact) 3190 € (76 piano), gives you :
- easy editing for splits, layers, controlers, effects, main synth parameters
- real piano feel keyboard
- software editor (mac, pc)
- upload of your own samples into the keyboard

To compete, Roland Jupiter 80 will have to offer enough very good sounds, not only the few we can hear in demos, even if that already represents a lot of work from Roland. The Jupiter 80 looks a bit closed ... I wish we could see and hear more and have a look to the manual.

[PauloF]

For the price announced : 2900 €, as a "Live" keyboard (it is), when I'll try it, I will look for :
- can it cover all the sounds I need
- easy editing for splits, layers, controlers, effects, main synth parameters
- what can be changed to prepare the sounds I'll need (synth editing, VA and PCM)

Clavia Nord Stage 2 : 2900 € (73 compact) 3190 € (76 piano), gives you :
- easy editing for splits, layers, controlers, effects, main synth parameters
- real piano feel keyboard
- software editor (mac, pc)
- upload of your own samples into the keyboard

To compete, Roland Jupiter 80 will have to offer enough very good sounds, not only the few we can hear in demos, even if that already represents a lot of work from Roland. The Jupiter 80 looks a bit closed ... I wish we could see and hear more and have a look to the manual.

The manual should be here anytime now...

Grammar... did you manage to get what I asked you? did you look for 木星- 80取扱説明書??

;-)

[Devnor]

I've lost myself in Omnisphere for months at a time but there is something un-musical about a mouse/keyboard/DAW where my focus shifts completely off the instrument. I couldnt imagine being onstage mousing around trying to fix something :) I've seen others doing it & I cringe too; while the audience waits. Eddie Jobson performs with 2 Macbooks & nothing else so it's doable (at least for genius Mr Jobson).

Truely live w/o backing tracks with just 1 keyboard really limits yourself sonically not to mention if something goes wrong, you've got nothing else. Even Rudess realized it and starting using a rig. Any of those 3 boards will cover a multitude of bases...some more than others. Some might do it better than others. Depends on your specific needs. Add the laptop and you've got it all covered.