Heavyweight showdown...

[JNeffLind]

There's been a recent glut of big expensive powerful synth REs hitting the shop.

The ones I'm thinking of are: Vecto, Oberon, Red 70, Hydronexius, and Zero.

So my question is, of these recent heavyweight additions, which reigns supreme. It seems like many agree that for example Antidote and Predator are generally superior REs, with Parsec getting honorable mention for its unique character. Will any of these newbies be joining that rare air?

How would you rank these?

More specifically, how would you describe their respective "characters."

Please respond with either your ranking of all five, or just your top pick. Also, whichever you have experience with, where does it excel? Included presets? Versatility? Leads? Pads? Basses? Ease of programming?

The ones you don't like, where do they lack?

Of course this is subjective but these threads always help me figure which I should spend my time trialing first depending on my needs.

Edit: Just realized Red is half the price of the others. Still figure it's worth including since it was anticipated by many users.

Edit 2: Was going to ask if I'd missed anything. Like perhaps the Mixfood stuff belongs on here, but now realize that adding to the poll resets the votes. DOH!!!

[EpiGenetik]

I put one vote for Vecto and one for Zero. Havent heard Hydronexius yet, and was kinda disappointed that they didn't do a song contest with it, as this is my motivation for keeping current with what's available whilst being a student with no purchasing nuggets - forces me to really evaluate them. Vecto and Zero have really impressed me, and while I liked Oberon at first, it began to annoy me after a while - so many excellent widgets and classes but the integration of the individual pieces hasn't been thought through properly - no synergy to it. Red 70 doesn't really belong on the same list as the others as it's not particularly versatile, good at what it does but not a powerhouse.

[submonsterz]

you never made a selection for none that would be my vote not one has ruffled my feathers to want them nothing new in any of them if you use other things outside of reason .

[Pinkbox]

Wait for 4MER...!

[EpiGenetik]

Wait for 4MER...!

Yeah it has a great sound to it, and it's basic enough to be accessible by most users - can't wait to see what features Ochen is adding right now.

[JNeffLind]

you never made a selection for none that would be my vote not one has ruffled my feathers to want them nothing new in any of them if you use other things outside of reason .

Just added it. Feel free to cast your vote if inclined.

[JNeffLind]

Wait for 4MER...!

I'll gladly add it to the poll if this thread gets some traction and is still getting views when 4MER arrives.

[JNeffLind]

I put one vote for Vecto and one for Zero. Havent heard Hydronexius yet, and was kinda disappointed that they didn't do a song contest with it, as this is my motivation for keeping current with what's available whilst being a student with no purchasing nuggets - forces me to really evaluate them. Vecto and Zero have really impressed me, and while I liked Oberon at first, it began to annoy me after a while - so many excellent widgets and classes but the integration of the individual pieces hasn't been thought through properly - no synergy to it. Red 70 doesn't really belong on the same list as the others as it's not particularly versatile, good at what it does but not a powerhouse.

Thanks for the input. It kind of seemed like the initial reaction to Red 70 was lackluster but I figured I'd include it since it was anticipated for a while by many users.

[EpiGenetik]

you never made a selection for none that would be my vote not one has ruffled my feathers to want them nothing new in any of them if you use other things outside of reason .

Just added it. Feel free to cast your vote if inclined.

Not sure why but it looks like you accidentally killed the original vote count

[JNeffLind]

you never made a selection for none that would be my vote not one has ruffled my feathers to want them nothing new in any of them if you use other things outside of reason .

Just added it. Feel free to cast your vote if inclined.

Not sure why but it looks like you accidentally killed the original vote count

You're right. Damn. Didn't realize that adding to the poll would reset it. I guess I won't be able to add 4MER in the future after all...

[Tincture]

I can't vote because I haven't got/tried any of them but I have to say it is a nice motivation to find a new way of earning income. They all have me holding my breath.

[Jagwah]

you never made a selection for none that would be my vote not one has ruffled my feathers to want them nothing new in any of them if you use other things outside of reason .

This poll is for the real Reason users not part-time dabblers you part-time dabbler!

[JerrelTheKing]

I would love to weigh in on this but hydronexius hasnt been able to download after 10 days of trying so I'm pissed. sorry. Vecto is really unique and has character all its own. Zero and Oberon are both really really good. tough to decide between the 2..

[boobytrap]

of course ZERO. after Antidote that's the most success, hi-end RE. great sounds with infinite possibilities. all other RE's are based on same traditional theory, non like Zero

[Arrant]

Havent heard Hydronexius yet, and was kinda disappointed that they didn't do a song contest with it

Sure they did
http://reasontalk.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7491250

[Marco Raaphorst]

Revival is missing. One of the most interesting and original killer synths around.

[JNeffLind]

Revival is missing. One of the most interesting and original killer synths around.

I've heard some recent buzz about Revival getting second looks from people but I was under the impression it wasn't very popular. Perhaps another poll is in order, maybe after this one has run its course.

[Marco Raaphorst]

Might be not so populair although I know many people who use it. But then again: rare stuff is often more interesting. In Ableton one of my favs is still symptohm:melohman of ohmforce. Killer.

[boobytrap]

Havent heard Hydronexius yet, and was kinda disappointed that they didn't do a song contest with it,

http://www.reasontalk.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7491250

they do a contest but still no entrees.....

[Ashpool]

Revival is missing. One of the most interesting and original killer synths around.

I've heard some recent buzz about Revival getting second looks from people but I was under the impression it wasn't very popular. Perhaps another poll is in order, maybe after this one has run its course.

This is not my thread and I hope this offends no one but I thought this is about the "recent" heavyweights that might join the hall of fame. Revival is nice and also pretty interesting because of the amp FX section but there are also a lot of other synth REs available so that this poll needs to be increased a lot (what about Parsec, Antidote, Mixfood Orange, ...?). I do also agree that RED70 does not belong to this list. It is a nice Classic Synth and I like it but on the other hand I wound never ever call it a "heavyweight".

Edit 2: Was going to ask if I'd missed anything. Like perhaps the Mixfood stuff belongs on here, but now realize that adding to the poll resets the votes. DOH!!!

I would stick to your original topic about "recent" synth REs because I think it is pretty interesting. If you add the Mixfood RE's (which are awesome ) you might need to add other synth REs too, don't you? I mean, it's hard to draw a line here, right?

Back to your poll: I vote for Vecto and Zero.

Vecto: If you are familiar to the Rob Papen Synth RE design you can handle Vecto really fast. The Vecto Pad is pretty unique and I like to draw some motions between the four oscillators. I always wanted such a pad inside of reason and I like the overall sound quality of this device. What I don't like about Vecto are the tiny controls on the bottom side of the synth (e.g. the envelopes and the ARP section). And don't forget the great customer support!

Oberon: This RE is really unique! When it was introduced here on the forums I was on the hype train like so many here. And when the features were revealed I thought this is an instabuy for sure. I mean this is a morphing monster! You can draw your own filter response curves and morph between them. You can draw your own waveforms and morph between them. You can create weird textures and sounds and bring them back into a musical context with the harmonizing function. But in the end I was happy that I didn't bought this one because something was missing. Hard to explain but I think I simply didn't like the sound.

RED70: As I mentioned before, I won't ever call this a heavyweight! I haven't tried it yet because I am not sure if this RE can give me something that my currently installed RE's can not. I have listened to the song challenge contributions and I really like some of them but for me this looks like a pretty simple classic subtractive synth. And on first sight the Subtractor looks more interesting than this one and is still a very good synth (even if not a RE). I think I will buy RED70 if it is on sale one day but currently I don't think 50 USD are worth it.

Hydronexius: The only thing that I like about this RE is the design (which is pretty close to another synth RE from Propellerheads). I didn't like the presets but that's probably because I felt this RE is designed for the EDM and Trance musician in first line. Not my cup of tea. When I tried to build my own sounds with Hydronexius I felt it was some kind of limited. I mean this RE has some onboard FX but they didn't impress me. I read somewhere that this is a workhorse for IDM and that the sounds fit perfectly in the mix. Unfortunately not for me (not even on sale).

Zero: This is some kind of IL Sytrus "light" . I really like the versatility of this RE! It is a FM synth with RM, AM and subtractive synthesis in the end. The sound quality if this RE just blew me away. My first impression was not that great because I think I was confused by the colorful design. But after I tried this one I realized that this is a must have for me. A lot of controls on the back and very nice sounding FX. I guess Zero needs some more know-how than the other synth REs here if you like to master it but I think it is worth it.

[K.Markov]

Havent heard Hydronexius yet, and was kinda disappointed that they didn't do a song contest with it,

http://www.reasontalk.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7491250

they do a contest but still no entrees.....

check again

[boobytrap]

Havent heard Hydronexius yet, and was kinda disappointed that they didn't do a song contest with it,

http://www.reasontalk.com/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=7491250

they do a contest but still no entrees.....

check again

just now, after 10 days.

[K.Markov]

pLansford took off his tracks, don't know why

[Arrant]

Zero and Vecto for me as well. In that order, although Vecto can be had for a good price at sale right now

[Majestik Monkey]

Yes i must agree with an earlier reply ' suggesting that Mixfood / Orange should of hit this list too !

I own Vecto & Hydronexius . . . . so i voted for these two guy's respectively ! Ps I do really like Oberon tho & would buy it today , if i had the cash..