# Good analog/digital synth for scoring



## tarantulis (Feb 8, 2021)

I came across the Novation Peak and I'm really liking its potential for scoring. It's part analog, part digital which gives you a tons of programming and performance options... I'm wondering if I should go that route or look into something like a Prophet. Curious what other similar stuff is on the market in the 2-3k price range that would be good for pads/arps/sound design...

Thoughts?


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## jeremiahpena (Feb 9, 2021)

I got a Peak last year and absolutely love it. Sounds huge and has a sort of instant cinematic quality to it (especially the reverb). Very few demos online focus on film-score type sounds, but I've recorded dozens of demos of noodling with patches I've made. I'll see if I can compile them and share them here.


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## tarantulis (Feb 9, 2021)

jeremiahpena said:


> I got a Peak last year and absolutely love it. Sounds huge and has a sort of instant cinematic quality to it (especially the reverb). Very few demos online focus on film-score type sounds, but I've recorded dozens of demos of noodling with patches I've made. I'll see if I can compile them and share them here.


That would be sick, thanks man. Glad to hear I'm not alone, I demoed that thing in the store the other day and ended up spending like 40 minutes just riffing on it. It seems more accessible than other synths ive played, yet at the same time more complex in terms of what you can do with it.


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## tarantulis (Feb 9, 2021)

Also whats the big difference between the peak and the Summit?


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## jeremiahpena (Feb 9, 2021)

Summit is basically 2 Peaks put together with a keyboard (and a few extra knobs for features that are only in menus on the Peak).

Here's a bunch of demos, all direct recordings with no processing or external effects: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1FI1V7H5tTPshQERGufid1eiIBSjGgo69?usp=sharing

Notes:
01: Wavering pads, changing things as I go.
02: Classic blade-runner-y pad.
04: Ominous tones using an LFO as an FM source.
09: Testing out the distortion (3 different sources of analog distortion on the Peak, and it gets really gnarly when using all of them)
11: Using all 3 oscillators FM'd to each other for an eerie atonal pad.
17: Overlapping rhythmic plucks.
23: Using a billion different things to create a continuously evolving sound. Just a single chord held the entire time. Sort of Annihilation-esque.
31: Distorted bass with some extreme settings on the FX.
37: A nice wavery pad.
44: FM and randomized pitch arp.
47: Something the Peak does incredibly well is very layered rhythmic sounds.
53: Heavy bass that goes into sound-design territory.
70: Another big bass with pitch glide.
73: Very distorted bass arp.
75: Some of the more experimental range of the wavetables.
88: Ominous!
95: Just a pure nightmarescape. Ring mod between oscillators 1 and 2 with morphing wavetables.
96: 14 minutes of just messing around.
98: Not sure why this is so quiet, but another example of dense random rhythms.


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## tarantulis (Feb 9, 2021)

jeremiahpena said:


> Summit is just 2 Peaks put together with a keyboard (and a few extra knobs for features that are only in menus on the Peak).
> 
> Here's a bunch of demos, all direct recordings with no processing or effects: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1FI1V7H5tTPshQERGufid1eiIBSjGgo69?usp=sharing
> 
> ...


Thanks a ton!!

Do you lose any features with the Summit, i.e. would there be any downsides?

Checking out your demos now, will let you know my thoughts!


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## Ned Bouhalassa (Feb 9, 2021)

I cannot recommend the Hydrasynth enough.


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## vitocorleone123 (Feb 9, 2021)

A Summit would be easy to recommend, followed by a Peak. If wanting to delve into sound design even more, there's the Rev2 16 (or 8) or the Prophet 12.

Down from there in price is the Hydrasynth, Argon 8, and Cobalt 8 (and MFB SynthPro). Or even the Minilogue XD+XD Desktop (8 voices that way). Also just try your hand at the free plugin, Vital, which is also a wavetable synth, just without a dedicated controller.

Up from there in price would be something like the PolyBrute, or the more classic Prophet 6 and/or OB-6 (among some others makes/models). Or the Iridium or Quantum.

Personally, if going with a digital plugin in a dedicated box, it really needs to be something special. I stuck with analog on my most expensive synth because it wasn't something available as a plugin. I shopped the Peak and found it... lacking vs plugins, but, that's me.

I expect to hear the PolyBrute on several sound tracks in the coming years.


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## chimuelo (Feb 10, 2021)

I just got the Peak and it’s definitely a capable synth.
It’s Filter is just a Top Shelf Multi Mode Resonate Analog Filter.

I’m getting great Strings, even Marcato with a Band Pass Filter.
Definitely has the 3 Oscillator Leads Bass and polyphonic synth down.
4 LFO’s, Dual Modulation EG’s, not including the Amp EG.

What surprised me was its Polyphonic Aftertouch, which I don’t need, but this makes it’s basic Aftertouch mechanism super adjustable and accurate.

But the most amazing discovery what I didn’t buy it for. Horn Sections.
Brass only, but the Mod Envelope Sustain acts like a swell when I moved the fader. The CS-80 Brass patch I made was a short attack, really nice quality sound, but when I slid the Sustain fader up it was a great swell effect.

I then decided to try and make section shakes as the LFO Fade Ins are just lovely, and one LFO can Modulate the rate of another, while the Fade in is engaged. This is an authentic Section Shake as my sampled shakes, which I have many as I’m a horn section buff, are static, and just weak compared to real horns.

And since the MIDI CC’s are well implemented when I use the FC7 to swell the horn sound, add LFO shakes and kick on the volume of Oscillator 3 (octave above aka Maynard Ferguson).

Love the synth so much I rehearse new material downstairs in the day, then take it to bed with me and use the power from my iPad with an Arturia KeyStep for learning more about this fierce synth.


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## jeremiahpena (Sep 28, 2021)

Reviving this long dormant thread to add a much more convenient way to listen to some of the sounds in the demos I posted earlier. This is a compilation of some of the most interesting ones (and some new patches).


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## tarantulis (Sep 28, 2021)

Thanks again all for the input and for the demos @jeremiahpena . I ended up going with the Summit and it's been great--would definitely recommend. Here's the score I used it on if any are curious:









Void (OST), by David Robson


19 track album




davidrobson.com


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## chimuelo (Sep 29, 2021)

The sound quality is immediately noticed.
Great demo for Cinematic styles.
I’m currently using Peak for HipHop/Freestyle/EDM and the digital oscillators through their Analog Filters are impressive.

I push the 808/Bass tones through my DSP Effects, mainly a Manley SLAM-ish Limiter with dual slopes.
Once the values for optical and FET based slopes are set the pre and post Distortion for Peaks Filter just add needed colors and the sound is impressive and precision controlled. Couldn’t be happier.

I rarely use all of the available polyphony.


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## mscp (Sep 29, 2021)

tarantulis said:


> I came across the Novation Peak and I'm really liking its potential for scoring. It's part analog, part digital which gives you a tons of programming and performance options... I'm wondering if I should go that route or look into something like a Prophet. Curious what other similar stuff is on the market in the 2-3k price range that would be good for pads/arps/sound design...
> 
> Thoughts?


Novation Peak is a brilliant 'all rounder'. It does not have a lot of character (like the Prophet and Moog do), and can be used in a variety of ways. Another happy user here.


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## Pier (Sep 29, 2021)

jeremiahpena said:


> Summit is basically 2 Peaks put together with a keyboard (and a few extra knobs for features that are only in menus on the Peak).
> 
> Here's a bunch of demos, all direct recordings with no processing or external effects: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1FI1V7H5tTPshQERGufid1eiIBSjGgo69?usp=sharing
> 
> ...


This sounds fantastic.

It also sounds very dark. Is this you or just the character of the synth?


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## jeremiahpena (Sep 29, 2021)

Pier said:


> This sounds fantastic.
> 
> It also sounds very dark. Is this you or just the character of the synth?


I prefer darker sounds and very rarely open the filter all the way up. It can definitely be brighter, but I wouldn't classify it as a bright synth. There's no decrease in bass when you turn up the filter resonance, so the low end often sounds very weighty and needs a low EQ cut in a mix.


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## pmountford (Sep 30, 2021)

Of the handful of synths I've picked up in the past 9 months, as a relative synth hw noob, the Summit is always the one I go to first. Surprised I don't see more love for it.


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## Ned Bouhalassa (Sep 30, 2021)

Great look at the Hydrasynth, by Tim Shoebridge:


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## chimuelo (Sep 30, 2021)

Pre Ordered my ASM HydraSynth Deluxe when SWater first offered.

A very inspirational piece of kit that assimilates ideas quickly.

Reading everything I can get my hands on.

Hoping I can use PAT to bring in an entirely new sound with a selected interval in a cluster/chord, while retaining the original sound. Dual Hydra’s might allow this.

Modulation madness is a way of life for me. The Vangelis stuff is okay, but I like more modern abrupt changes.

HydraSynth and Peak should work well together.


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## tcollins (Sep 30, 2021)

UNO Synth Pro - Paraphonic Dual Filter Analog Synth


UNO Synth Pro - Paraphonic Dual Filter Analog Synth




www.ikmultimedia.com


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## chimuelo (Oct 1, 2021)

Still find it odd ASM chose to handcuff the performer by placing the ribbon on lowest end of the unit.

In Theramin mode it’s fine but using a Sustained chord w/ left hand, while gliding a separate melody means your left hand cannot modulate parameters unless you first uncuff it from beneath the Theramin (right hand) melody.?

I like challenges but this is a workflow stopper that will require some foresight. So much easier having the Ribbon at least centered, or on the far right, but then again until I actually dig into a Deluxe I’ll reserve further criticisms.

Its possible to transpose left hand chords high enough to play by the mod wheel, whether or not that transposes the melody on a multitimbral setting is unclear after reading the pdf.


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