# Choice of vst for Trance



## Trancer

Starting all over again, I would like to have your opinion on Vsts to compose Trance.

I plan to take Nexus 3, Omnisphere 2 and Sylenth 3.

I don't hesitate between Hive 2 and Dune 3.

What do you think ?

If you have any other suggestions, please let me know.


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## sostenuto

Waaay out of my personal area of competence, but PluginGuru (John Lehmkuhl) is heavy into EDM, and also very close with Airwave -Laurent Veronnez "a true legend in the Progressive/Trance world ..." 
Guru's site has several Airwave VST /Omnisphere offerings which you may wish to consider. 









Airwave V1 - PluginGuru.com


Now includes a Unified library with all 218 Patches and Multis in Unify format! !! For Omnisphere 2.1+ A truly EPIC MUST OWN Library!!




www.pluginguru.com





John also does much on YouTube and searching YouTube for 'pluginguru airwave' will produce a long list. 

here is the first one: 


Hope this helps a bit.


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## markd

You might like this:






Vengeance Sound


Vengeance-Sound.de - Everything for your music production: synthesizer patches, samples, the Nexus vsti and other plugins




www.vengeance-sound.com


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## classified_the_x

you sort of need Serum, and possibly Spire. FM8 and Absynth is you're really into programming sounds. also a look into Roland cloud for JP sounds is called for.


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## SvenE

Ana2 (Sonic Academy). There are various trance preset packs available for Ana2. One of my favorite vsts for anything dance/trance/edm.


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## doctoremmet

Serum. Falcon2. Spire. Avenger.


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## Montisquirrel

Trancer said:


> Starting all over again, I would like to have your opinion on Vsts to compose Trance.
> 
> I plan to take Nexus 3, Omnisphere 2 and Sylenth 3.
> 
> I don't hesitate between Hive 2 and Dune 3.
> 
> What do you think ?
> 
> If you have any other suggestions, please let me know.



Which DAW do you use?
You say you want to start all over again. 
For Trance / EDM music I recommend FL Studio and all its stock plugins. Enough great synths for tweaking your own sound and if you want to have good preset sounds, the FLEX Rompler is very good. Also the workflow of FL Studio regarding these genres is a lot of fun.

And the price is the same or less than two or three of the synth you mentioned.


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## Trancer

Thanks for your feedback.

Indeed plug in guru of excellent reputation products, I had not thought of it.

The Vengeance products, the Fx and Avenger bundles, are a benchmark in the field, just like the Nexus 2.

Regarding Avenger excellent vst, surely the Boostee version and the evolution of Nexus 3.

I had Avenger a long time ago and I composed on Fl Studio, concerning the latter, even if a very good Daw, I would prefer Live 10 now.

Now I may be wrong in this idea that Live 10, better than Fl Studio.

Except for Omnisphere 2 where you have to explore more in depth, I tend to use presets and modifiers, not too much of a programming fan.

For Roland products, I prefer the hardware at home than the virtual

For the Ana 2, I don't really know. I'll go check out the site.

Flex rompler, do not know either.

I will inquire about this product.


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## Trancer

I did not know Flex because I stayed at the time on Fl Studio 12.

If you have other ideas do not hesitate


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## TomislavEP

This is not really my territory, but I did try to compose something in this style here and there. I think that synths from AIR Music Technology offer plenty of suitable sounds, especially Hybrid 3.


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## paularthur

Trancer said:


> Starting all over again, I would like to have your opinion on Vsts to compose Trance.
> 
> I plan to take Nexus 3, Omnisphere 2 and Sylenth 3.
> 
> I don't hesitate between Hive 2 and Dune 3.
> 
> What do you think ?
> 
> If you have any other suggestions, please let me know.



Idk what kind of trance you're into but Sylenth is great for leads def, Ilan Bluestone uses ANA, Massive is great for heavy sounds, Nexus is more of a romper but it does come with that classic Dance Piano, Omnisphere for ambience and pads, a Juno emulation of any kind, Kontakt for adding background strings.


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## Montisquirrel

Trancer said:


> I did not know Flex because I stayed at the time on Fl Studio 12.
> 
> If you have other ideas do not hesitate



A lot has changed since FL 12, and with the lifetime free update you should take a look.


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## gst98

As I love serum for a modern edgy sound, and u-he for analog warmth neither of them can beat things such as style the at doing supersaws. You may also want to check spire out too. I’m not massively into trance, but from what I know the Virus TI was favoured by Trance producers for its supersaws, and Sylenth as the best Trance soft synth. Synthmaster also strikes a nice balance between modern digital and a more analog sound.


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## doctoremmet

And what about AIR Music Tech’s Hybrid 3?


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## doctoremmet

Wasn’t Dune3 supposed to be the closest software equivalent to the Acess Virus TI?


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## doctoremmet

doctoremmet said:


> And what about AIR Music Tech’s Hybrid 3?


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## ManicMiner

I love Spire for Trance. It has a nice soft pluck sound and is good with pads.
I also have VPS Avenger, and their Trance 2 expansion, and Trance Effects. Very good. Omnisphere if you can afford it.


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## sostenuto

ManicMiner said:


> I love Spire for Trance. It has a nice soft pluck sound and is good with pads.
> I also have VPS Avenger, and their Trance 2 expansion, and Trance Effects. Very good. Omnisphere if you can afford it.



Omni2 2.6 and Airwave expansions ..... but also 'latest' Spire Update and it should be auditioned now if not checked for some time. Huge 3rd Pty expansion list !


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## paulmatthew

For strictly trance , my bread and butter synths are Spire , Sylenth and Dune 3. Omnisphere is a bonus , especially for pads and textures, but i would get that somewhere down the road due to the cost and complexity. If you wait until Black Friday you should be able to get most synths at a good discounted price. Other notables for trance are Ana 2, Serum , Hive 2 , Zebra and Diva.


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## Trancer

Thank you for your feedback and advice.

For Hybrid 3, not too fan of vst, but it is true that a good product.

I will go deeper into the ANA 2 vst, it is true that I have never really looked at NI products, I will have to pay more attention to them, there are excellent products in them too.

I hesitate to resume FL Studio 20, I will be more tempted by Live 10, what do you think?

Serum is a very popular vst by a lot of people, just like avenger, i don't really subscribe to these two vsts.

If I had to use a hardware synth, the Virus Ti2 would be my choice without hesitation. It remains it seems unmatched to me, even if this synth is dated anyway.

Sylenth 3 is just like Nexus 3, Omnisphere 2, a configuration base.

Spire looks very interesting, but what more does it offer than a Sylenth 3, Ana 2, Avenger?

We talk a lot about DUNE 3, as the equivalent of the Virus, the Nexus, even if rompler, is it not more similar from a sound point of view.

But to come back to DUNE 3, I don't know too much, I will be interested in it, thank you for the info.

Avenger is a powerful vst, but, not for me, because I like more the immediate and not too messy the sound, even if it is necessary to apply itself to it a minimum.

I even prefer immediate, spontaneity for vsts.

To start, I plan to take Nexus 3, Sylenth 3, Omnisphere 2.

For Spire, Ana 2, U he products which are a killer by the way, I will take all of your opinions into consideration and dig deeper.

If you have any other ideas, feel free.

My style of Trance is Uplifting.


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## tc9000

Collections


Top Quality Presets & Sound banks for Synthesizers from Sami Rabia




www.aiynzahev-sounds.com


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## doctoremmet

tc9000 said:


> Collections
> 
> 
> Top Quality Presets & Sound banks for Synthesizers from Sami Rabia
> 
> 
> 
> 
> www.aiynzahev-sounds.com


Sami Rabia is Aiyn Zahev Sounds. One of the best (EDM) sound designers out there... cool!


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## ManicMiner

Trancer said:


> Spire looks very interesting, but what more does it offer than a Sylenth 3, Ana 2, Avenger?


I own Avenger and three of its Trance expansions. But I've come close to buying Spire a few times, especially when it was $99. I just love the soft sound (which I can get close to with Avenger but not quite the tone of Spire). And Spire's pads too have a good quality to them.

But here's my thinking now: the $100 I would have spent on Spire, I am putting towards my Omnisphere fund.


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## Trancer

Thanks for your feedback.

I'm going to listen to these sound banks.

Spire would interest me more than Avenger.

I was sure the site and quite a few expansions for Spire.


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## vitocorleone123

Spire. Spire. Spire.
Serum.
Dune 3 and Hive 2.
ANA2.

Get some good external effects (fyi Kilohearts have a pretty good trance gate plugin).

Trance out.


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## Pier

Dune 3 is the best for trance. Period.

Hive 2 is great too but there is a lot of overlap between the two. Personally I think Dune sounds better and is a lot more flexible.

I'm serious. Don't waste money on other synths. Buy one of these two and focus on learning to use them. You don't need any other synth.

Listen to what an experienced sound designer focused on Trance can do with any of these:










Aiyn Zahev Sounds - Sami Rabia


Top Quality Presets & Sound banks for Synthesizers from Sami Rabia




www.aiynzahev-sounds.com


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## vitocorleone123

I think Hive 2 sounds better and is a lot more flexible in the ways that count than Dune3 

But I’d get Spire first in a heartbeat if I was doing Trance. The plucks etc are better than Dune3 and Hive. It just isn’t as good as an all around synth as either.

Really, between Hive 2 and Dune 3 you can’t go wrong. But neither would be my first purchase for trance.


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## sostenuto

Watching Airwave (Laurent Veronnez) videos ..... back with PluginGuru lib releases .... make a strong case for Omni2 ! No critique for other choices, but Omni2 + Guru/Airwave libs, and latest Spire update are comfortable for a bit.


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## vitocorleone123

sostenuto said:


> Watching Airwave (Laurent Veronnez) videos ..... back with PluginGuru lib releases .... make a strong case for Omni2 ! No critique for other choices, but Omni2 + Guru/Airwave libs, and latest Spire update are comfortable for a bit.


 
Right! Certainly if you already own Omnisphere you can get good results (Omnisphere is good for seemingly just about anything, though not always "the best") and make good music. The OP could use any of the synths mentioned in this thread to make great uplifting trance. It's only a question if you're just starting out with any of these.


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## ManicMiner

sostenuto said:


> make a strong case for Omni2


Omni would beat Spire. But Spire would beat pretty much the rest for Trance. I really like the Spire plucks, but Omni can achieve the same plucks, plus its pads and atmospherics are miles ahead of Spire.


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## Azeroc

Maybe Parawave Rapid?


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## Trancer

Thank you for your feedback and advice.

Indeed very powerful Hive, but Dune 3 seems more flexible.

It is true, an armada of Vst does not tighten much, except, just like for the hardware, to get lost there because too much material.

On the other hand, a base of some Vst with possibilities, sounds, effects, ... offers a much richer sound palette, by mixing all these different sound sources.

Compared to Dune 3, is it true that it consumes a lot of processor resource per instance or is it poor management of IT resources?

My first choice will be, Nexus 3, Omnisphere 2, Sylenth 3.

But, Spire seems to me to be even more versatile than Sylenth 3, maybe just an impression.

To choose between Hive 2 and Dune 3, I think my choice would rather be Dune 3.

It is true that plug in guru and Omnisphere 2, colossal.

On the other hand, the installation on a pc seems a little complex to achieve.

Just like with the famous STEAM folder, when you want to move it to another medium (DD, SSD).

Regarding the use of different vst, I had and I retained three of them, but it is so long ago, that I suspect that Vst style Spire and others have evolved since.

So Omnisphere 2 and Spire, the ideal complement?

Nexus 3, Sylenth 3, not really in the running?

Parawave, in fact, no longer been consulted the site for a long time.

What more could it offer than a Sylenth 3, Dune 3 for example?


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## vitocorleone123

Then I’d say based on what you said, Dune3 if only one, else Dune 3 plus Spire.

Dont get Omnisphere for trance - save some money and buy some trance presets for the above. If you have Omnisphere already then I’d try just using it and maybe getting Spire later.

Spire is $129 right now I believe.


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## tf-drone

Hi,

perhaps a look at the high level freeware is useful too. Those are easy to install, of course cheap and good sounding.

In many best-of-videos and articles over the net those are considered the best:

Daichi Tech SYNTH1: a Nord Lead Emulation with tons of sounds
U-he TYRELL N6: simple but a beast
Dig. Suburban DEXED: almost perfect Yamaha-DX7-clone, reads DX7 format, so tons of sounds
TAL NOISEMAKER: simple but a beast, small sibling to TAL-U-NO-X
TAL BASSLINE: TB303 cone
U-he ZEBRALETTE: small sibling of Zebra
DiscoDSP OB-XD: good sounding Oberheim emulation
Futucraft KAIRATUNE
Tytel HELM
Greenoak CRYSTAL
Linplug FREEALPHA
Tunefish TUNEFISH4
Nusofting SINNAH


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## Azeroc

Trancer said:


> Thank you for your feedback and advice.
> 
> Indeed very powerful Hive, but Dune 3 seems more flexible.
> 
> It is true, an armada of Vst does not tighten much, except, just like for the hardware, to get lost there because too much material.
> 
> On the other hand, a base of some Vst with possibilities, sounds, effects, ... offers a much richer sound palette, by mixing all these different sound sources.
> 
> Compared to Dune 3, is it true that it consumes a lot of processor resource per instance or is it poor management of IT resources?
> 
> My first choice will be, Nexus 3, Omnisphere 2, Sylenth 3.
> 
> But, Spire seems to me to be even more versatile than Sylenth 3, maybe just an impression.
> 
> To choose between Hive 2 and Dune 3, I think my choice would rather be Dune 3.
> 
> It is true that plug in guru and Omnisphere 2, colossal.
> 
> On the other hand, the installation on a pc seems a little complex to achieve.
> 
> Just like with the famous STEAM folder, when you want to move it to another medium (DD, SSD).
> 
> Regarding the use of different vst, I had and I retained three of them, but it is so long ago, that I suspect that Vst style Spire and others have evolved since.
> 
> So Omnisphere 2 and Spire, the ideal complement?
> 
> Nexus 3, Sylenth 3, not really in the running?
> 
> Parawave, in fact, no longer been consulted the site for a long time.
> 
> What more could it offer than a Sylenth 3, Dune 3 for example?


For Rapid, multi sample import which gives you endless possibilities, granular synthesis was added recently, 8 layers to work with, Rapid FX which are pretty great. Just to name a few.


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## Trancer

Thank you for your answers.

Omnisphere 2 is a must, it is true and also used a lot in electronic music.

Your reflection is wise indeed, given the price of Omnisphere 2, I could take expansions.

Now Omnisphere 2 with Airwaves soundbanks and for example Spire and Dune 3, see Nexus 3, for Rapid no opinion yet, it could be a good starter set too.

Dune 3 and Spire would be sufficient to start if I understand correctly, to add sound banks, which can cover pads, leads, etc ...

So, Nexus 3 for example is not useful?

I had not thought of free vst, there are some excellent ones.

Regarding Rapid, I'm going to check out the site and take a closer look.


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## Trancer

I would also like to have your opinion on a good vst drum machine, style Spark le 2, but no longer available.

There are quite a few Vsts in the field, I would just like to know the best and most suitable for my use.

Techno / Trance style, I like techno style percussion.


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## ManicMiner

If you get Omnisphere then you don't need Spire imo. I don't think you need add-on packs like Airwave (but they are good, esp at ~$30). There's plenty of plucks and pads in the Omni library that are far and above what Spire , Dune etc would do.
Spire has been as low as $99 if you are still wanting that.


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## Trancer

Thank you for your answer.

Do you think Omnisphere 2 with different soundbanks could be sufficient on its own?


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## ManicMiner

Trancer said:


> Thank you for your answer.
> 
> Do you think Omnisphere 2 with different soundbanks could be sufficient on its own?


100%.


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## aaronventure

Tbh sample-wise you don't need anything else other than a couple of loop packs (Vengeance was all the rage back in the day) where you'll get your perc and loops (and kicks, although I'd use Sonic Academy's KICK 2 for that). Of course you _can _go for various other sample libraries and expand your sound palette, but after having a quick skim on Beatport, trance is still the same (my last trance production gig was in 2017). 

The sounds in trance are so simple any synth can pull them off. The sounds are also not all that different. Every now and then there'd be a piece with a different sound but if you e.g. only do uplifting trance, the sound palette has been the same for nearly 20 years. So to avoid trying to recreate the same sounds everyone's been using for the last 20 years, you want to start with a synth that has a decent amount of quality third party soundbanks available.

You don't need anything other than Massive. The old one. Then head over to Freshly Squeezed Samples and sift through their soundbanks for Massive. You'll find banks from many popular artists. You'll even find a huge pack done by Benno de Goeij (known for working with Armin van Buuren over the past decade or so). I think it's called Massive Essential Collection or something like that. 

IIRC they all have proper macro assignments so you can quickly change them up and get more out of them. All the patches are also very well made and you'll find sounds from plenty of hits over the years. Hell, you can even get the samples there, I think I remember them releasing a Dave Parkinson pack a few years back but I haven't checked that out (the guy who is almost single-handedly responsible for the uplifting/tech trance sound through his work with Simon Patterson and various other artists from 10+ years ago to today).

For the modern trance sound you really, truly do not need anything other than Massive, a couple of soundbanks from Freshly Squeezed, a couple of loop/sample libraries aimed at trance and some plugins. ValhallaRoom seems to be in every track. Pick a compressor you like, an EQ you like, some distortion plugins and you should be good to go. Check out iZotope's Neutron 3 for a one-stop-shop solution (except the reverb).

You can then upgrade from there. Perhaps Omnisphere. Or Spire, which seems to be popular but I haven't really used it. Sylenth also has an insane amount of third party soundbanks available (for a reason).


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## Trancer

Thanks for your feedback.

Very surprised that with only massive, I will be able to cover, with soundbanks of course, a very wide range of Trance tones. It is very clearly used by a lot of people, like other vsts of course.

I'm surprised, but not in a bad way of course.

So Massive, see Omnisphere 2 / Spire and for example Sylenth 3, wouldn't I need anything else?

Nexus 3, apparently does not seem to be very popular anymore?

Excellent revenge, the Fx 1 and 2 bundle is a marvel.

I'm quite a fan of the sounds of Armin Van Buuren actually.

In fact, with Benno de Goeij's massive pack, I find the sound imprint of Armin Van Buuren.

Indeed Sylenth 3 has impressive sound banks, is it still in the race of vst, Dune 3 seems to have evolved well and offers a sound dimension not bad at all.

Do you have a preference for effects (Reverb / Compressor / Eq / Saturation / Delay and others)?

There are so many choices, there is something to get lost in.

There is Fab filter a benchmark in the field, but besides them, which has good processing effects?


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## aaronventure

Yeah, Massive is more than enough. Layering different patches through multiple Massive instances works wonders for thickening up the sound (just like using multiple instruments/sections in an orchestra). I mention this because I remember patches in Nexus being usually layered. God I hated thing, it was so clunky and inflexible (Nexus 2 is what I used years and years ago; it was a rompler so it only played samples and didn't do any actual synthesis). 

I am 100% certain you can pick a single loop pack from Freshly Squeezed/Vengeance, pick a single Massive soundbank from Freshly Squeezed and you can _at least _crank out an entire album with just that. Now get another soundbank and crank out an album with that, etc. Freshly Squeezed's Massive banks are diverse, and you can mangle the patches further in seconds through macros. I remember liking Temple One's banks as well, even though they were much smaller than the Essential Collection. I also remembered another one: Sylenth1 Definitive Collection. 

I promise you, these soundbanks shaped the sound of trance over the past decade. 

NI's Rise & Hit is a great sweep library. 

At the moment I like FabFilter Pro-R, but that's because it sounds very natural. In electronic music you'll find ValhallaRoom other Valhalla reverbs in almost every track. FabFilter's plugins are generally amazing, but they might be overwhelming with options and possibilities and have you stuck if you're not used to it. Timeless 2 is still my go-to delay plugin. 

iZotope Neutron 3 has compressors, equalizers, limiters, saturation and transient shaping all in one. Music Production Suite 3 is $599 on iZotope's page right now. Neutron 3's auto-mix will also make your life hell of a lot easier if you're just starting out. It will also help you learn faster if you're willing to.

Komplete 13 standard is $600 and among Kontakt, Massive and plenty of other synths and sample libraries will get you NI's Solid FX, which are emulations of SSL's EQs and compressors. They are straightforward and very easy to use. There are also reverb, delay and saturation plugins in there. 

For a start, I would get Kick 2, Massive, some soundbanks and sample packs from Freshly Squeezed, Music Production Suite 3 (your mastering needs will be forever satisfied with Ozone 9, and Neutron 3 will let you do the majority of work when mixing, and you also get other stuff so the whole thing is a bargain at the current price), and a reverb of your choice. Perhaps ValhallaRoom. As for the delay, the one in your DAW should suffice.


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## doctoremmet

aaronventure said:


> Yeah, Massive is more than enough. Layering different patches through multiple Massive instances works wonders for thickening up the sound (just like using multiple instruments/sections in an orchestra). I mention this because I remember patches in Nexus being usually layered. God I hated thing, it was so clunky and inflexible (Nexus 2 is what I used years and years ago; it was a rompler so it only played samples and didn't do any actual synthesis).
> 
> I am 100% certain you can pick a single loop pack from Freshly Squeezed/Vengeance, pick a single Massive soundbank from Freshly Squeezed and you can _at least _crank out an entire album with just that. Now get another soundbank and crank out an album with that, etc. Freshly Squeezed's Massive banks are diverse, and you can mangle the patches further in seconds through macros. I remember liking Temple One's banks as well, even though they were much smaller than the Essential Collection. I also remembered another one: Sylenth1 Definitive Collection.
> 
> I promise you, these soundbanks shaped the sound of trance over the past decade.
> 
> NI's Rise & Hit is a great sweep library.
> 
> At the moment I like FabFilter Pro-R, but that's because it sounds very natural. In electronic music you'll find ValhallaRoom other Valhalla reverbs in almost every track. FabFilter's plugins are generally amazing, but they might be overwhelming with options and possibilities and have you stuck if you're not used to it. Timeless 2 is still my go-to delay plugin.
> 
> iZotope Neutron 3 has compressors, equalizers, limiters, saturation and transient shaping all in one. Music Production Suite 3 is $599 on iZotope's page right now. Neutron 3's auto-mix will also make your life hell of a lot easier if you're just starting out. It will also help you learn faster if you're willing to.
> 
> Komplete 13 standard is $600 and among Kontakt, Massive and plenty of other synths and sample libraries will get you NI's Solid FX, which are emulations of SSL's EQs and compressors. They are straightforward and very easy to use. There are also reverb, delay and saturation plugins in there.
> 
> For a start, I would get Kick 2, Massive, some soundbanks and sample packs from Freshly Squeezed, Music Production Suite 3 (your mastering needs will be forever satisfied with Ozone 9, and Neutron 3 will let you do the majority of work when mixing, and you also get other stuff so the whole thing is a bargain at the current price), and a reverb of your choice. Perhaps ValhallaRoom. As for the delay, the one in your DAW should suffice.


Aaron! You’re a trance expert?! Who knew?


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## Trancer

Thank you for this advice and detailed explanations.

NI products are also taken, I'm not a particular fan, but, I must admit that some products from them are excellent, just like from Arturia elsewhere.

At first, I wanted to invest in a Komplet 61 note keyboard system, but, the Nks system is not developed by the vst developers that I like, so I went my way over NI products.

Now it is true that the Komplete 13 covers an immense territory of diverse and varied tones.

A minimalist set is better than an armada of unexploited Vsts it is true, but for my part, I am more devouring of sounds / patches than of programming.

Massive seems like a good start indeed, with soundbanks and percussion samples.

But I would like to have a more complete set and master it, hence the fact of taking what is needed from the start and developing it later.

Regarding the effects, Valhalla make very good products.

Ozone does not really know.

I had the Fx, sidechain and multiband compressor bundles from Vengeance in its day and I was delighted.

A Sidechain Nicky Romero, also of excellent quality.

Fabfilter products a benchmark, but, yes, the use is sharp, but excellent


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## vitocorleone123

Just picked up Thorn for $20 on sale at PluginAlliance. It's pretty good for digital mayhem - including trance sounds.


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## el-bo

vitocorleone123 said:


> Just picked up Thorn for $20 on sale at PluginAlliance. It's pretty good for digital mayhem - including trance sounds.




Thorn has some of the most 'alive' plucks and leads I've ever heard. Stunning!


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## Trancer

Thanks for your feedback.

Indeed cheap and cool vst.

Considering the choice that ends and is fixed in relation to my future purchase, Thorn will not bring me anything.

Thank you again for your answers.


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## Spectral Atmospher

Trancer said:


> Thanks for your feedback.
> 
> Indeed cheap and cool vst.
> 
> Considering the choice that ends and is fixed in relation to my future purchase, Thorn will not bring me anything.
> 
> Thank you again for your answers.


Thorn is a very Unique sounding synth. It can be heard from the mix. I am prefering it over Spire. 
I would recommend getting it when its on sale to have it to layer with your other synths. And freshly squeezed samples is a great sound shop for all your trance needs.
At the moment there is the NI sale for U-He. I highly recommend Diva And Repro as they can be a great source of plucks and basslines for Trance.
Hive 2 as well. 
The nost important is use what you have instead to looking for new instruments. 
And when yoy feel you need something different than can add something which is an unique expanson for your sound arsenal. I think of the different synhths/sounds as spices. Some You use all the time (salt and pepper) and some occasionally when you do something special....
Good luck for Trance Music Creation!


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## fourier

I asked a friend that has had some good trance hits/remixes the last decades, and that's still somewhat active. He said Spire covers 99% of what you'd need as a workhouse for producing Trance. He also hinted to Dune and Hive as some to lean on. Kick 2 is a great addition, but there's also so many good samples out there.

Personally I've used Zebra, Diva, Sylenth, Absynth, Massive, Serum, Nexus, Mini V, Vanguard, Blue, Predator+++ throughout the last two decades. Spire is on sale now, I demoed it earlier this fall and was blown away by both the presets and the "tweakability".

Lastly, if you have discount options with Arturia, Pigments2 offers a lot of possibilities to shape your sounds in a very easy manner, with great built-in tutorials. It's very affordable for what you get imo (same goes for Diva while U-he has their 50% off sale).


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## ManicMiner

fourier said:


> I asked a friend that has had some good trance hits/remixes the last decades, and that's still somewhat active. He said Spire covers 99% of what you'd need as a workhouse for producing Trance. He also hinted to Dune and Hive as some to lean on. Kick 2 is a great addition, but there's also so many good samples out there.


Spire is a really good fit for Trance. I got Omnisphere a few weeks ago so that made Spire (I have a demo version of Spire) redundant, and pretty much all the rest too.
Spire was $99 at one time. I think this was in a sale early 2020.
Spire can have a nice soft pluck tone. I have VPS Avenger for the harder stuff.


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## Trancer

Thank you very much for your response and advice.

Thorn I do not know, I will go to the site.

U He products, I had the Hive and very happy with this vst and the U He company, really super nice people.

Diva cons consume enough cpu it seems to me and it is a little dated.

Regarding Repro, why not.

Thanks again for your feedback.

Thanks for your feedback

Indeed Spire not bad at all, I use it.

My current vst set.

Omnisphere 2 / Trilian / Nexus 3 / Spire / Sylenth 1.

Soon I intend to take Dune 3, which looks a bit like Virus and Repro.

I'll inquire about Thorn as well.

For now, I'm looking for a step sequencer and arpeggiator, but a lot of choices and I don't know which one to choose yet.

Do you have an opinion?

Regarding Avenger, an excellent vst, but not too hooked, I prefer Nexus 3, more immediate.

Thanks again for your feedback.


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## Spectral Atmospher

Hi! I see You have studio One.
There is a pattern editor in there. 
You can createnpattern in it and set the probability of playing a notes in % .
So it is like a properly set up randomiser.
Can create interesting changing melodies/ drum patterns. 
Studio One (and i am sure Ableton as well) has basic arpeggiator.
If you buy a copy of Computer Music magazine it has Nora CM which is a cool arpeggiator i like and use. You can enter a trance arpeggio pattern and than play it live via a keyboard and improvise or even if you only use mouse its quicker to draw chords and Nora will turn it to a pattern. It can creat long patterns as well so its not gonna be monoton.
For Drums i Use XO from XLNAudio. Its a great drum machine with great editing capabilities. BUT it also maps all your one shot samples on an inuitive colored map and you can swap sounds on the fly trying different combinations. 50% off at Plugin Boutique at the moment.
Also if you interested in building sets to play and improvise live i can recommend t Unify by PluginGuru. You can arpeggiate and controll all your synth inside and build on all the existing patches and swap the sounds if you like. Like Omnisphere but you can load other synths and plugins inside (also you can Load omnisphere).
Good Luck!


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## ManicMiner

Spectral Atmospher said:


> Nora CM which is a cool arpeggiator i like and use. You can enter a trance arpeggio pattern and than play it live via a keyboard and improvise or even if you only use mouse its quicker to draw chords and Nora


BlueArp arpeggiator is actually very good for Trance. I would argue better than NoraCM. And BlueArp is free.


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## Spectral Atmospher

Yes BlueArp is very Good. Its also Built into Unify as well.
I like Nora CM as i can play with how many notes i play (max 4 in CM version, 8in the Full) as a chord and have diferent rhythm for each note (1st, 2nd, 3rd....) And i can record it live to play different amount of notes and that can vary the whole pattern. I don't know if i can get the same with Blue arp..... Will check it out.
Nora suits my playing well.


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## Trancer

Thanks a lot for your answers.

I was no longer thinking of bluearp, a very good product.

I am looking for a standalone vst arpeggiator, bluearp is really excellent.

The others not bad either.

Thanks for your feedback.

Regarding Unify, I will linger there.


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## ManicMiner

Spectral Atmospher said:


> Yes BlueArp is very Good. Its also Built into Unify as well.
> I like Nora CM as i can play with how many notes i play (max 4 in CM version, 8in the Full) as a chord and have diferent rhythm for each note (1st, 2nd, 3rd....) And i can record it live to play different amount of notes and that can vary the whole pattern. I don't know if i can get the same with Blue arp..... Will check it out.
> Nora suits my playing well.


Nora was on my wish list , but I visited the site on BF and the link to the purchase page was broken, and for a few days too. I wonder Nora has been abandoned.


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## Trancer

Thank you very much for this feedback.

Nothing prevents taking both.


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## shadowsoflight

I have to say, as a long time FL Studio user I find FLEX really good for making trance - make sure you give it a chance. Some of their other stuff is getting a bit stale, but FLEX has some really useable sounds. It also allows you to focus on the song structure without getting to overwhelmed by sound design, if you haven't written a lot yet.

I recently made a trance track using only sounds from a single free FLEX bank (Sense Gemini Magnificence) and it ended up being one of my best. I'll avoid spamming the thread with my stuff, but I would be happy to DM the SoundCloud link or raw FL Studio project file (needs FL 20) with you, if you are interested.


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## Spectral Atmospher

ManicMiner said:


> Nora was on my wish list , but I visited the site on BF and the link to the purchase page was broken, and for a few days too. I wonder Nora has been abandoned.


Yes it seems abandoned.... I use the CM version it is working fine at the moment.


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## gamma-ut

ManicMiner said:


> Nora was on my wish list , but I visited the site on BF and the link to the purchase page was broken, and for a few days too. I wonder Nora has been abandoned.



Squaredheads has shut up shop: https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=550128


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