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Best software synth for learning how to synth

Mornats

Mornats

Hobbyist
Hey,

I've been toying with the idea of buying a hardware synth so that I can learn how to create my own sounds but figured that I could do the learning on a (possibly) much cheaper software synth first.

I want to know where to start from the initial sound wave from the oscillators (apologies for getting any of this wrong by the way), through all the filters, ADSR, effects etc. so that I can aim for a sound in my head. The sounds I use at the moment tend to be those from the Massive preset packs from Leap Into the Void and The Unfinished. So distorted, modulated moving/shifting bassy pads and the like.

A couple of my tracks that feature the type of sounds I use at the moment:

First 45 seconds of this:


Most of this:


I'm not necessarily looking to buy a synth if I own one already. I have Komplete Ultimate 10 so have:
  • Massive
  • Absynth
  • Monark
  • FM8
  • Reaktor 5
Plus the others that come with it.

I'm also not, at this time, looking for a synth that I can grow into as this is primarily a synth just to learn the basics of synthing. I've got a fair few to grow into already and would consider Zebra/Omnisphere etc. for that when the time comes.

So to recap, is there a synth that you good folks would recommend for learning the basics on? Cheers!
Click to read more...
 
Your strong capabilities only allow me to mention some very positive remarks made by John Lehmkuhl (PluginGuru.com) _ in one or more of his site videos _ regarding Absynth 5. He also did interesting vids on Oscillators and Filters .. (page 4) which covered strong synths in those areas. His list of videos is 15 web pages but each has image and abbreviated description.

https://www.pluginguru.com/products/absynth-power-pack/ __
also on his Videos Page 13, John has (3) Absynth5 'QuikE' _ Absynth5 sessions that I found useful.
His (2) overviews with Brian Clevinger _ Absynth creator (Page 14) are worth watching IMHO.

John L has provided sooooo much help for years with Omnisphere tutorials and libraries, that I have not ventured far from Spectrasonics.
Zebra 2 remains a top interest, but only when I feel capable to diverge …. :rolleyes:
NI_K11U Synths are always on hand ....


@ Ajkarin _ agree !
'Skippy' Lehmkuhl has ventured there (Massive) as well with a Library and some video help.
 
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Just use one that's native to your DAW. A lot of fuss is made over these big plugins like Zebra, Omnisphere, etc but if you know what you're doing you can achieve pretty much anything with native devices in Ableton, Logic, Cubase and most others. There's no reason to go searching for the "right" synth right now, especially when you're just learning subtractive synthesis.
 
Thanks for the tips everyone. I've just spent 30-40 mins or so with the demo of Syntorial. It's done in a very good way where it's teaching you to recognise the sounds as they're affected by the controls. I love the challenges where you have to match a sound too. It's much more geared to getting that sound in your head tuned in inside the synth. Great recommendation!

I'll also check out those Pluginguru videos too. :)
 
lastmessiah said:
Just use one that's native to your DAW. A lot of fuss is made over these big plugins like Zebra, Omnisphere, etc but if you know what you're doing you can achieve pretty much anything with native devices in Ableton, Logic, Cubase and most others. There's no reason to go searching for the "right" synth right now, especially when you're just learning subtractive synthesis.
Click to expand...

I'm using Reaper which has a somewhat basic synth! Even the demo tutorials in Syntorial have gone beyond its capabilities!

upload_2018-7-25_21-10-10.png
 
Mornats said:
Thanks for the tips everyone. I've just spent 30-40 mins or so with the demo of Syntorial. It's done in a very good way where it's teaching you to recognise the sounds as they're affected by the controls. I love the challenges where you have to match a sound too. It's much more geared to getting that sound in your head tuned in inside the synth. Great recommendation!

I'll also check out those Pluginguru videos too. :)
Click to expand...

Happy you like Syntorial. It's the only one that "stuck" with me. As mentioned, there a synth provided with it that you can use. There's also the excellent and open-source Helm. But you have Massive and you can opt to have Syntorial lessons use Massive which is great (I used Serum myself but it's the same).
 
Monark is really nice if you want to dip into a monophonic synth and can give some great insights. If you want to explore the things like Zebra a bit more, which is great for getting the ins and outs on how synthesizers work and which you can also port over to hardware synths is to give the mini version of Zebra a shot, Zebralette: https://u-he.com/products/zebralette/
And if you want to grab an anolog classic hardware synth later on, then you might want to check out Diva or the Repro1/5 combo first maybe as this gives you all the tools to learn the craft as well
 
If you use Logic, ES2 and a few video tutorial (and manual handy) is great way to learn synth programming

Beyond the tool itself and how it does things the why you turn this button vs that button is helped by video tutorial I think and of course time in the shed

Enjoy!
 
I'm generally not for analogue synths. They are expensive and not very pragmatic. You could consider mapping your soft synths to a controller. The Midi Fighter Twister is probably the most powerful controller for this purpose and if you take the time to set it up it will be very close to the real thing: https://store.djtechtools.com/products/midi-fighter-twister

+1 to Syntorial. It's great not only for learning what the parameters do, but training your ear for mixing as well. I started using it every day for a few weeks and suddenly I could hear compression attack and release times on 2-3 db compression. And I hadn't even reached the compression part of the tutorial yet. It also comes with it own synth.

You don't need to buy any synths, if you own Komplete Ultimate. Razor is pretty easy, clean and unique. Massive is advanced, aggressive and very deep. Form lets you do sample morphing. Absynth is great for atmospheric and evolving soundscapes. Monark is a freaking Mini Moog and it sounds very authentic! FM8 is one of the best FM synthesizers out there. Then there is Reaktor and itøs user libraries, which pretty much give you an unlimited amount of options.
Out of all of those I'd recommend you start with Monark and Razor, since they are the simplest ones and well get the basics in place.
Groove.com has very deep tutorials of all of the Native Synths and probably whatever else you own. It's not free, but it blows any youtube tutorial out of the water and I think it is quite cheap. There are many good tutorials on all types of productions.

If you are looking for an easy synth to start out with try Serum. There is a 3 days trial. It is deep, the UI is easy, there are many many tutorials on it and it sounds freaking amazing. On top of that you can rent-to-own it at no extra cost and cancel your subscription at any time and start it again. No questions asked.
 
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OP's K10 is hard to beat. Noticed Massive just updated today. All of the K10 Synths are right up there even after addition of top options like Omni2 or Zebra2.
 
sostenuto said:
OP's K10 is hard to beat. Noticed Massive just updated today. All of the K10 Synths are right up there even after addition of top options like Omni2 or Zebra2.
Click to expand...
Yeah, it's just a minor fix, but they added "user analytics to help improve the product", which could mean they are ramping up for a serious update. Or it could just be data collecting for Massive X.
 
That midi fighter twister (what a name!) looks pretty cool. I've got a Komplete Kontrol S61, Maschine MkII and a Maschine Jam so have lots of knob options, especially with the NI synths and anything with NKS.

Thanks again for the help everyone. Looks like I don't need a new synth to learn on, just a little investment in learning tools :)
 
+1 for SERUM

It's a powerful/affordable synth than can be a very effective training environment. Most other synths don't visualize the elements of the patch nearly as much. But SERUM's animated interface will help you develop ideas quickly, as you learn to think like a good sound designer. After that you can use that knowledge everywhere else.

Besides any synth that can make a patch like this from basic waveforms is certainly worth my time:

Beta Patch: SERUM Chello sequence, playing one note on keyboard, no audio samples or external FX.

[AUDIOPLUS=https://vi-control.net/community/attachments/serum-chello-seq-mp3.14545/][/AUDIOPLUS]
 

Attachments

  • SERUM Chello SEQ.mp3
    285.6 KB · Views: 129
If you want to transition to a hardware synth later, I would start with Monark. It's got the simplest interface and is basically a replica of one of the synths that popularized subtractive synthesis. (Also, a nice, classic sound.)

Massive and Absynth are very powerful, but the interfaces are not, IMO, very intuitive, and they don't really resemble the layout you'll find on most hardware synths. (Same is true of many of the synths that come with Logic, except maybe Retro Synth.) FM8 is good for FM, but that's a completely different set of skills. Reaktor can be anything and everything (Monark and several of the other Komplete synths are built on it), so that might be a good next step after you master the basics.
 
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