Reaktor and G2 complement each other?

Carl Mikael Björk

Hi,

I hope this is the right forum for a question like this... Smile

I own a G2 since a year back and I really like it - I have a tendency to get stuck in patching rather than playing music. But I do miss the possibility to use samples. So I've been eyeing Reaktor. You can get a pretty good deal if you buy Sessions and then upgrade to Reaktor 5 before August 31st.

Anyway - what do you experienced modular users say. Do they complement each other? Would I be better off getting a sampler for my samples? Can they do about the same things?

I've been running the demo off Reaktor 4 a little bit, but would like to hear if anyone has experiences to share.

Regards,
Mikael

Jason · Posted: Wed May 25, 2005 3:17 pm Post subject:

I can not really speak too much to Reaktors main functions since I have not really used it, though I highly recommend using Kontakt from NI. It has amazing features and its granular synthesis options are very cool. My point basically is if your looking for sampling and you get Reaktor you will spend that much more time patching in addition to the G2. Many people dont like Kontakt for various reasons though it is my favorite. But, again that is just one option of many soft samplers it just depends on your needs and what you like as an interface.

mosc · Posted: Wed May 25, 2005 3:19 pm Post subject:

I know Zynthetix uses this combination a lot. Maybe he will chime in.

I know another person that abandoned the NM completely for Reaktor. He's quite happy. His laptop is his live performance rig. He has simplified!

I can't comment on Reaktor because I don't use it, but I do use the G2X in a live improv group, Xeroid Entity. It's almost the only synth I need; I like to use it with a Kurzweil PC2x stage piano. Sometimes I want natural sounding strings, pianos, percussion etc. I am looking to get a ME-1 module very soon. In a live performance situation, I would prefer not to be tied to a computer, so Reaktor is not attractive to me.

I agree that the G2 is incomplete by itself, but that's a personal thing.

Rob · Posted: Wed May 25, 2005 5:08 pm Post subject:

Mohoyoho · Posted: Wed May 25, 2005 9:23 pm Post subject:

I own Reaktor but not the NM. If you are looking for a sampler Reaktor wouldn't be your best choice. Yes, it does play back samples in some of its instruments, but not really to the magnitude of a dedicated sampler. As the above post mentioned, if you are looking for a soft synth sampler then Kontakt is your better choice. Otherwise, a hardware synth is your other choice. The beauty of Reaktor is the odd specialized synths that are created. Some of the instruments are so unique, and you would never find them in hardware. I would think Reaktor could compliment any studio.

Carl Mikael Björk · Posted: Wed May 25, 2005 11:48 pm Post subject:

Thanks guys!

Well, I'm not looking for a sampler - I have one (just got Short Circuit from vemberaudio.com). But I have an urge to work in a modular way with samples and audio recordings. I mentioned using a sampler because in a way I find it hard to justify (economically) getting another modular system just to get access to audio files.

Actually this thread is all about getting enough arguments to get Reaktor anyway! Very Happy

Thanks for the input so far!

Regards,
Mikael

triptonizer · Posted: Thu May 26, 2005 5:45 am Post subject:

I've been using Reaktor as well as NM1/G2 for quite a while now. Although they're both 'modular systems', they differ quite a bit. Reaktor allows more low level programming (even before the introduction of Core Cells in R5), but this also means more time spent with building structures, less time left for making music... (e.g. a phaser in G2 is just one module, if you want a phaser in Reaktor you'll have to build it yourself - starting with a bunch of allpass filters and so on; of course Reaktor comes with an elaborate library of macros and instruments to learn from and abuse).

But if you want to 'work with samples in a modular way', Reaktor certainly is the way to go (granular, formant, regular samplers, lookup tables...). As someone else said, Kontakt or even Battery are much more suited for more conventional sampling needs.

cebec · Posted: Thu May 26, 2005 7:20 am Post subject:

I used the NM Classic with Reaktor, and now the G2 with Reaktor as my two primary studio instruments. I'm pretty satisfied with this combination. Reaktor offers all of the low level DSP and sample manipulation the G2 doesn't, with a huge user library and an active community, as well. It's getting a nice engine upgrade with v. 5 and sounds brilliant.

With 5 I'm going to spend more time delving into lego-style (i.e., macro) instrument/ensemble building. The key, for me, will be to treat Reaktor-building as a separate activity from live or improvisatory patching, as on the G2. At least at first... I'm going to start slowly and enjoy the process of learning to build within Reaktor at a lower level than I've attempted before.

But yeah, for modular sampling, Reaktor's an excellent choice.

zynthetix · Posted: Thu May 26, 2005 4:53 pm Post subject:

Since Reaktor and the G2 are dominantly what I use, I have had some experience using the two together. Since it is very easy to build a sampler in Reaktor, I have built samplers that respond to midi triggering from the G2 and fire off a sample. This can be routed out of the computer/audio interface into the G2's inputs for further processing.

One of the most useful things to do is build controller patches in the G2 for controlling your Reaktor instruments. The G2 (keybaord version) complements Reaktor very well in this regard.

Reaktor is a very flexible tool, but there is an extra level of detail that can be cumbersome at times when compared to the G2 (depending on what you are trying to build). If you have a decent laptop that can run it, Reaktor will probably satisfy your sampling needs. If all you want to do is sampling, there are also sampler programs that might do what you want Reaktor to a bit easier. I don't know of any of these off the top of my head since Reaktor is what I use (considering I spent the money on it). If you don't have a laptop, you might want to investigate some hardware samplers that respond to midi flexibly to use as a "hard disk" for the G2.

Carl Mikael Björk · Posted: Thu May 26, 2005 11:31 pm Post subject:

Thanks again everybody!

I'm most likely going for Reaktor 5, played some with the demo (Reaktor 4) and made a simple sampler and a sequencer type patch. I quite like it!

Seems that I, as an university employee, am eligable for the academic license, which is almost half price. That'd be quite a bargain!

Cheers,
Mikael

grimley · Posted: Tue May 31, 2005 5:31 pm Post subject:

Note that you can currently upgrade to R5 from Reaktor Session for about $160 and Session is currently being dumped for $99 at Guitar Center.

I own Session and I had no real interest in jumping to the full version of Reaktor, but for $160 I said "what the hell?". So far I've been very impressed with the included instruments (which alone could keep me entertained for years) although some are very CPU hungry and most use between 25% and 30% of my PIV 2.4.
To be honest I can never see me building any instruments considering there is so much great stuff to explore in the online user library.

Carl Mikael Björk · Posted: Wed Jun 01, 2005 12:30 am Post subject:

Grimley,

That was the path that I first planned to go. Although a bit more expensive in europe... Confused

...totalling at about 350 euros.

But then the academic license is 260 euros, which is a good price I reckon. So that's on order right now. I even found a Swedish dealer that has Electronic Instruments 2 for 55 euros. Very Happy

So I've got some new toys coming in. There is a good chance that I'll be stuck playing with the pre-made ensembles for a while. But hey! It seems fun, enough...! Laughing

Cheers,
Mikael