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ark
Joined: Mar 06, 2008
Posts: 679
Location: New Jersey
Audio files: 13
G2 patch files: 31
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 Posted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 9:50 am Post subject:
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| elektro80 wrote: |
Yes, I think so.. but still I wonder if comparing these two is a valid approach after all. The G2 is different and it is best suited for tweaking existing patches rather than live on-stage patching. Think back, that is why people bought the Odysseys and Minimoogs and the SH5s and not ordered airdrops of full Moog Modular synths. Uhh.. but still.. an analog modular can be patched live with success. The G2 is not like that.
A point to make is however that if you want a Berlin School TD step sequencer you simply patch and save this on the G2 and you play that patch on-stage. If you need a typical vintage style stage monosyhth you patch this up with the G2 and then play the patch on stage. You build instruments with the G2.  |
The more I think about these remarks, the more profound I think they are. Initially, I thought "Why is he saying that the G2 isn't good as a stage instrument? I've only had it a couple of months and I've already played it on stage successfully." However, I have come to realize that there are really three separate contexts in which I might want to use a synthesizer.
1) On stage, as part of a pre-planned performance. Here, the G2 is superb, so long as I don't need acoustic-instrument sounds. Even the physical model patches on electro-music don't do as good a job of sounding like an oboe or sax as my Yamaha VL-70m does. But if I want a synthesizer, and am willing to plan my sound palette in advance, the G2 does just fine.
2) In the studio, such as it is. Right now my G2 spends most of its time on my desk, slightly above and behind my computer keyboard, so it's trivial to patch it, and equally trivial to use it as, say, an "external instrument" in Ableton Live. If I want to take it on the road, I have to disconnect the power cord and about a dozen signal connections, but that's not a big deal.
3) In unplanned performances, such as jam sessions. Here I must either bring a laptop with me or restrict myself to stored patches and variations, plus what I can remember about how to edit them. That is a substantial restriction compared with other synthesizers I can imagine. Such situations sometimes make me wish that I had a Microkorg. I suppose that in the long term, I will have learned enough that I will have a useful sound palette at my fingertips; but for now I feel like I'm groping around in the dark. |
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elektro80
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Joined: Mar 25, 2003
Posts: 21959
Location: Norway
Audio files: 14
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| Posted: Thu Jun 26, 2008 6:08 pm Post subject:
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Indeed, I didn´t really say that the G2 is unsuitable for live work. 
We call the G2 a modular synth. And clearly it is. It does however call for a certain kind of workflow which an analog modular system doesn´t require. A point to make is that the G2 is in fact extremely performance oriented, but it simply does not invite to extensive free flow patching during performances. As I said, with the G2 you build instruments and then you play them. This is simply a feature and not a problem. I guess workflow issues like this one is what might alienate a great number of potential G2 owners. Too many will at first be attracted to the G2 but then they simply feel lost. And then we have the analog synth hype and the digital vs. analog mythology. I own both analog and digital synths, including an NM-1 and an analog modular. I´m basically in it for the music and I consider these devices to be instruments and nothing but instruments. This does of course also imply that I ´m very aware of workflow issues.
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ark
Joined: Mar 06, 2008
Posts: 679
Location: New Jersey
Audio files: 13
G2 patch files: 31
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| Posted: Wed Jul 16, 2008 10:11 pm Post subject:
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| elektro80 wrote: | The Radias is not completely successful. The matching keyboard looks great but they missed out on an opportunity at making something really great.
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The interface works amazingly well, but it is still slightly too cramped. They should have made it a tad bigger and turned it into a modern desktop PS design ( with wooden sides?). The should have ditched the keyboard altogether and instead made a 76 key matching midi keyboard controller with aftertouch, two joysticks, pitchwheel + modwheel and a few button controls. |
Actually, they do have a 76-key keyboard that will drive a Radias module and has lots of other stuff besides. It's called an M3.  |
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