09/05/2006 21:40:01; I Hate Softsynths

Ok, it's official - the jury's back in and after a lengthy debate the verdict is official - I hate softsynths. Sure, they've brought synths and samplers to the masses, and you no longer have to remortgage to get yourself a decent sounding rig, but from my point of view they are the most conter-intuitive, inspiration sapping pieces of code ever to grace a hard-drive.

It's taken me a while to admit, but after three years of staring at teeny tiny parameter displays and giving myself a severe case of RSI adjusting minute knobs and faders, I still can't get on with them. For some things, software is better - I wouldn't want to go back to having to decide which track gets the compressor and which doesn't, and multirack tape machines should remain dead and buried. But synths? - surely performance is the whole point, and I don't remember the last time I saw someone grabbing an on-screen pitch-wheel and attempting to do a Jan Hammer keytar style solo. I guess you could buy a Remote 25SL or something, but even those are only half-useful - now, put flying faders on one of those things and we're in business.

Ok, i'm going to stop before I start rambling on about how much better it was in the mid-90's, when real men programmed real hardware through thier super intuitive16x2 character displays with one knob and a manual the size of a phonebook...

back