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-- Z3ta+ & albino
Z3ta+ & albino
In the next couple of months I will be purchasing another VA synth
I already have Sytrus, Wusikstation Slayer 2, FL studio 5, I will be getting vanguard soon.
I'm debating between purchasing 'cakewalk' z3ta+ or Linplug albino.
Which synth produces the best sound?
Which is capable of producing a wider variety of sounds?
Which is easier to use?
Thanks for the input.
--Josh
It's a matter of priorities.
If you want sounds that will stand out in the mix, z3ta all the way. For the classic, progressive/melodic sound that I happen to love, z3ta seems to do the trick. z3ta is a lead-making powerhouse, be it supersaw or something else. In any event, I love z3ta because it happens to make a great number of sounds that I'm looking for. With the right EQing, it seems to do some deep, trancy basses, too.
I complained about Albino 2 in a thread a month or so ago, but I've recently reinstalled it and gotten back into it. What I've learned is that Albino is very good at smooth sounds. Smooth, fluid basses and pads seem to be what it excels at. z3ta really stands out, and if you want something a bit more ambient, it would probably be easier to make in Albino. Some on this forum have compared Albino to a Virus, if you're familiar with hardware.
In terms of difficulty, they're about even. If you're familiar with synthesis in general, neither should be all too hard to use with enough fooling around. There are a wide variety of presets for both, as well, which you can tweak to your pleasure.
I suppose that this thread is a potential flame war, because production always comes down to preference (like what sequencer to use, what monitor to use, what hardware to buy, or software v. hardware.) Really it is just what you're trying to do. Download the demos for both and see which fit your style/sound.
I hate flame wars, if anyone is going to express they're opinion they should back it up with facts in the same post
thanks for the insight
OMGZZ!! put out ze flames!! Shit 
Personally I prefer z3ta over albino. It just sticks out in the mix more than albino. If your after a synth that can do strong leads too, I would say z3ta. Pads and smooth sounds though... yes albino does do them well.
They are both pretty similar though in terms of features and modularity. One thing I have found though is that z3ta is a huge cpu hog. Not a problem if your in the practice of rendering to audio or freezing tracks, but something to keep in mind nonetheless.
Why dont you dowload the demos and try them for yourself?
I'd be happy to try them both when i get home, I'm at work right now...
Hey. Seriously... Who cares what you use people :P. The moto you should be following is not 'well this one stands out better in a mix than this other one' or 'this one is easier than this other one'. Rather, it should be 'well this sounds kinda like crap... but lets see what I can do with it.' The end result is always what matters and not what you start with. Its all about how you filter, distort and mangle the output of a synth, in how well it stands out in a mix, how smooth it is, how sweet it is, how fat it is. Theres 5 different ways I can think of making a sound fatter than the original sound off the top of my head and I'm sure there are plenty more. Suprisingly to some, most of those ways arent found on most of the synths out there and so you turn to 3rd party/after effects stuff. The road does not end at the output of the synth, the road ends when you stop building it 
.
Cheers,
Zac
dark you should write some tutorials 
Sure, why not . What would you like the tutorials to cover?
^ How to make some nice leads and bass with Wasp and 3xOsc
This is just a personal choice, but I'd go with Z3 over Albino. The only advantage I've seen with Albino over Z3 is its less of a CPU hog as certain patches can really tax your CPU in Z3. The variety and range of sounds are far more diverse IMO using Z3. Also I find that the sound quality of Albino is a bit thin and not as rich as Z3. Good luck with your choice. All of the tracks in my sig use Z3 at some point.
'Cakewalk' z3ta+? What the hell is that? z3ta+ is made by rgc-audio. Cakewalk is the name of a really old sequencer.
z3ta+ is ten times more versatile than Albino; it's wavetable-based, it has FM/PM/PWM modes, twice as many waves and LFOs, and kick-ass built-in effects. It's also a huge CPU hog if you start trying to do anything complicated.
I don't think it's fair to even compare those two. z3ta+ is a heavyweight synth and Albino is a lightweight or maybe a middleweight. That doesn't make either one better, they're just optimized for completely different things. z3ta+ is really more comparable to V-Station whereas Albino is in a similar category to the Pro-53.
Zeta rocks, it uses cpu, but you can still use effectivly 3-4 instances of it if you have a decent computer
I was messing around with z3ta, here's a pretty powerful pad, this is why i like z3ta. The best part is that i'm pretty much a novice to synthesis and I can get these sounds out of synths.
z3ta (Supersaw Pad)
-Pyster-
I personally more like the Albino2, because - as someone else already mentioned - it is capable of creating a wider variety of sounds, which are mostly very smooth.
This is to my experience, I'm yet to fully explore the z3ta+, which I quite let behind because it is such a CPU eater (most of the time). This is a problem you probably won't have with the Albino2.
Creating a supersaw lead might get difficult with the Albino2, never really got anything similar out of it. Z3ta+ can create this easily, though with the expense of taking up quite some CPU. That's why for supersaw leads, I have for long preferred other synths to do it.
| quote: |
| Originally posted by DigiNut 'Cakewalk' z3ta+? What the hell is that? z3ta+ is made by rgc-audio. Cakewalk is the name of a really old sequencer. z3ta+ is ten times more versatile than Albino; it's wavetable-based, it has FM/PM/PWM modes, twice as many waves and LFOs, and kick-ass built-in effects. It's also a huge CPU hog if you start trying to do anything complicated. I don't think it's fair to even compare those two. z3ta+ is a heavyweight synth and Albino is a lightweight or maybe a middleweight. That doesn't make either one better, they're just optimized for completely different things. z3ta+ is really more comparable to V-Station whereas Albino is in a similar category to the Pro-53. |
well that still doesn't make Z3ta+ cakewalk software 
I find Albino 2 to be great for making leads and beeps. Its very user friendly and you can create a wide variety of sounds.
I tested z3 vs. albino this morning, I like Z3 for everything that I had in mind
Basses and leads mostly, albino is nice and I don't doubt that it's great for pads, But Z3 seems to suit me better.
Again this is based only on the presets I'll dig deeper when I have more time.
For Pads I was looking at absynth moreso.
again this is only my initial opinion.
I thought that cakewalk bought Z3.
Because of the CPU issue, I will still use vanguard for basic leads.
Albino for pads.
(and absynth for pads when I get it)
Sytrus for FM
Maxx Claster Bazzoid for basses.
And Z3ta+ for anything that the above synths won't do.
Like Icone said earlier, I think V-Station compares a lot better with z3ta whereas Pro-53 and Albino2 compare more closely. z3ta is definitely a cpu hog and I have found that v-station is just rocking my socks at the moment. The sounds that come out of that thing are pretty amazing. Just check out the synthation presets, they're amazing. Personally, I'd probably suggest Albino2 because I enjoy creating ethereal sounds although the leads aren't so strong. You just have to beef them up more.
Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta, Zeta ... got the point??
I hate albino, it sounds so thin and tinny and dull. Zeta is a CPU hog, but just freeze your tracks to save power. It is my favorite synth and pretty much the only one I use these days.
I prefer albino myself, I can get some great house basses out of it
| quote: |
| Originally posted by IDarkISwordI . Theres 5 different ways I can think of making a sound fatter than the original sound off the top of my head and I'm sure there are plenty more. Cheers, Zac |
z3ta+ is, without doubt, the most powerful and flexible synth. it is capable of creating hi-quality sounds/instruments of any genre, whether it be for pads, strings, synthlines, basslines, leads, fx. i usually use about 6-7 instances of z3ta+ in every song i do, and about 3-4 of albino. so i'd say it's a pretty close race
get the z3ta+ if you are looking for a hi-quality, extremely flexible synth that kicks ass. the albino seems to be best at making pads and basses, but its arpeggio part is very flexible so it is also great for arped synthlines. still, my preferred synth would be the z3ta+
I would take Arturia 2600V over zeta anyday :P
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