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question for Virus Ti users
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| madmuso |
Hey guys,
I was just on the access web site checking out the Virus Ti. Its been years since I have spoiled myself with a music/synth purchase so i've been saving some cash and am thinking about it. I checked out their spec's page and video, seems like a great synth feature wise. My question is mainly regarding the number of stereo sounds, patches, etc, the Ti can play at once, even if all the sounds are coming out of one stereo output (of which it has 3 I believe). I noticed on the "total intergration" software interface that it has 16 slots down the left hand side, so im assuming it can load and play 16 stereo sounds at once depending on polyphony of course?
If you are a Ti owner could you share some pro's and cons that a non user may not be aware of. Items always look good when you are checking it out on the manufacturers web site!
thanks, |
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| Looney4Clooney |
the only con was stability. I think the TI at least the first incarnation was never really stable enough for anyone. And then the latency.
just get the TI 2. or Virus B/C. Ok i'm totally confused, is ver 1 hardware specific , or is it just a firmware, I only ask because i see this snow for cheap, but its 4 months old, and then i check the site, it says TI , not TI 2. lol ya, talk about ironic with the other thread. but , |
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| cryophonik |
I owned a Polar TI1 for years, and currently own a keyboard TI2. The TI1 and TI2 (including the Snow) use the same OS, so there's no difference in stability. The only differences between the two are the design of the housing (TI2 is sleeker, lighter) and the processing power (25-30% more in the TI2). The extra processing power means more polyphony.
The latest OS's have been very stable for myself and, apparently, most other people as well. The upcoming OS5 will include two additional EGs, which many of us have wanted for years. One of the great things about investing in a Virus TI (1 or 2) is that Access keeps offering updated OS's with new features/FX. It's also very cool that the new OS works on both the TI1 and TI2 versions, so the TI1 did not become obsolete.
There are too many pros to mention them all, but a few big ones that come to my mind are:
- very solid construction
- incredible Fatar keybed
- audio inputs for processing external audio with the filters, vocoder, and Atomizer
- load of sound sources (classic waveforms, hypersaw, granular, wavetables, formant, etc.)
- 3 freely assignable soft knobs
- great arp that can also work as a mod source
- really intuitive mod matrix
- Virus Control software and total integration
- works as a soundcard (although I've never used mine in that capacity, so I can't vouch for its performance)
- a load of free presets available on the Access and other websites (7,000+ that I'm aware of, and 128 more coming thanks to several of us TAs :) )
Cons/limitations:
- price
- USB 1 only (obviously would require a hardware/firmware update to go higher)
- Audio bounces/freezes must be done in real-time (no fast bounce, since the DAW needs to receive the audio from the Virus in real-time)
- You can't edit, view, or copy/paste the factory arp presets from Virus Control. This has been an annoyance to me for a long time, because there are many times that I'd like to make a variation of an arp preset, but there's no simple way.
- ???
Some people complain about the "menu-diving", but that's usually from people who haven't spent much time with a Virus. Almost every parameter that you'd need to tweak for real-time performance or sound design has dedicated knobs on the front panel. Some of the parameters are shared and selected via switches - for example, the two filters share filter envelope knobs (ADSR) and you select which of the filter envelopes you are editing with a switch (i.e., Filt 1/Filt 2). The menus primarily include parameters for configuring the TI.
As for the audio outputs, yes, Virus Control allows you to route 3 any of the Virus' 16 parts to 3 stereo (or 6 mono) inputs via USB. But, you can also assign some of the 16 parts to the 3 stereo/6 mono 1/4-inch analog or S/PDIF (digital) outputs. Personally, I've never tried running more than 4 or 5 parts simultaneously from my TI2, but I've also had it run out of voices with only 3 parts going. The maximum polyphony is determined by how complex each patch is. I've never heard of anybody getting 16 parts simultaneously with it, but it could probably be done if the sounds were very basic and few/no chords were being played. HTH. |
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| madmuso |
thanks for the replies guys, given me much to think about.
thanks |
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| tehlord |
Dave's advice is spot on.
Assuming you're after the kind of sound I know you like, then the Virus is really second to none. Although saying that it's not going to offer you anything a normal VST can't already do, it's just different.
Something that everybody should own once ;) |
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| alanzo |
The 16 things down the side correspond to 16 different possible sounds in a single project per Virus (you can actually have more than one connected). All 16 will share the same three outputs. It used to have two outputs, but there is an optional third output if you disable the inputs.
As for what L4C said about getting a TI2 because it's more stable, all of the Virus TIs run the same software, including the TI1, TI2, and Snow. You get little more for your money with the TI2vs the TI1, I don't feel it's worth the price.
| quote: | Originally posted by cryophonik
The maximum polyphony is determined by how complex each patch is. I've never heard of anybody getting 16 parts simultaneously with it, but it could probably be done if the sounds were very basic and few/no chords were being played. HTH. |
Yeah, polyphony on the Virus TI is kinda weird. I wouldn't think of it in terms of number of voices, as they like to quote. More in terms of processing power. It's kind of like Apple quoting "Stores 10,000 songs" for their iPod. That figure is meaningless since it depends on the audio quality. The TI2 is quoted as having "25%" more processing power. Not a huge leap, IMO. |
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| Lith |
cryophonik's response is great. I have a TI 1 keyboard, and this part should not be overlooked:
- incredible Fatar keybed
It's a great keybed! You can definitely glide your fingers over the keyboard smoothly.
It's true, the parameters you would control in a live situation have been well-placed on the control surface. But the menu diving is a non-issue, and makes sense once you get used to it. Plus, if you record control changes, all of the important ones are output and can be recorded into your sequencer.
My experience is a little bit different, maybe, since I don't use the "TI" functionality--I don't use it within a DAW, so I can't comment on the VC functionality. From what I've read it works great for some, not so well for others. And, it will carry that stigma for years, to this date...
And yeah, it has some weird issues still. I can let it sit for 30 minutes and all of a sudden some sound will start playing when I haven't touched it. Granted, I haven't updated the OS for almost two years, but, take it for what it's worth.
Regarding your polyphony/stereo output question: it does 16 stereo outs at once, but is completely dependent on how you use it. It is not forgiving, meaning you would need to optimize your patches to make the most of the available system resources. In practice, I'd be skeptical you'd be able to get all going at once. I've had note drops with four patches playing, but they get heavy on FX. Every FX you turn on seem to take at least a percentage of the available resources.
It's a great synth! As with any, you get out of it what you put in. The biggest complaint I tend to agree with is that its sound is very recognizable, but that's due to it being used by a lot of people, as well as it having its own distinct character. |
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| madmuso |
wow, thanks for all the info guys, appreciate it.
I think you're right tehlord, I may not keep it for long or I may never part with it but I think it is something I just need to own once to experience it for myself. Kinda like every guitarist needing to own a Les Paul into a marshall stack (or strat into a fender twin if you're wimpy!) hehe |
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