Ableton Forum

I would choose Komplete because you will have several synths which are industry standard allowing you to collaborate easily with other musicians

I'd go for the hardware.

I started with Live standard and added Sampler, Kontakt, and Komplete "Essentials". I picked up some other soft synths here and there (since I didn't have Analog or Operator), but at the same time, the second-hand hardware market (via eBay, Craigs List, and Reverb) caught my eye.

For less than $700, I picked up a used hardware drum machine, an analog monosynth, and a VA polysynth. I still use Sampler a lot and I use Kontakt for the wonderful piano library I bought and some odd sampled libraries like Toxic Metal, but nearly all my sounds are hardware now and I love it.

I built a complex wavetable synth in Eurorack and recently picked up a DX7s for FM synthesis, so I've got all my bases covered, no matter what the sound in my head is.

I agree that hardware changes your workflow. There are more connections to think about, gain staging and noise floor are more critical, routing options are more flexible but have to be thought out, but being more of an engineer myself, it feels like home. Absolutely love my studio.

Post the pics when you get the bass beast!!

Sub37 second hand: around 1,300

Komplete select: 200 USD, Massive, monark, prism and a piano (if you like piano sounds I would recommend getting something else than Live included ones which are quite mediocre IMHO).

You can get both and have good starting points, Massive is a great synth to cover polyphonic needs with tons of modulations and easy to use.

^ And monark does sound very good IMHO.

After some thought and input think I'm going to take the leap and go to the store to see the Moog. Komplete seems great, but like you all say - possibly overwhelming at times. Select might be considered (as I love The Gentleman keys - though not quite the House genre keys id be after).. I'll look at U-He's Diva and possible Sylenth for some VSTs in the future.

look for hive and the legend from synapse audio

i come from a hardware background and owned some rare analog synths, samplers, drum computers but nowadays it's only software and a few midi controllers. With the controllers you can imitate the hardware feel and with all the different ableton or 3rd party effects you also can make a VST sound pretty much like an analog synth. I have komplete11 but it's a bit to much and also a lot off orchestral and piano stuff which i don't use. So personally i would rather invest in 1 or 2 good vst's and midi-controller like a push or machine.
My favorite vst is the Sylenth1.

jamoni9 wrote:
"Hardware resets your expectations"... How so?

Because it's the real deal. While not all hardware is great, there's a lot of great sounding hardware that, like or not, sets the sonic standard for the basic sounds of things. Given that some great hardware costs sometimes several times more than a complete DAW that should possibly be expected.

My personal experience is that great software synths can get close enough to be really usable in mane cases in songs, but the ease of how you dial in some sounds on the hardware synths I use from time to time can make the software experience feel a quite a bit more frustrating sometimes. What you want are the sweet spots. Not all instruments have that many and requires you to work harder to get where you want to be.

Generally though, I view each instrument, hardware or software, as it's own thing having its own design, even if based on something pre-existing.

A lot depends on your genre but NI Komplete will obviously cover a wider range of sound than a Moog, but a Moog would probably be a more unique sound (but that said most Komplete stuff can be tweaked to infinity for a more unique sound.)

Personally, I would get a hardware synth. Greater resale value as well.

+1 go hardware.

Hardware is if nothing else massively entertaining to use. Twisting a physical filter knob will always feel better than clicking a mouse or even tweaking a MIDI controller.

Music tech is a very expensive pastime if you aren't having fun, and you'll probably make better music if you're enjoying the process more.

timday wrote: Twisting a physical filter knob will always feel better than clicking a mouse or even tweaking a MIDI controller.

Personally, I don't think turning a knob on a MIDI Controller is that different really. Both suspend analysis quite well. Though one knob (slider, switch) per function is nice I want more and more functions.

Hardware is beautiful.

Komplete is insane because you can have so many modern sound. If you want to make music and cash in buy komplete. You'll make a song in an afternoon.
The Moog is for fun and to create music.
The thing is that with easy to use komplete you can have lots of inspiration by just browsing presets.

Funny as I recently went through this exact exercise and debate with a local online music buddy.

So, I took a visit to the local GC store to try them out. I hated the cheap look and feel of the Komplete S49 controller. The knobs and dials were not intuitive and did not not great. THEN, I tried the Moog Sub 37 and that was all she wrote. The sound, look, and feel was absolute butter to play!

Yeah it as old school dials and knobs and analog sound, but man, the Moog is pleasure to jam on and sounds incredible. SO I bought the Moog Sub 37 to go with Ableton and my Push 2 controller. As a newbie, it is more than enough to keep me busy learning and creating for a long long time. Plus it is one of the few items that is still actually made in America by Americans!