Quadelectra's Arkana Granular Synth in the shop!

[Despondo]

https://shop.propellerheads.se/product/ ... lar-synth/

[mataya]

I really like this one. Really close to Padshop Pro in terms of sound's it can generate.
Sorry to say visually, it looks like synth1 in white. Hate it! Sorry.

But thanks.

[RequiemMachine]

I think it looks nice. I'll give it a try at the least. The only thing I don't like is it only has 5 CV inputs which means it has less cv ins than the VST device from the 9.5 video....


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[Loque]

Looks promising... Too few time atm to check it... But its going on the list...

[chimp_spanner]

Wow!! Was not expecting this. Really great stuff. The only thing I can't quite figure out is the Speed control. Doesn't seem to do anything for me. Anyone care to chime in on how to use this properly?

Fantastic work QE, and as Mataya says, very Padshop like in its capabilities. Bravo!

*edit - nevermind, got the speed working. Had the length set too high!

[chimp_spanner]

Quick follow up; yeah this is damn cool. Love it. Stuff like this is what gets me excited about REs still. I'll always prefer this to using a VST if it can do the same job. Insta-buy!

[EdGrip]

This looks interesting! I need haven't tried it yet, but I must say - with a spirit of constructive criticism - that the GUI disagrees with me too. To me it feels very high-contrast and bright, (could the knobs be lighter instead of almost-black?) and busy (I know there's a lot to fit into the max allowed rack space).
Lower contrast and a easier/softer on the drop-shadows would be my suggestion, but I can't wait to get on these new SDK granular machines!

[chimp_spanner]

I'd make some constructive criticism about the GUI but I'm too busy letting this tiny random vocal sample stretch out into infinity in a wash of grains to think clearly

But yeah for real, I think maybe down the road a GUI re-think wouldn't go amiss. Maybe just making the backdrop less white would solve a lot of it! Minor criticism though!

[bsp]

The presets and demo songs are excellent, if I may say so.

I've now spent an hour creating my own patches and I love what this synth does to samples.

Is there something extra clever going on in the sampleplayer ? It sounds so..hmm I don't know.. vintage? Very nice thick and full sound.

EDIT:
ah yes, I had "velocity" routed to "osc a pos" in my test patch.

Suggestion: could you please add a "random value at note on" modulation source ? (maybe even add two (or four?) different random value sources to choose from)

[satyr32]

GUI is totally fine and professional.

[ravisoni]

Just had a listen to the demo sounds. I don't know if the pads are horny or I am... can't get enough of these sounds!

[sonicbyte]

Must try !

[Creativemind]

I really like this one. Really close to Padshop Pro in terms of sound's it can generate.
Sorry to say visually, it looks like synth1 in white. Hate it! Sorry.

But thanks.

Yeah agree a bit on the GUI. Looks ok but could've looked way cooler than this but I suppose it's it's ability that's the main thing. It would have been nice to see it in action mind for those not on 9.2 yet. A video please?

[mataya]

There is no way gui will make not buy this thing, just think a device capable of producing such nonsense sound should look a bit more futuristic.
It's jsut boring for me. What's up with the light blue on the top? Or is it gold?

Of course somebody will like it.

M

[Abstrax]

Wow this looks interesting. I wonder why there isn't at least 5-10 more CV inputs. It's not living up to it's potential.

[fieldframe]

Really, this is the one where everyone suddenly critiques the UI? There have been a few relatively amateurish UIs in the store recently, and this is not one of them. The flow is overall very easy to follow; the visual rhythm has a very solid foundation with some excellent touches (like having one primary knob for each section), and the graphic design is tasteful.

The only things I would critique on the visual design are the odd choice of tint for the top area (don’t introduce a new color in just one place like that) and the contrast around the knobs and section labels (keep the knobs dark and make the ticks and label backgrounds lighter so that the interactive parts pop).

[eusti]

Really, this is the one where everyone suddenly critiques the UI? There have been a few relatively amateurish UIs in the store recently, and this is not one of them. The flow is overall very easy to follow; the visual rhythm has a very solid foundation with some excellent touches (like having one primary knob for each section), and the graphic design is tasteful.

The only things I would critique on the visual design are the odd choice of tint for the top area (don’t introduce a new color in just one place like that) and the contrast around the knobs and section labels (keep the knobs dark and make the ticks and label backgrounds lighter so that the interactive parts pop).

I think it is definitely not one of the prettier REs. Sound examples are quite good though.

D.

[chimp_spanner]

Yeah I love this RE, and I don't think it looks bad either. I mean there are uglier devices for sure. But it sounds fantastic. Really great for those proper wall-of-noise sounds. I find you get a good sound with he max number of generators and the offset at around 3-4 o clock, with a little random offset and length. Then you get proper overlapping grains. Initially I couldn't figure out why even with 5 voices they were all just triggering at the same time. It's all in the offset!

Again, great work. Also very light on the CPU even in high quality mode.

[dvdrtldg]

I won't get the chance to trial this for a week or so, but if someone could do a comparison test and see how Arkana stacks up against a few instances of Proton in a combinator, I'd be most grateful

[Faastwalker]

I won't get the chance to trial this for a week or so, but if someone could do a comparison test and see how Arkana stacks up against a few instances of Proton in a combinator, I'd be most grateful

You mean in terms of sound, capabilities, CPU?? I really enjoyed Proton when I tested it. I think it's one of the ugliest & most inefficient GUI's going but it's loads of fun with great results. I haven't warmed to Arkana in quite the same way. I don't mind the GUI. It's very ........ traditional. But it would be nice to see a bit more of what's going on. Both seem to be about the same CPU wise from what I can tell. Both are priced really well. Going back for another play with Arkana right now

[FLVZ]

Is there something extra clever going on in the sampleplayer ? It sounds so..hmm I don't know.. vintage? Very nice thick and full sound.

If you read the manual the emitter functions in a special way, enabling a lot of the character you are talking about. Changing the number of grains/emitters per osc and the shape will get you interesting results.

[dvdrtldg]

I won't get the chance to trial this for a week or so, but if someone could do a comparison test and see how Arkana stacks up against a few instances of Proton in a combinator, I'd be most grateful

You mean in terms of sound, capabilities, CPU?? I really enjoyed Proton when I tested it. I think it's one of the ugliest & most inefficient GUI's going but it's loads of fun with great results. I haven't warmed to Arkana in quite the same way. I don't mind the GUI. It's very ........ traditional. But it would be nice to see a bit more of what's going on. Both seem to be about the same CPU wise from what I can tell. Both are priced really well. Going back for another play with Arkana right now

I guess I meant Can I get sounds with this that I can't get with a few Protons (CPU isn't such an issue).

I'm at the stage with synths now where unless a new instrument is (a) at a great intro price, or (b) drop-dead amazing in a way that no other instrument is, I'm more inclined to wait for a sale. Very interested in granular synths but got a feeling I might wait this one out

[markh]

I would love to see a video of a professional using this please.

[chimp_spanner]

I won't get the chance to trial this for a week or so, but if someone could do a comparison test and see how Arkana stacks up against a few instances of Proton in a combinator, I'd be most grateful

You mean in terms of sound, capabilities, CPU?? I really enjoyed Proton when I tested it. I think it's one of the ugliest & most inefficient GUI's going but it's loads of fun with great results. I haven't warmed to Arkana in quite the same way. I don't mind the GUI. It's very ........ traditional. But it would be nice to see a bit more of what's going on. Both seem to be about the same CPU wise from what I can tell. Both are priced really well. Going back for another play with Arkana right now

I guess I meant Can I get sounds with this that I can't get with a few Protons (CPU isn't such an issue).

I'm at the stage with synths now where unless a new instrument is (a) at a great intro price, or (b) drop-dead amazing in a way that no other instrument is, I'm more inclined to wait for a sale. Very interested in granular synths but got a feeling I might wait this one out

Yes. Mainly because you can do things like randomise emitter position, offset, formant, pitch and pan. So with a few tweaks you've got super wide, complex sounds. Afaik Proton will only be stereo if the source wave is stereo. With Arkana you can take a single channel file and position it all over the place spatially. I like Proton but Arkana is a winner for me.

[Faastwalker]

I'm at the stage with synths now where unless a new instrument is (a) at a great intro price, or (b) drop-dead amazing in a way that no other instrument is, I'm more inclined to wait for a sale. Very interested in granular synths but got a feeling I might wait this one out

To be honest I'm in the same boat. A lot of bases are already covered but there is always the pull of a new, well priced synth in the RE shop. Reason is a little late to the granular party unfortunately. There are some amazing granular synths and effects for iOS, have been for years. I find these a lot of fun. They seem suited to touch screen interaction and they sound great. But as far as Reason is concerned I have to say I'm hanging for Nostromo '2' to see what that's all about before I jump on anything else.