Poly Evolver...unreal...

[Dave Bryce]

Okay, so the Poly Evolver showed up today.

 

I am completely blown away by this thing! It's actually got a different vibe than the mono Evolver does. This one is much more like an instrument to me - I can't stop playing it, where the mono Evolver makes me wanna spend more time programming. It's not just the polyphony thing either - I'm sure the different interface is affecting the vibe as well.

 

But I'm here to tell you...this is my kinda good time. I've owned bunches of Dave's gear over the years (who hasn't), and I actually think this may be his best piece of work...certainly one of them. It has the raw grungy digital edge of my Prophet VS, and that big classic Prophet V-type sound as well - and, it does a bunch more than either of them. I think the tunable feedback alone is kinda worth the price of admission.

 

It sounds as good (if not better) than any analog/subtractive synth that I have ever heard. I really hope more people get turned on to this piece - it deserves to be a monster hit.

 

Here's the messed up thing - I still haven't made it over to Combi mode yet - I'm still just in program mode!

 

I'll be back...

 

dB

[synthetic]

Sweet, post some MP3 examples. The demos I've heard so far are tweaky experimental stuff, I want to hear some Bryce-style stuff from the box.

[Dave Bryce]

Oh, I'll certainly get to that...

 

The ones on Dave\'s web site are pretty creative, I thought. I especially like this one .

 

The little version of Promenade piece made me think of Switched-On Bach...

 

dB

[Magpel]

Now you're making me ill.

[Dave Bryce]

You're gonna need one, Mags...sorry...

 

dB

[MikeT156]

Dave:

 

It's a good thing you're so far away, or I might have to KILL you. I listened to the demos on Dave Smith's site and came away really impressed. For years I was totally convinced that I would never want/need another synth of that nature in my rig again; you know, "have 'em". The reason I want to kill you is......now I want to get a poly and I don't have the $$$ right now! I will get it.

 

What are you using for a controller?

 

Cheers, you lucky dog!

 

Mike T.

[Unsound Practices]

"It sounds as good (if not better) than any analog/subtractive synth that I have ever heard."

 

Hey Dave - You have two Andromedas and an MKS-80, among other things, right? GAS aside, would a PolyEvolver (or two!) make you use those units less? Does it compliment or compete with the Andy and the Super Jupiter?

 

Thanks!

[Dave Bryce]

Originally posted by MikeT156:

What are you using for a controller?

Right now I just have it MIDI'd up to my K2000. I haven't fully integrated it into the studio setup yet - I just wanna play with it for a little while...

 

Originally posted by Unsound Practices:

Hey Dave - You have two Andromedas and an MKS-80, among other things, right?

Yes...and a MiniMoog as well, if you wanna talk ol' fashioned analog goodness.

 

GAS aside, would a PolyEvolver (or two!) make you use those units less? Does it compliment or compete with the Andy and the Super Jupiter?

That's like asking if a Prophet V would compete with a Jupiter-8 - different sound, you know?

 

I just heard a Jupiter-type string patch on the Poly that was spot-on...I've also heard some things that were waaaaay American Power synth sounding (deeply my kind of good time). I think it'll make an excellent compliment to my rig without really overshadowing anything else, but only time will tell how accurate that will turn out to be.

 

Actually, if any synth is gonna get used less as a result of the Poly's presence, it'll probably be the Prophet VS.

 

dB

[synthetica]

If you like those on Dave's site you might want to have a look at Stefan's site for many more, and join the Yahoo Evolver group for a daily dose of these from him.

 

http://www.trippler.net/music/DSI-Evolver/PolyEvolver/polyevolver.html

 

http://www.trippler.net/music/DSI-Evolver/dsi-evolver.html

[Dave Bryce]

Cool! Thanks for the links!

 

Some of the ones from the first page you linked to are also posted on Dave's site.

 

dB

[Ski 1642606170]

Glad you're enjoying the Poly, Dave!

 

Synthetica Don is correct - Stefan Trippler makes the best stuff around with the Poly and the Evo! I love his demos and songs.

 

Here are a few of my own... these are mp3's of four of the Poly Evolver "Combo" presets that I programmed. They are 100% Poly Evolver Combo sequences, with no overdubs or layering, no external effects, etc. etc. I just hit the "Start" button and recorded:

 

UrbanAmazon.mp3 712 Kb

- A slick analog/digital electronic beat. It's a four part Combo, but I only authored one of the four Programs that went into the Combo. I especially like the analog cymbal.

 

RollingHills.mp3 824 Kb

- Kind of a bubbly, atmospheric, drone/pad kind of thing.

 

Zeequence_3.mp3 550 Kb

- A funky rhythm made from a combination of my own sequences and one from another author.

 

MartianDance.mp3 592 Kb

- This was my best attempt to sound like Steven West. It helps to have a good subwoofer that goes *real* low for this one.

 

Hope you enjoy them. Dave, don't bother to download these, as you'll be playing them live as soon as you hit Combo mode.

[Sergievsky]

Thanks Dave et al for sharing your thoughts, and links, to the PolyEvolver. I listened to all the demos (iTunes is so awesome) and came away impressed. It cost a little more than I thought, but I guess when you compare it to what's out there the price ain't bad. Too bad money is a bit tight now, but this thing is on my radar. Tnx guys.

[RABid]

Originally posted by Dave Bryce:

.... I think the tunable feedback alone is kinda worth the price of admission....

This statement has me intrigued. Does it have the same effect as those patches on the Chroma? (Yes, Im bringing that one up again.) Im speaking of the patches where you pull the mod level and get a feedback sound? The feedback loop is one of the features of the Chroma that I really miss is it was put to use on many stock patches. Does it work the same on the PolyEvolver? (What I really miss was that Chroma patch that faked the low rumble of an amp during feedback.)

 

Robert

[Mark Zeger]

Damn it!

 

I have open rack space and no "modern" analog gear.

 

Damn it, damn it, damn it!

 

The question is: $1400 for a PolyEvolver or approx. $1600 for a used Andromeda? Hmmm...

[Odyssian]

Pff! I've got you all beat... I want one of these too now, but I'm unemployed!!!! LOL!!

[Dave Bryce]

Originally posted by Rabid:

Originally posted by Dave Bryce:

.... I think the tunable feedback alone is kinda worth the price of admission....

This statement has me intrigued. Does it have the same effect as those patches on the Chroma? (Yes, Im bringing that one up again.) Im speaking of the patches where you pull the mod level and get a feedback sound? The feedback loop is one of the features of the Chroma that I really miss is it was put to use on many stock patches. Does it work the same on the PolyEvolver?

Honestly, Rab - I was always too put off by the Chroma's interface to dig as deeply into it's architecture as I could have, so I'm not sure; however, since the feedback in the Poly seems to be generated by the delay circuit, it may not be the same thing.

 

Basically, the Evolver has a delay circuit (per channel) that can produce up to three taps (each side can be separately modulated by time or level). The output of the delay can either be mixed into the L/R channels, or mixed back to the input of the delay for repeating delays or tuned feedback. Another feedback path lets you route the delay output back to the input of the analog (Curtis) filter for more extreme feedback effects.

 

The feedback's parameters are Frequency (tunable in semitones over a four octave range), Level (which will eventually oscillate as it is driven harder) and Grunge (which adds...well...grunge ). Filter frequency and the number of poles used can also influence the tuning by driving it either slightly sharp or flat. Also, lower levels of feedback can add a nice touch of instability/animation without making the sound nasty.

 

My description of this function (aided by the manual) doesn't do it justice, unfortunately. Maybe I'll try and make an mp3 of it so you can hear what it does...unless brother Ski already has such a thing...

 

dB

[RABid]

Originally posted by Dave Bryce:

... My description of this function (aided by the manual) doesn't do it justice, unfortunately. Maybe I'll try and make an mp3 of it so you can hear what it does...unless brother Ski already has such a thing...

 

dB

That will work. Thanks.

 

Robert

[Geoff Grace]

Congratulations Dave on your new addition!

 

It's probably too early to ask Dave this; but for those of you who have been using Poly Evolver for awhile, how do you like the editing software ? Is it intuitive? Also, what controller(s) do you recommend for easy live tweaking of Poly Evolver's parameters?

 

Best,

 

Geoff

[Gulliver]

Originally posted by Dave Bryce:

Oh, I'll certainly get to that...

 

The ones on Dave\'s web site are pretty creative, I thought. I especially like this one .

 

The little version of Promenade piece made me think of Switched-On Bach...

 

dB

Oh they sound so sweeeet!...

[Marzzz]

Originally posted by Geoff Grace:

for those of you who have been using Poly Evolver for awhile, how do you like the editing software ? Is it intuitive? Also, what controller(s) do you recommend for easy live tweaking of Poly Evolver's parameters?

I have the editor for Macintosh, and to put it politely, it positively stinks- very buggy, very slow, bad graphics (ADSR graphs have a bug that puts it back to zero), and it will not accept sysex dumps from the Poly. Considering how great the synth is, the editor (at least for Mac) is a huge disappointment.

 

Note: This software is specific for the Poly and is included for free. The link above is for the Evolver editor and it costs extra.

[mate stubb]

Originally posted by Rabid:

The feedback loop is one of the features of the Chroma that I really miss is it was put to use on many stock patches. Does it work the same on the PolyEvolver? (What I really miss was that Chroma patch that faked the low rumble of an amp during feedback.)

 

Robert

Huh? I've owned a Chroma for years and never heard of a feedback loop. What do you mean?

[Geoff Grace]

Marzzz, thanks for your reply and for your heads up about the software (and my link). Do you happen to know if Dave Smith is aware of the bugs and attempting to fix them?

 

Best,

 

Geoff

[Dave Bryce]

Originally posted by Geoff Grace:

Marzzz, thanks for your reply and for your heads up about the software (and my link). Do you happen to know if Dave Smith is aware of the bugs and attempting to fix them?

I just talked to Dave.

 

He didn't write the editing software. Apparently, the same guy who wrote the PC editor also wrote the Mac one, and Dave says that he's more of a PC guy than a Mac guy.

 

Dave also says that because he's not a Mac guy he's never tried the Mac version, but he'd like to know more about the problems in order that they can be resolved.

 

I'll try the Mac editor myself and see what's up. Marzzz, are you using OS 10.3.3?

 

dB

[Ski 1642606170]

Dave, I just read your description of the feedback circuits, and I'm not sure, but you *may* be a bit mixed up on one issue....

 

Not counting the stereo duplicates, there are actually THREE feedback circuits in the Evo engine, not two. Two of these three feedback loops do come off the delay taps, one of which feeds right back into the delay circuit, with the other going back into the lowpass filter, as you correctly described. These two feedback loops simply have "amount" controls - no "frequency" or "grunge".

 

The third feedback loop (the one with the frequency and grunge controls) however, is separate, and has nothing to do with the delay taps. This third feedback loop pulls its signal from just downstream of the amp and highpass filter, and feeds back into the lowpass filter. check your "signal path" diagram in the manual, and you'll see what I mean.

 

The whole thing is incredibly versatile.

 

Getting back to Rabid's original question, though I don't have a Chroma, I think the answer has to be an unqualified "yes". You most certainly CAN set up a mod wheel (or aftertouch, or an LFO, or an envelope, or just about anything!) to control the feedback amount and/or frequency. I don't think I have an mp3 of a patch or sequence that demonstrates this, but I think one of Dave Smith's original demos for the Evolver may have included one.

 

Geoff, regarding the software, this is just a personal preference, but I like using the Evolver's own interface. I have the Evo and the Poly linked (MIDI & audio), and use the Evo as the programmer for the Poly, too. I'm probably a bad guy to ask, though. As much as I love computers, I almost always strongly prefer doing my patch editing on the dedicated hardware interface of the synth itself.

[mate stubb]

Originally posted by Ski · EX5Tech:

Getting back to Rabid's original question, though I don't have a Chroma, I think the answer has to be an unqualified "yes". You most certainly CAN set up a mod wheel (or aftertouch, or an LFO, or an envelope, or just about anything!) to control the feedback amount and/or frequency.

You are the second person who has said this. AFAIK, there is NO way to do feedback with the Chroma, and I've owned one since 1982.

 

Unless we are talking about different things, that is. Again, what do you mean by feedback?

 

(hoping to find some secret glorious feature that I've overlooked for 20 odd years)

[Ski 1642606170]

Sorry, Moe. I really didn't mean to imply that *I* know that a Chroma can do feedback. I was just assuming that it could based on Rabid's post. I've never had the pleasure of programming a Chroma, and I'm sure (based on your avatar alone!) that you've *forgotten* more than I'll ever know about Chromas!

 

Perhaps Rabid has simply heard a Chroma patch that just *simulates* feedback - you know, where you set up the mod wheel to bring up the volume of another oscillator that's making a screeching "feedback-like" sound?

[Dave Bryce]

Originally posted by Ski · EX5Tech:

The third feedback loop (the one with the frequency and grunge controls) however, is separate, and has nothing to do with the delay taps. This third feedback loop pulls its signal from just downstream of the amp and highpass filter, and feeds back into the lowpass filter. check your "signal path" diagram in the manual, and you'll see what I mean.

You're right, Ski - I wasn't clear on that. So, there are two feedback loops going into the lowpass filter - one from the delay line (non-tunable, non-grungeable) and one post-VCA (tunable, grungeable).

 

Thanks for explaining.

 

dB

[marino]

Originally posted by Ski · EX5Tech:

Perhaps Rabid has simply heard a Chroma patch that just *simulates* feedback - you know, where you set up the mod wheel to bring up the volume of another oscillator that's making a screeching "feedback-like" sound?

I seem to remember that there was a nice preset in the Chroma, which did exactly that: moving the lever brough up another sound, an octave plus a fifth apart.

 

Also, I can confirm that with all its wonderful routings, filter FM, etc., no one of the configuration algorithms in the Chroma provided feedback. Plenty of cross-modulations between the two channels, but no feedback. Strange.

 

Sigh... I want my Chroma back...

[Marzzz]

Originally posted by Geoff Grace:

Marzzz, thanks for your reply and for your heads up about the software (and my link). Do you happen to know if Dave Smith is aware of the bugs and attempting to fix them?

Geoff- The software was written by Soundtower (www.soundtower.com/), a third-party developer. Both Dave Smith and Soundtower have been made aware of problems, mostly from the Mac side of things. We are awaiting updates, but as noted elsewhere, it seems Soundtower is more comfortable in the PC realm. Can't really blame DSI at all here, but this has been dragging on for some time. But hey, it DOES respond to Poly AT (MidiBoard!!!!!), and you CAN control it with a Peavey 1600x.

 

dB- I am using OS X 10.3.4

[synthetica]

For an example of the Poly's feedback you might have a listen at one of the factory patches I did called Feedback 1 or Feedback 2 or something like that. If I remeber correctly the mod wheel or aftertouch modulates the feedback and makes some interesting sounds.