I finally caved and bought omnisphere 2
 

The usb boxed edition as it worked out much cheaper buying it in AUD locally than buying the download online. I really want RMX, trilian and Keyscape as well, but that will have to be in a couple months. One every 2 months so hopefully by winter i'll have them all (aussie winter US summer).

Standard free post so will be here around wednesday the 22nd.

Tell me what to expect..How's cpu usage on it when playing high polyphony long release pads?

It's basically the ultimate "rompler" right? A variety of ready to play sounds in all genres, with multi timbral capability and it's own mixer with EFX?

Where does it excel for you? What sound category?

How's the onboard synth? Quite basic I once read, but good to layer in with the samples?

If you have Halion Sonic or Halion 6 also, how do you feel it compares to that? I LOVE halion sonic, it's my favourite virtual plugin "rompler" thus far, but it is pretty nasty on the CPU and has a very cluttered interface. Omni interface seems very streamlined and pleasant.

Anyway.. looking forward to it.. I wonder if you can still use it for 3 days prior registration like you could a couple years back?... That way I could audition every sound and see if my imac pro can deal with using a reasonable number of them.. If not, I could just sell it on unregistered (otherwise there is a $50 fee). It's the single most expensive plugin I have bought in YEARS, but I have always wanted it.. I am pretty sure it will give me what i am after, just a ton of usable sounds of various instruments and pads.. like an xpand 2 on steroids.

But would love to hear from others, and how well it works in PT. :)

Cheers.

Re: I finally caved and bought omnisphere 2
 

Its way more than a romPler. Omni has very in depth sound design features that allow you to easily create your own patches, either using the multiple wave forms and samples that come with it, or by importing your own samples. the latest version is 2.6 so make sure that's what you have. If not, once you've installed it on your system, I'd highly recommend updating. Its a free update for any owners of 2.0 or higher.



It comes loaded with hundreds of great patches and multis to get you started. They also have setups that will auto-map certain midi controllers to omnisphere such as Nord Stage or Nord 1, 2, 3 or 4, or Yamaha Reface CS, and about 30 others. That means that when you choose that set up, if you have one of those controllers, everything is premapped onto Omnisphere so all the knobs and sliders on the controller work instantly with the parameters in Omni. Also, they provide all kinds of patches in the style of those same synths. Not exact emulations, but definitely in the family.



Omni is a monster without a doubt. You'll need to take time with it to understand the layout an how the various components integrate. It is a full on sound design synth.



It can be a bit of a resource hog depending on the patch (or multi) and what system you're running. I have an older windows based Dell (see my signature below for the exact system) and I do run into a CPU clog every once in a while with Omni. If you have a newer more powerful CPU you might not notice anything. Of course track freeze or commit can alleviate that issue.



There are also several good places to pick up 3rd party patch and multi libraries for it. One in particular, which I highly recommend is Plug-in Guru. John (Skippy) Lehmkuhl is the "guru" and he's a superb sound designer. He has lots of helpful videos on his website about the various patches for Omni that will help you better understand it. And his libraries are excellent. I own about 15 of them and they're all just great.



Finally, there are several helpful tutorial videos on the Spectrsonics website.



Good luck and most of all HAVE FUN with it!! ;)

Re: I finally caved and bought omnisphere 2
 

Thanks Donald for such a thoughtful reply.

It seems like I will really enjoy it.

Currently the imac pro in my sig, where it will be installed, is around double in single core performance, and 2.5x the multi core in Geekbench and Cinebench.

These don't always translate to DAW and plugin use but it does mean that I'll be ok to play Omnisphere at a 128 buffer.

Pro Tool's freeze and commit is exceptional and I am not at all adverse to using it, but I do like to get as much done in realtime as possible with VI's. This is only because I find midi easier to edit than audio.

I am very well aware of Johns' work, he's an exceptional sound designer. I bought a few of his products at his Xmas sale, and I will get some of the omnisphere titles next sale.

Cheers

Re: I finally caved and bought omnisphere 2
 

Then I'd say you're all set and you're in for a real treat! It will be "Just slide the pizza under the door please" time! :D


One of the features I really like in Omni is the plethora of fx they have and the multiple ways you can apply them. There are some very creative fx included, nicely done visually for ease of use, but also nicely done sonically, for good sound.



Omni is also a true multi-timbral VI in that you can have up to 8 separate patches layered together (each made up of up to 4 separate oscillators (or samples), mapped however you wish across the keyboard, and each can be individually controlled on their own MIDI channel, AND, each can have their audio routed out to separate audio/aux tracks.



You can also import your own MIDI grooves to make your own arps to add to the dozens already on board.



Its a real powerhouse!


Enjoy!

Re: I finally caved and bought omnisphere 2
 

I bought it six months ago, and I'm still getting to know it. The presets are so good that I haven't gone beyond that yet. It's a fantastic plugin, and because of its versatility, is quickly becoming one of the only things I use.

tg

Re: I finally caved and bought omnisphere 2
 

Yeah, I hear you! I bounce between Omni, Falcon 2, and, quite often, Dune 3 even though I have 40+ other VI's.