Announcing Solaris v3!

johnbowen · Post by **johnbowen** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 5:27 am

Hi everyone,

I wanted to let everyone know about a significant upgrade I've just released for Solaris - version 3.0!

The changes are detailed as follows:

1) New RDX section - this stands for "RD Extended". While working some time ago on the Solaris Jr. (which I subsequently decided not to build), I had the idea of this multifunction oscillator, that essentially represents one each of the current oscs types already in the Solaris.

When you select the RD Oscs page (Now 'RDX 1/2'), you will find labels that default to 'RDX1 MM' and 'RDX2 MM'. These are popup selector lists that, instead of just the RD Slot, give you one each of the current osc sections. This allows the user to have 4 of the same type of oscillator going on in the Solaris, which was not possible before.

2) All Filters in all sections - I decided there was no real reason to limit each filter group to a certain type, since all filter blocks get offloaded from the DSP when they are not selected. However, for backward compatibility's sake, I kept the LP, HP, BP, and Comb designations.You will find that each filter section can now select from any of the filters.

3) The Vibrato LFO has been changed to a multimode LFO, with most of the parameters that comes with the multimode LFO added: Delayed start (DelS), Fade In control, Retrig and Phase options, and MIDI clockability.

4) Dynamic Mix Control - A highly requested feature, this allows you to modulate each of the 16 mixer input levels individually from the full mod source list.

5) Sync source for MM osc 1, RDX 1 MM osc - now selectable from most other sources for sync input.

6) The Mod Source menus for most destinations have added the Rotor 1/2 and RDX 1/2 as sources.

7) No Track, Midi sync, and Low Freq Range have been added to a number of oscillator sections. Also, for the No Trk button - all places this button shows up now bring up a wide range frequency control displayed in Hertz.

Pre/Post routing for 'Off Send to Main Mix' - when the button is green, the full signal of the filter mixer is sent to the Off Send Modulation Source path, bypassing the Level control and any associated modulations.

9) Envelope Follower Input - now a popup menu choice of Ext L, Ext R, Int L pre FX, Int R pre FX, Int L post FX, Int R post FX

10) 2 outputs added to device - these are the dry, pre FX signal, called Pre L and Pre R

11) Standard Creamware FX Bypass switch icon added in upper right. This will bypass all effects (both the internal and insert FX).

I hope you will agree these additions make this incredible synthesizer even more flexible and powerful! I will be posting new screen shots in the next few days, but to order your Solaris v3.0 upgrade now, please use the following link:

https://secure.element5.com/shareit/che ... ge=English

Upgrade price is 40 Euros (about $55). (If you recently purchased your Solaris - in September, October, or November - you will get the upgrade free of charge.)

Thank you for your support and interest in Zarg products!

Sincerely,

Post by **hubird** » Fri Nov 19, 2004 7:00 am

thanks John, I'll check it out

wolf · Post by **wolf** » Sat Nov 20, 2004 3:49 am

hubird,

you should .. it has really grown to a very deep synth.
I made some cool blubber bass yesterday with it.
Fine shit, that beast

decimator · Post by **decimator** » Sat Nov 20, 2004 6:19 pm

No you shouldn't, you MUST !!!!!

The long list of new features above means Solaris is more than ever a lifetime investment, the possibilities are just plain staggering and I've just scratched the surface ...
Frankly, if you're into synths, have 6 DSPs or more and don't buy it ... you need help !

I made a 60 presets bank on it, mainly of weird & dark pads and sounds, John will make them public soon to show a little of Solaris mighty powers ( and those are just first steps into new realms )

In my opinion, it has all covered : from a very large range of basic sounds to extremely complex pads !

Furthermore, I like working with it because it can change directions very quickly with few tweaks and never gets boring, always stimulating and evil at shortening the sleep nights.

Shayne White · Post by **Shayne White** » Sat Nov 20, 2004 7:01 pm

I got it originally mainly because it had all the Prophet-5 goodies, and the other items were add-ons...now that it has everything including the kitchen sink, it's a must-have! The modulation and routing options are its best features -- there are just so many things you can do! One great addition in the latest version is the amplitude modulation with level offset: it allows you to do tremolo. And, now that all filters lie in all filter banks, you can have a true stereo Prophet-5 filter! How can you beat that??

Shayne

caleb · Post by **caleb** » Sat Nov 20, 2004 11:46 pm

I'm not sure which version of Solaris I now own but it wasn't that long after it came out so it's probably 1.x. My music computer is frazzled so I can't really check.

What upgrade price would I need to pay to get v3?

Do I pay the same upgrade price as v2.x owners?

Just curious.

Post by **hubird** » Sat Nov 20, 2004 11:51 pm

...let alone the very fast and accurate GUI reaction

it's definitely a topper

decimator · Post by **decimator** » Sun Nov 21, 2004 4:59 am

Even if you pay 2 X 40 euros for a V1 to V3 upgrade, it's still an an awesome bargain and worth every euros !

OT : On the other hand when Sonic Foundry were charging 149 $ for each update, I waited some time for a 4.5 to 7 plunge and just paid 99 $ because I bought it in the grace period !

Ah also, BUY the Red Dwarf modules extension, it's an another bargain ! and if you have the modular + Flexor or the Spacef satellites ( I think they work too ) well even more crazy possibilities for the sanes and insanes.

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: decimator on 2004-11-21 04:59 ]</font>

caleb · Post by **caleb** » Sun Nov 21, 2004 7:54 am

I think I should just ask John I guess.

I haven't got Flexor yet or the various RD products.

I'm sure I will eventually but I found there was so much to learning Solaris the last time that I didn't need to overcomplicate it straight away.

Anyway - I have Modular III so I can grow in that direction before I grow in multiple other directions.

It's really good to know that its a synth that grows with you though.

I liked it when I first purchased it and I believe version 2 made some improvements in the patch building workflow. Looking forward to updating the package when I get the chance.

decimator · Post by **decimator** » Sun Nov 21, 2004 8:45 am

I find Solaris to be a nice complement to the Modular and the various third party modules ( Adern, J9K ... )
Presets in certains cases can be assimilated as a modular patch and you gain a huge amount of time by not having to load then wire / unwire all the time not to mention you have a clear view of modulations and not wires clogging the view ( if you want to follow what's going on ... ).
It offers quite complex possibilities if you want to go deep and quite simple options for a huge number of basic tasks and presets !

caleb · Post by **caleb** » Sun Nov 21, 2004 10:35 am

On 2004-11-21 08:45, decimator wrote:
I find Solaris to be a nice complement to the Modular and the various third party modules ( Adern, J9K ... )
Presets in certains cases can be assimilated as a modular patch and you gain a huge amount of time by not having to load then wire / unwire all the time not to mention you have a clear view of modulations and not wires clogging the view ( if you want to follow what's going on ... ).
It offers quite complex possibilities if you want to go deep and quite simple options for a huge number of basic tasks and presets !

Sounds like I will be coming to you for lessons when I get it all up and running again.

decimator · Post by **decimator** » Sun Nov 21, 2004 12:09 pm

Lessons ? I may not be the best technician around !
Practice, tweak fast, experiment, pinpoint why and how a preset moves is what I can do but planning from scratch in the head a preset by weighting how much each element will interfere, that, I'll be never able to compute !

decimator · Post by **decimator** » Thu Nov 25, 2004 2:53 pm

A little noodling with the new presets : Solaris 3 ( 5.6 MB )

I'am very far from having exploited a fraction of the new possibilities so you can fathom the potential !

elektrolurch · Post by **elektrolurch** » Fri Nov 26, 2004 5:29 pm

@ decimator:
Are you sure you can make MUSIC with these
noises?!?!

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: elektrolurch on 2004-11-26 17:29 ]</font>

decimator · Post by **decimator** » Sat Nov 27, 2004 7:37 am

No !! it has never been done and will never happen since it's widely accepted that musicians are not a creative kind.

johnbowen · Post by **johnbowen** » Mon Nov 29, 2004 1:04 am

Hi,

There is now a demo version of Solaris v3.0. Just send me an email requesting the Demo, and I will send out the necessary files.

peace,

Ganool · Post by **Ganool** » Mon Nov 29, 2004 5:57 am

On 2004-11-25 14:53, decimator wrote:
A little noodling with the new presets : Solaris 3 ( 5.6 MB )

I'am very far from having exploited a fraction of the new possibilities so you can fathom the potential !

Absolutely fantastic...

Carl

Ben Walker · Post by **Ben Walker** » Mon Nov 29, 2004 12:40 pm

On 2004-11-26 17:29, elektrolurch wrote:
@ decimator:
Are you sure you can make MUSIC with these
noises?!?!

I think you already know this, elektrolurch, but let there be absolutely no misunderstanding about whether you can make music with Solaris. Decimator's wonderful presets are pushing at one extreme of the possibilities that can be acheived with Solaris, but don't be mistaken into thinking that Solaris can only be used to make this sort of alarming noisescape!
Solaris is capable of a huge and varied range of sounds covering pretty much all the bases (and basses for that matter). You know all of those preset types that are there to chose from in the preset window - well Solaris can do all of those and much more besides. I will never tire of experimenting and playing with this synth.

As decimator already said, it's like having a massive modular system without the complications that modules and wiring can bring. For someone who likes the idea of a modular system, but is put off by the modular interface, this is an ideal synth. And for those of you who are into the modular already, the Solaris Red Dwarf combo opens up even more possibilities!

It's like having all of John's previous CW synths rolled up into one (and that's saying something, is it not?) and then having a load of extra functionality added on top.

I have a load of presets brewing, and will record some of those for you soon. The only problem is that I keep getting distracted by the synth to dig deeper, so I never get round to doing the recording.

There are also banks of presets from a number of other experts, so you already have a great starting point when you get the synth.

Now that there's a demo available, there's no excuse not to give it a try.

Cheers,
Ben

braincell · Post by **braincell** » Tue Nov 30, 2004 11:32 am

I went to the zarg site but couldn't find any demo mp3 samples. Honestly I can't afford it soon but I am curious to hear it. You really need some samples up there. I prefer that to a demo program.

decimator · Post by **decimator** » Tue Nov 30, 2004 5:07 pm

Thanks Carl and Ben !

Indeed this new bank is just there to say : " Solaris can also do those kind of sounds "
Solaris has many facets, there are plenty of ways to approach and use it ...
I would try the demo instead of some mp3's because it can do too much things : that can't be exposed in some files.
When you can, I recommend you test at 96 Khz, like many other synths at that rate, it really shines !

I often choose to sacrifice some voices for that extra clarity.