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[chordial]

Cool

Check out the O while you're there for me !
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Chordial

[realtrance]

One other thing I'd add is that "fresh from the factory," my sense is that the VirusTI is set up (including factory patches) more for the professional synthesist, with effort, experience and knowledge needed to integrate it into an existing setup. It's a very flexible instrument but, in a nutshell, you're not going to find a lot of patches that are in themselves inspiration for improvisation on their own.

The Radias, by contrast, is very improv-friendly; clearly a lot of very musical thinking has gone into the 4-timbre Programs, and there are many patches that are inspirational to riff on for hours, like Korg's Karma prior to this instrument.

They're both synths that offer far more than is apparent at first glance, in any event, and a joy to tweak and play.

[Khazul]

Maybe thats why alot of people seem to pair a Virus TI with something like a MachineDrum or MonoMachine, or actually a Radias seems to be becoming a common partner for the TI.

As for aim of the professional 'synthesist' yes and no - some implementation choices around midi routing and functionality actually seems very short sighted considering the common setups in hardware based studios - you cant use the USB midi at the same time as the phsyical midi ports like you can on the Radias - complete pain in the ass for those with extensive hardware rigs, so alot of us end up not using the Virus Control software when we would otherwise like to.

I think the Virus TI is actully aimed very much at enticing soft synth types into the hardware world - as well as of course those who just love the virus sound. Certainly probably more than any other synth I have *lots* of idiot postings from pure soft synth people asking the dumbest of question that would be blindingly obvious to anyone who had working with hardware and a DAW before.

The Radias on the other hand is a pure hardware synth with a standalone software editor - so its bought by mostly hardware orientated people who have hardware expertise and expectations - and hence we see none of the rediculous posts seen onver in the various virus forums.

If I had one winge about the virus ti - I personally think it panders too much to these synth noobs - personally I think bollox to them - people are only noobs for a while, not generally forever, so I dont like the way it tries to be an idiot proff nanny - I want flexibility and will take the responsibility - not a friggin nanny!

Hence why I like the radias routing options - very open to the point your are completely free to seriously screw everything up with feedback loops on audio and midi, and so you are free to integrate it how you see fit.
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--- The Studio & Noises ----- Adam G @ MySpace ---

[Daz]

[realtrance]

Khazul,

You may well be right, which is unfortunate, as the level of understanding of USB 2.0 spec, for instance, and how to basically install a USB sound card alongside a MIDI connection between a synth's engine and a PC goes well above, apparently, what most TI users seem able to grok.

Not to mention they don't really seem to understand MIDI at all, apparently, or things like differences between square waves and saw waves, voice limits and note stealing..... quite a host of basics, unfortunately.

[EricG]

Hi!!

I have been testing the RADIAS and the VirusTI for some time. (Had them both at home for about a week).
Before I started tweeking/playing/compering I thought I would like the VirusTI best. But I must say, it is hard to find out what's the best one for me.... but I am leaning towasrds the RADIAS. (And I am not blinded by technoish phrases that pops out of the box when you start to play the RADIAS, not my style....)

This is my impressions:

The RADIAS sound much cleaner. The VirusTI has some strange artifacts in it's sounds in the high register aliasing and other faults. (This is the main reason I am leaning towards the RADIAS). Although the VirusTI is overal a bit fatter sounding than the RADIAS, I also find the VirusTI too be thin in the higher register.

One of the advantages of the virusTI may also be a drawback. Over 2000 preset voices.... lots of cool presets...The VirusTI has some amazing "digital" sounding pads (thanks to it's wave table synthesis), and other great sounds, but.... well I am not sure.

The vocoder in the VirusTI is not designed to make the typical "singing vocoder" that the RADIAS can do. The RADIAS vocoder can't be compeared to the VIrusTI's. The RADIAS is soooo much better.

The whole Total Integration thing with the Virus is a great thought, but does not work glitch free, but they are getting closer with each update.(To me this part is not that important...)

I like the look and keybed feel much better of the VirusTI much better than the RADIAS. But they both have it's faults:
VirusTI: The RED printing for "shift" operation of the knobs and buttons are imposible to see if the lightning isn't optimal.
The portamento is on a shift button like this... makes it very hard to tweek this live. I use this when playing solos... (You have to hold down the shift button and tweek with the other, what hand do you play with then?)
RADIAS: I am not sure if I like the integration with the module and keys. (The cable between then is very rare, if you forget it,... ooops). I wish the module could be tilted to your choosen angle. And the synth deos not look good from the backside... With the module flat it becomes "to long" distance from the keys to the buttons and knobs. And the RADIAS does not have a button for switching between mono and poly operation, I wish it had.) In the deffence of the RADIAS it looks cool from the right angle

Always hard to compare two instruments, one could be right for you another one for me...

[virus_x]

Hello, guys

I’ve had the VIRUS TI for 1 year now (still having it, never gonna give it up) and the RADIAS for 6 months (first I got the VIRUS TI and after some time the RADIAS). After all that time using both the VIRUS TI and the RADIAS, I can say the following:
- it depends on what you’re after and what you wanna do – kind of sounds, music, etc.;
- as far as sound / effects programming, the VIRUS TI is much, much more powerful than the RADIAS, the 2 of them cannot be compared, it would be unfair, the RADIAS would lose by all means – the VIRUS TI is much more complex, it’s depth and the freedom it gives you in programming clearly stands out in the crowd – I think only Clavia Nord Modular G2X would be more powerful than the TI - Clavia Nord Lead 3, Waldorf Q / Q+ are definitely “under” the VIRUS TI (still, bear in mind that the Nord Modular G2X is a different type of synthesizer, it’s made of several different modules put together and assembled in one piece);
- in what Modulators, Oscillators, Filters (the VIRUS TI has copied the Moog filters) and LFOs concern, again, the VIRUS TI wins the game;
- one of RADIAS’ advantages is its PCM sounds and drums;
- another one would be that the RADIAS is much easier to learn, to use and to program – it’s more appropriate for a beginner;
- forget about the presets – it’s true, the VIRUS TI has a lot more ( I downloaded and installed their latest OS – 2.5.1, and now I have something like 2432 presets (banks A – S x 128 presets / bank – I don’t know if there is another hardware synthesizer in the world that actually has more presets than the VIRUS TI) – the RADIAS has much less, and that the VIRUS TI presets sound much better than the RADIAS ones,
BUT:
when you buy such a synth (either VIRUS TI and / or RADIAS), you’re not supposed to stay with the presets more than a couple of weeks – if you just want to entertain yourself or someone else, you can get an arranger – but even in that case you can do a lot of tweaks and combinaTIons between waves, effects, parameters, patterns, drums, functions and so on…);
- presets, in both cases, do not represent more than a starting point – for that matter the VIRUS TI has much more starting points than the RADIAS – but, as time goes by, you’re gonna learn what sound programming / routing, parameters, frequency savvy tweaking really are, and you’re gonna make that big step and start making your own sounds – obviously, not from scratch, but, again, you cannot buy either a VIRUS TI and / or RADIAS just for their presets;
- I cannot say that these are synths just for pros (at least not in the RADIAS case), but you’re gonna do a lot, lot more with both of them than just play the presets and adding some effects;
- I use my VIRUS TI kbd as my main keyboard, as the center / brain of everything and the RADIAS more like a background orchestrator / arranger, even if there are times when I tweak some synth sounds on the RADIAS;
- as far as I’m concerned (and I’m trying to be as objective as one could be), after using both of them for some time, I think that one couldn’t call the RADIAS a synth on its own, it’s more like an extremely powerful groovebox, maybe the most powerful ever – still, the 2 of them perfectly complement each other (where 75% is the VIRUS TI and 25% is the RADIAS);
- on the other hand, the RADIAS is perfect if you want some immediate music available, with all its components – pattern (drum beat), bass line, pad and lead. Moreover, in the case of a party, house, dance, trance music that has to be available in no time, the RADIAS wins the game – it’s much better for commercial music and, again, it’s easier to learn and use;
- if you want to let your creativity, imagination and even fantasy fly up in the skies or if you’re in for some kind of movie music, ambience or whatever, then the VIRUS TI is the solution – in fact, I guess you’re never gonna get bored with it, not in 15 years time – there’s always something new to do with the TI;
- it’s true, it doesn’t have drums / drum beats and you’ll never get your song immediately available like in the RADIAS case, but in all the rest (including design and keyboard feel – here I mean the 61-key version, because the VIRUS Polar keyboard is a little bit lower than its bigger brother), the VIRUS rulz;

My advice is:

- if you have the money, get the VIRUS;
- if you don’t have enough money, borrow some and get the VIRUS;
- if you have money for both of them, get the VIRUS Ti keyboard (either the 61 version or the Polar) and the RADIAS rack (don’t get the RADIAS full package with its keyboard included, ‘cause it sucks) – and then route the VIRUS Ti into the RADIAS by means of MIDI control (I forgot to tell you that the RADIAS vocoder is much, much better than the VIRUS one)
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Access Virus TI kbd
Korg Radias
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[rbox]

[LEVEL4]

My $0.02:

I own both a Radias and a VirusTI Polar. And I'm glad I own BOTH. IMO, both offer unique sonic and functional qualities, neither of which are matched by any of my other synths (Fantom-X, V-Synth GT). But, to me, the Virus represents the Holy Grail of cool sounds. And there's a TON of them. And anything unworldly weird, or exquisitely exotic, I leave for the Virus to handle, since I know it's what that machine does so superbly.

But the Radias, is just so . . . I dunno. Fun. As a sound designer, I would definitely choose the Virus over ther Radias, since it's clearly the more "capable" machine, and is technically, more able to produce more complex sounds. It's great for producing interesting and mysterious-sounding, "less-non-repeating-sounding," sound beds for soundtrack work. The Radias, less so. But, I would HATE to give up EITHER of them.
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Fantom-G8 | V-Synth GT | VirusTI Polar | Radias