Sweetwater’s synth guru Daniel Fisher highlighted five of his favorite modern FM synths! Which one will you add to your synth rig? Let us know in the comments, and shop them all here 👉 imp.i114863.net/0JNEoN
You should really have a series going through, in detail, practical ways to make fm patches (ie - brass, guitars, winds, etc). Many people would be willing to get into fm synthesis if there was an easy way to learn how to make actually useful sounds
I chose the RefaceDX for learning FM. I am already a 54 year musician designing voices on keyboards, so I understand subtractive very well....which did little to translate to FM. But thanks to just a $300 investment I am getting very comfortable with FM. Such a great interface on the Reface, high quality sound, usable MIDI looper, and I don't feel limited at all with just 4 operators. Then layering FM with subtractive I get really outstanding sounds to orchestrate in my compositions. Some FM designs stand on their own, but most are best layered with subtractive. A world today, fantastic, I get to compose, then fit my sound design perfectly to the song, perform it, record it, add my own effects design, and complete the song...all on 100% hardware in the corner of my office. Glad I lived long enough to live in this age of creativity.
@@sweetwater Short run, that is disappointing. But the RefaceDX I bought from you is a great learning tool and synth, so I still have FM in the studio!! 😊😊
I really like the Volca. Great for the money. Gotta admit, though, I rely on the Dexed plugin. 6 ops, can open DX 7 patches, sounds great, free... but I understand that some people prefer hardware, and that's what this gear is for.
far as i know fm synthesis never really went away. a lot of it just moved to the computer for a long time. stuff like serum and vital all support FM even if not in it's full capacity.
@@sweetwater ..yes it's too bad but I have 2 opsix's in mint condition.. I have other fm synths besides.. but I honestly believe that the opsix is the digital synth of the century..
14:40 - That sound or similar was definitely used by Supertramp in The Logical Song or one of their other tracks I may have heard... Def reminded me of them...
Awesome demo, Daniel. 😎 these synths sound phenomenal. I own a Korg volca fm(version 1) and it sounds killer. Especially since I can get sega genesis/mega drive type synths. My brother own a Yamaha reface dx and it is totally awesome.
Hi Designed Audio. Try watching my "FM Synthesis - A New Explanation" video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-YV9vQGqoO5c.html -_Daniel_
I have the model cycles and really wish I'd purchased something with more than 2 fm operators. It sounds pretty tame even with the built in overdrive effect and there are a lot of traditional fm sounds you just can't get out of it at all. It does have a great sequencer though.
Cool video thanks for making it. I don't have a dedicated FM synth yet either hardware or digital but I'll get one eventually...just not sure which one yet.
I find it interesting that noone mentions Kodamo EssenceFM, which is a very advanced FM synth with looping envelopes, 300-note polyphony, 16-part multitimbral, MPE support, onboard USB Host for controllers, 8 separate audio outs and high quality sound. I guess they're really bad at marketing their products. I have one and have used it at many concerts - people were amazed at the sound quality.
Many people seem to like it more than the digitone. Not as powerful, but I can sit down with it for 20 minutes and get something really deep, whereas the digitone lscks the immediacy
@@jc3drums916 Because he is sellout and only do advertisement? You know that you can still buy Opsix on local stores around the world and you can buy used from second hand. Stop being simps for these guys.
I really like my Elektron Model Cycles. It's a fairly limited FM synth but the comprehensible control options and the beefy sound Elektron gets from its hardware make it just as fun to play with as my analog gear. (plus I think it might be my favourite sequencer, just above the circuit and arturia) I think FM got a bad rap is because it was hard to understand and the interfaces were not well suited to sound design or adding much in the way of interesting dynamics
No, no NO!!! No clicéd DX7 sounds. Show me what the MODX can actually do, not what it can replicate. Those overused eighties sounds are the reason why I hated FM for so long. 14:49 💀 Really?
