The ULTIMATE Virtual Analog Synth? // Groove Synthesis 3rd Wave 

Thank you, Devin - Great video! Great sounds! And since it is mentioned several times, I want to explain a bit more about the Circuit Drift setting. This control changes many settings "under the hood," and it does not work in the same way that the Sequential vintage knob works, but it is related. The feature was also re-vamped with some good suggestions from Jason, (Creative Spiral), so that it is closer to what happens per voice on an older synth. Thanks Jason! Also, remember that you have 3 oscillators for each voice. Some of the great sounds that Devin came up with were just one oscillator with the patch split to bi-aural. Finally, each of the multi-parts can not only be panned as Devin is showing, but each of those parts can have its own tuning. (See the volume/tuning button right next to the pan button.) Thanks again Devin - as I like to say, Rippin' Action!

All credit to Creative Spiral who did all the groundwork for the circuit drift values in his comprehensive Voice Component Modelling research. His work was also used by Arturia on the Polybrute. Hoping he gets asked to work with other companies on this stuff as it’s brilliant. Hoping he’ll get to work with UDO on the Super Gemini.

Thanks again. Your demos are getting better and better, and, as an analog guy, I love your selection of synths.

Killer - no surprise! Excellent take as always. This synth really is the one to beat right now!

The 3rd wave is next to the Nonlinear Labs C15 one of the few synths that always catches my attention. It just sounds incredibly good.

Great overview, Devin! And that demo track at 1:47... excellent! Such a great sounding synth.

A really useful video. I’ve been obsessed with the wavetables since I received my 3rd Wave, but this has opened up a new, classic palette of sounds. Thank you so much.

Demo sounds great! It fits into your set up so well. You have a great handle on creating pop tracks using these great analogs and virtual analogs. Keep it up!

Great video, thanks for posting this. I had a OB6 that I had to sell, and it was the most rich and luscious sounding synth I've ever owned. I miss it greatly. The patches you played with the 3rd Wave has that deep rich sound, with juicy fizzy sounding filters...I love it.

gorgeous sounds!

I’m stoked to see you on this synth again, I am 100% getting one…hopefully an open box 😂

Compelling. Nice demonstration! Thank you.

Super demo song at the beginning. Thanks.

Exellent as usual !!! Should i point out that you're one of the few to talk actually of gainstaging , thks for that !!! Specially whe i hear people trashing this or that synth drive while they crank 3osc full volume and wonder why it's crap lol This thing is a beauty , i'm not surpirsed because even the Waldorf is imho one of the best virtual analog , thks to it's spot on filter / nev interaction !! Would love to see a desktop module for that baby .....

Incredible Demo 👌 Amazing Video 💯 ❤ loved 23:10 😃 What a Synth 🤩 Awesome 👌 😍 🙌

Yep, another one nice synth video! Thanks

very good and clear, thanks !

I also use my Waldorf Microwave 1 mainly for analog sounds. The Curtis chips are amazing.

Superb!

0.5 sec in the sound and instant like :) edit: 02:35 Wooooohoooo..! awesome bro, realy nice, well done

Really impressing.

Thanks, my 3rd Wave is on it's way to me. Moor of you custom patches please. I have your OB-X8 set and now the 3rd Wave.

Had my 3rd wave 5 hours........ I spent most of that time comparing it with both my Prophet 6 and OB6. Both could go if the 3W could cover them (making room for something else - Nina). Well... it was VERY apparent very quickly it can ABSOLUTELY do the Prophet 6 sound.... The only real things that its not quite right at is how it re-triggers if a Filter Env is used. The P6 retriggers from the position of the env when you change keys - but the 3W restarts the env each time. Having that as an option would be great. The env curve arnt quite right either (though its not supposed to be copying a P6) and having the option to change those curves beyond "exponential" and "PPG" would be great. When it came to the OB6 - not so much. the resonance isnt as pronounced on 3W meaning those archetypal high res filter sweeps just arent as good. Theres also a coupe of other small things that just made it not quite there (in the notch aspect). Certainly gets the feel but noticeably different (not the case with the P6). So - my P6 is up for sale, but not my OB6 ... YET ....i like to bake FX into my sound BUT as Polybrute (which I have) and 3W get the FEEL of the OB with their respective SVFs, I MIGHT go all in for a character synth and grab the OB8x and an Eventide H90 as a permanently connected, midi switchable FX unit. Thats a lot more outlay though, so might be a few months.

🔥🔥🔥

Most of the 80s music we all love is made on digital synths or samplers. In the 80s, nobody cared about digital or analog. It’s time to bury the myth.

u r the second one i ve come accross . the first one was state azure . i hear plenty of types . ones like yours and his i use as background play . awesome . he makes very long ones this the first one of yours i am hearing now .{ Iam just here near Dunkirk .ny usa . }

I'm really impressed at just how analog this thing really sounds. Combine that and the fact it has a real analog filter, a SVF filter, sweet effects, and 24 voices with 4 part multitimbrality and it appears to give many other analog synths a run for their money!!! Thank you so much h for doing this video. I am now convinced, and I haven't even seen one in person or played it yet!!!!!

I really would have heared a saw patch with 100 percent filtertracking and resonance quite before self oscillation and long release. Ob6 does this amazing for example. I am sure the 3rd wave doesn't disappoint.

Hey Miles! Love your videos. If you could only have one synth, what would it be? It would need to cover a lot of ground!

Prophet X does similar things. Two high definition digital oscillators and two samples per layer. Analog filters and envelopes. Tons of modulation possible.

Incredible sound. Wish it was cheaper.....but you get what you pay for. :-)

🖤🖤

It really is a great design that sounds fantastic. Having access to the individual components in circuit drift would be even better, but I am not sure how much changes from the programmed levels would end up being used? I am not holding my breath, but would love to see a "little brother" (maybe 2 oscillators, 8 voice, bi-timbral 4 octave) under $2k. Part of me thinks from a business perspective in the long run they might have been better off leading with something like that then a desktop a year later then the "big daddy" here a year after that - time will tell.

Great video thanks. Is it doable to use the 3rd Wave multitimbrally? IE 4 synths in one? As opposed the stacking and layering I see so many do? Its just £5000 for 4 synths an easier pill to swallow. Im not really one for multitracking to DAW or whatever.

Love this synth, but for me it's like the OB-X8... I want a module as I have a surplus of keyboards and a dearth of space. A module with half the polyphony and downsized components for around $1,700 USD would be a big win.

I absolutely love your reviews however similar to yourself I can find awesomeness or uniqueness and strengths in every piece of gear. You also did that tiered classification which was great. I guess I also watch all these similar videos to find out what sucks about them. If you like everything it's hard to know what not to buy. Some fortunate people get to buy everything so they don't have a dog in the fight. Maybe do a "what smells" video explaining shortcomings. Like a glass in half-empty roasting video. Also maybe do a "best or most convenient features" comparison and a "simply sounds the best" no matter the features. I know it's hard because so many of these have special talents like a skill player in sports. Compare these to famous athletes. Is 3rd Wave better than Iridium? I got my iridium module around $2,200 so not sure I should spend $5K on the Wave. The Wave needs to be over double as good. I use 2 Osmoses to control everything I have so I don't need keys.

Great video, great synth. It's a bit of a travesty to call it vst in a box. It has certain components that make it NOT vst, actually, it is closer to PPG than VST :) Now, multi sampling really adds extra dimension to the already monster synth.

I really hope they make a module version of the 3rd Wave. They would probably have to shrink the buttons and put the knobs closer together to fit it all into a module. But I would buy it without a second thought!

If I ever get a standalone hardware synth, this is still the one.

Man this looks/sounds like it could really be a "desert island" synth !

Do you think the free running oscillators will add more to the analog feel? In a future planned update.

Now that there's the PPG emulator oscillator for the Prologue by tsoniq I wonder if the Prologue can hold its own at least on more simple wavetable mixed with subtractive sounds.

Oh my god Devin. I wish I had not seen this.

Nice review and tweeks! I own here a p10 and ob-x8, I can really say that some organic sounds are still not comparable with the 3rd wave nothing tragedy in any case i think in the mix will be hard to listen the difference, i had it in my studio from a a good friend but I still dont own it because I still own tons of Waldorf wavetable synths, from the beginning of Waldorf era to last modern M and i was think it was not necessary untill i had it in my hands, this happened few days ago and changed my mind. What i can compared it too? I do own some recent and "VA vintage" synths on Waldorf side with analog filters onboard: my M for the wavetables and analog filters part and my Q+ for the VA and analog filters part, no Iridium and Quantum fan and ill never be unless the new Waldorf company will change the AD - DA chain wich make sound em so horrible like a vst in the box, sorry if im rude here but no transient no punch no pepper in the mix.... The 3rd wave is for sure more warm then my waldorf Q+ wich is sounding more killer in some other ways, cold but nice and killing in a mix techno trance synth.. (was super for the beginning 2000 years music style) but was also capable of good drifting and saturated vcf analog sounds, i do repeat, not good as the 3rd wave wich is something magical warming magic thnx also to this drifting emulation very nice accurated and the amazing analog filters SSI 2140 so far super better then analog filters on waldorf Q+. Never the less even if the Q series has a few wavetables in the osc rom, they are nothing capable of magic PPG style like the 3rd wave and M, to me the Q+ was unique hybrid synth untill this 3rd wave come out, well, if ill buy it i think i will even think to sell my Q+ phoenix edition.. About wavetable part: the 3rd wave is so amazing and modern and fast programming wavetable synth: sampling to wavetable..mod matrix, layering 4 parts without any bug, the Waldorf M wavetable synth here sounds different on most aspect like fuzzy crunchy old style wavetable play like filters onboard SSI 2144 with no resonance compensation, slow like hell compared to the 3rd wave and really tedious on import wavetables process, no sampling to wavetable, importing PPG transitions but tedious and slow and ewven buggy in some technical parts. In the end...soon or later the 3rd wave will be here too :) @MilesAwayOfficial, Groove synthsis Circuit Drift™ is nice also in wavetable synthesis...i forget to tweek it when i had the 3rd wave here...would be nice to have another video about to use it with wavetable synthesis!

Can you use Circuit Drif on Wavetable OSC modes ?

I always see your 2600m in the background. Why didn't you do a video about that?

The keys are clattering so loud😂 And I don’t hear the really fast attack of Moog or some Sequential synth. Everything sounds slow and limp🙄

makes me want it

I've never wished for a synth to cost "only" $3500 so badly before in my life....This thing is outstanding. But SO prohibitively expensive :(

It would be cool to compare it to your OB8X or Pro 5/10 if you have one

May I ask price point 👍I may have missed that in the video

The Super-6 can sometimes pass for an analog synth, but to use it only for that would defeat the purpose.

I'm thinking that another synthesizer would make the perfect pairing with this one.🤔

The closest synth that springs to mind when it comes to analogue type of sounds is the Prophet vs, not 100% analogue, not 100% digital, quite unique.

The Groove Synthesis 3rd Wave is NOT a virtual analog synth. This is an analog/digital hybrid synth. Which means digital oscilators and actual analog filters and signal path after the oscilators. Calling this a virtual analog is a misnomer and inaccurate as the 3rd wave does in fact have analog signal path after the wavetable filters, like the original PPG which it is based on. That is an actual Rossum filter and an actual SEM filter for each voice of the synth. I really encourage the person who posted this video to learn the difference between a virtual analog (which uses digital technology to emulate an analog synthesizer) and a hybrid synthesizer which uses digital oscilators and analog filters and other components. Because the difference in sound is significant. Examples of Digital/Analog Hybrid synths: Sequential Prophet 12, The PPG, Prophet VS, Udo Super 6, Udo Super Gemini, Novation Peak and Novation Summit, Waldorf M, and yes, the Groove Synthesis 3rd Wave. You get the best of both worlds with hybrid synths, while Virtual analogs don't sound as rich in comparison.

it has real analog vcf’s and vca’s btw, it’s not a VA

I'm waiting to see what Yamaha Montage2 has before buying something new. My Oberheim OB-X8 module with Osmose controller is so far beyond anything available hardware wise. So at $5,000 I can buy the OB-X8 Module & Osmose and destroy this using MPE individual envelopes per finger. You have to seriously consider what can I also buy for the same amount? I actually have (2) Osmose units. Dead-key synths are, as of 2023, a thing of the past or should be. Banging out sounds on cheap or after-thought keybeds with hard bottoming out presses is super annoying once you've played on the Osmose. So we have what hundreds? of synths with poor keys attached almost like Walmart toys. Sure it makes sounds but now we roll on round wheels instead of rounded-off blocks made of rocks like the Flintstones. The game is going to have to change on these boards that have been around almost identical for 50 years. The white glowing chicklet gum buttons are really odd I almost wouldn't buy it just because of that. I wonder what designer chose those? Jumps out a little too much maybe black wouldn't have been so overly obvious. Do they make a module again because nobody needs dead-key or static key style boards anymore. Make modules and leave the controllers to the professionals.

I’ll wait for the inevitable Wave 3.3 with polyphonic aftertouch and hopefully 8 parts 😂 That’s the one I would definitely buy.

New firmware with free running envelopes

please use a de-esser on your speech recording

Is the title intended to annoy people into telling its not a virtual analog synth, because you got my click and comment that way and I feel duped!