Elektron-Users

RYANA4

"The PolyEvolver is basically the first attempt at the P12 that's way more digital, less versatile (the P12 can do INSANE percussion- it's basically a Tempest+++++) with a built in sequencer- "



Ok I agree....the only question i have is i thought there was no built in sequencer on the P12... just a 32 step prog. arp?? Does it have a sequencer and i was uninformed? I could only find an arp button on the front panel of the P12. I liked the 4x16 seq on the poly (and the mopho x4 and tetra (etc). is this something I can recreate on the octatrack with midi??? Its hard to do on the tetra because some of the stuff i want to sequence is NRPN....

oh and also the CV1 and CV2 on the oly evolver could play well with my A4 theoretically. But i need to make a decision by tomorrow at the latest... AHHHHHH im gonna scream.

The p12 doesnt have external in, which is a shame since the filters work quite well on external audio. Also there's env triggering on external audio and an env follower. take that *4 in combo mode... beyond madness.

And seriously compared to an A4 the Tempest/P12 doesn't even come close on the percussion side.

snowcrash wrote:
The p12 doesnt have external in, which is a shame since the filters work quite well on external audio. Also there's env triggering on external audio and an env follower. take that *4 in combo mode... beyond madness.

And seriously compared to an A4 the Tempest/P12 doesn't even come close on the percussion side.
[sorry for the side-topic]
Is the A4 really that good for percussion? I was considering A4 and then Tanzbar, but maybe the Tanzbar is overkill (I do have a 522 which I would have sold off if I got a Tanzbar)

well I thought there was a smidgon of hope for getting a P12 for a good price, i mean.... it is a good price, its 15% off at musicians friend right now which is like hundreds of dollars, but they had an open box one (but of course they dont do 15% off that.... so whatever. Im getting a polyevolver keyboard. I just got get what the difference between the pots edition is...
(im not dense i know what pots are) i just dont know how the PE was without the pots, so i cant tell why the pots would be better. Is it worth another 400$ just for the pots??? I mean i had the mopho desktop which had the evolver style knobs, and now i have the tetra which i think are the pots, and i didnt really find a problem with the old style rubber ones, and its not like i thnak the lord every time i turn a knob on my tetra that they made that difference.......


anyone have any experiences they want to share with me? I have less than 24 hours to decide... actually I guess I could buy the regular edition and order the boards to make it the pots edition from DSI... but (IT DOESNT INCLUDE THE NEW KNOBS WTF?!?!?!?!?!)

PPS im still pissed about no sequencer on the P12. WTF is up with that. The PE has cv1 and cv2 and a 16x4 step sequencer, and they decided this wouldnt be a good idea to put on their new flagship synth..??!?!?!?!?

steevyhead wrote:
well I thought there was a smidgon of hope for getting a P12 for a good price, i mean.... it is a good price, its 15% off at musicians friend right now which is like hundreds of dollars, but they had an open box one (but of course they dont do 15% off that.... so whatever. Im getting a polyevolver keyboard. I just got get what the difference between the pots edition is...
(im not dense i know what pots are) i just dont know how the PE was without the pots, so i cant tell why the pots would be better. Is it worth another 400$ just for the pots??? I mean i had the mopho desktop which had the evolver style knobs, and now i have the tetra which i think are the pots, and i didnt really find a problem with the old style rubber ones, and its not like i thnak the lord every time i turn a knob on my tetra that they made that difference.......


anyone have any experiences they want to share with me? I have less than 24 hours to decide... actually I guess I could buy the regular edition and order the boards to make it the pots edition from DSI... but (IT DOESNT INCLUDE THE NEW KNOBS WTF?!?!?!?!?!)

All I've got to say about DSI pots versus encoders is: stay the f*ck away from DSI PEK encoders. These are not the high quality clicky ones like on the desktop evolver. These are the smooth uncliky ones, which end up jumping all over the place after a few years of use. They are, for lack of a better words, pure crap.

If you have a choice, go for the Pot edition or upgrade. I also heard there might be a quality version of the encoders. Never seen this in real life though.

Even though I have a newly added A4, I also own two DSI Mono Evolver Keyboards; one is the PE and other original encoder version that had been professionally services/cleaned and have had no problems. Started with Desktop Evolver and once laid hands on MEk with all the knobs and night and day difference interface and immediacy, it has become my favorite synth with keys. I call it a synth rather than a mono synth because it simply does not sound mono at all and the analog side alone completely blows away the Mopho and P08 due to both it having an unique stereo signal path and 2 analog low pass filters--one for each side of signal chain.

The CV-1, CV-2 on the Evolvers is actually best used with expression pedals and assign whatever midi cc's such as breath control, et al. I had contacted DSI Support about using the CV Ins on Evolvers to be controlled at the time before the A4 came in picture, by my Waldorf Pulse Plus, which only the PLUS model has a built-in midi to cv converter with both cv/gate in and out and multiple cv/outs, which has quickly become connected to my A4 and then using the Pulse Plus' cv/out and cv/to midi or midi to cv to also play other synths, monophonically, but still, it's like having yet an extra cv track sound with this set-up!!!

Here's what DSI Support had to say about the Evolver's CV's: "The Mono or Poly Evolver's CV/IN could likely be used in conjunction with the waldorf pulses CV/Gate output. Since the CV/IN is heavily filtered, there is a limit to the speed at which it will respond. Alternatively, you could use the Mono Evolver to play the Waldorf Pulse by sending the MEK's MIDI out to the Pulse's MIDI in."

There was more than a slight delay in attempting to tap into the cv-in of Evolver with A4 and it was actually too filtered to get a great lock on it, finding playing the keys of evolver (have two desktop evolvers poly chained and then another MEK that I use entirely differently).
However, had combi-mode been made to be able to entirely save sound programs with set-ups in more intuitive way, I surely would have gone the PEK way.

I too, find DSI Evolver to be much more sonically versatile and organic than the new P12, but that's just me because I have Waldorf Q and XT which pretty much blows away anything I have yet to hear from the P12.
I do not agree with always buying the next new "best thing" because there's some really great monsters out there from the past. Just make yourself a rule to sell something(s) before buying/adding something.

Just added another capable beast from past, the Quasimidi Polymorph, which I think will play nice with the A4 and family

I think the bottom line here 3 things:


1) If he can try out a DSI flagship like a PEK cheaply, he should because there is nothing to lose- a really good deal means you can make you money back (or make a small profit on a resale).

2) I'm guessing most people commenting from a position of expertise about the P12 in this thread have never played one. Comparing the XT and the Q to the P12 is like saying that since the OT can load single cycle waveforms it's comparable to the A4. The P12 isn't anything like the Waldorf wave tables- it's just possible to load some wavetables into the oscillators. Unlike the XT or the Q, the P12 is capable of producing something good/usable about 80-90% of the time you sit down to program patches, unlike the 30-40% of the time with the XT/Q (only own the XT, but to my understanding the Q is much more fussy than even the XT). XT/Q are special synths, but they aren't a relevant point of comparison here, even in the slightest.

3) PEK can produce "X sounds" better than "what I've heard out of the P12" is a useless comment. What you've heard of the p12 are shit YouTube demo vids. Everyone with a bad ass synth (like the PEK!) knows that you have no real idea what it sounds like until it's right in front of you plugged into a great set of monitors. Having heard both the P12 and the PEK in person, I can tell you the P12 has a MUCH more textured and vibrant character than the PEK- according to this thread, the P12 was a pointless product, because, not only can the PEK do all the things the P12 can do (and better)- it can do more!

As with all things in life, consider the source of information just as carefully as its contents.

...and to think, I was NOT even thinking/talking about the wavetable side of the Waldorf Q *at all*, and like anything, it is ALL in the diving deep and programming. The Q has 4 envelopes that are 8 part loopable, and the mod matrix is beyond anything but reversed alien technology.

Yes, I compared them as a coupled whole; the XT with it being a true wavetable synth, then the Q as a synth, not even taking wavetables into count that can act as the 4th and 5th oscillator...taken together, and yes, I demoed for more than an hour the P12 and know my synthesis, and just could not justify it because of the two beasts I mentioned.

To each their own. Some people are simply fanboyz, whereas I have a plethora of synths from different makers, more than what's just listed on my page.