huntingpickel

I use FL Studio in conjunction with Image-Line's native plugins, like Harmor and Sytrus. When I was first introduced to Harmor in one of the demo projects, I was completely dumbfounded (the name fits the plugin, my mind was definitely harmed.) The wall of knobs sent chills down my spine. 3 years later, I now bust out Harmor for leads, basses, pads, and plucks. I know what every single knob does now, and it's routine at this point. Now I, like basically everyone else, knew ALL about Massive. I even cracked it just to see what I could get out of it, and I was pleased with the results. Then I saw Serum. Without even needing to get hands on, I knew I needed it. About a month ago, I started the $10 per month payment plan for Serum. Now first and foremost, I'm not a professional producer by any means, so when I want to try out a plugin, I will illegally download and crack it, just to learn it, meaning I don't pay for my plugins unless they're too good to pass up. Serum is one of those plugins. Steve Duda is a man worthy of respect. He is a God in my eyes. Serum's versatility is practically unmatched by any other soft-synth, and yet, he manages to contain this monster in such a neat and visually appealing way, so I can officially say goodbye to Massive. Going from the headache-inducing Harmor, to such a masterpeice in workflow optimization gives me so much satisfaction in designing patches for Serum. It's like I've found my one and only true love. Serum is on track to becoming my favorite soft-synth I've ever used. 5/5 hands down.

Image-Line gave birth to Harmor in October of 2011, and its the definitive Jack-of-all-trades in my eyes. It's the perfect plugin for rigorous and extensive sound design and can produce some of the most unique sounds you'll ever hear. I love it so much. I wish I could hug it and cuddle it, but that's impossible with digital software, unfortunately. Its purposes range from simple things like leads, plucks, pads, and basses, but it has a really, really big ace up its sleeve; the IMG tab. With this, you can import any sample you'd like, and re-synthesize it into a disgustingly filthy growl, or stretch it into digital robotic beauty. However the IMG tab is not limited to audio. You have the ability to import images. Already you're probably thinking "how does that... what?" Harmor is an additive synthesizer, which, in simple terms, means creating a timbre using many sine waves at different frequencies. Each sine waver is referred to as a "harmonic," hence the name "Harmor." However each sine wave besides the fundamental is technically referred to as a "partial." So with this plugin, you can literally make any sound you desire. Yes, literally any sound, with no limitations. Easily a 5/5 just for it's sampling and re-synthesis capabilities. If you don't have this plugin, buy it. Its worth every penny.

FM synthesis is when a single waveform's timbre is modulated with another waveform; the modulator frequency. Sytrus takes this idea and goes mad with it. This monster synth sports 6 separate oscillators, or operators, which can be modulated with each other in a seemingly infinite number of configurations using the matrix. Not to mention the 3 filters and a surprisingly flexible effects section. which adds far more capability than most other FM soft-synths, like Native Instrument's FM8, or Tone2's Nemesis. When I first started using Sytrus in FL 11, it seemed rather unassuming with its tiny window and friendly color scheme. I soon discovered what this synth could really do. Playing with the matrix unlocked more possibilities than I could handle. On top of all this, you can import or simply create your own waveforms using the oscillator tab. So basically, with the right amount of knowledge, this synth can do anything. Of course, it comes equipped with FL's fantastic envelope and LFO editors for every parameter. In all honesty, the capabilities of Sytrus go far beyond what's normally expected from a soft-synth. In terms of just being a synth, I'd love to give this a 5/5, but there are a few things which lower its score to a 4/5, such as the miserable quality of the filters, and the difficult-to-navigate interface with the myriad of tabs and parameters which often results in a headache for me.

Edison is a very comprehensive sample editor and recording tool. It's almost like a DAW within a DAW. It's jam-packed with tons of really interesting and unique features like the ability to translate a sample into midi data for the piano roll. It has blurring capabilities as well, which can be particularly fun when you need huge sweeping atmospheric pads and lead vocals. And that's just scratching the surface. Along with that, there's convolution reverb, time stretching, normalization, and a lot more. I can't go five minutes without opening it at least once.

I can't produce without it. It's beautifully designed interface, along with the very pretty spectrum makes it a must-have. The automation capabilities can make this effect a very powerful weapon for super deep wubs and growls. I don't think it's quite as feature-packed as FabFilter's Pro-Q or Pro-Q 2, but it certainly gets the job done with plenty of room to spare.

Ahh yes, the wonderful 3xOSC. Loved by many, and still being used today. What can you say, it's 3 oscillators with a few different waveforms, phase options, and simple pitch settings. It's beautifully simple. You can make drums with it. Hell, you can even create an entire song with this plugin alone (with effects of course).