"bitflipper"
I think for this instrument to be useful to me personally I'm going to have to become proficient at designing my own sounds for it.

What about the Orb? Did you have a chance to explore the possibilities? Is it as interesting as they make it look in the demos?

You could always have a natter with Eric. He wanders the interwebbythingy or contact him direct and ask him about sounds you're after or even suggest anything missing. He's ok about that kind of thing.

bitflipper


Although my instrumentation tends to be classic meat 'n potatoes piano, organ and strings, I am also a longtime fan of analog synths. Tomita is a hero of mine, and Snowflakes are Dancing remains a favorite even after 40 years. 
 

So have you checked out the new Kontakt classic synth library add-on?  I think it's called Retro Machines.  I've played with it a little and quite liked what it offered.  I'll certainly be going back to explore it further when there's time.  I got it free with the last Komplete upgrade, but it's available as a separate product for $79.

Alegria

"Jim Roseberry"

If you're talking about pulling 128 notes of polyphony or less, no need for SSD for Omnisphere.

It's the sample loading time that I was referring to via my experience with Trillian. Browsing the multiple libraries is tedious unless those samples load quickly. I've experienced the difference between a fast mechanical drive and SSD btw. I don't need more to be convinced that if and when I get Omnisphere, I'm also getting another SSD. I hear that the OCZ Vertex 4 is coming soon.

I have both Trilian and Omnisphere, and the loading time is no big deal compared to the extraordinary benefits. Most of the patches are smaller files and not an issue for loading time. Both of these VSTs are incredible resources and some of my best purchases and treasured resources to both have and to use.


As for programming sounds, you can always blend together existing sounds to tweak approximate variations of sounds in so many ways that you may be endlessly lost in the prospect of having so many options. The FX section adds many more possibilities to these, as well!  Nevertheless, you can be lost in the sounds that already exist and in their truly inspiring possibilities. Favorite patches can be ranked and starred to quickly recall, with the ability to include your own notes and descriptions of them, and categorizing them to your liking.


And do check out the informative and powerful videos [created by Spectrosonics] that cover the features of these sonic beasts


Tutorials showing what these VSTs offer! http://www.spectrasonics.net/video/videos-tutorials.php
Jordan Rudess demo at NAMM http://www.spectrasonics.net/news/news-content.php?id=17

Favorite patches can be ranked and starred to quickly recall, with the ability to include your own notes and descriptions of them, and categorizing them to your liking.

I suspected there was a way to do this, so after reading your post I looked up how to rank patches. That was the easy part. 


Then I set about running through them all and rating them. Several hours later I looked up, bleary-eyed, and realized the entire evening had slipped away. I had identified 3 "definites", 12 "probables" and around 50 "maybes". And I was only 25% of the way through the list.


At this point, however I'd characterize Omnisphere, "productivity tool" would not be among the descriptions that spring to mind. 

bitflipper


And what's really disappointing is that no matter what software I buy, I still can't play like Jordan Rudess!

I hear ya! Except being disappointed that I can't play like Rudess or Petrucci is like being disappointed that I'll never be a superhero or a Jedi knight or something. It's just never going to happen so I can't get too upset about it! :)


Incidentally, Adagio transparent strings warm is my secret weapon, to the point where I actually feel guilty about using it so often. 

And the Italian fellow is Diego Stocco. Incredible musician and sound designer. He's a freak of nature, in a good way! 

Adagio Strings

bitflipper

Favorite patches can be ranked and starred to quickly recall, with the ability to include your own notes and descriptions of them, and categorizing them to your liking.

I suspected there was a way to do this, so after reading your post I looked up how to rank patches. That was the easy part. 


Then I set about running through them all and rating them. Several hours later I looked up, bleary-eyed, and realized the entire evening had slipped away. I had identified 3 "definites", 12 "probables" and around 50 "maybes". And I was only 25% of the way through the list.


At this point, however I'd characterize Omnisphere, "productivity tool" would not be among the descriptions that spring to mind. 

Yeah, I'm still bleary-eyed and have not gotten through all of the Omni and Trilian Patches months later. It might take a while. But, if you ever get Trilian, you can also download the Jordan Rudess multis [Trilian/Omni combo patches] from his NAMM demo. They sound awesome, of course.

Go to Support -> Updates. It's called the "VIP Patch Library".

BTW, you've been staring at Omnisphere for too long...even your avatar has taken on an Omnisphere Blue hue.

Alegria

"Kreative"

But, if you ever get Trilian, you can also download the Jordan Rudess multis [Trilian/Omni combo patches] from his NAMM demo. They sound awesome, of course.

I was pretty thorough when exploring their site after purchasing Trillian but never came across the downloadable "mulits". Can you send me in the right direction? Thanks.

http://www.northernsounds.com/forum/showthread.php/70445-VIDEO-Jordan-Rudess-quot-Trilian-Omnisphere-quot-demo-(and-multis!)

See Eric Persing's story, a great read!!!!http://www.kvraudio.com/interviews/eric-persing-interview-16992

Check this out: Rudess doing finger exercises. 

bitflipper


Check this out: Rudess doing finger exercises. 

Jordan must hold some sort of record for most keyboard related products endorsed. I can't believe he actually did a metronome endorsement video!


Ken

the greats use MACs

Ah, that must be my problem! Too many buttons on my mouse, perhaps. Or maybe because my mouse pad cost less than $40. Unfortunately, Apple's policy is to not sell to anyone over 40 because they are not cool enough.

skylightron


Omnisphere has been out for quite a while, shouldn't it be regarded as Outdated? It is also very costly compared to other single VST instruments. Will there be any new sounds or additions to Omnishphere to make it worth the asking price?

I started to write a response to this. But, then I changed my mind.

Outdated and costly? Hmm...maybe. Here's a brief history (off the top of my head, feel free to check my facts) in reverse chronological order:

Version 1.5 was announced at the 2011 NAMM show. It added 780 patches and was a free upgrade. +1 for cost-effectiveness. (Compare to anything from Native Instruments.)

Omnisphere was released, IIRC, in 2008. (Does that make the engine old? Kontakt's is twice as old, and it's a relative newcomer.)

A great many of the factory presets were inherited from Omnisphere's predecessor Atmosphere, which dates back (I think) to around 2003. Not exactly gray-haired; people born that year are in the 4th grade now.

Other Omni patches came from even earlier products such as Symphony of Voices (originally for Akai) and Distorted Reality. Those date to around 2001, I think. But I should add that they originally sold for around $500 each, same as the price of Omnisphere today.


Before that, Eric Persing was Chief Sound Designer at Roland. If you've ever had a Fantom, a Juno-106, a Jupiter 6/8, V-Drums or any of the dozens of Roland synths from the 80's and 90's, you've played Eric's sounds. And guess what? Omnisphere includes a bunch of vintage Roland patches, too. So some of those do date back to the 80's! I guess if you were born in the 80's that seems like a Long Time Ago.

So where does that leave us in countering the "overpriced and outdated" accusation? Many of the patches are indeed over 10 years old, some more than 30 years old. But the total cost if you'd accumulated all of them over the years would be in the many thousands of dollars. And, as Kreative points out, a great sample is indeed timeless.

Please do not take this as self promotion but in answer to skylightron I have used the whole spectrasonics series to produce one or two videos. As an example:-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oX3Yupmanlg

If I remember correctly the main sound is a self made multi.