OP-X PRO-3 is a 12-voice semi-modular virtual analog synth based on OP-X PRO-II which includes all sounds and features of OP-X PRO-II and fullfills virtually all requests and wishes from users collected over the recent years.
Due to its massive features and flexibility OP-X PRO-3 is able to emulate the typical sounds of almost ANY analog synth of the late 70s and 80s including OB-X, Matrix-12, Jupiter-8, Prophet-5 and even Minimoog.
The synth offers:
The same as its precedessors did since 2006 the synth engine of OP-X PRO-3 exactly clones the inner working of real voltage controlled polyphonic analog synths of the late 70s and 80s in every tiny detail.
This includes that each voice is a completely independend mono-synth sitting on a separate circuit board or in a separate circuit section on a common board and features tuning trimpots to wipe-out the differences caused by device tolerances which usually was done by a technician prior to shipping.
For the user the synths usually offered an autotune function which sent an offset voltage to the voice boards to flatten differences which again could arise caused by warm-up drift and thermal shifting of the trimpots and devices. Early synths only offered this for oscillater pitch, but later synths like Matrix-12 also for filters and other parameters.
This is offered too in OP-X PRO-3 and the same as in the originals you usually manage the tuning only uning the atotune unit and not by tweaking trimpots everytime which would be cubersome, but with the advantage that you can go forth and back (so tune and detune again) and even can tune or detune seamlessly, so seamlessly blend between the tuned and detuned state.
The detuned state (so no autotune offset voltage applied) the same as in the originals is represented by the settings of the trimpots on the boards. In freshly soldered state these all are in 12 o'clock setting since all come in the same setting from the factory. So other than one would suppose 12 o'clock doesn't mean tuned.
For tuning the boards the service technician then had to tweak the trimpots out of their original factory state until the voices sounded even, usually comparing to a reference voice. So after this tuning procedure the trimpots then had various settings.
The great thing in OP-X PRO-3 is that you can save such a base setting with the patch. Which means it can be diferent for each patch which of course wasn't possible in the originals. Normally the implemented standard detuning (12'oclock state of the trimpots) is perfectly usable (it was cloned from an actual synth) and the only thing to do is to use autotune to switch or blend between the detuned and tuned state. But if you like you can edit this base detuning state to your liking by tweaking the trimpots.
This all makes OP-X PRO-3 act exactly the same as real voltage controlled polyphonic analog synths in every tiny detail but with the flexibility and recall options which the digital domain offers. Which probably was a dream in the old days.
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If you want to try it out all by yourself then check out the free demo version which can be downloaded here:
https://www.sonicprojects.ch/opxpro3/freedemo.html
A non-upgrade license includes OP-X PRO-II, so you get both by purchasing OP-X PRO-3.
OP-X PRO-3 can be installed and used side-by-side with OP-X PRO-II.
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The synth comes in 4 sub-versions:
OP-X PRO-3:
Maximum CPU version with improved audio quaility and a smoother sound which also can go a bit brighter if needed.
OP-X PRO-3 ECO:
Half-CPU version which has the identical sound as OP-X PRO-II but still offers all the new features on top except for the new MAX brightness mode.
OP-X PRO-3 LC:
Lowest CPU version which however misses features which include the modulation matrix and the added filter types.
OP-MTX:
Identical to the max CPU version but with different name and plugin id for parallel installation. This allows to have the max CPU version installed in parallel to one of the low CPU versions to still have all options available if needed.
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Patches compatibility:
OP-X PRO-3 is directly compatible to OP-X PRO-II single preset files (.opxpreset) and can import .opxbanks. The whole former OP-X PRO-II library including all reload banks already are imported and included.
Patches saved with OP-X PRO-3 even can be opened with OP-X PRO-II, however with the limitation that OP-X PRO-II of course only can set the parameters it has.
{See video at top of page}
Reviewed By ajdz [all]
February 8th, 2024
Version reviewed: 1.0.3 on Mac
This synth simply sounds freaking awesome and the included libary is second to none. Coming from PRO-II the new features are a godsend, especially the new patch browser and the mod matrix which opens up incredible possibilities. There's some stuff I simply couldn't do in PRO-II which I now can. I however hated the original ocre color, that's why I was very glad when they released the alternative blue and dark skins. I'm using the blue one now which I really like. The interface initially is looking very complicated and cluttered and almost put me off from upgrading initially, but after using it a while now I find it much more logical than PRO-II and therefore a lot easier to program stuff without grabbing the manual everytime. For newbies there's probably still a learning curve since there's so much stuff, but as a "trained" OP-X PRO-II user you know most controls already. And after using the new patch browser a while you almost can't go back to PRO-II. Plus the sound is even better. I don't think anything compares regarding richness of texture, fullness and warmth. Each patch in the library is outstanding. So if you're serious about sound take the effort to dig into it even though it's quite a bit harder than in other synths. You'll be rewarded.
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