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Poly-Ana
Reviewed By Hitchcock Bell [all]
April 9th, 2008
Version reviewed: 1.11 on Windows
I am currently working on a TV soundtrack album that specifically requires the recreation of the sound of an EMS Synthi 100, the 1970s monster mega-synth. Poly-Ana is the only VSTi I've heard that has come anywhere near reproducing the unique character of that classic synth. Although it was never intended to be an EMS clone, Poly-Ana is both flexible enough in its tonal textures, and deep enough in its signal routing potential to be a worthy 21st century digital successor to that analogue giant.
But Poly-Ana's emulations don't stop at EMS's door. Indeed, this VSTi can, should you choose to make it so, sound like a Minimoog. Not a Minimoog emulation, but a REAL Minimoog. Likewise, it could stand in for a Moog Modular because many of the routing options of that great synth are available through Poly-Ana's ingenious interface. Other users have compared Poly-Ana favourably to the Oberheim range of synths. That too is a mark of the synth's analogue flexibility. But if you want to make totally unique sounds then, of course, the potential is vast. Poly-Ana is her own girl when she wants to be and can create a huge array of lively, original analogue and, yes, digital FM sounds.
The synth's GUI is intuitive and surprisingly easy to negotiate once you get over the shock of the many controls and options available. Don't let the apparent complexity of the interface put you off. Getting to know Poly-Ana makes for a very rewarding relationship!
The look of any synth is part of the spell and psychology of making electronic music. Poly-Ana is skinable, and so, using the many beautiful skins now available, its original graceful design can be modified to suit the aesthetic instincts of its users. I use the "Parchment" skin at the moment because it puts me in an EMS frame of mind. That's important for the project I'm working on.
There are many useful additional options such as the "analogue drift" dial that recreates the tuning "problems" associated with real hardware synths. Here, it creates a wonderful variability that ensures you never quite hear the same musical phrase twice. It is, of course, optional and you may vary the amount of drift at will.
The synth's sample frequency rate is also selectable with lower sample rates allowing for much lower CPU usage. Although these lower rates compromise the sound a little, they can act as an additional texturing tool should you want a grittier sound. Higher sample rates produce a cleaner, more full-bodied sound but at a higher CPU expense. However, the CPU hit is still reasonable if you're running a modern decently spec'd PC.
The documentation is minimal at the moment, but I still give it high marks because the developer, Admiral Quality, is helpful and directly responsive to technical questions.
The presets provided are excellent and are growing all the time thanks to user donations. However, Poly-Ana's sound potential is unlocked when you start twiddling the knobs and pushing the buttons for yourself.
Stability is superb for me. It has never crashed. It was stable even when I had the Beta demo. It remains rock-solid today. It runs smoothly with multiple instances too (I've used up to five instances on my Quad Core without a hiccup. Perhaps more are possible, but it depends entirely on the user's PC power).
Value for money? Well, it's the best analogue emulation currently on the market in my opinion. You're getting a lot of bang for your buck and it's worth every cent. Try the demo, judge for yourselves.
Yes, I like this synth. I like the developer's passion for his project too, his uncompromising attitude and persistence of vision. We all benefit when a developer gets the bit between their teeth and runs with it. Right now, Admiral Quality is on to a winner and is running like the wind. Great!
I don't usually give a 10/10 rating to anything, but I am giving one now. I can't honestly find anything wrong with Poly-Ana. Anything at all. It suits my needs completely, and that, as they say, is that.Read Review
But Poly-Ana's emulations don't stop at EMS's door. Indeed, this VSTi can, should you choose to make it so, sound like a Minimoog. Not a Minimoog emulation, but a REAL Minimoog. Likewise, it could stand in for a Moog Modular because many of the routing options of that great synth are available through Poly-Ana's ingenious interface. Other users have compared Poly-Ana favourably to the Oberheim range of synths. That too is a mark of the synth's analogue flexibility. But if you want to make totally unique sounds then, of course, the potential is vast. Poly-Ana is her own girl when she wants to be and can create a huge array of lively, original analogue and, yes, digital FM sounds.
The synth's GUI is intuitive and surprisingly easy to negotiate once you get over the shock of the many controls and options available. Don't let the apparent complexity of the interface put you off. Getting to know Poly-Ana makes for a very rewarding relationship!
The look of any synth is part of the spell and psychology of making electronic music. Poly-Ana is skinable, and so, using the many beautiful skins now available, its original graceful design can be modified to suit the aesthetic instincts of its users. I use the "Parchment" skin at the moment because it puts me in an EMS frame of mind. That's important for the project I'm working on.
There are many useful additional options such as the "analogue drift" dial that recreates the tuning "problems" associated with real hardware synths. Here, it creates a wonderful variability that ensures you never quite hear the same musical phrase twice. It is, of course, optional and you may vary the amount of drift at will.
The synth's sample frequency rate is also selectable with lower sample rates allowing for much lower CPU usage. Although these lower rates compromise the sound a little, they can act as an additional texturing tool should you want a grittier sound. Higher sample rates produce a cleaner, more full-bodied sound but at a higher CPU expense. However, the CPU hit is still reasonable if you're running a modern decently spec'd PC.
The documentation is minimal at the moment, but I still give it high marks because the developer, Admiral Quality, is helpful and directly responsive to technical questions.
The presets provided are excellent and are growing all the time thanks to user donations. However, Poly-Ana's sound potential is unlocked when you start twiddling the knobs and pushing the buttons for yourself.
Stability is superb for me. It has never crashed. It was stable even when I had the Beta demo. It remains rock-solid today. It runs smoothly with multiple instances too (I've used up to five instances on my Quad Core without a hiccup. Perhaps more are possible, but it depends entirely on the user's PC power).
Value for money? Well, it's the best analogue emulation currently on the market in my opinion. You're getting a lot of bang for your buck and it's worth every cent. Try the demo, judge for yourselves.
Yes, I like this synth. I like the developer's passion for his project too, his uncompromising attitude and persistence of vision. We all benefit when a developer gets the bit between their teeth and runs with it. Right now, Admiral Quality is on to a winner and is running like the wind. Great!
I don't usually give a 10/10 rating to anything, but I am giving one now. I can't honestly find anything wrong with Poly-Ana. Anything at all. It suits my needs completely, and that, as they say, is that.Read Review
