Komplexer and Albino 3 are two digital synthesizers that are very similar, versatile and powerful, oriented towards complex and refined sounds. In this article we will make a direct comparison, trying to highlight not so much their similarities but their differences. Because? Well, because choosing a software synth that fits well in our virtual set-up is always a challenge and when you have to decide you need to be able to distinguish, in fact, what “makes the difference”.
The panorama widens
Until recently, when a new virtual synthesizer was proposed on the software market, the novelty light bulb turned on and we immediately ran to download the demo to try to understand if the product was right for us and if it was worth buying it for have something that stood out in the hardware landscape. Today it seems that there is a turnaround: a new virtual synth becomes "the umpteenth", or as the English say "yet another ...". But fortunately this is not always the case: those who produce software know all this and adjust themselves accordingly. This is why virtual synthesizers become more and more powerful and complex, and each tries to add that touch of innovation that was previously missing. I just ask myself: "is there really a need ... for new synthesizers?".
The subject of this comparative test are two plug-ins, one produced by a pioneer of this genre, Rob Papen; the other is from Terratec Producer, known German manufacturer, among other things, of audio interfaces and professional studio equipment.
Let's discover Komplexer
In the package we find the incelophane jewel box CD, the registration card with the serial number and a multi-language manual, including Italian: this already increases the score! The installation is very fast, fortunately you just need to insert the serial during the set-up, without having to fight against annoying protection systems with hardware key or challenge / response. At the first start, Komplexer presents itself with a reduced interface like the one in Fig. 1, which shows the list of presets, 128 for each bank, eight rotary knobs called macro expressions, the navigation keys between the various editing pages and the selection and activation keys of the four layers. Let's stop for a moment on this topic. THE layers, in Italian "layers", actually represent four clones of the same synth structure. Both in Komplexer and in Albino 3 there are four layers that can play simultaneously or according to splits based on the keyboard area or on the velocity midi. Each layer can be programmed separately from the others. All this takes a little from the concept of hardware synthesizers, or large workstations starting more or less from the famous Roland D-50 - which used up to four different layers to compose a program. To this day this concept still is in vogue with keyboards like Yamaha Motif, Korg Triton or even the Nord Modular G2 from Clavia, but in the software environment it is almost a novelty. This leads us to think that the search for the "touch of class" knows no bounds, and if it fails to bypass the horizons of the future, it delves into the memories of the past! Of course, it's also a sign of ever-increasing CPU power and code optimization. Even a single layer of Komplexer or Albino 3 is complex enough to provide excellent synthesis possibilities, let alone having four together with what it can bring! In Komplexer midi channels 1 to 4 play the four layers respectively, while 5 plays them all together. Now let's get into the synthesis and see what one layer has to offer. Clicking on the word MAIN the window expands enormously (if you don't have a resolution of at least 1280 × 1024 pixels, you lose all hope of understanding something!) As shown in Fig. 2, showing the fundamental structure of the synth. Very clear and intuitive layout, well contrasted colors and nice graphics. At the top we see the three oscillators, at the bottom the two filters, in the center the mixer, the envelopes and some general parameters. Oscillators 1 and 2 are identical and can reproduce square, sawtooth, sine, triangle or complex waveforms selectable with the WT1 and WT2, 128 keys for each bank. The third oscillator lacks the wavetables and does not have the sub-oscillator, but can be synchronized to the second oscillator. In common, all oscillators have parameters such as pitch, frequency modulation and pulse-width. In the mixer section it is possible to mix the levels of the three oscillators and of the noise generator (with various colors) and it is also possible to adjust the ring modulation between the first two oscillators. Furthermore, for each input element, the output towards filter one or two can be adjusted. The two filters are identical: multimode at 12 or 24dB on octave and they also have comb filters. What is a comb filter? It is also said all-pass precisely because in itself it does not make any cut on the frequencies but only delays the input signal by a few nanoseconds. In practice it is a very tight delay. By mixing the original signal with the filtered one, the two waves overlap their phases by making particular cuts or emphasis on some frequencies: this is also the operating principle of the famous effect. Phaser. Finally, in the central section of the MAIN page, we find the knobs for adjusting the speed of the three LFOs, the settings for the effect glide (or portamento), for unison mode, the ADSRs for filter and VCA, and the effects and arpeggiator switches. Let's move on to the ENV / LFO page, the one shown in Fig. 3, where you can customize the envelopes and low frequency oscillators. In addition to the two classic ADSRs mentioned above, two other envelopes are available that can modulate different sources depending on what is set in the modulation matrix - which we will see later. ADSRs can also become ADS1DS2R, i.e. Attack, Decay, Sustain1, Decay2, Sustain2, Release. In other words, points are added on the time axis and it is possible to loop the whole envelope or just the segment between S1 and S2. The LFOs are obviously synchronizable to host tempo and offer different waveforms, plus a Sample & Hold. This particular type of modulation accepts an input waveform of which it retains its value at regular time intervals to create “jerky” modulation effects, widely used in techno and electro sounds. The third LFO also offers a step mode, very similar to a step sequencer, in which you can set the amplitudes of 16 different steps played in succession. The MATRIX page (Fig. 4) is the one that most fans of modern synthesizers like: the more complex it is, the more it is appreciated. Here you can route all modulation sources to all modulable parameters of the instrument, for example we can use the modulation wheel to adjust the amount of LFO1 that will modulate the pitch of the oscillators (for friends "vibrato"), or we can use the output of the third envelope to modulate the opening of the second filter, and so on. There are 16 freely programmable slots. The section called ARITHMETIC on the left of the screen is a rather original idea: it is possible to use arithmetic operators to alter some modulation sources and use the results as new sources to be set in the matrix. For example, we can subtract between the value of LFO1 and that of ENV1 and use the result to modulate… the speed of LFO2, or whatever. Finally, in the lower section of this screen, we find the assignment parameters to the eight macro controllers, each of which can adjust "on the fly" up to four different parameters simultaneously according to different criteria. The last page, called ARP / FX, is represented in Fig. 5 and shows the parameters of the arpeggiator and of the internal multi-effects. More or less it is the usual programmable arpeggiator with 16 steps, of which it is possible to program the length of each step, the pitch of the note, the volume, the presence of the glide and the execution mode (one shot, loop, hold) . Very useful for sure, but nothing innovative. I admit, however, that the large size of the interface makes it easy to program.
... and then Albino 3
Also for Albino 3 the installation is very simple and quick: for authorization it is sufficient to type the code stamped on the registration card. Given the name, the interface can only be white (Fig.6), consisting of a single page in which some elements change according to the functions clicked on the sides. At the top right are the two sections of the oscillators, which are actually four in total. As shown in Fig.7, they can be of the following type: Analog, ie with traditional waveforms; Digital, with waves taken from 4 wavetables; Noise, noise generator. The first oscillator can also accept an incoming audio signal. To the right of each oscillator screen are buttons that select the output routing. Frequency or amplitude modulation can also be operated between the oscillators. The parameters of all oscillators are the classic ones, including sub, sync and free run, that is, the function that dissociates the pitch from the note played on the keyboard. Let's now pass to the filters: here Rob Papen got busy, invented three different types according to their "aggressiveness", calling them silk, cream e scream. The last one is really… to scream! For each type it is possible to choose between 12 and 24 dB on octave modes, and low-pass, high-pass, band-pass and notch types, while a fourth type of filter is… guess what? The comb filter! To the right of the filter sections is the mixer (although there is no label identifying it) which routes the output of the filters to the amp section and / or effects. Proceeding downwards we find the section ENV (elope). Although you see only one window dedicated to this modifier, with the buttons on its left you can select the module for which it is intended, therefore there is an envelope for each oscillator, one for each filter, one for modulation and another for amplification , all of type ADSFR (F is the fade, a phase that precedes the release) or with five customizable points with the possibility of looping and synchronization. The box to the right of the envelopes contains the four LFOs, the modulation matrix and the arpeggiator. LFOs are much more complex than those of Komplexer, they include a kind of envelope, use different waveforms, are synchronizable to host time and can be modified for symmetry (between positive and negative phase of the wave) and phase of departure. The modulation matrix, which can be selected by pressing the MX button, is the classic 16 slot one, from all sources to all possible destinations. Ditto the arpeggiator, a 32 steps with different modes but nothing extremely complicated. Finally, at the bottom we find the multi-effects section, with a maximum of four effects simultaneously, and the master section. Among the effects we have two types of chorus, delay, reverb, phaser, flanger, compressor, lo-fi, wha and filter, each with a number of configurable parameters. The four effects can be freely chained or paralleled. In the master section there is the management of presets, commands for glide, unison, global volume and a GEN button that generates a preset made up of completely random values. All this multiplied by four, how many layers are there!
And we look for the differences
We have had proof that Albino 3 and Komplexer (Fig. 8) are two pizzas of the same dough, but nevertheless they have two different flavors. Just to stay on the subject of comparisons, I would say that Albino 3 is a four-season while Komplexer could be a stuffed calzone. Albino 3, in addition to Komplexer, accepts audio input signals, has more filter types, has a separate envelope for each section, has more intuitive management of layers, has two more effects processors, one more LFO and comes with a very large library of presets. Komplexer, for its part, has the Arithmetic section, which is a new and perhaps unique idea, has a wider (perhaps too much!) And easy to understand interface, has eight macro controllers and a more powerful arpeggiator. Finally, Komplexer is able to import the Waldorf MicroQ presets (Fig. 9). And what about sound? The only way to compare two similar synths is to try to recreate the same tone on both. But on these two synths it is an almost impossible mission as although they are very complex, neither of them has a general reset to reset all the controls in order to start a new preset more easily. However, among the hundreds of factory presets proposed by one and the other, there are some very similar ones, perhaps because both synths are intended for the same target of musicians: techno, electro, dance, trance, etc. In general, however, we can see that both return an extreme cleanliness (no aliasing or unwanted sprites) and perhaps Komplexer sounds a little more on the bass. After all, these are digital synths in all respects, they do not pretend to simulate any other analog instrument of the past, although the base remains always the same, and they do not boast the use of science fiction techniques for the perfect reproduction of this or that electronic circuit. .
Conclusions
No doubt about it, Komplexer and Albino 3 are two masterpieces of the digital world, having one means having everything you can expect from a software synthesizer. They are both compatible with both Mac and PC platforms, they use little CPU if related to their complexity, they incorporate a simplified management of automation, synchronization with the host and management of MIDI control changes. It is really difficult to choose between one or the other. Perhaps owners of a Waldorf MicroQ might prefer Komplexer only because it imports the presets and reproduces them with extreme fidelity. The admirers of the previous versions of Albino and BLUE might prefer Albino 3 as a matter of habit (or of affection towards dear Rob?). On the other hand, those who have no premeditated reason to give in to one or the other in particular, can only rely on their personal judgment by trying the demonstration version or listening to the audio recordings.
Guido Scognamiglio
