Orion Platinum 5.8:
Orion Platinum is a software studio with lots of features you are not going to find anywhere else, plus it ships with a decent pack of instruments (and 600mb of patches for them) that can be futher expanded by the integrated DXi and VSTi support. Unlike Orion Pro, it comes on CD and cannot be downloaded from the internet. On top of the features of Orion Pro, Orion Platinum includes a 600mb library of presets, 9 exclusive effects (Multi FX control, Platinum Echo, Plate Reverb, Platinum Gate, Parametric EQ, Harmonic Resonator, Platinum Chorus, Rotary Speaker and Lo-Fi/Noise), some extra features (more about those later) and a exclusive instrument: Ultran, a Wave-morphing sampler which can be used to make huge stereo pads or ambient textures. On the first look it may seem like a very simple and somehow limiting software studio. Beware though, that most of the features are hidden under the hood. Also the software doesn't look as polished some of the competitors, but the look has been exchanged for some good old functionality. The Generators: The instruments are generally of very good quality. The only bad I can think of them is that my (500Mhz) laptop was very quickly running out of processor power and I only inserted a few instruments. Also VSTi, DXi and Rewire generators are supported. If you have ever used any other software studios, you will also find it annyoing at first that the generators are closed by clicking the minimize button, instead of the close button. Wasp Wasp is already quite a synth in the software studio market. Other than being in Orion Pro and Platinum it has been licensed by Image line and is provided as a demo in FLStudio. It is a versataile FM synth able to create many types of sound, for example in a included track it is used to emulate rain and thunder -nice! Ultran Exclusively available only in the Platinum package is a wave morphing synthesizer that makes nice, big pad sounds sound like everyday life.
Monobass A TB-303 emulation with accents and slides for every step. Plucked String As you might be able to guess from the name this generator emulates a plucked string such as a guitar string, good for acoustic bass. Tomcat A simple drum synth, it is able to create some nice Bass Drums, Toms, Hihats and Blocks. Wavefusion A three oscillator wavetable synth. Good for creating some chords and some backgrounds to base your music on. Sampler A sampler compatible with the likes of Soundfonts, Kurzweil K2000, Orions own sampler files and exclusively in the Platinum version AKAI S5000/S6000 Drums A wave based drum module supporting up to 12 tracks of hits. As a extra it has some advanced controls such as the advanced velocity levels. XR-909 Vintage virtual 909 drums with a step sequencer, available in stereo or 10 x mono channels (one for each piece). It is great for dance tracks. Midi out Send midi to your outboard gear with this generator. The effects There is a collection of 29 effects included that can be further more extended with DX and VST effects. Exclusive in Platinum version is the Multi FX xontrol which allows you to chain together many effects either in series or parallel. Mixing in Orion Platinum Mixing is something of a fun activity with Orion Platinum. With the mixer you can satisfy most of your mixing needs. Each channel comes equipped with a 4 band Equalizer, Two slots for insert effects and 4 sends. There is also a Master Section in Orion Platinum with Returns for the sends, sub mix busses and a Master channel, all equipped with 4 band Equalizer and 4 slots for insert effects. You can easily route the audio from your generators to a submix bus, just click the number of the submix bus you want to route your audio to on the track bottom of the channel strip. Overall the mixing table is good for most productions. The best thing is that you can change the automation data easily, just right click the fader and select event edit. Sequencing Sequencing in Orion Platinum is also done well. Although it is pattern based (64 patterns per generator), there is also a feature called audio track that let's you import samples straight into the playlist. One rant here, if you reccord midi data on to a pattern, it isn't automatically rezised. The editing features are also quite extensive. Including quantize, Transpose, Velocity scale, Length change, Humanize, Randndomize, Groove and Pluck Templates. These features are especially helpful to those who don't have a midi keybaord, making the notes you entered sound more like a real player is playing them. Also if you run out of ideas, open the XR-909, route it through a couple of effects and press randomize. Making Music with it Probably the most important part of a computer music software is the music making part. Although a software can have lots of features (most of which you might not ever need), after all it comes down to making music. Orion Platinum scores some big points here. Not only does it come with lots of presets ,but simply the generators are amazing. Especially I love the Drums module, which can create impressive drum parts from just a few samples. And the possiblities don't stop there, with support for DXi, VSTi and Rewire generators (supporting multi out for most of them), this sure is a versatile software studio. Although you can export your songs to .wav (with a max. resolution of 32bit 96Khz) and midi, there is no export for .mp3 files. It must be in the genes Genetics is a feature for VSTi generators. It makes two different presets into one! This can make some wonderful sounds. The DNA is randomized every time you press breed, so keep clicking and you will most likely get something you can use.
Breakdown After having played around with Orion Platinum for days, I still keep find more features that I could use in my music. So far I have made a few stunning pieces of music with it. The only complaint seems to be that the new version of it is a little unstable and seems to crash once now and then, hope that will be solved with the next version. And mp3 support would be appreciated. Are you not sure whether Orion Platinum is your thing? Then go grab the demo here. Plus and minuses:
-No mp3 export
9.35 - The platinum version of Orion is a full studio with some spectacular features like VST Genetics, Multi FX control and a mixer with 4 submix busses. UPDATE V.4.08 -> 5.2 : A update with new skin for the drum module, now supporting up to 64 steps. New plug-ins have been added, the most notable one being an emulation of a analogue 12 band vocoder, a full list of the other plug-ins can be found here. Audio can now be recorded with a recording depth of up to 32 bits. Also Rex2 support is now apparent in the Sampler. On top of that there are some minor updates. To view the exact changes, visit Synapse Audio's website. This is a good step towards the better on a already excellent software studio, but where is that mp3 export I have been asking for? Update Mark affect = +0.1 UPDATE V.5.2 -> 5.5 : This update has a new generator and a new reverb effect. Also now you can import full midi songs and the long pattern support has been improved meaning that now you can work with midi like you would with a traditional sequencer. Also on the side note you can enter notes with the computer key by pressing F12 and there is support for other music signatures than 4/4. That's about all the additions, some useful things there to help you make your music. Check the full list of updates in 5.5 here. Update Mark affect = 0
UPDATE V.5.5 -> 5.8 Update Mark affect = 0
Reviewed by Aleksi Haapajoki |
