Hartmann Music Neuron VS VST 2 PC

I've been making music for about 18 years and play synthesizers. I have version 1.0.0 of the Neuron VS which I have been using with Cubase (I am also about to try it with Live, ACID and Pro Tools (using a VST to RTAS converter)on a PC. I'm mostly making Electro/80's and some Hip-Hop. My monitor speakers are M-Audio and so is my audio interface (a FireWire Solo).

The user interface of the Neuron is quite intuitive once you get used to the terms used for verious features (Resonators rather than Oscilators and so on), but the learning curve is quite small. I had no problems at all during installation and happily the NUKE controller works fine as both the copy protection dongle and tactile interface. I haven't actually tried automating any of the controlls yet, so I don't know if there are any problems. The presets can sometimes be a little hit and miss, but are mostly good and the better ones are truly amazing. The only other machine that could even come close to these kind of sounds would be something like the Roland V-Synth. I found the manual excellent.

How does it sound? in a word, amazing! It's something you really have to hear and a flick through a couple of the presets in a music store won't really give you an idea of what this thing can do. Once you register your software, you can download MODELmaker, a great app that allows you to import samples and then turn those into models to use within Neuron.

As I've already said, the presets are good, but once you start playing around with the NUKE, they take on a whole new life and it's addictive! This is much more of an instrument than most softsynths, with an emotional content. It's an investment that will keep you happy for years to come. The maximum voice limit is 32 notes, which should be enough to keep most people happy. It's not a multimode plugin but you can always use more than one instance at a time if need be. I didn't find it that CPU hungry, but then I have got an AMD 3500+ 2.2GHz machine with 2Gb of RAM to run it on!

Was it worth it? YES! Hartmann have had a problem with a German music store selling none-legal copies for ?149.99, but these come with no support and a really not worth buying. I bought mine for almost full list price and don't feel that it was over-priced. The NUKE controller is solid and very well made (metal body, not plastic) and is of more use than say the MS20ic controller was with the Korg Legacy Collection.

I chose the Neuron because nothing else sounds like it. If you want to sound like everyone esle, don't buy it - if you want a sound of your own, this should be on the top of your shopping list. I compared it to Absynth-3 and Reaktor-5, but this won (however, I have got Reaktor-5 on order) and love it for it's almost out-of-control sound. There is nothing that I really hate about it, though I do wish there was a native RTAS version for Pro Tools. It has only crashed on me once so far, but that was because of a problem with one of the models used for a preset and that has been fixed.

Anything I wish it had? Yes, total MIDI sync of some features and for your host app to be able to recall sounds when you reload a song, because at the moment, it doesn't do that. I also wish Hartmann made a bigger controller (something like a desktop module version of the keyboard) that you could buy as an option for people who wanted more controls than the NUKE offers. This is a fantastic synth and I don't think anyone would regret buying it.

I find it easy to use, but i have been programming for a while.

The sound is amazing, nothing else like it or touches it.

My big problem is that i can't get the MIDI CC to work in Cubase SX. I draw in a controller number (e.g. Filter Cutoff) and the Neuron VS doesn't respond.

Also the stick automation they talk about in the book does not work. So i have found no way to record the fabulous joystick.

If anyone knows solutions please tell me.

and no it is not my computer speed. I have a sickening fast PC, smoke pours out it so fast.

Been making electronic music for 10 years now. Play drums, synths samplers, etc.

Using vers. 1.0 of the Neuron VS for a couple weeks now. Running it in Acid Pro and Cubase VST/32. Computer is AMD 2500+, 1 gig RAM, Win XP.

Using Tascam PCI-822 and Tascam TM-D1000 digital mixer connected together with SPDIF & TDIF.

Tweaking and experimenting is very intuitive, however going for exact sound manipulations is more difficult. Software installed easily.

Extremely easy to get great sounds out of it.

Manual is good, sometimes could be more detailed.

Sometimes it sounds distorted, but my Virus would do that too. I also run the output through a tube emulator basically as a compressor/limiter because some of the patches are too loud (digital clipping).

Presets aren't the strong points, but with a little tweaking you then open the sonic wonderland! ModelMaker docs needs to be more detailed. ModelMaker opens up unlimited potential!

For a soft synth, it's very expressive, mainly due it's hardware controller, the NUKE.

Polyphony is up to your computer, and the VS is pretty demanding. But you can always lay down tracks in multiple takes.

The price is steep, but there's nothing else like it. The closest thing I've seen is the Roland V-synth, or obviously the Neuron keyboard. Reaktor is great, but not as intuitive (from my experience). I love the new sounds this can make, and the Nuke is awesome. Luckily it's never crashed on me, but can be a CPU hog. Wish some of the documents for the VS and ModelMaker were more in-depth/detailed.

Even with the complaints, I still love it, and await more updates to the software!

Two forums for the VS:
http://forum.hartmann-music.com/
http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/Hartmann_Neuron_VS/