Buy my music: blushresponse.bandcamp.com/ Support what I do: patreon.com/blushresponse Buy a Peak: link.perfectcircuit.com/t/v1/8-12626-278597-9759?sid=peakj2&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.perfectcircuit.com%2Fnovation-peak-eight-voice-polyphonic-synthesiser.html Buy a Hydrasynth: link.perfectcircuit.com/t/v1/8-12626-278597-9759?sid=hydrasynth&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.perfectcircuit.com%2Fcatalogsearch%2Fresult%2F%3Fq%3Dhydrasynth Affiliate links: Asia: bit.ly/3UY2aRh EU: soundofyou.eu/?partner=YnjvQGUeF0nJiGE2ycLD USA: link.perfectcircuit.com/t/v1/8-12626-278597-9759?sid=homepage%202&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.perfectcircuit.com%2F Amazon shop: www.amazon.com/shop/blushresponse Sign up for Distrokid and support the channel: distrokid.com/vip/seven/1396287 Follow ME: Check out my label: megastructure.bandcamp.com/ Instagram: instagram.com/blush_response Facebook: facebook.com/blushresponseofficial Tiktok: www.tiktok.com/@blushr3sp0nse Twitch: twitch.tv/blushr3sp0nse
There's people that complain about the sound character of the Hydrasynth. But I have a Peak for a long time and love it. Got a Hydrasynth, and love it too. No question the Peak has nicer basic sound, with less effort. But the Hydrasynth can cover way more ground. I can hear to some extent what people mean about the Hydrasynth sounding a bit cold/harsh compared to the Peak. But, I think it's 4 things, 3 of which can be addressed with a little effort. The first, the filters, you can't change. But you get filter options the Peak doesn't have. Then the oscillator aspects can be addressed by careful wavetable selection and modulation control - Hydra just has a wider palette, so it runs from sweet spots to alien. The third is the Peak's analogue drive, external processing can address this (analogue saturation, tubes opto / comps, tape, real or simulated). The last is the effects. Peaks reverb sounds warm, dark & lush, Hydra's is interesting, but a bit cold/metallic/ringing. And I think that's a big part of the difference. Run Hydra through a great high-end reverb pedal and opens right up. I know these things cost money, but still a Hydrasynth and a UAD Del-Verb is in the ballpark of a Peak. And you can use the kit for other things.
@@klstayHydrasynth reverb is pretty bad yeah. The filters are ok. But the oscillators/mutants on the Hydra are so insane. I particularly love the harmonics mutator. I usually just make some insane oscillator sound, then kick it to a sampler instrument with a better filter (or Prophet X, which is a whole other thing). Then kick it through a beautiful reverb (Valhalla, Black Hole, IR). Tasty.
thank you..I cannot stand when folks make false claims about synths because THEY never mastered them. If ytou have no imagination and refuse to put in the work, the synth will just be presets or the same sounds as others,like those who love to COPY BOC/Autechre..I love that headbanging noise and would have a double vinyl set playing all the time...
Almost always, ‘synth people’ mass opinion about any synth is based on their judgment of the presets, as heard on TH-cam videos. This is why you have ppl claiming Sequential makes meh synths that aren’t worth the money. Sequential’s presets tend to be aggressively meh, and oftentimes don’t show off what’s good about the synth. But i own a Pro 2 and a Prophet X, and they’ve paid for themselves over and over, and clients flip out (and re-hire me). Both of those synths are considered overpriced and not so great. I’ll quote Dave Smith himself, a few weeks before he passed: "The Prophet X is under-appreciated, because people are confused."
well that was one of the best 40 minutes of my life. considering getting the hydrasynth as it is more in my price range. could you do a video on how you would jam and then put this into a track. ;listening to your stuff on bandcamp and is top notch stuff. totally get it. my dream environment, kitchen, bed and studio. much respect you. if I knew you. you wouldn't ever buy a beer.
Summary of the differences was spot on. Hydra can take you a lot more places, but the "classic" (for the most part) places Peak goes it gets there a LOT quicker and easier. Hydra can sound just as "warm" and "analog" as Peak, but you have to dig around in voice mod to get there. The onboard effects on Peak/Summit have no equal in any other synth today IMHO.
@@kierenmoore3236 if this was a P5/10 or OB-X8 I would agree completely, and I maybe agree a bit anyway. At the same time the filter mixer on Peak is one of the few weaknesses. It goes from clean to distorted clipping WAY too fast. Maybe that is inherent in the circuit design and maybe log pots could address it. At least it is not the always clean no matter what gain staging (other than SP feedback which is NOT the same as drive) of polybrute. Part of me believes it would be REAL hard to hear the difference on a well matched patch (external quality 'verb on the hydra) and part of me would not be surprised to find that is a delusion I should let go of...
Just sold my Hydrasynth Deluxe because right after I bought it I had the chance to buy Bluetech's Waldorf Quantum and couldn't pass up then felt like I didn't need both.
Got both and love 'em. Plus the Modor NF-1. The Modor can get a lot more complex than it appears on the surface if you deep dive. Love your bent on these tools.
Have had a Hydra for over a year and a half and started questioning it vs Peak recently, due to some frustrations. I feel the Hydra is always kind of quiet (often have to give it "air" on a preamp) or else even with the internal mixer and amp cranked it remains MUCH quieter than the rest of my gear -- and also the synth does have the capacity to clip internally, which has left me disappointed. I've built some amazing sounds and tracks from it, but have been recently frustrated. Your points about who might prefer the Hydra actually convinced me to keep going with it - I can be more intentional and use it more often. Did you experience any volume issues with yours and/or internal clipping?
You can always add an external preamp or EQ for different textures and extra volume. I usually use guitar and bass preamps in vst format or pedal format for that end.
@@jumpingman8160 yep am currently doing that. Just surprised that even with volume knob, amp and mixer maxed out it's still so much quieter than my other synths. But yes some preamp and external effects really help
@@adamwetterhan some synths tend to be very quiet. The DeepMind12 is also rather quiet. People always used synths into amplifiers for recording purposes. Some preamps color the synth in a very nice way, others not really. I tend to prefer Bass Preamps for the extra EQ on both lows and highs. For dirt, a Plexi is rather nice (plus extra EQ to bring the low end up).
Never took the plunge on a Hydra. I've played with it for a few hours in the store - the workflow actually makes sense to me; I just think it sounds way too smooth and polished, both in demos and in person. People sometimes call it harsh, but something about it just never strikes me that way. :/
Thank you. On spot! I was so enthousiastic about the Peak that I bought the Summit as soon as it came out. I also bought the Hydrasynth because a friend told me I should do so. Agreed, the Hydra is a sound designers weapon, no doubt. Full of crazy features. But it misses 'something' in it's sound which makes it less 'nice sounding' than the Peak/Summit. So after a while I did sell the Hydra and honestly without remorse. The Summit will stay. Forever.
We totally agree in this regard my friend . No sooner am I looking at a peak synth than here you are rocking it against the mighty fidgety hydra which the navigation is simply over engineered and dive happy. And the ability to import waves into peak is a huge advantage and put it in the Animoog z territory as a hardware synth. ( Animoog should’ve been a hardware synth by now but alas poor Yaric. ) I’m very curious about your opinion of the mantis , so far I’m on the fence and not one demo highlights it’s described super power the ability to listen for and sync perfectly to all external clocks perfectly ( including tempo changes) . This was very helpful and truthfully very needed .ASM isn’t very honest about the interface navigation and meat and potatoes functionality that is hidden in the hydra. I made a lot of money designing with the hydra at first but integrating it into my hardware rig is a pain because the hydra is very easy to loose clock sync externally so I’ve been looking for a replacement for it. I just got a trigon which is beastly and knob per function. ( the synths that rock still rule!) my friend saw FLA with ministry and said it was amazing! 👽✌️🙏
Love what your doing . You are my evil twin . I mean that in the best way possible. Agre with you 100% . Almost sold my Hydrasynth for this reason but that would be stupid because it is one of a kind . I would regret it . The peak flew under my radar but is a must have . Im a 1234 go improvise live electronica performance player also . Im pretty sure you know what I mean because it appears that you do that also . Are you using the Electron Analog Rytm MKII Drum Machine ? Im currently using the Korg Electribe 2 . I hacktribe it back and forth to suite my needs . Its extremely underated 16 part multi timberal synth , drum machine and sampler with the down side only 24 voices. I especially love the synth in it . Make anything really fast . Glad I found you and thank you . Btw smart move to Germany. Wish i could do it .
awesome new video, as always. even just for listening to the sounds you make. 00:15:15 epic moment. 00:19:00 so real. having a Hydrasynth, i still want a pure FM box like the Blast Beats. 00:23:35 GUH... such a brutal shift. question: what are you using to control/sequence the Hydrasynth? I have the desktop and a beatstep pro and im trying to marry them, but theyre bickering. ANY insight on a way to use the beatstep pro to its obvious potential would be much appreciated, brother.
You mean bi timbral - meaning it can play two different patches at once (typically used for a keyboard split). Hydrasynth Deluxe is bi timbral also. Binaural is in relation to having two ears.
Summit does have a binural mode, Essentially a special version of bitamberal that sends analog voices hard left and hard right. You can use it to slightly detune one side and you do get a binural stereo effect
@Distortic oh that's actually pretty cool - I didn't know Summit could do this. Thanks for explaining. It's definitely cool to have essentially two Peaks in the same box with this flexibility though! Probably Novation's best/most powerful synth ever I think.
Nice to see the Hydra again. Interesting you mention how good the UI on Peak is compared to Hydra - this says a lot, because considering the complexity and depth of the Hydra, its one of the best and most logical synth UIs (in my opinion). I have to stop watching your videos... I need a fucking Peak now... You make it sound so dirty and nasty, I love it!
I don't know who you are....i know nothing about synths..........but what you do is f'ing awesome and i think i might need to hit ebay up and get me a couple a machines.....what a world you live in....saw a yt vid of luke slater yesterday and i can see your of a similar mega high intellect of music design and studio set up mentalness....he's got about 50 machines in a studio and could be the worlds greatest set up..take a look
Buy my music: blushresponse.bandcamp.com/
Support what I do: patreon.com/blushresponse
Buy a Peak:
link.perfectcircuit.com/t/v1/8-12626-278597-9759?sid=peakj2&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.perfectcircuit.com%2Fnovation-peak-eight-voice-polyphonic-synthesiser.html
Buy a Hydrasynth:
link.perfectcircuit.com/t/v1/8-12626-278597-9759?sid=hydrasynth&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.perfectcircuit.com%2Fcatalogsearch%2Fresult%2F%3Fq%3Dhydrasynth
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There's people that complain about the sound character of the Hydrasynth. But I have a Peak for a long time and love it. Got a Hydrasynth, and love it too. No question the Peak has nicer basic sound, with less effort. But the Hydrasynth can cover way more ground. I can hear to some extent what people mean about the Hydrasynth sounding a bit cold/harsh compared to the Peak. But, I think it's 4 things, 3 of which can be addressed with a little effort. The first, the filters, you can't change. But you get filter options the Peak doesn't have. Then the oscillator aspects can be addressed by careful wavetable selection and modulation control - Hydra just has a wider palette, so it runs from sweet spots to alien. The third is the Peak's analogue drive, external processing can address this (analogue saturation, tubes opto / comps, tape, real or simulated). The last is the effects. Peaks reverb sounds warm, dark & lush, Hydra's is interesting, but a bit cold/metallic/ringing. And I think that's a big part of the difference. Run Hydra through a great high-end reverb pedal and opens right up. I know these things cost money, but still a Hydrasynth and a UAD Del-Verb is in the ballpark of a Peak. And you can use the kit for other things.
Cool
Love the Hydrasynth, but the onboard reverb is a disgrace.
@@klstayHydrasynth reverb is pretty bad yeah. The filters are ok. But the oscillators/mutants on the Hydra are so insane. I particularly love the harmonics mutator. I usually just make some insane oscillator sound, then kick it to a sampler instrument with a better filter (or Prophet X, which is a whole other thing). Then kick it through a beautiful reverb (Valhalla, Black Hole, IR). Tasty.
thank you..I cannot stand when folks make false claims about synths because THEY never mastered them. If ytou have no imagination and refuse to put in the work, the synth will just be presets or the same sounds as others,like those who love to COPY BOC/Autechre..I love that headbanging noise and would have a double vinyl set playing all the time...
Check out my albums Neuroscape and Dimensional Research if you want double LPs of banging noise
Agree. "This synth has a narrow sweet spot" = "I’ve never bothered to learn my instruments and it doesn’t behave like a Juno 60."
Almost always, ‘synth people’ mass opinion about any synth is based on their judgment of the presets, as heard on TH-cam videos. This is why you have ppl claiming Sequential makes meh synths that aren’t worth the money. Sequential’s presets tend to be aggressively meh, and oftentimes don’t show off what’s good about the synth. But i own a Pro 2 and a Prophet X, and they’ve paid for themselves over and over, and clients flip out (and re-hire me). Both of those synths are considered overpriced and not so great.
I’ll quote Dave Smith himself, a few weeks before he passed: "The Prophet X is under-appreciated, because people are confused."
"DRONE HEAVEN!!!" Lovely :_)
Very good review
Both sound great
Impressed with the hydra
i've been looking for this video!
well that was one of the best 40 minutes of my life. considering getting the hydrasynth as it is more in my price range. could you do a video on how you would jam and then put this into a track. ;listening to your stuff on bandcamp and is top notch stuff. totally get it. my dream environment, kitchen, bed and studio. much respect you. if I knew you. you wouldn't ever buy a beer.
Thanks for the hydra soundbank. It learned me a lot.
Summary of the differences was spot on. Hydra can take you a lot more places, but the "classic" (for the most part) places Peak goes it gets there a LOT quicker and easier. Hydra can sound just as "warm" and "analog" as Peak, but you have to dig around in voice mod to get there. The onboard effects on Peak/Summit have no equal in any other synth today IMHO.
Agree with all that - except Hydra can’t get as warm, no matter what you do.
@@kierenmoore3236 if this was a P5/10 or OB-X8 I would agree completely, and I maybe agree a bit anyway. At the same time the filter mixer on Peak is one of the few weaknesses. It goes from clean to distorted clipping WAY too fast. Maybe that is inherent in the circuit design and maybe log pots could address it. At least it is not the always clean no matter what gain staging (other than SP feedback which is NOT the same as drive) of polybrute. Part of me believes it would be REAL hard to hear the difference on a well matched patch (external quality 'verb on the hydra) and part of me would not be surprised to find that is a delusion I should let go of...
Fantastic I love my Hydra Thank you ❤
Cool review and very helpful 👊🏼 What’s your opinion with the Modmix mixer? Be cool to see a review of this too 🙏🏻
Thanks! Review is coming!
Just sold my Hydrasynth Deluxe because right after I bought it I had the chance to buy Bluetech's Waldorf Quantum and couldn't pass up then felt like I didn't need both.
Got both and love 'em. Plus the Modor NF-1. The Modor can get a lot more complex than it appears on the surface if you deep dive. Love your bent on these tools.
Blush Response cooking in tha kitchen
Lol the hob rings are so tiny
Have had a Hydra for over a year and a half and started questioning it vs Peak recently, due to some frustrations. I feel the Hydra is always kind of quiet (often have to give it "air" on a preamp) or else even with the internal mixer and amp cranked it remains MUCH quieter than the rest of my gear -- and also the synth does have the capacity to clip internally, which has left me disappointed. I've built some amazing sounds and tracks from it, but have been recently frustrated. Your points about who might prefer the Hydra actually convinced me to keep going with it - I can be more intentional and use it more often. Did you experience any volume issues with yours and/or internal clipping?
You can always add an external preamp or EQ for different textures and extra volume. I usually use guitar and bass preamps in vst format or pedal format for that end.
@@jumpingman8160 yep am currently doing that. Just surprised that even with volume knob, amp and mixer maxed out it's still so much quieter than my other synths. But yes some preamp and external effects really help
@@adamwetterhan some synths tend to be very quiet. The DeepMind12 is also rather quiet. People always used synths into amplifiers for recording purposes. Some preamps color the synth in a very nice way, others not really. I tend to prefer Bass Preamps for the extra EQ on both lows and highs. For dirt, a Plexi is rather nice (plus extra EQ to bring the low end up).
Got that Sriracha in the back for the spicy riffs
🌶
Peak has got a great interface, and the Summit even better.
Never took the plunge on a Hydra. I've played with it for a few hours in the store - the workflow actually makes sense to me; I just think it sounds way too smooth and polished, both in demos and in person. People sometimes call it harsh, but something about it just never strikes me that way. :/
Is there any reason to get a peak or a hydra synth if you have a Ti2?
This is not a comparison I expected to see! I've always wanted a Peak, but the Hydrasynth is a bit more budget friendly. Thanks for the great vid!
Great video but how did you create this portal into your kitchen?
You’re literally watching me cook
Awesome sound
Thank you. On spot! I was so enthousiastic about the Peak that I bought the Summit as soon as it came out. I also bought the Hydrasynth because a friend told me I should do so. Agreed, the Hydra is a sound designers weapon, no doubt. Full of crazy features. But it misses 'something' in it's sound which makes it less 'nice sounding' than the Peak/Summit. So after a while I did sell the Hydra and honestly without remorse. The Summit will stay. Forever.
really enjoying the new age vibez, Joey!
New dark age?
The Peak's Oxford Oscs combined with the Hydra's modulation capabilities would give you the perfect Synth.
Hey Blush! Could you explain how your Push is connected to the synths? I'd love to control mine the same way.
So fcking amazing! I wish I were your neighbor👽
hydrasynth vs crumar orchestrator when?
I was thinking Korg Micropreset
that fm sound on the peak 20:25 "amber zone"
You should review the Take 5. It can get pretty heavy
Can confirm. Its not nearly as complex as either of these, but it does like to get dirty. Seriously underrated
We totally agree in this regard my friend . No sooner am I looking at a peak synth than here you are rocking it against the mighty fidgety hydra which the navigation is simply over engineered and dive happy. And the ability to import waves into peak is a huge advantage and put it in the Animoog z territory as a hardware synth. ( Animoog should’ve been a hardware synth by now but alas poor Yaric. ) I’m very curious about your opinion of the mantis , so far I’m on the fence and not one demo highlights it’s described super power the ability to listen for and sync perfectly to all external clocks perfectly ( including tempo changes) . This was very helpful and truthfully very needed .ASM isn’t very honest about the interface navigation and meat and potatoes functionality that is hidden in the hydra. I made a lot of money designing with the hydra at first but integrating it into my hardware rig is a pain because the hydra is very easy to loose clock sync externally so I’ve been looking for a replacement for it. I just got a trigon which is beastly and knob per function. ( the synths that rock still rule!) my friend saw FLA with ministry and said it was amazing! 👽✌️🙏
Love what your doing . You are my evil twin . I mean that in the best way possible. Agre with you 100% . Almost sold my Hydrasynth for this reason but that would be stupid because it is one of a kind . I would regret it . The peak flew under my radar but is a must have . Im a 1234 go improvise live electronica performance player also . Im pretty sure you know what I mean because it appears that you do that also . Are you using the Electron Analog Rytm MKII Drum Machine ? Im currently using the Korg Electribe 2 . I hacktribe it back and forth to suite my needs . Its extremely underated 16 part multi timberal synth , drum machine and sampler with the down side only 24 voices. I especially love the synth in it . Make anything really fast . Glad I found you and thank you . Btw smart move to Germany. Wish i could do it .
Both of these synthesizers pale in complexity to my 230V hypermodded polyphonic style o phone air guitar /slash/ contrabass tuba 😜
what is below the hydra?
An Ableton Push 3
💙
awesome new video, as always. even just for listening to the sounds you make.
00:15:15 epic moment.
00:19:00 so real. having a Hydrasynth, i still want a pure FM box like the Blast Beats.
00:23:35 GUH... such a brutal shift.
question: what are you using to control/sequence the Hydrasynth? I have the desktop and a beatstep pro and im trying to marry them, but theyre bickering. ANY insight on a way to use the beatstep pro to its obvious potential would be much appreciated, brother.
Right On Dude.
😲😲😲😲
Dope jams
Do you use the hydrasynth in any of your songs?
It’s on some tracks on Sprawl
Only thing disappointing about the peak is its not binaural like the summit. Otherwise its a go-to.
You mean bi timbral - meaning it can play two different patches at once (typically used for a keyboard split). Hydrasynth Deluxe is bi timbral also.
Binaural is in relation to having two ears.
Summit does have a binural mode, Essentially a special version of bitamberal that sends analog voices hard left and hard right. You can use it to slightly detune one side and you do get a binural stereo effect
@Distortic oh that's actually pretty cool - I didn't know Summit could do this. Thanks for explaining.
It's definitely cool to have essentially two Peaks in the same box with this flexibility though! Probably Novation's best/most powerful synth ever I think.
Nice to see the Hydra again.
Interesting you mention how good the UI on Peak is compared to Hydra - this says a lot, because considering the complexity and depth of the Hydra, its one of the best and most logical synth UIs (in my opinion).
I have to stop watching your videos... I need a fucking Peak now... You make it sound so dirty and nasty, I love it!
I don't know who you are....i know nothing about synths..........but what you do is f'ing awesome and i think i might need to hit ebay up and get me a couple a machines.....what a world you live in....saw a yt vid of luke slater yesterday and i can see your of a similar mega high intellect of music design and studio set up mentalness....he's got about 50 machines in a studio and could be the worlds greatest set up..take a look
Hydrapeak
Mate, you need Hydra Explorer. It's even battery operated:) Great video.
I don’t want a keyboard
The Peak has a CV in,
the Hydrasynth has two.
Come on, Joey,
you know what to do.