Vintage Strings. Strings have a unique ability to add warmth and richness to music: there’s something about the way dozens of individual players merge into a single, stunning soundscape that just seems to capture the hearts of listeners. Of course, not every rock star can afford to hire the London Philharmonic Orchestra to record an album; hence the rise of string synthesizers, which replace dozens of individual players with dozens of detuned oscillators to achieve a similarly rich result. String synthesizers are one of our favorite musical machines, and Vintage Strings is a tribute to them.
At the heart of Vintage Strings are both real acoustic string samples and electric synth oscillators, and you can mix and match them to your liking using the Levels controls in the center of the panel. You also have a fully-functional subwoofer, the ability to adjust tube saturation, and a gentle low-pass filter to tweak the tone of your hybrid string section. Where
things get interesting, though, are the two signature controls: Complexity and Vintage. Complexity tweaks the extra electronic string components, adding two levels of Jupiter 6 supersaw to the raw Logan String Melody II waves for a thicker, warmer sound (which you can enhance by detuning it a bit).
Vintage, meanwhile, is a massive knob that’s impossible to miss. Turning it changes the entire character of the instrument, from clean and clear to dusty, gritty, and shaky, taking on all manner of frayed instability in its path. With Vintage turned down, you can use the other controls to create a superb modern string section that combines acoustic realism with synth power, or stick with one or the other for a cleaner sound.
But with Vintage anywhere past 12 o’clock, the sound becomes choppy; clean acoustic string samples are mixed with and then replaced by vintage tape recordings, while the electronic strings become jagged and compressed and start to lose both high-end and low-end elements. Turn Vintage clockwise and the sound is seasoned, with oxide flecks, with background crackle and hiss. It’s simply stunning.
To top it off, we have Icon Reverb, a convolution reverb from a Lexicon PCM70. This gives the string sections a wonderful smoothness and period flair, while allowing them to breathe.
Vintage Strings is perfect for reproducing vintage strings that match a specific musical era. For example, if you want strings to sound like the background of your Motown track, or for creating completely unique string synth patches that don’t imitate existing instruments but still sound historically accurate. If you want strings that sound like a Chamberlin, Mellotron, or Optigan, but with more playability or a more defined sound, this might be for you. Above all, they should be inspiring and easy to use: you can tweak a few knobs and get something cool, or just hit the randomize button and see what the machine throws at you. All without having to lift a baton!
- String sounds from a bygone era
- Unique Vintage single-dial control for simple yet powerful time manipulation
- Combined acoustic string section and electric string synth for a wide sonic palette
- Vintage Icon reverb for sparkle and shimmer
- Clean, soaring strings or sharp, erratic warbles… the choice is yours!
