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Post by Johnkenn on Jun 2, 2024 8:59:20 GMT -6
Believe it or not, I’ve never personally owned a hardware verb. I think I had @cowboycoalminers for a weekend or something…but never owned one.
Any cool like under $500 verbs out there that would compete or do stuff a plug can’t? I’m just looking for something fun to play with.
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Post by Dan on Jun 2, 2024 9:03:13 GMT -6
Alesis Midiverb II
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Post by FM77 on Jun 2, 2024 9:09:46 GMT -6
Believe it or not, I’ve never personally owned a hardware verb. I think I had @cowboycoalminers for a weekend or something…but never owned one. Any cool like under $500 verbs out there that would compete or do stuff a plug can’t? I’m just looking for something fun to play with. Under $500
Yamaha Pro R3 -
I have a few vintage verbs and I still regret selling this last year during a ' studio purge'. I really should have just popped it back in storage. It was relaxing to program, get away from the comp screen. It is not going to blow you away on it's own, but in a mix it sounds great.
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Post by sean on Jun 2, 2024 9:12:39 GMT -6
Agree with Dan, the MidiVerb II is super fun. It's got some classic presets. I think I paid $8 for mine. But you can usually find them around $100 and they are well worth it for that.
The Roland SRV-2000 is usually around $200 or less and has some great room sounds and Nonlinear settings.
Yamaha Rev 5 for the early reflections preset. Again, probably $100.
Yamaha SPX 90 II, again $100 or so, for Pitch Change C but also some fun special effects like Symphonic. The SPX2000 has gotten really cheap and it has all the classic presets plus some cleaner, more natural sounds. I bet those are under $500 now. Even has AES In and Out and 96K processing.
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Post by niklas1073 on Jun 2, 2024 9:25:02 GMT -6
Surfy bear studio, should be around 500 i think. Benson seem to have a nice stereo spring too but that costs more. Not sure if you are after a spring but ive been glancing at them lately myself.
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Post by doubledog on Jun 2, 2024 9:40:52 GMT -6
SPX90 II is cool for some things (had one but sold it). Probably depends on what you mean by "cool". plugins are so much easier and there are so many good sounding options. personally I think the hardware units are more useful for effect (unless you have one of the real high end units)
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Post by seawell on Jun 2, 2024 9:47:04 GMT -6
PCM 70 is the best bargain/biggest leap over plug-ins to me. You can find a deal around $750 from time to time.
I’m one of the weird ones that still uses all outboard fx 😁
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Jun 2, 2024 10:07:20 GMT -6
Dirt cheap Lexicon Reflex is hard to beat for under 100. The Yamaha REV’s and SPX are classics but can be noisy, Pro3r is awesome, SPX2000 is probably Yamaha’s last great box.
Alesis boxes can be fun but the forgotten Gem is the Q2, chaeap as hell zero sex appeal but has the power to run a single Lexicon 480 algorithm, it isn’t quite a Lexicon but close.
TC, M1, D2, M2000, M3000 are great but, they have PSU issues never buy without powering it up.
Sony boxes are cool but are impossible to get parts for.
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Post by sean on Jun 2, 2024 10:12:55 GMT -6
Yes, everyone's idea of "cool" is very different haha!
There are a lot of good mono and stereo spring reverbs and I think, while there are some decent spring reverb plugins, that's a hard sound for software to reproduce. Things like the AKG BX10 and above or the MicMix/Audioscape XL-305/XL-305R are a whole other thing entirely....but an Orban 111B/Furman/Tapco/Demeter/ValVerb/Fostex/Tascam/Vesta Fire are all really good and useful.
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Post by ab101 on Jun 2, 2024 10:16:02 GMT -6
Kurzweil Rumour is also very good.
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Post by Tbone81 on Jun 2, 2024 11:05:14 GMT -6
John don’t you have an Axe Fx III? I use mine as an outboard Fx unit and it’s awesome. Not sure you’d get anything “naturall” out of it, but for big ambient Fx, endless decay verbs and over the top fx it’s great.
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Post by geoff738 on Jun 2, 2024 11:31:04 GMT -6
Kurzweil Rumour is also very good. Limited to 48 k. I suspect most of the boxes listed are too if that’s an issue. Cheers, Geoff |
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Post by Dan on Jun 2, 2024 13:13:48 GMT -6
Kurzweil Rumour is also very good. Limited to 48 k. I suspect most of the boxes listed are too if that’s an issue. Cheers, Geoff Most stuff is still at 44.1 and 48 kHz. I prefer working at 88.2 and 96 kHz for the lower latency and less audible filters. |
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Post by tasteliketape on Jun 2, 2024 14:01:55 GMT -6
Roland SRV 330
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Jun 2, 2024 16:10:53 GMT -6
Limited to 48 k. I suspect most of the boxes listed are too if that’s an issue. Cheers, Geoff Most stuff is still at 44.1 and 48 kHz. I prefer working at 88.2 and 96 kHz for the lower latency and less audible filters. Most outboard reverbs come from a time when 88.2/96k wasn’t practical, some even predate the 44.1/48K standard. Routing digital or analog is an experiment, a lot of the sound you’re going to recognize are that of the conversion and analog stages. |
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Post by mattbroiler on Jun 2, 2024 16:22:55 GMT -6
I have a couple spare Alesis Microverb units here if you want to try one -
the poor mans Lexicon lol
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Post by dok on Jun 2, 2024 17:56:16 GMT -6
Alesis boxes can be fun but the forgotten Gem is the Q2, chaeap as hell zero sex appeal but has the power to run a single Lexicon 480 algorithm, it isn’t quite a Lexicon but close. Hey Eric, are you talking about the Q20 or the QuadraVerb 2? |
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Post by FM77 on Jun 2, 2024 19:11:40 GMT -6
Most stuff is still at 44.1 and 48 kHz. I prefer working at 88.2 and 96 kHz for the lower latency and less audible filters. Routing digital or analog is an experiment, a lot of the sound you’re going to recognize are that of the conversion and analog stages. This right here. The conversion stage of early digital is where the magic can be. Some of the box tone is uniquely musical. (Effectron II ADM 1124 is my favorite example for guitar, followed by the 2290) The reason I like older verb boxes is generally for my own production styles, I want to hear something specific, unique or artificiality different. I have natural reverb and hyper realistic chamber or plates well covered elsewhere. The gates on the ProR3 are untouchable for what I look for in a drum gate. Alesis boxes can be fun but the forgotten Gem is the Q2, chaeap as hell zero sex appeal but has the power to run a single Lexicon 480 algorithm, it isn’t quite a Lexicon but close. Hey Eric, are you talking about the Q20 or the QuadraVerb 2? These are essentially one and the same with the former being 20 bit, internal PSU and a few more I/O options.
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Jun 2, 2024 19:19:15 GMT -6
Alesis boxes can be fun but the forgotten Gem is the Q2, chaeap as hell zero sex appeal but has the power to run a single Lexicon 480 algorithm, it isn’t quite a Lexicon but close. Hey Eric, are you talking about the Q20 or the QuadraVerb 2? Quadraverb 2, they were so proud of that box. At the time Alesis made a huge push towards respectability with the Q2 and the M20 ADAT based on the Panasonic pro transport. |
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Post by doubledog on Jun 2, 2024 19:23:03 GMT -6
I once had a Dynacord effects unit that had some nice reverbs in it. I think maybe the DRP-15. Being dumb, I sold it off.
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Post by jacobamerritt on Jun 2, 2024 19:32:27 GMT -6
The Vermona spring reverbs are pretty sweet!
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Post by wiz on Jun 2, 2024 19:39:34 GMT -6
Hey Eric, are you talking about the Q20 or the QuadraVerb 2? Quadraverb 2, they were so proud of that box. At the time Alesis made a huge push towards respectability with the Q2 and the M20 ADAT based on the Panasonic pro transport. I had one in my live rig for well over a decade... Hated the f)(*&ing thing.... LOL cheers Wiz |
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Post by ericn on Jun 2, 2024 19:43:58 GMT -6
Routing digital or analog is an experiment, a lot of the sound you’re going to recognize are that of the conversion and analog stages. This right here. The conversion stage of early digital is where the magic can be. Some of the box tone is uniquely musical. (Effectron II ADM 1124 is my favorite example for guitar, followed by the 2290) The reason I like older verb boxes is generally for my own production styles, I want to hear something specific, unique or artificiality different. I have natural reverb and hyper realistic chamber or plates well covered elsewhere. The gates on the ProR3 are untouchable for what I look for in a drum gate. Hey Eric, are you talking about the Q20 or the QuadraVerb 2? These are essentially one and the same with the former being 20 bit, internal PSU and a few more I/O options.
There is a dirty little secret that most people don’t realize that set Alesis and Yamaha apart from the pack in the 90’s as digital became both mainstream and affordable, they both made their own chips, while everyone else took advantage of the fact you could pretty easily build a box almost like legos from what was commercially available, they could build boxes that were completely different because they could make their own chips. Yes both used a bunch of generic chips the could also design and build a project specific chip. If you look at any 90’s box that had ADAT I/O you will see those chips all had the stamp of Alesis chip division. The sad part is when Alesis went belly up nobody thought to keep the chip division together, such a pity. |
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Post by ericn on Jun 2, 2024 19:51:03 GMT -6
Quadraverb 2, they were so proud of that box. At the time Alesis made a huge push towards respectability with the Q2 and the M20 ADAT based on the Panasonic pro transport. I had one in my live rig for well over a decade... Hated the f)(*&ing thing.... LOL cheers Wiz It had a couple of great presets, but like so many boxes you really had to dig in and create your own. This is where TC, Yamaha and Lexicon really kicked Alesis ass their pre-sets where much more useable and you didn’t have to dive into the front panel and program the thing. I have owned 2 Q2’s over the years, first one I bought off a guy who spent lots of time programming that thing, should never have sold it, and didn’t appreciate it. I thought I could always grab another at any time, second one was just the factory presets, never put the time into it. |
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Post by bgrotto on Jun 2, 2024 20:38:58 GMT -6
I always loved the Lexi PCM 60. But it's a bit north of 500 these days.
I've got fond memories of my old Lexi MPX 100 (or maybe it was MPX-1...? I can't remember), but not sure it's 'good' so much as 'sentimental'. I honestly don't remember.
Edit: Wait, it was the MPX 500. That was the one. Loved that sucker.
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