Emu Systems Virtuoso 2000
Continuing their tradition of themed rackmount modules, Emu have unleashed a 128-voice virtual orchestra in a box. A virtuoso endeavour or virtual insanity?
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Continuing their tradition of themed rackmount modules, Emu have unleashed a 128-voice virtual orchestra in a box. A virtuoso endeavour or virtual insanity?
I own an Emu Audio Production Studio PCI soundcard system, which I use with my 600MHz Pentium III PC. I used to own a...
Paul Wiffen continues his homage to the first 'musical' sampling keyboard, which brought sampling out of the dark ages of simple trigger playback and into the realm of filters, envelopes and performance controls which we take for granted on all modern samplers. The Emulator II was, as he explains, also responsible for other major innovations like on-board hard drives and CD-ROM libraries...
Unil the EII came along, Paul Wiffen had no time for sampling as a musical tool. But when he found all the filtering and enveloping he was used to from analogue synthesis, plus a sound fidelity which he hadn't heard before, he was a convert...
Built in to the same box as Emu's flagship Proteus 2000 comes the Xtreme Lead 1, a dance-based 64-voice, 16-part multitambral sound module with 32Mb of onboard sampled ROM sounds. But is it as powerful as it is bright? Paul Farrer finds out.
Emu Systems have been synonymous for so long with samplers and sampling that it may surprise some to learn that they started out making analogue synthesizers — and that through the '70s and early '80s, they produced some of the biggest, most sophisticated modular synths ever made. Simon Lowther gets out his patch cords...
When Emu launched their flagship Proteus 2000 sound module last year, they promised a further range of cheaper 'P1K' modules which would cater for special needs, but be expandable to full Proteus 2000 spec. The first of these modules to appear aims to recreate the classic Hammond tomewheel organ sound. Nick Magnus is impressed.
With rival sampler manufacturers currently battling it out at the lower end of the market, Emu's latest bid for budget supremacy is the successor to their ESI32 and ESI4000 — the ESI2000. Paul Farrer takes it easy.
STRINGS
Vns, Vas, Ces: marc.
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Billed as the most afordable Emulator yet, the E5000 Ultra is Emu's new contender in the middleweight professional sampler stakes — and it's a force to be reckoned with.
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We meet the reviewer's dream — a powerful synth that's versatile, easy to use, easy to edit and even demonstrates its own patches for you!
Emu's APS system takes the company into soundcard territory, but with a comprehensive spec that even includes studio-quality mic amps. Martin Walker tries out this all-in-one experience.
The streamlined '90s exterior of Emu's Audity 2000 claims to hide a virtual modular hybrid, harking back to the company's own lost '70s analogue megasynth.
The high quality converters and resonant filter imbue the 16-bit Emax II with a musicality and sonic character second to none.
Paul Wiffen continues to examine transitional synthesis, covering the Wave Sequencing facility, first introduced on the innovative Korg Wavestation, and concluding with Emu's Z-plane technique, which may be regarded as bridging the gap between S&S and today's physical modelling.
Emu's latest sampler release is a new budget module to replace the ESI32. But with recent price drops from Akai and Yamaha's return to the sampling fold, have the company done enough to fend off the competition?
Enu have conjured up a combination of sampler and sample playback unit which makes the capabilities of their E4X sampler available at a significantly less-than-E4X price. Simon Trask looks for the sleight of hand...
Given the size of the Spanish-speaking world, it makes good commercial sense to produce a Latin-style sound module — but only if it's sufficiently authentic to sell to those in the know and sufficiently versatile to be attractive to other musicians simply looking for a bit of spice in their rack. Chris Carter and Joe Ortiz play with fire...
Emu's latest swingbeat sample player is home to a colony of wicked sounds for hip-hop, trip-hop and acid jazz fans. Dominic Hawken puts on his space suit to explore this strange new world.