Prospective user with questions
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Hi there!
I'm very interested in getting into wind controllers and digital music generally, and purchasing the Slyphyo and Anyma Phi seems like a great way to start. I hope no one minds me using this forum to ask some questions and clarify a few things for myself regarding these amazing machines. (Please feel free to number any answers to specific questions)
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As a clarinetist, I'm looking for a controller that best duplicates the feeling of a wind instrument's airflow - the others I've tried (Akai, Berglund) were not good in this regard. In your experience, am I in the right place?
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I have no experience with synth patching, though I'm no newbie to effects pedals (check out my youtube channel if you'd like to hear contrabass clarinet with digital effects: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCwX-2FRlAZsYWxF0vAGWRew). The idea of physical modeling is fascinating to me, I'm wondering if the Anyma Phi is a good starting point or not though - how complicated it is, how much other synth knowledge I'll need to acquire to make sense of it.
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How customizable are the internal sounds of the Sylphyo? I'm assuming they're nowhere near so as those on Anyma Phi. Were the Sylphyo's sounds created on the Anyma Phi and are they available or editable on it? (Basically, I'm wondering how interconnected the two machines are - to what extent are they made for each other?)
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Can sounds on the Anyma Phi be easily customized to include usage of the slider and inertial controls of the Sylphyo?
5.What other machines and software would you recommend using the Sylphyo to control? (The intro video mentions Respire and Swam, I'm not necessarily looking to duplicate specific wind instrument sounds though)
Thank you in advance for any answers, any thoughts and time spent would be much appreciated.
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ad 1:
Best clarinet feeling has the Yamaha WX5 at an Yamaha VL-70m synth with the Patchman Turbo chip. The Sylphyo is a different beast. It has a soft long airflow. You can manipulate that via electronic settings and additionally attach different plugs (for blow-resistance) at the lower air-hole but basically it feels always like a flute. The strength of the Sylphyo lies in it's very special soft and precise airflow detection and in the type of available control possibilities: Air pressure, sideways roll, elevation (vertical angle), compass (sideways angle) and key-bend by rolling the finger tips. The Sylphyo has no mechanical keys and the mouthpiece does nothing. Very expressive and very different from a clarinet.ad 2:
I like your music I heard on YouTube and I am not sure if the Anyma Phi is the right synth for you. Hopefully Aodyo doesn't beat me for that, but I find the sound of the Anyma Phi very synthetic. The Sylphyo has the "smaller", medium synthetic version of these sounds and the Anyma Phi does them better, if you know what I mean.ad 3:
The internal sounds of the Sylphyo are not customizable. You can use the assigned controllers and that's it. But some of the sounds are a good base for an effects chain like yours.ad 4:
Anyma Phi sounds are customizable, it is a fully featured physical modeling synth. The Sylphyo sends CC values from various sources that can control everything MIDI aware.ad 5:
Hardware and Software depend on your musical wishes. For example, I find classic FM synthesis like in a TG77 rather boring with the Sylphyo. Generally, older synths were not built for the range of control a Sylphyo delivers. Modular systems do work but I find them too brutal for the Sylphyo's nuances. So far I heard, Roland's Integra sounds good with a Sylphyo. I have a Waldorf Blofeld and a Dreadbox Typhon and both work well with the Sylphyo but I would not recommend exactly these two because I always miss some expression and power I expect from hardware synths.
Regarding software – Respiro is physical modeling and built for wind controllers, probably the only softsynth today that works out of the box for this type of instrument. You can change and control the sounds to a certain degree but it tends to imitate real world instruments, which is the whole purpose of physical modeling. I use Respiro and I like u-he Zebra for it's wonderful warm blowlike sounds and UVI Falcon for it's endless sound and control capabilities. Both must be set up for a wind controller but this isn't too complicated.Additional comment:
If you consider to buy a Sylphyo, also consider the Sylphyo Link box. I am pretty sure that you will prefer wireless playing and for that you need the Link. -
@TheSongSystem
Sylpho is great as MIDI wireless controller, I have Akai EWI 5000, 4000s and USB but use mostly Sylphyo. You may use any MIDI synth, not just Anyma Phi. I have several synths that are superior to Anyma Phi (IMHO).- Yamaha VL-70m with Patchman turbo chip and VL-Wizzard editor (great software);
- Ketron SD-1000 sound module, little box with 500 great sounds.
- DynaSample XO-mini, designed for wind instruments.
and soft synths: - Sample Modeling SWAM Saxophones.
- Omnisphere 2.7
- Sample Tank 4
You can find samples of sounds generated by these synths on this page.
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@Peter-Ostry thank you for such an informative and helpful reply.
Despite your worries about Aodyo beating you for it, your perspective has actually made me want the Sylphyo and Anyma Phi even more.
To begin with, while I mostly play clarinet, I've dabbled with recorder and ocarina too, and enjoy these lighter airflows (and if it can be put in competition with electric guitar levels, even better!). It's the natural connection between the breath and the instrument that I'm looking for, which it sounds like Sylphyo has in abundance.
Also, thanks for checking out my YouTube channel. I'm actually looking to have two sides to my output, the "natural" interface of the acoustic clarinet through pedals and the "digital" via wind controller. So the synthetic quality of the Anyma Phi isn't a problem, but a advantage.
Just to clarify a couple of things: You mention the Sylphyo having both sideways roll and compass (sideways angle) - these are two different things? Also, you mention the Sylphyo sounds being the "smaller", medium synthetic versions of sounds that Anyma Phi does better. Does this mean that the same preset sounds are in both devices, at different resolution levels, or am I misunderstanding?
I've been looking into some of the other sound sources you mention, and am noticing that the Anyma Phi seems to straddle the line between a digital pedal and synth software. Would agree with this observation? This might be exactly what I need.
Also, I will be taking your advice and getting the link too. My thanks again.
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@Wlodzislaw thanks for your input. That's a serious library there - quite a resource, thank you. I'll check it out.
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Depending on where you live, there may be a musical instrument store nearby where you could possibly try the Sylphyo. Check Aodyo website for resellers.
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@TheSongSystem said in Prospective user with questions:
@Peter-Ostry thank you for such an informative and helpful reply.
Despite your worries about Aodyo beating you for it, your perspective has actually made me want the Sylphyo and Anyma Phi even more.
To begin with, while I mostly play clarinet, I've dabbled with recorder and ocarina too, and enjoy these lighter airflows (and if it can be put in competition with electric guitar levels, even better!). It's the natural connection between the breath and the instrument that I'm looking for, which it sounds like Sylphyo has in abundance.
Also, thanks for checking out my YouTube channel. I'm actually looking to have two sides to my output, the "natural" interface of the acoustic clarinet through pedals and the "digital" via wind controller. So the synthetic quality of the Anyma Phi isn't a problem, but a advantage.
Just to clarify a couple of things: You mention the Sylphyo having both sideways roll and compass (sideways angle) - these are two different things? Also, you mention the Sylphyo sounds being the "smaller", medium synthetic versions of sounds that Anyma Phi does better. Does this mean that the same preset sounds are in both devices, at different resolution levels, or am I misunderstanding?
I've been looking into some of the other sound sources you mention, and am noticing that the Anyma Phi seems to straddle the line between a digital pedal and synth software. Would agree with this observation? This might be exactly what I need.
Also, I will be taking your advice and getting the link too. My thanks again.
@TheSongSystem
Roll control is rotating or rolling the Sylphyo, clockwise or anticlockwise in your hands, compass control is turning to face in a different direction.
The second part of this Aodyo video shows the player rolling the Sylphyo.
Please read section "2.6 Elevation, roll and compass control" in the Sylphyo user guide for an explanation of the differences between roll and compass control.
I would also recommend that you look at the rest of section "2 Playing the Sylphyo" which is also very helpful. -
@TheSongSystem said:
You mention the Sylphyo having both sideways roll and compass (sideways angle) - these are two different things?
Yes. Airplane and ship movements are a good comparison:
(Source: Wikipedia)Ship YAW = Sylphyo COMPASS
Ship PITCH = Sylphyo ELEVATION
Ship ROLL = Sylphyo ROLL—
@TheSongSystem said:
Also, you mention the Sylphyo sounds being the "smaller", medium synthetic versions of sounds that Anyma Phi does better. Does this mean that the same preset sounds are in both devices, at different resolution levels, ...
I don’t know if there are some identical presets, but so far I know the Sylphyo and the Anyma Phi are made by the same people and the latter has a multiple of CPU power and can produce sounds in more detail.
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@TheSongSystem said in Prospective user with questions:
I've been looking into some of the other sound sources you mention, and am noticing that the Anyma Phi seems to straddle the line between a digital pedal and synth software. Would agree with this observation?
I agree.
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@Paul-Flute already checked with Aodyo - they have no representative in Japan. Also met a guy working at a music shop here who specializes in wind synths - if I get a Sylphyo it may well be the first in the country!
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@Gromit reading the manual - genuinely, why didn't I think of that sooner?!! Thank you for an eminently sensible suggestion.
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@Peter-Ostry @Wlodzislaw @Paul-Flute @Gromit
Thank you all for your help, it's good to know there's an interested, supportive community involved with these machines. Further motivation to get involved...
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@TheSongSystem said in Prospective user with questions:
no representative in Japan
I've always dealt directly with Aodyo in France (from the U.S.), and it has been a good and smooth experience.
The Sylphyo works for most folks directly out of the box, but as you play more and more you'll find that there are a lot of things you can alter to suit your particular style of playing. People come to this instrument from all backgrounds, and the settings you can control on the instrument I believe cover a wide range of playing styles.
