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Rob Papen Predator Software Synthesizer | Reviews & Photos

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Ranked #4,583 in Computers & Electronics, #84,866 overall

Great synth!

Predator is a "phat sounding" killer synthesizer that combines inspiring presets and
first-class features to make this your 'go-to' synth for contemporary music production.
The user interface has been designed so that almost all controls are visible on screen, making it fun and incredibly easy-to-use. And if you're unsure about a particular synth function, simply right click your mouse to access the help screen.

Free Music Lessons

Rob Papen Predator Gallery

Image: Rob Papen Predator Screenshot

Image: Rob Papen interview by Musician's Life.de
Source: Musician's Life

Image: Rob Papen demonstrating Predator

Images source: Timespace about Musikmesse

Features

Included preset banks:
HipHop (NY, Club, DirtySouth and Gfunk) banks. Jump, hardcore, breakbeat, various trance styles, DnB banks and more...

PredatorFX
PredatorFX allows you to use the incredible filters, modulations, effects and vocoder as an FX plug-in within your music host.

Rob Papen Predator Virtual Synthesizer Specifications:

Compatibility:
VST2.4, AU, RTAS (OS-X only) plug-in synthesizer and FXsynthesizer for PC (WinXP) and Mac (included IntelMac)

Rob Papen Predator Virtual Synthesizer Features:

VST2.4, AU and RTAS plug-in synthesizer for PC and Mac (IntelMac compatible)

Oscillators section:
3 Oscillators with 128 waves included Analogue, Additive and Spectral type of waveforms plus pink & white noise generators.
Oscillator waveform Symmetry control for each oscillator
Free running option for each oscillator and Oscillator Syncing of oscillator 2 or 3 to oscillator 1
Extended semitone range going from -48 semitones up to +48 semitones.
Separate octave control and fine-tuning
Keyboard tracking on/off for each oscillator.
Each Oscillator offers Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) using an independent LFO for each oscillator with individual speed and amount controls.
FM and Ring modulation modes for Oscillator 2 and 3.
Each oscillator has a PWM square wave Sub-oscillator
Spread function for detuned multiple oscillator sound within one Oscillator.
Volume control for each oscillator and output on/off for Oscillator 1 and 2.

Overall Pitch modulation section:
Tempo sync-able global Pitch LFO. You can set the amount and also which wave is used for this LFO
Pitch bend with separate settings for up and down pitch-bends

Filter, Modulatios, LFO etc

Filter section:
Main filter is an analogue modelled stereo Multimode Filter, offering 6dB LowPass and HighPass, 12dB, 18dB and 24dB LowPass and HighPass, 12dB and 24dB BandPass, 12dB and 24dB Notch and Comb Filter
Pre-filtering distortion with smooth or edgy mode option
Easy Filter control by pre-defined Cutoff Frequency modulation controllers: Envelope, Velocity, Key-tracking, LFO and Modulation Wheel
Build in Filter Envelope with Attack, Decay, Sustain, Fade and Release
Build in Filter LFO with various waveforms, modulation amount control and tempo sync option with speed settings between 16/1 and 1/32t
LFO Poly, free or mono mode options

Filter2 section
Additional Filter with cutoff control offering 6dB, 12dB and 24dB LowPass or HighPass setting

Amp section:
Build in Amp/Volume Envelope with Attack, Decay, Sustain, Fade and Release.
Volume control
Velocity> Volume amount
Panning control

Free modulation section:
Free Envelopes
2 Envelopes with Attack, Decay Sustain, Fade and Release.
Option to control the Envelopes times using "velocity" or "key played"
Modulation Amount Envelope 1&2 and amount control for Envelope 1.
44 modulation destinations

Free LFO's
2 LFO's with various waveforms
Tempo sync option with speed settings between 16/1 and 1/32t
Poly, free or mono mode options.
Modulation Amount LFO 1&2 and amount control for LFO 1.
44 modulation destinations

Free Modulation Matrix
4 free modulation routings
28 modulation sources
44 modulation destinations
Secondary modulation source & control

Play modes section:
Poly/Mono/Mono2/Legato/Arp/Unison2/Unison4/Unsion6 synthesizer play modes.
Portamento featuring constant rate/constant time or held(legato) constant rate/constant time.
Unison detune amount, if Predator is in Unison2, Unison4 or Unsion6 mode.
8 note Chord memory, saved within the preset
Demo C3 button to preview sounds

Update

Rob Papen updates Predator to v1.1, a virtual synthesizer packed with powerful features geared towards production of contemporary dance music: Updated in v1.1

* You can bypass individual FX's by clicking on the FX number
* Extended Preset Menu, you can now access all the preset controls (such as recalling presets) via this menu
* You can use normal text instead of LCD text in GUI via a switch in the back screen
* Limiter for Flanger / Phaser
* Filter envelope & LFO are now available as modulation sources
* You can use normal text instead of LCD text in the GUI
* Oversampling CPU throttling, reduces the CPU usage at 88 - 96 Khz
* Improved preset loading, it takes less time & CPU now and should be no anomalous noises when loading presets
* Bank Loading via MIDI works properly now
* Lots of other minor bug fixes and improvements
* New presets include Junkie XL presets

Audition Predator Demo

Rob Papen : Inspiration Soundware: 8 mp3 available for download

Bid at eBay

Reader Feedback

Reply

XenosSoundworks Jul 23, 2009 @ 4:08 pm | delete

Good in-depth coverage of this great synth. I reviewed it myself on my own page. Predator looks much simpler on the surface than in actually is. Seriously, there are so many hidden tricks in there it isn't funny. You can route just about anything to just about anything. Not only are the oscillators and filters of high quality, but the effects are also nothing shy of top notch.

I made a full bank of sounds for Rob Papen using Predator and it is sold as a seperate product on his website: http://www.robpapen.com/predator-soundsets.html it's the Xenos bank.

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Advance Features

Arpgeggiator section:
16 step arpeggiator, which can be used as a step sequencer or as modulation source.
Arpeggiator patterns can be 1-16 steps long
Speed setting of 1/4, 1/3, 1/2, 2/3, 1, 3/2, 2, 3 and 4x BPM.
Up, down, up/down, down/up, random, ordered, reverse ordered, ordered up/down, ordered down/up, chord and modulation mode.
1-4 octaves settings
Overall step length
Swing amount
Slide amount for sliding steps
Velocity control knob which mixes between keyboard (midi) velocity input and the steps velocity settings.
Each step has on/off, Tie, Slide, Tune, Velocity and Free row.
Tie modes normal or special which allows Slide, Tune, Velocity and Free settings inside a step if that step is set to Tie.
Arpeggiator Latch which can be controlled by the midi sustain pedal.
You can load, save, copy, paste and reset arpeggiator patterns, so you can reuse them in different presets.

Advance section:
Adjustable Analogness setting to simulate the instability of vintage analogue synthesizers.
Global Tuning
Attack Shape. This changes the curvature of Predator's envelopes attack stage. From exponential to linear to logarithmic.
Decay/Release Shape. This Changes the curvature of Predator's envelopes decay and release stages. From exponential to linear to logarithmic.
Velocity Shape. Changes Predator's velocity curvature. From exponential to linear to logarithmic.
Over-sampling mode: Sets the over-sampling from 1x / 2x / 4x / 8x / 16x.
Over-sampling filter on/off: optional post-over-sampling lowpass filter
Audio input selector >FX or >Filter (PredatorFX only)
Audio input gain control (PredatorFX only)
Synth Amp Hold on/off. Turn off the PredatorFX's Amp envelope and so the sound plays without changing volume. (PredatorFX only)
All advance settings are saved within each individual preset.
External controller hardware (fader-box or synth) settings can be saved and restored.

Overall:
16-voice polyphony.
Parameter read-out field at lower right corner.
Help function for most controls.

Effects Section

FX

FX section:
HQ effects blocks in serial mode.
Available effects: Mono Delay, Stereo Delay, Comb, Reverb, Chorus, Chorus/Delay, Flanger, Phaser, Wah/Delay, Distortion, Low Fi, Amp Simulator with 5 models, Waveshaper, Stereo Widener, Autopan, Gator, Vocoder, FX multi-filter, 5 Band Equalizer, Compressor and Ensemble.
Midi tempo based settings in most effects.
2 FX modulation sources for connecting midi or synth controls to FX parameters.

Preset section:
Uses sound banks composed of 128 presets.
Preset handling with copy, paste, clear and compare function.
All settings included the Advance panel settings are stored inside each preset.
Presets are stored in clear categories.
Four 'Preset variation' buttons with amount control of the variation.
Preset morphing with amount control to morph between two presets within the selected bank.

REVIEWS

Keyboard Magazine - Rob Papen Predator Review by Francis Preve: In the weeks I spent with Predator, I experienced nary a bug or crash and found myself turning to it frequently for a wide variety of sounds. Basses, leads, pads, exotic electro effects . . . Predator excels in pretty much every area of subtractive synthesis. Its overall sound is cleaner than soft synths that strictly bill themselves as ?virtual analog,? but it can certainly be warm and grungy. It has a certain presence that makes it cut through a dense mix when used in conjunction with other soft synths in your collection, which to me is a sign of character. As a bonus, since there's no copy-protection dongle involved either, it's a terrific choice for laptop users with a limited number of USB ports. If you're casting about for a punchy, versatile soft synth to add to your arsenal, it's definitely worth a very close look. At $179, Predator is a shockingly good value. Good enough for a Key Buy, in fact.
365MAG International Music Magazine - 365 Gear Review: Predator by Rob Papen - 2007-06-06: Taking the relatively low price of 145 euro into consideration, Predator offers a lot of bang for your buck, and has quite a punch under its hood. Sounds, especially in the bass and 'classic' synth department sound crisp and rich, and sport, as we have come to expect from Rob Papen, a high degree of usability.

The layout is well thought out and simple, whereas the supplied waveshapes alongside the effects allow for a huge variation of sounds. The help-per-button function is an innovative and instructive novelty, especially for those new to synthesis, rendering the package a very versatile basis for many styles of production.

If there is a downside, and it is hard to find one, I would say that multicore support would be a worthy addition. Although sounds are relatively processor un-intensive, my macbook would sometimes glitch when using complex chords. Fact is that in the past few weeks, I have had a lot of fun and inspiration with Predator, and I fully recommend it for beginners and experts alike.
D4Dirty Records | Rob Papen Predator VST Review | Predator, Filter, Synths, Synth, Sounds: Sound quality is just incredible, interface is incredible, modulation is a breezy and covers too many types of sounds to mentions. This is one incedable VST, and for the price of $179 this will be a welcome addition to your DAW's plug-ins.
Rob Papen Predator Reviews | Sweetwater.com by Rich Fabrizio: I have been impressed by many of the recent software instruments on the market but the Predator takes the prize. The sound, ease of use and price point are amazing. The 128 oscillator waveforms are brilliant for shaping your own unique sound or tweaking a preset to give it your own touch. Top it off with the three multi FX, killer multimode filter with overdrive and a programable arpegiator and you have the most affordable powerfull synth in recent yeras. Oh yeah, try instantiating three or four of them in your session for synth bass, lead and a mysterious swirling pad.