TAL has released Bassline 101, a monophonic bass synthesizer for Mac & Windows, inspired by the Roland SH-101. According to the company, Bassline 101 “produces the raw sound you know from analogue devices without any effects.”
Features:
- Self resonating zero feedback delay filter (24dB LP).
- Calibrated and tuned after our hardware device.
- Midi learn / automation for all controls.
- Alias free oscillators for an authentic sound also @ 44’100Hz sampling rate.
- Arpeggiator with different sync modes (host, midi clock, not on).
- Original (RC) and linear portamento mode.
- Built in arpeggiator with some additional modes.
- Powerful step sequencer with up to 64 steps and recording option.
- 6 voice poly mode.
- Sequencer MIDI export with drag and drop.
- Sequencer / arpeggiator MIDI out for VSTi version.
- De-Clicker mode for slower envelopes :/
- More than 300 presets.
- All sample rates supported.
Here’s an audio demo of Bassline 101 against the original:
Bassline 101 is available for US $40 for the first 2 months, $60 thereafter, at the TAL site.
If you’ve used Bassline 101, let us know what you think of it!
The emulation sounds good – but do we really need a virtual SH101? Have all the great synths already been emulated?
they will keep coming as long as people keep wanting them.
“get that analogue sound!”
We NeEd aLL oF TheM!!!!…ViRtUaL and HarDware (WhEn aFfoRdaBle)..but aLL oF THeM Mr!!!!
Ugh. If you want an SH-101 go buy one and actually use an SH-101. I love how most “musicians” won’t let the computer to have its own unique voice. Instead, they use it to attempt to recreate instruments that actually had their own unique voice 20-30 years ago.
The computer’s unique voice is a bunch of 1’s and 0’s – who wants to try to play or listen to that…?
How silly, for so many reasons.
Obviously, price difference is huge. Tracking down a used 101 in your area in good condition would be time consuming. It’s a big synth for the limited sound range it has, I think most people are trying to avoid studio clutter these days unless you have a mega area. You can travel with your laptop and write wherever creativity finds you. Vintage hardware breaks, no patch memory, multiple instances, 101 has a known limited sequencer etc etc. If it sounds as just 90% as good these are more than enough reason to opt for a soft synth.
I love hardware, and have been bit by the hardware bug and started to collect some synths, but I’m quickly reconsidering. TAL, Xils Lab, D16 and others have been releasing softsynths indistinguishable from hardware sound with great bonus features. I wrote two tracks this weekend on the roof deck of my friend’s apartment overlooking the ocean, can’t do that carrying around all sort of hardware. Hardware is a nice to have, but is not without its own downsides.
Anything from TAL (free or otherwise) is always a worthy addition to my DAW.
I dont understand dislikes. we all dont have room and money buy real things. and there is many great synths what are not yet emulated at least good quality.
TAL makes pretty good stuff, however the D16 emulation of the 101 its fucking incredible. Its a stack of 8 with mixer and fx so you can layer the sound, do spits, etc. “Lush 101”. Its one of the best software synths Ive ever heard in my life. Truly that good. Only issue is as usual with D16 stuff, it really makes your CPU sweat for it.
i live in amsterdam. here they sell it for 850 euros in the 2nd hand market.
and i simply don’t have that much cash .
if you want bass, why don’t get the real thing? Sorry, i had to share this(!).
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-m7fbdYJW3ns/T_Z2wut89yI/AAAAAAAEvrg/XmoRh5LZ2zk/s1600/il_570xN.352968563_c8oz.jpg
Sounds really good. Granted I’m listening on crappy earbuds at the moment, but other than a slight difference in the resonance sweep at the end I could barely tell a difference.
TAL stuff is great and always a great price.
I will probably pick this vst up, even though I own an SH-101. It never leaves my studio, but my laptop does. Just pointing out there are scenarios that don’t entail either/or.
Good show. It’s seems to me ridiculous to give negative feedback to TAL when they have (in general) always been into the emulation game, and have provided some really great tools (including the original bassline) for free.
Likewise, to give negative feedback saying “let the computer sound like a computer” is not only redundant, but it also makes it seem as if one assumes that because TAL released this software, that the world will now miss out on some major breakthrough in software synths.
I assure you this is not the case.
There ain’t nothing wrong with the classics, nor providing the masses with cheap access to a damn-close emulation from a company who is not very likely to take your money and run for the hills.
agreed and good points.
I’d hit it.
its not what you use , but how you use it.
If I was keen on that sound, I’d go for the LUSH-101 instead. Unless you really need that particular step-sequencer, this synth is a subset of the 101. However, its clearly a good tool, so it’ll find a home in some healthy rigs.
https://www.synthtopia.com/content/2012/10/31/lush-101-software-synth-is-a-proper-monster-synthesizer/
I love this synth.
I love the original sh-101 and MC-202. it’s a synth that’s featured on so much of my favorite music (90’s Warp Records stuff. early Moving Shadow etc). it’s architecture is elegant and really uniquely “roland” that alone lends it self to very endearing creative choices.
This emulation is amazing and impressive. It has a more pleasing and gutsy sound than U-he’s Diva using the exact same settings (CEM3340 osc with roland IR3109 filter)..and it uses half the CPU. Infact, Bassline 101 is incredibly efficient for the sound you get from it. I’ve run 11 instances at the same time and only got to like 10% of my Q6600 2 gigs of ram in Reaper. Very impressive for a 0DF synth with that kind of sonic character.
As an emulation of a vintage synth it sounds better than some modern hardware VCO analogs.
I normally really dislike sequencers on VSTi’s..but I think the implementation of the sequencer on Bassline101 is actually useful and uncluttered.
I want a Jupiter 6 next!
j
0=0
Thanks for review, but “sounds better than some modern hardware VCO analogs” is pretty hilarious statement.
i’ve played a lot of modern analogs..and most of them sound like crap (the noise on the MS 20 mini comes to mind)..especially the ones that are rehashings of vintage classics (compared to said vintage classics.)
I think part of the problem (in a lot of cases) is with the VCA’s they use..and that’s where they get let down.
Oscillator designs in synths make pretty standard waveforms..those waveforms get a lot of their character from the filters. So bandlimited waveforms going into a topology modelling zero-delay filter with careful attention to nonlinearities can sound pretty effen good. From a sound design consideration that might be better than a piece of hardware where the corners are being cut on the circuit (still it’s a real object and it’s ultimately musically useful to some)
It’s look like a little brother of Lush:
http://rekkerd.org/img/201210/d16_LuSH-101.jpg