As Klitorislav very clearly stated, the emulator is free. The ROMs come with the Virus hardware you would buy. If you don't have the hardware and you're using a ROM you found on the internet, you're using it illegally. I don't know why this is so difficult for people to understand.

 

Yeah but as long as you don't use it commercially, you should be safe to use it. The Emulator is really great to test, if you like the virus sounds. even if you don't "own" the Rom. So as long as you don't work with the emulator commercially, It's the best thing ever... If you really use it much, you should buy an used Virus B or C, at least, thats clear. But for hobbyist who don't want to sell their music or for testing purposes it's allright to use it.

 

the emulators are all awesome. the very last thing I would worry about in the world would be usage of the ROM getting you into trouble. Or even getting an email back for that matter. lol. They will suspect you of requesting tech support for one of their products. ;)

 

Yeah, I think so, too. People should chill a little.

 

I'm just trying to set the record straight, idgaf how people make their music. Believe it or not, there are lots of producers that prefer to stay 100% legit. Not that I'm one of them, but they're out there.

 

What problems should the use of ROMs of old devices that are no longer produced and that cannot be bought from the manufacturer lead to? Is this a "moral principle"? Whose profit or surplus value are you stealing in this case? How does the possession of a real virus give you the right (in your principles) to use the ROM? Do you have the right (in your principles) to use Virus C ROM if you have (or have had?) such as Virus Rack?

 

I agree almost completely. I don't think it's much more complex than the conversations about Nintendo Emulators from 20 or 30 years ago.

I have no problem at all with the "Ethics of Warez", even if I do use only legit samples/software for making music. Just like with "Warez", someone else using a product (for free) does not diminish it's value. In fact, in terms of hardware; I think it actually can cause resale values to go up instead of down. Again, look to the TR-808 or TB-303. A "hundred" clones are out there and it has never done anything but make the original hardware versions more desired, and expensive.

it doesn't mean you should believe anyone with self-interest in the case either. Anyone telling you that almost any plugin replaces a piece of hardware has their own agenda in mind. And for them to tell you that one of the most technologically advanced German synthesizers ever built, is replaced by a program is one thing; but believing it is quite another. You absolutely do a disservice to yourself by not forming your own opinion of something you use, not what someone selling you something tells you about it.

Should you need a real world example, load the DSP56300 emulator up into a project where you already have 20+ channels of audio and plugins all going. See what happens. Then make it double the channels and try again. No matter what machine you are on, it is going to choke the cpu. Meanwhile an actual hw synth will just gladly accept incoming midi and keep spitting out audio. With the plugin you will freeze, bounce, and all other things to get around your obstacle.
Does that sound the same to you? Of course not.

Check out this simple (mostly unrelated but a cool read) addendum by Howard Scarr: PROGRAMMING ANALOGUE SYNTHS VIRUS TUTORIAL BY HOWARD SCARR.pdf

 

Last edited: Dec 24, 2022

Dead link.
But I have a better link, working... and containing not only the PDF file but also all the tutorial sounds in several formats:
https://www.virus.info/download/174/Tutorial-on-how-to-program-the-Virus-in-English