Hello Nigel,

The initial impression of this synthesizer is excellent; the user interface is clearly structured and the overall concept appears very promising.

To better evaluate the instrument for my workflow, I have a few specific technical questions:

1. Audio Import: Does the Wave-Import function support integrated Timestretching?
This is a vital feature for my creative process.

2. Filter Capabilities: Are there dedicated Formant Filters available (specifically for A-E-I-O-U transitions)?

3. Performance: How efficient is the CPU utilization regarding the synthesis engine and the internal effects chain?

4. Documentation: Where can I find more in-depth technical information or a detailed manual for this synthesizer?

Regarding the trial period: In my opinion, 30 minutes is not sufficient to truly explore the depth of such an instrument and make a confident purchasing decision.

Much like in life, a lasting commitment requires more than just a brief first impression to develop a genuine appreciation.

I look forward to your response Nigel

 

That thing sounds somewhat shitty. This online thing is a no-go. I have 20+ hi-quality (mega-)synths.

So: Nope.

 

That was the main reason i did not buy it. Online synth is a no go.

When i can import, export presets; and even an open preset format or documented will be a good reason to invest.

 

Other than right now?????

 

An old marketing trick: they list a very high price, cross it out, add a new price, and suggest how much you've saved.
The Ultra Synth at €249 is far too expensive.

For example, consider this: Parawave Audio - Rapid Synthesizer = €179.99
https://parawave-audio.com/rapid_demo

Rapid Synthesizer v1.7 Review & Tutorial - Parawave Audio

 

Sure, I'm familiar with the tactic, but you're asking him if it will every be discounted, and it it currently "discounted". Maybe you should ask if it will ever drop in price below a specific value.

 

Yes, for sure. There is currently a launch special running with $100 off

 

I don't think we would ever have a large discount than the current one. Never say never I guess...

 

Once imported, the length of the playback can be sped up or slowed down, so, yes. Check out this video at 0:40

Yes, there are a number of filter types, You can have 2 per voice and then up to 6 more of them in the FX chains

You will have to try the demo and see for yourself, but it's on a par with other synths.

The manual is online here

It is 30 minutes at a time. Just relaunch it for another 30 minutes.
Thanks!
I look forward to your response Nigel[/QUOTE]

 

Nigel, thank you very much for your detailed response.

Regarding the "Timestretch" control, would it be possible to add a "Quality Slider" (for powerful CPUs) and dedicated buttons for "Universal", "Percussive", and "Instruments" modes? This would significantly improve the flexibility of sample processing.

Your synthesizer appears to be very well-crafted. I was not aware of the option to restart the software after 30 minutes,
that is a very fair approach for a demo or trial version.

One quick question regarding data persistence: Am I able to save my own created sounds and presets locally on my computer in this version?

 

I like ass.

 

Not every ass is equal

 

This discussion — like almost every thread on Gearspace of this type — isn’t a discussion at all. It’s a symptom. You see it instantly. The overproduction crisis in its pure form. Nobody cares what the instrument actually is. What it sounds like. What it does to music. Character, intent, materiality — gone.

Instead: noise. Price panic. Endless whining.
Caw-caw-caw! I’d buy it for a dollar, but not for two!
Caw-caw-caw! My credit card’s empty because this month I lived on Starbucks and porn subscriptions.
Caw-caw-caw! Only twenty minutes free? That’s disrespectful to the customer.
Caw-caw-caw! They gave us free emulations of the Virus, Nord, Waldorf, and JP-8000 — but that’s already outdated!
Caw-caw-caw! Caw-caw-caw!

Here’s the uncomfortable part: these aren’t professionals anymore.
This is a post-professional market. Plugin masturbators. People who buy things they don’t need, don’t use, don’t even understand — once a month, with the spare change left after grocery shopping. Native Instruments are already on the way out. Access Music killed the Virus. Indie devs are next. Not because their tools are bad. But because the audience is gone. The market for professional software has been hollowed out. It’s the end of something. And everyone in those threads feels it — they just don’t know how to say it.

Now, to the point: the plugin is excellent, but it adds nothing in an oversaturated music-production market, because that market suffers from the exact same overproduction problems (plus the added pressure of AI garbage).The consumer is dissatisfied even with extremely high-quality products — even when they paid nothing for them.
I genuinely hope the developers manage to find their audience and their niche. Good luck.

 

Rapid is a great example of a synth that priced itself out of the market and no one talks about it.

Just my POV:

I think small new dev's load up on features and (rightfully) think they can ask similar prices to heavyweights like Serum and U-he.

But as others have highlighted, they are under estimating the thousands of easy to get or free presets, these synths industry heritage, the passionate user bases and the many video tutorials out there. The user is buying into a large ecosystem, its an attractive value proposition that is almost impossible to match

The market has changed from 10 years ago when high prices seemed reasonable. Super polished soft synths are now everywhere. Workhorse 'do it all' synths aren't needed anymore. Its very hard to invest anything above $100 in an unknown piece of software we might not need

I work in the games industry and we are seeing changes in buying habits with many users pushing back against increasing AAA game prices (unless youre GTA).

Polished games sub $40 are building huge sales and user bases quickly. Games like Arc Raiders could have charged $70, but they didn't and in just two months its the most popular extraction shooter on the market, and its made by a small development team. The low price point lets people hear the hype and not stress over the purchase. I know if it was $70, i wouldn't have taken the risk. People are getting stricter with their spending.

With its polished look and easy to understand workflow I think Ultra could come in as a low priced easy to use soft synth with a twist.

If it was focused on a set of killer FREE presets, it emphasised a key innovative feature, and had a price that feels less of a risk, it could engage much higher/wider buyer curiosity I think?

You are aiming to get the largest user base as possible as quickly as possible (though you better make sure your build is super solid with that approach :D). And then a regular release schedule of cheap preset packs could be a pretty efficient revenue stream?

Personally, when i get a high value product at a reasonable price it engages respect and allegiance to the company, and i'm more likely so make content purchases to help out the team.

This is the modern model across so much software now, I just don't think the 'high end boutique' fits the current market.

I might be wrong and a smaller exclusive user base will sustain you? im not convinced, but i can see a huge amount of effort has gone into it, i do wish you success!

 

Last edited: Jan 30, 2026 at 9:57 AM

@Bert Midler Biddy Fiddler, thanks for sharing your experiences and insights!

Camel Audio's Alchemy is a good example. Four years in development, priced at €199. It was truly innovative and initially sold very well. Then, a few years later, the boom was over, and the drastically reduced sales led to the discontinuation of the Alchemy; the company went out of business. The website shut down, and there were no more updates. Apple later acquired the Alchemy, so the manufacturer still received some money for it.

Some of today's synthesizers that used to cost €199 have dropped to €149. When sales figures fall, prices are likely to fall as well. When sales approach zero, a clearance sale with discounts of up to 90% follows, or the company dissolves and discontinues its product.

The more competitive the market and the tighter the budgets, the more manufacturers will have to accept declining sales figures.
The more competitive the market and the tighter the budgets, the more likely manufacturers are to have to accept declining sales figures. Some manufacturers, like Vengeance Avenger, also sell high-quality sound libraries/presets for up to €60. Half of the sales price likely goes to the sound designer.

As you can see, it's always about volume, meaning high sales figures. On the other hand, the concept isn't financially viable. Many companies consist of only 1-3 employees: the programmer, marketing, and accounting. Some are sole proprietors and usually have another job or are retired.

Every entrepreneur always bears the financial risk of their business. If things go well, they keep the profits; if things go badly, they bear the losses. If they stop selling, they'll disappear from the market.

€249 for the Ultra is slightly above the market average. The Vengeance Sound Avenger 2 is priced at €225. The reFX Nexus 5 is priced at €250. In times of tight budgets, I would consider €179 to €199 to be reasonable. In addition, there's a summer sale, a winter sale, and a Black Friday sale with 25-40% discount.

 

Available for Windows and Mac (VST3/AU), Ultra is on sale for the intro price of $149 USD for a limited time (regular $249 USD). A rent-to-own option is $5.99 USD/month during the promotion, and a fully functional trial version is available to try Ultra (times out after 30 minutes).

@Nigel Stanford, could you tell us a bit more about the "rent-to-own" model?
Minimum contract term, contract conditions, etc.?

By the way, this €5.99 price tag, not a full €6, is suggestive and manipulative, and really not appropriate for musicians! Why not just write €6? Oh, you're afraid it'll be too expensive for users...! €249 is also manipulative, and €250 sounds very expensive. We're not in a supermarket here, where the penny or cent was invented just to deceive people. Please stop this marketing. I know you won't change it, but I just wanted to say it!

 

I don't really get the problem with a 20 minute demo. That's longer than most people test drive a car they might buy. Most of the time, it is headed to the Trash in 5 if I do not like it. If you have some kind of friction with the thing almost immediately, it's usually not going to change. People do not complain about the prices of stuff they don't want to buy. Other agendas are pretty transparent.

 

High sales at a lower price can totally eclipse the profit from small sales of an expensive item. Especially if its presented as the official strategy, NOT a panicked discount. Its the most common model for a lot of software and goods because it gets users aligned and into the eco system. And a synth needs a larger passionate user base, not a handful of dudes who could afford it. Creating a sustainable market IS helping the developers long term.

The synths you highlight are updates of older synths, made by well known teams. Ironically Avenger 2 is the one synth i regret buying, its powerful but a cumbersome mess and the preset packs are terrible value and almost unusable due to legal restrictions. Overpriced and bad value is the worst place to be for a product.

I just think the world has changed. Name a new synth success story in the last 5 years in that $200+ price bracket? We might think its reasonable to spend that much on an unknown synth, but i'm not sure many other users would without a REALLY exciting reason.

The synth teams making money now are people like Gforce who sell $50 versions of famous analog synths (ill presume its still not a lot of money). That historical angle is a solid purchase reason and its a great price.

Id love to the see the MODERN sales for those older expensive synths. I bet they have rolled off massively in last few years. Look at Kontakt wobbling - maybe expensive 'elite' software hosting expensive sample packs isnt that attractive to many producers anymore.

And when a synth hits the 90% sale bracket you know its dying. That's not the way to build a loyal user base either. I have a pile of dead $20 sale synths i don't use.

I think exploring the Pigments $80-100 price band could have potential, they both have strong parallels.

 

Last edited: Jan 30, 2026 at 12:25 PM

Yes, I agree with you to a certain extent, but what price point is the promising selling price in the long run? Does the manufacturer feel insufficiently valued if the selling price is too low? Can they make a living each month if sales figures are too low?

The UVI Falcon is for people who work professionally in sound design or film music.
I also paid €319 for it; is it worth it? Yes! Would they sell more if it only cost €100? Yes!
Is it sustainable? I believe that if you have to make a living from it, a higher price is justified. I don't know if UVI can make a living from the Falcon product itself; it's all trade secrets. They also have other products on the shelves.

The synthesizers you mentioned are updates of older models from well-known developers. The synthesizer teams that are still making money today are people like Gforce, who sell $50 versions of well-known analog synthesizers. That's a compelling argument and a fair price. I'd love to see how sales of those older, expensive synthesizers are doing today. I bet they've plummeted in recent years. Just look at Kontakt—expensive "elite" software with expensive sample packs isn't as appealing to many producers anymore.

And when a synthesizer is only selling at 90% of its original price, you know it's doomed. That's no way to build a loyal user base. I have a whole stack of old $20 synthesizers that I don't use. Ultimately, everything gets cheaper, and users benefit most from the competition.
Take Arturia, for example. Expensive hardware became software, but Arturia also has other products and is innovative. Korg is innovative and also has intelligent hardware products, so it will remain in the market.

I think he's raising money first and he's looking at the competition. I don't know if he needs to make a living from it. But if his sales figures are too low, he'll have to come up with something; the price will probably drop. 245 EUR --> 199 EUR --> 179 EUR --> 149 EUR!

Example:
Devine Machine - Krishna Synth --> Year 2005 = 226 EUR
Devine Machine - Krishna Synth --> Year 2009 = 198 EUR
Devine Machine - Krishna Synth --> Bankruptcy
Devine Machine - Krishna Synth --> Year 2025 = 49 EUR
Re-establishment of the company as FKFX Audio - KrishnaSynth Legacy

Questions upon questions:
Profit expectations versus reality?
What does the customer want, and how much are they willing to spend?
How will the market develop?
Will I be able to prevail against the competition?

Will the customers of tomorrow, who haven't even been born yet, buy and use my product, and if so, at what price?

 

That's GREAT news!
My snare sounds like ass, too.
Soon I will have the complete collection.