What’s the closest thing to an EMU Proteus plugin we have?

Discussion in 'Samplers, Synthesizers' started by grrarrrgh, Apr 4, 2026 at 4:52 PM.

  1. PulseWave

    PulseWave Audiosexual

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    Hello @Kate Middleton, Presence by Studio One is a good way to play and edit SF2.

    2026-04-06_101002.jpg
     
  2. Somnambulist

    Somnambulist Audiosexual

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  3. cyanidecup45

    cyanidecup45 Kapellmeister

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    The things that made the E-MU Proteus' unique were the effects and the nice Z-Plane filters, which soundfonts cannot replicate well. While Emulator X3 is old and buggy, to my knowledge it's the only way to use the Z-Plane filters and E-MU effects in software. There was something E-MU did make called EmuPowerFX which allowed you to use the effects as a VST effect instead, but that only worked if you had an E-MU sound card/audio interface with the E-MU DSP chip on it.

    While Digital Sound Factory/DSF do sell most of the E-MU sounds as Kontakt libraries, many of them are old and are not good, many of them are just the raw samples without the special filters and effects.
    [​IMG]
     
  4. orbitbooster

    orbitbooster Audiosexual

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    Yes, all .exb. I must say that loading the .exb banks is real quick, as well switching among presets.
    That was the first thing I tried once banks were loaded, I love that. But with UltraProteus rack was a pain in the ass to program.
    X3 easypeasy: you select voice processing within the preset then choose the (Z-plane) filter.
    There is even a Morph designer filter - 6 stages.
     
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  5. Olaf

    Olaf Platinum Record

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    Yes, there would even be an advantage: additional outputs incl. S/PDIF are only available on Proteus 2000, not on Planet Earth or Mo' Phatt units. Apart from this, the only difference is the front plate. Internally they are basically the same. Every unit has up to 4 ROM slots. You could just put the ROMs from Planet Earth, Mo' Phatt, and another one in Proteus 2000 and use them together in the same device.
     
    Last edited: Apr 6, 2026 at 2:10 PM
  6. cyanidecup45

    cyanidecup45 Kapellmeister

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    Many of the Sound Blaster Live! sound cards from around 1998 to around 2003 had the EMU10K1 chip onboard which came with a 64 voice synthesizer, 32 parts of multitimbrality, and up to 512 voices. It also had some effects made by E-MU Systems (e.g Flanger/Chorus/Reverb/Pitch Shifter/etc.) built into it as part of the FX8010 DSP architecture.
    [​IMG]
    Many soundfonts were made back in the day that were built specifically for the SB Live! cards, including some soundfonts by Gort
    (e.g Gort's Synth) which took advantage of the SB Live!'s resonant filters (which something like Fruity Soundfont Player doesn't have) which is why playing them back on something like Fruity Soundfont Player or BASSMIDI VST/juicysfplugin will not make them sound like what they did back on the SB Live! card.

    No one to my knowledge has managed to recreate the SB Live!'s synthesizer playback behaviour/filters/effects in software form which is a shame because while I do have a Sound Blaster Live! 5.1 card, I cannot use it due to my PC not having PCI slots.

    E-MU also made software for PCs called Audio Production Suite and came with a bunch of Proteus soundfonts which are the exact same ones you can find on sites like Musical-Artifacts to this day.
     
    Last edited: Apr 6, 2026 at 7:50 PM
  7. grrarrrgh

    grrarrrgh Kapellmeister

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    I’d like to also try the soundfonts, Emulator X3 is working successfully for windows but if these soundfonts are accurate I can take the proteus sound to my Mac, iPad and iPhone with a sf2 plugin.
     
  8. grrarrrgh

    grrarrrgh Kapellmeister

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    I’m going with both, doesn’t hurt to have all the options available to me but I’m starting to go through the sound banks for X3 and putting it all together, I’ve been burned out yesterday from something unrelated so I’ll be able to test VX and the Proteus 2000 library, heck it could get imported if it’ll work in Emulator X3
     
  9. Dalmation

    Dalmation Producer

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    What are the differences between the Emulator VX & X3 ?
     
  10. ToddlerTN

    ToddlerTN Kapellmeister

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    I still own all of the various Proteus hardware, going back to the original, and I keep meaning to sell it as I haven't turned it on in ages. I've used the Digital Sound Factory Kontakt patches a few times just for fun. They aren't perfect, but they are authentic enough for my purposes. I don't think they're that bad at all, and they certainly scratch that itch when I want to invoke some nostalgia.
     
  11. PulseWave

    PulseWave Audiosexual

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    1. E-Mu Proteus VX v.2 that E-mu was giving away for free at the end. Includes manual. Can play any and all E-Mu sample sets of module ROM. Runs in Windows XP to 10 x64. Software version of Proteus 2000. Includes Composer ROM sample set. Stand-alone or plugin. Abandonware.

    2. Emulator X is a software-based audio sampler that was produced by E-MU Systems from 2004 to 2009.

    Emulator X software is compatible with PCs running the Microsoft Windows operating system. The sampler can operate as a stand-alone program or as a VST instrument and, as of Emulator X3, is available in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions.

    For the software to run, one of several sound cards sold by E-MU was originally required.[1] The sound card acted as a hardware dongle to prevent unauthorised use without the purchase of an E-MU branded device. This requirement was later dropped with the release of Emulator X

    Versions

    Following E-MU's decision to end sales and production of its hardware sampler line in 2003, Emulator X was released as the company's first entry into the software sampler market in 2004.[1] Emulator X2 was released in 2006,[3] followed by the third and final incarnation, Emulator X3, in 2009.[4] The product has since been discontinued[5] and is no longer available to purchase from either E-MU or its parent company, Creative Technology.

    Functionality

    Emulator X was largely based on E-MU's hardware sampler operating system, EOS. As such, it replicates or expands upon most of the design and features available in the final revision of the operating system, EOS 4.70. An example of this is the inclusion of E-MU's highly publicized "Z-Plane" filters, with Emulator X containing over 25 new filters not available in EOS.

    It is also capable of importing and exporting bank files in EOS format for compatibility with E-MU's legacy hardware samplers such as the Emulator IV and E4 Ultra series devices.

    It is the last software sampler produced that retains the ability to directly sample other sources, in contrast to current software samplers, which require existing samples and are therefore more akin to traditional ROMplers. Among the more noteworthy sampling features added in Emulator X2 is SynthSwipe, a tool which gives Emulator X the ability to sample from connected MIDI devices such as hardware synthesizers by sending a series of notes at differing velocities via MIDI and automatically recording the device's output to create a new fully mapped sample bank.
     
  12. Sylenth.Will.Fall

    Sylenth.Will.Fall Audiosexual

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    Have you tried the UVI Falcon Emu 1 2/3 packs? I am not sure what other people think of them, but they always sound fantastic to me.

    A word of warning though. Falcon can be a real pain in the arse to install.
     
  13. Sylenth.Will.Fall

    Sylenth.Will.Fall Audiosexual

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    I do love your answers.. Always extremely detailed!

    ------------------------------------------------------------------


    I have one of those too, still packed away. Not used it in years
     
  14. MokuseiFolf13

    MokuseiFolf13 Kapellmeister

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    Say! I have one of those too! Though, it isnt the 5.1 version but the EAX stuff is very fascinating.
     
  15. PulseWave

    PulseWave Audiosexual

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    Cakewalk - Dimension Pro VSTi (And another option - The Dimension VST plays the sounds)

    Cakewalk Dimension Proteus Pack (ISO) and (SFZ's)

    E-MU Systems Proteus sound libraries represent more than fifteen years of professional quality audio that has defined the world of music, film and sound effects. The original Proteus 1 was an innovative sound engine that ushered in a new era of synthesis. The second generation of the E-MU Proteus line was a sound producer's dream that offered more memory, instruments, and articulation to help shape new sounds. These legendary E-MU Systems Proteus sounds are back and available for your production today!

    Digital Sound Factory has re-released the original Proteus content for use in the Cakewalk Dimension Pro and Dimension LE synthesizers. The creator of Timothy Swartz is a veteran E-MU Systems and manufacturer of the original Proteus sound sets. The original sample content is used, combined with the advanced technology available in the Cakewalk Dimension.

    The E-MU Proteus Pack consists of over 3,500 instruments, perfect for any style of music you can imagine. And when you combine them with Dimension Pro's endless synthesis options, you have a great music production tool.

    The E-MU Proteus Pack includes:
    • Proteus 2000: Multi-Purpose Professional Sounds
    • Mo 'Phatt: Hip Hop / Urban
    • Xtreme Lead 1: Dance / Electronica
    • Planet Earth: World
    • Virtuoso 2000: Orchestral
    • PX-7: Drums Percussion
    • Over 3,500 different instruments
     
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    Attached Files:

  16. KORG3R

    KORG3R Platinum Record

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    @cyanidecup45
    This goes a bit offtopic but i´m following you
    [​IMG]

    The thing with the KX or the EMU DSP is...how accurate is if you use the mixer for "bussing" out, far far greater "snap" than with the busses in a DAW(more natural sounding to the human ear). it feels like so much missed potential ended up down the drain after we focused on plugins, creative moved from this chip after the 1212M/1616/1820/0404 etc..
     
  17. Kate Middleton

    Kate Middleton Platinum Record

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    i know about this one. i used dimension pro alot in 2012.. but now t sounds a bit dull but the libraries did not show up you had to update dimension pro and refresh the preset list i remember
     
  18. Kate Middleton

    Kate Middleton Platinum Record

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    they are good for beginners and amateurs.. not enough for professionals
     
  19. PulseWave

    PulseWave Audiosexual

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    You should probably use Presence from Studio One instead.

    It's the F5 key to refresh, but nothing is displayed there because the entire Cakewalk Dimension Proteus Pack doesn't have Program files, only SFZ and samples. You click the Initialize button at the top of Dimension Pro and can then manually select the SFZ.
     
  20. Somnambulist

    Somnambulist Audiosexual

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    It must be me but I couldn't get any of these to make a sound in Prescence from your previous download link??? So what am I missing??
    My system is trying to tell me they belong to Reason as a SoundFont bank? I can load them but no sound?
    upload_2026-4-7_8-18-8.png

    EDIT

    Never mind it is the end user ballsup (ME) :rofl:
     
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