Can we have another cool new synth please for iOS? VirSyn answered with iSyn Poly.
3 Virtual analog programmable virtual synthesizers with 3 oscillators, Filter, Filter ADSR, AMP ADSR, AMP, Key, Modulation routing…settings settings settings to adjust all kinds of beautiful, or crazy sounds with so many possibilities.
What makes me particularly pleased with iSyn is that it has 3 Oscillators rather than the usual (Common for iOS anyway) 2. It may not matter much to a lot of people, but 3 gives me more room to explore sonic possibilities.
Add the 24Db/Oct ladder style Low Pass filter for some of that nostalgic feel.
So many knobs!I love knobs. Its like having more sand in the sandbox to fine tune and tweak, creating unique patches. Its not the end all be all, but cool still. There is of course an arpeggiator built in to iSyn Poly. It’s not as robust as maybe we might have expected from a new synth. It has 5 mode settings, 3 octive range, 1/32 to 1/2 clock, hold, trigger and off modes. Not alot of programmabily here, but it does the job. Can’t forget the nice X/Y pad that can be used live, and is programmable with various settings to apply however you choose, such as pitch, mod, filters, FX, etc, via the pad control knobs. iSyn Poly isn’t just a virtual synthesizer. It also has a play back type drum machine with well over a dozen different drum style kits from 808 sounding kits to Modular and classic sounding drums on 9 pads. In addition to the many drum choices you control the attack, decay, pan, vol, and pitch for some more bazaar sounds.
Going over the key features is important but I cant list them all, however you can see all the specs in iTunes for the finer details.
Some of those that I think are key, and important to me, and probably you are: Unlimited song projects, Copy/Paste between other pasteboard compatible apps, and Core MIDI compatibility. iTunes file share, white and pink noise, tilt controls, quantize and many more.
The 4 track Sequencer lets you control and record notes and beats in great detail to arrange your song live making it great for automating edits on the fly. The global effects suite is packaged with some nice FX that includes, phaser, flanger, chorus and stereo/cross delay. Each with individual settings to get the sound your looking for from subtle to dramatic. There is also a distortion function separate from the FX bank with additional control settings for even more effect.
There is a lot of freedom for creative exploration in iSyn Poly. The audio quality is overall very nice, though I have noticed occasional clicks mostly when applying heavy FX, but not many. Some of the presets leave much to be desired. With some creative adjustments of the many settings options and FX, there’s no reason to ignore them. Turn that cheese into something uniquely your own, and save the patch. Really that’s why most of us buy synths for anyway. The joy of creating our own sounds and sharing them in our music.
It seems pretty stable so far, but there was a moment where it locked on to a wild note that wouldn’t stop without exiting the app and restarting.Ow my ears.
While I am enjoying iSyn, its ease of use, streamlined work flow, and its quality, I feel that the touch response in the sequencer screen isn’t as precise as I had expected. This is making note arrangement and editing difficult for me. I really don’t have big hands. I expect though, it will see an update fixing these minor concerns. .
Is it a buy or pass? I say buy. VirSyn has a solid track record and no version one is perfect. Its a fine addition to any iOS synth lovers collection and proves to be quite useful. It can only get better with the inevitable updates. I hope they add reverb?
4/5 Stars Recommended.
SmiteMatter iOS Music 
Cool…do you think they will update soon with the fixes to those things about the note editing? or should I expect a long wait? Also are you going to review FL Studio iPad? Thanks…Ronne
Hi Ronne.That's a fastest comment I've seen after a post of mine. It is very difficult for me to answer your question about VirSyn updating iSyn Poly with a fix sooner or later? I hope sooner. I have emailed them about my concerns, but have not heard back yet. Let's be patient, and I will let you know as soon as I get their response. Okay? Regarding FL Studio for iPad future review. I really really hope so. Depends on circumstances that would bore you, but I would love to. I will add it to my posted project list of things to come the instant I knowmif it's going to happen. Stay tuned? ThanksSmite
Hi Ronne,we already working on a bugfix update.Expect it soon…Christiane/VirSyn
There you have it Ronne. Strait from the creators of iSyn Poly. Doesn't get much better than that. I was just coming back to up date you, but VirSyn beat me to it. I love that! Thank you Christiane!
I had a few bugs as well. Mostly stuck notes that forced me to kill the app to get playing again. And I have issue with the sequencer. Editing/deleting notes is a pain. Sometimes the selection highlight thing doesn't do what it should and I end up just adding notes,or extending them out. This makes it time consuming to just try and sequence since I am only getting the option I need every 1/3 times. If they just made deleting notes a quick touch then this would solve that. That way they could use long touch for the velocity (yellow)note. Hope they fix soon as the app sounds good and the drum samples are great. The ability to tweak is there. Just needs some sequencer smoothing.