STEINBERG/WALDORF PPG Wave 2.V

May 1, 2001 12:00 PM, By Randy Alberts

Based on the German-crafted PPG Wave 2.3 digital-analog hybrid synthesizer introduced way back in 1984, Steinberg/Waldorf's PPG Wave 2.V is a faithful reproduction of its predecessor. Purists will love PPG Wave 2.V's True PPG button, which can re-create the “undesirable” digital noise endemic to the original synth's higher notes. Even the installation CD-ROM's desktop icon looks like one of the white function keys from the Wave 2.3's front panel.

PPG Wave's impressive manual offers long and detailed glossary explanations, waveform descriptions, and illustrated examples. The software includes several Wave libraries programmed by synthesists such as Volker Barber and Andrew Thomas; however, it's much more fun to create your own sounds. Healthy-size black knobs on PPG Wave's distinctive blue panel make it easy to control the digital oscillators, LFOs, envelopes, and analog filter modifiers, but the software also allows you to use a mouse to draw the curve of each ADSR envelope and filter response — an incredibly powerful and intuitive feature.

A Wave synthesizer sounds unlike any other digital or analog synth with which you may be familiar. Depeche Mode, Thomas Dolby, Ultravox, and dozens of other influential synth artists exploited the Wave's quirky sounds back in the '80s, and techno artists like Richie Hawtin have used newer incarnations of this technology to create chilling textures. The Wave's specialty — long, evolving pads and sound effects that change constantly as you hold down a key — are created by feeding a beautiful mixture of precise digitally controlled oscillators through its analog filters. However, all of this power comes at a price: the plug-in requires an ample amount of RAM.

With the True PPG feature engaged and the Emphasis (PPG-speak for resonance) turned way up, you'll experience the harsh, gritty tones that have endeared many musicians to this instrument. The Basis control randomly assigns voices to individual locations in the stereo field to generate vast, expansive sounds. For a firsthand taste of this cool feature, call up factory patch 24 and turn up the Basis control about halfway. The arpeggiator is also faithful to the original's design but is rather primitive by today's standards. It even lacks a bpm readout — a huge bummer if you want to synchronize a pattern with an external rhythm track.

PPG Wave 2.V is Mac and PC compatible (minimum requirements for the Mac: PowerPC 250, 64 MB of RAM, and Mac OS 8.0; for the PC: Pentium 266, 64 MB of RAM, and Windows 95/98/2000). The plug-in provides a myriad of potent and easy-to-explore modulation routings. In the '80s the Wave 2.3 proved that digital instruments could sound warm and huge. Waldorf's PPG Wave 2.V VST synthesizer plug-in reveals that even a digital software emulation of a digital synth can provide the same stunning results.

Randy Alberts is a musician, writer, and audio engineer exploring music and recording technology in his studio in Pacifica, California.

PRODUCT SUMMARY