I often look at Renoise through the eyes of a new user who
is new to the tracker world
is comparing Renoise against other DAWs
still doesn’t yet “get” what’s special about it.
I see that Renoise (and especially Redux) are INCREDIBLY POWERFUL alternatives to other standalone synthesizers, but that there’s still quite a learning curve before users grasp the full power of the synth/sampler engine.
On my machine, the core/included sounds are in one folder, the Beatslaughter and PureMagnetik sounds are saved somewhere else, and then there’s the different presets in the Sampler depending on whether I’m looking at the Keyzones or Waveform tabs.
Contrast this with a new synth, where you can browse through one menu that gives you a (hopefully organized) tour of all the sound design possibilities you have in the tool.
I think Renoise could do a better job of arranging the presets so it’s clearer to new users all the power they have at their fingertips.
On my machine, the core/included sounds are in one folder, the Beatslaughter and PureMagnetik sounds are saved somewhere else, and then there’s the different presets in the Sampler depending on whether I’m looking at the Keyzones or Waveform tabs.
The keyzones, waveform, etc. presets are indeed very specialized and you need to have an idea about what you’re doing.
But, don’t forget that Renoise/Redux also has a global preset browser? Dialing in a global preset isn’t that different from selecting a “program” in a softsynth.
In Redux this feature is pretty up-front. But I think the biggest flaw in Renoise 3.1 is that the global preset browser is so damn hidden. You have to open the sampler before the browser can be accessed - I bet even experienced users have overlooked this?
This functionality really should be duplicated in the instrument properties panel (makes sense, as you can select plugin presets from here as well).