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Yep, looks good.
Nice surprise. Looks like everybody wants to get a copy before the world is coming down.
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Does this support MPE? I read that OSCs can be modulation sources, is that done via the mod matrix?
Serum 1 supported MPE I believe, so I imagine serum 2 does as well 
Oscillator modulation is drag and drop!
yep, here is one gui for MPE, I think there is another menu option as well
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Thanks. I tried the demo now a bit. Not too long though. Seems to be the better version of Tone2 Icarus or maybe even Vital, on the other hand Vital supports per voice modulation and CLAP… And is free.
For sure an awesome update for Serum 1 users, all this even free is a certainly nice attitude of the developer towards their customers. U-He style. Extra nice to see from U.S. americans / ultra capitalists?
I find the pricing for new users a bit steep, also what if you have Zebra 2/3 or similar licenses?
However there also are a lot well-thought detail, maybe even unique features added here, which other developers could learn from:
- Mix amount for any kind of filter, YAY
- PZ SVF custom design filter, YAY
- two times waveform modifiers / warps, YAY
- Detail unison settings, YAY
- Noise “pitch”, like a dj filter, YAY
- I am not sure, but is it actually possible to create a feedback loop, like OSC1 RM2, and OSC2 RM1? YAY
- OSCs are modulation sources, YAY
Not so good yet, in my very personal view:
- Noise only sample based, section should be called “simple sampler” - NAY
- Mixer view seems to bring no additional features on the table, only a very basic, streamlined view, why not add for all the dual-OSC warp-modes an additional slider? For example “ring mod 1x2” - NAY
- Modulation can be understood only from the modulator, not from the target, NAY
- Spectral mode too much CPU, NAY
- Should be more ENVs and LFOs, NAY
- Mac / PC pinch-to-zoom and other gestures are not used at all, e.g. for zooming in the envs, NAY
Other:
- Some UX workflow and also design feels a bit aged or so
- I don’t care for a DAW inside a synth… Maybe good for selling presets though.
- Noob judgment: Filter drive sounds not good at all, even useless?
- Why so much focus on fx? In a synth? Bad practise, waste of development time IMHO. Better practise: Provide multi outputs. Maybe provide an fx-less version for a lower price.
I actually have no idea about Serum. What’s your impression, after your initial fanboy feelings? I guess there are a ton of other awesome features in this synth… Can you explain to me, please?
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I can’t claim any great expertise, since I just have one session with it at this point, but the things that I’m most excited for are the new granular and spectral synthesis engines, much more flexible effects architecture, improved effects algorithms, dual filters, dual warp modes, true FM, mixer section, arpeggiator, etc. Just seems much more fully featured and powerful now. Almost like a mini DAW in its own right. I wouldn’t really class myself a fanboy of much besides renoise lol, but I do find serum to be a powerful synth, and I’m looking forward to the new functionality it has as a sound design environment, as well as looking forward to hearing some of the new sonic territory that various people explore with it. I imagine it will be impactful across a variety of genres of electronic music for some time to come
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Totally agree, it’s a very powerful synth. So, yes, for Serum 1 users, this is awesome.
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Yes. I had owned serum since many years back, so the upgrade is a no-brainer for me. Not sure if I would shell out for it if I didn’t already have a license, but I think they are keeping it at $189 for a while (the cost of a serum 1 license) before jacking it up to, I think $250. Which is a lot! Imo…
But I do appreciate their license-for-life approach. Beats all the subscription models for sure
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am i the only one experiencing constant crashes with this whenever i try to browse / change presets?
i’ve tried it on both renoise 3.4.3 and 3.4.4 now and as soon as i start flipping between presets it pretty much instantly crashes.
edit: weird, i just deactivated “run all plugins in sandboxes” in renoise and serum 2 stopped crashing. tried activating it again and serum crashed instantly.
Hmm, no problems with preset browsing here…
Then you will have to decide between sticking to your favorite synth and being a consumption victim that needs to collect plugins for whatever reason without finishing songs. 
Imo it’s worth the price, just consider how much you get in return, and the access is very easy in comparison, also for beginners. And in v2 they’ve added even more options in terms of synthesis. You don’t need much more than that, do you? The GUI also looks great. Buy it once, use it forever.
Absolutely. This needs to be rewarded, so I’ve spent something even though I already own v1.
On Win10 it works fine in any case.
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Well, I am interested in synthesis and I also like product design, UX, marketing and similar topics. So I see actually no problem in collecting stuff for a hobby, as long as it doesn’t cause drawbacks.
I also was referring to a feature comparison.
I am again a bit surprised about the fanboyism this plugin once again causes, so I was asking myself, what is actually new or better here than Zebra2, Pigments, MSF, Phaseplant, Synthmaster etc. As a real question… Since I couldn’t find the reason so far.
What does it has to do with the above? Maybe sometimes not finishing is better than adding barely anything new to the world? Isn’t there already enough of the same?
Seems to me that especially Serum 2 users are mostly noobs regarding synthesis, at least if you are judging by the videos published. I don’t fully understand why… Must be something about the marketing or so. A synth for kids? Also where are the good preset examples?
It doesn’t matter, all you need to create sounds is one synth of each type (subtractive, granular, whatever) at max. There’s no need to check everything, you cannot invent the wheel twice. If you prefer Zebra2 over Serum, great. Zebra2 can do great sounds, too.
Those who are collecting plugins tend to play around (or get lost in technical details no one would ever notice in the end) instead of finishing songs. The goal is to finish songs, because an unfinished creation is no creation. To create music is what (synth) plugins were created for. And there’s a better chance to know how to handle a plugin if one’s focussing on using that instead of switching all the time. Those who already own synth plugins don’t need Serum 2, they need to finish stuff with the synth plugins they already paid for.
So why even bother with music? Why even bother with life in general?
Sure, Serum is the most popular synth plugin of all time for no reason.
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That’s just your opinion
Indeed this is a common problem, but in the end it is more a problem about organisation and active focus. And really a general problem nowadays. But the same can happen with your goals creating music, as I wrote above.
? At least in arts, this this certainly the only reason for arts. Without it, humans still would sit in a grot and eat raw meat. It is not just a recombination of existing, that’s only an excuse for lazy minds, IMHO.
It now is kind of “up-to-date” again, and also provides some very interesting kind-of-unique stuff, too. Yet it does not even sound really nice, and for sure it was and still is the number one synth for young adults and teenagers.
Real beauty in sound design however comes from very subtle changes, not brutal and massive ones. Tell that your mash eating friends. I guess even Serum is capable of doing subtle changes somehow, even though a lot of modulators inside tend to brutally alter the sound spectrum and so on.
BTW. there actually is a real noise generator in Serum 2 under “Color”.
Wait until zebra 3 hits the streets , I am early alphatesting it and it’s abs.amazeballs !
In the meanwhile checkout Zebralette 3 , few people really grasp the power of the new curve system , the new osc effects , you can have spectral decay envelopes that define how fast-slow certain parts of the spectrum decay-damp
The different modes , time versus frequency domain , etc…
While zebra 2 could already do phase disortion by using geomorph+pd effect ( which is basically altering a ramp shape reading a cosine ) , you can now do this with the new curve system alone , combine this wit the new fm modes etc…WOWza
I’ve never been a fan of Serum 1 and always thought it was overhyped by social media , and serum 2 seems like it’s adds more of everything but nothing really groundbreaking or new .
my 2 cents
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That’s just your opinion
I think a lot of the appeal and dedication to serum comes from its relative ease of use in creating massive shifts in timbre. If you look at the genres in which serum is considered a workhorse, ie dubstep and the various psychedelic genres, massive transformations of sound are often quite desirable. Whether you enjoy the aesthetic or not, serum neatly fits the bill for creating these kinds of sounds with relative ease. It’s also quite flexible in terms of routing and modulation. I do think that much of its popularity comes from its age as well, serum came out a long time ago, usurped massive, and has had a solid place in sound design across many genres for many years. Couple that with the free upgrade, and it’s understandable why there is so much hype. I’m certain there are more advanced synths out there, but people often go with what they know and are most comfortable using. The interface is pretty intuitive, with drag and drop all over the place. Again, I wouldn’t class myself a fanboy for serum, but it is a great update if you already have serum one.
I am also excited for zebra 3
Even though I prefer to do most of my synthesis within renoise itself. People like what they like. Generally there’s not much harm in that
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The only reason for arts is human emotion, no more and no less. So when you’re saying “Maybe sometimes not finishing is better than adding barely anything new to the world? Isn’t there already enough of the same?”, you’re basically saying that creating music in a genre that already exists isn’t art and it’s better to stop creating. But you’re ignoring the fact that everything that you can possibly create already exists. There’s NOTHING new that you could add, not by mashing up different styles, not by designing any kind of sound, not by whatever. There’s a natural limitation of possibilities, whether it’s audio frequencies (timbre, notes, octaves), visual frequencies (colors) or whatever. Literally everything in life is always “the same”. Life is a circuit, which means you’re circling around… The only thing you can do is to create something (already exisiting) with your personal touch in your personal style/way.
It sounds really nice and it’s the most popular synth for most people including popular professional producers. What you’re doing here is ranting without any reason. As I said, if you prefer creating the same sounds on other plugins that are doing the same as Serum, great. Be happy! It doesn’t matter anyway, in the end everything will always sound “the same”.
Depends, but anyway, no one notices and cares about “subtle changes” of a single sound in the mix.
Well, discussing mixing decisions might be offtopic, I only want to say the following:
In my opinion, this synth is quite good, but nowhere near the recent generation of synths regarding sound beauty. It has a quite nice, easy to use GUI, and very interesting features, not questioning this.
However my youtube suggestions are now flooded with the most stupid Serum 2 videos, and literally every of these videos starts with a raw dubstep sound, not even deep diving a little into features, also maybe questioning some decisions of the synth design, or even critizing. Only polarity did some good to watch review so far. How should a synth evolve if a community works like this? The same seems to be happing a bit here, too, though I know you guys are very capable composers, I am not questioning your skills, just a little your judgement about this synth.
I also know nothing about Steve Duda, seems to be a nice guy, but at the same time there are a lot of elitist rumors around him, and I literally never seen him openly discussing feedback, like say u-he. So in this regard, I believe - not actually knowing - that other synth vendors seem to be lightyears ahead here. These are my final 2 cents here, and now I won’t interrupt your fanboyism anymore, please go on 
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As I said, the synth doesn’t matter, every same type of synth can do the same sounds. I could also mainly use something else. Fun fact: Back then I was about to purchase Zebra, but I decided to purchase Serum instead because it’s easy to use in comparison, it’s the most popular synth with the most users, and there’s tons of material (like presets, wavetables and so on). And now I simply stick to Serum, because I refuse burning my hard-earned money by purchasing just more of the same… (nevertheless I also got Sylenth1 and Omnisphere for several reasons)
I watched a video yesterday that was made by someone who created Serum 2 factory presets:
It just shows some of the new stuff in comparison to v1. Nothing deep, just a little overview.
Edit:
For those who never used granular synthesis, here’s an explanation in Serum 2:
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