Access Virus Classic

Price Paid: US $971.

Ease of Use: 5
This synth is fairly easy to use, in spite of its less-than-stellar ergonomics. The knob layout is basic enough. Patch selection is incremental (one at a time), not random access - which is okay in the studio, but a pain in live applications. The arpeggiator is nice but hard to adjust to exact speed. A basic knob here would've been great.

Features: 7
16 ch multitimbral, but since midi sequencing is mostly out and DAWs are in, who cares? Lotsa nice effects like verb, chorus, delays. No expansion slots, but I didn't buy it for that. The patches are expandable up to just over a thousand - on board, but who needs that? Besides, I tried this expansion. Access requires that this be done from a sequencer to load the patches in. In the process they displace the built in demo, which uses up memory. I tried different sequencers to no avail. Contacted cust support to no avail. Access is good for certain sounds. Need support? It's a joke over there! On the plus side, the SoundDiver editor/librarian was useful. This was how I auditioned all the sounds available on the Access website. I was able to use various patches from different Virus models because the basic architecture was the same. There was a LOT of hit & miss here in making SoundDiver work. You just have to play around and try things. The manuals severly suck!

Expressiveness/Sounds: 7
This was the WHOLE reason I bought this. I am an analog nut. I didn't buy this for dance, trance & such. The unit is largely geared for this, and the onboard sounds loaded in are obviously catering to this crowd. Most of them are arpeggiated & delayed, providing a sense of frill & fancy for those who lack musicianship and can't play. To be fair, it does seem to expand the possibilities in the world of arpeggiation quite well. A lot of imagination went into it, but for straight musicianship, such artifice has its real limitations. You can't fault the 24 bit sound quality. As for analog sound with digital filters, these are unlikely bedfellows. Access did a bang up job trying to emulate analog here, but before too long, the stiff digital feel comes through. Out of hundreds of sounds, I use about a half dozen consistently. Awesome brass swells, some nice potential in the low end - like deep, analoggy, low string swells, good pads (if a bit thin) which I use to enhance my D50 and VK8M organs. Rather nice percussive-acoustic sounds , but too digital for almost all applications so far. As for real instrument sounds, the Virus was not made for that. There's lots of "meat & potatoes" synths out there for all-around sounds. But for the best, DEDICATED sounds in a given category, you need to hand-pick synths & manufacturers (i.e. for a good B3 you need a good, dedicated B3 clone, not some card or exp board with its R&D and memory stretched all over the planet).

Reliability: 10
Seems solid as a rock.

Customer Support: 1
Ha! These guys have the most subjective, disconnected, patchy, incomplete, non-sensible manuals I've ever seen! And their email support is well-meaning but... oh well.. find a forum or users group somewhere.

Overall Rating: 5
I put it in the paper twice. I couldn't give it away. Don't buy Virus unless you really want it. Try playing on one first - for a very long time.

Submitted by FirstGarden at 05/31/2006 10:10

Price Paid: US $971.

Ease of Use: 5
This synth is fairly easy to use, in spite of its less-than-stellar ergonomics. The knob layout is basic enough. Patch selection is incremental (one at a time), not random access - which is okay in the studio, but a pain in live apps. The arpeggiator is nice but hard adjust to exact speed. A basic knob here would've been great.

Features: 7
16 ch multitimbral, but since midi sequencing is mostly out and DAWs are in, who cares? Lotsa nice effects like verb, chorus. No expansion slots, but I didn't buy it for that. The patches are expandable up to just over a thousand on board, but who needs that? Besides, I tried this expansion. Access requires that this be done from a sequencer to load the patches in. In the process they displace the built in demo, which uses up memory. I tried different sequencers to no avail. Contacted cust support to no avail. Access is good for certain sounds. Need support? It's a joke over there! On the plus side, the SoundDiver editor/librarian was useful. This was how I auditioned all the sounds available on the Access website. I was able to use various patches from different Virus models because the basic architecture was the same. There was a LOT of hit & miss here is making SoundDiver work, You just have to play around and try things. The manuals severly suck!

Expressiveness/Sounds: 7
This was the WHOLE reason I bought this. I am an analog nut. I didn't buy this for dance, trance & Co. The unit is largely geared for this, and the onboard sounds loaded in are obviously catering to this crowd. Most of them are arpeggiated, providing a sense of frill & fancy for those who lack musicianship and can't play. To be fair, it does seem to expand the possibilities in the world of arpeggiation quite well. A lot of imagination went into it, but for straight musicianship, such artifice has its real limitations. You can't fault the 24 bit sound quality. As for analog sound with digital filters, these are unlikely bedfellows. Access did a bang up job trying to emulate analog here, but before too long, the stiff digital feel comes through. Out of hundreds of sounds, I use about a half dozen consistently. Awesome brass swells, some nice potential in the low end - like deep, analoggy, low string swells, good pads (if a bit thin) which I use to enhance my D50 and VK8M organs. Rather nice percussive-acoustic sounds , but too digital for almost all applications so far. As for real instrument sounds, the Virus was not made for that. There's lots of "meat & potatoes" synths out there for all-around sounds. But for the best, DEDICATED sounds in a given category, you need to hand pick synths & manufacturers (i.e. for a good B3 you need a good, dedicated B3 clone, not some card or exp board with its R&D and memory stretched all over the planet).

Reliability: 10
Seems solid as a rock.

Customer Support: 1
Ha! These guys have the most subjective, disconnected, patchy, incomplete, non-sensible manuals I've ever seen! And their email support is well-meaning but... oh well.. find a forum or users group somewhere.

Overall Rating: 5
I put it in the paper twice. I couldn't give it away. Don't buy Virus unless you really want it. Try playing on one first - for a long time.

Submitted by FirstGarden at 05/31/2006 10:03

Price Paid: US $999

Ease of Use: 10
OS 4.9

Wow, indeed this is indeed the first synth that I cannot complain about at all ! The moment it left the box and was hooked to my system, I was captivated with its magnificent choice of sounds ! Friends, honestly, if you are looking to write Goa Trance , Hard Trance, Euro Trance , Acid Trance , Psych Trance , Ambient even , this machine is exactly what you need ! Make no mistake, this will be the best buy for the price , and even if the price was 500 $ more , it would still be just as worth buying. I bought a Moog - AnalogVoyager, and I must say that besides the bass on it , there is nothing to the synth in terms of the music I am after - Goa Trance. But Virus is a totally different thing. I only had it for a day, but already have in mind so much music to make , it is incredible.
It is not hard to edit the pathces if you know what you are doing. Some say the manual is not very descriptive, but in my opinion it is written rather well. If you come short of any explanation, the world wide web is always at your fingertips , shouldnt be too hard to find help there.

Do get this , it is very nice tool !

Features: 10
I think that with creativity , this thing has much space to work with. You can write all kinds of trance on it. It is the best.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 10
Beautifull !

Reliability: N/A

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: 10
I love it. Get this one before you get ANYTHING else. This is truth !

Submitted by AnalogVoyager at 05/27/2005 06:01

Price Paid: US $850

Ease of Use: 8
I am running the latest software, updated to the full 8 banks of 127 patches (you must be sure to download the Virus Classic 1024 update, or you will get a checksum error). The unit is fairly easy to use, although a few more dedicated knobs would have helped. As it goes now, there are a lot of menus to be gone through. However, I only payed $850 US for this unit, so I can't complain. The assignable soft knobs are a nice touch, as they do allow you to manipulate certain parameters, which you choose and set, withough having to go back through the menu. If you know your way around a subtractive synth, or have had some experience with this type of analog-style synthesis, you should have no troubles making your own sounds. And, after all, one of the main reasons to get a VA/Analog type synth is to make your own sounds, and not be locked into samples or ultra-complex FM algorithms.

Features: 9
For what I paid, I really couldn't ask for more. Since this is a desktop module, there is no keyboard. It has two oscillators, plus and optional third, and a sub-oscillator, an ASDR amp, two filters, which can be operated such that you have a full 6 poles, a filter ASDR, saturation stage, delay/reverb, phaser, arp, two panel-operated LFOs with an optional third, and some more assorted goodies. You can get tons of sounds out of this thing, and you can manipulate ten ways till tuesday. There is no EQ, as with the C, but I don't miss it that much. I have a pretty high quality EQ in my rack anyhow. For a full list of features, visit the site. In any case, It really is packed with synthly goodness.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 10
This is a VA, so it sounds like an analog synth. I know, you are probably saying "but digital will never be analog." Get over it. This unit sounds great, and I have it in use with a minimoog, and an opus 3, to name two famous true-analog synths. In fact, you may sometimes notices that it even mimics the organic response of analog oscillators in that the sound isn't always so mechanically exact. The filters are also quite good, offering up to a 6-pole curve. Perhaps it isn't the best bass machine out there, but I have gotten some killer basses. Pads and leads are there, too. Unlike an analog synth, you can add some digital effects, and a few wave-shapes right in the box, and get some really cutting, gritty sounds, great for industrial. I am particularly fond of the rate reducer. Using the LFOs judiciously will get you some wacky sci-fi stuff, too. From mellow to aggressive, this unit aims to please. If you can't get the sound you are looking for, you proabably don't know how to use a subtractive synth (no offense, as it isn't a walk in the park).

If you wonder what Access stuff sounds like, take a list at their user base, as posted on their site.

Reliability: 9
I haven't had as problem in 6 months of use on the road and in the studio. I have banged it up a little, but it still functions properly. The paint on the rack ears chipped a little, though. Overall, I would say that it is rather solid, as opposed to some of the other synths (Alesis).

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: 10
An excellent option for someone without a lot of space, someone who is looking to augment a synth line-up, or someone who just doesn't want to drop 2000 dollars on another board. If has the sounds, and it operates well. Certainly one to look at, if you are considering a VA, or dare I say, even in place of a traditional analog.

Submitted by Blasten at 04/01/2005 23:10

Price Paid: N/A

Ease of Use: 3
I have just recently just received my virus classic and I am using OS version 4.9 (latest). The virus classic is a true welcome addition to my studio setup. It comes feature packed (as with any virus) with the same synth engine as the virus B & C (taking into account that technically the virus classic is, a virus b). The presets are great, no problem as far as sound goes what so ever. The virus can ultimately take your sound possibilities beyond belief, I strongly believe that the virus is the most incredible, powerful, versatile synth out today. Being a VA it is possible to emulate many analogs, aswell as digital. As far as features, sound, functions go this is amazing. It is however not that easy to use, you have to read the manual or know alot about programming VA's to work with this. It is a DEEP and I mean DEEP synth, there are lots of menu's.

Features: 10
too many features to talk about. Lots of effects, editing and programming possibilities. You will get many years of joy and use out of the virus classic, believe me. Lots of morphing and sound creation tools, a complete final for any job as far as sound programming / production goes.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 10
this is where the virus really shines. The sound is...and I mean IS, incredible. It sounds fantastic. In my opinon, and yes (i've used nords, alesis etc) the virus is better sounding out of all. For trance and dance, THIS MACHINE RULES!. Heard that sound down the club last night that you really wanted for youself to play with...the virus classic can do it. Honestly, its great for distorted phat detuned leads, lush pads, hoovers, stabs etc. It can do an all round job tho, that is the best bit, the virus sounds good whatever you do. I used 2 hours up playing with just 1 preset, and theres hundreds!. The virus is the most used popular synth in the world, for sound...well like I said, and I dont lie, this thing is where it is as. 1000%!!!!

Reliability: 10
very trust worthy, no crashes yet. Havent had to reinstall the os, upgrade it etc. Its ready for road use.

Customer Support: 10
fantastic, better than roland .. korg etc, awnser very quickly indeed.

Overall Rating: 10
the best synth I have owned, ever. Please, believe me, it sounds fantastic....totally access, what could be more better????. The classic is gonna stay with me untill I die, thats how taken by it I am. Its the best!!!

Submitted by Gary Munday at 01/08/2005 10:45

Price Paid: US $995

Ease of Use: 9
this is basically a re-release of the virus b with different paint, a lower price, and a revised manual.
if you haven't used one before, the menus can be a little confusing at first, but after you find your way around, it's pretty easy to use.
also comes with a nice editor if you'd rather use that.

Features: 9
24 voices, but using the 3rd oscillator will reduce polyphony.
mod matrix is very nice, but i wish it had a few more slots.
no per part eq like on the c series, but the fx are really nice.
i especially like all the distorion and filter saturation types, as well as the phaser.
when in multi mode, all parts must share a reverb or delay, but each part has its own other fx.
only 2 envelopes, but for most things that's not too limiting.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 10
i like the virus sound the best of all the VA's.

Reliability: 9
haven't had a problem with it, but it's still pretty new. being a destop unit, there's not as many things that could fail as there are on a keyboard.

Customer Support: 9
only contacted them once, but got a quick reply.
access is very good about continuing support for their products, even after they've been discontinued.

Overall Rating: 9
i like the classic a lot. i've gone through a lot of gear over the years, but access has 'the sound'.

Submitted by Anonymous at 11/19/2004 23:05

Price Paid: US $895.00

Ease of Use: 8
im using software ver.4.9 and it has continued to remain that way but come on it just came out!DUH Editing patches is simple but not as simple as say a nord lead...you have to go through certain menus to get to the parameters you want to adjust. Yet they're layed out quite simple.using the patch editor is ok could be great if you have a huge monitor i have a 15" which is a B*tch to get around all the parameters... besides what the heck are all those knobs for tweak the SH*T out of those Suckers... if you wanna tweak a synth from your computer get yourself a softsynth instead... but i guess if u like to get a visual view of the parameters you wish to edit then by all means do so but just make sure you have a big monitor otherwise i see ya scrolling all over your mouse pad....by the way it comes with a free editor sound diver uh yeah and it does reaaly look appealing unlike other patch editors i've layed eyes on... real cool looking...IN my opinion i felt the manual wasn't bad very nice clean i give the manual a 8 would give it a 9 if it had pics and a lil info on the company and they're plans on future products.... the included cd has a book on programming synths and they're history it really kicks ass and i enjoyed reading it 2 thumbs up its great for newbies and interesting plus insightful for even the more experience synth geeks im sure everyone can learn a thing or two from it that's right even ya gear synth geeks..

Features: 9
poly 24 good enuff better than having 8 like my roland jp8000 or even my nord lead2 16 but definitly not as good as for example my emu virtuoso 128 or the planet earth 64 voices.the efx. heck they're bad ass especially that phaser... in my opinion the efx shine i use em on my mixes and sometimes i don't i use my lexicon which we all know they kick ass.i hate the mission one has to go through in order to save patches to other banks other than A & B this really sux and is one of my only dislikes of this unit..

Expressiveness/Sounds: 10
no realistic sounds get ya self a motif,triton or a emu for that kinda sound... it's not really a synth for hip hop heads really but im sure u can tweak it and produce some usable material for that genre i used it on 2 tracks on a rnb mix i was working on for a chick and it really gave my mix a nice change i would use it for rnb but not hip hop id use my motif for that...it reacts awesome to velocities and my playing no doubt... Now for trance or any other dance type of music it kicks ass ... the basses are 10 but of course they don't pump like my waldorf pulse but the pulse is analog so thats why i forgave it and gave it a ten cus it's digital but yet it can blow bass very sweet especially for that distorted type of bass and for jungle as well if thats ur thing for tranc is good too , pads 9 my atmosphere softsynth makes it look like childs play though.neverless i've created somy really creamy pads on the virus and im very satisfied with its pads im really a picky bastard wen it comes to sounds so cope with me here don't take my reviews in a bad way i just name certain other machines that can do a better job yet the virus does all these differ sounds very well very impressive i shall add and it's a good piece overall but if ur a picky ass bastard like me you usually have a bunch of synths each for a certain type of sound... only the real audio picky freeks like me would the efx on the synth are fresh it handles them all the leads are good i gave them a 9 not as brite as a nord lead nor as clean but still i feal like the jp8000 gives me my hottest leads the nord lead can sound thin at times on leads i throw down the nord lead when i want a sound to cut through the mix like a swirling blade for that brite sharp sounds that cut your ears up... i see the classic as a good team player in a setup it really helps out where the other guys might be slacking ...the virus definitly sounds dark and menancing heck i like using it along with the jp8000 switching back and forth bewtween a mix and them boom throw in the nord and just cut it up with that brite ass tone while that pulse is pumping that bass ... i use that pulse mostly for sub bass and certain leads at times i feel depending the mix and mood im striving for but waldorf synths can sound rather sterile you really have to know how to tweek those bastards to make theyre leads come alive but when u know whatcha doing you can bust sh*t up ... i really like the virus classsic i can definitly do a raw ass mix with it alone but im just the type of producer that has certain synths for certain parts in my arrangements i would recomend this synth to all the synths geeks reading this it won't dissapoint and will really inspire i felt the difference in my mixes since the first day i took it home like i said its a team player this synths helps out alot in a mix and being a team player it makes my other synths sound better than before in my mixes i noticed this alot especially with my nord ... the acess viruses arpegiator made my nord rock when it din't acted up which happens every now and then id say 10% it f*cks up not bad i can work it i dont mind having to reset it in my studio but live it can really suck... yo get this sucker and watch your tracks rise along as well as your other synths. this is definitly a good player out on the field it will surely help bring that money home if you produce for cash...

Reliability: 7
reliability is ok it's bugged out on me before when i use its appergiator to appergiate my nord since the appergiator of the nord lead ain't as good not even close chucks on the nordlead you can't even see what tempo the arp is flowin only 1-127 very poor choice made by the swedish. the knobs feel good for now except my master volume knob it feel woobly and it's a new unit... i really like this piece but until some bugs get cleared out i won't gig with it much but what heck i just might cus the sounds really shred up a mix plus on most occasions it's behaves fine just as long as u don't plan 2 use the appergiate to appergiate another synth follow that piece of advice and u shouldn't really have much of a problem ... 2 thumbs up for access for a classic like this virus classic the name says it all.

Customer Support: 9
i had some question and they answer pretty quick they usually don't pick up cus they're busy or something leave a message and they get back to u that same day not bad at least they don't forget to call and they're very friendly and know what they're talking about.would give am a 10 if they would pick up as soon as i called but hey they 're really nice and great people 2 thumbs up guys i know you guys can get busy...

Overall Rating: 10
hell yeah if it lost or stolen id go out robbing old ladies purses and get that sucker back lol :) i love it all but i hate it when u want to save patches in banks other than A or B... i really wish that saving on other banks would be less of a hassle neverless it rocks...heck i feel i ve reviewed this sucka really well now go out and get one even if that means robbing old granny's i got lucky with the pricing i think i found it cheaper told the guy in ***** center he said sure bring it in gave some bullshit for awhile about authorized dealers came back to get the difference then i notice the site change its price i guess the web master f*cked up hahahaha cus honestly it changed to the prices that everyone had it for which in this incident i save 1oo buck heck 100 is 1000 right! still dat ass hole made me go back to get the price f=difference since he kept saying they have to be a authorized dealer well he called access and then found out i war right so he called gave me my difference ha i guess i won cus honestly it had to have been a web designer mistake like lil jon would say YEAH! im out and go test drive one as soon as possible

Submitted by MR KNOW IT ALL at 09/04/2004 04:07

Price Paid: 1050 (euro)

Ease of Use: 8
I'm using software version 4.9 which might be only version for now, considering it's a brand new model. I bought it two months ago and didn't bothered too much about editing patches so I wouldn't know about that. But, like all electronic stuff, no metter how hard or easy it is to work with, anyone can learn it. Instruction manual isn't great by my oppinion. A lot of things are discribed as "it can be done", not "how it can be done". Additional book about programming analogue synths is very interesting.

Features: 9
Poliphony is 24, or at least 16 with 3 oscillators. Enought for studio recording. It has built-in reverb and delay (lots of types) and those are top quality.

Expressiveness/Sounds: 10
There's no realistic sounds on this synth (only one I'm really impressed is whistle). But I haven't bought it for guitars and pianoes.
This synth sounds incredible. Even better that I tought it would. This is must-have for dance producers. Basses, leads, fx... all
God-send sounds. Nobel prize to Access's ingeneers!

Reliability: 7
Well, I noticed some bugs, but it's too early to talk about some typicall problems. Work fine for now.

Customer Support: N/A

Overall Rating: 9
Like I said, I'm playing it for two months, and it's worth every euro I gave for it. If my room is on fire, it's a first thing I would save. I have Yamaha EX5 too, and those two synths are giving me all types of sound I need. EX5 has great percussions, strings and all kind of sampled instruments, Virus is better in pure synthesis sounds. Perfect combination.

Submitted by Tom at 07/27/2004 05:40