Overview

Waldorf PPG Wave 3.V is the reincarnation of the legendary PPG Wave Synthesizer, which no doubt is considered one of the most respected high-end synthesizers of the 80s. Developed by Wolfgang Palm, this instrument is featured on countless records, and it inspired a whole generation of producers, composers and listeners. While back then it was your choice to spent your money either for a vehicle or the PPG, the new PPG Wave 3.V renders this breathtaking sonic character very affordable, comfortably to use for every VST or AU Host.

PPG Wave 2 was the very first digital Wavetable synthesizer with analog filters that allowed completely new worlds of sound and endless sonic possibilities. Shortly afterwards, the successor PPG Wave 2.2 came out and was born to make history. With a gigantic arsenal of waveshapes, it could not only reproduce known analog sounds, but also brilliant choirs, bells and whistles. The digital sounds of wavetables had been unheard until then and offered sensational sonic evolutions by smoothly going through 64 waves back and forth.

But the technical possibilities also produced harsh artifacts such as aliasing and others, which could not be omitted back then. Today, although technology is some steps further, Waldorf engineers even managed to get the harshness back in order to recreate the character of the beast.

Wolfgang Palm, the inventor of Wavetable Synthesis, assisted during the development process in order to recreate the PPG as close as possible. "We are very thankful for Wolfgang's very informative advice and insight during development." Says Waldorf CEO Stefan Stenzel.

The combination of digital waveshapes and analog filters of the PPG was responsible for an unparalleled fat and thrust boosting character. This has been very accurately recreated in PPG 3.v up to the smallest resolution of detail. With PPG 3.V, it is actually possible to switch between several version of the original. Besides PPG Wave 2.2 and PPG Wave 2.3, PPG Wave 2.V and their subtle differences in aliasing and other sources of harshness are adjustable.

Waldorf PPG Wave 3.V is capable of delivering up to 256 voices of polyphony, depending on the host computer. Each voice offers two Wavetable oscillators with optional sample playback with either 8, 12, or 32 bits of resolution. Samples can easily be loaded by Drag & Drop. An 8 part multimode allows multisamples to be used with the same charme and ease of use that the original offered.

Sound is further shaped by a selectable 12 or 24 dB lowpass filter, which is an authentic recreation of the classic PPG Wave 2.2/2.3 Filter, followed by an optional overdrive for extra fuzz. Besides the LFO, three envelope generators serve as modulation sources, either for the original rude or the contemporary smooth modulation.

Up to eight parts can be arranged in poly, dual, quad and mono unison modes, with separate semitone adjustments for automatic chords or melodies. Thanks to the multimode with eight stereo outputs, the instrument is well suited for both studio environment or live on stage.

The Arpeggiator offers up and down modes, besides this an alternate mode and with "cascade mode" a true PPG specialty. For further refinement, several effects are available simultaneously, among these a 4-band equalizer, several overdrive modes, a phaser with up to 12 stages and a chorus with up to six taps. Flanger, stereo delay and reverb are also available.

The original PPG featured a unique user-interface, the "Analog Control Panel" offered direct access to many parameters, while digital menus were edited with somewhat cryptic acronyms that you had to look up in the manual in your lap.

PPG Wave 3.V features the very same concept, with the slight enhancement of comprehensible parameter names and values. Almost all parameters can be subjected to host automation and convenient MIDI regulation by assigned control numbers. This makes it very easy to integrate PPG Wave 3.V into any existing production environment.

Thie Waldorf PlugIn runs on both Windows and Apple computers. On Windows, it requires Windows XP or better, on Mac, OS X version 10.3.9 or higher is needed.

Features

General

Up to 256 voices per instance (depending on available CPU power)
8 part Multimode
8 Stereo Outputs
Host automation of most parameters
MIDI Controller automation of most parameters
More than 100 new Wavetables created by Wolfgang Palm
Original Waveterm B Factory Sample Library
Original PPG Wave Factory Sounds

Per Voice

2 Wavetable Oscillators
Sample Playback with 8 bit, 12 bit or up to 32 bit
Authentic Aliasing Emulation of the PPG Wave 2.2/2.3/2.V or no aliasing
12dB / 24 dB Low Pass Filter
Authentic Filter Emulation of the PPG Wave 2.2/2.3
Overdrive behind Filter
1 LFO
3 Envelopes
Authentic Emulation of the modulation graininess (switchable with True PPG)

Per Part (up to 8 parts available)

Poly, Dual, Quad and Mono (8 voices) mode with 8 different semitone offsets to create chords or melodic lines
Arpeggiator with Up, Down, Alternate and Cascade (PPG special) mode
True PPG Mode switchable between PPG Wave 2.2, Wave 2.3 and Wave 2.V
4-Band EQ
Overdrive with various types
Phaser with up to 12 stages
Chorus with up to 6 stages
Flanger
Stereo Delay
Reverb

Other Features

Sample loading via drag&drop or load file dialog
Multisample playback by using the 8 part Multimode
8 adjustable Cutoff / Resonance deviations to simulate analog inexactness
Finer adjustments of several values in Fine Modulatione mode

Everything runs properly as AudioUnit on Mac, PC, and also on Intel based Mac.

System Requirements

PPG Wave 3.V runs natively in 32 bit host software. It can be used in 64 bit hosts that come with a so-called "bit bridge", such as Cubase 6 or Logic 9. Later versions of the PPG Wave 3.V will run natively in 64 bit hosts, please visit our website regularily for updates.

Windows

VST 2.4 32 bit
can be used in 64 bit hosts that offer a so-called "bit bridge"
Pentium III with 1 GHz or better
AMD Athlon XP with 1.3 GHz or better
Windows 2000 / XP SP 2 (only 32 bit)
Windows Vista / 7 (32 bit and 64 bit, the plug-in itself is 32 bit only)
64 MB free RAM
150 MB free hard disk space
VST 2.0 compatible 32 bit or 64 bit host software supporting VST Instruments, such as Cubase SX/SL or newer, Nuendo 1.5 or newer
PC equipped according to the specifications of the VST host software
Internet connection for license activation (license can be transferred to a USB-eLicenser)

Mac

VST 2.4 32 bit
Audio Unit 2.0 32 bit
can be used in 64 bit hosts that offer a so-called "bit bridge"
Any Mac with Intel processor running Mac OS X 10.4 or newer (Gatekeeper switched off during installation in Mac OS X 10.8)
PowerMac with 400 MHz G4 PowerPC Processor or better running Mac OS X 10.3.9 or newer
128 MB free RAM
150 MB free hard disk space
VST 2.0 compatible 32 bit or 64 bit host software supporting VST Instruments, such as Cubase SX/SL or newer, Nuendo 1.5 or newer
- or -
AudioUnit 2.0 compatible 32 bit or 64 bit host software supporting Audio Unit Instruments, such as Logic or GarageBand
Mac equipped according to the specifications of the VST host software
Internet connection for license activation (license can be transferred to a USB-eLicenser)

Comparison PPG to Wave 2.V

The PPG Wave 3.V has a considerably extended and enhanced feature set compared to its predecessor, the PPG Wave 2.V. The following table highlights the most important new features and improvements.

	PPG Wave 2.V	PPG Wave 3.V
Number of Voices per instance	64	256
Number of Wavetables	30 All Wavetables from PPG Wave 2.2.	164 All Wavetables from PPG Wave 2.2 and PPG Wave 2.3 (two Wavetables are slightly different). New Wavetables created by Wolfgang Palm.
Preset Sounds	Ca. 1000 Reprogrammed factory soundsets plus various new soundsets.	Ca. 3000 Original factory soundsets, all soundsets from PPG Wave 2.V, new sounds and multis with effects, samples or the new wavetables.
Samples	2 The original PPG Wave 2.2 Saxophone and Piano sample in Wavetable 31	Unlimited in AIFF and WAV format with Drag&Drop support. Contains the whole (as known and available) PPG Waveterm B Sample Library in all its glory. The Waveterm B samples can be played back with 8- or 12-bit resolution, AIFF and WAV samples can be played back with 8-, 12- or up to 32-bit resolution. Playback in 8- or 12-bit resolution results in the typical grungy sound known from early samplers.
Browser	—	Bank, Sound and Sample Browser with full Drag&Drop support. Files can be dragged between PPG Wave 3.V and the desktop or between multiple instances of the PPG Wave 3.V.
Import	—	Imports system exclusive data from PPG Wave 2.2 or PPG Wave 2.3 with OS V8. Imports samples and sounds from Waveterm B disk images.
Oscillators	Approximation of aliasing of the original PPG Wave 2.2 and PPG Wave 2.3.	Oscillators are calculated exactly like the original PPG Wave 2.2 and PPG Wave 2.3 with a very high sample rate but no interpolation at all resulting in an exact reproduction of the original aliasing and behaviour.
Filter	24 dB Low Pass Filter modelled after the analog SSM filter chip of the PPG Wave 2.2 and PPG Wave 2.3.	24 dB Low Pass Filter modelled after the analog SSM filter chip of the PPG Wave 2.2 and PPG Wave 2.3. Additional 12 dB slope. 8 adjustable Cutoff and Resonance offsets plus one total Cutoff and Resonance offset to emulate the inexact calibration of the 8 filters of the original PPG Wave 2.2 or PPG Wave 2.3.
Filter Drive	—	Post-filter Overdrive circuitry with selectable Diode or Tube characteristic.
Envelopes	Good approximation of the envelope shapes of the original PPG Wave.	Close emulation of the behaviour and shape of the envelopes of the original PPG Wave, which even changes in shape with different rate settings.
Modulation	Original modulation destinations, amount and behaviour. Some modulations can only be switched on or off, others can be set to 8 different depths.	Original modulation destinations, amount and behaviour. Additional "FINE" mode offering further modulation destinations and fully variable depths.
Outputs	2 Stereo Outputs.	8 Stereo Outputs.
Multi Mode	8 Sounds playable on MIDI Channels 1 to 8. No layers, key splits, velocity splits etc.	8 Sounds. Selectable MIDI Channel for layer sounds, free key and velocity range for splits, individual transpose, detune, volume, pan and output selection per part. Also used to create multi samples.
Effects	—	Each part has its own set of 6 effects resulting in up to 48 effects at once (optionally Part 1 can be set to process the effects for all parts, which is useful for e.g. multi samples). Effects on non-played parts don't consume processor power.
Equalizer	—	4-band fully parametric Equalizer.
Overdrive	—	Stereo Overdrive with types Light, Medium, Heavy, Clip, Tube, adjustable output gain and post-drive filter with tone and emphasis.
Chorus	—	2- to 6-stage Stereo Chorus / Flanger with variable stereo spread.
Phaser	—	2- to 12-stage Stereo Phaser with variable stereo spread, spacing and feedback.
Delay	—	Stereo- und Ping-Pong-Delay, synchronizable to incoming tempo information, low and high damping in input and feedback.
Reverb	—	Stereo Reverb with eighties sound character.