Everybody from KORG to NI to Arturia has been trying to catch and eat Serum. Even Roland (Roland!) has finally dabbled with wavetables. Vital is the fox that finally got the rabbit. Where most competitors have tried to find a point of difference, Vital has discovered a different sales model. Get the instrument for free, pay for extra sounds. (Or you can actually load any Serum ready wavetable into the free version.)
I use Vital to teach subtractive synthesis to complete beginners because it’s extremely clear and visually easy to grasp. The interface is animated, streamlined, and organised. It’s not difficult for a new user to create a good starter sound and from there work through the more advanced controls to eventually resynthesise new wavetables.
Once you understand wavetables you can really get going with real time distortions of those tables – complex and flowing sounds that go beyond scrubbing back and forward through a fixed mono pitched sample. The range and quality of these manipulations is far greater than Korg’s modwave, more than in Serum or the others and continuing to expand.
By offering such a range of sounds it can be the go-to instrument for all your synthesis needs. Not sure what sound to use in a track? Load Vital.
You might be disappointed to find there’s no manual (apart from a fan-made one). There are many advanced features that will require watching YouTube videos (which I find the WORST way to neatly communicate a concept). Most help comes from a forum, and you know how ugly that can be. Vital is also not the default – some other software (and the modwave) will only understand Serum formatted sounds.
But you really can’t go wrong – even if you eventually settle on a different tool, you’ll have improved your sound design ability for free. (But then do send the man some money.)