Synthesizer Gear Porn ;-)

[hFx]

Below a really nice demo of one of the most exclusive new synthesizers on the market!
Most of us can just dream of this USD 20.000 monster!



If you dig the analog (mainly) polyphonic synthesizers of the 70s and 80s, do check out the other videos on the youtube channel of this guy - well produced, great audio and nice compositions in Vangelis/Jarre style. His studio is a veritable museum!!

http://www.youtube.com/user/MrFirechild/videos

[Zeuhlmate]

Jean-Michaell Jarre in a box!

[hFx]

Jean-Michaell Jarre in a box!

...at about the same price as buying the man himself in a transport box

[Soc Prof]

Sweet! But even if I had the money, I would be overwhelmed by that many knobs.

[Rarebird]

There is no such thing as to many knobs on a synthesizer:

Look from 1:48

[Soc Prof]

There is no such thing as to many knobs on a synthesizer:

Don't get me wrong--I love listening to knobby synths in the hands of a skilled programmer. I'm just not at that stage yet.

[Rarebird]

Below a really nice demo of one of the most exclusive new synthesizers on the market!
Most of us can just dream of this USD 20.000 monster!



If you dig the analog (mainly) polyphonic synthesizers of the 70s and 80s, do check out the other videos on the youtube channel of this guy - well produced, great audio and nice compositions in Vangelis/Jarre style. His studio is a veritable museum!!

http://www.youtube.com/user/MrFirechild/videos

I really need to robb a bank.

I don't think I'll do. But if I had the money, I sure would be interested, supposing it is equiped with midi.

[battema]

Is it actually in production yet? I've seen vids of this thing on the expo circuit for a few years but never actually come across one for sale.

If I *did* have that sort of disposable income though...honestly I'd probably just go for a genuine/restored Yamaha CS-80. I have the Arturia equivalent and it's peachy but not quite the same tactile experience.

[Rarebird]

Don't get me wrong--I love listening to knobby synths in the hands of a skilled programmer. I'm just not at that stage yet.

Less knobs often mean more things to operate with one knob, making creating sounds more difficult. I rather have one knob for each function, so you can hear what each knob does.

Is it actually in production yet? I've seen vids of this thing on the expo circuit for a few years but never actually come across one for sale.

If I *did* have that sort of disposable income though...honestly I'd probably just go for a genuine/restored Yamaha CS-80. I have the Arturia equivalent and it's peachy but not quite the same tactile experience.

I'm not sure. This synth seems to have more possibilities.
I like the Arturia software, though nothing probably beats the real thing.

[battema]

Less knobs often mean more things to operate with one knob, making creating sounds more difficult. I rather have one knob for each function, so you can hear what each knob does.

I'm not sure. This synth seems to have more possibilities.
I like the Arturia software, though nothing probably beats the real thing.

You're right, the Schmidt does have a far larger suite of possibilities.

The thing I'm really wanting at this point is less the engine than the tactile experience. I actually bought the tiny little Yamaha Reface CS and even with it's limited capabilities I find it much more intuitive/playable than the Arturia. I see the CS-80 with it's slew of sliders and that gorgeous little ribbon, and that distinct multifilter sound and....ooooooooh yeah

[Rarebird]

You're right, the Schmidt does have a far larger suite of possibilities.

The thing I'm really wanting at this point is less the engine than the tactile experience. I actually bought the tiny little Yamaha Reface CS and even with it's limited capabilities I find it much more intuitive/playable than the Arturia. I see the CS-80 with it's slew of sliders and that gorgeous little ribbon, and that distinct multifilter sound and....ooooooooh yeah

In a way you are right, though with a midi-keyboard with knobs and sliders, you can program the Arturia software, to respond to those, which is quite easy. The experience is one thing, the space, hastle and money is something else.

[Soc Prof]

Less knobs often mean more things to operate with one knob, making creating sounds more difficult. I rather have one knob for each function, so you can hear what each knob does.

I would respectfully disagree. More knobs could also mean a lot more functions! I would love a real Minimoog instead of my Arturia software. It is (or nearly is) one knob per function, but is a simpler synth than the Schmidt. Hence, fewer knobs.

[Rarebird]

I'm guessing you mean the documentary "I Dream of Wires?" It definitely favors certain schools of thought above others, but I still enjoy it for what it is.

The Buchla devices are absolutely sublime, but exceptionally expensive even for individual components. I wanted that "west coast" synthesis mindset, but instead went with a series of Eurorack modules that do similar things but at a lesser cost. I'd love to own a genuine Buchla Music Easels but...$5k is just a little hard to justify.

I've exchanged a few emails with Roger Linn (mostly around the Linnstrument) and he's a great dude.

No it was a Dutch documentary. It had some interesting stuff, like a bit of Rick Wakeman, but there was a whole lot more I missed.

I would respectfully disagree. More knobs could also mean a lot more functions! I would love a real Minimoog instead of my Arturia software. It is (or nearly is) one knob per function, but is a simpler synth than the Schmidt. Hence, fewer knobs.

But more functions is better, because it means more possibilities. And yes, a real Mini Moog would be better, though the Arturia software offers some extra possibilities, like polyphony and more ways to control the sound in real-time.

[Progbear]

Now I understand. It is just more knobs doesn't make it more complicated.

This German company once made a DX-Programmer for Yamaha’s DX-line of synths. It was basically just this big board full of knobs!

If I *did* have that sort of disposable income though...honestly I'd probably just go for a genuine/restored Yamaha CS-80. I have the Arturia equivalent and it's peachy but not quite the same tactile experience.

The CS-80 is probably the most beloved synth of its era, perhaps of all time. I still remember that Garth Hudson loved his so much he had it tricked out with a liquid cooling system (like gamers are fond of modding their PCs with these days) to make it more reliable and road-worthy.

Still, a little love for Korg’s patchbay-laden “space heater” synth:

[Rarebird]

This German company once made a DX-Programmer for Yamaha’s DX-line of synths. It was basically just this big board full of knobs!



The CS-80 is probably the most beloved synth of its era, perhaps of all time. I still remember that Garth Hudson loved his so much he had it tricked out with a liquid cooling system (like gamers are fond of modding their PCs with these days) to make it more reliable and road-worthy.

I think it was the smaller brother of the GX1 Keith Emerson used.

Still, a little love for Korg’s patchbay-laden “space heater” synth:

Dorothea Raukes (Streetmark) used one. Her solo-album Deutsche Wertarbeit is just Korg.

[Progbear]

Dorothea Raukes (Streetmark) used one. Her solo-album Deutsche Wertarbeit is just Korg.

The Japanese band Shingetsu used one on their 1979 debut LP. It gets a good workout on their album-opening epic “Oni”:



The biggest hit to feature the Korg was probably “I Go Crazy” by Paul Davis, it’s the source of the harp-like recurring hook in the chorus:



And the song also features CS-80 on the intro!

[GuitarGeek]

This German company once made a DX-Programmer for Yamaha’s DX-line of synths. It was basically just this big board full of knobs!

Jellinghaus, I believe they were called, and they didn't make very many of them. One of my Facebook friends is a UK based synth tech, who recently worked on one. Not only was it "a big board of knobs", but it was actually larger than the DX-7 itself.

As I recall, Roland made similar devices for the JX-3P, JX-8P, GR-700, and GR-77B synths, but they were much smaller.

The CS-80 is probably the most beloved synth of its era, perhaps of all time.

Was it really? I always thought the Minimoog Model D and the Prophet-5 were the most beloved synths. I remember, in the mid 80's Keyboard magazine doing a book that was basically a compilation of all their synth product reviews, and it was noted in the opening of the book that the Minimoog was still being used for basslines on records, even though Moog Music had stopped making it several years later.

I always liked the keyboard rigs to the two synth players in the band Berlin used onstage. Matt Reid had a Prophet-5 and a DX-7, and David Diamond had just a Prophet-5.

I have a small Eurorack modular synth I'm putting together myself. So far, I have an Intellijel Atlantis, an Intellijel ring modulator (which I'm kinda disappointed with), a Doepfer Wasp filter, a Doepfer MIDI interface (when I want to play conventional melodic stuff, I use this old Yamaha SHS-10 that my parents bought me about 18 years ago), a Make Noise STO, a Blue Lantern skewable LFO, a Blue Lantern Simple ADSR, and a Blue Lantern Sir Mix-A-Lot. Oh yeah, and I have this Synthrotek delay module that I'm not all that crazy about (more useful for making noise than actual conventional delay effects). I've got all of this in a nice portable Synthrotek case. It's not quite as "James Bond approved" as the old EMS Synthi-A, but it's still pretty neat to have.

[battema]

Jellinghaus, I believe they were called, and they didn't make very many of them. One of my Facebook friends is a UK based synth tech, who recently worked on one. Not only was it "a big board of knobs", but it was actually larger than the DX-7 itself.

As I recall, Roland made similar devices for the JX-3P, JX-8P, GR-700, and GR-77B synths, but they were much smaller.



Was it really? I always thought the Minimoog Model D and the Prophet-5 were the most beloved synths. I remember, in the mid 80's Keyboard magazine doing a book that was basically a compilation of all their synth product reviews, and it was noted in the opening of the book that the Minimoog was still being used for basslines on records, even though Moog Music had stopped making it several years later.

I always liked the keyboard rigs to the two synth players in the band Berlin used onstage. Matt Reid had a Prophet-5 and a DX-7, and David Diamond had just a Prophet-5.

I have a small Eurorack modular synth I'm putting together myself. So far, I have an Intellijel Atlantis, an Intellijel ring modulator (which I'm kinda disappointed with), a Doepfer Wasp filter, a Doepfer MIDI interface (when I want to play conventional melodic stuff, I use this old Yamaha SHS-10 that my parents bought me about 18 years ago), a Make Noise STO, a Blue Lantern skewable LFO, a Blue Lantern Simple ADSR, and a Blue Lantern Sir Mix-A-Lot. Oh yeah, and I have this Synthrotek delay module that I'm not all that crazy about (more useful for making noise than actual conventional delay effects). I've got all of this in a nice portable Synthrotek case. It's not quite as "James Bond approved" as the old EMS Synthi-A, but it's still pretty neat to have.

Some suggestions for you:

I am a huge MakeNoise nut, and just about anything they put out is at least worthy of note. Based on your above, you might consider looking into their Optomix dual lowpass gate or LxD (which is kind of like the Optomix without the front controls, but also has some resonance that usually isn't present). Their Modemix is also lovely and if you have any interest in a west coast synthesis approach, the Wobblebug is absolutely essential. And in terms of bang for the buck in a small space, the Telharmonic almost rivals the DPO for versatility and cool sounds.

I also love the Maths module so much I bought a second one...but, they aren't the cheapest of modules. As close to a true "swiss army knife" Eurorack modules as I've come across, though.

I have quite a few Intellijel modules as well, but with the Atlantis you probably have most of those bases covered already

One kind of fun one that doesn't always get mentioned is the Moskwa from Xaoc Devices. It's this very cool rotor-shaped 8 stage sequencer that is loads of fun to use and tweak: http://xaocdevices.com/main/moskwa/

Eurorack is an awesome (and dangerously addictive) thing

[GuitarGeek]

suggestions for you:

I am a huge MakeNoise nut, and just about anything they put out is at least worthy of note. Based on your above, you might consider looking into their Optomix dual lowpass gate or LxD (which is kind of like the Optomix without the front controls, but also has some resonance that usually isn't present). Their Modemix is also lovely and if you have any interest in a west coast synthesis approach, the Wobblebug is absolutely essential. And in terms of bang for the buck in a small space, the Telharmonic almost rivals the DPO for versatility and cool sounds.

I also love the Maths module so much I bought a second one...but, they aren't the cheapest of modules. As close to a true "swiss army knife" Eurorack modules as I've come across, though.

Yeah, the Wogglebug is on my short list of modules I'm after, along with the MMG (which seems to be calling my name more so than either the Optomix or the LxD) and the Function. I know everyone says you have to have a Maths, but at the moment I've got just the one rack, 84 hp, and 6+1U of space, so I'm looking for modules that take up the least amount of real estate as possible. But yeah, the Maths does look impressive.

I have quite a few Intellijel modules as well, but with the Atlantis you probably have most of those bases covered already

I was planning on getting a Springray until I heard they were planning on releasing a new version in a couple months, so I'm waiting for that. I'm also thinking about getting a μFold II, though really I'm leaning more toward the Doepfer A-137-1. There's a great video on Youtube of the A-137-1 being used to process a CV signal that has me intrigued.

One kind of fun one that doesn't always get mentioned is the Moskwa from Xaoc Devices.

Yeah, I saw that one on Modular Grid, it does look interesting. There's several different sequencers, I'm kind of thinking about, including the Make Noise Rene and the Intellijel Metropolis.

Do you know anything about Sputnik modules? They have a touch keyboard that I'm also kind of looking at, though I'd have to get a new case for that, since it's an 84hp module.

Right now, I basically have a decent mono East Coast style synth, but I want to add some West Coast style modules, something to bring it more into the Buchla/Serge field of things.

Eurorack is an awesome (and dangerously addictive) thing

No kidding. The thing about it is, most of the modules are relatively inexpensive. Once you get yourself a case and a power supply, it's really easy to do the "impulse buy" thing, and get too much stuff. That's kind of how I ended up buying the three Blue Lantern modules I have, because I was looking for extravagant as a b-day present to myself, and I'd been looking at those for a long time now. That one exception, I've basically been buying one module at a time. I was trying to get one every month or two, but that kinda fell apart when "adult responsibilities" got in the way. But I'm hoping to buy something within the next couple months, probably the A-137-1 is next.

I also want to get one of those effects loop modules, so I can try patching my pedals into the middle of a patch, say putting a flanger or a reverb pedal before a filter module.

[Progbear]

Was it really? I always thought the Minimoog Model D and the Prophet-5 were the most beloved synths.

Well, note that I said “of its era,” i.e.: the early polyphonic era. The reason keyboardists loved the CS-80 so much was that it was the first synthesizer that could be as expressive as a piano, what with its eight voices of polyphony, velocity sensitivity and that extremely cool pitch-bend ribbon. Apart from being a lot cheaper (presumably why it was embraced by “new wave” acts), the Prophet-5’s only real advantage was its much more intelligent and better-implemented storage system.

Sequential Circuits tried to go after that high-end market with the Prophet-10, but Rev. 1 was such a bust it had to be withdrawn, and Rev. 2 was something of a beast. They got it right with the Prophet t-8, a real boutique synth with a fully weighted, touch-sensitive keyboard, but by that point everyone was going digital.

A shame, because the t-8 was a real beauty!

[GuitarGeek]

Apart from being a lot cheaper (presumably why it was embraced by “new wave” acts), the Prophet-5’s only real advantage was its much more intelligent and better-implemented storage system.

It was also a lot lighter I believe. The CS-80, I believe, was one of those things where you need to have Teamsters on the payroll to move. The Prophet-5, by contrast could be moved reasonably easily by one person.

Sequential Circuits tried to go after that high-end market with the Prophet-10, but Rev. 1 was such a bust it had to be withdrawn, and Rev. 2 was something of a beast. They got it right with the Prophet t-8, a real boutique synth with a fully weighted, touch-sensitive keyboard, but by that point everyone was going digital.

As I recall, the original Prophet-10 was a single manual, visually identical to the Rev 1 Prophet-5. But I'm seem to recall there were a gaggle of tech issues with the Rev 1 Prophet-10. Reputedly, when it became apparent that "everyone had to own" a Prophet-5, they started taking some of the Prophet-10's that had been sent back for servicing, removed half the voice cards, and changed the product logo, and shipping them out to meet the demand.

I gather there were tech issues also with both the Rev 1 and Rev 2 Prophet-5's. That's why they changed the IC's on the Rev 3, which is also apparently why they theoretically don't sound as good as the Rev 1 or Rev 2 models.

As for the Prophet T-8, yeah, I remember when that came out, there was an ad in one of the music magazines (actually probably in several of them) showing the Prophet T-8 with a Prophet 600 sitting on top of it (because the two came out at the same time). I thought that looked really cool, and for awhile, I wanted that setup.

Then the Matrix 12 came out and I wanted one of those. lol

[rcarlberg]

Is it actually in production yet? I've seen vids of this thing on the expo circuit for a few years but never actually come across one for sale.

Since Schmidt is hand-made in fairly small quantities, it is sold exclusively and directly through EMC and a handful of selected dealers.

Please place your order via this form. As soon as we have received your inquiry, we will get back to you with information on current availability and delivery times.

..

[battema]

I've yet to find a MIDI controller with enough sliders to accommodate the full set of controls...but that's just preference on my part. To each their own

[hFx]

I've yet to find a MIDI controller with enough sliders to accommodate the full set of controls...but that's just preference on my part. To each their own

Previously, I used the (discontinued) M-Audio Keystation 88-Pro, which has plenty of assignable knobs, buttons, sliders and pedal jacks. Now, my Prophet-12 doubles as an excellent MIDI controller

[Rarebird]

Previously, I used the (discontinued) M-Audio Keystation 88-Pro, which has plenty of assignable knobs, buttons, sliders and pedal jacks. Now, my Prophet-12 doubles as an excellent MIDI controller

That's the one I have. Now, if it would have polyphonic aftertouch, it would be perfect.