OPO Synthesizer

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ARP 2500.

― Analogue Elliott, Sunday, 30 March 2003 01:25 (twenty-three years ago)

casio sk-5

― gygax! (gygax!), Sunday, 30 March 2003 01:34 (twenty-three years ago)

ensoniq esq-1

― geeta (geeta), Sunday, 30 March 2003 02:16 (twenty-three years ago)

yamaha TX81Z

― ejad (daje), Sunday, 30 March 2003 02:21 (twenty-three years ago)

digital: fairlight cmi
analog: prophet 5

― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Sunday, 30 March 2003 02:56 (twenty-three years ago)

polyfusion modular

― your null fame (yournullfame), Sunday, 30 March 2003 06:33 (twenty-three years ago)

EMS VCS3

― Chris Barrus (Chris Barrus), Sunday, 30 March 2003 07:41 (twenty-three years ago)

Casiotone Mt-450v

― jel -- (jel), Sunday, 30 March 2003 07:42 (twenty-three years ago)

fairlight cmi

― Jody Beth Rosen (Jody Beth Rosen), Sunday, 30 March 2003 09:05 (twenty-three years ago)

Korg Polysix, only one I have, also about the best I've fiddled with anyway

― Andrew Thames (Andrew Thames), Sunday, 30 March 2003 09:07 (twenty-three years ago)

Roland Juno 106

― stevem (blueski), Sunday, 30 March 2003 09:08 (twenty-three years ago)

Alesis A6 Andromeda

― Siegbran (eofor), Sunday, 30 March 2003 09:43 (twenty-three years ago)

korg ms-x

― george gosset (gegoss), Sunday, 30 March 2003 10:00 (twenty-three years ago)

alesis qs 7

― kephm, Sunday, 30 March 2003 10:43 (twenty-three years ago)

Roland JP8000

― Paul R (paul R), Sunday, 30 March 2003 11:15 (twenty-three years ago)

Yamaha PS-550. The benchmark in shit home keyboards.

― Lynskey (Lynskey), Sunday, 30 March 2003 11:44 (twenty-three years ago)

ooh i think i had that one - love the Frequency & Modulation buttons tho, got some cool fucked up sounds messing around with them

― stevem (blueski), Sunday, 30 March 2003 12:26 (twenty-three years ago)

Poly Moog (the first one)

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Sunday, 30 March 2003 13:00 (twenty-three years ago)

Korg MS20

― Jack Battery-Pack (Jack Battery-Pack), Sunday, 30 March 2003 16:09 (twenty-three years ago)

Roland Juno 106

Ah, the only synth I've ever loved...

― Adam A. (Keiko), Sunday, 30 March 2003 16:17 (twenty-three years ago)

Pff RHODES CHROMA & j00 R 4ll 0\/\/|\|3|)

http://www.code404.com/synths/images/rhodes_chroma.jpg

― Pashmina (Pashmina), Sunday, 30 March 2003 18:06 (twenty-three years ago)

Re QS-7, was the guy who named the patches into prog or what

― dave q, Sunday, 30 March 2003 18:07 (twenty-three years ago)

Dave Q,

That's one hell of a relevant question for the Kurzweil synths as well!

― Paul in Santa Cruz (Paul in Santa Cruz), Sunday, 30 March 2003 18:27 (twenty-three years ago)

korg mono/poly

― brg30 (brg30), Sunday, 30 March 2003 19:49 (twenty-three years ago)

Korg MS-2000. Because it's the only one I have, unless you count the Yamaha PSR-225GM or the Korg Electribe EA-1. Or that Casio RAPMAN that I borrowed offa Yingling for a year.

― Helltime Producto (Pavlik), Sunday, 30 March 2003 20:36 (twenty-three years ago)

we have gotten this far and nobody has mentioned the minimoog.

Octave Cat.

― Mike Taylor (mjt), Sunday, 30 March 2003 23:40 (twenty-three years ago)

i have a casiotone like jel mentions. very groovy

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Sunday, 30 March 2003 23:45 (twenty-three years ago)

ensoniq esq-1

Yikes! I had that one...actually, it's still in the family basement.
I cast my vote for the Birotron.

― Joe (Joe), Monday, 31 March 2003 00:13 (twenty-three years ago)

I've been in a Yamaha CP-80 mood lately, but I don't know if that counts...

― Joe (Joe), Monday, 31 March 2003 00:16 (twenty-three years ago)

My favorite synth is always whatever one is coming out at the next NAMM that nobody's seen yet

― Millar (Millar), Monday, 31 March 2003 00:40 (twenty-three years ago)

one year passes...

yes

― adam. (nordicskilla), Tuesday, 10 August 2004 21:43 (twenty-one years ago)

oberheim ob 12

― gygax! (gygax!), Tuesday, 10 August 2004 21:51 (twenty-one years ago)

casio sk-5

― adam. (nordicskilla), Tuesday, 10 August 2004 21:51 (twenty-one years ago)

yamaha cs80

― george gosset (gegoss), Tuesday, 10 August 2004 21:55 (twenty-one years ago)

just a few more months of paying debts and then it WILL be the Elektron Monomachine.

― Aaron Grossman (aajjgg), Tuesday, 10 August 2004 21:59 (twenty-one years ago)

i swear by the korg ms2000

― roger adultery (roger adultery), Tuesday, 10 August 2004 22:46 (twenty-one years ago)

I love my arp 2600.

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Tuesday, 10 August 2004 23:57 (twenty-one years ago)

This thread would be a lot better if everybody gave links to info/pictures about the synths. If there's already like a beginner's guide to synthesizers on here, somebody point me in it's direction.

― Zach Ayres (Z_Ayres), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 00:42 (twenty-one years ago)

me too!

― adam. (nordicskilla), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 01:27 (twenty-one years ago)

there are several sites, but this one is especially your friend:

http://www.vintagesynth.com/

― Dan Selzer (Dan Selzer), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 01:30 (twenty-one years ago)

Hartmann Neuron

Because using neural nets to program synths is techno.

― Disco Nihilist (mjt), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 02:47 (twenty-one years ago)

http://www.audiomidi.com/aboutus/reviews/hoover_neuron.cfm#

― disco nihilist (mjt), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 02:52 (twenty-one years ago)

Oberheim OB-8
Roland Jupiter-6

― startrekman, Wednesday, 11 August 2004 04:01 (twenty-one years ago)

Oberheim Matrix 6. God, I loved that thing.

― philip sherburne (philip sherburne), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 04:49 (twenty-one years ago)

Again I say, the EMS VCS3

― Elvis Telecom (Chris Barrus), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 07:58 (twenty-one years ago)

Tough question. I think I'll go for Roland's Jupiter 8. If you've got only one axe, it needs to be polyphonic, and the Jupiter has the advantage of bi-timbrality via a user-defined keyboard split, so that you can play chords and melodies with one patch, and bass with another. The Jupiter is notable for the exceptional richness of its sound, which won it a place in the armouries of heavy-hitting keyboardists all around the world - it's all over Duran Duran's early-eighties output, for example, and Michael Jackson's Thriller.
Then there's also its great arpeggiator - most famously heard on Hungry Like the Wolf and Rio.
Runner-ups would include the Oberheim OB-Xa and the SCI Prophet-5. While Yamaha's CS-80 is arguably the finest-sounding synthesiser ever built, its inherent unreliablity and very limited capacity for storage of users' patches would rule it out.

― Palomino (Palomino), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 12:06 (twenty-one years ago)

I dream of owning an EMS VCS3 one day.

But for now.... Casio CZ-101

― Jay Vee (Manon_70), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 13:43 (twenty-one years ago)

Memorymoog

― Snowy Mann (rdmanston), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 13:53 (twenty-one years ago)

I use the Roland SH-101 the most, but my favorite is the Korg Polysix. The arpeggiator is alive, ALIVE!!!

― sexyDancer, Wednesday, 11 August 2004 14:00 (twenty-one years ago)

Not that I know what the hell I'm talking about, but I believe those old ARPs produced the coolest sounds. I certainly prefer the '70s synths (analog?) to the later models.

― Myonga Von Bontee (Myonga Von Bontee), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 14:04 (twenty-one years ago)

recommend one for a silly boy with no musical training who wants to just make as much and as many noise(s) as possible. Current noiseboard-approved (?) pick : MicroKorg.

― adam. (nordicskilla), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 14:13 (twenty-one years ago)

thrift store casio run through guitar pedal of your choice

― kephm, Wednesday, 11 August 2004 14:31 (twenty-one years ago)

Re QS-7, was the guy who named the patches into prog or what

prog and sci-fi! well what’s the difference really

― kephm, Wednesday, 11 August 2004 14:34 (twenty-one years ago)

Haha I actually own a synthi aks (portable version of vcs3) It is very good, but is totally fucking PWN3D x 100000 by the Wiard modular.

I'd still go for the Chroma. Not only is it analogue, w/a very rich, spacious sound, it also has a beautiful touch-sensitive keyboard, and it is properly multitibmral as well!!

All you analog fiends should check out all of the cottage industry modular synthesiser manufacturers who are making stuff right now. Links here:

http://www.modularsynth.com/

― Pashmina (Pashmina), Wednesday, 11 August 2004 17:08 (twenty-one years ago)

Casio VL-Tone!

Stop hitting me!

― Sasha (sgh), Thursday, 12 August 2004 00:17 (twenty-one years ago)

Oberheim Matrix-12
M1 Workstation
Yamaha DX7

― startrekman, Thursday, 12 August 2004 03:30 (twenty-one years ago)

one year passes...

AËÈCA (=Russian equivalent of "Alice")

― Myonga Von Bontee (Myonga Von Bontee), Sunday, 4 September 2005 08:30 (twenty years ago)

five years pass...

revive!!

Does anyone have any ARP 2600-related questions that they'd like to ask the engineers who designed it? I'm interviewing one of them tomorrow.

― geeta, Thursday, 23 June 2011 17:06 (fifteen years ago)

Yes: "Have you heard what Patrick Adams was able to do with your synth?"

― Vendo Caramelos A Veces Sin Dinero (Capitaine Jay Vee), Thursday, 23 June 2011 17:32 (fifteen years ago)

If they say "No." then play them this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lBG7bLnqIbQ

― Vendo Caramelos A Veces Sin Dinero (Capitaine Jay Vee), Thursday, 23 June 2011 17:33 (fifteen years ago)

speaking of analog synths, a friend of mine just released this ep made entirely on a (serge) modular synth, no DAW involved - http://beaunoise.bandcamp.com/album/beeptunes-2

― hardcore oatmeal (Jordan), Thursday, 23 June 2011 18:03 (fifteen years ago)

Does anyone have any ARP 2600-related questions that they'd like to ask the engineers who designed it? I'm interviewing one of them tomorrow.

I'm curious as to whether the Moog and ARP design teams realised at the time ('69/'70) that they were birthing a concept that would develop so far and so rapidly, by co-opting the computer industry's innovations? Or did they expect that synthesisers would always be based around the classic, transistor-based topology of the VCO, VCF and VCA?
The typical electric guitar of 2011 is based on exactly the same technology as its forbear of 1951; even self-conciously futurist modern-day designs such as the Parker Fly would be instantly recognisable and accessible to a time-travelling guitarist from the '50s.
By contrast, the Moog Modular quickly begat the Minimoog and the ARP 2600; within eight years, they had been supplanted by the Prophet-5, an analogue synth that was microprocessor-controlled. In turn, the Prophet gave way by 1983 to the entirely digital DX7. Within another few years, with the price of 16-bit CPUs and RAM dropping rapidly, engineers were building synths that used samples and DSP as the building blocks of their sound-design capabilities.
If you brought a pioneering synthesist just twenty years forward to 1990, they would be absolutely baffled by the state of the art: a computer-based design with almost no knobs or switches, just an LCD display and a few multi-function buttons!
Something else that would be interesting to get the engineer's opinion on is the fact that a good-condition 2600 now sells for upwards of €7,000 on eBay. Again, did Pearlman & co. realise in '71 that they had designed an all-time classic?

― Vast Halo, Thursday, 23 June 2011 21:37 (fifteen years ago)

Neat! I love the ARP 2600. Best tiny reverb tank. Awesome things you can do with the lag module.

― Boehner & der club of GOP (Ówen P.), Thursday, 23 June 2011 22:09 (fifteen years ago)

I wish it'd be feasible for somebody to market a fake-but-functional 2600 replica controller with sliders & patchbay and all, and package it with software emulation like Korg did with the MS-20 a few years back.

― boring wank about Linda's pies and Denny Laine's tunings (Myonga Vön Bontee), Friday, 24 June 2011 03:50 (fifteen years ago)

Good questions so far! Keep 'em coming! I'll be at this guy's house at around noon EST. Going to look at the original prototypes for the ARP 2600 and a lot of other interesting stuff.

― geeta, Friday, 24 June 2011 06:22 (fifteen years ago)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNpJZWWGdq8

― Hongroe (Geir Hongro), Friday, 24 June 2011 09:20 (fifteen years ago)

(Seeing I've already chosen another one earlier, but really, the CS-80 was better, for its expressive qualities not least)

― Hongroe (Geir Hongro), Friday, 24 June 2011 09:22 (fifteen years ago)

anyone have any other ARP-related questions? i'm leaving soon!

― geeta, Friday, 24 June 2011 15:28 (fifteen years ago)

what do they think of software emulations vs the real thing?

― hardcore oatmeal (Jordan), Friday, 24 June 2011 16:07 (fifteen years ago)

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