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#3586 - 06/26/05 07:39 PM the simple warm
keys81 Offline
Junior Member

Registered: 10/07/04
Posts: 17
Loc: Durham
Hi,

I'm currently gigging with a nord electro and roland fp-3 and want to add either an analog or VA synth to my rig. Since I know that the "what should I get questions" can be tedious for senior members I can assure you that I've searched the archives extensively before posting this.

Basically what I'm looking for is something with a very warm and round tone. I'm NOT looking for something with patches for horns, drums etc but rather something that I can manipulate to get the more classic synth sounds. I've played for awhile but mostly piano and organ and am somewhat benighted when it comes to truly synthesized sounds. I've heard everything that I am looking for from a multimoog but doubt that I can afford one.

I'm considering a used korg MS2K or alesis ION or a new micron. They main thing I'm concerned about is getting a very warm round tone out of the instrument suggestive of the multimoog. Of course I would also like the instrument to serve as an introductory synth so that I can learn a bit about generating and manipulating sounds. The MS2K is attractive due to the hands-on controls and the micron and ION are attractive in terms of a sleek portable designs. I've had a chance to hear the alesis boards but never the Korg. Does anyone have any advice about which synth would offer the most in terms of generating sounds similar to those of the multimoog? Should I be considering others synths as well? The price range is tight at around 300-500.

Thanks in advance for your knowledge and help!

-Evan

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#3587 - 06/26/05 09:09 PM Re: the simple warm
Anonymous
Unregistered


Hi,

You do realize that the Micromoog is a monophonic instrument, right? Meaning it can only play one note at a time. If you did know this, sorry. But from your description it sounds like you would like something that can create soft warm pads, etc. in chordal fashion and not just solo sounds.

But speaking of mono synths, you might also look for a Sequential Circuits Pro One like THIS . It has similar capabilities to the Micromoog but is has a real Pitch and Mod wheel as opposed to the ribbon controller on the Micromoog. The Pro one has a very nice sounding filter section so warm sounding leads are easy to accomplish.

I would suggest staying away from the ARP Odyssey since the filter section on that model is not as warm as the Moog or SeqCir filters.

In my opinion a Micron or Ion would not be a good choice. Don't get me wrong, these are fine instruments, but the data entry control is anything but intuitive if you are new to analog synth programming.

How about a Roland Jupiter 4, Juno 6 or Juno 60, Yamaha CS60, or even a Korg Poly 6. These are polyphonic instruments (6 note polyphony) and all have dedicated knobs for all functions making it much easier to experiment during your sound creation.

You may also find some useful information by browsing the following two websites;

Go to the Vintage Synth Explorer HERE

Go to the Synth Museum HERE

I hope some of this is useful to you.

Good Luck,

Dave


------------------
Wm. David McMahan
Nat'l Product and Support Manager
Generalmusic USA
GEM Community Forums


[This message has been edited by WDMcM (edited 06-26-2005).]

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#3588 - 06/27/05 10:44 AM Re: the simple warm
keys81 Offline
Junior Member

Registered: 10/07/04
Posts: 17
Loc: Durham
HI WDMcM,

Thanks for the info...you've given me much more to consider. I did realize that the multimoog was monophonic but was not clear in my original post that I was looking for warm round leads moreso than pads. Of course, if polyphony is an option its always better.

The pro one looks great and I'm keeping my eyes out for one. Would you recomend against the Roland jp-8000 and Korg MS2000 due to the same issues regarding sound programming you mentioned for the micron and Ion?

With everything else I've ever purchased I've been able to do side-to-sides in music stores but since I'm trying to compare older analog stuff to more modern VAs its been nearly impossible for me to determine how much wamer\rounder the analog stuff may be. I just can't get my hands on it to try it!

Thanks for your help! -evan




[This message has been edited by keys81 (edited 06-27-2005).]

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#3589 - 06/27/05 05:00 PM Re: the simple warm
Anonymous
Unregistered


Hi Evan,

The JP8000 is pretty cool and would be able to create the type of sound you are interested in.

I haven't spent much time with the MS2000 so I can't really help you out there. Personally I would lean toward the JP8000 though. I didn't bring this model up since you said that your funds are limited but if you could find a JP8000 for $400.00 or so, I would say go for it.

Best Regards,

Dave

------------------
Wm. David McMahan
Nat'l Product and Support Manager
Generalmusic USA
GEM Community Forums

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