alesis ion or SE-1?

donttouch · Post by **donttouch** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 2:09 am

i have an ion, and i dont really use it. would it be a good idea to trade for a studio electronics SE-1? they are both in perfect condition.

i like the keyboard and poly of the ion, but also the analog sound of the se-1... hmmm

any ideas?

scientist · Post by **scientist** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 2:26 am

if that's a straight across trade that's a good deal, and if you never use the ion then you have even more reason to try something new. if i didn't end up with a voyager for cheap i would've gone for an se1x for sure...

somarefill · Post by **somarefill** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 3:00 am

agreed.

get rid of the ion if you never use it. it is a really great synth imho.

- if you never really delve into the guts of ion's modulation matrix, i doubt you would find the se1x more inspiring to work with.

i'm really happy with the ion today. it's attempts to mimic analog drift are really interesting if used appropriately. the se1x uses something called accutune or accutone to tune it's oscillator's.

personally i would recommend that you keep the ion.

donttouch · Post by **donttouch** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 8:55 am

hmmm, perhaps...

but i do like the mod matrix in the ion... then again... i can do all that with absynth.. i have no real need for it. i just dont know. i'll be moving off to college here in a few months, and if i sell the ion, i'll only have an O2 to work with (2 octaves)... then again, i LOVE the sound of the moog, just cant afford it. (by the way, this would be just a simple trade. one for one.)

i'm also seeing if anyone would like to buy it. is 450 too much for a perfect condition ion? (or too little?)

will i REALLY miss the larger keyboard? and is the analog sound worth it?

scientist · Post by **scientist** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 6:22 pm

if someone is willing to trade, do it! the se1 is worth 8-900 while a used ion is only getting about 400.
fwiw though, the ion is a great synth and is worth digging into. its the first virtual analog i've owned that can hold its own with respect to sound character up against more expensive analog synths...no knob zippering (which ironically i've heard is a problem with se-1s), great filter options, easy to use interface, and the analog drift feature adds a little vintage-ness to any patch.