One synth!

scientist · Post by **scientist** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 6:18 am

andromeda is the nothing-spared-real-deal analog (supposedly)...the ion is digitally recreated as a general emulation (not of the andromeda specifically). but from the ground up the ion was designed to be the best f'in emulation ever....supposedly it has some seriously superior dsp put to the task of emulating as much as possible...right down to the aforementioned filter models (10 or 12 specific models like moog ladder, tb-303, etc., whereas my jp8080 has one), and there is also an osc drift parameter to simulate instability of voltage controlled oscillators (a feature that the evolver has as well).

the synth that the ion is the most similar to is the micron. apparently they run on the same engine, with the difference being that the micron interface is awful (one of those one knob/menu scrolling deals), and the ion has a decent amount of knobs for control of the majority of often tweaked parameters (the biggest shortcoming being a toggle switch for knob control of amp env vs. filter env).

i'm getting the feeling that the ion will be the next 'holy shit this thing is awesome why is it discontinued?' piece of gear on the market. btw check this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F8Kiw4aoex4
not necessarily an analog-ish demo, but shows it being pretty expressive for such a "toy".

andreasfr · Post by **andreasfr** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 10:59 am

I'll second for the Virus TI.
Ableton and Access just got the "total integration"-part right! Used it as an ol'school multitimbral midi device before, but now it integrates almost perfectly.
Definitely worth checking out if you are looking for "the one" synth. (read the interview with the Depeche Mode technician on the access site

)
I'm selling both my Alesis Micron (for obvious UI-related reasons) and my Creamware Minimax. They're just gathering dust after I got the Virus.

Otherwise the Nord Wave looks reeeeeally nice...

Tarekith · Post by **Tarekith** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 11:18 am

If it doesn't have to be real analog, my vote goes for the TI as well, excellent synth.

Otherwise, I'd recommend the DSI Evolver, it's an amazingly deep synth, I'm still amazed at the complexity of sounds I cna get out of the desktop version even.

Mike Goodwin · Post by **Mike Goodwin** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 1:20 pm

thelike5 wrote:Dave Smith's Poly Evolver keyboard but that's just me.

That makes 2

downfader · Post by **downfader** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 1:39 pm

For pads I have an Oberheim Matrix 1000 - not really suitable for the Op as its not very easily editable, but it does have some truly awesome sounds.

I also have a Waldorf Pulse. Digital oscillators but analogue filter section - again awesome sounds, but monophonic. Its got five knobs to tweak so agin not ideal.

TBH I've never found these limitations and considering the second hand prices these go for it might be worth checking out.

I tried a moog voyager out ina local shop the other week. Lush sounds indeed and very well built. I would love one but waaay too expensive for me. I have to say the Ion is on my shopping list as soon as I can get some money.

aqua_tek · Post by **aqua_tek** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 6:39 pm

Call me impulsive but i got a deal for a Virus TI POLAR that I just couldnt turn down.

so i bought it

aqua_tek · Post by **aqua_tek** » Thu Nov 01, 2007 7:00 am

Arrived today. I havent been out of my room for quite a few hours, needless to say

snakedogman · Post by **snakedogman** » Thu Nov 01, 2007 10:54 am

for the list of digital synths I'd like to add:

John Bowen Solaris (if you want incredible amount of features in one keyboard, this is it. It's not out yet though.)

Creamware/SonicCore Minimax, Prodyssey or Pro-12 ASB's

These are DSP based resurrection of the Minimoog, ARP Oddysey and Prophet 5 respectively, so if you want to get close to that analog sound with all the controls at your fingertips these are very good synths.

scientist · Post by **scientist** » Thu Nov 01, 2007 5:19 pm

good one. i think for an all in one synth, a virus is about the best you can get (and better sound than nord, imo). my alesis ion finally showed up, and i'm pretty blown away...excellent sound and excellent and easy to use interface. while head to head it doesn't quite have the clarity of my voyager, for $500 its the best deal out there.

popsicko · Post by **popsicko** » Thu Nov 01, 2007 9:59 pm

Well, I've read some pretty lukewarm things about the A6, and the Ti's are out of the question as I wanted an analog synth. I had a micron, it was cool, but it had this annoying sound when you hit the key. Very faint, very digital. I don't know how to explain it. It was only noticeable in headphones, but after that it's all I ever heard!!

Anyone have any experience with the DIY stuff? I'm looking at possibly making a Soundlab synth, maybe a sequencer to go with it. Open to other stuff as well. It might be cheaper, than saving up for a synth. Most of the ones I like are thousnads of dollars!

cosmosuave · Post by **cosmosuave** » Thu Nov 01, 2007 10:57 pm

popsicko wrote:Well, I've read some pretty lukewarm things about the A6, and the Ti's are out of the question as I wanted an analog synth. I had a micron, it was cool, but it had this annoying sound when you hit the key. Very faint, very digital. I don't know how to explain it. It was only noticeable in headphones, but after that it's all I ever heard!!

Anyone have any experience with the DIY stuff? I'm looking at possibly making a Soundlab synth, maybe a sequencer to go with it. Open to other stuff as well. It might be cheaper, than saving up for a synth. Most of the ones I like are thousnads of dollars!

I've built the Soundlab and have gotten it to work somewhat but have shelved it for future troubleshooting... For DIY check out the Midibox SID... Currently building one now the stereo version... You can build the SID for under a $100 if your resourceful enough...

Angstrom · Post by **Angstrom** » Fri Nov 02, 2007 12:10 am

I very curious to try out the Arturia Origin, it combines my love of modularity with a dedicated hardware interface. Expensive, but perhaps I will have earned a bit of money by the time it comes out (next year)

popsicko · Post by **popsicko** » Fri Nov 02, 2007 6:00 am

I don't find the Midibox site to be very clear at all. What exactly is it? Where do I get it? How much? Is it a kit?
SID = fun!
-b

donttouch · Post by **donttouch** » Mon Nov 19, 2007 7:19 am

djsynchro wrote:
popsicko wrote:Maybe I'll build one!

http://musicfromouterspace.com/analogsy ... ndlab.html

You'll need a MIDI to CV converter as well... The PCB is $30 electronic parts will be $30-60 according to the author. I'm planning to build one over Xmas, had the PCB for a year now. Best thing for the knobs and switches is surplus stores, buy them in bulk. You'll have to knock up a box too. Oh yeah - I'm going to build mine with all the controls doubled on pach cables, so it's modular and it will "talk" to my other analogue stuff.

I'M BUYING ONE OF THESE RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!

RIGHT NOW!!!!

the moment i saw a pic of one of these synths built into a lunchbox, i had to have a lunchbox synth. (it's on google images.)

YYYYEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS...... etc...

Strauzzie · Post by **Strauzzie** » Mon Nov 19, 2007 6:23 pm

this is a bit of a random question, but I thought it was an appropriate thread for it..

does the Nord Lead 2X have pot pickup at all? i.e. when you switch programs and twist a knob, does the parameter jump?