hardware synth to complement Juno 106.....

[alackey]

hey guys,

i currently use a juno 106 and rtas plugin synths all controlled by an mpc 2000xl through a trident trimix into protools. i'm wondering what a reasonably priced (less than $650) h/w synth would be to compliment the 106 and fill the gaps in its sound repertoire. right now i'm looking at the roland d-50, the nord lead 2, and the roland jp-8000. i am really into the fred falke, lifelike, alan braxe, kris menace french sound at the moment, and that's kind of what i'm going for.

thanks

[alackey]

guys.... i find it hard to believe that nobody here likes modern french house.

[cosmos]

The Nord Lead will have limited use, it is a great Lead synth with lots of additude. but i would not pick it for all around hardware synth, considering you currently own only a Juno 106.

The JP 8000 is Great. i absolutly love it, can reach alot of sounds and play many parts in any track (leads/bass/fx). the only down issue is (if any) that everybody already maxed it in the Electronic scene.. personaly it wouldent bother me, i would create patches from 0 with it.

Another to consider is the new Waldorf Blofeld, Great VA synth, Raw sounding little beast, not like most VA out there.

do alittle search in Youtube for those synth's, you could get the idea and what they could do ..

[Popbott]

Have had my 106 for a long time. I have used my Nord 2 with the 106 many times over again, but I would suggest something sharper or FM sounding to offset the Juno's analog sound. Maybe an FM synth like a Yamaha TX-81Z or DX-7 II fd. IMO the 106's cream lush synth sound is so versatile that almost anything would sound great with it.

[alackey]

thanks for the replies. popbott, that is a good idea about getting something more sharp and fm sounding. i just read an interview with lifelike in future music and he talks about using the roland jd-990 and mks-60.

[alexp]

Even something like an old Korg Prophecy would be cool. Dunno if you can live with a monosynth, but the 2 together complement each other very nicely!


alexP

[Jim Stout]

Vintage Synth Explorer - Akai AX-60

That will do it.

[Sonic Nomad]

The D-50 is nice but I'd try to pick up a JV-1080, 2080 or even the 3080 at that price. These will serve you very well alongside the Juno-106.

Else if you want a great synth at that price - then I second what cosmos said;

Another to consider is the new Waldorf Blofeld, Great VA synth, Raw sounding little beast, not like most VA out there.

do alittle search in Youtube for those synth's, you could get the idea and what they could do ..

The blofeld is really amazing for it's price.

[clusterchord]

another pov: i cant stand JP8k sound. plastic. i'd go Nord Lead 2X any time. musical, and it can do many things, whilst sounding good. meat n potatoe VA synth.


on real analog front, maybe you can squezze in a Prophet 600, now that would complement Juno106 beautifully. in more ways than one. for starters its a two VCO machine, iot got osc sync, poly mod with fm etc.. a different character poly would be a MKS70, also a DCO like 106, but very ggod at strings, pads, etc.. depends what u need.




aside from synths, first thing that falls to my mind when u say french house, is Solina playing hi notes, thru a slow phaser. it works so well for this. u should try..

[alackey]

thanks for the info dudes. i really like what i found on youtube for the korg prophecy and the mks-70. what is the going price for a prophecy, b/c i can't find any on ebay?

[CalvaryBand]

The prophecy is an amazing synth and I think it would complement the 106 very well. If the MKS-70 is anything like my JX-10 (and it should be) it really is used best for pads and DX-type of sounds. I'd go with the prophecy over it (they usually sell for like 300-500 from what I've seen), as old Roland gear has had a huge price-hike recently and the prophecy has many more uses anyways.

[esaias]

Yeah, +1 for the DX7, if you want more modern, the Prophecy/Z1 should do the trick

-Tomi

[shadowfac]

Korg MS2000: it has various waveforms besides saw and pulse, step sequencers, decent modulation routings, vocoder, and decent effects, all of which allow you to create sounds that complement the juno's. Plus it has audio inputs so you can run the juno through the ms effects for weirder results.

An FM synth would also be a good idea, as long as you don't mind using a software editor.

Actually, you can buy an MS2000 and a Yamaha TX81z for less than $650.

[kikumotoallstars]

Originally Posted by alackey

hey guys,

right now i'm looking at the roland d-50, the nord lead 2, and the roland jp-8000. i am really into the fred falke, lifelike, alan braxe, kris menace french sound at the moment, and that's kind of what i'm going for.

thanks

With all respect people are bum stearing you here dude. You'll need an analog synth to do this stuff.

If you like the sound of the french stuff you aren't gonna get it with a d-50 or jp-8000, they suck pretty hard unless your into 1987 US TV theme music (d-50) or crap t-t-t-trance (jp-8000). The nord isn't great for the french sound either lathough as clusterchord pointed out it is a good thing. I have a prophecy too and this won't give you joy either.

The DX7 is pretty rad but is FM and super mid-late 80's sounding listen to Kavinsky (france) or Les Rythmes Digitales.

I'd suggest you investigate what they actually use or you'll be disappointed and waste your money and time. All synths have distinctive sounds, so if you like the sound of say the bass in a particular track, try and find out what it is.

With respect to the some of the french guys I believe Fred uses the Studio Electronics Omega 8 lately. I reckon he and alan might have used the Yamaha CS-60 or CS-80 in the past although I can't verify this. If you want one of these you are gonna have to search pretty hard and then have to sell your car to buy one.

c'est la vie

[alackey]

kikumotoallstars thanks for the awesome post dude. i did a little research and it seems that those guys are using really high end synths. even if i sold my car, i could only buy half of an omega 8! i wish there was a low budget alternative other than plugins.

[kikumotoallstars]

Don't be disheartened, Your Juno & MPC is a really good start. You are bettor off saving for something really good that you can keep for the long run. As a general rule buy analog synths and stay away from new digital stuff for the french sound.

Have you looked at the arturia soft synths? The CS-80 emulation whilst not the real thing but is still pretty damn good.

One tip if you like the french sound is to buy an Alesis 3630 compressor and run your MPC drums through it. Just buy an old second hand one from ebay, should be about $100. You will be amazed, this is the sound of french dance music. Also try it on your mix buss (running your final mix through it). You are gonna love it..

Cheers,

K

[dlmorley]

How about a Blofeld and a Yamaha DX7.
The DX7 is totally underrated and fits in mixes perfectly. Sure it can sound CRAP on it's own, but in context and with a bit of tweaking it can cut thru a mix really nicely. I'm not alone either. Many "techno" artists I have worked with use them.

[rachel]

MKS-50 with PG-300 is my first suggestion.
A good monosynth like the Korg MS-20 is going to give you great bass and filter sweeps
but you need a MIDI/CV interface as well. Go for a "Roland" sound perhaps so an SH-101,
or similar. I don't think the VA synths you mentioned are that interesting.


rachel

[esaias]

Somebody was selling Yamaha TX802 in the classifieds section, go and grab it!
(TX802 is the rack version of DX7II)

FM rules!

-Tomi

[jonnypowell]

+1 for Blofeld..

I talked my friend in to buying one, and they simply rock..
Would be a great companion for a Juno-106.

[jonnypowell]

Originally Posted by alackey

hey guys,

i currently use a juno 106 and rtas plugin synths all controlled by an mpc 2000xl through a trident trimix into protools. i'm wondering what a reasonably priced (less than $650) h/w synth would be to compliment the 106 and fill the gaps in its sound repertoire. right now i'm looking at the roland d-50, the nord lead 2, and the roland jp-8000. i am really into the fred falke, lifelike, alan braxe, kris menace french sound at the moment, and that's kind of what i'm going for.

thanks

I LOVE all those artists, and french house totally floats my boat!
I know I'm def not the only other person on here that feels that way either.. I've seen many people drop those names lately.

Have you heard the Fred Falke remix of Golden Cage by Whitest Boy Alive??

[SWAN808]

Originally Posted by alackey

hey guys,

i currently use a juno 106 and rtas plugin synths all controlled by an mpc 2000xl through a trident trimix into protools. i'm wondering what a reasonably priced (less than $650) h/w synth would be to compliment the 106 and fill the gaps in its sound repertoire. right now i'm looking at the roland d-50, the nord lead 2, and the roland jp-8000. i am really into the fred falke, lifelike, alan braxe, kris menace french sound at the moment, and that's kind of what i'm going for.

thanks

Hi dude - Im also a big fan of the Lifelike/Braxe/Falke etc sound check one of my DJ mixes here - I did a one off special dedicated to French House:

shortcircuitmusic12 at Short Circuit

kikumotoallstars is correct to some degree in that you dont really want FM synths or a JD990 to reporduce this type of sound.

I too love this sound and have been learning and playing as many Lifelike and Flake tracks as I can get my hands on over these last few months. The harsh reality I have had to get over - is that these guys generally use what are now expensive analogue poly-synths like the Omega 8 (Falke) Jupiter 8 (Lifelike) MKS80 (Lifelike) etc. Their sound is mainly due to these synths. Yes they do use the occasional 'bell' sound from an FM synth - but really - its analogue bass - and analogue pads.

Ive tried the majority of resonable priced analogue polys such as the Matrix 1000 and Roland JX3p - but the reality is - they dont really have the 'balls' that the above synths do. IMO the Juno is a great synth - but you need 2 proper Oscillators to do these types of House sounds.

However there is ONE that I have not yet tried that IS within reach - and that is the Prophet 600 - as mentioned correctly by CLusterchord. There only drawback to this synth is the slow-ish envelopes and some old digital implementation - so its not that punchy for bass. They are also not re-known for reliability. However - from what Ive heard - its a great synth and the last hope in reasonably priced polys as far as I can tell!

If you teamed a Prophet 600 up with a Roland SH09 for your punchy analogue Bass and leads - I think you would be able to capture their classic sound. (Actually - your 106 might suffice for the bass)...Oh and maybe buy a nice phaser pedal...

There is another potential choice that I am looking at - and that is using the new plugin synth Omnisphere -as apparently it has many many multisamples from classic analogue synths - and with its versatility - Im hoping it will be able to produce some interesting sounds that are generated from real analogue waveforms...

DO NOT buy a Waldorf Blofeld in order to achieve this sound! Its a great synth - but in this context - its a bum steer....

Great suggestions by the posters - but its one of those situations where you need to know the music to really give recommendations.

[kosmasepsilon]

Originally Posted by jonnypowell

+1 for Blofeld..

I talked my friend in to buying one, and they simply rock..
Would be a great companion for a Juno-106.

+2.
had it for a while, a friend brought it at my place to test it for a few days. loved it
sounds dirty enough for french house. and the filters are very good (you'll need them). also, the envelopes were satisfying. have a try if possible. and it's really cheap

[jonnypowell]

Originally Posted by SWAN808

Hi dude - Im also a big fan of the Lifelike/Braxe/Falke etc sound check on of my mixes here:

shortcircuitmusic12 at Short Circuit

kikumotoallstars is correct to some degree in that you dont really want FM synths or a JD990 to reporduce this type of sound.

The harsh reality I have had to get over - is that these guys generally use analogue poly-synths like the Omega 8 (Falke) Jupiter 8 (Lifelike) MKS80 (Lifelike) etc. Their sound is mainly due to these synths. Yes they do use the occasional 'bell' sound from an FM synth - but really - its analogue bass - and analogue pads.

Ive tried the majority of resonable priced analogue polys such as the Matrix 1000 and Roland JX3p - but the reality is - they dont really have the 'balls' that the above synths do. IMO the Juno is a great synth - but you need 2 proper Oscillators to do these types of House sounds.

However there is ONE that I have not yet tried that IS within reach - and that is the Prophet 600 - as mentioned correctly by CLusterchord. There only drawback to this synth is the slow-ish envelopes and some old digital implementation - so its not that punchy for bass. They are also not re-known for reliability. However - from what Ive heard - its a great synth and the last hope in reasonably priced polys as far as I can tell!

If you teamed a Prophet 600 up with a Roland SH09 for your punchy analogue Bass and leads - I think you would be able to capture their classic sound. (Actually - your 106 might suffice for the bass)...Oh and maybe buy a nice phaser pedal...

There is another potential choice that I am looking at - and that is using the new plugin synth Omnisphere -as apparently it has many many multisamples from classic analogue synths - and with its versatility - Im hoping it will be able to produce some interesting sounds that are generated from real analogue waveforms...

DO NOT buy a Waldorf Blofeld in order to achieve this sound! Its a great synth - but in this context - its a bum steer....

Great suggestions by the posters - but its one of those situations where you need to know the music to really give recommendations.

I was recommending a synth that would compliment the Juno 106.
Wasn't really thinking about the french house thing..

Yeah - you should check out Omnisphere. My copy should be here early next week - so I'll give you a full report on it's synth sounds.

Also - like Swan said - buy a good phaser pedal. Will sound great on the back end of your juno.. Especially on some saw-tooth keys. very french!

[Space Station]

Originally Posted by SWAN808

However there is ONE that I have not yet tried that IS within reach - and that is the Prophet 600 - as mentioned correctly by CLusterchord. There only drawback to this synth is the slow-ish envelopes and some old digital implementation - so its not that punchy for bass. They are also not re-known for reliability. However - from what Ive heard - its a great synth and the last hope in reasonably priced polys as far as I can tell!

I own two P600's and a P1 I can tell you that the bass sounds on the P600 are pretty damn cool and punchy, I have fooled people in blind tests between a P1 and P600 with bass sounds. However the sofware generated envelopes are definitely not as smooth as the ones in a P1 or P5.

It has a cool unison mode to turn it into a monosynth but with only one voice card not that horrible stacked sound that I personally hate.

Reliability wise I would say they are very, very good for a CEM based synth. Much more reliable than a P5 or P1. I certainly have never had a problem with either of mine. They are a very good buy. Well designed, reliable, light. Sound great and are one of the rare twin VCO synths to have Midi.

The main thing people do not like is the stepped nature of the controls, say when sweeping the filter by hand or something. I actually use that as a cool effect so it doesnt bother me.

[Digital Network]

+1 for the Blofeld and maybe the MFB Synth II ...

[d1rtynyc]

Just a side note. For that "French" filtering sound you may want to also look at a Sherman Filterbank. You can get em' pretty cheap $500 or less. GREAT for filter samples in real time!

[dlmorley]

Originally Posted by Space Station

I own two P600's and a P1 I can tell you that the bass sounds on the P600 are pretty damn cool and punchy, I have fooled people in blind tests between a P1 and P600 with bass sounds. However the sofware generated envelopes are definitely not as smooth as the ones in a P1 or P5.

It has a cool unison mode to turn it into a monosynth but with only one voice card not that horrible stacked sound that I personally hate.

Reliability wise I would say they are very, very good for a CEM based synth. Much more reliable than a P5 or P1. I certainly have never had a problem with either of mine. They are a very good buy. Well designed, reliable, light. Sound great and are one of the rare twin VCO synths to have Midi.

The main thing people do not like is the stepped nature of the controls, say when sweeping the filter by hand or something. I actually use that as a cool effect so it doesnt bother me.

Have to just stand up for the P5 reliability!

Mine has just gone for it's first service EVER. After 30 years, it had a small few faults and then the LFO stopped working. The tech said it looked great inside, but it needed the keyboard dac replacing a couple of chips and some adjustments. Stuff like that. €300 approx in total (including recapping the power supply)
Or 10 euros a year.
In short my P5 has been VERY reliable and not at all expensive to keep going.

[carlheinz]

Originally Posted by alackey

hey guys,

i currently use a juno 106 and rtas plugin synths all controlled by an mpc 2000xl through a trident trimix into protools. i'm wondering what a reasonably priced (less than $650) h/w synth would be to compliment the 106 and fill the gaps in its sound repertoire. right now i'm looking at the roland d-50, the nord lead 2, and the roland jp-8000. i am really into the fred falke, lifelike, alan braxe, kris menace french sound at the moment, and that's kind of what i'm going for.

thanks

I don't know much about the french scene.I would consider buying another 106 and miding them together and stacking the sounds and slightly detuning one them.Panning optional.

[SWAN808]

Originally Posted by Space Station

I own two P600's and a P1 I can tell you that the bass sounds on the P600 are pretty damn cool and punchy, I have fooled people in blind tests between a P1 and P600 with bass sounds. However the sofware generated envelopes are definitely not as smooth as the ones in a P1 or P5.

It has a cool unison mode to turn it into a monosynth but with only one voice card not that horrible stacked sound that I personally hate.

Reliability wise I would say they are very, very good for a CEM based synth. Much more reliable than a P5 or P1. I certainly have never had a problem with either of mine. They are a very good buy. Well designed, reliable, light. Sound great and are one of the rare twin VCO synths to have Midi.

The main thing people do not like is the stepped nature of the controls, say when sweeping the filter by hand or something. I actually use that as a cool effect so it doesnt bother me.

ahh dont make me GAS for one!

Does it have the same build quality as the P1 - or is it better?

I think for the OP a Prophet 600 may be the best choice....