Analog synth luv - If you were me?

[dsound]

Just bought a Mopho and love it! I recently have converted to out board synths and am planning next purchases. I love the Mopho so much that I was thinking of doing the following:

A) Keep Mopho and add Poly Evolver

B) sell Mopho, get a Prophet 08 and get Little Phatty

C) same as B but get Studio Electronics SE-1x

[The_Crooked_Man]

In that price range, I'd say keep the MoPho and get something like a Jupiter 6. That way you have a nice blend of the old with the new.

[Dirty Halo]

Originally Posted by dsound

Just bought a Mopho and love it! I recently have converted to out board synths and am planning next purchases. I love the Mopho so much that I was thinking of doing the following:

A) Keep Mopho and add Poly Evolver

B) sell Mopho, get a Prophet 08 and get Little Phatty

C) same as B but get Studio Electronics SE-1x

First, congrats!

If you love the MoPho, I say keep it.

I own the Prophet '08 and the Evolver and love both... however, if these were my first few analoge synths, I'd diversify if I were you, meaning, as much as I LOVE my dave Smith gear, I'd keep one and then get something very different.

IMO, keep the MoPho (there's not a better value out there) and then go for soemthing very different.

If cost is a consideration, go used, there are many great values out there to get into analog.

An Oberheim Matrix 1000 is huge analog bang for the buck. Maybe go for a Roland SH-101. AND IF YOU FIND A DEAL, GO USED ON A LITTLE PHATTY (oops, orry about those caps)

I also own a SE1X as well as a Mini Moog Rev D (love both!) For you at this point though, I say Little Phatty.

Congrats again and ENJOY!!! (caps intended this time)


-Andrews

[clusterchord]

Originally Posted by dsound

A) Keep Mopho and add Poly Evolver

B) sell Mopho, get a Prophet 08 and get Little Phatty

C) same as B but get Studio Electronics SE-1x

id say, if u can C) sell Mopho, get P8 and SE-1x


if u dig the sound of Mopho, youll probably like P8 a lot. its like a poly Mopho, with full-on knob interface. in my taste, id rather use that type of sound in polyphonic form, for stirng/brass/sweep pad etc. for monopohonic, something like a SE-1X is gonna bring the house down. compared to Mopho it sounds HUGE, falls into vintage "moog" sound camp. its extremely fit for lead/bass/fx duties. you wont regret it. and again, if u want mopho for mono lead, its easy enough to setup P8 in mono mode..


crooked mans suggestion is also good: if u opt for a Jupiter6 instead of P8, and pair it with SE-1X.... whooaaa.. there has been a lot of threads comparing the two, bcs of some kinship in sound, and price range. personally, i'd choose Jupiter6, with its "old" Curtis VCO sound, multimode roland filter etc. but its a vintage.. so it comes with its own potential maintenance issues, that hardware newbies usually steer clear of. that being said, jup6 is probably the most well built, stable synth of that era. like a tank. i'd suggest u just choose based upon which sound u like better.


me no dig LP. at all. ymmv.

[dsound]

Originally Posted by clusterchord

id say, if u can C) sell Mopho, get P8 and SE-1x


if u dig the sound of Mopho, youll probably like P8 a lot. its like a poly Mopho, with full-on knob interface. in my taste, id rather use that type of sound in polyphonic form, for stirng/brass/sweep pad etc. for monopohonic, something like a SE-1X is gonna bring the house down. compared to Mopho it sounds HUGE, falls into vintage "moog" sound camp. its extremely fit for lead/bass/fx duties. you wont regret it. and again, if u want mopho for mono lead, its easy enough to setup P8 in mono mode..

That was my thought exactly. I love the Mopho so much that I thought why not get it's Poly equivalent and then get a bass monster. Is that correct thinking that the Mopho is a monophonic P 08? I thought about true vintage like the Jupiter6 but I'm a little weary of the maintenance.

I tried the Little Phatty and thought it sounded good but there was some kind of magic coming from the Mopho. I know they're totally different but it was more about the overall feel. The Mopho adds a bit of magic in the track. BTW, all of the above sound so much better than any soft synths I have. Very liberating creatively. With outboard analog, I feel like I don't have to tweak too much. It just sounds good right away.

Now I'm leaning Prophet 08 module and SE-1x.

[chrisso]

Originally Posted by Dirty Halo

An Oberheim Matrix 1000 is huge analog bang for the buck.

I agree.
You have an easy to use, bombproof modern synth.
Now's the time to dip your toe in older waters.
Matrix 1000, Sci Pro One, SH101 and similar.

[alexp]

The Matrix is absolutely amazing for the price..... I would do that and an sh101.



alexP

[jonnypowell]

Originally Posted by dsound

I thought about true vintage like the Jupiter6 but I'm a little weary of the maintenance.

I think you'll find that you really dont get that many problems with old roland synths.
They were built very well.. You might need to replace the odd battery, but I've found them to be VERY reliable.
Of course there is the dreaded dying VCA/VCF chip in the Juno-106's.. The JP series are sturdy beasts though!

[chrisso]

I've had very little maintenance done on most of my old synths in ten years of ownership.
Many are pretty easily fixed anyway.

[dsound]

wow..the Matrix seems to be quite popular. Is that a poly synth? The SH-101 looks cool too and I remember looking at that as an option. How is the bass on the SH-101 vs an SE-1x or Little Phatty?

I'm looking for a great, affordable poly synth and a great mono synth. Preferably analog.

thanks for all the replies...

[clusterchord]

Originally Posted by dsound

How is the bass on the SH-101 vs an SE-1x ..

they're exact oposite in character. SH is great for high-bpm electronic stuff - agressive, focused, VERY fast. thinner. the other one is warm, thick, huge...but slower.

but since u r thinking of P8... SE-1X will complement it better. in addition, SE is much deeper and versatile synth than SH. 3 oscillators, 4 envs, a 24dB "moog" filter and a 12dB/Oct. "SEM" filter with multimode - that's huge difference right there.



so depending on your style, you may need one or the other. or both.


matrix100/6/6r is a 6voice polyphonic synth, using DCOs. in some ways kin to P8. very deep arhitecture, way deeper than P8 btw. cheap.

[chrisso]

The Matrix 1000 is poly (6 note I think).
It's just cheap, great sounding, with tons of highly useable pre-sets.
It's not the greatest synth ever made, just what I said above.

[dsound]

I do a lot of commercial work (TV and film) and have been getting into full remixes. I like the electro sound for remixes but want to avoid what's been done a lot already (who doesn't?). I like tweaking sounds but don't want to spend too much time doing that. Anyway, the Matrix and SH-101 sound like a worthy pair. Hmmm.....

I notice the Matrix is a rack mount only? I do like the idea of having knobs to turn to tweak in real time. I guess I could use a controller with the 1000. Sounds like the presets are great in their own right...

[Don Solaris]

Originally Posted by alexp

The Matrix is absolutely amazing for the price..... I would do that and an sh101.

I had Matrix 6, 1000 and 6R over the last decade. Fantastic set of features, but the sound.... it's just missing something. Juno 60 is a single DCO, yet its overall sound (and specially the PWM) is way way better, IMHO. Even now, when i own JP-8, i still can't take my hands away from Juno 60 (for at least an hour or so) when i start playing it, it just sounds too good.

Anyway.... speaking of dual DCO synths, my advice would be to skip Matrix 6 and go with MKS-70. These are around $350. That is for 24 analog oscillators - a bargain!

[jsrockit]

If you get the Moog LP, you'll no longer care about the MoPho.

[Eigenwert]

If you get a Voyager with CV breakout box and an Altair-231 (to be modified, one additional wire) you will no longer care about anything

[cosmos]

I dont know about the Mopho, like you mentioned it is good, so keep it.
if you can get a Poly Evolver, the last few days with it were a blast !!! its amazing piece of gear. needs some time to get along with it but it just getting better and better ...

I should get the Mopho ..

[Resonant Serpent]

Originally Posted by dsound

That was my thought exactly. I love the Mopho so much that I thought why not get it's Poly equivalent and then get a bass monster. Is that correct thinking that the Mopho is a monophonic P 08? I thought about true vintage like the Jupiter6 but I'm a little weary of the maintenance.

I tried the Little Phatty and thought it sounded good but there was some kind of magic coming from the Mopho. I know they're totally different but it was more about the overall feel. The Mopho adds a bit of magic in the track. BTW, all of the above sound so much better than any soft synths I have. Very liberating creatively. With outboard analog, I feel like I don't have to tweak too much. It just sounds good right away.

Now I'm leaning Prophet 08 module and SE-1x.

The Mopho is not a monophonic Prophet 08. The same basic structure, but it adds to sub oscillators that give you that deep bass the Prophet is lacking. Not saying the Prophet sucks, just saying it won't make the exact same sound.

[cosmos]

Originally Posted by Resonant Serpent

The Mopho is not a monophonic Prophet 08. The same basic structure, but it adds to sub oscillators that give you that deep bass the Prophet is lacking. Not saying the Prophet sucks, just saying it won't make the exact same sound.

good point here. thumbsup the sub osc makes a big difference.

[dsound]

I think the Mopho is right on par, soundwise with the LP. It's a different sound but it's in the same league. I A/Bed them last night. Anyway, good to know that the P 8 is not just a polyphonic Mopho. Hmmm...lots of options here. Are folks down on the P 08? I get the vibe in the forums that it's mixed. Seems like the Poly evolver gets better reviews. Do the original, vintage Rolands blow away all of the newer synths?

[cosmos]

Originally Posted by dsound

I think the Mopho is right on par, soundwise with the LP. It's a different sound but it's in the same league. I A/Bed them last night. Anyway, good to know that the P 8 is not just a polyphonic Mopho. Hmmm...lots of options here. Are folks down on the P 08? I get the vibe in the forums that it's mixed. Seems like the Poly evolver gets better reviews. Do the original, vintage Rolands blow away all of the newer synths?

each synth have a diffrent character. p08/evolver/mopho/LP, they are all different .. at the end it is importent that the synth will sound good to you.

search youtube for clips, GS for demos etc..

I own the Poly Evolver and im loving it, some dont. it dosent mean that its not good. thank god we all hear things different otherwise everything will sound the same.

does the Vintage Rolands blow away the newr synths ?

- which roland ? - which new synths ? some do. some dont.


...

[dsound]

All great points and thank you...

Ok, I'm starting to gravitate towards:

Keep Mopho - get a Phatty - get a P 08 or ??

Some of you are thinking 'why isn't he taking my advice on the Matrix or MKS-70?'. I'm still open to it but I would have to know that those 2 synths blow away something like a p 8 or poly evolver. With the vintage modules, I'm giving up front panel control (real time tweaking) and some modern features like sequencer and more advance midi functions. I also don't want to spend $$$, especially in this economy...

[plaid_emu]

I'll probably catch hell from the ANALog die hards for saying this but if you want another outboard synth, I think you should get something very digital to compliment your Mopho (unless you already have something). Balance your analog and digital chi.

You can do some crazy fun stuff with Waldorfs and Viruses (which are much more than JUST virtual analogs). Even the Micron is a great option (with a VST editor of course). It's quite capable of some very bizarre and inspiring FM tweaking.

Polyphonic analog synths are generally expensive (with the exception of the P08) and in my opinion the price/performance ratio for something new OR vintage (repairs!) is too steep for my tastes (and wallet).

I let my Virus, Blofeld and Reaktor pretend to be analog polysynths when I need that. The results are usually quite satisfying. I doubt most of your target audience is going to think your a dildo because you didn't use an Andromeda or Jupiter. They likely won't know or care.

[dsound]

Originally Posted by plaid_emu

I'll probably catch hell from the ANALog die hards for saying this but if you want another outboard synth, I think you should get something very digital to compliment your Mopho (unless you already have something). Balance your analog and digital chi.

You can do some crazy fun stuff with Waldorfs and Viruses (which are much more than JUST virtual analogs). Even the Micron is a great option (with a VST editor of course). It's quite capable of some very bizarre and inspiring FM tweaking.

Polyphonic analog synths are generally expensive (with the exception of the P08) and in my opinion the price/performance ratio for something new OR vintage (repairs!) is too steep for my tastes (and wallet).

I let my Virus, Blofeld and Reaktor pretend to be analog polysynths when I need that. The results are usually quite satisfying. I doubt most of your target audience is going to think your a dildo because you didn't use an Andromeda or Jupiter. They likely won't know or care.

Nice! Yeah, I still have a Virus TI in the back of my head and was about to pull the trigger on it but then I've heard that it doesn't sound any different than the TDM version in PT (which I have). I find it hard to believe given the rave reviews of the Virus but if that's the case then why go there?

I'm definitely not trying to be an Analog only snob, I just want to invest in gear that blows away and helps to cure the uninspiring experience I've had with most soft-synths and drum sequencers.

I'm not in a position to re-invent electronic music with unheard, new sounds. I just want to do remixes that have some indy cred but have the wow factor also - not cheesy. Even for the commercial stuff, I've been putting the Mopho in there left and right with great results! These days, you can freak out a bit more on commercials....

[MarcB]

the TDM version is a virus B and is not in the same league as a Ti. It's like saying the Korg M1 sounds the same as the M3.

[chrisso]

Originally Posted by dsound

Ok, I'm starting to gravitate towards:

Keep Mopho - get a Phatty - get a P 08 or ??
With the vintage modules, I'm giving up front panel control (real time tweaking) and some modern features like sequencer and more advance midi functions. .

It can't be about one synth 'blowing away' another synth.
This is all too subjective.
You can only decide which synth sound and which synth features suit your own taste.
With vintage synths (not modules) you are actually better off for front panel control and real time tweaking. You can't get easier to use than an SH101.
The ultimate front panel synth is the Roland JD800 IMO. Great for film work too I think.
I find many of the new synths, with their pages and windows, much less intuitive than the older analogue boards, but yes, you lose some of the sound flexibility and midi capability. I personally like the sound of old synths and enjoy playing the parts instead of sequencing them, even though I have limited keyboard skills.
An older synth adds some grit and human feel to otherwise quantized, perfect DAW compositions.

[plaid_emu]

Originally Posted by dsound

Nice! Yeah, I still have a Virus TI in the back of my head and was about to pull the trigger on it ................ I've been putting the Mopho in there left and right with great results! These days, you can freak out a bit more on commercials....

The TI and the Mopho are a knockout combo. I just finished constructing my live rig (it's the gator case on the right) this summer and decided to add the Mopho to the setup a couple weeks ago.

Exploring the Mopho has been very rewarding. It sounds great with the rest of my synths. I was really looking for something to round out my rig, as it needed a bit of a bass boost. I was considering an SE-1X and I'm really glad this came along. Saved a thousand bucks and I'm more than satisfied.

[dsound]

before considering a TI, I want to be sure that I won't feel like I'm back in Soft Synth land again.

[plaid_emu]

Originally Posted by dsound

before considering a TI, I want to be sure that I won't feel like I'm back in Soft Synth land again.

Well it IS digital and it CAN be used as a plug-in within your DAW. However, it can also operate in stand alone mode and imitate analog sounds with above average proficiency.

But one thing I can say is, it SOUNDS AMAZING and unlike any softsynth or VA I've ever used. I was skeptical about Viruses until my GF won a TI from a Nova Musik contest. After the first ten presets my jaw was on the floor and I was profoundly struck with the rationalization of a TI costing as much as a decent used car or 1/10th of the average american's annual income.

[DevonB]

Originally Posted by chrisso

The Matrix 1000 is poly (6 note I think).
It's just cheap, great sounding, with tons of highly useable pre-sets.
It's not the greatest synth ever made, just what I said above.

Just as an interesting note to the original poster - The Matrix 1000 is actually "up to" 36 notes poly; you can chain up to 6 Matrix 1000 together (6 Matrix's * 6 notes poly = 36 notes.) I used to wonder why there was some guy on EBay selling 3 Matrix 1000 together, now I know.

Devon