Sequential Circuits Six Trak vs. Akai AX-60

[Novosibirsk]

Sorry to start a new thread while there are other Six Trak threads, but I need some opinions asap. I have an AX-60 that I might be able to trade for a Six Trak. I enjoy many aspects of the 60, but am not always satisfied with it's tone, so I don't want to trade unless the Six Trak is a marked improvement.

The loss of the sliders on the Akai would be sad, but the tone of the Six Trak (from Youtube videos) seems a little bit better, more applications and would sit better in a mix. Any ideas?

[dudez]

The sequencer on the Six-Trak is a blast, but the AX60 is a better keyboard in every possible way. If you're not satisfied with the AX60 tone, you should think about something completely different, considering both the AX60 and Six-Trak have the same basic sound chips.

[rolo]

the ax60 sounds NOTHING like the six trak. I always found the AX60 to sound lame. Everything about the sound was terrible. I've seen them sell for several hundreds on ebay and i always wonder why. I think new synth peeps probably figure it'll sound like the ax80... which i also did not like but was still way better then the 60.
the SCI trumps it in every way.

[bluegreengold]

I haven't used the ax60, but the VX90 I have can sound fantastic. It just doesn't do wet squishy sounds.

Advantage of the six-track is the sequencer and the multi timbrality. Advantage of the akai is the sliders, and that you can run an s612/700/900/950 into it for a second digital oscillator.

[The Architecture]

The AX60 is a very acquired taste. Having had mine for almost 8 years now, Its probably the one synth I have used in every production since Ive had it. Having wiped the memory off of it by accident, I had to learn how to program it from the ground up, learned alot about programming because of it. Alot of people who use it at first will think the thing sounds absolutely awful, and it does if you dont know how to get a good sound from it. If your willing to put a bit of time into it, it can do amazing things. I have patches I can link up if your interested.

[bizness80]

Originally Posted by Novosibirsk

Sorry to start a new thread while there are other Six Trak threads, but I need some opinions asap. I have an AX-60 that I might be able to trade for a Six Trak. I enjoy many aspects of the 60, but am not always satisfied with it's tone, so I don't want to trade unless the Six Trak is a marked improvement.

The loss of the sliders on the Akai would be sad, but the tone of the Six Trak (from Youtube videos) seems a little bit better, more applications and would sit better in a mix. Any ideas?

I dont see how the AX-60 doesnt sit in a mix well unless you are abusing the filter (which is easy to do actually) or using a lot of unison. Its quite nice for effects, percussive sounds and arpeggios/sequences in particular.

I havent used a Six Track but listening to its basic sound on demos and seeing its interface (or lack thereof) I dont see how it would be a marked improvement over the AX-60.

What exactly is it that you find lacking in the AX? What kind of sounds are you looking for?

[Novosibirsk]

Originally Posted by bizness80

I dont see how the AX-60 doesnt sit in a mix well unless you are abusing the filter (which is easy to do actually) or using a lot of unison. Its quite nice for effects, percussive sounds and arpeggios/sequences in particular.

I havent used a Six Track but listening to its basic sound on demos and seeing its interface (or lack thereof) I dont see how it would be a marked improvement over the AX-60.

What exactly is it that you find lacking in the AX? What kind of sounds are you looking for?

Thanks for the responses all. The AX is now gone. The sad thing is (as is always the case when synths are sold/traded in my life) is that I finally was able to coax some great sounds out of it the last two days before I let it go. I was hoping to find some usable pads from the AX, which is obviously not its forte, but I was able to get some weird and unique tones that I never expected. For me, the AX was great for aggressive bass parts.

But I don't think I have any regrets. The Six Trak is a breeze to program, and I just like its basic tone a little more. It's definitely a little rounder in tone (warmer?), which I like, but maybe I'm confused, since everyone mentions that they share the same chips?

[djugel]

The Six Trak has a better basic tone for sure. But I find the AX-60 much more interesting and is the one I kept.

I've found that the only American synth I like is the Micromoog.

Japan does it better IMO.
btw - the AX-60 is amazing at pads.. . static and evolving..

[criminallysmooth]

SCI Six Trak uses CEM 3394 voice chips... the same voice chips as the Akai AX60. The Six Trak has portamento and a sequencer, and better MIDI implementation, over the AX60.

[Barfunkel]

Originally Posted by bluegreengold

I haven't used the ax60, but the VX90 I have can sound fantastic. It just doesn't do wet squishy sounds.

Do you have any tips for the VX90? I think I'm selling mine... I like some sounds it can produce but I don't think I like them enough for me to keep it.

[bluegreengold]

The thing about the VX90 is that it does have a very particular sound character. It is not so useful for emulating a Roland or oberheim, but if you play to it's strengths you can make real VCO analog poly synth patches that pretty much nothing else can do.

Use it for it's unique strengths. For me that's typical but hard edged poly arpeggios, basses, VCO mod filter tricks, computeroid sound effects. Try and find a s612 or s700 (pairing with a s950 is also possible, and perhaps it's easier to find one of those, but somehow that combo lacks the charm of the other two). Use outboard effects, the chorus is weak.

I'll make a simple demo running through my patches dry and post it soon.

For the price they typically sell them for, I can't imagine why it would be worth losing such a unique rack mount poly analog.

The only complaint I hear is that it is not all sweet spot, and has an sound people 'don't like.' But to me that's a bit of a rigid perspective.