Your 5 "wow" synths of all time?

CharlesFerraro · Post by **CharlesFerraro** » Wed Apr 17, 2013 6:27 pm

What do you think are the five coolest keyboard or rack synthesizers ever? The rare, the strange, the cheap&dirty... Every now and then I happen to find out about a model that just blows me away for some reason or another. Right when I think I've heard about every kind of synth something will jump out of the woodwork and surprise me in the best way. Here's a list of five synths in that induced a "wow" factor in me.

5 - Access Virus TI2 Whiteout Edition: When I first started learning about the Virus and its ridiculous voice count, Access decided to drop the special 150 unit Whiteout. I was smitten http://virus.info/_media/images/Picture ... 00x479.png

4 - Roland V-Synth GT: I thought I had heard about every vocal processing effect possible, and then Vocal Designer happened.

3 - Elka Synthex: I was never really into vintage analog but something about the laser harps and deep chorus effect on the Synthex just do it for me. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EmNBrIt_CE

2 - Yamaha FS1R: Cleaner and boasting more polyphony than an Elektron Monomachine, I think Yamaha mastered Formant Synthesis with this rack.

1 - Hartmann Neuron: My most recent WTF discovery. Resampling oscillators with integrated surround sound output? Integra-7 eat your heart out.

What synths have made your jaw drop? The Prophet 12? The Schmidt Analog Synthesizer? OMG-1? How about the Radikal Accelerator or maybe some obscure never-heard-of back o' the bargain bin synth? Post your top five moments of awe, I'm very interested in discovering what else might be out there!

Bald Eagle · Post by **Bald Eagle** » Wed Apr 17, 2013 8:01 pm

Eigenharp Alpha - Unique. I want one although I have no idea how to play it.

Prophet 12 - Cool, new and I can afford one.

Laser Harp - Great for show and fun to play.

Moog Minimoog - The one and only.

Korg Monotron Duo & Delay - When you have no power after a hurricane you discover what these inexpensive toys can do.

Post by **Sharp** » Thu Apr 18, 2013 12:16 am

Roland D-50
The factory sounds are cheesy has hell, but MY GOD what you can program into this beast is amazing.

KORG OASYS (1994 edition)
That bad boy was so freaking far ahead of it's time that not only did it cost something like 30K, only a few were made, and none were released to the public to buy.

Yamaha VL1.
What can I say. It's probably one of the best synths Yamaha ever made. At the time I remember thinking that this was going to be the future of sound. Little did I know Yamaha would totally give up and milk AWM2 to death.

Alesis Andromeda A6.
It's a total slut. Bad ass to the core. Makes a Virus sound like a CASIO.

Kawai K5000S
Super flexible and able to produce the most amazing sounds when programmed. A rather unique machine.

Post by **mikemolloyuk** » Thu Apr 18, 2013 8:09 am

1: Korg M1 (was the greatest for its time)

2: Korg OASYS

3: Access Virus B (or A as its someimes referred, original one)

4: Yamaha FS1 /R

5: Yamaha DX7

I could put a few more in this list of great synths I have used or owned in my time. CS1x or CS2x (I owned the 1x) - Korg MS-20 - Triton Studio.. This was a tough one to say what are the top 5.

magikroom · Post by **magikroom** » Thu Apr 18, 2013 8:14 am

This is only based upon what I have owned

5. Yamaha EX5

4. Roland JX-10

3. Access Virus Ti Polar

2. Korg M3

1. Roland V-Synth

CharlesFerraro · Post by **CharlesFerraro** » Thu Apr 18, 2013 9:03 am

@Bald Eagle: That Eigenharp is crazy! It's a midi controller right? Or does it have a synthesis engine inside it like say, a Roland AX-Synth? I did see a vid where they mentioned timestretching...

@Sharp: I had NO idea the OASYS dated back to '94. I was only seven and wouldn't touch my first synth for another fifteen years!! How the heck did Korg manage to put a processor in a machine back then that outclasses my modern laptop? I guess that price tag says a lot.
I looked in to the VL1 and it sounds phenomenal. Korg does physical modeled strings and THAT synth does physical model everythings. I think after a real breakthrough like that occurs a company either thinks there is nothing left to improve or maybe the talent behind it moves on to other projects. Korg is smart in the sense that they manage to repackage or bounce their technology to newer models with slight differences. Yamaha should've suckled that lucrative teat dry.

@mikemolloyuk: I'm very much looking forward to the Korg M01 download release on DS. I'm thankful that Korg releases soft versions of their classics like the 20, polysix or wavestation. Let's me discover the roots. Nice to see someone else know of the beauty that is the FS1R. A unit which arguably outclasses the coveted DX7.

@magikroom: Oh man now that EX5 is a gem I didn't know about.
The look and description of the JX-10 very much reminds me of Korg's own DSS-1 which was released a year after.

I'm really surprised to see so much Yamaha between the lists. I don't necessarily think of them as an innovative company but their history truly is rich. With all the amazing pieces of gear out in the world though, I gotta say I'm still very happy with my current RADIAS and M3. Still if I could go back, I probably would have purchased an older keyboard for my first pro-audio outboard gadget. Seems like the power behind a lot of these machines never faded but was simply forgotten.

Bald Eagle · Post by **Bald Eagle** » Thu Apr 18, 2013 11:27 am

CharlesFerraro wrote:@Bald Eagle: That Eigenharp is crazy! It's a midi controller right? Or does it have a synthesis engine inside it like say, a Roland AX-Synth? I did see a vid where they mentioned timestretching...

The Eigenharp consists of the controller part, a base station that's a bridge between the controller and a PC/Mac and software. The controller and base station does not generate any sound as far as I know, that's all done with their software. I also believe that you can also use it as a controller with a DAW or external sound module but I'm not sure about that.

Post by **Sharp** » Thu Apr 18, 2013 11:42 am

Bald Eagle wrote:Laser Harp - Great for show and fun to play.

One of the guys in the M3 section here has one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PL_AyNAuPRQ

Very Cool...!!!!

Regards
Sharp.

Bald Eagle · Post by **Bald Eagle** » Thu Apr 18, 2013 12:17 pm

Sharp wrote:
Bald Eagle wrote:Laser Harp - Great for show and fun to play.
One of the guys in the M3 section here has one.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PL_AyNAuPRQ

Very Cool...!!!!

Regards
Sharp.

Nice performance ... Thanks for posting that link.

Kontrol49 · Post by **Kontrol49** » Thu Apr 18, 2013 2:24 pm

There are so many great and inspirational synths I've used over the years,some that I have regretted selling and some not so but were glad i had the chance to own and use,couldn't really dwindle down to an all time top five,but based on what I find inspirational and use avidly now,this is perhaps my current faves out my current setup.

1.DSI PolyEvolver-

2.Clavia Nord Stage 2-

3.Korg Oasys-

4.Clavia Nord Lead MK1-

5.Roland Jupiter 80-

magikroom · Post by **magikroom** » Thu Apr 18, 2013 4:34 pm

@Charles

The Yamaha EX5 was an amazing Synth, they tried lots of different synthesis, but was a little too underpowered. Has a great action and 76 note as well, that's one synth I regret selling. I used the Arp sound and the bassline pattern from it in the following track:

https://soundcloud.com/magikroom/magikroom-disturbed

The JX-10 is warmer than a hot sunny day, even with DCO's it sounds amazing without any FX on it...a good sign. Had a JX3P and JX8P, which the JX-10 is essentially 2 JX8P's. Midi implementation was crap on it, but I got a reprogrammed EPROM so it can respond to Sysex over midi, which I control via Logic. Not great for fast attack, but pads, it's my go to synth...and it's cheap as well!

ravenmek · Post by **ravenmek** » Thu Apr 18, 2013 11:17 pm

1: DSI PolyEvolver: I loved it. The first time I saw it and heard it, I was sold on it.

2: PPG Wave 2.3: My favorite synth ever.

3: Roland V-synth: The only one I have on this list

4: JB Solaris: I want to try that! It has to be so good!

5: Alesis Andromeda: Lovely analog synth.

wan · Post by **wan** » Fri Apr 19, 2013 9:25 am

I can only name synths i've actually played:

1) Clavia Nord modular G2X - this is still the best synth i've ever had, only synth i use live, it can do it all, lightweight, modular:) - it's amazing how malleable this synth is. If you know the patches of Tim Kleinert, he has really nailed all synthesis methods on the G2.

2) Yamaha DX-7 - Affordable 16-voice velocity sensitive, at that time a dream come true, now a bit dated:)

3) Roland Jupiter-4 - The first polysynth i could afford

4) Ensoniq EPS - but this is a sampler! For me it was the best thing i could get at that time and it delivered, has the best OS i've encountered on any synth.

5) Korg Kronos - as it encapsulate all the synths Korg has made very well, i could have included the Wavestation, i am very fond of that machine, still got a SR in my rack, but the Kronos does outclass it now

Saxifraga · Post by **Saxifraga** » Fri Apr 19, 2013 4:42 pm

- Roland JP 8000 / Klopfgeister trance would be impossible without that.
- Kawai K5000 S / best additive synth ever; still in use; formant filter and morphing are spectacular. Needs external editor to tweak the sounds in a meaningful way. Would have been nice if an A/D unit and FFT was on board to capture a spectrum via microfone as a basis for OSC ADD spectrum.
- Alesis Micron / so small and jet full of features; high build quality
- Alesis Andromeda / What can I say? 16 x analog power for the price of one Voyager .
- K4r because it was my first and with that EMC Atari editor it was perfectly editable.

X-Trade · Post by **X-Trade** » Fri Apr 19, 2013 6:00 pm

1. The OASYS. I wanted one of these for years! So glad I finally bought the Kronos although it has been a little frustrating to program at times.
2. Radias. Similarly it's just such a powerful synth. I was so happy when I bought it and I have used it almost exclusively for a lot of my recordings in the 5 years since.
3. Arturia Origin. I still REALLY want to get one of these. There aren't enough synths around at the moment with this kind of modularity and flexibility. I know they are worlds apart but at one point it was a choice for me between this and the Kronos.
4. Roland VK-8. I know it's not strictly a 'synth' but it is the best modern organ sound I have heard and played. Some innovative features like the d-beam make it really fun to play too
5. Kawai K5000. It looks awesome. It sounds awesome. Additive synthesis is so powerful and there aren't many that implement it well before or since.

EDIT:
Can I have a 6. ?
The Arp Omni has a very distinctive chorus sound. I'm just in love with the whole vintage string synth thing and I think this one is my favourite because it sounds the least like an actual sawtooth wave with a chorus. It seems to stay focused yet wobbly modulated at the same time and it's just beautiful with a bit of tape delar or reverb..
University had one but it was a bit beat up and played an A-flat along with every other note you hit..

Korg Forums

Your 5 "wow" synths of all time?

Your 5 "wow" synths of all time?

My Top 5

Top Synths