Looking for small moog type synth....

[elenore19]

I'm constantly looking for new toys to buy and the other day I played an old-school moog synth and I loved it. So it will definitely be one of my near future investments. I'm looking for something that will get a pretty cool sound fairly easily. If that makes sense. Simple but fun.

The kicker...I'm looking for something relatively cheap...under $500 if possible...but just browsing for now, so any suggestions are welcome.

Thanks so much

-Elliot

and by the way...doesn't need to be a moog. Just any small sized synth.

[DavidK]

synths

In that price range there are several. Keep in mind that there are two basic types of synths, emulative (sample based) and abstract (virtual analog). A moog is abstract i.e. it doesnt sound like a piano or trumpet. If thats what you are looking for, then try the Alesis Micron, Ion, or the Novation Synths. I would stay away from the microKorg because of the baby keys, you really need full size keys or else it is literally a toy. The Alesis ones should be a lot of fun.

[altitude909]

There are some DIY kits that would be in that price range

[jpmorris]

You might want to consider the Waldorf Pulse, if you can find one. I'm pretty sure it's out of production, but you could probably pick one up for a song on ebay.

The Pulse is a 2U rackmount unit with the same basic architecture as the Minimoog (3 oscillators and a 24db/Octave filter). No keyboard though, so it has to be MIDI-controlled. It does have 40 patch memories though, and apart from the DCOs the signal path is analogue - most machines of this price range are virtual analogue.

[JB1979]

I've got a Korg MS2000, I've had it for years now, I bet you can find one used for that much. It's really, really flexible, and I bet that if I ever sat down with the manual I'd be able to do really incredible things with it.

CAVEAT: 4-note polyphony.

If you're just looking for something really cheap to do monophonic bweep-bwops and gleep-glorps with as a little flavoring or sound effects, I'd advise a Korg Electribe EA-1. You can play its piano-roll buttons like a keyboard, or use any keyboards with midi-outs as a controller so you can play more than an octave and a half without having to press the "switch-octave" buttons.

When I first got one in 01 I was playing around with it, just twisting the cutoff knob and making it go "BreeeyowwWWW" and then tweaking the delay-time knob for echo insanity, and my friend snidely called it "Pink Floyd in a box".

You can also use it as a sequencer to put together really velveeta house music loops. I've seen these go on eBay for around $100.

[elenore19]

Originally Posted by DavidK

synths

In that price range there are several. Keep in mind that there are two basic types of synths, emulative (sample based) and abstract (virtual analog). A moog is abstract i.e. it doesnt sound like a piano or trumpet. If thats what you are looking for, then try the Alesis Micron, Ion, or the Novation Synths. I would stay away from the microKorg because of the baby keys, you really need full size keys or else it is literally a toy. The Alesis ones should be a lot of fun.

Alright thanks. I really like the Ion and the Novation.

If I were to get this one... http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/XS25/

Would I be getting in over my head? Looks like a lot of gadgets. I don't know too much at all about synths really.

Same question for this one...except this one looks a little more simple...
http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Ion/

Originally Posted by altitude909

There are some DIY kits that would be in that price range

DIY kits?


And as for the other replies. Thanks so much for the help. I'll definitely look into these suggestions!

[DavidK]

Originally Posted by elenore19

If I were to get this one... http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/XS25/

Would I be getting in over my head? Looks like a lot of gadgets. I don't know too much at all about synths really.

Yes and no

They all have (I assume) preset sounds, so that you just press a button and play. The gizmos are for messing with sounds and creating your own. That can be very complicated, but also very fun. You can basically twist knobs and see what happens, you might get some cool sounds strictly by accident. As long as you have preset sounds, you dont have to be a scientist to get good sounds.

[noisewreck]

Why doesn't anyone ever recommend the Roland SH201? Check it out man, really. It sounds fantastic!

[jpmorris]

Originally Posted by DavidK

They all have (I assume) preset sounds, so that you just press a button and play.

That's one of the snags with the Pulse - the presets are dire. It does have a randomiser which can be fun, particularly if you're trying to create late 1970s BBC sound effects a'la "Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy".

Other than that I mostly use it for leads and bass sounds. With a bit of fiddling and some outboard effects you can some nice Rick Wakeman-sounding leads.

[DavidK]

Originally Posted by noisewreck

Why doesn't anyone ever recommend the Roland SH201?

Because it's over $500. With my pocketbook, when I need something under $500, I need something under $500.

[noisewreck]

OK... I'll go beat myself with a cucumber now

I thought it was around $500, but apparently it's about $100. Sorry about

[c7sus]

Originally Posted by DavidK

synths

In that price range there are several. Keep in mind that there are two basic types of synths, emulative (sample based) and abstract (virtual analog). A moog is abstract i.e. it doesnt sound like a piano or trumpet. If thats what you are looking for, then try the Alesis Micron, Ion, or the Novation Synths. I would stay away from the microKorg because of the baby keys, you really need full size keys or else it is literally a toy. The Alesis ones should be a lot of fun.

A Moog IS analog, not virtual analog.

[DavidK]

Originally Posted by c7sus

A Moog IS analog, not virtual analog.

I knew that. I figured that since we are dealing with less than $500, you cant get an analog synth, so it wasnt worth mentioning.

[jpmorris]

Originally Posted by DavidK

I knew that. I figured that since we are dealing with less than $500, you cant get an analog synth, so it wasnt worth mentioning.

Actually, that's the main reason I mentioned the Pulse. It's not as intuitive as a minimoog, but when it was discontinued a couple of years ago it was the cheapest real analog synth in production. (You can also get several of them to chain together to make it polyphonic)

[50cal]

studio electronics ATC..used ebay around 500-600...doesnt get any moogier sounding then that...

[TexRoadkill]

Radio Shack used to make some cool analog synths. I wonder what those are going for these days.

[Todzilla]

Oh yeah?

What about a used MicroMoog. They can be had for $500 or less.

[Somnium7]

Bargain analog, hmmm. You can still get the Realistic MG-1 for a reasonable price. I owned one for a few years and did some mods to it. Functionally and sonically the same as the Moog Rogue (MG-1 was actually built by Moog). Suprisingly good little analog synth.

On Craigslist I often see Yamaha CS-01 synths going for $200-250. I have heard recordings done with this model and once again I was suprised by the big sound it could make.

For dirt cheap analog sound check out some of the mid 80s hybrids. Ensoniq ESQ-1 and M, Kawai K3, Oberheim Matrix 6 and Roland JX-8P are all synths that will give a nice fat analog sound with some parameter tweaking. The hybrids use a digital tone generator fed into analog filters and VCAs. None of these are mch fun to program but it's not hard to figure them out. I know the ESQ-1 has a factory bass patch that makes Moog fans sit up in their seats. I own a K3 which I got for a song and that machine is crazy fat sounding between it's VCF's and the best chorus effect ever found on a synth. Definately worth the whole 100 bucks!

[earthboundrec]

You could always find a Roland Juno on eBay for well under $500. Different than a Moog in sound, but crazy tweakableness, and super easy, fun, and educational if you're new to synthesis.

[semidiablan]

the ms2000b is awesome, it works wonders...i fall deeper in love with it every day.