The Synth Thread...

All instruments that aren't guitars (or bass guitars).
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mackerelmint
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Re: The Synth Thread...

Post by mackerelmint » Fri Aug 03, 2018 2:20 pm

Well, that's good to know.
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oid
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Re: The Synth Thread...

Post by oid » Fri Aug 03, 2018 2:55 pm

I suppose I can legally give them away since I am going delete them. So they are up for grabs to the denizens of the Synth Thread, first to message me gets them.

Edit: that was quick, they are taken.
Last edited by oid on Fri Aug 03, 2018 3:30 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Logic gates based on billiard-ball computer designs have also been made to operate using live soldier crabs of the species Mictyris guinotae in place of the billiard balls.

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Re: The Synth Thread...

Post by mackerelmint » Fri Aug 03, 2018 3:20 pm

PEE EMMED. :w00t:

Dude, I love Don Solaris's soundsets so hard.
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Re: The Synth Thread...

Post by PJazzmaster » Sat Aug 04, 2018 2:04 pm

DesmondWafers wrote:
Tue Jul 31, 2018 10:35 pm
Image
this is perfect for me. No digital menu, no presets and sounds HUGE. Already a pretty dirty sounding synth, the clangy spring reverb complements it so well. Modularity is new to me, but that makes it all the more exciting. And perhaps most importantly, it's named grandmother.
↑↑↑
This, all ! (no, I do not have one but got the chance to try one; ---> totally agree to all your arguments) :freako:

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Re: The Synth Thread...

Post by oid » Sat Aug 04, 2018 3:35 pm

The Blofeld is turning out to be a fantastic synth and quite fun. The nice big screen is poorly utilized though, filled mostly with eye candy instead of useful information. The modulation matrix has its modifiers after all of the mod slots instead of after the applicable mod slot, so if you are editing mod1 and you want to give it a modifier you must scroll through 32 pages to get there. It is not to bad though, main knob works reliably and smoothly, I suspect after a little more time I will be able to flip to the needed page without effort. Beyond those two issues and the previously mentioned FM quirk I find it well thought out and a powerful little synth. It sounds very much like a Waldorf but quite different than the MicroWave and Q it borrows from and has a very enjoyable interface that only took a few minutes to settle into, although it is reversed from the Micron's. After a couple of years with the Micron being my only synth my hands have become very accustomed to it and I am finding myself occasionally reaching for knobs in places were they are not or editing it with my hands crossed, right hand on the main encoder and left on the matrix.

Think the Micron may beat it out on all fronts other than interface though, it is considerably more powerful, curious to see how my views change as I get to know the Blofeld. They overlap each other a little more than I would like but they are both unique enough to differentiate themselves, their voices seem to compliment each other quite well.

I have been trying hard to avoid building another synth collection, but I really want more.
Logic gates based on billiard-ball computer designs have also been made to operate using live soldier crabs of the species Mictyris guinotae in place of the billiard balls.

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Re: The Synth Thread...

Post by mackerelmint » Sat Aug 04, 2018 4:01 pm

Hehehe.

Yeah, Blofelds are great. They really do sound and feel Waldorf without being any of their other synths. Honestly I like the way they sound much better than the Q. And they've been around long enough at this point that they have the bugs worked out. They used to really be glitchy.

I tried the Largo, and it's got the sound, but good lord it's a pain to program. Not that it's poorly laid out, they just tried too hard to make it visually interesting and it ended up being a mess. I hated it.
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Re: The Synth Thread...

Post by oid » Sat Aug 04, 2018 4:27 pm

The Q was just kinda blah sounding, they made the mistake of trying to follow the market and released a VA instead of just being Waldorf.

I am really liking these AD2S2R envelopes, you can use them as a delayed ADSR by turning the attack level to zero, the attack rate becomes the delay time with D1 being the new attack. The attack response ends up being backward, which is fine on quick attacks, can be odd sounding for longer settings, but you can always change the response by modulating the the D1 rate with another envelope.

So far no Saturday errands or chores successfully completed or even started, but many hours of synth fun.
Logic gates based on billiard-ball computer designs have also been made to operate using live soldier crabs of the species Mictyris guinotae in place of the billiard balls.

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Re: The Synth Thread...

Post by Zork » Wed Sep 12, 2018 11:39 am

I had the Blofeld for some time now but will eventually sell it. Here's why: I just got a Moog Sub37 few weeks earlier and thought the Blofeld would be a good polyphonic companion. Turns out I just don't use polyphonic synths sounds that much and for the few occasions I might as well use my old Microkorg. I already know the Microkorg by heart forwards and backwards and still like its sound a lot, so it's just very natural for me to use it. And to be honest, if I have a new Sub37 and another new synth to explore, it's at least to me very clear with which one I choose to spend more time with.

Also the sounds I programed in the Blofeld weren't actual synthesizer sounds, but more emulations of other instruments, mainly Mellotrons, organs, even more Mellotron, pianos and did I mention Mellotrons? So, next step is to sell the blofeld and wait until the Mellotron Micro appears on the used market because that will provide the sounds I really want beside my Moog. And for the rest I have my Microkorg.

That doesn't mean the Blofeld is a bad or boring synthesizer. Quite the contrary, it is absolutely mindblowing awesome and one of the best you can get, especially for the money. I just don't need it. I hope one of my bandmembers buys it because it can do very interesting and complex and just very good sounds.

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Re: The Synth Thread...

Post by Fuzzbuzz » Wed Sep 12, 2018 12:50 pm

I’ve been having a lot of fun with my Grandmother the last few days. It’s nice getting back to basics and using my imagination to explore sounds with this thing! The possibilities are endless it seems. Loving the onboard spring reverb. Just a fun synth.Image

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Re: The Synth Thread...

Post by Zork » Sun Sep 16, 2018 12:07 pm

I'm wondering: why is it that in 2018 it's still only one (according to the internet) stand alone hardware device from the mid 90s that can deliver some old school organs, pianos and other keys like mellotrons in a compact format and decent sound quality? It still comes down to the E-Mu Vintage Keys. And while it's actually pretty good I still wonder why there isn't another device around with a better sound, more convenient programming and a smaller form factor for this purpose. Does not everyone look for all these classic sounds? There must be a market, right? ???

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Re: The Synth Thread...

Post by mackerelmint » Sun Sep 16, 2018 4:01 pm

There is, but the cycle of old equipment becoming desirable again just hasn't caught up to the vintage keys yet. Buy 'em up now and give it a couple years, they'll start appreciating in value.
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Re: The Synth Thread...

Post by oid » Sun Sep 16, 2018 5:44 pm

Zork wrote:
Sun Sep 16, 2018 12:07 pm
Does not everyone look for all these classic sounds? There must be a market, right? ???
I think the Nord Electro and Stage has that market more or less cornered right now.

But there was a good number of such boxes around the turn of the century, everyone had an organ/electric piano on the market, the Hammond name was resurrected, mellotron came back, it was everywhere. Then Nord came along and one upped them all.

But Vintage Keys will become a hot thing again, eventually someone is going to write a hit with one and everyone will be out to copy that sound.
Logic gates based on billiard-ball computer designs have also been made to operate using live soldier crabs of the species Mictyris guinotae in place of the billiard balls.

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Re: The Synth Thread...

Post by OffYourFace » Thu Sep 20, 2018 10:05 pm

In 2015 I had the chance to buy a Jupiter 8 for $5k. I thought that was a crazy price.
Three years later, they’re selling for $15k

I guess I’ll never own one.

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Re: The Synth Thread...

Post by Jaguar018 » Wed Sep 26, 2018 6:45 am

OffYourFace wrote:
Thu Sep 20, 2018 10:05 pm
In 2015 I had the chance to buy a Jupiter 8 for $5k. I thought that was a crazy price.
Three years later, they’re selling for $15k

I guess I’ll never own one.
If you can find a time machine for less than 10k you might still be able to make a profit! :w00t:

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Re: The Synth Thread...

Post by StevenO » Wed Sep 26, 2018 6:49 am

A Jupiter 8 sold locally about 6 months ago for 10k. In US money that's like 7k. It was for sale for a loooong time.

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