#101

Thanks for the answer. I’ve been very intrigued by the architecture it has, but it helps a great deal to hear your enthusiasm for it. By chance, do you have the CV/gate model and (if so) do you ever use it?

#102

Software polys?

Dexed as I mentioned above is a fantastic recreation of the dx7. I would dare anyone to try a blind sound comparison. It also can use dx7 sysex patches and create them if you want to fire them into your hard ware synth.

As a lover of 80s vibes I can’t get enough of sylenth1 and katsihiro chiba’s classic synth max for live devices. (I _think_they are all poly).
https://www.ableton.com/en/packs/classic-synths/

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#103

I’ve read a lot of discussion around it’s shortfalls but I’m listening to a lot of ob6 demo’s and feeling like that’s the sound I’ve always wanted out of a poly, I’ve never found that before. But, it’s expensive and a fairly big bit of hardware for my tiny studio. I’m not anti software but haven’t found any demo’s that come anywhere close to that magic (subjective obviously) sound, yet. I’ve been listening mainly to Arturia stuff. I’m going for the prettier stuff btw, I’ve got crazy/ aggressive covered elsewhere. Would probably prefer some soft synth at this point due to the reasons above, so any suggestions for getting close to that oberheim sem beautiful sound? (Or should I just start selling my stuff and making some space)

#104

re: soft synths, i tend to shy away from them nowadays due to the issues that arise each time i upgrade os/daw. one i keep coming back to is gforce imposcar, love it to the point of being tempted to get a real one but worried about maintaining it. so i’ve been also trying to find a touch digital controller for it (a dedicated controller that was produced only for a very limited time - if anybody has one for sale please let me know!).

but that goes back to my concern it’ll stop working one day. it just occurred to me that perhaps a solution to this would be running it on raspberry pie - has anybody tried using one as a dedicated VST box?

#105

People really like the DX-7? Because of the digital artifacts, or in spite of them? I found the DX-7 II to be decent sounding, and leaps better than the original. I know the II had 16 bit dacs instead of 12, and perhaps they upped the sample rate. I would think that the software versions don’t tend to emulate the “classic mid 80’s” sound of 12 bit + aliasing?

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#106

I’m planning on doing the Gligli update on my SCI Prophet 600. Supposedly it really transforms the synth. On the off chance that anyone else has done this, do you have any technical tips?

#107

So I updated my Prophet 600 with the Gligli update and, wow! It really is like a new synth. Really lush and classy sounding, far more impressive than I was expecting! It no longer has that murky vibe of the P600 and is much more in the Prophet 5 spectrum. The soldering to modify the Teensy 2.0 ++ board was a bit fiddly but still manageable for a beginner like me.

Highly recommended for anyone with a Prophet 600!

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#108

if you have not, go for the dx7. there is nothing like its family and it is so good sounding and fun. best programmed naked with candles.

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#109

i have one in storage. it has the soft case carry bag.
come visit portland and bring it back with you.

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#110

Interesting, seems inspired by the Virus:


http://www.productpilot.com/en/supplier/exodus-digital-ltd/product/valkyrie/

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#111

I require a minimum of 2560 oscillators; I’ll have to pass on this.

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#112

In all seriousness, in listening to the demos it sounds pretty flexible. Some really nice sounds here and there.

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#114

late to the party but whatever :slight_smile: I find these kind of lists quite useful

Mainstays are hardware: Waldorf XTk & Digitone
Software: U-He Repro-5, Zebra

Ableton Wavetable & Operator are surprisingly good too

Gear lust - one or more DSI synths

I love my seaboard but not found a “go to” MPE Synth just yet - Equator is pretty good but I don’t ‘love’ it. I’ve got the Axoloti pencilled in for that role but not spent much time with it yet

DX7 - had one back in the day & loved it & lost it. Was bloody heavy I remember. For FM the Digitone makes me happier programming wise TBH and like others say there are decent emulations - Dexed has a much nicer user interface too.

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#115

I bought a DX7 last year and I love it. Very heavy, which seems to be mostly from the metal case more than anything. I don’t know about 12-bit DACs or aliasing being heavy considerations, to be quite honest, it just makes really lovely sounds and I wanted a hardware polysynth.

I also have Dexed, and honestly I almost prefer not seeing all that information at once—I haven’t had the patience to get to know it as well. I would echo the complaint about editing the envelope generator values by hand on the DX7 though, it’s a lot of paging. Sometimes I’ll start patches in software, just since I come up with different ideas that way, and then move to the synth when it’s time to fine-tune.

For fun I started putting together my own “8-bit” polysynth in Max, since I’ve been finding I really love that lo-fi, Commodore64-type sound. (“8-bit” in quotes because even though I calculated the wavetables using 8-bit integer math, the rest of Max is in floating point.) That’s been a really fun exercise—how many controls do I give myself? what do I leave out?

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#116

Bought the Digitone two weeks ago. Pretty amazing little box. I already own Digitakt so the workflow feels pretty natural to me. Great sound as well. Lot’s to learn in programming it even though it’s made to be more programmable / focused. Can’t wait to start using it live :slight_smile:

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#117

My Korg 01/Wpro was a workhorse for me Back in the Day - my next full-sized keyboard will likely be a Nord Piano 3.

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#118

I was at the Sequential (formerly Dave Smith Instruments, formerly Sequential Circuits) demo room last week. There’s some intense polyphonic analog synthesizers in there. My favorite is the Prophet 12. It’s not cheap but it’s pretty amazing.

The sequencer in the Pro 2 was also impressive.

I got some cool shot glasses too, lol

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#119

The DX7 is a gloriously raw sound. The DX7-II, while nicer in several ways and less aliased, is more tame sounding to my ears. Plus I really like the DX7 physical keys. I have the expansion card that gives it microtonal scales, which is pretty nuts.

If you’re looking for a lusher sort of FM sound the SY77 / SY99 / TG77 is well worth tracking down.

#120

When I was in Chicago last month I got to try out a few polys that I hadn’t played before. Bear in mind that these are reactions from a pretty brief (<10 mins each) noodling around:

  • Korg Prologue - highly streamlined front panel, quick to get the hang of, seems to not have as much in the way of modulation potential as other modern polys, though that might not be a bad thing. Sounded pretty good, but didn’t blow me away. I was hoping the compressor would have more personality, but admittedly didn’t mess with it too much. I really like the mini oscilloscope in the newer Korg synths.
  • DSI/Sequential Prophet X - seems insanely powerful, but I just couldn’t click with it for whatever reason. The separate little screen for the sample engine makes it feel sorta kludgy to me, even though I admire what they’re trying to do with digital/analog hybridization. There is something nice about trying and not wanting an insanely expensive device, haha.
  • DSI/Sequential OB-6 - maybe my favorite polysynth I’ve played! “limited” in many ways compared to either of the others (especially the X) but sounded so good, basically all “sweet spot” for my tastes. I have a DSI Mopho X4 that I like, but the OB-6 has a special personality for sure. I definitely expected to like the Prophet X more, and it’s possible that I would with more time, but the OB just felt more ‘musical’ and natural to play with.
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#121

every time i see this thread all i can think of is dx7. (i know i already posted about it but i have to do so again). :sunglasses:

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