Is Alan R Pearlman still alive???

[Slickie]

With Tom Oberheim coming out with the new SEM (which Im about to pull the trigger on) ARP is the only company of that era left really to jump aboard and come out with the ARP 2600 rev2 with MIDI... But Mr Pearlman seems to be the most mysterious of the figures...anyone know if he is even still alive??

[schmidtc]

Yes, Alan is alive and well. He lives here in Boston, and is sick of people asking him to make a new synth.

[cornutt]

Yes, Alan is alive and well. He lives here in Boston, and is sick of people asking him to make a new synth.

IIRC, he did consult with G-Force on TimewARP.

[plikestechno]

If you read the article in "Vintage Synthesizers" about ARP you'd know for a thousand different reasons why there'd never be new ARP products. They had a lot of geniuses there but geniuses rarely make good businessmen. It couldn't have possibly been more of a clusterf*** as a company. The article is a good read. The book is a good read.

Also, hypothetically, I doubt that a new 2600 would be any cheaper than a used Macbeth M5R or the 2600s decent current used rates of $4000-$5000 dollars. I wouldn't pay more than 4k (or really 3) for one. So just buy an old one when you see a deal and a Kenton and merry christmas to you.

[Primal Drive]

Just out of curiosity, I wonder how Alan Pearlman would feel about a 2600 clone, or odyssey for that matter (I'm sure everyones familiar with the Octave Cat debacle) or if there would even be a market for such a synth. I read somewhere online where somebody said they could build one for around $2K (I seriously doubt that).

Also, even if Mr. (Dr?) Pearlman were to allow some of his original schematics, of which went through various design changes, to be used I'm sure the clone wouldn't sound as good using modern components.

Still, would anyone be interested in buying a modern clone, despite it sounding nowhere like the original?

[Stab Frenzy]

Also, even if Mr. (Dr?) Pearlman were to allow some of his original schematics, of which went through various design changes, to be used I'm sure the clone wouldn't sound as good using modern components.

Yeah, cause in the 70's they made components out of crushed fairy's wings and puppy dog tails and they're not allowed to do that any more so things have to sound different.

The ARP filter has been cloned in the STG post-lawsuit filter, why don't you buy that and but it into a modular system if that's the sound you're after?

[Hybrid88]

Regarding the compnent thing, I think it has more to do with the individual tolerances and values being "not quite perfect" that makes the vintage drift/tone. The accuracy of components has intentionally been vastly improved since the 70's so I reckon thats where the main differences are - but it'd be cool if they did use crushed fairy wings in a synth

Yes the article in Vintage Synthesisers is a very good read if you want to know more about Arp's history, I can certainly see why Alan R. Pearlman does not want to get into this again but I think these days things would be far more forgiving for him if he were to start up Arp again. There's a much larger target market, people will happily pay extra for boutique quality analog gear and judging from DSI/Tom Oberheim, he wouldn't have to start big, look at the Mopho and SEM 8)


Oh, and how old is Alan these days?, no offence intended but he looked in his 50's in the 1970's pics in the Vintage Synthesisers book, probably wasn't tho. I know Ikutaro Kakehashi is getting on a bit but he's still rockin it out at Roland, much kudos to him, an industry legend

[Primal Drive]

Also, even if Mr. (Dr?) Pearlman were to allow some of his original schematics, of which went through various design changes, to be used I'm sure the clone wouldn't sound as good using modern components.

Yeah, cause in the 70's they made components out of crushed fairy's wings and puppy dog tails and they're not allowed to do that any more so things have to sound different.

Absolutely! Germanium transistors are, to this day, the main component in modern circuitry! It's unfortunate that the germanium fairy population has been drive to near extinction by greedy industrial types. Those bastards!

The ARP filter has been cloned in the STG post-lawsuit filter, why don't you buy that and but it into a modular system if that's the sound you're after?

I never said I was interested in building any clone synths. I was just curious if anyone would be interested in buying one.

However, I'm sure you'll feel better after you take your high blood pressure medication.

[Stab Frenzy]

Germanium transistors and diodes are still available, I built a Germanium clipping stage into the first x0xb0x I made using brand new off-the-shelf parts available from a main street electronics store. Chandler and EH both make Germanium transistor based stuff which you can buy new. It costs more, but there's no reason you can't use them.

I have no idea why people think it's impossible to make stuff sound the same as stuff from the 70's. Macbeth, synth.com, Tom Oberheim and most of the other modular producers are proof of that. The sound of a circuit has more to do with the way the circuit is laid out on the board and the thickness of the traces than whether they use 1% SMD resistors or 5% through-hole ones. With the tools and components we have available now we're able to take a lot of shortcuts to make things smaller and cheaper to produce, as long as we don't mind them sounding a bit different. That doesn't mean things can't still be done the old way.

If everybody would calm down on the repeating of things they have no idea about but read on the internet the world would have a lot less misinformation.

[Primal Drive]

If everybody would calm down on the repeating of things they have no idea about but read on the internet the world would have a lot less misinformation.

Forgive my flippant attitude in my post above, but I totally agree with what you just posted.

However, I'm sure that there would be changes to any modern adaptations to any original circuits that would produce a noticeable difference in sound. Honestly, would any manufacturer use a 714 opamp in their circuits in this day and age?

Also, DIY projects are one thing, but when it comes to mass producing a product (albeit a boutique one) I'm sure that the designer/builder would opt for easily obtainable (read cost effective) components over rare or near obsolete ones.

Regardless, my original post was simply a question if anyone would be interested in buying a clone of a 2600 that didn't sound exactly like any of the originals.

[Ashe37]

However, I'm sure that there would be changes to any modern adaptations to any original circuits that would produce a noticeable difference in sound. Honestly, would any manufacturer use a 714 opamp in their circuits in this day and age?

Also, DIY projects are one thing, but when it comes to mass producing a product (albeit a boutique one) I'm sure that the designer/builder would opt for easily obtainable (read cost effective) components over rare or near obsolete ones.

Another problem would be that you'd need to find RoHS compliant versions of these rare and/or ner obsolete components...

[Slickie]

Regardless, my original post was simply a question if anyone would be interested in buying a clone of a 2600 that didn't sound exactly like any of the originals.

well I dont know...perhaps not enough to make the builder enough profit..but anyhoo..I didnt mean to start a shitting war on components producing EXACT sound...my question was poised more from a perspective as ARPs peers of the day - Moog, Smith and now Oberheim have all begun manufacturing boutique synths while at least looking at their past synths - was just wondering about ARP...he seems to, between all of them, had the least input within the industry since ARP's end...perhaps its his age...just interesting i suppose.

[Hybrid88]

The sound of a circuit has more to do with the way the circuit is laid out on the board and the thickness of the traces than whether they use 1% SMD resistors or 5% through-hole ones.

I very highly doubt that the thickness of the traces will have more effect on the sound/VCO drift than varying component values, please expand on your reasons for saying this. And I read more about electronics and synths in my trusty books than what random people say on the net thanks

Oh, for the record I don't think new synths can't be made like old analogs either.

[madtheory]

If everybody would calm down on the repeating of things they have no idea about but read on the internet the world would have a lot less misinformation.

Amen to that! Of course, someone followed up this point with some misinformation about trace width, and someone else more misinformation about lead content in through hole components... some people, eh?

A circuit is a synergy. A good designer takes tolerances, board layout, trace thickness and THOUSANDS of other issues into account. It's not possible to say that it's one thing or another that makes it sound good. Certainly, some issues have more influence than others, but it's a SYNERGY. I think Bob Moog used to call it "smarts" when he was admiring Leon Theremin's work.

[cornutt]

Just out of curiosity, I wonder how Alan Pearlman would feel about a 2600 clone, or odyssey for that matter

These days, I doubt that he'd care much one way or the other. He hasn't had much to do with the music business since ARP folded. BTW, if you go back and re-read that history on ARP from Vintage Synthesizers, you'll see that in regard to running the business, it was Alan who had the right idea more often than not, and it was the business people (in league with a couple of rogue engineers, e.g., David Friend) who steered the company down the primrose path. If Alan had had his way, they would not have spent $4M on the Avatar, and the Chroma might have been released in time to seriously compete with the Prophet-5.

As for his age, I believe he's in his 80s now.