Chopping up the classics

GuyaGuy · Post by **GuyaGuy** » Tue Mar 20, 2012 5:42 am

I was reading about Studio Electonics and this SOS article describes how they started by rippin out the guts of classics like the Prophet 5 and putting them into a rack format: http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/1994_ar ... 4/se1.html (Funny to think that this SOS article is almost intake itself!)

Was that a popular trend at the time or was it just SE doing it? Has anyone had one or even seen of those racked classics?

Not saying I approve of the practice..Just curious.

GuyaGuy · Post by **GuyaGuy** » Tue Mar 20, 2012 5:45 am

Here's a photo of a P-Five from SE.
http://pics.studiorepair.com/Studio_Ele ... 43226.html

And ooh! they added MIDI!
http://m.matrixsynth.com/2010/10/studio ... ntial.html

pflosi · Post by **pflosi** » Tue Mar 20, 2012 7:51 pm

Never seen one of those in real life though...

Post by **meatballfulton** » Tue Mar 20, 2012 11:11 pm

SE was the only mfr who did it as a regular service (you sent them your synth or they could locate one for you). Eventually they ran out of Minis to chop and started building their own, the MIDIMini which evolved into today's SE1X.

It wasn't unheard of to retrofit analogs for MIDI in the 90s, Kenton sold kits for many instruments. I never bothered because the Kenton kit for my Odyssey cost more than the Oddy was worth

GuyaGuy · Post by **GuyaGuy** » Wed Mar 21, 2012 12:20 am

pflosi wrote:

Never seen one of those in real life though...

Rack 808? Hardly seems necessary.

I wouldn't necessarily. Hop up my Prophet 600 but I wouldn't say no to a rack version if I saw it, just because the keys are a bit dodgy.

GuyaGuy · Post by **GuyaGuy** » Wed Mar 21, 2012 12:23 am

meatballfulton wrote:SE was the only mfr who did it as a regular service (you sent them your synth or they could locate one for you). Eventually they ran out of Minis to chop and started building their own, the MIDIMini which evolved into today's SE1X.

It wasn't unheard of to retrofit analogs for MIDI in the 90s, Kenton sold kits for many instruments. I never bothered because the Kenton kit for my Odyssey cost more than the Oddy was worth

An OK I didn't know if it was more common or not. But yeah I have a hard time paying for upgrades that are as much or more as the instrument--even if I got a super deal on the instrument.

drawtippy · Post by **drawtippy** » Wed Mar 21, 2012 3:23 pm

Whenever I think of "chopped classics" I think of this video for "Love is Alive" by Gary Wright.

Wait what's that in the opening shot? A white Mini Moog keyboard chopped off the main board and being played like a keytar?

But who is that playing it? Yeah, Steve Porcaro from Toto.

Let's do a close up of a cowbell and then a shot of Gary.

Oh snap, he's playing a white chopped mini too.

PS-- the bass line to this song is amazing!

Post by **meatballfulton** » Wed Mar 21, 2012 5:37 pm

The frigging 70s....Gary what were ya thinking?

Just two years before you were still rocking the old Hammond...

A cool concept though, nothing but keyboards and drums.

Z · Post by Z » Wed Mar 21, 2012 7:49 pm

I see pflosi beat me to posting my scan of SE's magazine ad.

GuyaGuy wrote:
Rack 808? Hardly seems necessary.

The 808 rack was called the Harvey 808 which also included a MIDI retrofit. Here's a website with photos of one opened: http://pics.studiorepair.com/Studio_Ele ... 51617.html

SE also made an Obie Eight: http://www.studioelectronics.com/images ... eight.html

HEre's a scan from Keyboard magazine of Alan Wilder with SE MiniMoog & SEMs in the background:

Syn303 · Post by **Syn303** » Wed Mar 21, 2012 11:19 pm

pflosi wrote:Never seen one of those in real life though...

Here's the Harvey 808 for you to look at.

tim gueguen · Post by **tim gueguen** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 3:18 pm

Wright chopped those keyboards because there really wasn't any option then if you wanted a remote keyboard for your synth. I think Jan Hammer may have been the first musician to have a purpose built remote.

Rackmounting older synths fit in with the trend of the late '80s to stick everything in a rack. This was also the era when a lot of rock guitarists jumped on the rackmounted gear wagon and had elaborate rack setups, often inlcluding rackmount amps.

pflosi · Post by **pflosi** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 5:06 pm

Z wrote:I see pflosi beat me to posting my scan of SE's magazine ad.

Ah, sorry for the copyright infringement

didn't remember that I had this from you. Thanks

GuyaGuy · Post by **GuyaGuy** » Thu Mar 22, 2012 6:05 pm

tim gueguen wrote:Wright chopped those keyboards because there really wasn't any option then if you wanted a remote keyboard for your synth. I think Jan Hammer may have been the first musician to have a purpose built remote.

Rackmounting older synths fit in with the trend of the late '80s to stick everything in a rack. This was also the era when a lot of rock guitarists jumped on the rackmounted gear wagon and had elaborate rack setups, often inlcluding rackmount amps.

Yeah the guitarist rack trend is what came to my mind too.

Those keyboards could have been modded for MIDI or CV in instead of racked up, but racking them does help save on space I guess.

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