A New Synthesizer

[04tm34l3]

Dear All,

I'm new here (if I seem totally out of place)(a great forum by the way), and I'm going to try to address my issue with as much respect I can give, while at the same time keeping straight to the point and not sounding like I'm trying to use you people as my b***h . Also you may note that this topic many be very confusing (I'm just trying to say everything while keeping it as short as possible).

I've owned my Ms2000 for the past half year/year or so, and I feel like I've learned A TON about synthesis yet I feel like I want to take another step into, synthesis I guess. So I've gotten some ideas about how to do this, and I've read many reviews about my options, however I often feel that sometimes the reviewer of the synthesizer is too much of a consumer, or too much of a rebel to consumers, so I figured that you all might be able to help me.

Ok so, I guess the biggest issue here is that in a year or too, I'll be off to college (were I will most likely be way to poor to afford a decent synth) so I want to try to get something that will be advanced and rich enough that it can keep my interest in synthesis and programming for the next 6+ years. Anyway, here are some details of my situation.

-I think it would be great to have a nice analog mono synth like a prodigy or something (well, who doesn't ), but I'm really looking for some more advanced VA which gives me a broader range of functions
-I'm looking to get something with much more polyphonic (seeing as the Ms2000 has 4)
-There is a very broad genre of music I like to play, this includes Industrial, Goa, EBM, House, and all like genres.
-The MOST I could spend would be 2500. (This kind of money would not be obtainable for a few months though)
-MIDI is very very important, I sequence most of my music through Acid 7.
-Onboard sequencer/arrpegiator not necessary (seeing as I'll be sequencing this through Acid)
-Rack mount is completely fine (cuts alot of costs too)

Here are the few options I've thought about, not sure what you guys think:

1. Clavia Nord Lead 3
-24 voices, sure is enough
-Lead 2 is also an idea (although they both seem to have their sets of quirky offsets [or so i seem to read about]
-dual filters
-i've heard about some unison polyphony option with this as well (were you play in unison, yet don't lack the polyphony)


2. Access Virus Ti2
-seems to have enough of everything i suppose.


Anyway, just wondering if you guys had any good advice to offer on such a situation. both of these synths have both great reviews and horrible ones, and I'm probably going to be forgetting about a ton of other plausible options though .


Hope I wasn't too confusing

[th0mas]

I was thinking definitely a virus would fit. A much cheaper option with a ton of power is the blofeld, don't discount it. It's pretty amazing as long as you get one with working encoders.

For $2500 you could get a blofeld and have enough for a mono synth like a moog little phatty, mopho keys, or a vintage if it came up appropriately. Or start a eurorack modular. $2500 can get you a lot of synth(s).

[04tm34l3]

Or start a eurorack modular.

A modular was my other though, mabey like a doepher or something. I'm not that well educated on modules though, most of the time when I listen to them it sounds like assorted randomness, but I've seen some with Midi in/out though. Would it be better to get a modular over some sort of keyboard or rackmount synth?

[Elandroth]

2 grand or slightly over could get you a Nord Lead 2x and a DSI Monoevolver keyboard version. Or a Lead 3 + MEK and still under budget. Or Blofeld for your poly + MEK.

Other VA's to consider would be Alesis Ion, Novation Nova/Supernova, Yamaha AN1X. I say this because some people love the Nord sound, other people find it completely boring.


If you want depth of synthesis the MEK is f**k incredible, which is why I stress it. The modulation and sequencing possibilities (not just sequencing notes, but other settings) are really, really, really incredible - and 4 osc/4 lfo is quite simply ridiculous. You could also consider a PEK (poly fullsynth version) as your one purchase, but I think it only has 4 polyphony? Might not be enough for what you want.

[Stab Frenzy]

Ok so, I guess the biggest issue here is that in a year or too, I'll be off to college (were I will most likely be way to poor to afford a decent synth) so I want to try to get something that will be advanced and rich enough that it can keep my interest in synthesis and programming for the next 6+ years.

Nord Modular G2. Think of it as a NL3 that you can assemble in different ways to have it do pretty much anything you can think of. Polyphonic, deeper than any other digital synth out there. A modular system would be good but it's monophonic and $2500 isn't that much really in modular world. And you don't want to start a Eurorack habit just before you go to college.

[V301H]

$2500 might get you an Oberheim Xpander if you look around for a deal. This is real multi-timbral analog and is deep enough to keep you learning for years. You would probably make money if you were to sell after a few years.

[ninja6485]

this is totally spam, but i just put my virus ti up for sale . she's a beaut' but i don't use her. house/goa at least can make pretty good use of a sampler however. in fact, a lot of early house tracks are little more then a sampler and maybe a drum machine. that being said, i used the korg radias exclusively for a wile in my first severlal years in college, and it's pretty cheap compared to your budget. could be something to look into.

[krzeppa]

With a budget of $2500, I think you have quite a few options out there right now. You could easily get a couple of synths (you VA and your analog mono). I think you could get a pretty good setup going. You could get a Supernova rack (one with keys is somewhat hard to find it seems) and team it up with something like an MEK or a Little Phatty (depending on what kind of sound you are looking for).
That would still leave cash left over if you need to look into something like an audio interface, monitors, etc.

The Virus TIs are also a great choice, and they should keep you busy for quite a long time, but that will probably eat up more of budget. Though, you could still get a used one and still have room in the budget for a desktop Evolver.

Your budget is quite large and it leave you open to many options. I personally would lead toward a Supernova because I think you get a lot of options out of it, and the price isn't too bad.

[TheKeytarist]

I've heard people say that the nord modular has an infinite amount of possibility. It's probably the only polyphonic modular that won't cost as much as a Cadillac. As for patches, you get allot: "Each "patch" on the G2 is actually a separate synth, having its own virtual analog architecture. The G2 has 32 banks for sounds, each with 128 patch locations, giving you the capability of creating and storing 4,096 synth within the on-board memory. With 8 variations each, total sound capacity is * 32,768 * sounds!"(David Thomson Review). People who own these say that they find something new every time they turn it on. It should keep you entertained for at least 6 yrs. It comes in a rack model(no hands on control), a 37 key standard model, and a deluxe 61 key version. Here's some info on the nord modular g2:

http://www.clavia.se/main.asp?tm=Produc ... Modular_G2

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jul04/articles/nord.htm

http://www.audiomidi.com/aboutus/review ... son_g2.cfm

[TheKeytarist]

Access virus are also said to be pretty awesome...

[silikon]

Here's my biggest red flag:

I'll be off to college (were I will most likely be way to poor to afford a decent synth) so I want to try to get something that will be advanced and rich enough that it can keep my interest in synthesis and programming for the next 6+ years.

My one piece of advice to you is to get something compact that you can stuff in a small space and still get stuff done.

I know this might sound like blasphemy to some, but I would suggest getting a Doepfer A-100 in the portable case -- that way you have the option of covering it with it's own case and stuffing it in a corner without concern about someone randomly coming by and shearing off some pots or something? No poly, and I know that was one of your requirements...but just a thought.

I don't know - I'm more inclined to think you're going to be short on space (without really knowing much about your situation other than you're off to college) and with a standard A-100 system, at least you have all of the bases covered with the modules it has in it. But I also agree about starting a modular addiction going into college, and it being a bad idea... But then, depending on where you're going to college, there are a fair number of musically inclined groups in many places that do experimental-type gigs, and that might fit in well.

The Virus (Polar, specifically since it's smaller) and the Nord Modular G2 would be compact enough as well... And they would fit the bill for both mono and poly... But my question (which I don't have the answer to right now) is; will the Modular G2 still have current software to run it in six years? (forgive me if I'm dumb on the subject of that machine)

Forgive me, I'm in a weird "way too in my head" day today. I would stress these points any way you go: Portability, ruggedness, compact footprint, reliability. I don't think a vintage piece of gear in this instance would serve you justice because with most vintage gear comes shop fees at one point or another...

[TheKeytarist]

Those are excellent points. In that case, a Nord micro modular is ultra compact, pair that with a netbook of some sort and you have a pretty decent setup. There are a few flaws with the micro modular, #1 being 4 voice poly, #2 being an absolute lack of hands on controll. Still think a Nord modular G2 is the way to go...

[04tm34l3]

Wow! What fast replies! Thank you all!

Anyway Silikon makes a great point space wise. Right now I'm leaning tword a nord lead 3 rack or nord modular rack with extra money for a mono (a rogue perhaps?, anybody know what those go for about?[there aren't any on ebay])

Only thing I've read about the Nord modular is that you need to have it connected to a computer for it to work, which doesn't seem like a limitation I want to have, but I'm going to have to look into it lots more.

And a modular system doesn't sound to great at the moment either... would really like to get something with more polyphony (one day though...).

PEK, would be nice, REALLY nice. But I've already got the Ms2000, not really lookin to get another 4 voice polyphonic (well, not for now).

Anybody know how much a blofeld expansion is? Might seem worth it if I could get one with the expansion.

Mek is a bit more than I'm looking to spend on a mono I guess.

So I guess I'm just looking for a good polyphonic rack, and a basic mono. Or I'll just get a virus and no mono synth (to be honest I'm eagerly awaiting WC olo Garb's review of the TI).
Sounds a bit silly, but 32 voices is plenty to create a megabeefy lead right? Sounds silly to ask but for some reason it looks so small compared to the Ti2 (poor logic I know, but still).

I'm hoping to have just a bit of money left over as well just so I can pick up a better mixer (I use like a 4 channel eurorack currently), and a delay rack or something (these aren't completly necessary however).

[TheKeytarist]

While a computer is required to create completely new patches, All Nord modulars will work without being connected to a computer, although I'd hate to try that with a G2 Rack(you know, the one with no hands on control). I would suggest a Nord modular G2, as it will be easier to use and the editor on newer computers.

[04tm34l3]

While a computer is required to create completely new patches, All Nord modulars will work without being connected to a computer, although I'd hate to try that with a G2 Rack(you know, the one with no hands on control). I would suggest a Nord modular G2, as it will be easier to use and the editor on newer computers.

hmmmmm... alright. many things to consider here