|
A Personal
history of Synths
1973 - started to learn acoustic
piano
1978 - started to learn the 'cello
1981 - my dad bought me my first electronic
keyboard - a Roland MP600.
This had a sort of pianoish sound and a harpsichord and a clavichord sound that you
could mix together. I liked it a lot and played in a
school band. It is still in
the corner of my studio.
1982 - Drumatix. Simple beeping
drum machine. Rather cool really.
1982 - it didn't belong to me, but
I often borrowed a Juno 6. Great pads, easy to program, but
no memories. My first introduction to
synthesis and I loved it.
1984 - I saved up and bought a Yamaha DX7. Mean to program,
incredibly rich selection of sounds. Nothing had been like it before. Not
the warmest or fattest pads and
sounds, but wonderful clanging things.
1986 - Roland TR 505 drum machine. More realistic drum
sounds, got used a lot. Last
seen Johnny Bath had it.
1989 -
Roland U110. Simple small sound unit, with
the best piano I had heard and a great variety of sounds. Not really programmable, but
it was multitimbral, so I started using it with an Amstrad PC
using Voyetra Sequencer One. Baselines, leads,
pads, drums all mixed up.
1993 - Sequential Circuits Pro One
- no memories, rough wild sound.
Why did I sell it?
1995 - Korg Wavestation -
still hanging around somewhere. Beautiful ambient pads. Rather hard to program and
architecture a bit irritating. Changing one
sound would alter other sounds
1998 - Nord Lead
2 - clear, cutting, great to program. Looked really cool. Why did I
sell it? All it really needed was some delay and chorus to liven it
up a bit.
2001 -
Korg MS2000 - friend borrowing this. Great little synth. I moved up
to the Radias as I liked the extra polyphony, the double filter and
the riff sequencing
2003 - Roland RD-170
full length electronic piano. Great sound, lovely to play. Feels to
me like a real piano (drat, even I am using that word now). I had a
classical revieval for a few years, but I've got over that. I pplay
it at church now, but at home I prefer my lovely Nord Electro.
2004 - Nord Electro 2
- my main keyboard at present. Cool, beautiful, light and small,
full of character. The organs are such fun to play. Easy to program
while performing. I don't even use the memories. The only bit I
don't like is the drawbars - if only they were actual bars you could
pull in and out - it would be perfect.
2004 -
Korg Radias - lovely sound, lots of polyphony. You can make really
complex layered sound, but a bit hard work. A lot of the programming
is right in front of you, but some you have to go into menus which
has put me off a bit. Still it's my main polysyth at the present. I
have the keyboard for it but at the moment I'm using it a sound
module controled by the Nord Electro 2
2006 - Doepfer A100 suitcase case box x2 and many modules.
I might put down the module numbers sometime. Fantastic and mad.
Wires everywhere. No memories, not easy for live use! Sounds
completely psychotic.
2007 - Korg Electrotribe
sampler. Neat machine. Using it for backing beats for my synths, so
that I have a more live feel, rather than using beats on Cubase,
which is less immediate.
2008 - Moog Little Phatty. I really wanted a
synth which was completely hands on. No computer menus to scroll
through. Not a variety of sound like the DX7, but fat, warm, hands
on. Memories but excellent interface. I love it. I did consider
buying the Voyager, but it is expensive, more complex and heavy.
I
wonder if I have missed any of them out. The loves of my life - past
and present. I'll add more in as I remember. The years probably
aren't accurate, life wanders on at
it's own pace. Peace James
More to add? SPD-20 drum pads.
Yamaha Exlorer electronic drums. Roland sound module XV2010 or
something. 4 track tape recorders, alesis compressor, TLA 5051
preamp. Depends whether this is a history of synths or musical gear.
My 100 year old cello. Battered Levin acoustic guitar off my dad
which I think has fallen apart now. Djembe and Darbuka, African hand
drum - tourist variety, Concentina used to be my dads, various
Hohner and Lee Oscar harmonicas. Session 8 - my first entry into
digital recording - much better than casette stuff. Sony minidiscs
and portable DATS.
|