[PigSpeakers]

Yamaha & Casio made some crackers in their day! The Casio SK1 & variants are fantastic little samplers, really crusty and weird. I'm kind of lusting after a CS series Yamaha But it's one synth a year at the most.

I have a casio CZ-230s, which isn't analog (FM) but it's still pretty nice. I actually picked it up for about $15 at goodwill. It supposedly has the ability to create your own sounds on it, but not without a computer. Presets on it are actually really nice when run through a bigger speaker. It also has a terrible power jack that frequently goes out if you move the power cable even slightly.

[POWERSPHERE]

Thanks for the suggestions Out of curiosity, what kind of prices would i be looking at for most decent/quality synths (analog or digital). Besides the few mentioned here so far, I wouldn't know where to start looking.

From my perspective, the power of an analog synth is that it's an instrument with its own rules you need to abide by, and each one has it's place for a need.

So that said, it's totally dependant on your needs. You could get a virtual analog that does a bunch of things kinda well, like a microkorg, which I own and use live as I can cover it in beer and it keeps on kicking, and the interface and relationship of a vintage analog is lost in a live setting. You can get sounds from such a keyboard, ones that are usable, but you lack the inspirational experience for want of a better term, that you get with a true vintage analog.

So yeah, what do you want to acheive? You want hundreds of recallable sounds? Vintage analog isn't for you. You want an instrument that you need to invest time in to get the best out of it, one that isn't bound by serving you sounds on a platter, but one that you need to learn and form some kind of musical relationship with, then analog is the ticket.

I would say for a starter synth, get a Roland SH 101.

http://w169.photobucket.com/albums/u...ths/sh-101.jpg

You'd get one for $300 to $500 bucks and they're instantly gratifying with all the bloops and blops you'd expect, but also they will introduce you to the sound path of analog synthesis. The whole path is laid out logically from the tuner, to the VCO (Voltage Control Oscillator) which is the thing that makes the sound you play. Then, the cool part of the SH101, the Source Mixer, where you can mix different types of sounds, from a square, triangle & the magical sub oscillator, to mix your perfect sound. Then down to you Voltage Control Filter, where you shape this raw sound to give it the WHAAAOOWH or the BLAAAT or whatever you need. Then into the VCA (Voltage Control Amplifier) and the ADSR Envelope, where you adjust your Attack, Decay, Sustain & Release, to give the final shape to your sound. I think it was called the 101 as it really is the 101 of synthesis, and the machine that I first bought that made me fall in love with analog synths. So yeah, research that synth, and go from there. Roland made some lovely stuff.

Basically, virtual analogs will serve you up sounds, and you can learn synthesis and dial up your own sounds with them, but give you nothing else. No character. And they hide the signal path, which makes them more abstract for me.

[POWERSPHERE]

I have a casio CZ-230s, which isn't analog (FM) but it's still pretty nice. I actually picked it up for about $15 at goodwill. It supposedly has the ability to create your own sounds on it, but not without a computer. Presets on it are actually really nice when run through a bigger speaker. It also has a terrible power jack that frequently goes out if you move the power cable even slightly.

They're quite cool FM synths! I still can't get my head around FM, but the Yamaha DX7 & Korg Wavestation are cool machines, but too weird to program.

[shuri]

what do you guys think of the OP-1 by teenage engineering? It seems like a nice all in one package for a newb. I was thinking about getting one

[POWERSPHERE]

what do you guys think of the OP-1 by teenage engineering? It seems like a nice all in one package for a newb. I was thinking about getting one

Man they look like a lot of fun. But for $800 I'd rather buy an Oberheim SEM. Not relatable but still.

[Fusebox]

what do you guys think of the OP-1 by teenage engineering? It seems like a nice all in one package for a newb. I was thinking about getting one

I think it might be frustrating for a newb, you'd be better off starting with a laptop and some VSTs. Or even just Ableton Suite or Logic and using all their inbuilt synths.

I think the OP-1 would be great fun for someone once they've already got their workflow sorted. If someone has a laptop and wants to integrate some analog juiciness I reckon the Mopho can't be beat for $400:

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/keybo...og-synthesizer

[Nappuccino]

From my perspective, the power of an analog synth is that it's an instrument with its own rules you need to abide by, and each one has it's place for a need. So that said, it's totally dependant on your needs. You could get a virtual analog that does a bunch of things kinda well, like a microkorg, which I own and use live as I can cover it in beer and it keeps on kicking, and the interface and relationship of a vintage analog is lost in a live setting. You can get sounds from such a keyboard, ones that are usable, but you lack the inspirational experience for want of a better term, that you get with a true vintage analog. So yeah, what do you want to acheive? You want hundreds of recallable sounds? Vintage analog isn't for you. You want an instrument that you need to invest time in to get the best out of it, one that isn't bound by serving you sounds on a platter, but one that you need to learn and form some kind of musical relationship with, then analog is the ticket. I would say for a starter synth, get a Roland SH 101. http://w169.photobucket.com/albums/u...ths/sh-101.jpg You'd get one for $300 to $500 bucks and they're instantly gratifying with all the bloops and blops you'd expect, but also they will introduce you to the sound path of analog synthesis. The whole path is laid out logically from the tuner, to the VCO (Voltage Control Oscillator) which is the thing that makes the sound you play. Then, the cool part of the SH101, the Source Mixer, where you can mix different types of sounds, from a square, triangle & the magical sub oscillator, to mix your perfect sound. Then down to you Voltage Control Filter, where you shape this raw sound to give it the WHAAAOOWH or the BLAAAT or whatever you need. Then into the VCA (Voltage Control Amplifier) and the ADSR Envelope, where you adjust your Attack, Decay, Sustain & Release, to give the final shape to your sound. I think it was called the 101 as it really is the 101 of synthesis, and the machine that I first bought that made me fall in love with analog synths. So yeah, research that synth, and go from there. Roland made some lovely stuff. Basically, virtual analogs will serve you up sounds, and you can learn synthesis and dial up your own sounds with them, but give you nothing else. No character. And they hide the signal path, which makes them more abstract for me.

Interesting... that's a lot to think about, but thanks for the run down!

[Fusebox]

Just a tip, the SH-101 is a fat, bad-ass synth but needs control voltage signals to integrate into your setup. It doesn't have any USB or MIDI connectors, unless its been modded to include MIDI.

For an equally cool hands-on experience but with added USB and MIDI the Arturia Minibrute is only a month or so away from release:

http://www.arturia.com/evolution/en/...ute/intro.html

Can't wait to get mine!

[PigSpeakers]

They're quite cool FM synths! I still can't get my head around FM, but the Yamaha DX7 & Korg Wavestation are cool machines, but too weird to program.

I don't quite get FM either. I have a microKorg, and I was able to make a simple string pad and a sort of whistle-y organ noise. I feel like having all of the options on a handful of knobs is a big detriment. I'd rather have several physical knobs for each thing and see what I'm doing it and hear it. I'm never really sure what all of the things I'm doing are, or that I'm even doing anything at all sometimes on my korg.

[Fusebox]

I love FM for bouncy, wooden pluck type sounds and retro 80s style keys.

Here's a track I made featuring heavy FM, most of it is DX-7iiD:

http://soundcloud.com/kaarma/dx7-bounce