MOOG MINIMOOG

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"The Minimoog Model D is a cornerstone of classic synthesizer culture. This wood panel monophonic synth is considered by many to be the ultimate Moog synthesizer. The Minimoog features: a simple and accessible control layout, an aesthetically simple and attractive construction, and a 44-note keyboard. A Minimoog console also displays a Controller section, 3 Oscillator Banks, Mixer section, Modifiers, and Output control. There are two control wheels next to the keyboard, one controls the pitch, and the other controls modulation.

The Moog Minimoog control panel can be broken up into 3 sections:
* The sound generator (the VCO or voltage-controlled oscillator)
* The filter (the VCF or voltage-controlled filter)
* The amplifier (the VCA or voltage-controlled amplifier)

To produce a sound, the musician would first choose a sound shape to be generated from the VCO. The VCO provides a choice of several switchable waveforms:
* Triangle Wave
* Sawtooth Wave
* Sawtooth/Triangle
* Square Wave
* Two different width pulse waves

The sound then travels from the VCO to the VCF (voltage-controlled filter) where it can be shaped and sculpted, adding resonance. Next, the sound travels to the voltage-controlled amplifer (VCA). The term "amplifier" can be a bit misleading to novices who might be thinking of a stereo amplifier with a single volume knob. In a modern synthesizer, a VCA actually has 4 separate volume knobs that control four different stages of the sound. For example, the first knob - the Attack volume - controls how loud a sound is when the key is first pressed: does it start immediately like a string being plucked? Or does it fade in gradually like a violin being softly bowed?

Part of the appeal of this instrument over the early modular Moogs was the fact that the Minimoog required no patch cables. While this imposed the signal flow limitation outlined above (VCO -> VCF -> VCA), there are ways to tweak the sound. For example, in reality, the Minimoog has six sound sources. Five of these sound sources pass to a mixer with independent level controls:

* Three voltage-controlled oscillators (see above)
* A noise generator
* An external line input

The Minimoog Model D is a cornerstone of classic synthesizer culture. This wood panel monophonic synth is considered by many to be the ultimate Moog synthesizer. The Minimoog features; a simple and accessible control layout, an aesthetically simple and attractive construction, a 44-note keyboard"