"A nice set of very rare synthesizer brochure / catalog paperwork. Raymond Scott ELECTRONIUM May 70, MOOG Syn Amp, VAKO Orchestron for YES, MOOG Sonic Six, Moog Constellation 1973 Taurus Apollo Lyra - for Keith Emerson of ELP. These documents are used but in good condition. Will not separate, sold as-is, thank you."
I usually try to keep my parts units locked up tight for that one night of year that crazy things seem to happen but one year I forgot and the nightmares still haunt me to this day of what I witnessed!
The day after Halloween, I came into my shop just as any other day but today something was different. I noticed this trail of synthesizer guts leading from the door of my shop into my surgical room where I had a minimoog in the process of getting a part transfusion. As I entered the surgical room, I found the minimoog on the floor busted up pretty bad as if something had been eating on it. I continued following the trail of synth guts and they stopped at the cabinet where I keep donor synthesizers. I open the cabinet and the donor memorymoog I had is missing. I stood there for a few minutes trying to figure out what happened when all of a sudden, I heard a noise from the front of my shop....I cautiously made my way to where the noise came from and nothing could have prepared me for what I saw; it was my donor memormyoog and it had became a zombie, it was eating minimoog boards and trying to trap a moog source to eat afterwards!
I did the only thing I knew to do; I picked up the zombie memorymoog, threw it on my surgical table, and started disassembling it as quickly as I could. As I removed the parts, I put them in the donor cabinet making sure to lock it after each part was stored.
Still to this day, I sometimes hear moving in the cabinet around Oct but I dare not open to see what it is making the noise.
"The Prophet 5 is one of the most iconic synths of all time.
We had the pleasure of deep-sampling the last production unit ever made (Dave Smith's personal keyboard) - and sampled every single preset in the unit.
The Last Prophet 5 is specifically designed for the Prophet X and XL - and offers you all the original presets and 16 custom presets.
Sequential Prophet XL Introduction Published on Oct 23, 2018 Dave Smith Instruments
"The Sequential Prophet XL is a 76-key version of the acclaimed Prophet X — a potent fusion of samples-plus-synthesis and the most ground-breaking evolution of the Prophet yet: https://www.sequential.com/product/pr..."
And the press release followed by some hi-res pics:
San Francisco, CA—Oct 23, 2018—Sequential today announced the Prophet XL, a 76-key version of their flagship Prophet X samples-plus-synthesis hybrid synth. The new instrument provides the same powerful combination of high-fidelity samples from 8Dio and full synthesis capabilities that has earned the Prophet X critical acclaim — but makes the concept even more compelling for studio and stage by adding a semi-weighted-action, 76-key, premium-quality Fatar keybed and a new performance mode that allows 32-voice polyphony when using a single sampled instrument and a single oscillator.
At the heart of both the Prophet XL and the Prophet X is a sound engine that powers two simultaneous 16-bit, 48kHz sample-based instruments plus two high-resolution digital oscillators with waveshape modulation — all processed through analog filters. In standard performance mode, the instrument provides bi-timbral, 8-voice-stereo, or 16-voice mono operation.
Dave Smith commented: “We designed the Prophet XL for musicians who wanted more of a good thing. By adding an extended, semi-weighted action keyboard and enabling 32-voice performance mode, we’ve made it even more satisfying to play the acoustic and electric pianos and other instruments where increased polyphony is crucial. We’re making 32-voice mode available on the Prophet X, as well, so that all of our users will benefit.”
Sample content for the Prophet X series was created by sound developers 8Dio, known for pioneering “deep sampling.” Regarding the new instrument, 8Dio co-founder Troels Folmann said: “For us, it’s all about giving musicians the best tools to express themselves. The Prophet XL is a great enhancement of the original Prophet X concept because it gives artists more room to breathe. More keys and more voices means more room to explore and create.”
The 150 GB sample library in the Prophet XL and Prophet X includes numerous acoustic and electronic instruments as well as an extensive collection of ambient and cinematic effects. Users can shape the samples through loop manipulation, sample stretching, and the synthesizer’s many sound-sculpting functions which include 4 envelope generators, 4 LFOs, a deep modulation matrix, and other tools. The Prophet XL and Prophet X also provide 50 gigabytes of internal storage for importing additional samples. Support for user-created sample content is planned for December, 2018.
The Prophet XL will be available in November of 2018 with a MAP of $4,399.
About Sequential
Originally launched in 2002 as Dave Smith Instruments, Sequential is helmed by legendary musical instrument designer and Grammy® award winner Dave Smith. Dave’s many accomplishments include the creation of the Prophet-5—the world’s first fully programmable polyphonic synthesizer—and his legacy as the primary driving force behind MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface).
The company’s products are used by an ever-growing roster of well-known musicians and are available from music retailers worldwide. Instruments include the Prophet-6, OB-6, Prophet Rev2, and the Tempest analog drum machine. Sequential is based in San Francisco, where its instruments are also manufactured. Visit www.sequential.com.
About 8Dio
Founded in 2011 by Troels Folmann and Tawnia Knox, 8Dio is the leading independent developer of software instruments and the inventors of deep-sampling. Troels is an Academy Award, TEC/Mix Foundation, GANG and D3 award-winning composer and Ph.D scholar in music technologies. Tawnia is the CEO of 8Dio Productions and has had a long career as an executive in luxury brands.
8Dio has created an extensive, deep-sampled catalog of advanced instruments based on literally millions of samples. Notable titles include Majestica - the largest symphony orchestra ever sampled, Epic Taiko Ensembles, Titanic Choirs, Cinematic Scoring Tools, and over 250 other instruments. 8Dio products are used by high-profile artists, composers, and top music producers in all genres. They are featured in a majority of current blockbuster movies, independent films, video games, TV-shows, Broadway productions, and the professional sports industry. For more information, visit www.8dio.com."
"I haven't uploaded a video in a while as I'm currently in pre production on a short film I'll be directing in November. I've been swamped in pre-production and trust me that's a great thing. I'm very fortunate to have met a wonderful producer in Toronto here who really is helping me get things going. I'm very fortunate and blessed to be surrounded by so many supportive and wonderful people.
Howard Shore's score for Videodrome is quite a unique score. What he did was he scored and recorded a real string orchestra and then re-sampled that recording into his Synclavier synthesizer. So the whole score has synthesized string recordings and authentic string recordings which fits the films plot perfectly.
I used the Prophet-X for this and approached it in a similar way. I used the beautiful string samples from 8Dio and layered them with the same strings but altered through frequency modulation and amplitude modulation. Lots of Bit and Hack used on the strings as well as some oscillators mixed in there as well. I think it turned out very well. Hope you enjoy! Long Live The New Flesh!!!"
"Ego Plum with John Nobori playing Raymond Scott's electronic composition "Hall of the Mountain Queen" at Scottworks, The Raymond Scott Festival on September 8th, 2018"
"Caspar Hesselager is a classically-trained pianist working with a wide range of genres. He works in Copenhagen as a composer, producer, and pianist, as well as a mixing and mastering engineer, and has worked with a great many Danish bands in genres ranging from free-jazz to pop, indie-rock, and techno. He has recorded and released music as a solo artist under the moniker My Heart the Brave and currently works with Australian-native singer/guitarist Carl Coleman on their joint venture, Palace Winter. Having just released their second album, “Nowadays,” Palace Winter have received praise from The New York Times, NME, The Guardian, KEXP, KCRW, The Line of Best Fit, BBC 6 Music, Guy Garvey (Elbow), and Elton John on his Beats 1 show. Caspar has also composed music for radio, TV, and film, as well as having played hundreds of shows across Europe and Denmark as a synth player."
"Dark Arcade is a $120 paraphonic synthesizer with digital oscillators and an analog filter, amplifier, envelope generator, and LFO.
What is Dark Arcade?
Dark Arcade is intended to be an entry level hardware synthesizer for musicians looking to branch out from software synthesizer based workflows, as well as a distinctive addition to any hardware synthesizer collection. Its hardware features microcontroller-produced digital oscillators, an analog OTA band-pass and low-pass filter, an analog OTA amplifier, an analog ADSR envelope generator, an analog LFO, and MIDI input and output. External audio can be processed by the filter and amplifier section and external CV signals can be used to control the filter cutoff and amplifier gain. In addition to the hardware features, the software extends the feature list to include 4 voices of paraphony, 8-bit Karplus Strong synthesis, waveform blending, and many more. Below is a song produced with Dark Arcade in which all sounds (minus drums) are generated by Dark Arcade and then mixed with some basic effects (delay, reverb, and compression).
In pink it reads: "Two days before I submitted this review Dave Smith sent me a brief specification and a photograph of the (at the time unannounced) Prophet XL, which will be a 76-key version of the Prophet X offering a 32-voice mode that bypasses the main filter section (which still only has 16 filters) but uses two fo those filters paraphonically to spice things up. This mode will be more suited to sample-based sounds, but I could see myself programming FM sounds to take advantage of the extra keyboard width and the doubled polyphony. I can't wait to get my hands on it... a Prophet T8 for the 21st century! And, so that existing Prophet X owners won't feel short-changed, the 32-voice mode and a few other new features will also be available as a free update for the existing synth. That's a nice touch."
The current Sequential Prophet X supports a bi-timbral, 8-voice-stereo (16-voice mono) engine.
P.S. The Prophet XL is the first synth from Sequential post DSI. Giving this post the DSI and Sequential labels but moving forward XL and future Sequential synths will only have the Sequential label.
A new poster from SYNTH EVOLUTION, who also hosts www.synthsounds.net, a new online database of samples for various synths that anyone can contribute to. Currently there are 50 samples, including some real rarities like the Buchla 100.
---
The following is the announcement on the new poster:
"SYNTH EVOLUTION is proud to announce a brand new poster for Xmas 2018:
An A1 poster featuring the world’s most important synths, drum machines and samplers.
Each of the 99 featured instruments is lovingly hand illustrated and is accompanied by fascinating facts - notable tracks, performers, or historical information.
Alongside this the mode of synthesis is indicated, its polyphony and number of oscillators per voice.
Featured are such well known instruments as: Minimoog, TB-303, Arp 2600, TR-808, TR-909, DX-7, D-50, S1000, TONTO...
...and others such as:
- Eminent 310 - the sound of Equinoxe I
- Waldorf Microwave - made by some of the ex- employees of PPG Wave - Ensoniq Mirage - early, affordable 8-bit sampler -Korg M1 - the ROMpler that changed everything!
The poster is available in black or white from synthevolution.net and will make a for a
fascinating talking point in any home or studio. Or home studio! £30 + postage (global delivery)
SYNTH EVOLUTION is the brainchild of Oli Freke, a composer, musician and designer who’s had a lifelong passion for the synthesizer. He has previously supported the Human League on tour, run a dance music label, performed live house and techno in clubs and festivals, performed Brazilian drumming at the Glastonbury festival and composed music for television. www.olifreke.co.uk"
CEM3340 based Eurorack VCO with linear FM.
Very nice sounding VCO which the CEM3340 has very good tracking and temparature stability. Because of our design, this VCO has a nice round sound with a distinctive edge!
The CATCH series is an entry-level Eurorack series with minimal functions but maximum sound!
www.rebach.eu"
"CATCH VCO-A In production
Eurorack Voltage Controlled Oscillator
Another fine Eurorack oscillator based on the CEM3340.
This Oscillator from the CATCH series has three waveforms and a nice FM modulation input. He produces beautiful FM sounds and brilliant lead sounds.
Thanks to the CEM 3340 base, it has a very good CV tracking and unprecedented temperature stability!
Very skiff-friendly design. 26mm depth ( without Knobs incl ribbon connector ).
"Here is a track using sounds only from the ELKA SYNTHEX (1981). With a a beautiful multimode filter and and Chorus unit to die for, it is one of the true vintage classics in the analog synthesizer history. Composed and produced by www.firechild.se"
Published on Oct 17, 2018 FACTmagazine Update 10/17/18 9:53PM: video is back.
"All aboard for our first ever Against The Clock on a boat.
French electronic duo Agar Agar are singer Clara Cappagli and synth wizard Armand Bultheel. The duo met in art school four years ago and bonded over a love of music and art, forming Agar Agar despite their contrasting backgrounds in garage rock and club music.
We jumped at the chance to feature the duo on Against The Clock and were happily surprised when they told us we'd be recording on a boat. The duo proved themselves an act to watch in 2018 thanks to Bultheel's electronic shoegaze instrumental and Cappagli's evocative vocals.
Watch the session above and check out Agar Agar's second album The Dog and The Future, which is out now via Cracki Records. Don't miss Agar Agar's upcoming London show next week."
And update from Behringer. Note the patch points on top from the prototype video here. The Pro-One logo has been moved to the left.
"We just approved the final pre-production sample of the PRO-1 and are now gearing up for mass production. As you will notice, we have added quite a few more patch points as well as other cool features.
We are quite excited about this synth as it turned out really well 🙂
The OBX was the first major "answer" to the Prophet 5 synthesizer, and at least in our opinion, was the best answer anyone could've given.
The OB-X is based on the basic design of the (S)ynthesizer (E)xpander (M)odule also from Oberheim. Like the SEM, it features two discreet VCO's with saw and pulse, two envelopes, and the low pass section of the SEM filter. It also added noise, a release control, and cross modulation (similar to the Prophet's cross mod). The prophet's cross mod was a bit more dynamic, though. A flexible LFO section is also featured.
None the less, the OBX is in a species all of it's own in many ways. It's one of the very few mostly discreet programmable polyphonic synthesizers, and more than that spec, it sounds unique and absolutely marvelous.
Our unit features encore midi
Book your rental package with Rosen Sound and see the rest of our synth catalog at www.rosensound.com/rentals
2. Moog Minimoog - Rosen Sound Demo
3.SCI Prophet 5 - Rosen Sound Demo
In a lot of ways this needs no introduction. One of the most iconic poly synths ever made, and the first synth to offer true programmability with polyphonic architecture.
The Prophet 5 offers your basic amenities in a poly synth with 5 voices each with 2 VCO's, a low pass VCF, a VCA, two EG's, one LFO with multiple wave shapes available, with POLY MOD as the icing on the cake. This lets you make FM type sounds and is part of what makes the prophet 5 unique.
Our unit features factory midi
4. Oberheim Four Voice - Rosen Sound Demo
This in our opinion is one of the finest synthesizers ever made in terms of overall sound. The features are of course many and the synth as a whole is very flexible and powerful, but the sound it outputs is nothing short of mesmerizing.
The FVS features 4 Synthesizer Expander Modules (SEM) each representing a polyphonic voice. This means for one patch, each SEM must be setup identically. This may seem like too much, but it's actually a very enjoyable process that causes you to think different about the patch your making, the polarity of your modulation per voice, and subtle differences you can set.
The synth can also be used in a powerful unison mode, allowing each SEM to be adjusted separately for a crazy 4x dual oscillator synthesizer each with a multi mode filter to be fired at once.
Each SEM is as or more powerful than your standard mono synth, featuring 2 oscillators with saw and pulse each, PWM, FM, 1 LFO, two EG's, a bi-polar filter modulation control, and the sweetest Oberheim filter ever made featuring a bandpass filter and a sweepable LP-HP filter. These filters are special in the way that when the resonance is turned up, there is no loss of volume or low end.
Additionally, our FVS is an early model with no programmer (a feature loathed by many anyway). Instead, it features 2 dual mini sequencers with a common clock available. This means you can do 8-step 4 note poly sequencing between the four SEM's, or split the keyboard with one sequencer playing 1 SEM and 3 note chords on the other side of the keyboard.
Functionally, our FVS is very much in tune and has been stabilized to survive travel and tuning consistency. It is in tune as soon as it's turned on, and we provide a quick start guide for our rental customers to learn how to easily program and tune the machine.
Our FVS also features MIDI in via a modified YARN's module installed inside. This allows through basic midi and if desired (more complicated) midi scripts to play it polyphonically (default on boot), sequence each SEM assigned to a separate channel (enabling MPE), or played in Unison. All of these features can be harnessed by utilizing SYSEX or the Yarns editor, all which is provided on a thumb drive for rentals.
5. Moog Memorymoog - Rosen Sound Demo
To start, let's forget the internet-lore or an "unreliable" and "impossible to tune" machine. Our service shop is known worldwide for our work on Memorymoogs and stabilizing them for real production use.
Now, let's introduce you to (what we consider) the pinnacle of Moog synthesizers. With 3 oscillators + ladder filter per voice, flexible and intuitive modulation, and a knob per function, the Memorymoog is not a force to be reckoned with, and is in what we consider to be the top 3 best sounding synthesizers ever made.
From lush pads, 18 oscillator unison leads, heavy bass, and even gentle timbres, the memorymoog is sure to be a staple piece for your session in any genre on music. Plus it has everyones favorite feature: an arpeggiator!
Our rental memorymoog will arrive with an expression pedal and 12 custom patches (87-99) made by our resident in house programmer, Eli Goss. These 12 patches are the juice that will fuel modern productions to achieve sounds unobtainable by any other synth, with plugins not even worth a mention.
6. Oberheim OB8 - Rosen Sound Demo
One of our staple synths in the collection. The lore of the OB8 is that it's a less-exciting OBXa, however, with some choice mod's which we've done to ours, they are sonically identical.
The OB8 is one of the most flexible synthesizers available, which includes deep LFO routing from the front panel, and a PAGE 2 function that transforms every knob and button on the synth to do even deeper modulation, including quantized LFO's, musical "OBXA" style detuning, envelope routing, and more.
Additionally, our OB8 has been fitted with a Pratt & Read keybed, which brings the true feel of American poly synths to the experience, while also having the amenities provided by the B5 EPROM including factory midi.
The Prophet 10 is more than just 2 Prophet 5's in one box; featuring an active EQ per voice, deeper modulation, and more performance capabilities with it's dual manuals and CV pedal inputs. This prophet 10 also features midi in and out.
8. Oberheim Four Voice Sequence
You could do an entire score with this #oberheimfourvoice. With quad poly sequencing and split modes the sky is the limit. Available for rent through us! Contact us for rates and availability. And yes, it has midi!
9. Prophet 5 Rev 3 Restoration
10. Juno 106 Multiboard removal
11. Juno 106 80017A Chip Failure - What To Check
In this video I go over a couple things to check not only to see if your 80017A chips are failing, but also other potential failures of the juno, including failure of one of the MC5534A dual DCO chip.
This video also applies to other models, such as the MKS 30, HS 60, GR 700 and some others.
If you would like Rosen Sound to service your Juno, please contact us at contact@rosensound.com
"Introducing AnalogFusion, a top notch instrument boasting 2 separated Analog and Digital Synthesizer engines. You decide wether creating warm analog sounds, pure digital or layer them to create unique fat sounds. Massive features unlocking access to a new world of synthesis possibilities.
Demo by Italian Keyboardist Giuseppe Di Capua"
"Analog polyphonic synthesizer
AnalogFusion is a top notch, no compromise instrument with 2 completely separated Analog and digital synthesizer engines. You decide wether creating warm analog sounds or pure digital or layer them. Massive features unlocking access to a new world of synthesis possibilities.
Discrete analog circuitry
The polyphonic analog synthesizer engine (6 voices) was developped to provide all the features you can dream off and usually find on prestigious vintage synthesizers. Each voice is composed with 2 oscillators (3 waveforms: Saw, Pulse, Triangle) with Pwm, 3 lfos, hard sync, ring modulation, multimode filter, white and pink noise generators. The Oscillators are detunable. All the analog circuitry is made with discrete components, no FPGA or ASIC.
Analog or digital question is over, Get both!
Additionally to its pure analog synthesis section, AnalogFusion also offers a complete digital synthesis engine capable of doing Virtual Analog (2 oscillators, multimode filter, 2 enveloppes, 3 LFO), FM (6 operators with multimode filter for each voice) or wavetable synthesis. A dedicated drum section is also present with 10 instruments.
Analog/digital layer mode
A layer mode allows to stack the analog and digital synthesizers, a perfect fusion to create incredibly fat sounds!
"Over the course of his career, John Escreet has earned a reputation as one of the most active and diverse pianist/keyboardist/composers working in jazz and improvised music. His prolific output is reflected over the course of eight diverse and critically acclaimed albums. His most recent release “Learn To Live” finds Escreet using the Prophet-6 extensively, alongside a dream band comprising 2 drummers (Eric Harland and Justin Brown), trumpeter Nicholas Payton, saxophonist Greg Osby and bassist Matt Brewer. As well as being a leader of prolific output, Escreet is also a much sought-after sideman. Since 2011 he has been an integral part of Grammy award-winning drummer Antonio Sanchez’s band “Migration,” touring the world extensively and recording three albums with the group." --- You can find previous posts featuring Sequential's Spotlight series here.
Synth’s Greatest Hits: 1939 - 1999
