Some History on the Development of the Moog Little Phatty

For whatever reason a thread cropped up on AH questioning Bob Moog's involvement with the Little Phatty and specifically whether he was involved at all. One, I remembered the project started when he became ill and two, core bits of the tech is based the Voyager! Even if he wasn't hands on, much of the technology that makes it what it is would still have come from him. I don't get it. That aside the following is an intersting insight to Bob Moog's involvment as well as the involvment of his team.

"Bob was completely involved in the genesis and design of the Little Phatty. He was actively working on the project when he became ill. He wired up the first prototype, which was built from a modified Voyager analog board wired directly to a panel of pots. The original idea was a stripped-down all analog two-oscillator performance synth, with a minimal but effective feature set and a knob per function on the panel. No MIDI, no patch memory.

This concept did not survive any opinion surveys, which all indicated that MIDI and memory were required features. Once we added a digital board to the design, the knob-per-function interface became too expensive to keep cost within our target for an inexpensive two-oscillator performance synth.

So, the final Little Phatty interface was conceived, using a knob per synth section rather than a knob per function. I believe this layout was conceived by Axel Hartmann. The Real Analog Control [RAC] system, where pots are both scanned for digital value and physically switched into the analog circuits which they are controlling, was conceived by Steve Dunnington.

So, Bob Moog brought the Little Phatty project into being, and shaped its original feature set. Most importantly for this project, he select Cyril Lance in particular to be his assistant/successor, after a very discriminating search. Cyril stepped in at the point when the project code-named "el P" was making the transition from all-analog to midi & memory, so he designed the Little Phatty digital board as one of his first projects for Moog Music. Prior to this, of course, Cyril had been a consulting engineer, a particle physicist (graduate of Cornell; same university as Dr. Moog), and of course a touring blues guitarist of some repute. Even though the digital board design was ultimately Cyril's, it was done in close reference to the digital board of the Voyager, which was rather similar to the digital board of a Memorymoog. As for the Little Phatty analogue board, it is comprised almost entirely of circuits taken directly from the Moog Voyager. The're the exact circuits Bob designed well before his untimely passing, simply configured for a different synth concept. The circuit layouts and corresponding component values for a given little subsection are generally identical between the Voyager and LP.
A notable exception is the Little Phatty's Overload circuit, which was designed and painstakingly tweaked by ear by Steve Dunnington. I think he did a good job with that circuit.

So, the LP has Bob's Voyager oscillators and Bob's Voyager envelopes (complete with quirks and circuit errors just like on the Voyager), the same implementation of the ladder filter (only times one instead of two), the same VCA design. An instrument is a whole The digital control, the RAC system, the panel layout, overload... these things were designed by other people, all of whom desired to continue Bob's legacy and to create a real, playable instrument that stood on its own merit. I should mention that the original Little Phatty firmware was written by Chuck Carlson, a programmer who had worked with both Moog and Buchla prior to working on the LP.

I have been the alpha tester for the Little Phatty firmware as it has developed, and I've gotten to make a suggestion or two along the way.

I'm writing this instead of getting sleep here at the NAMM show, so I'd better leave it there.

Hope this helps,
Amos"

Note Axel Hartmann also designed the interface for the Voyager, and a numbe of other synths. Check out this post for the list of synths. You might be surprised. He is the face of many of our modern day knob laden synths.

Steve Scuilli - Hartmann Neuron Live

"Musician Steve Sciulli will perform on the Hartmann Neuron - a very rare electronic synthesizer on Tuesday, Nov 18th at Your Inner Vagabond. This is part of "Electric Larryville" the monthly series that "showcases the most innovative electronica that Pittsburgh has to offer."

Also performing will be Bureau of Nonstandards and from Black Moth Super Rainbow Power Pill Fist
Start time is 8pm and goes until 11:30. This is an all age show and is FREE. Your Inner Vagabond is located at 4130 Butler Street, Pittsburgh. Phone: 412-6831623

The Hartmann Neuron uses a form of Artificial Intelligence and memory recognition as it develops its binaural soundscapes. It builds internal neuronic networks that offers 3 dimensional sound choices. All in glorious 5.1 surround sound! This blends perfectly with Steve's core philosophy of connecting the sacred with leading edge technologies. "These are all steps in our evolutionary journey". Steve is excited to be premiering his new instrument at Your Inner Vagabond on Nov 18th.

The Neuron was designed and built by the German designer Axel Hartmann. Around 500 of these instruments were build. This just might be the first time that this boundary breaking musical instrument is played in the Pittsburgh region. Steve will also be utilizing the Akai EWI 4000s wind synthesizer for this show.

Steve Sciulli – Musician and ambient music pioneer. Steve built his first synthesizer at the age of 10 and started the flute at 14. Founding member of the early 1980's progressive group "Carsickness" (which Trouser Press compared to Van der Graaf Generator) and the Celtic rock band "Ploughman's Lunch" along with numerous other regional and national touring musical groups. Steve along with his wife Ami make up the trance healing musical duo Life In Balance. Life In Balance has toured from Alaska to Florida and have been featured on NPR. Their CDs are available on Koch Records and The Relaxation Company. Steve's flute playing can be heard in the new Robert DeNiro and Bruce Willis movie "What Just Happened""

New Teaser Synth Pic from Waldorf, Moog, Access Interface Designer Axel Hartmann

This one spotted by Soviet Space Child.

Note the Modulation section with three selectable buttons and Speed & Depth knobs.  The next section appears to have an octave pitch switch and semitone knob.  You can see what looks like a pulse with graphic below the orange label to the left of the bottom knob.  The large white knobs is reminiscent of wavetable knobs on Waldorf synths.  If you can make out more, feel free to comment.

You can see a few the designs Axel Hartmann's Design Box was responsible for here.

"Neuron" - Free VST based on Hartmann Neuron

Published on Jul 15, 2017 100 Things I Do

"The Hartmann Neuron is one of those synths that intrigues and seems full off possibilities. Somewhere between Sampler, modeller and resynthesis engine built for a short time in the early 2000’s

This is the VST based on Axel Hartmann and Stephan Bernsee’s creation that was also also for sale for a short time before the company folded. It came with a controller (Nuke) which also acted as copy protection. Fortunately Stephan Bernsee has updated the code as much as possible to make the Neuron no longer tied to the controller and it now is available for free via his website and the Neuron facebook group.

The VST is built around the older VST 2.1 SDK which means the code is not compatible with most DAW’s today. You will need an Intel Mac running a VST Host that supports the older system. A full list of supported clients & links to downloads are available at http://www.neuron-synth.com/

Unfortunately the windows code base has been lost and is no longer able to be updated.

The Clip was composed 100% on the VST and no effects besides some compression was used."

Waldorf Dreams

Update3: Via sizzlemeister and James of Retro Thing: www.waldorfmusic.de is registered to Joachim Flor, the former sales director for Hartmann. Hartmann designed the hardware look and feel for Waldorf as well as other manufacturer's. According to James, "Axel Hartmann is the interface designer responsible for such remarkable instruments as the Waldorf Wave and the Alesis A6 Andromeda. His list of clients include companies like Access, Alesis, Antares, Creamware, Korg, Line 6, Novation, Steinberg, and Waldorf." Exciting stuff indeed.

Update2: More on electro-music.

Update via the comments (this sounds like it's for real):
"from the waldorf-user-forum:

moreno>> Jurij, where did you see that rumour?

did not seen/read yet anywhere, i actually heard it. the "rumour" is _confirmed_ by mr.stenzel/ex.waldorf r&d, so, its not a rumour any longer. fact is waldorf has been sold to a new owner recently although the name is kept top-secret. details about the acquisition will be published "soon" in form of an official press release (hopefully) whitin 1-3 weeks."

Title link takes you to a post on Moogulator speculating rumors of Waldorf coming back. I haven't heard anything on this and would be pretty surprised (and obviously thrilled) if it turned out to be true. Apparently there have been some Waldorf's for sale in shops in Germany, including this one I previously posted on. Kind of odd as I remember not being able to find any Waldorf products shortly after they went into insolvency. I'm not sure what the rules are on selling new product from a company that hasn't been in existence for this long, if you know please share. In Moogulator's post there is a reference to http://www.waldorfmusic.de, which I haven't seen yet. It looks like a snapshot of the Waldorf site from Oct, 2003 and there are rendering issues in Firefox but not IE. The last date on the site's records are dated June 14, 2005. The FTP links on the site go to the old domain, which no longer exits. I knew about Paul Maddox's Waldorf Site and http://waldorf.electro-music.com, hosting the old files, but not this newer site. I'm guessing this is just a rumor but I don't mind dreaming. Waldorf was one of my favorite synthesizer companies and they had one of my favorite support lists. Here's a bit of trivia for you: When I got my XTk, I sent them a letter on my thoughts. They liked it so much they actually put it up on the XTk page as the only user impression/review. I was totally floored and obviously honored. I'll need to see if I can dig that up. Also check out the reference to Carbon111 on the bottom of the right pane of this XTK page. Man I miss Waldorf.

Studiologic NUMA

I'm guessing this is a MIDI controller keyboard only. Not much info on the Studiologic site. According to juri on the Waldorf list the physical design (think appearance) was designed by Axel Hartmann who also designed the Blofeld's look.

Axel Harmann also designed the look for the MOOG Little Phatty, Alesis Andromeda an other synths. He also of course produced the Hartmann Neuron.

BTW, if you know what synths he worked on, feel free to list them out in the comments. It would be interesting to know them all.

Happy New Year From MATRIXSYNTH! - A Look Back at 2015

Happy New Year everyone!  I want to thank you all for a great 2015 and I wish you all the best in 2016!

The following is my yearly round up for the year.  Feel free to dig into this post as much you like, or skip it and leave a comment at the bottom of the post. I'd be curious to hear what stood out for you in 2015. Do you like the direction the synthesizer world is headed in, or would you rather see more or less of any type of product?

CLICK FOR MORE »

Hartmann Neurons For Sale

Update via the comments worth noting. But the keyboard version is just too damn sexy.

"We have been servicing them since we we're the U.S. Distributor for a while but only to our customers. But while there are still some spare parts around but some things there are not. So while the insides are essentially just a computer and a sound card you're still gonna have some problems depending on what knob/switch/display you break.

You should pick up a VS instead, they have almost almost every feature the hardware did and the controller is simple enough to probably be repaired by anybody. They were selling in Germany for like $150 for a while."

Title link takes you to shots pulled from this auction. Details below. Note that there are 10 available with a Buy it Now of $3,832.00. As usual, I no affiliation with this sale, just saving it for the archives of synth history... Via Melissa's Blog.

"Neuron's synthesis engine is powered by the technology found in neural networks (for more on this, see the section "Neural Networks"). It uses models as the basis for sound generation. In conceptual terms, these models are comparable to samples, and they are derived by analyzing audio samples. This means that in principle, any auditory event can provide the raw material for creating and processing sound in Neuron. It ships with some 100 of these models on its internal hard disk. Though this is a huge store of sound design resources, you are free to analyze audio resources (samples) of your own, using our proprietary ModelMaker software, and archive them in the form of user models. These models contain the actual sound as well as the parameter sets that were captured during neural analysis. Parameter sets are subdivided in up to three levels, and they may be manipulated via the resynators' sticks. That makes Neuron the first synthesizer offering dynamic parameter assignment tailored specifically to the sound that you select for processing.

The Human Interface

The ergonomic design of many modern electronic music instruments comes courtesy of company founder Axel Hartmann's creative urges. His experiences with musicians and manufacturers flowed into the operating and handling principles that help make Neuron so special.

The Neuron's extraordinary user interface is a crucial feature alongside its innovative sound generation system. Our philosophy dictates that every Hartmann instrument is easy to understand and use, that it handles intuitively, and that makes discovering new technology fun. To live up to that promise, we were compelled to invent several new control features. The tactile experience of generating sound via Neuron is something entirely apart from what users have encountered with conventional synthesizers.

The control features feel like what they are - different, unprecedented. Powerful yet subtle sound-sculpting tools, they throw the window to a new and unexplored sonic vista wide open. Starting with great legacy sounds, the musician ventures forth on a quest for unknown sonic treats by cutting, tucking, snipping and sewing these time-tested sounds. He can do this with the delicate touch of a neurosurgeon or the harsh hand of a butcher. The intelligent Snapshot function lets him take pictures of every and any stop along his auditory journey. This lets him backtrack should he get lost or want to return to a "Kodak Moment".

All dynamic parameters are controlled via rotary encoders with an infinite control range. The displays and indicator panels provide direct visual reference to the settings for the current program even when switching sounds.

The technical specifications of Neuron

Template driven Multi-Component Particle Transform Synthesis with realtime controllable synthesis model parameters | ANN (Artificial Neural Network) controlled adaptive sound analysis for the parametric transformation of musical monophonic and polyphonic sounds | Glide | 2 Resynators with 3 parameter layers per Scape/Sphere, stick recording function, 1 ADSR modulation envelope per Resynator, 1 amp envelope per Resynator (ADSR), 1 definable envelope (4 levels/4 times, also definable as pitch envelope) | Slicer for the generation of multi-dimensional, cyclic modulation | Silver unit with multi-mode filter with 3 parameter levels and a maximum of 3 ADSR envelopes (1 per parameter level), 2 Part Multi-FX processor (1 x Time FX / 1 x Frequency FX) | Surround unit with Stick-control (recordable) | Extra high-end delay (with tap function) and reverb

32bit internal signal path | digital signal processing with 32bit/64bit | floating point precision | high speed-CPU | 256 MB internal RAM | 20GB hard Disk

3 Cross-X-displays with Stick-controller and 4 back-lit LCD displays with 3 digit parameter level and 8 digit parameter name | 1 Control Center with 2x16 digit back-lit LCD display, X/Y stick and endless dial (encoder) with push/enter function | 12 endless wheels (encoders) with visual displays, 6 endless dials (encoders) | Controller unit with self centering, bi-directional stick-controller for pitch and modulation control (definable) | 1 definable endless-wheel (encoder) with visual display, 1 definable endless-dial (encoder) | Master volume dial | Large, backlit central on/off switch at rear of instrument | 5 octave (61 key) velocity sensitive, lightly weighted keyboard with channel aftertouch

Units shipping with app. 250 models / 200 sounds in memory / room for more then 200 setups | 4 times multimode | Amount of voices is dependent on the chosen neural synthesis model (up to 24) | Memory assignment and organization is achieved using a 10 button keyboard with up/down and 10's hold | Snapshot function for easy access to cache and instant saving and recall of edited sounds

Freely definable outputs (max. 6x Mono / max. 3 Stereo / 5.1 Surround) | Midi In / Out / Thru, USB port for external backup devices (CD-writers, Hard-Drives, Memory sticks etc.) and connection to a network | S/PDIF In / Out (digital, 44.1 kHz / 24bit), Stereo In, headphone connector, sustain pedal, freely definable switch and continuous controller connection

Power consumption: 250W | Dimensions: 952mm (w) x 98mm (h) x 373mm (d) | Weight: 17.5kg"

Waldorf Demos with Saga's Jim Gilmour at the Frankfurt Musikmesse in 1992

Saga - Jim Gilmour Demo - Musikmesse Frankfurt 1993 1992 Published on May 12, 2013 MadSevenFilms

"Jim Gilmour ( Saga keyboardist) in a demo at the Waldorf stand during the musikmesse in Germany.
Humble Stance, Wind Him up, Don't be late, Careful where you step, On the loose,etc ...."

Update: according the swissdoc, these videos are actually from 1992. That would make the appearance of the prototype Wave in 1992, not 1993. This post has been updated to reflect that. Note swissdoc's write-ups are from 1993 as you can see in the datestamps for the links, and I believe the production model Wave was indeed released in 1993.

Here's a blast from the past featuring a bit of Waldorf history in via swissdoc. This may very well be the only Waldorf footage from the event. Check out the non-working prototype of the Waldorf Wave in the background. 1992 was the year it made its first appearance to be released in 1993. Note the Microwave rack was released earlier in 1989. Further below you will find some notes on Musikmesse 1993 (the following year after these videos) from swissdoc, followed by a transcription of the Wave flyer. This is a fascinating look back on synth history. But first, one more video from the 1992 Musikmesse.

Update2 via swissdoc: "In addition, for those who can read and understand German, there is a big series of three articles available for download (email has to be provided) from the German Keyboards magazine. Inside Wave. Amazing level of detail plus in part three an interview with developers and users plus additional interviews with the people behind the Wave.

https://www.keyboards.de/heftarchiv/1994-10/inside-wave-1-wave-intro/
https://www.keyboards.de/heftarchiv/1994-11/inside-wave-2-tech-talk/
https://www.keyboards.de/heftarchiv/1994-12/inside-wave-3-wave-story/"

Update3: The following scans have been added to the bottom of this post:
Messe.1992.TSI.Messeinformation
Messe.1992.Preliminary.Wave.Info
Messe.1993.TSI.Show.Information
Messe.1993.Wave.Flyer

Saga - Jim Gilmour Scratching the surface - Musikmesse Frankfurt 1993 1992

Published on May 13, 2013 MadSevenFilms

"Jim Gilmour ( Saga keyboardist) in a demo at the Waldorf stand during the musikmesse in Germany.
Scratching the surface"

---

The following is a Musikmesse 1993 recap via swissdoc aka George Mueller, who attended, from way back in 1993 (you'll find a transcript of the Waldorf Wave flyer text further below). P.S. for a quick look at the gear released at the 1993 Musikmesse see here and here, both from swissdoc.

"Before I go into this Wave stuff, I'd like to tell you a little about the Frankfurt Musik Messe. Those restless gear junkies, skip the next 24 lines.

The Frankfurt International Music Fair was held for the 14th time and was attended by a record number of exhibitors: 1194 from 40 contries. So it's the leading event for the music business.

The Messe Frankfurt has 10 halls of different sizes, three of them are used by the Musik Messe. Hall 9.0 is the most interesting, it's for electronic instruments, 9.1 is for guitars and amps, 9.2 is for stage light, sound and mixers. These halls are middle in size, rows range from A to F, with booth numbers up to 90 each. Hall 8 is for acoustic instruments and publishers; it's funny, all that noise from test-playing violins, flutes and so on. This is the biggest hall, rows from A to P. The monster booth of Yamaha is in the back of this hall with all their synths, FXs and personal keyboards. So it's a long walk to Yamaha. It's a bit risky in this hall, if you enter one booth, browse thru the pages of some book, after talking to the salesman you probably lost your orientation. Hall 10.1 is reserved for grand pianos and uprights. No elctricity allowed there.

It's funny, when you change from 9.0 to 9.1, all those long haired heavy metal guys. One amp or guitar company has a Hard Rock Cafe at their booth, evertime overcrowded with guys drinking cocktails or beer.

So, here we are, the promised report on the TSI shows WAVE MUSIC DEMO and INSIDE THE WAVE.

CLICK FOR MORE »

Nova @ NAMM! - Waldorf Zarenbourg

YouTube via Novamusik | January 20, 2011

http://www.waldorfmusic.de
http://novamusik.com/
Novamusik on eBay

Axel Hartmann is the man behind the Hartmann Neuron and various synth UI designs ranging form the Moog Voyager to the Waldorf Wave. You can find a list of companies he designed for here - scroll bar to the right in the site itself.

Update: and of course the other man is Stefan Stenzel, the director of research and development for Waldorf - both the new Waldorf and previous.

Waldorf Zarenbourg Explained - WNAMM '07

Title link takes you to the video on Gearwire. That's Axel Hartmann on the left. He designed the look and feel of synths for such manufacturers as Access, Waldorf, MOOG, and of course his own Hartmann Neuron. I believe that is Stefan Stenzel on the right, but he said it so fast I'm not 100% sure. : )

The Zarenbourg uses physical modeling and not samples. It is being touted as a players keyboard with basic editing on the panel and more extensive editing via software. You will be able to edit and save your own custom patches. I'm a synthesist at heart, but there is something attractive about letting go of the editing and just playing the sound that's there in front of you.

Alesis Fusion 6HD

via this auction

Such a unique design. Anyone know if Axel Hartmann was behind this one? I know he did the Andromeda for them. If forget if he did the Fusion and Ion/Micron for that matter. Update: maybe not according to Hartmann's Design Box.

"SPECS:
* Disk Drive: 40 GB
* # of Keys: 61
* # of Sequencer Tracks/PPQN: 32-track MIDI
* Sequencer/Memory (Notes): 64 MB expand to 192
* # of Outputs/Type: Sample; ver. analog; FM; physical

FEATURES
* 61 note semi-weighted keyboard workstation
* Four integrated synthesis types: Sample Playback, Virtual Analog, FM and Physical Modeling
* Full synth workstation with 8 track 24-bit Hard Disk recording and 40Gb internal hard-drive
* Comprehensive waveform editing, internal memory expandable from 64MB to 192MB
* Save and load programs off of a hard disk (or the removable Compact Flash memory);
* 32 Track MIDI sequencer built in with integrated multi-channel digital audio playback
* Store all your sounds on the internal disk and always have your programs available to you
* Onboard grand piano based on acclaimed "Holy Grail Piano," by Q Up Arts
* Storage options include built-in hard disk, USB 2.0, compact flash
* Multi-channel input and output options in both analog and digital (S/PDIF and ADAT Lightpipe)
* Large 240x128 backlit LCD display
* Fully assignable buttons and 360 degree knobs for hands-on control of synth parameters (or control of external gear through MIDI)
* Fully programmable arpeggiator with standard, phrase and drum machine playback
* Import and convert WAVE files (.wav), AIFF files (.aif and .aiff), Akai S-1000/3000, SoundFonts (.sf2) files using the Alesis Fusion Converter™ application."

New Renders & Technical Drawing of the Upcoming 20 Electronics ECHT Hardware Synthesizer

You might remember the 20 Electronics ECHT coming from Axel Hartmann, the man behind many physical synthesizer designs and his own Hartmann Neuron. Here are a few new renders and a technical drawing from them. Only 20 will be produced in black and 20 in silver. See here for additional details.

"Late yesterday, our mechanical engineer Stephan Gries has released a set of technical drawings for the manufacturer. What you see here, is the main drawing, where all major parts are being described. More then 30 detail drawings show all bits and pieces of the mechanical setup. For me, these drawings almost look like art. From my experience I can say, that if the technical drawings look right and appealing, the product later on will also match this approach. What a piece of work; - I am so glad, we have Stephan here in house for more then 4 years now - he is a great engineer and a maniac of detail work."

CLICK FOR MORE »

Axel Hartmann's 20 Synth Nearing Completion - Set to Ship in June

"Set up for final testing and sound design. Fatar has sent us a b/w keybed for checking into a modified aftertouch ribbon below the keys, which works perfectly. The final models will be back to an all black keybed. The Synth you see is the first with black anodized surface. The grafics are laser edged. I am quite positive, that we can finally release the 20 by the end of June...

The synth is based on the Studiologic Sledge which is based on the Waldorf Blofeld. From the original post here"

"Only 20 black and 20 silver will be made | Waldorf / Sledge Synthesizer Engine | SPL Supra Op-Amp audio technology | Wavetables | Hartmann Neuron Synthesizer Sampleset | Pure aluminium shell, milled from a massive block | Collapsable, milled ultra thin aluminium panel | Custom-built pure aluminium knobs and wheels | Custom-built acrylic-glass switches | Highest quality, custom-built, all black Fatar TP 8 Keybed" See the 20 Electronics label for more.

Musikmesse: Pics by Shudder11

photobucket set here

Looks like Axel Hartmann had a display with some of his design work. Behind the Hartmann Neuron you can see images of some of the synths he did the interface/hardware design for including the Moog Voyager and Waldorf Wave UI. See his site for other synths he worked on. Below are the MFB modular and the new Doepfer Dark Energy. Be sure to see the set link above for more.

Hartmann Neuron Rack & External Desktop Unit

via Axel Hartmann on Facebook

Waldorf Q JADE

Update2: this might actually be the Jade version. See details there.

Here's something you might not have seen before. Axel Hartmann, maker of the Hartmann neuron, and the man behind the physical design of a number of synths ranging from Waldorf to Moog, shared this photo online - posters for the Access Virus Indigo, the Waldorf Q in classic Nextel blue, and a Waldorf Q in "JADE" (looks white). Curious if any were ever produced. Also note the creamware.com poster underneath.

Update: I reached out to swissdoc who was a Beta tester for Waldorf back in the day. He reached out to one of his contacts and apparently 3 - 5 of these may exist.

"zu der Menge Pulse in Pulver kann ich Dir leider nichts genaues sagen... es waren aber einige (vielleicht 500-1000). Ein Exot ist es auf jedenfalls nicht. Der Q allerdings in Jade ist schon eher ein Exot. Der ist nur in kleiner Muster Menge gefertigt worden, vielleicht so 3-5 Stück."

Googlish:

"Unfortunately, I can't tell you anything specific about the amount of pulses in powder ... but there were a few (maybe 500-1000). It is definitely not an exotic. However, the Q in jade is more of an exotic. It is only was made in small samples, maybe 3-5 pieces."

#jamuary2024 02 Hartmann Neuron VS in Super Locrian D

video upload by SynthAddict

"I forgot to upload this last night - another one coming later tonight.

I haven't used the mighty Neuron VS in a while. I still need to make more custom 'neural' patch models (sounds) for it.

I would love to get the Neuron keyboard, but it's rare and very expensive but looks very cool. The keyboard version has more complete software (including stick recording) and the equivalent of 3 of these Nuke controllers plus more controls onboard.
It also outputs 5.1 surround mixes if you need it.
Axel Hartmann is the man. :-)"

Design Box

"Designbox was founded in 1995 by the industrial designers Axel Hartmann and Stephan Leitl in Ravensburg, Southern Germany."

Take a look at the keyboards to the left. Design Box was part of the design of each as listed on this page. Going from left to right, top down you can see the following:

Alesis Andromeda
Moog Voyager
Waldorf Wave
Access Virus TI
Moog Little Phatty
Waldrof Q Keyboard
EMU Xboard
Hartmann Neuron

Title takes you Design Box. via sequencer.de.

Synth Legends Symposium DVD

via AudioMIDI

"If the Musical Instrument industry had rock stars, there's no doubt that Bob Moog, Tom Oberheim, and Dave Smith would be in the Hall of Fame. These men are as beloved by electronic musicians as Les Paul and Leo Fender are to guitar players. The recent death of industry legend Bob Moog brings into even greater focus the impact these men have had on music in the last three decades. And as interest in these "retro" instruments grows it seemed like a great time to bring together these "Synth Legends"; to speak about their accomplishments, tell some stories, and talk about what they have planned for the future.

Russ Jones, owner of audioMIDI.com, brought together his longtime friends, former competitors, and former partners to create a memorable night. The panel was moderated by Roger Linn, a synth legend in his own right and he set the warm, lighthearted tone for the evening. Each presenter spent about 15 to 20 minutes giving a brief history of their respective careers and how they initially got involved in creating the products that changed the MI business and what they are doing presently as well as their views of the future. Then the Q&A panel was formed and Marcus Ryle, former design engineer at Oberheim and co-founder of Line 6, joined in.

See the video and hear from these "Synth Legends" as they offer insights into music making past, present, and future. Also see the warmth and humor that was Bob Moog in his last public appearance."

Bob Moog, Tom Oberheim, Dave Smith and Roger Linn going left to right, top down.

Update via Brent Hoover in the comments:

There was some mixup and Kevin finally got a hold of us and we are straightening it out. Russ never got an email from Kevin (which I am probably to blame for since I'm the IT guy too). The cover was done by Axel Hartmann (of the Hartmann Neuron and art design of most Waldorf synths) who I don't believe would knowingly use copywritten material without taking care of it, he hates having his stuff stolen too. So apologies to Kevin and I am sure it will get worked out to his satisfaction.

As to why its American-centric is because the event was really made up of people that Russ knew personally. He worked at Oberheim in the beginning and thus came into contact with Roger, David, Tom, Bob, and Marcus. Marcus, David, Roger and Bob (until he passed away) we still dealt with all the time cuz we still sold their products. So it was not so much American-centric as Russ-centric. And not being a rich company I don't know if we could have afforded to fly and house someone from Japan (everyone else came on their own nickel). But we are all very much aware the contributions the Japanese have made to electronic music.

The point being that this was a labor of love and we are so in the hole on this we will probably never make a profit, but that was never the point. It was to contribute in our own way since we don't make synths and utilize Russ' unique relationship with all these guys.

So I sincerely hope people enjoy the DVD though we wish the sound was better (its a long story) but its a unique opportunity to really see and hear the people behind the famous gear. I know its easy to be cynical about a retailers motivations (and I certainly would) but if you spend all your times at big retailers, you might be suprised about how many others of us are in it for the love of music, because it's certainly not making me or Russ rich men (although I do have a very nice studio).

Brent Hoover - Webmaster - audioMIDI.com

These views expressed are my own and do not reflect anyone elses including Russ, audioMIDI.com, or Fox Television.

ps. I heart Matrixsynth and read it almost every day. I don't know how you do it."

Thanks! : )