Synthstrom Online Festival #1

Published on May 16, 2020 Synthstrom Audible

"A 3-hour streaming festival with community live chat, showcasing brand new, previously unseen, live performances on the Deluge.

All artists have contributed their time for free and it is hoped you can spare a moment to make a donation to NZ Women's Refuge in return. Please follow this link: https://womensrefuge.org.nz/make-a-do...

An A-Z of the artists appearing (not order they appear on stream) is below, with a link to check out further of their work.

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Source Audio SA262 Ventris Dual Reverb

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this auction

Note this is not a synth, but it is from a supporting member of the site.

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Chimera Synthesis BC16

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via this auction

"The Chimera BC16 audio synthesizer is powered by three internal 9V batteries and has a built-in headphone amplifier for private patching. The unit has a MIDI input and cab be run from a CV source such as an analog sequencer or controller with CV output.

The Unit is a complete patchable analog monophonic synthesizer with a VCO, LFO, envelope generator with noise and ring modulation in a circular small sized plastic case.

Comes with rechargeable batteries, charger and a bunch of mini banana, banana, audio and midi cables (see photos)"

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Classic Moog Opus 3 in Immaculate Condition

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via this auction

"Here we have some vintage Moog analog glory.

Meticulously serviced last year by Mr Andy Jury AKA The Synth Professor.

It has that brilliant Moog sound that you can’t quite explain but just know is Moog. It is in immaculate condition apart from a couple of small marks along the top at the back which I’ve tried my best to photograph. The Telecaster is not for sale it’s just so you can see the size of the synth."

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Technosaurus Microdon, Microcon II, & Cyclodon

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TMC - 2159
TMII - 2082
TCD - 20100

"Beautifully made in Switzerland. Like new... All analog. The 2 modules can be controlled by the sequencer (16 steps) which is also midi controllable. Microcon 2 accept external input to go through the VCF filter and midi. Possibilities are endless. Very powerful system and sounds huge, especially when using the sub-mix-vco, octave -2."

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RARE Vintage Computone Incorporated Analog Wind Synthesizer Driver w/ manual

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You can find close-up pics of the interface in previous posts here.

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Korg Arp Odyssey FS Mk1 Demo

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated. Korg Arp Odyssey FS Mk1 Demo: A synth I loved, treated well and am going to miss.

Published on May 16, 2020 Surface Noises

"This is my Korg Arp FSQ Mk1, which I'm selling on Reverb. The video is very lofi: I'm clutching a camera and microphone in one hand whilst trying to twiddle knobs.

But I hope it shows that I look after the synths I own. I've been running a record-selling gig on Discogs under the same name for years with 100% feedback."

via this auction

"The Odyssey is in close to perfect condition, with no obvious problems I have spotted. There may be very slight signs of use, but I haven't spotted them. It looks really beautiful. This version is definitely the best-looking Odyssey you can get. It's Mk1 and looks like the Whiteface models which were the first to come to market (and had the best sounding filter, in my opinion)

The sliders all feel good and I don't have any problems to report with any other aspect of the synth. It came with a sequencer - a version of the widely available Korg SQ1, which I sold because I thought it was rubbish. The Odyssey comes with original box and power supply, as well as the aforementioned dust cover."

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John Bowen Solaris Has Arrived

A few pics of my newly arrived John Bowen Solaris in the studio. I've wanted one of these since they were announced, but could never afford one until a couple of years ago. I talked myself out of one in the beginning, as I already had a Waldorf Q rack and an XTk keyboard, along with plenty of other virtual analog and real analog gear. In the back of my mind though, I knew I might one day own one. A few years ago I reached the breaking point with the synth collection I picked up over the years. I found myself going into the studio and spending time with synths I wasn't sure about keeping to see if I indeed wanted to keep them. I'd decide yes, this synth is great, I should keep it, only to walk out of the studio neglecting other synths that I honestly wanted to play more. I did this for years. The breaking point for me was when a few of the older analogs started exhibiting problems and I realized I didn't have a solid tech in the area. The only way to fix them would be to ship them off incurring the shipping costs to and back over the cost of the repairs. I also began to realize how redundant my synths were. Seriously. They are all either subtractive analog, wavetable, FM, additive, or PCM/sample based in the end. They are all just different flavors of the same thing. I mean how many different brands of vanilla ice cream do you really need? For me synths are about getting lost in the sound - about exploring sound. So yes, the more brands the better, but... just like there's only so much space in my belly for ice cream, I only have so much time in the studio. I realized it was time to let some go and in doing so I could use the money on other gear I'd been GASing on, like the Sequential OB-6, Elektron Digitakt, a Jupiter-XM to replace some vintage Rolands I gave up, and of course the Solaris. The Solaris was actually the first on the list. As I said, I wanted one since the start. I also know John Bowen, and no I did not get a deal on my Solaris. The Solaris is a labor of love and John pretty much runs the show on his own. He does work with others on building them of course, but this is a small enterprise. You can't find these in shops. They are exclusively sold on John Bowen's website: https://johnbowen.com, and there is a wait time. When I reached out to John about finally getting one he let me know this might be the last run. It was run number 7 and I asked him if I could get the last one. He said yes so I went for it. A couple of years later it arrived. (P.S. I heard there might be another run and John is still working on the OS, an expander, and possibly a desktop version, see the update in red below).

Do I have any regrets? I can emphatically say no. This is an amazing synth. What sets it apart is it has four, not three fully blown oscillators that can be morphed with a joystick for vector synthesis of wavetable and virtual analog synthesis. No other synth that I am aware of can do this. It is also fully modular. If you look at each display panel section, each knob, you can essentially load anything into them and route them however you want. Things aren't locked in place like other synths. The Solaris also runs at a super high resolution - 96kHz to be exact. People say it sounds analog and this is not an overstatement. It sounds amazing. I hate to say it, but it leaves my Q in the dust. It just sounds so much more bold and present. It is hands down the best sounding VA and Wavetable synth I own. I've owned a lot of synths over the years including some of the most sought after - Jupiter-8, OB-Xa, Matrix-12, Prophet-5, Rhodes Chroma, Alesis Andromeda A6, Yamaha CS-60, original Minimoog Model D, ARP Odyssey with CMS mods, and more. The Solaris is right up there with them if not surpassing them. It is that good. It feels different too. It feels like a powerhouse design tool. A synth of synths, so to speak. Note it also has the Prophet VS waveforms. I have a Prophet VS rack (you can see it in the top right), and I can say the Solaris sonically matches it - it has that transparent, bold presence missing in many digital synths. An unintended added bonus is the Solaris joystick actually works with the Prophet VS! :)

That said, if you do plan on picking up a Solaris or a Solaris expander, reach out to John first. This isn't an order now and get it next week sort of synth. It's more of a long term investment. How long? For me it was two years as I wanted the last of the final run. It was worth the wait.

Update: I should note my Solaris has a unique serial number out of the standard sequence. It's 10041. I'm curious if anyone will recognize the reference. :) So, although this might not be the last Solaris keyboard, it will have an interestingly unique SN. :) I also updated the above with the following: "Note it also has the Prophet VS waveforms. I have a Prophet VS rack and the Solaris sonically matches it - it has that transparent, bold, presence missing in many digital synths."

As for a new Solaris, there is work on a Solaris expander and possibly a desktop version. See this post for some desktop pics including an OS update (also in my studio), and see here for the expander sitting on top of two 1U mixers in the top right. You can find a demo from Sonicstate at NAMM 2020 posted here.

Automation

Published on May 16, 2020 George Benton

"Starts light, heats up in the middle and toward the end, then cools off. Ahh..."

Moog Subharmonicon Synthesizer for Relaxing meditative music.

Published on May 16, 2020 Sound Provider

"I feel the Beautifuf Moog Subharmonicon will be my main Meditative Synth for relaxation :)

I used it here without anything else except long Delay and Reverb.

Sorry for the autoFocus, I switch it off but it still works...I must have missed something."