The power you can coax out of a hardware synthesizer must be experienced to be fully appreciated. Like tapping something with your finger and setting off an atomic explosion, playing a hardware synth can be a surprisingly visceral experience especially with analog synths. Manipulating raw energy through circuits lets us all be Dr. Frankenstein, harnessing electricity and breathing life into our various monsters. An excellent example to demonstrate this difference would be to do a filter sweep on your VST then do one on a hardware synth.
You should notice a subtlety and depth in the hardware that is subdued, or that is obviously not as organic as the analog counterpart is. This expressiveness is a singular experience, unique to your particular piece of hardware at any given moment - how warm it is, how accurately it is tuned, and the millimeter precise positioning of each pot, fader and control point on the instrument will provide you with a totally unique experience every time you touch it.
Well, what kind of synth do you want? These different types of waveforms are heard as tones and have different aural characteristics depending on the shape of the wave. So then, you take this generated tone and you send it into a Filter. There are a myriad of different filter types but they all serve the same purpose: to either cut or boost frequencies within the waveform. This is how you begin to shape your sound. We now arrive at the Amp section.
In addition to these basic features, you will usually have some sort of modulation control over it all. So, while all synths basically do the same thing, each possess unique performance characteristics from one another. By mixing the simple ingredients around, and adding more parts and options you can go from straightforward and inexpensive to complex and your first born.
You can buy synths that look like a traditional keyboard, or you could go after what is known as a synth module. Popular contemporary synth modules like the Waldorf Blofeld and the Roland Boutique lines fall into this category. This is just a synth with the keyboard component ripped out of it, which means you save some money and can use any MIDI controller you may already have as the keyboard. Now that you have a basic grasp of what kinds of synths are out there, the next step is to determine what exactly works best for your specific setup.
What do you want to accomplish by adding a synth to your production arsenal? Do you play many gigs? Do you produce a certain genre of music? Well, some synths lend themselves to certain styles much more readily than others.
Ambient, Techno, Industrial - whatever your preference there is a synth out there geared toward your musical tastes. How much bang do you get for your buck? You can get a lot of great hardware synths for amazing prices today, but there is always a give and take. What about polyphony? Polyphony is how many notes you can simultaneously play on the keyboard.
For instance, if you hit every key on an acoustic piano at the same time, every note would sound. That being the case, a traditional, full-size piano has note polyphony. When it comes to the synths, analog or not, increased polyphony gets very expensive.
This raises the cost considerably. A mono synth, as the name implies, only allows one note to be played at a time. This lends itself toward a particular style of playing, detached from chord progressions. Well, all of those things will cost you. What sort of onboard control and routing do you need?
Do you want to exclusively use knobs, or are you a menu-diver who needs some sort of digital display? Bob Moog was both an engineer and electronic music pioneer, and you probably know him best as being the inventor of the Moog synthesizer.
Today, the words Moog and synthesizer are all but synonymous. For any musician, owning a Moog synth is special, since the Moog sound is something that has been often imitated, but never quite replicated. In the modern hardware synth renaissance, Moog is a force to be reckoned with, with a lineup of synths that are visually and sonically drool-worthy. So, what exactly is the Sub Phatty? Besides, its strength is not playing chords.
The Sub Phatty is an absolute monster in a good way when it comes to basses and leads, for which one note at a time is fully sufficient. The unit just feels solid, and nothing seems to have been compromised.
The most striking thing about the Sub Phatty is its layout. Every single knob and button is right there, waiting to be tweaked the knobs feel great to turn, by the way. There are no LED screens or menus to have to wade through. Synth experts will instantly be familiar with the layout of the knobs and sections, but the best thing is that people new to synths and synthesis will quickly come to terms with how to work the Sub Phatty , and what it takes to conjure up awesome sounds.
The panel design is intuitive. One more feature to touch on is the keyboard. The Sub Phatty has a 2-octave, key semi-weighted keyboard which feels nice, but some users of the synth find the number of keys a little limiting and cramped. Still, some argue that having more octaves available helps bring more out of this synth.
How does the Moog Sub Phatty sound? This synth excels at leads and basses. The sub oscillator helps make some thundering basses, but make no mistake - this synth is not restricted to aggressive sounds.
To quote MusicRadar:. You can achieve some very soft, warm, rounded pads; ethereal and atmospheric sounds are a few knob turns away. There is no effects section on this synth, and the prospect to running the dry sound through some effects guitar distortion pedals for instance gets us very excited. By all accounts the Sub Phatty responds to effects quite well. The editor makes creating, managing, and saving patches easier, since the knobs on the editor and your synth stay synchronized with each other.
That said, the software editor makes accessing and adjusting Shift Mode settings much easier. The Sub Phatty has numerous pro artists singing its praises. Its Achilles heel might be its hefty price tag - some of the other synths we recommend cost half of what this one does.
If we were searching for our next catchy lead hook or bassline and we had all the synths we recommend in the same room, we would not hesitate to reach for the Sub Phatty first. Judge the JUA not by its adorable size — the polysynth is an adept all-rounder, capable of putting out huge sounds. With it, you get four voices of polyphony, an intuitive pattern sequencer, an arpeggiator with hold function and built-in effects such as chorus and delay too.
In addition to bi-timbral operation, new hardware and software features make it onto the Summit, including a semi-weighted keyboard with 61 keys and a new voice section with five mono and poly modes. Plus, access to twin Peaks gives you the flexibility to run two simultaneous patches — split or stacked — for key-centric or layered sounds.
This six-voice polysynth gives you two waveshaping oscillators; a ladder and Steiner filter, which can be run in parallel or serial; three envelopes and three LFOs. The PolyBrute implements its expression features neatly into its overall design. However, its comprehensiveness makes it an ideal studio companion for tackling productions of all kinds.
The Korg Minilogue XD matches capable specs with a sensible price tag, making it a great choice for entry-level music-makers looking to get into synthesis. This four-voice polysynth is the successor to the Minilogue and offers the same two analogue voltage-controlled oscillators, but adds a third digital one with noise, vpm and 16 user programs for more sound design flair.
A well-designed user experience paves the way for deep sonic exploration. Other features include an arpeggiator with seven algorithms and sort orders and a step sequencer with parameter automation, quantisation and more. The Quantum succeeds at empowering music-makers creatively; for how advanced it can get, it manages an easy-to-follow user experience.
Korg took a leaf out of its own book with Opsix, applying the simplistic concept of its Wavestate to a new FM synth. For now, however, these ten beginner synths are more than enough to get you started on your adventures. Head here for more gear columns and how-to features.
An undisputed titan in its field, no modern synth in this price range comes anywhere close to topping the Korg Minilogue. Read next : The 5 best drum machines to turn you into a master beat-maker. Previous More. Analog or digital?
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