synthesizer - it's time to get one

[spacetrip]

so it's time for me to buy a synthesizer for my beats and i've been obviously looking at the microkorg and microkorg xl...i'm not familiar with synths at all but i know these two are really good. not sure which one would be a better choice...i enjoy 'dirty' beats mostly, that raw sound....

example of a synth (or keyboard?) i enjoy: https://soundcloud.com/culpsp/styrofoamdishes
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXecbiozPCA (awesome video )

so simple/raw/catchy it's exactly what i want to do...anyone know of a synth that would achieve sounds like this under the $600 price range? thanks guys!

[springwater]

i just got a roland gaia. Its pretty cool and easy to program, like super easy as far as all the knobs being available. I hear the microkorg is pretty cool for the price but i didn't like how you program the parameters. But its cheaper and i guess everyone raves about its sound being similair to the korg ms2000. Only thing i can suggest is to actually play the synth before you buy it. Trust me. Hear the sound through headphones so you can see how digital it is. I played the gaia in store through the speakers and was blown away till i got it him and really heard what was going on. Super Digital. Analog is fuck amazing when you know the difference.

[blavatsky]

i've had (and sold) microkorg, novation nova, alesis micron, virus TI, waldorf blofeld, and lots more. The virus TI was costly but sounded great, I just didn't use it to its full advantage

Right now I use a novation x-station (or you can look at a xiosynth) and I think it has a nice character for a cheap VA. Decent effects, knob for (almost) each function, and a USB audio interface if need be.

Also check out MiniAk - its the alesis micron sound engine but in a slightly better format.

Ordered a m-audio venom ($200 right now at sweetwater) which i'll report back on - less hands on control but the sound engine sounds pretty good.

[spacetrip]

i definitely want an analog sound...no need for midi either. just want to sample into the 404 and get a grimey sound. i do want to stay away from the microkorg cus i feel like its been used so much by others. the miniak looks pretty cool, still want to see what else you all can suggest for me to check out. nothing that has a lot of parameters to get carried away with because i am new to this. i like the roland juno sounds but they look like they have a lot of stuff to mess with and their pretty big for my small room.

the alesis micron has pretty awesome sounds but you say the miniak is better?
i really want a warm sound, not ambient but just kinda like the songs by culp i sent.

[LAZER BEAR]

Moog concertmate mg-1. If you want analog sound, why not go analog. They are cheap and sound fantastic. True analog for a decent price is always monophonic. You can get around that though, just sample the two notes you want for a chord and then resample the two to one pad on the sp. You can find one on ebay, there is no digital synth that even compares to the sound from true analog. And moog is the best analog sound possible. And any good synth will have a lot of knobs to mess with, i guess its kind of overwhelming but you really should learn how to use all the functions of a synth, even the microkorg has an insane amount of parameters, thats the difference between a synth and a keyboard, synths give you full control of the sound, its not that difficult to learn what the knobs and.parameters do, it just takes some fiddling around. I have an analog dave smith instruments synth and a microkorg and am well versed in how to use them so if you.need help just post and i can answer any questions. All synths work on the same principles

[fresh-produce]

i have a concertmate mg-1. it is loads of fun. mine is broken, so it is very inconsistent and sometimes the sound will change every few seconds even without me messing with the parameters. i kind of like that about it though.

[spacetrip]

True analog for a decent price is always monophonic. You can get around that though, just sample the two notes you want for a chord and then resample the two to one pad on the sp.

interesting, the MG-1 looks dope! it looks very promising.
http://youtu.be/4Ynv4V09_d0
it shows him playing chords in this demonstration though

[springwater]

ya, that mg1 looks cool as hell. Moog too. Had a slim phatty a few months ago and i got rid of it cause i needed some money but the sound was fucking amazing. analog totally sounds way better. Even a monotribe give you some gritty sound. Might even check out the aturia minibrute. Watched a few videos of its uses and not those demo vids that show nothing. Ones buy some consumer going through every parameter and showing you how they affect the sound. Fucking cool machine, 500 bucks, midi, and all the knobs you need to know what each parameter does and not menu diving.

[spacetrip]

what about the monotron? ever tried that one? its so cheap

[ellaguru]

i've had (and sold) microkorg, novation nova, alesis micron, virus TI, waldorf blofeld, and lots more. The virus TI was costly but sounded great, I just didn't use it to its full advantage

Right now I use a novation x-station (or you can look at a xiosynth) and I think it has a nice character for a cheap VA. Decent effects, knob for (almost) each function, and a USB audio interface if need be.

i quote for the xiosyth, i got one, 3 osc, cool filter, arpeggio and you're ok. the soundcard isn't that cool indeed. it's cheap and it's ok. goes with batteries/usb too.
another one could be, again novation, mininova. i didn't tried it, it seems an upgraded version of the microkorg (on the look side), but maybe it's overpriced.

[CULP]

Yooo thanks for the plug and kind words/interest
I usually put what synth I use in the description of the tracks that I post.
I'm a big fan of synthesizers. tuxedo kamen put me on to the sound of analog years ago.

I used a casiotone 101 and a micro korg xl for styrofoam dishes

But my main shit is an ms2000 (VA) and the Roland Juno 106 (analog)

I recommend getting something with lots of knobs and less menus.

The ms2000 is pretty affordable and real dirty. It has the same engine as the micro but tons of knobs and parameters to mess with.
It's worth the extra bit of change. $

I copped my rack version for $ 200

Good luck

[ellaguru]

Yooo thanks for the plug and kind words/interest
I usually put what synth I use in the description of the tracks that I post.
I'm a big fan of synthesizers. tuxedo kamen put me on to the sound of analog years ago.

I used a casiotone 101 and a micro korg xl for styrofoam dishes

But my main shit is an ms2000 (VA) and the Roland Juno 106 (analog)

I recommend getting something with lots of knobs and less menus.

The ms2000 is pretty affordable and real dirty. It has the same engine as the micro but tons of knobs and parameters to mess with.
It's worth the extra bit of change. $

I copped my rack version for $ 200

Good luck

that video is super cool!
and i got a 106 too, one of my ever preferred synth (not cheap indeed)

[LAZER BEAR]

Monotron is way too limited... i have one and its a cool toy and has an ok sound but wouldnt be cool if it was all you had

[blavatsky]

+1 on arturia minibrute for cheap mono analog w/ some nice flexibility

Also as mentioned the 80s roland polys are nice, i had and really liked a JX3p + PG200 (editor), sorry I sold it

[CULP]

Monotron is way too limited... i have one and its a cool toy and has an ok sound but wouldnt be cool if it was all you had

Have you heard what I_kil_animals has done with a monotron and 404?

can't you run a signal through the monotron and filter it....?
I'm sure if you ran some vst pc keyboard through the piece, it would soften/dirty up the sound

You could also sample a note and transpose it using another sampler or program.

Looking at something with 'limits' is kind of weird, we use SP's !
It's all about workarounds. []

I would like to filter my fb01 with a monotron delay