UK analogue synth prices

[GaryG]

I remember the Soho Soundhouse ad from ~86 where they were clearing out new 303s for £39... Seemed way too limited so I passed...

Finally got an analogue from a local paper in the early 90s, sci Pro One for £150. Sold it last year for £700.

Cool.

[himalaya]

So the real question is ( for those who want to make a quick buck in +15 years):
What current music technology instrument/device that is going cheap, should we be investing in ?

[justin3am]

So the real question is ( for those who want to make a quick buck in +15 years):
What current music technology instrument/device that is going cheap, should we be investing in ?

Hold onto your copies of Retro AS-1, Unity and Turbo Synth.
I can see people paying top dollar for Capybara 320s the way people do for CMI IIx. Maybe Eventide H8000s.

"No, no, no! the Pacarana has more power but it doesn't have the built-in audio I/O. The converters are what give it that sound!"

[Acid Mitch]

So the real question is ( for those who want to make a quick buck in +15 years):

lol, it's hardly a quick buck if you have to wait 15 years.

[Chuck E. Jesus]

Unity...

ARRGHH!!! worst piece of software i've used...it was years ago, but still bad memories

[v1o]

Does anyone think retro VA's will become worth alot of money in the future?

[himalaya]

So the real question is ( for those who want to make a quick buck in +15 years):

lol, it's hardly a quick buck if you have to wait 15 years.

[himalaya]

Does anyone think retro VA's will become worth alot of money in the future?

Perhaps if they were installed on the first example of a 1Ghz laptop, the first example of a Dual Core laptop, then perhaps yes. Who knows.

I would imagine any instrument/device/computer that was a milestone or a significant advancement would be desirable, if it were in a perfect working condition. But then, I'm just guessing.

edit: I meant 1 Ghz, not 1GB, doh!

[kritikon]

Does anyone think retro VA's will become worth alot of money in the future?

I doubt it. Many of the retro VAs were an attempt to cash in on the market desire for analogues. Some of them were good, some not, but they were still mostly a pale shadow of proper analogues, so I can't see them being worth much. Plus, because they're basically s/w in a controller, no difference to any similar VSTi. In fact, as the years go by, the VSTis are rapidly outshining most of those h/w VAs, as things develop so quickly. The only value is in the controller. I'd maybe buy an old VA for the knobbage as a general controller, but the actual synth itself...unlikely.

It's far more likely that the modern digital h/w that is unique and NOT a VA will retain price. Can't think of many offhand...what was that one called that also became a VSTi with a controller that was just a joystick? It flopped, but things like that are the type of synth that become classics. Like Wavestations - only Korg has now made a proper VSTi, so the price on those won't hold up either. H/w that just tries to copy originals rarely holds value for long.

[JimmiG]

Does anyone think retro VA's will become worth alot of money in the future?

Synths like the Virus A/B are a bit overpriced for their capabilities IMO. Also seen some Nord Leads (the original ones with no effects and limited polyphony) going for way more than they're worth. Same with the JP-8000. They may originally have been designed to copy old analog gear, but they seem to have a character of their own that some people are willing to pay for. Not sure what people will think of them 15 years from now...?

[kritikon]

Hate to say it, but the synths of today most likely to hold some price and achieve classic status are things like Alesis Andromeda and maybe Dave Smith stuff. Possibly some of the recent modulars too.