R.I.P. Dave Smith
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- KVRAF
- 37426 posts since 14 Sep, 2002 from In teh net
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- KVRAF
- Topic Starter
- 13128 posts since 7 May, 2006 from Southern California
He was a very nice person and would talk to anyone who approached him at trade shows. In the DSI days, you might end up talking directly with him if you sent in an e-mail for support. I feel very fortunate to have been able to chat up Dave, Don and Bob while they were still alive. Of course I didn't know them well but I felt a kinship with these giants of music technology. Dave's openness made me feel like I was a part of it. Throw back a shot of tequila for him if you can.
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- KVRian
- 1024 posts since 8 Mar, 2004 from Network 23
We shall see orchestral machines with a thousand new sounds, with thousands of new euphonies, as opposed to the present day's simple sounds of strings, brass, and woodwinds. -- George Antheil, circa 1925 ---
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- KVRAF
- 3362 posts since 31 Dec, 2004 from People's Republic of Minnesota
Man. All the legends are going. Damn.
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- Banned
- 88 posts since 3 May, 2022
Oh, man. my Poly Evolver Rack, Tetra, and REV2 module (which replaced my Prophet 08 rack) are now even more revered in my studio. You know, everyone bagged on Dave Smith Instruments for including "weak" sounding Curtis filters in their modern synthesizers. But even though I owned two MKS-80s, an MKS-70, MKS-50, and MKS-7 along with a Waldorf Pulse (plus several hybrids and many digital synths,) I thought the Dave Smith stuff sounded totally unique. Sure, the Prophet 08 didn't sound like a Prophet 5. But it had 4 LFOs, 3 envelopes, a bitchin' step sequencer, two full synthesizer layers per patch, arpeggiators per layer, and a truly great sounding filter FM implementation, oh, and it was velocity and aftertouch sensitive with a mod matrix! I'm not embarrassed to admit that I preferred the Prophet 08 overall to the Prophet 5. (Though I did and still do own a Sequential Pro One keyboard.)
Basically what I'm saying is that Dave Smith just got better with age. He will be missed.
EDIT: I always forget that Dave Smith was one of the driving forces behind the development of Korg's Wavestation. Although I felt that the Wavestation missed the mark by not including a resonant filter (even a digital one,) and had the most annoying patch management system of any synthesizer ever developed, it was still a truly ground breaking instrument - and this coming from a guy who owns a Waldorf MicroWave I and MicroWave II XT (which along with the Prophet VS were the inspirations for the Wavestation). I'm so glad that Korg created a plugin version of the Wavestation (with a resonant filter!). This way Dave's digital legacy can live on.
Basically what I'm saying is that Dave Smith just got better with age. He will be missed.
EDIT: I always forget that Dave Smith was one of the driving forces behind the development of Korg's Wavestation. Although I felt that the Wavestation missed the mark by not including a resonant filter (even a digital one,) and had the most annoying patch management system of any synthesizer ever developed, it was still a truly ground breaking instrument - and this coming from a guy who owns a Waldorf MicroWave I and MicroWave II XT (which along with the Prophet VS were the inspirations for the Wavestation). I'm so glad that Korg created a plugin version of the Wavestation (with a resonant filter!). This way Dave's digital legacy can live on.
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- KVRAF
- 4206 posts since 13 Jun, 2014
Considering all the recent new machines from Sequential, and how fit and healthy Dave Smith looked, it all seems to come as a bit of a shock.
<list your stupid gear here>
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- KVRAF
- 35675 posts since 11 Apr, 2010 from Germany
Totally. I actually didn't even know he was that old yet. I rather though he was like 60 to 65.
It's good to know though that he left some people capable and in charge of future developments in his company. His instruments have a great legacy, so, it would be a shame to see them go as well.
It's good to know though that he left some people capable and in charge of future developments in his company. His instruments have a great legacy, so, it would be a shame to see them go as well.
Rest in peace Dave.-
- KVRAF
- 3362 posts since 31 Dec, 2004 from People's Republic of Minnesota
I loved the evolver and Tetra! Very unique, raw synths that I wish he would’ve continued.OllieBoi wrote: Fri Jun 03, 2022 10:33 am Oh, man. my Poly Evolver Rack, Tetra, and REV2 module (which replaced my Prophet 08 rack) are now even more revered in my studio. You know, everyone bagged on Dave Smith Instruments for including "weak" sounding Curtis filters in their modern synthesizers. But even though I owned two MKS-80s, an MKS-70, MKS-50, and MKS-7 along with a Waldorf Pulse (plus several hybrids and many digital synths,) I thought the Dave Smith stuff sounded totally unique. Sure, the Prophet 08 didn't sound like a Prophet 5. But it had 4 LFOs, 3 envelopes, a bitchin' step sequencer, two full synthesizer layers per patch, arpeggiators per layer, and a truly great sounding filter FM implementation, oh, and it was velocity and aftertouch sensitive with a mod matrix! I'm not embarrassed to admit that I preferred the Prophet 08 overall to the Prophet 5. (Though I did and still do own a Sequential Pro One keyboard.)
Basically what I'm saying is that Dave Smith just got better with age. He will be missed.
EDIT: I always forget that Dave Smith was one of the driving forces behind the development of Korg's Wavestation. Although I felt that the Wavestation missed the mark by not including a resonant filter (even a digital one,) and had the most annoying patch management system of any synthesizer ever developed, it was still a truly ground breaking instrument - and this coming from a guy who owns a Waldorf MicroWave I and MicroWave II XT (which along with the Prophet VS were the inspirations for the Wavestation). I'm so glad that Korg created a plugin version of the Wavestation (with a resonant filter!). This way Dave's digital legacy can live on.