The best sounding analog synth of all time?

[Azbest]

Oberheim TVS
Dreadbox Erebus v1 / Nyx v1

I have a simple taste.

[EvilDragon]

I’m one of the people who don’t quite understand the hype of vintage synthesizers. Don’t get me wrong, I love the sound of those legends, but to me they have a stiff sort of feel due to lack of velocity and aftertouch. The 90s and 00s got me totally hooked on those features, and I’d trade them for “authentic vintage sound” anytime.

I feel ya! That's what's so great about Andromeda - it sounds very vintage, but you get the modern amenities as well (IIRC even poly AT)!

[Uncle E]

I've never owned or used an Analog Keys, but I own an Analog Four mk2, which I agree sounds amazing. However, I've read that the Keys sounds a little different than the A4 and maybe even has more bottom end, but I have no idea how true that is. That demo does sound great!

Yes, they all sound different. I was told by Elektron USA that the MK2 is the Keys circuit but they don’t sound the same. They probably just told people that because it’s an easy explanation.

[christian f.]

The Dominion 1 is truly a modern classic. I’d put it up against anything from any time.

Do you own one ?

I do. It took me forever to find one, but I finally found one 5 years ago.

Nice !
I'm about to pick one up today , so I'm happy to hear this from an actual owner

[Ex Machina]

Best sounding analog synth of all time? IMO:

That sounds really nice. However, I don't think I would include it in the top 5 best sounding synths of all time. The Poly Kobol has a cool drifty quality but sounds a little "wonky" and out of tune to me. Especially compared to something like an MKS-80, for instance.

I wasn't overly impressed with the sound of the filter either. It sounds a little weak to my ears. The filter sweeps just don't have the richness of character like those of the classic OB polys or even the new OB-X8. And I don't think the Poly Kobol can match the ultra characterful sound of the Omega 8's various filter/resonance options.

But I certainly wouldn't send it back if someone just gave me a Poly Kobol.

[justin3am]

"the one you have in front of you"

Indeed. I've had some pretty decent synths sat in front of me over the years, I tend to feel like whatever I've currently got my hands on is the greatest thing ever.

I don't think I can say what sounds "best", but there are some synths which have left a particularly indelible mark on me.

ARP 2600
EMS VCS3/Synthi AKS
Buchla Easel
Serge modular
Macbeth M5
Cwejman S1mk2


I think they only poly synths I had that kind of experience with were the Oberheim FVS and Xpander. Probly because I can't play for shit.

My experience with a CS-80 is the only time I was so turned off by a legendary synth that it left an impression. The first time I tried one, I wasn't allowed to touch the controls and it was left on a particularly reedy sound which I figured just wasn't doing it justice. The second time, I had free reign but still couldn't make it do anything close to what I had expected. Of course some amazing sounds/music have been made with the CS-80, so it was probably just me.

[zerocrossing]

…I'd sell the Juno to some fool for some stupid price, buy another Rev2, and spend the leftover profit on a new camera lens and some carnitas and margaritas for our pool parties.

I’ll bring the guacamole. What time should I be there?

[pdxindy]

I've never owned or used an Analog Keys, but I own an Analog Four mk2, which I agree sounds amazing. However, I've read that the Keys sounds a little different than the A4 and maybe even has more bottom end, but I have no idea how true that is. That demo does sound great!

I've had both and the difference is negligible.

[BONES]

I’m one of the people who don’t quite understand the hype of vintage synthesizers. Don’t get me wrong, I love the sound of those legends, but to me they have a stiff sort of feel due to lack of velocity and aftertouch.

I dunno, I get where you're coming from but I think mod-wheels and joysticks are often overlooked tools when it comes to expressive performance. You only need to hear some of the incredible solos Billy Currie (Ultravox) used to play from his ARP Odyssey to understand that. When it was all we had, you got used to working with them until it became second-nature. A lot of the patches in Analog Keys have outrageous modulation via the joystick. At first I thought it was madness but once you embrace the concept, it's absolutely f**king amazeballs.

Well, that's the beauty of subjectivity, isn't it? As I stated in my last post, everybody has different tastes and we all respond differently to each synth. Nothing wrong with that.

Yeah, maybe that's why I asked you the f**king question? We all have different tastes but there is no reason we can't all understand why somebody prefers one thing over another, is there?

I've never owned or used an Analog Keys, but I own an Analog Four mk2, which I agree sounds amazing. However, I've read that the Keys sounds a little different than the A4 and maybe even has more bottom end, but I have no idea how true that is. That demo does sound great!

It's interesting because if you listen to Part 2 of that preset walkthrough, it is comparatively awful. It's like they did two different videos to appeal to two different audiences, which is quite smart of them, really.

It must be at least two years since I so much as switched mine on, much less plugged it in and played it. It's just too much effort for no benefit. We're starting proper rehearsals next week, though, so I'll have it set up in our rehearsal space which (hopefully) means it will start to see a bit of use in coming months.

[cryophonik]

I’ll bring the guacamole. What time should I be there?

Any time! The pool is open all summer and currently 84F

I've never owned or used an Analog Keys, but I own an Analog Four mk2, which I agree sounds amazing. However, I've read that the Keys sounds a little different than the A4 and maybe even has more bottom end, but I have no idea how true that is. That demo does sound great!

I've had both and the difference is negligible.

That was my suspicion tbh, just knowing how people tend to exaggerate these things on the internet. I’m guessing that most people (myself included) wouldn’t notice the difference (unless they were A/B-ing them in real time) and probably not at all in a busy mix. The only reason I ever actually gave it any attention was because someone offered me a rather favorable trade (for me) a while ago: his Analog Keys for a cheap-ish MIM P-bass I was selling. I already had my A4mk2, so my first thought was that it would be redundant, but I liked the idea of having keys built into it, since I usually use my A4mk2 with an external keyboard. I was also curious to know if the earlier model sounded different, so I did a little research and the opinions ranged from “negligible” to “worlds apart”, but the sound demos didn’t convince me that it was much different so I passed on the trade. I would’ve kept my A4mk2 anyway, but in hindsight, I still have that bass collecting dust in my closet and sorta wished I had made the trade.

[Uncle E]

My PolyBrute can sound as fat as anything, its parameter morphing blows pretty much everything else off the table for analog polyphonic experimental sounds.

PolyBrute is really something special. Definitely a modern classic. I was surprised at how much I prefer it over the MatrixBrute.

With that said, effects can do a lot. Moog One sounds great but the Eventide Blackhole it has built-in will make anything sound great.

[Ex Machina]

I dunno, I get where you're coming from but I think mod-wheels and joysticks are often overlooked tools when it comes to expressive performance. You only need to hear some of the incredible solos Billy Currie (Ultravox) used to play from his ARP Odyssey to understand that.

I think Billie Currie is one of the most underrated synthesists and live keyboard players of all time. He also cowrote most of the Midge Ure era Ultravox songs as well as Visage's "Fade to Gray" which is a Synth Pop masterpiece. And his ARP Odyssey solos are works of art in and of themselves.

My favorite Ultravox album is Rage in Eden. In fact it's in my top 10 favorite albums ever. Billie Currie's synth work on that album just blew away every one his contemporaries. And yet he got almost no recognition for his genius.

[Ex Machina]

I dunno, I get where you're coming from but I think mod-wheels and joysticks are often overlooked tools when it comes to expressive performance. You only need to hear some of the incredible solos Billy Currie (Ultravox) used to play from his ARP Odyssey to understand that.

I think Billie Currie is one of the most underrated synthesists and live keyboard players of all time. He also cowrote most of the Midge Ure era Ultravox songs as well as Visage's "Fade to Gray" which is a Synth Pop masterpiece. And his ARP Odyssey solos are works of art in and of themselves.

My favorite Ultravox album is Rage in Eden. In fact it's in my top 10 favorite albums ever. Billie Currie's synth work on that album just blew away every one his contemporaries. And yet he got almost no recognition for his genius.

IMO, the only other accomplished keyboard player who was also a super innovative sound designer and producer is Alan Wilder of Depeche Mode. That band has never been the same without him.

[BONES]

Mine is still Systems of Romance. It was pretty much the first Punk/New Wave era record I ever bought and I still listen to it on a fairly regular basis. I like some of the Midge Ure era stuff but there isn't an album I like all the way through. Rage in Eden, for example, has a great first side but nothing worthwhile after The Thin Wall.

[zerocrossing]

I’m one of the people who don’t quite understand the hype of vintage synthesizers. Don’t get me wrong, I love the sound of those legends, but to me they have a stiff sort of feel due to lack of velocity and aftertouch.

I dunno, I get where you're coming from but I think mod-wheels and joysticks are often overlooked tools when it comes to expressive performance. You only need to hear some of the incredible solos Billy Currie (Ultravox) used to play from his ARP Odyssey to understand that.

Yeah, I’m sure that works for a lot of people, obviously it does, as every keyboard has some version of those things built in, but I find them to be super clumsy.