Why have one synth icon produce an all-new synth for the 21st century, when you can take two into the lab to design something with twice the kudos? Why indeed? OB-6 is the result of this ultimate meeting of synth minds, so the pressure is on and it had better be good.
So it turns out that being really excited about something can make one break the law. Okay, not in a ‘lock him up and throw away the key’ kind of way, but I was so excited when I heard about this synth that I actually <del>broke into</del> entered the NAMM show early to get pictures of it. Crazy, eh? I risked everything for you, dear Audionews readers. And OB-6 went on to be our product of that NAMM show back in January. The excitement caused by it was pretty much all down to the fact that it has not one, but two names on it: Dave Smith’s and Tom Oberheim’s. We love Dave Smith synths (I gave the Prophet-6 a full 10/10 just a few months ago) and we love Oberheim’s synths (I am the very happy owner of an SE SEM, too). This, then, is the synth equivalent of Bowie meeting Jagger. No it’s better than that; it’s Bowie meeting Eno. Have I just put too much pressure on the resulting synth? Yep. Okay, it’s not quite that, but back in 1979, Stateside you were either a Sequential synth head or an Oberheim synth head. In 2016, you can be both…
So you get the point. And this kind of meeting is rare in our studio-gear world. You don’t get the likes of Korg and Roland hooking up to do stuff together over the weekend, so we just love the intro video that implies that these two pioneers met in a bar and came up with the idea for OB-6 on the back of a napkin (see pic below).
" ‘Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world…’ etc. When Tom Oberheim (left) met Dave Smith, they came up with the idea for OB-6 on the back of a napkin. Okay, that probably didn’t happen, as the promo video implies, but we love the idea…"
However, the meeting did occur, and the result is obviously intriguing, to say the least. The main headline is that it’s an Oberheim SEM synth reborn – with variable oscillators and filters built into a synth that very much has a DSI aesthetic, including some of the looks and indeed features found on the Prophet-6 (which allowed Tom and Dave to get the synth to market very quickly and secretively – hence the excitement at NAMM). There are also extra modulation features; effects which include models based on an Oberheim phase shifter and ring modulator; the arpeggiator and sequencer from the Prophet-6; likewise, the LFO and Aftertouch modulation sections; plus lots of other fancy bells and whistles that bring this analogue superstar collaboration right up to date. But really, it’s the core of the beast that makes it special. I’ll now go into a lot of depth on this, then, but if you want to jump to the sonic action, turn a couple of pages…
OB-6 in depth The OB-6 is inspired by the original Oberheim SEM and the heart of that effectively lies in the OB-6. It features two oscillators (plus sub) per voice, and one of the big draws of the synth is that the oscillators feature continuously variable waveshaping. So on VCO1, for example, you can twist between sawtooth and square wave in one sweep, so one of your core ingredients can be sitting anywhere you like for lots of sonic possibilities. These are enhanced further with a Pulse Width dial. Oscillator 2 is also continuously variable, but features a triangle waveform plus the pulse width modulation and detuning. Oscillator 2 can also be used as a modulation source, with a Low Freq button that puts it in LFO mode so you could, for example, apply it back to modulate oscillator 1. A Keyboard button changes the frequency of this oscillation according to the key you hit – I’ll talk more about that when we cover modulation in the X-Mod section.
Also in the Oscillator section, there’s a square sub wave to beef up your bass sounds. It also adds a more subtle richness to other timbres or, should you want, just use it as a separate source. Finally, there’s a noise source to add an extra top end and fuzziness.
The other important element of the OB-6 is the filter. It’s an ‘Oberheiminspired’, two-pole, 12dB/octave filter in, effectively, four parts (hi, low, notch and band) which offers a zingy, harmonically rich sound that lends itself to pads – hence the great reputation Oberheim has for them.
In a similar way to the oscillators, filter types are state-variable. so you aren’t just switching between types but flowing from one to another; you can sit anywhere between low and notch, or notch and high-pass, should you wish. This creates particularly interesting sounds when you go between the latter two and sweep the Resonance knob – you get added meow… There’s also a Band Pass switch that lets you define a band and sweep through the frequency range, again offering rich results.
The variable nature of the Filter section means that you can create some very diverse sounds and, of course, with the oscillators variable, too, we’re talking vast timbre possibilities.
Next up, you can then bring the OB-6’s Filter Envelope section into the equation for movement and variation over time to really breathe life into more static sounds. Then, combine this with keyboard velocity (so hitting keys will alter your filter envelope and change sounds according to how hard you press them) and you open up another performance element. In short: variable ingredients plus variable filters plus variable ways of playing them over time and velocity equals massive potential.
Modulation possibilities
We’ve seen how Oscillator 2 can be used as a separate LFO, but OB-6’s next section is for a dedicated LFO. Here, you get a Frequency dial to set the frequency of the modulation and what it applies to (VCO1 frequency; VCO2 frequency; VCO1 and 2 pulse width; amp; and filter cutoff and mode). The LFO lets you select from one of five waveshapes: sine, sawtooth, reverse sawtooth, square, or sample and hold – which doubles as a noise waveshape when the LFO frequency is turned to its maximum setting. It’s a more basic modulation setup than you’ll find on other synths, but very easy to use because of that, and not unlike the Prophet-6’s (albeit with a slightly different layout). You select what the LFO modulates just by pressing the buttons, which then light up – which means you’ll very quickly start experimenting.
In my tests, modulating the pulse widths got some very pleasing results very quickly and, of course, using it on the filter frequency yields even more dramatic results. The Filter Mode option is also well worth experimenting with, as it cycles through the filter types for some very varied sonic movement. Again, though, I have to go back to the fact that the core ingredients of what you are modulating are key here and with the variable nature of both filter and oscillator, you will get some exceptional results as you try different things out. It’s also worth pointing out that an LFO Sync button is on hand to keep all of this experimenting in check.
The Aftertouch section is also simple to use, and lifted from the Prophet-6. The amount of modulation that your aftertouch pressure will apply is controlled with a main dial (either positively or negatively) and then this can be applied to both oscillator frequencies, LFO or fi lter type and frequency. A typical use of this could be that you use aftertouch instead of the mod wheel to affect these parameters. Combine this with the velocity/envelope performance options I discussed on the previous page and you’re talking easy, fun and very varied sonic performance capabilities. Continuing the modulation theme but getting into a bit more depth, we’ll now look at the X-Mod section.
X-Mod: days of future sound
X-Mod is similar to the Prophet-6’s Poly Mod – a highlight of that synth and an area where you use Osc 2 and the fi lter envelope as extra modulation sources.
The advantage of this is not initially clear, as you may think that having an LFO is good enough for this task. But, essentially, if you think of your LFO as a single oscillator modulating whatever destination you choose, then you can think of X-Mod as that multiplied by six. This is because X-Mod uses all of the oscillators available within the synth; so if you dial in VCO2, you have six oscillators modulating separately and independently from each other to create far more vibrant textures. Waveforms start at whatever time you press a key – and this is a particularly dramatic effect when you hit the Keyboard button so that you start modulating destinations at the varied frequencies of the notes pressed. Also, because you are modulating with VCO2 rather than the LFO, you are modulating with a variable waveform with all of the extra sonic flexibility which that gives you over the fixed waveform (from five options) of the LFO.
Things get even more interesting – and slightly complicated, I have to say – when you use these six oscillators to start modulating other parameters, such as the shape of the six oscillators in Oscillator 1. Or you can, for example, use the six oscillators in Oscillator 2 to modulate the sounds created by Oscillator 1 while the filters swing between normal and band-pass types. Either approach gives pretty stunning results, with a minimum of work.
As I’ve said, it’s not just VCO2 that is used as a modulation source in the X-Mod section, but the Filter Envelope dial can also be used; again, with the same destinations as VCO2 uses. So it can control Oscillator 1, its shape, the pulse width and so on, all the time mixed with VCO2 modulating, too.
Don’t worry too much if you’re not completely with me regarding the X-Mod feature. It basically opens up more sonic pathways than are available with other synths, routing more things, fattening things, and joining things up that might not be traditionally joined. As for the results? Well, we’re really talking about more complex, evolving sounds, with a lot of movement, or richer timbres. Rather than everything moving ‘as one’, all modulated by one LFO, complex tones are created by this individual modulation per note/oscillator, or the fi lter envelope.
X-Mod is a section you’ll need to spend time with and is worthy of an article on its own, as it has so much potential. But the bottom line for now is, yet again: more sonic power!
Other features
As with the Prophet-6 – and apologies for my continued references back to that synth, but it was a recent review and many of the features are understandably shared – you also get a great Unison Mode. This allows you to turn a six-voice poly synth into a great-sounding mono.
By that, I don’t mean it simply makes a mono synth with sounds stacked together – well it does, but it’s a bit more fully featured than that.
Essentially, you can choose how many voices you stack – up to six. OB-6, like Prophet-6 (sorry), is at its best when you detune these parts in Unison Mode. By increasing the detuning between the oscillators – be subtle about this at first – you can create massive mono synth sounds, and I mean massive. You can go a bit too bonkers here – especially when you bring the sub and noise in – but it’s a surprisingly usable feature. You may think you only want a poly synth, but when you hear what‘s possible here, you’ll understand the thinking behind it.
Within Unison Mode, there is also a Chord Memory function which stores the chord you play per note and transposes it up and down the keyboard as you play – useful for setting up chordal stabs.
Now we get to the two sections at the top of the OB-6 front panel, where we find the very useful Sequencer and Arpeggiator features. I didn’t really have the room to cover these in my Prophet-6 review, but both are fairly standard and easy to get your head around. The Arpeggiator is linked to the Hold button (located nearer the keyboard) to latch the notes i.e. carry on playing your played chord even when you release the notes. This is great for making evolving sequences that move in real time according to edits made on the front panel – showing off, basically! You can easily sync clock sources or the internal delay effects, too – all good stuff.
The sequencer is a step sequencer comprising up to 64 steps, with up to six notes per step. You use it by hitting the Record button and recording step by step including Rests (gaps) if you need them, or Ties to extend notes. It’s more useful as a live song player so you can play along to it as a backing track (as long as you don’t exceed the six notes of polyphony in total). This (and the Arpeggiator) can be synced to an external audio source via an input socket, so you could play along to a drum machine, too.
Both the Arpeggiator and Sequencer really do extend what are already pretty good performance features on the OB-6. It’s much more a players’ synth than you might at first think – I certainly approached it as more of a sound creator than performer. Yes, it obviously has the elements for creating many great sounds; but in its modulation features plus the Sequencer and Arpeggiator, it has plenty of options and tools to manipulate, perform, record and play back live, too. Solo performers and players really can noodle away on it as much as they like.
"Pretty standard connections around the back, though the OB-6 does come with USB MIDI and plenty of footswitch options"
Effects
We come to the final section of the synth, and this is the one that distinguishes OB-6 from many other analogues: digital effects! It is a dual effects engine (Effect A and B), so two can be stored per program. You get delays, chorusing, fl angers, phasers and reverbs and the effects are placed in series with all reverbs on Effect B (as they would normally be placed in an effects chain).
Yes, the Prophet-6 has these effects, too, and they are broadly similar. However, the OB-6 also features a ring modulator and phase shifter modelled on classic Oberheim designs, the former offering a pleasingly gritty and metallic edge, and the latter rather more subtle phasing based on an Oberheim six-stage model.
Using the effects couldn’t be easier: simply select A or B, dial in your effect and then choose the Mix dial to blend each. You get two main parameters to adjust, which are usually the most commonly accessed ones for each effect (so you’ll find delay times and feedback for delays, and rates and depths for fl angers).
As we’ve said, the delay effects can be synced to the Arpeggiator as well as an external MIDI clock and to the onboard Sequencer.
In use, the effects are gloriously simple to employ and incredibly clean, not surprising, given their digital nature – unless, that is, you layer distortion on there. This is an effect that you access by holding down the Effect button, one that is always just a dial away and also one that’s been used so well on the more in-your-face presets.
But going back to the ‘digital subject’ and, for the analogue purists among you, bypassing the effects keeps the analogue signal of OB-6 completely digital-free. So if you don’t want this modern technology influencing your classic sound, you can switch off the evil magic at the touch of a button/dial. To do that, though, you’d be missing out on a rather good feature on the OB-6, and a great and versatile weapon in its already well-stocked sonic armoury.
The sound
The first thing to note about the OB-6 sound is that it is instant. As I found at the NAMM show, the presets quickly draw you into their lush world. There’s a lot of movement, a lot of grabbing, a lot of: ‘come on in and feel the noise’. The Prophet-6 was a little less forthcoming; where that said: ‘you know what I’m capable of, I don’t need to shout about it’, the OB-6 is singing from every rooftop. My first pass through was halted on a number of occasions by sounds I simply got lost in. It happened as early as preset 7, a sound with a dreamy electric piano repeated so well that it almost becomes a pad, and a preset that added 20 minutes to this review’s time before I wrenched myself onwards. Others just show off; you play what you think will be high notes at the upper register and then go for a low version and the whole sound swoops down to it, often demoing part of that X-Mod functionality. There are some incredible pads – of course there are – some searing, gorgeous strings and organs. OB-6 also does squelch well; the 303, the bloody 303… And continuing on from that theme, this is a great dance synth: lots of bass, lots of movement, lots of ARP-ing… I used to be a little shy of US synths, thinking that they leaned a bit too much towards playing the intro to Van Halen’s Jump (played on an OB-Xa). But while this can do that, and we’ve already seen it is a players’ synth, it also does big dance sounds well. The US has adopted dance big time, and it shows. Some of the presets that utilise the arpeggiator are simply stunning, too – press the Hold button on number 39, stand back, tweak the fi lter or resonance every so often and you could charge an entrance fee (some people back in the 90s did a lot less for a lot more, let me tell you!)
Conclusion
It’s tough to call, if I’m honest… However, what is obvious is that, like the Prophet-6, OB-6 is a classic reborn into very much a 21st-century synth, complete with many mod cons. So while the sound is different, feature-wise, there is little to separate them. And, having given the Prophet-6 top marks, you can almost see where this one is heading. Having said that, I did nearly mark OB-6 down on the price, as the OB synth is currently listing at around £300 more than the Prophet-6 in the UK – which is significant. However, after listening to it, I fell for its OB charms, and wanted to return to them again and again. At every turn, it inspires new riffs and complete tunes and, when all is said and done, you can’t ask for more than that from any instrument.
Key features:
● 49-note, 6-voice analogue synth with velocity and aftertouch
● 500 user and 500 factory presets in 10 banks of 100 each
● Two VCOs/voice
● Cont. variable wave shape
● Osc 1 syncs to osc 2
● Square-wave sub (osc 1); LFO mode (osc 2)
● Mixer for osc 1, osc 2, sub and noise
● 2-pole resonant filter per voice
● Filter and Amp envelopes feature 4-stage ADSR with velocity modulation
● LFO with 5 waves
● Arpeggiator with up, down, up/down, random, and assign modes
● Polyphonic step sequencer with up to 64 steps, ties and rests
● Effects: stereo analogue distortion; 24-bit, 48 kHz digital effects: reverb, delay, chorus, flanger, phase shifters, ring modulator
● Effects bypass retains analogue signal path
● Connections: Left/mono and right 1/4” outs; h/p out; MIDI in, out & thru ports; USB MIDI; expression, sustain & volume ped. i/p; seq. start/stop f/s
● Dimensions (L x Wx H in mm): 807 x 323 x 117
● Weight (kg): 9.5
Verdict:
+ It’s Tom. And Dave!
+ An incredible sound with much more sonic potential
+ It’s pretty easy to use on a certain top level
+ X-Mod goes deep into modulation
+ …but you don’t have to, as the LFO and Aftertouch give you good options in this regard
+ The new features make it very C21, even though its heart is very defi nitely in 1979
+ Effects are good, but you can disregard them if you’re a purist
+ Love Unison Mode, especially using Detune in it
+ More of a players’ synth than you might initially fi gure
+ Again: It’s Tom. And Dave!
+ You could spend ages in the world of X-Mod
…...............................................................................................................................
- …and still not quite get your head around it
- The price has edged up UK-side because of the weak £
- …and is a tad more than the Prophet-6, anyway
- Sequencer and Arpeggiator are quite basic
.................................................................................................................................
It could have scored lower based on the price, but you know what, the OB-6’s sound completely puts this synth into a league of its own.
Details:
Price $2,999 (£2,250 street in the UK)
Contact via website
Web: Dave Smith Instruments
Original post at: Review Dave Smith Instruments OB-6 - Audionews
So it turns out that being really excited about something can make one break the law. Okay, not in a ‘lock him up and throw away the key’ kind of way, but I was so excited when I heard about this synth that I actually <del>broke into</del> entered the NAMM show early to get pictures of it. Crazy, eh? I risked everything for you, dear Audionews readers. And OB-6 went on to be our product of that NAMM show back in January. The excitement caused by it was pretty much all down to the fact that it has not one, but two names on it: Dave Smith’s and Tom Oberheim’s. We love Dave Smith synths (I gave the Prophet-6 a full 10/10 just a few months ago) and we love Oberheim’s synths (I am the very happy owner of an SE SEM, too). This, then, is the synth equivalent of Bowie meeting Jagger. No it’s better than that; it’s Bowie meeting Eno. Have I just put too much pressure on the resulting synth? Yep. Okay, it’s not quite that, but back in 1979, Stateside you were either a Sequential synth head or an Oberheim synth head. In 2016, you can be both…
So you get the point. And this kind of meeting is rare in our studio-gear world. You don’t get the likes of Korg and Roland hooking up to do stuff together over the weekend, so we just love the intro video that implies that these two pioneers met in a bar and came up with the idea for OB-6 on the back of a napkin (see pic below).
" ‘Of all the gin joints, in all the towns, in all the world…’ etc. When Tom Oberheim (left) met Dave Smith, they came up with the idea for OB-6 on the back of a napkin. Okay, that probably didn’t happen, as the promo video implies, but we love the idea…"
OB-6 in depth The OB-6 is inspired by the original Oberheim SEM and the heart of that effectively lies in the OB-6. It features two oscillators (plus sub) per voice, and one of the big draws of the synth is that the oscillators feature continuously variable waveshaping. So on VCO1, for example, you can twist between sawtooth and square wave in one sweep, so one of your core ingredients can be sitting anywhere you like for lots of sonic possibilities. These are enhanced further with a Pulse Width dial. Oscillator 2 is also continuously variable, but features a triangle waveform plus the pulse width modulation and detuning. Oscillator 2 can also be used as a modulation source, with a Low Freq button that puts it in LFO mode so you could, for example, apply it back to modulate oscillator 1. A Keyboard button changes the frequency of this oscillation according to the key you hit – I’ll talk more about that when we cover modulation in the X-Mod section.
Also in the Oscillator section, there’s a square sub wave to beef up your bass sounds. It also adds a more subtle richness to other timbres or, should you want, just use it as a separate source. Finally, there’s a noise source to add an extra top end and fuzziness.
The other important element of the OB-6 is the filter. It’s an ‘Oberheiminspired’, two-pole, 12dB/octave filter in, effectively, four parts (hi, low, notch and band) which offers a zingy, harmonically rich sound that lends itself to pads – hence the great reputation Oberheim has for them.
In a similar way to the oscillators, filter types are state-variable. so you aren’t just switching between types but flowing from one to another; you can sit anywhere between low and notch, or notch and high-pass, should you wish. This creates particularly interesting sounds when you go between the latter two and sweep the Resonance knob – you get added meow… There’s also a Band Pass switch that lets you define a band and sweep through the frequency range, again offering rich results.
The variable nature of the Filter section means that you can create some very diverse sounds and, of course, with the oscillators variable, too, we’re talking vast timbre possibilities.
Next up, you can then bring the OB-6’s Filter Envelope section into the equation for movement and variation over time to really breathe life into more static sounds. Then, combine this with keyboard velocity (so hitting keys will alter your filter envelope and change sounds according to how hard you press them) and you open up another performance element. In short: variable ingredients plus variable filters plus variable ways of playing them over time and velocity equals massive potential.
Modulation possibilities
We’ve seen how Oscillator 2 can be used as a separate LFO, but OB-6’s next section is for a dedicated LFO. Here, you get a Frequency dial to set the frequency of the modulation and what it applies to (VCO1 frequency; VCO2 frequency; VCO1 and 2 pulse width; amp; and filter cutoff and mode). The LFO lets you select from one of five waveshapes: sine, sawtooth, reverse sawtooth, square, or sample and hold – which doubles as a noise waveshape when the LFO frequency is turned to its maximum setting. It’s a more basic modulation setup than you’ll find on other synths, but very easy to use because of that, and not unlike the Prophet-6’s (albeit with a slightly different layout). You select what the LFO modulates just by pressing the buttons, which then light up – which means you’ll very quickly start experimenting.
In my tests, modulating the pulse widths got some very pleasing results very quickly and, of course, using it on the filter frequency yields even more dramatic results. The Filter Mode option is also well worth experimenting with, as it cycles through the filter types for some very varied sonic movement. Again, though, I have to go back to the fact that the core ingredients of what you are modulating are key here and with the variable nature of both filter and oscillator, you will get some exceptional results as you try different things out. It’s also worth pointing out that an LFO Sync button is on hand to keep all of this experimenting in check.
The Aftertouch section is also simple to use, and lifted from the Prophet-6. The amount of modulation that your aftertouch pressure will apply is controlled with a main dial (either positively or negatively) and then this can be applied to both oscillator frequencies, LFO or fi lter type and frequency. A typical use of this could be that you use aftertouch instead of the mod wheel to affect these parameters. Combine this with the velocity/envelope performance options I discussed on the previous page and you’re talking easy, fun and very varied sonic performance capabilities. Continuing the modulation theme but getting into a bit more depth, we’ll now look at the X-Mod section.
X-Mod: days of future sound
X-Mod is similar to the Prophet-6’s Poly Mod – a highlight of that synth and an area where you use Osc 2 and the fi lter envelope as extra modulation sources.
The advantage of this is not initially clear, as you may think that having an LFO is good enough for this task. But, essentially, if you think of your LFO as a single oscillator modulating whatever destination you choose, then you can think of X-Mod as that multiplied by six. This is because X-Mod uses all of the oscillators available within the synth; so if you dial in VCO2, you have six oscillators modulating separately and independently from each other to create far more vibrant textures. Waveforms start at whatever time you press a key – and this is a particularly dramatic effect when you hit the Keyboard button so that you start modulating destinations at the varied frequencies of the notes pressed. Also, because you are modulating with VCO2 rather than the LFO, you are modulating with a variable waveform with all of the extra sonic flexibility which that gives you over the fixed waveform (from five options) of the LFO.
Things get even more interesting – and slightly complicated, I have to say – when you use these six oscillators to start modulating other parameters, such as the shape of the six oscillators in Oscillator 1. Or you can, for example, use the six oscillators in Oscillator 2 to modulate the sounds created by Oscillator 1 while the filters swing between normal and band-pass types. Either approach gives pretty stunning results, with a minimum of work.
As I’ve said, it’s not just VCO2 that is used as a modulation source in the X-Mod section, but the Filter Envelope dial can also be used; again, with the same destinations as VCO2 uses. So it can control Oscillator 1, its shape, the pulse width and so on, all the time mixed with VCO2 modulating, too.
Don’t worry too much if you’re not completely with me regarding the X-Mod feature. It basically opens up more sonic pathways than are available with other synths, routing more things, fattening things, and joining things up that might not be traditionally joined. As for the results? Well, we’re really talking about more complex, evolving sounds, with a lot of movement, or richer timbres. Rather than everything moving ‘as one’, all modulated by one LFO, complex tones are created by this individual modulation per note/oscillator, or the fi lter envelope.
X-Mod is a section you’ll need to spend time with and is worthy of an article on its own, as it has so much potential. But the bottom line for now is, yet again: more sonic power!
Other features
As with the Prophet-6 – and apologies for my continued references back to that synth, but it was a recent review and many of the features are understandably shared – you also get a great Unison Mode. This allows you to turn a six-voice poly synth into a great-sounding mono.
By that, I don’t mean it simply makes a mono synth with sounds stacked together – well it does, but it’s a bit more fully featured than that.
Essentially, you can choose how many voices you stack – up to six. OB-6, like Prophet-6 (sorry), is at its best when you detune these parts in Unison Mode. By increasing the detuning between the oscillators – be subtle about this at first – you can create massive mono synth sounds, and I mean massive. You can go a bit too bonkers here – especially when you bring the sub and noise in – but it’s a surprisingly usable feature. You may think you only want a poly synth, but when you hear what‘s possible here, you’ll understand the thinking behind it.
Within Unison Mode, there is also a Chord Memory function which stores the chord you play per note and transposes it up and down the keyboard as you play – useful for setting up chordal stabs.
Now we get to the two sections at the top of the OB-6 front panel, where we find the very useful Sequencer and Arpeggiator features. I didn’t really have the room to cover these in my Prophet-6 review, but both are fairly standard and easy to get your head around. The Arpeggiator is linked to the Hold button (located nearer the keyboard) to latch the notes i.e. carry on playing your played chord even when you release the notes. This is great for making evolving sequences that move in real time according to edits made on the front panel – showing off, basically! You can easily sync clock sources or the internal delay effects, too – all good stuff.
The sequencer is a step sequencer comprising up to 64 steps, with up to six notes per step. You use it by hitting the Record button and recording step by step including Rests (gaps) if you need them, or Ties to extend notes. It’s more useful as a live song player so you can play along to it as a backing track (as long as you don’t exceed the six notes of polyphony in total). This (and the Arpeggiator) can be synced to an external audio source via an input socket, so you could play along to a drum machine, too.
Both the Arpeggiator and Sequencer really do extend what are already pretty good performance features on the OB-6. It’s much more a players’ synth than you might at first think – I certainly approached it as more of a sound creator than performer. Yes, it obviously has the elements for creating many great sounds; but in its modulation features plus the Sequencer and Arpeggiator, it has plenty of options and tools to manipulate, perform, record and play back live, too. Solo performers and players really can noodle away on it as much as they like.
"Pretty standard connections around the back, though the OB-6 does come with USB MIDI and plenty of footswitch options"
Effects
We come to the final section of the synth, and this is the one that distinguishes OB-6 from many other analogues: digital effects! It is a dual effects engine (Effect A and B), so two can be stored per program. You get delays, chorusing, fl angers, phasers and reverbs and the effects are placed in series with all reverbs on Effect B (as they would normally be placed in an effects chain).
Yes, the Prophet-6 has these effects, too, and they are broadly similar. However, the OB-6 also features a ring modulator and phase shifter modelled on classic Oberheim designs, the former offering a pleasingly gritty and metallic edge, and the latter rather more subtle phasing based on an Oberheim six-stage model.
Using the effects couldn’t be easier: simply select A or B, dial in your effect and then choose the Mix dial to blend each. You get two main parameters to adjust, which are usually the most commonly accessed ones for each effect (so you’ll find delay times and feedback for delays, and rates and depths for fl angers).
As we’ve said, the delay effects can be synced to the Arpeggiator as well as an external MIDI clock and to the onboard Sequencer.
In use, the effects are gloriously simple to employ and incredibly clean, not surprising, given their digital nature – unless, that is, you layer distortion on there. This is an effect that you access by holding down the Effect button, one that is always just a dial away and also one that’s been used so well on the more in-your-face presets.
But going back to the ‘digital subject’ and, for the analogue purists among you, bypassing the effects keeps the analogue signal of OB-6 completely digital-free. So if you don’t want this modern technology influencing your classic sound, you can switch off the evil magic at the touch of a button/dial. To do that, though, you’d be missing out on a rather good feature on the OB-6, and a great and versatile weapon in its already well-stocked sonic armoury.
The sound
The first thing to note about the OB-6 sound is that it is instant. As I found at the NAMM show, the presets quickly draw you into their lush world. There’s a lot of movement, a lot of grabbing, a lot of: ‘come on in and feel the noise’. The Prophet-6 was a little less forthcoming; where that said: ‘you know what I’m capable of, I don’t need to shout about it’, the OB-6 is singing from every rooftop. My first pass through was halted on a number of occasions by sounds I simply got lost in. It happened as early as preset 7, a sound with a dreamy electric piano repeated so well that it almost becomes a pad, and a preset that added 20 minutes to this review’s time before I wrenched myself onwards. Others just show off; you play what you think will be high notes at the upper register and then go for a low version and the whole sound swoops down to it, often demoing part of that X-Mod functionality. There are some incredible pads – of course there are – some searing, gorgeous strings and organs. OB-6 also does squelch well; the 303, the bloody 303… And continuing on from that theme, this is a great dance synth: lots of bass, lots of movement, lots of ARP-ing… I used to be a little shy of US synths, thinking that they leaned a bit too much towards playing the intro to Van Halen’s Jump (played on an OB-Xa). But while this can do that, and we’ve already seen it is a players’ synth, it also does big dance sounds well. The US has adopted dance big time, and it shows. Some of the presets that utilise the arpeggiator are simply stunning, too – press the Hold button on number 39, stand back, tweak the fi lter or resonance every so often and you could charge an entrance fee (some people back in the 90s did a lot less for a lot more, let me tell you!)
"There’s no denying it’s a DSI, but Tom Oberheim’s infl uence is there in the fi lter, oscillators and some of the design, not to mention a couple of the effects."
There’s inspiration and atmosphere around every corner, too. I normally take notes if I get any tune ideas as I play – and I filled a side of A4 in no time during this test. If the makers of Blade Runner 2 need a score, then I’m available to do it… with this synth, right? I even, and this has never happened before, left the studio to tell my wife how good OB-6 sounds (she looked at me with that ‘who the hell is he?’ expression again).
Negatives? Don’t play preset 22 – it’s a trumpet-thing; a ghastly effort, but pretty much the only blip on the OB. OK there are a few other duds – maybe I could have done with less of the percussive sounds and the odd simple, thin bass – but these are rare, and programming this synth is just so easy that I can quickly make it my own, with my own sounds, and I’m sure I will…
" In the US, great ideas are written out on the back of a napkin. It’s so much more civilised than the UK’s ‘back of a cigarette packet’ approach, don’t you think? "
There’s inspiration and atmosphere around every corner, too. I normally take notes if I get any tune ideas as I play – and I filled a side of A4 in no time during this test. If the makers of Blade Runner 2 need a score, then I’m available to do it… with this synth, right? I even, and this has never happened before, left the studio to tell my wife how good OB-6 sounds (she looked at me with that ‘who the hell is he?’ expression again).
Negatives? Don’t play preset 22 – it’s a trumpet-thing; a ghastly effort, but pretty much the only blip on the OB. OK there are a few other duds – maybe I could have done with less of the percussive sounds and the odd simple, thin bass – but these are rare, and programming this synth is just so easy that I can quickly make it my own, with my own sounds, and I’m sure I will…
" In the US, great ideas are written out on the back of a napkin. It’s so much more civilised than the UK’s ‘back of a cigarette packet’ approach, don’t you think? "
Conclusion
I can’t avoid comparisons (and haven’t!) with the DSI Prophet-6, as so many of the features on the OB-6 are shared with that synth. X-Mod is Prophet-6’s Poly Mod in all but name, the Arpeggiator and Sequencer sections are identical, as are the Aftertouch, Mixer, LFO and other features. But the heart of the OB-6 – its oscillators and filters – are Oberheim through and through, so the resulting overall character is different… it’s a bit like having a couple of children with very different personalities.
The differences? Well, if I have to put them side by side and call it (which I did in the test), I’d reiterate that the OB-6 is more in your face, perhaps more versatile, more dance, more electronica and less refined in some areas. It’s grittier and darker, but the Prophet has a class all of its own – maybe it leans slightly towards more classic sounds, whereas OB is more ballsy and new.
" DSI based a lot of the OB-6’s features on the Prophet-6, so it could design, build and bring the synth to market quickly and surprise everyone. They certainly did… "
The differences? Well, if I have to put them side by side and call it (which I did in the test), I’d reiterate that the OB-6 is more in your face, perhaps more versatile, more dance, more electronica and less refined in some areas. It’s grittier and darker, but the Prophet has a class all of its own – maybe it leans slightly towards more classic sounds, whereas OB is more ballsy and new.
" DSI based a lot of the OB-6’s features on the Prophet-6, so it could design, build and bring the synth to market quickly and surprise everyone. They certainly did… "
It’s tough to call, if I’m honest… However, what is obvious is that, like the Prophet-6, OB-6 is a classic reborn into very much a 21st-century synth, complete with many mod cons. So while the sound is different, feature-wise, there is little to separate them. And, having given the Prophet-6 top marks, you can almost see where this one is heading. Having said that, I did nearly mark OB-6 down on the price, as the OB synth is currently listing at around £300 more than the Prophet-6 in the UK – which is significant. However, after listening to it, I fell for its OB charms, and wanted to return to them again and again. At every turn, it inspires new riffs and complete tunes and, when all is said and done, you can’t ask for more than that from any instrument.
Key features:
● 49-note, 6-voice analogue synth with velocity and aftertouch
● 500 user and 500 factory presets in 10 banks of 100 each
● Two VCOs/voice
● Cont. variable wave shape
● Osc 1 syncs to osc 2
● Square-wave sub (osc 1); LFO mode (osc 2)
● Mixer for osc 1, osc 2, sub and noise
● 2-pole resonant filter per voice
● Filter and Amp envelopes feature 4-stage ADSR with velocity modulation
● LFO with 5 waves
● Arpeggiator with up, down, up/down, random, and assign modes
● Polyphonic step sequencer with up to 64 steps, ties and rests
● Effects: stereo analogue distortion; 24-bit, 48 kHz digital effects: reverb, delay, chorus, flanger, phase shifters, ring modulator
● Effects bypass retains analogue signal path
● Connections: Left/mono and right 1/4” outs; h/p out; MIDI in, out & thru ports; USB MIDI; expression, sustain & volume ped. i/p; seq. start/stop f/s
● Dimensions (L x Wx H in mm): 807 x 323 x 117
● Weight (kg): 9.5
Verdict:
+ It’s Tom. And Dave!
+ An incredible sound with much more sonic potential
+ It’s pretty easy to use on a certain top level
+ X-Mod goes deep into modulation
+ …but you don’t have to, as the LFO and Aftertouch give you good options in this regard
+ The new features make it very C21, even though its heart is very defi nitely in 1979
+ Effects are good, but you can disregard them if you’re a purist
+ Love Unison Mode, especially using Detune in it
+ More of a players’ synth than you might initially fi gure
+ Again: It’s Tom. And Dave!
+ You could spend ages in the world of X-Mod
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- …and still not quite get your head around it
- The price has edged up UK-side because of the weak £
- …and is a tad more than the Prophet-6, anyway
- Sequencer and Arpeggiator are quite basic
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It could have scored lower based on the price, but you know what, the OB-6’s sound completely puts this synth into a league of its own.
10/10
Details:
Price $2,999 (£2,250 street in the UK)
Contact via website
Web: Dave Smith Instruments
Original post at: Review Dave Smith Instruments OB-6 - Audionews
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