inexpensive used analog modeling synth

2nice

2nice

Active member
basically im looking for an analog modeling synth but i only have about $500 at the most to spend (trying to get it used on ebay, where ive bought all my used equipment). ive been looking online, and my best bets are with the access virus A, the alesis ion, and the korg ms2000R. i dont need fx processing beyond analog programming, but in the realm of analog programmability i need a lot: enough waveforms (sine square and saw a must, noise would be nice), good and versatile filters (resonant hp, bp, lp), amp envelopes, filter envelopes, LFOs for pitch and filter frequency. dont need an arpeggiator. it would be nice to have good presets to work with. all the polyphony i really need is 4 notes.

to my understading all 3 of these synths (ms2000r, ion, virus a) have all this stuff, so my decision depends most on... how good do each of these sound? and how are the presets. ive heard that the virus sounds amazing and thick, i hear the ion has a bit more functionality than the virus a but i havent heard how the sound compares, i hear the ms2000r has good functionality and has been used on snoop dogg albums (so im guessing the sound quality is good).

basically, what is the bottom line for comparing these 3 synths. and are there any other synths i should be considering?
 
First off, with your requirements I'll start by recommending the Micron over the Ion. The Micron has fixed a lot of the Ion's bugs, and it adds effects and a killer arp. Plus you can get a new for the price of a used Ion.

Also I would recommend the MicroKorg over the MS200. The Microkorg has much better presets to start from, and you said that was important to you.

Choosing between the two is hard. I really love the bases I get from my Microkorg, but the arp. in the Micron is much better. Both have minimal effects. The Micron has better keys.
I would go as far to say that the Mocrokorg is good at creating classic synth sounds, but the Micron is better at weird new sounds. Creating weird unexpected sounds is more the Micron's forte.

Can't go wrong with the virus A either. These along with the Novation K-Station are probably your best choices in that range. They all have their high points. You should try to play with each of them in a local store before you decide, so that you can see which one inspries you to tweak the most. You can have the greatest synth in the world, but if it bores you, or you don't like the feel, you'll never get the most out of it.

Tell me more about what you want your synth to do, what kind of sounds you're looking for, and for what kind of music and maybe I can give you a more conclusive answer. Hopefully, I've at least given you some info to help you make your own decision.
 
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i will be using this synth mostly for hip hop music. dr dre and el-p are my favorite hip hop producers when it comes to synth work (actually, when it comes to just about anything). id really like to have warm and thick basses, as well as aggressive leads and smooth pads. theres really a big range of sounds id like to create.... from 80s movie soundtrack sounds (like in scarface or blade runner) to punchy techno sounds.

like i said good presets would be useful, but i really just want something that has a good, thick sound, with all the programmability that i mentioned (sine square and saw waveforms, noise would be nice, hp lp and bp filters, lfos for filter frequency and pitch, amp envelopes, filter envelopes).

i checked out the waldorf q and it looks like it would work well for what i need. how does its sound compare with the virus a?
 
2nice said:

i checked out the waldorf q and it looks like it would work well for what i need. how does its sound compare with the virus a?
Click to expand...

2 totaly differant sounds. The MicroQ is a lot deeper as well, in terms of modulation options (i.e. the variety of sounds you can get out of it).

I really wouldnt recommend either a Virus A or a MicroQ for hip hop, or any of the stuff you described.

All of those 80's sounds you are after were made using real analog synths. For example, the Blade Runner sound track was made using a Yamaha CS-80. I know someone who is selling one for $2500 (which is peanuts compared to what it originaly cost). You can get more info on it here:

http://www.vintagesynth.org/yamaha/cs80.shtml



The closest you can get in terms of a VA which emulates these sounds is an Ion/Micron. If you really want to reproduce these sounds authentically, start saving up for an Alesis Andromeda or some vintage gear.
 
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Although instead of getting one super expensive vintage synth, you can get a lot of cheaper ones over time. You could get a Moog Rogue, Juno 106, Prophet 600, Oberheim Matrix 6, etc. This would cover quite a large chunk of the 80's sound pallette.
 
Som soft synths have been srelease recently that are worth checking out.

Arturia
Yamaha cs80V
Korg Legacy
MinimoogV


These should get you a great pallate of analog for pretty cheap. You'll have some left over.

Just don't get stuck in software. You'll bore yourself will ALL softsynth. Gotta have some knobs to tweak!
 
well most of the sounds i will tweak will be relatively simple waveform-based sounds (saw, square, sine, and pulse, and maybe noise), with not much more than filters, envelopes (amp and filter), and lfos (pitch and filter). as long as these synths can do that i'll be fine. whats most important to me is that, within this realm of programmability, the waveforms envelopes and filters sound good and thick. filter-frequency lfos are a must.

right now i use the reason subtractor and im not very fond of the sound, though the functionality is about all i need. i use the novation bass station, which really sings for the thick bass, but the programmability is somewhat limited (and it is monophonic).

in other words, i want the same functionality as the reason subtractor but with a thicker, more full sound.
 
Here is a list of choices...

Ion
Micron
MS2000/R
MicroKorg
MicroQ
Virus A
Nord Lead 2R
Nord Lead 1/r
Micro Modular
K Station
Nova
A Station
JP-8000/8080
Darkstar (just listing it...but it sucks)
Elevata (see above)
SH-32
MC-09
EA-1
AN1X
EMX-1
AN200
Z1 (if you are lucky, I've seen them go that low in some cases)
Prophecy
Sirius

Quite a few options...I do think that any of them would be good for hip-hop, including the Virus...but as far as hip-hop goes...with emulating the sounds of vintage synths that you've heard as good as possible...the Ion/Micron is the one "best-suited" if any of them could be "best suited" for hip-hop.

Since in the analog modeling world of digital...and not talking about true analog...I will say that while subtractor is thin and wimpy...there are a number of softsynths that can easily rival...and in a lot of cases outright KILL any and every hardware synth listed above...
 
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have you heard demos for any of the synths you are interested in? if not check out the korg and alesis websites
there are demos for the ms2000 and micron...

listening to the ms2000b demo now and i'm loving those sounds
 
im really liking the micron. just listened to some demos of these synths and was really feelin the micron sound. i just read the manual as well for the micron and the functionality really impresses me, so i think im goin to go with that.

thanks for the advice!
 
i hear you, i would like to add a synth to my setup also but i'm broke as hell!
:D

i like el-p too, you have 'collecting the kid'? you mentioned bladerunner thats why i thought you'd like the ms2000b check the joker and pineapple demos at korg's site....

good luck with your hunt
 
yea man el-p is dope. i do have "collecting the kid", which i like. "fantastic damage" is good also, as well as his tour mixtape "we're all gonna burn in hell" and the company flow cds ("funcrusher plus" is ill, but if you haven't heard it check out "little johnny from the hospital" which is an instrumental company flow cd), but i think his best production was on "cold vein" by cannibal ox.

the dude is ridiculous with samples and analog synths.
 
no sweat bruh! it seems that you and i have similar tastes i love cold vein
(raspberry fields and ridiculoid esp)
his work on mr lif's album is pretty tight also...

the pineapple demo off the korg is twisting my ear in all sorts of freaky ways... i might be in love!
 
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