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Why, hello, Minimoog!


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A friend of mine was generous enough to loan me his honest-to-goodness Model D while he's in grad school in Arizona (his family's home is around the corner from me) and I am having a blast playing around with the real thing for the first time. Apparently my brain can engage with how synthesis works a lot better when I have actual knobs in front of me, though the gaps in my knowledge are laid bare with no presets or patch memory to fall back on. Either way, I've been working on a solo album the last couple of weeks, and as soon as I got back from picking up the Moog, the track I was working on suddenly found itself in need of a LOT of synth parts. I have no regrets.

 

As you can see from the attached photo, his has been well-loved (like many of the vintage instruments in my stable); I'm not sure if the pitch ribbon was a more recent mod since my friend was in a bad car accident a number of years ago that required him to reimagine his playing, or if it's an older customization. I'll ask him. Also, this may amuse some of you, but I had no idea that on the original D, the monophonic keyboard only retriggered legato notes going *down,* not up the keyboard... unless that's a modification as well?

 

Anyway, his mother told me "guard it with your life," and that's what I intend to do! In addition to flavoring my solo tracks with more Moog parts, I definitely plan on running some things through the external input and seeing what happens.

 

Edit: Couldn't get the photo attachment to work today, so here's a photo:

cfcf337d732effcf1fea4cd8edebf98583b5deb3.jpg

Samuel B. Lupowitz

Musician. Songwriter. Food Enthusiast. Bad Pun Aficionado.

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Nothing sounds like the Mini, as far as I know. What a lucky break.

It looks like the instrument"s pitch ribbon has been in use for a long time. I wore through the tape and replaced the pitch bend control on a Multimoog a number of times. If you keep running your finger over the exposed rubber, you will wear a trench into it. Fortunately for me, some years ago I got a hold of the late Kevin Lightner (Synthfool) and managed to purchase his last pitch bend unit and a length of the covering material. In case your friend wants to repair the pitch bend, if it still works, you only need to replace the tape covering. The material is Teflon and the work was relatively easy to do, as even I could do it.

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An iconic synthesizer, congrats!!!!

 

A good friend used to gig with one (and a Chamberlain - he was a glutton for punishment!).

 

Be aware that the pitch is not always stable, you may find this link useful: https://www.adventures-in-audio.com/classic-synthesizer-the-minimoog-tuning-the-minimoog/

It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is.
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Be aware that the pitch is not always stable, you may find this link useful: https://www.adventures-in-audio.com/classic-synthesizer-the-minimoog-tuning-the-minimoog/
This is a useful resource, thanks! I had heard legends of the potential for pitch instability on analog synthesizers, but having never owned one myself, I was marveling at hearing the oscillators start to drift, particularly when I was trying to overdub a part with the oscillators tuned a fifth apart and I was hearing the interval change as I played. So far the randomness has been good for creativity!

Samuel B. Lupowitz

Musician. Songwriter. Food Enthusiast. Bad Pun Aficionado.

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Be aware that the pitch is not always stable, you may find this link useful: https://www.adventures-in-audio.com/classic-synthesizer-the-minimoog-tuning-the-minimoog/
This is a useful resource, thanks! I had heard legends of the potential for pitch instability on analog synthesizers, but having never owned one myself, I was marveling at hearing the oscillators start to drift, particularly when I was trying to overdub a part with the oscillators tuned a fifth apart and I was hearing the interval change as I played. So far the randomness has been good for creativity!

 

 

Small shifts in pitch are most welcome here as well. Long ago I had one of the Boss half rack series pitch shifters and the only thing I used it for was de-tuning. I love that sound, it's sort of like chorus but more "3d" somehow.

Now I use Eventide Micro-Pitch which is a wonderful plugin. Before that I used the Apple New Pitch plugin that is part of the system software.

 

Yes, a minor drift can sound amazing. Just that small bit farther though and...

It took a chunk of my life to get here and I am still not sure where "here" is.
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Roger"s tech moved to Colorado. He was the only guy that ever fixed the Moog. It is one of the earliest Minis that uses an external hardwired controller. Roger sent it to him for badly needed maintenance. The understanding was to go through the whole thing and fix what needed fixing. He went there to pick it up. The thing never was particularly stable. That is what Roger loved about it. The tone of the fluctuations was huge. Tech upgraded the Oscillators for corrected stability. Roger about s***. Told him to put the original oscillators back or he would kill him. ð. Luckily he had the parts in the trash still. ððð

"It doesn't have to be difficult to be cool" - Mitch Towne

 

"A great musician can bring tears to your eyes!!!

So can a auto Mechanic." - Stokes Hunt

 

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First the A100/Leslie, now the Moog... you're on a roll!

W3rd. :2thu::rocker:

 

My Mini is my baby. I bought it brand new and had it modded a couple of times - one of them is those black Vernier tuning knobs. They add to the stability. They have a fine-tune mode as well - 40:1 unless I push them when I turn, which makes them 1:1. The fine tune is also useful when I have the osc sync engaged.

 

It is still my standard for what a synthesizer is supposed to sound like.

 

FvftAo5.jpg

 

...and yes, that is a Bob Moog signature. He did that when he and I worked together at Kurzweil in the 80s.

 

I actually want to get around to moving it downstairs so it sits on top of the A100. It's where it belongs...

 

dB

:snax:

 

:keys:==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <==:rawk:

 

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This summer you got a Hammond & Leslie. Then you get a Minimoog on loan. Not a bad year :keynana:

 

Yeah those old synths just sit in a mix so well. Moog, ARP, Oberheim, so many others.

 

The Minimoog sound is the product of some happy accidents and imperfections. Sure you can duplicate the architecture on a modular but not likely to sound the same. Most clones fall short of the real deal.

 

They were many people's introduction to synthesis as the panel is laid out so well. While many people don't know what they're missing until they play one, today it is hard to get hands-on flight time with one.

 

I bought my RAM in 1992 just before the vintage synth renaissance started. It would not stay in tune at all. I drew from my career experience as a systems engineer and figured out how to tame the tuning - without touching the audio path. It was stable enough that I could tune it before the start of a four hour gig, and it stayed in tune the rest of the night. Yes I actually gigged the RAM.

 

Have fun :)

 

http://analoguediehard.com/studio/keyboards/moog_minimoog/moog_minimoog.jpg

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I actually want to get around to moving it downstairs so it sits on top of the A100. It's where it belongs...

 

Be careful. The pickups in the TG of the A100 may pick up 60hz EMI from the power transformer in the Minimoog. I placed my Memorymoog on top of my Porta-B once... hmmmmmmmmmmm

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Yeah. If its a problem get a nice felt or nice looking cloth to protect the top of the organ and lay a sheet of metal between the synth and organ so the transformer doesn"t start talking to to the Hammond.

"It doesn't have to be difficult to be cool" - Mitch Towne

 

"A great musician can bring tears to your eyes!!!

So can a auto Mechanic." - Stokes Hunt

 

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I actually want to get around to moving it downstairs so it sits on top of the A100. It's where it belongs...

 

Be careful. The pickups in the TG of the A100 may pick up 60hz EMI from the power transformer in the Minimoog. I placed my Memorymoog on top of my Porta-B once... hmmmmmmmmmmm

Yeah. If its a problem get a nice felt or nice looking cloth to protect the top of the organ and lay a sheet of metal between the synth and organ so the transformer doesn"t start talking to to the Hammond.

Interesting...

 

I got one of Ken Rich's straddlers for the A100, so that'll keep it further away...but I guess the only way to find out is to try it. :thu:

 

dB

:snax:

 

:keys:==> David Bryce Music • Funky Young Monks <==:rawk:

 

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I have the re-issue - its fun. Its so stripped down and raw. The oscillators and filter sound great. It only does a very narrow range of things, but inside that range, it defines what is expected. Iconic, for sure. It the only "vintage" thing I own. It excels in a live band context - it plays like an instrument: one hand to select notes, the other to inflect them. Played this way, it really works.
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I actually want to get around to moving it downstairs so it sits on top of the A100. It's where it belongs...

 

Be careful. The pickups in the TG of the A100 may pick up 60hz EMI from the power transformer in the Minimoog. I placed my Memorymoog on top of my Porta-B once... hmmmmmmmmmmm

Yeah. If its a problem get a nice felt or nice looking cloth to protect the top of the organ and lay a sheet of metal between the synth and organ so the transformer doesn"t start talking to to the Hammond.

Interesting...

 

I got one of Ken Rich's straddlers for the A100, so that'll keep it further away...but I guess the only way to find out is to try it. :thu:

 

dB

 

When you are looking at the organ from the front there is a matching transformer on the left side. Generally you don"t put a Leslie up against that side of the organ or you can get hum. If you do you move the Leslie over a bit. I like my Leslie away from me at home. They sound nice in corners.

"It doesn't have to be difficult to be cool" - Mitch Towne

 

"A great musician can bring tears to your eyes!!!

So can a auto Mechanic." - Stokes Hunt

 

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It excels in a live band context - it plays like an instrument: one hand to select notes, the other to inflect them. Played this way, it really works.

 

True. I had a Behringer D that was mostly sequenced and it ended up sounding generic and boring.

 

A Minimoog is just not the same when actually performed on with proper sized dials.

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When you are looking at the organ from the front there is a matching transformer on the left side. Generally you don"t put a Leslie up against that side of the organ or you can get hum. If you do you move the Leslie over a bit. I like my Leslie away from me at home. They sound nice in corners.
well, son of a... wonder if that"s the simple solution to some of my noise issues with the Hammond. See, I started the thread to brag, and look at all the helpful tips I"m getting!

Samuel B. Lupowitz

Musician. Songwriter. Food Enthusiast. Bad Pun Aficionado.

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I owned a Mini for a while in the late 80s. I had rescued it from a pawnshop for $250 and ended up selling it to a friend who had always wanted one for the same amount. I think that if I'd kept it, it would have eventually driven me insane... it was unbelievably trashed when I got it. Multiple problems with the electronics, hella noisy, and the asshole who had it before me thought it would be cool to cover the entire front panel and chassis in that horrible stick-on plastic with the "holographic" etching. God was it hideous. The guy I sold it to still has it -- he was and is a dab hand with electronics, and has fixed it up and loves it immensely. He got my ARP Quadra, too.

 

I sometimes wonder if I would like to have another one, but I don't think so. My sensibilities lie elsewhere these days, and while I would never, ever directly compare the two for any number of reasons, I find that in my case that particular jones is well-satisfied by my MatrixBrute. If I were to get a "real Moog" it would probably be a Matriarch...

 

Have a blast with it, Sam.

Dr. Mike Metlay (PhD in nuclear physics, golly gosh) :D

Musician, Author, Editor, Educator, Impresario, Online Radio Guy, Cut-Rate Polymath, and Kindly Pedant

Editor-in-Chief, Bjooks ~ Author of SYNTH GEMS 1

 

clicky!:  more about me ~ my radio station (and my fam) ~ my local tribe ~ my day job ~ my bookmy music

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I owned a Mini for a while in the late 80s. I had rescued it from a pawnshop for $250 and ended up selling it to a friend who had always wanted one for the same amount. I think that if I'd kept it, it would have eventually driven me insane... it was unbelievably trashed when I got it. Multiple problems with the electronics, hella noisy.

My story is similar. Somehow (I worked in a very busy music store in the 1990's, bought and sold gear every day in the grey market) I ended up with a used Yamaha VL-7 and traded it for a Minimoog that turned out to be just what you described. Sold it on eBay. Never missed it once.

:nopity:
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The Mini is my standard as well. Mine was a bit toothy & fly-specked, but along with the Prophet-5 as poly #1, it set the standard for everything I've done since. The best aspect is not feeling a lack in having it all within Logic now. I can rattle my bass bin; 95% of it is still in there! I hot-rodded my Mini with so many pedals, the white noise became a constant side effect until I added a gate. :laugh: So yeah, no lack of Moog luv here.

 "I want to be an intellectual, but I don't have the brainpower.
  The absent-mindedness, I've got that licked."
        ~ John Cleese

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I had a Multimoog, which featured the same cool pitch ribbon, but it drove me bonkers. I hurt my wrist trying to play it from MY natural angle. It ultimately made me a Korg joystick adherent. This is where its entirely proper to say NORD LEAD, because they angled their bender more sensibly. I want a necktie of the Nord Wave. Good for raves, corporate dates or hamster shoebox funerals.

 "I want to be an intellectual, but I don't have the brainpower.
  The absent-mindedness, I've got that licked."
        ~ John Cleese

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