GovernorSilver

Right? Looking forward to hearing the wavetable oscillators once they're implemented. I wonder if Dreadbox is planning a new version of the Abyss. Such lush pads/soundscapes out of just 4 VCOs.

Hybrid monosynth with two paraphonic modes, sequencer, and grid with XYZ-sensitive pads. Analog oscillators by Dreadbox (great up-and-coming synth maker). Digital wavetable oscillators presumably by Polyend. http://polyend.com/medusa/ [video:youtube]

stopped by GC in Rockville MD today after a dentist app't nearby and before my expected time for work. Asked about the Prologue and the reply was that no stores except for NYC had them. Dude asked me if I wanted him to get one in stock for me to try out. I asked him why wouldn't they just get one in anyway for everyone? He then asked me if I wanted to try out the 49 or 61 key version. I told him that most likely they would sound the same. I know the polyphony, and splits and layers would be different but dude had no clue. Told him I'll check back in 3 months. SMH I guess they must have had some staff turnover since the last time I was at that GC, at which time the guys in the keyboard dept. seemed to have some reasonable knowledge. I have a synth geek friend who works at the GC in Seven Corners. But they seem to make him mostly guitar work (sales, guitar setup/maintenance/repair work), go figure. Equally conversant with analog synthesis and FM.

I liked his demo too. I still intend to check out the presets by John Bowen and others, just to admire their work.

The 16 has the analog low-end booster/compressor. It also has one or two more panels, one of which is for that extra feature, with a VU meter. Nice selling point for some.

So they're not going to call it the Bro-One after all.

http://i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/119/638/waynesworld-cool-story-bro.jpg

Guilty as charged. Aside from the menu-diving,the sheer number of sample waveforms to browse through on a typical ROMpler can be daunting. My Emu Command Station can use as many as 12 waveforms in one patch, and I can spend hours just browsing and auditioning waveforms. However, I've been inspired of late to do some sound tweaking on my Emu Command Station again. Lots of LFOs, LFO types, sources, and destionations; the Patchcord system, the Z-plane filter...

I like what I've heard of their collaboration (DSI OB-6) but as you've implied, it's not cheap enough to be a casual/impulse buy. There's also Shear's OB-Xa clone, which unlike the OB-6 is probably truer to the original design. But it's looking to be priced just as high as the OB-6, if not more. It does offer 8-voice bitimbral vs the OB-6's 6 monotimbral. Maybe someday I'll treat myself to one of those...

And of course the obligatory WiFi and Microsoft Hololens support.

But one cannot play Jump or early 80s songs by Prince and The Time on a 2600.

+1 Though I admit I feel just a bit of naughty delight when I read about the UB-Xa, given what I know of what Gibson did to Oberheim.

Sometime in 2016, I first heard of the SOMA Lyra 8, a synth designed for dark ambient/noise/experimental stuff by some Russian guy. He planned to make this synth by hand, for each order, so we were told to expect a long wait. I got on the waitlist anyway around Sept. 2016. Then the Russian guy entered an agreement with a Polish factory. All of a sudden, customers got their SOMA synths far earlier than expected, thanks to the Polish factory kicking in production. Thus, my Lyra 8 arrived last month instead of sometime in 2018 as originally expected. Final price wasn't that much higher than originally projected 530 Euro price. I think though the costs were kept down by all the manufacturing being done in Eastern Europe. My new synth is built like a tank.

Interesting take by Mr. Fortner. I do recall Pat Metheny using Ableton Live in the way that Fortner describes for his Orchestrion show. Live was not the obvious tool of choice, because the Orchestrion's sound generators were all physical, motorized objects: real drums, real marimbas, etc. that were MIDI-triggered. Using MIDI pedals, he fired off pieces of his compositions - an intro piece for example, then the first movement, then maybe an improv section (chord progression, drum groove, etc.) where he solos as long as he wants, then the 2nd movement, the 3rd movement, a return to the 1st movement with variation 1, then variation 2, perhaps a fill, etc. I read in an Emusician article that he had over 400 Scenes set up in Ableton Live

As for Korg, their highest end arranger, Pa4X, was released in 2015. Defined Nuanced Control appears to be their version of Yamaha's S.Art/S.Art2. I've no doubt they'll release another arranger model to compete with Genos. Pa4X already looks impressively spec'd by arranger standards.

https://www.roland.com/us/categories/keyboards/arrangers/

I guess, though note there's more than one brand on the web page. Point taken, sir. I bow to your superior logic. Grey Aww, don't be like that - to me these conversations are like when I'm at Markyboard's house with the other KC guys (ProfD, Dan, Dave, etc.), having beers and just chatting.

I guess, though note there's more than one brand on the web page.

It's on the American Musical (store) website. See earlier post for link.

Another problem with the workstation vs. arranger article is that it says that workstations are for Composers, and arrangers are for Entertainers/Songwriters. Songwriters can also be composers, so the article shot itself in the foot a bit there.

My impression is that Yamaha added Expanded Articulation (XA) to the Motif line in response to user demands for the Super Articulation implemented in the Tyros. XA is not exactly the same as SA, but it seems to satisfy the users - there's an old thread or two here.

This Electone model has "Horizontal Touch": https://asia-latinamerica-mea.yamaha.com/en/products/musical_instruments/keyboards/electone/els-02c/index.html I don't see it mentioned in the Genos, but who knows... I wonder how much more advanced the AEM is in the Genos vs. the Montage: https://www.yamahasynth.com/forum/why-no-s-art2-voices-in-montage Reading that little thread, I recall the claim back in the day that Super Articulation appeared in Tyros first, before any form of it was implemented in a Yamaha workstation keyboard.

I guess it's time to revisit these vids - solo Electone performances by some little girl in a part of the world where people still buy home organs like the Electone: [video:youtube] [video:youtube]

The Electone StageA has apparently been in production since 2004. Must be a lot of rich customers in Asia buying thus stuff for 14 years and counting. I wonder why the Latin America market is included on Yamaha's site - must be all the rich hacienda owners. In any case, those Tyros and Electone sales are apparently financing the R&D on "lesser" products like the Montage.

I once read somewhere that Yamaha usually releases their latest high-end sample playback/articulation technology in their high-end arranger and Electone lines (sold only to Asia/Latin America) first. That tech later trickles down to the workstation products (eg. MOTIF). Same source stated that to Yamaha, the high-end arrangers and Electone are considered higher end than the workstation keyboards so tha pricing is set to match.. In addition, I think they do it because the market is willing to pay it. If nobody was willing to pay, those product lines would have died already, or dropped in price. Apparently they're still following this pattern.