The fellow with a red jacket is playing a Polysix over a Roland VP330 Vocoder. I believe a Roland SH-101 and Roland CR-78 drum are on his right.
The bearded fellow is playing a Roland Jupiter-8, Korg MS-10/20 and a Roland TR-808 drum machine.
I've always preferred synths with utilitarian looks and designs.
They are electronic devices after all. No different than medical or computer equipment.
I'm of the same opinion...
First had a K2000S then a 1st gen model that was used for a Cirque du Soleil tour. It had dozens of 100mb zip disks full of samples but I thought it didn't sound as good as my K2000S.
In an entirely subjective opinion, I'll say the Yamaha PSS-480/680.
A simple 2-Op FM toy keyboard that can be edited via software. Sounds much better than it should, imo, with a very high fun factor.
Thank you for putting in words what many would like to say, but have a hard time to express, AnthonyM.
And thanks Keyboard Corner and MPN Network for having continued to provide a home and shelter online throughout 2023. May we all step in the New Year with open hearts.
I like raw analog sound myself and usually got by with careful programming.
But FM just takes to effects so well it's astounding.... especially with early 12 or 16 bit processors.
I heard blah FM patches take on life with just a little Chorus or phaser. The sounds are literally transformed.
The shot of the Moog synthesizer in Gimme Shelter had always puzzled me until a year ago or so when i learned abour Doug Mckechnie.
Always a pleasure to learn more about the history of synthesizers and the people involved.