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ive decided to branch out of purely software based production and try something a little different (for me). ive been toying with the idea of picking up some hardware for some time now but with so many options, its a ball ache to make a decision !!!

i started off after an electribe emx or esx but theyre a bit on the pricey side for me at the moment so i checked ebay for some older pieces, namely the:
roland mc 303,
KORG electribe ea-1 or er1,
electribe r mk 2

has anyone used/got any of these pieces or can anyone suggest anything else ?
ive researched the shit out of them on the internet (sound on sound etc) but i was looking for more personal opinions from some peeps that have spent time these bits of kit

peas

What are you wanting to do with your production?

Do you want a synth to generate basslines and leads

A drum machine to provide alternative beat programming?

How much you looking to spend?

What platform you currently using?

thats a good question sir !

eventually i'd like both and to be able to combine them as with the electribe ranges or one piece of kit for both. found some older electribes and a few mc 303's on ebay for a round a ton.

im all sorftware based right now (logic but want some hardware for a mash up dub/breaks band im tryin to set up

Have you considered circuit bending? You could pick up a cheap keyboard at a thrift store and make very unique sounds very cheaply.

Have you considered circuit bending? You could pick up a cheap keyboard at a thrift store and make very unique sounds very cheaply.
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yeah, its something thats always seemed very interesting & i had some friends at uni that ware all about it but to tell the truth, its a subject that bends my head ! i was never one for all out logical thinking !

I was just about to right that the Electribes are probably a bit of a waste of money as (assuming you're sticking with a DAW for this?) you don't need the sequencing aspect that much.... but they're CHEAP, so maybe it's worth finding one for a play around.

I can't recommend the Novation X-Station highly enough. Great starting place for hardware synthesis...

Magma wrote:I can't recommend the Novation X-Station highly enough. Great starting place for hardware synthesis...

I love my Xstation

but you are going want a drum machine as well

get yourself an MPC to go with it!

thanks,

deff something to chew over !

what's yr audio interface like?

I'd go for something you enjoy using, unless ur using an all hardware setup the sound difference isn't going to make a huge difference, so go into a music shop and try stuff out...

heres a link tip for you that might help,
http://www.vintagesynth.com

Magma wrote:I was just about to right that the Electribes are probably a bit of a waste of money as (assuming you're sticking with a DAW for this?) you don't need the sequencing aspect that much.... but they're CHEAP, so maybe it's worth finding one for a play around.

i had an ER1 and it was a fun toy, but i got rid of it, and wouldnt waste the money on it. its not gonna give you some sonic quality that is interesting or worth anything... plus it only had stereo outs... so you cant really EQ or effect individual drums. to me, microtonic (vst) sounds similar, and i use it occasionally for that type of drums

i wouldnt spend money on hardware unless it was something classic (semi-classic) or really cheap with a lot of character. get a couple midi control surfaces, if you dont have one, and upgrade your computer... software is so much more flexible

Circuit bending is an excellent idea - although it can take a while before you find any sounds you really want to use, it's a good way to learn about signal path and electronics in general. Make sure you only use battery-powered stuff though, wouldn't want ya to set yourself on fire like Aphex Twin!

Old analog gear is vastly underrated IMHO. I've gushed about my Juno 60 elsewhere here, and I have yet to find a plugin that sounds as raw with synth leads as my Korg Poly 800 (not genuinely analog, but still...) Another thing about these old machines is that they usually have "sweet spots" that digital synthesis/emulation still can't touch because it's physics you're playing with and not binary.

So... is it that you want a different physical/tactile approach to making music? That can help a lot, varying how you make your sounds.

But if you're talking more about getting a fatter sound, then another consideration might be outboard processing gear. It can be difficult to get music that's all been made inside a computer to sound - well, to sound like it didn't all come from a computer. Routing the sound "outside the box" can help with this, even if it's just running a guitar stomp box as an FX send or something.

NoSpin wrote:
i had an ER1 and it was a fun toy, but i got rid of it, and wouldnt waste the money on it. its not gonna give you some sonic quality that is interesting or worth anything... plus it only had stereo outs... so you cant really EQ or effect individual drums. to me, microtonic (vst) sounds similar, and i use it occasionally for that type of drums

I had an ER1 aswell, i sold it after moving to software...it's okay for synthetic rhythms but it's nothing to get excited over.

Seriously though...software synthesizers are a better option IMO they can still achieve an analogue sound...and you can do things with softsynths and processing that aren't possible with analogue technology.

On the groovebox tip with the Electribes, I used to have a Roland MC909 but I just found it so clunky compared to software for arranging anything other than Trance/Techno that I ended up getting rid of it.

So yeah... hardware synths/samplers, definitely a great way to go, but I'd steer away from the "studio in a box" affairs...

hardware sampler or synth module imo

got my eys on one of these
http://cgi.ebay.com/Yamaha-TX7-FM-Synth ... 240%3A1318 next

same as a yamaha dx7 basically

Deadly Habit wrote:hardware sampler or synth module imo

got my eys on one of these
http://cgi.ebay.com/Yamaha-TX7-FM-Synth ... 240%3A1318 next

same as a yamaha dx7 basically

I've always been kind of tempted by one of them. It'd be quite fun to have as a sound source if I had a load of external stuff to play with. Similarly the Korg M1R or M3R. Use them as external oscs with the Alesis Ion, or start building my dream analogue modular with a filter bank and use the TX7 to give it something nice and crunchy to effect.

The downside being that if you aren't using it with a load of other hardware, it's basically a VST that you have to plug in to your computer with a couple of cables. Probably cheaper than the equivalent VST, though...

Tbh I'm mainly interested in hardware for the different experience of working you get... it somehow feels better to sit around twiddling knobs on a hardware synth for an hour than to do the same in front of a computer screen with a VST. Fiddling with patch cables would be even better. So I guess that that would be the number one priority for me looking at hardware - get something that sounds good, obviously, but also get something that's enjoyable to use and that you'll therefore do stuff with that you couldn't basically do as well with a VST at a fifth the price...

VIRUS TI! oh shit yeh

Slothrop wrote:

Deadly Habit wrote:hardware sampler or synth module imo

got my eys on one of these
http://cgi.ebay.com/Yamaha-TX7-FM-Synth ... 240%3A1318 next

same as a yamaha dx7 basically

I've always been kind of tempted by one of them. It'd be quite fun to have as a sound source if I had a load of external stuff to play with. Similarly the Korg M1R or M3R. Use them as external oscs with the Alesis Ion, or start building my dream analogue modular with a filter bank and use the TX7 to give it something nice and crunchy to effect.

The downside being that if you aren't using it with a load of other hardware, it's basically a VST that you have to plug in to your computer with a couple of cables. Probably cheaper than the equivalent VST, though...

Tbh I'm mainly interested in hardware for the different experience of working you get... it somehow feels better to sit around twiddling knobs on a hardware synth for an hour than to do the same in front of a computer screen with a VST. Fiddling with patch cables would be even better. So I guess that that would be the number one priority for me looking at hardware - get something that sounds good, obviously, but also get something that's enjoyable to use and that you'll therefore do stuff with that you couldn't basically do as well with a VST at a fifth the price...

yea i have my micron (are you on the ion/micron yahoo group btw), but i want a real fm synth to toy with and saw tx7 in sound on sound or duture music as being cheap and dx7's cousin
honestly i wanna get a v synth gt, virus ti snow, roland juno alpha, roland sh-201, and a real rhodes (if only i had the cash for any
plus some rackmount fx units mainly a dw fearn tube compressor
also i wanna give a hands on to the new artuia origin
honestly the more hardware i toy with and more i learn i become a bigger gear slut

Deadly Habit wrote: yea i have my micron (are you on the ion/micron yahoo group btw),

Nah, I waste enough time talking breeze on the net anyway.

but i want a real fm synth to toy with and saw tx7 in sound on sound or duture music as being cheap and dx7's cousin

Hmmm, FM is digital algorithms whether it's done inside a computer or in a hardware synth, it's not like simulating analogue stuff. Tbh I'd be tempted to get something like FM7 or FM8 for basically the same sounds plus not being a total slag to program.

honestly i wanna get a v synth gt, virus ti snow, roland juno alpha, roland sh-201, and a real rhodes (if only i had the cash for any
plus some rackmount fx units mainly a dw fearn tube compressor
also i wanna give a hands on to the new artuia origin

Don't we all.

Actually, if I was looking to spend anything upwards of a grand on hardware, I'd be looking at these people http://www.analoguesystems.co.uk/index2.htm