Morning all!
Due to the onset of my midlife crisis I'm thinking strongly about getting a synth and messing about with programming and playing some of my old 80's memories! (Howard jones/Nick Kershaw etc).
I am NOT a keyboard player but I'll soldier on.
Can anybody suggest a modern cheap kinda synth that would allow me to cop so,e of those old sounds or are they now the 59 Les Paul's for keyboard players?!
Just to recap, I know nothing about playing them but am looking for a nice hobby to tackle over the coming year... A pal of mine used to do a great 80's thing years and years ago with cubase iirc but I've lost contact with him....
Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Give a man a fire and he's warm for the day. But set fire to him and he's warm for the rest of his life
Comments
The original (affordable) Juno series (6, 60, 106) is the sound of an awful LOT of '80s pop. It was a surprisingly simple synth, and had no business sounding as good as it did. Used only, of course, but if you buy one at £750, you can sell it at the same price if you tire of it.
The Behringer DM12 is a modern take on the Juno architecture but with a whole lot more complexity at your disposal, plus excellent FX. And warranty! There's a DM6 coming along soon at a lower price.
You can get FM synths for very cheap these days.
Other than that, you can get ROMplers and modellers that can cop some of the sounds of the '80s.
For late Eighties sounds, the KORG M1 and the T series cover a lot of bases - especially with the optional extra sound cards.
The E-Mu Vintage Keys rack module has a good stab at some of the classic sounds. Their Orbit 3 and Xtreme Lead modules do some nice squelchy sounds. The latter was also available in keyboard format. http://www.vintagesynth.com/emu/xk6.php
If you already have a computer-based recording set-up, consider a "plug-in" software synthesizer. You will need a MIDI Controller keyboard to trigger the software but that one keyboard will serve for all virtual instruments.
I suggest Spectrasonics Omnisphere 2. Here's Uncle Eric with the science bit.
https://www.spectrasonics.net/products/omnisphere/omnisphere-video.php#video
https://www.gak.co.uk/en/yamaha-reface-dx-fm-synthesizer/119777
as well as a CS synth one.
OP, if you don't mind the tiny size, the Roland JP-08 module will get much closer.
An original Jupe is going to be expensive. A Juno 106 may require a chip service. Any Eighties Sequential synth needs about a week for the tuning voltage to stabilise. (Okay. Slight exaggeration.)
Let's split the digital/analogue difference. Roland JX-10 - Kershaw certainly used it.
You can look up the specs but briefly, you get:
37 mini keys
Digital synth with plenty of voices,
Drum synth,
Analog synth with basic options,
Vocoder/autotune,
Sequencer
Mod wheel + pitch bend wheel
Sound wise i'm not sure how it compares to the other synths mentioned but I know I am extremely happy with it. You also get downloads of new instruments online.
https://www.studiowear.co.uk/ -
https://twitter.com/spark240
Facebook - m.me/studiowear.co.uk
Reddit r/newmusicreview
The System-1 though is an excellent stand-alone. People slag off the keyboard but to be honest it's quite nice to play - as a non-keyboardist - and it sounds fantastic. it can be momophonic or limited poly and has a built-in arpeggiator. Furthermore, it's fun. I got one a couple of months ago, and I can't keep my hands off it!
You want one of these!
http://www.richtonemusic.co.uk/products/korg_rk100s-rd_keytar_red.asp?gclid=CK6Z9JeghNUCFde6GwodqIcO-w
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
Was tempted to go all out and a Korg Kronos but that's basically a PC, touchpad with keyboard attached and I'd prefer to go DAW router (they also take up to 2mins to boot up - the Kurzweil is 15s).
I'll probably add a analogue keyboard module (or imitator like Nord Lead 2) or one of the recent analogue mini synths from the likes of Korg/Roland for those simpler synth lead lines. It seems like a great time to get back in the game and you get alot for your money, especially second hand. I too was a Howard Jones, Thomas Dolby etc fanboy but my Casio CZ1000 in the mid 80's didn't really cut it!
https://theproaudiofiles.com/ios-music-production-synth-apps/