Hi MegaVoice,
i would like to take a Minimoog out on a gig. Thats the reason for buying it !! Not to hide the thing away !! Which is why i have asked many questions about the tuning-stabillity of the Osc.
Ta,
Paul
Fortunately, and unlike most other analog synths, the D has an A440 reference onboard, and a switch to turn the output off momentarily when retuning the synth to that reference (with headphones) before each couple of songs. Because no matter what version of the oscillators you have they will still drift a little.
Thanks Alien,
Thanks for the info.
So do people have a pair of headphones permnantly plugged into the Minimoog on gigs so that they could have a quick listen and check the tuning if/when needed ??
Paul
no, they have a peterson strobe tuner connected to it all the time, 199 i bought one for, seems they also have an app for the iphone,
the multi is spec made for live usage, with it’s quick on temp/stable oscillators, aftertouch, ribbon, sync and little things like turning up the eg to cutoff and reducing the volume/ cutoff steady levell at the same time and such kind of things.
that’s why i take it on stage.
with the osc to filter modluation you can make it scream too.
on stage the mini takes “two hands” sometimes, but overall when well serviced the tuning isn’t the problem.
thanks to peterson when you’re in a crowded noisy place
Hi Sunny,
To be honest, most people in the audience would not even notice if an instrument was out of tune. And neither would most GUITARISTS !! 
Paul
-Depends on general gain-level
-Depends on the mix
-Depends on music-style
-Depends on the audience
But in general you’re right…80-90% of the listening people are standing there like buffalos on the prarie… 
Hi guys,
i had the chance to play on a Minimoog for 10 x mins tonight and also watch my friend perform his set on it.
A couple of things really struck me :-
The key lengths are very short !! i was not expecting that at all. They did not ever appear to look short (to me) in photos i have seen.
And the Pitch Bend Wheel clicks back to center (rather than smoothly passing thu it). This really threw me !! 
This Minimoog was not in amazing shape and had not been played for a good while. Though everything seemed to be working more or less ok on it (but i am not sure to what level of actual full potential). It sounded very good and produced a sound which (sadly) my Multimoog can not.
In my friends opinion, he said it needs sending to Rudi for a service which would probably cost around 1,500 GBP.
In any case, i got to play one finally after waiting over 20 x years !! 
i still have a choice of three, so i am going to have to think seriously about what i am going to do…
Paul
Unless the keyboard is not the original, the keys are standard synthesizer/organ type length. In fact, they are the same as on your Multimoog (Pratt Reed keyboard). Unless, like I said, it had been replaced by some other one on the model you tried.
And the Pitch Bend Wheel clicks back to center (rather than smoothly passing thu it). This really threw me !! >
This is adjustable to owner’s preference. Harder or softer.
I still have a choice of three, so i am going to have to think seriously about what i am going to do…
Paul
Wise thing to do.
Hi Alien,
i did not know that you can adjust the Pitch Bend tension. This one was extremely stiff (and as far as i am concerned it was unusable !!). i use the Pitch Bend all the time in my playing.
i think you are correct in that it was not the original keyboard. The key lengths were shorter than my Multimoog. i know because i can manage my playing fine on my Multimoog. Who was Pratt Reed please ??
Cheers,
Paul
Pratt-Read (sometimes incorrectly spelled Pratt-Reed, like I did in my last post 
) was an american manufacturing company, that used to produce electromechanical keyboards for organs and synths back in the seventies.
It went bankrupt in 2009, I believe, and was bought back by another company, if I’m not mistaken. But they stopped producing keyboards a long time ago I think.
Too bad, because their synth keyboard action is one of the very best in the world (with new bushings).
As for the pitch-bend adjustment, you can read this short thread about a guy who had the opposite problem on his Minimoog a short while ago:
Thanks Alien,
Thats great. i don’t mind the fact that the Wheel is not spiring-loaded. But its the fact that the center position was way too stiff. i was worried that this was not adjustable.
The Mod Wheel is fine.
Paul
Slightly off topic :-
If you had two MemoryMoogs which both have MIDI, can you perform a complete PATCH DUMP (of sounds) from one to the other ?? So similar to that of a BULK DUMP on digital keyboards.
Ta,
Paul
on the mini’s i know the pitch wheel is very easily moved, way easier then on a voyager b.e.
the fact it has no spring is a big advantage i guess.
the keyboard should be normal in size, otherwise, as stated it maybe isn’t original anymore.
nice you have played one at last. imagine how a well kept and calibrated minimoog might feel..
when they are good you get a good sounding, well playable, keeping it’s tune very reasonabe etc. when buying one which hasn’t been revisioned recently bringing it up to good state, might cost you about 300-800 euro’s, rudi does it even more excessive, inclusive midification etc, which afcourse also has it’s price
Yes Sunny,
Rudi charges up to 1,500 Euro for a MiniMoog service. The MIDI kit costs 350 Euro alone.
However, i have to say that i thought the MemoryMoog was really something special of an instrument. It was a HUGE sound and seemed to have so much more to offer than the MiniMoog. Obviously the MiniMoog is a very beautiful machine, but the MemoryMoog really did make an impression on me.
What i do not understand though is :-
MiniMoogs sell for around 3,500 Euro. But a MemoryMoog sells for around 5,000 Euro. i would have thought that (because the MemoryMoog does so much MORE) that there would be a greater price difference between the two synths ??
Ta,
Paul
Only for LAMM Memorymoogs.
Memorymoog plus with MIDI does not implement sysex patch dump, but you could probably use cassette I/O to transfer patches, just connect the output of one to the input of the other.
Thanks MC,
i am bit unsure here so please bear with me.
Is a LAMM one which has the Rudi Linhard MIDI KIT fitted ??
If you have an original MemoryMoog and add MIDI to it (whether it be Rudi’s or Kenton etc), then does it then automatically become classed as a MemoryMoog Plus ??
Ta,
Paul
The Memorymoog is a very unreliable synth. It has been like that from the start. Too many components in a cramped space with poor ventilation (despite a loud fan underneath!) makes for unreliable operation.
Memorymoogs with only 4 or 5 voices still working are not uncommon.
Before buying one, ask the seller to show you the “auto-tune” screen results. It has to show no less than “6 tuned”.
Also, the synth has Curtis CEM3340 oscillator chips (not Moog). Lots of them (19 to be exact). And those are very hard to replace nowadays when they bust. Other Curtis chips are also getting harder to find, like envelopes (CEM3310), and VCA (CEM3360).
Any tech that has ever worked on a Memorymoog will tell you it’s a nightmare to maintain and fix.
That’s why it doesn’t command extremely high prices (although 5000 Euros isn’t exactly cheap either at around $6600 US !). It’s rather the price of a Minimoog D that is currently artificially inflated. They did produce way more Minis (around 12000) than Memorymoogs.
Even if a Memorymoog remains one of my dream synths (for what it offers), I wouldn’t touch it with a ten feet pole at the current going prices. And I’m an electronics hobbyist (I’ve successfully fixed my Mini, and many other synths like P5, vintage Korgs, etc…).
I’ve seen an embarrassing video of famed Jean-Michel Jarre live on stage with a Memorymoog that failed him. Not a pretty sight.
Here’s the link (it starts to go wrong at around 1:30)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bmAOLsMFRJo
Hi Alien,
That JMJ video is amazing (and also very sad !!). Thats a seriously high pressure situation to be in on a gig !! 
My friends MemoryMoog was totally unreliable when he bought it a couple of years ago for around 2,000 GBP. But he sent it to Rudi who worked on it for 6 x weeks and charged him around 3,000 GBP. Rudi replaced many of the internal parts with modern reliable substitues (as you suggested is a wise idea) It now works and sounds totally amazing, believe me !!
Apparently Rudi said it should run for a good few years now with no major issues. And when it does need servicing the work will be easier to complete due to it having modern components fitted.
Ta,
Paul
Yes I can confirm this. The MM can be upgraded to be fully reliable !!!
Completely new PSU must be installed, a bulk of components must be swapped, units must be cleaned.
At the end the tuning-stability will be enhanced significantly but not for 100%.
As I know sound will be the same. It’s obviosly not possible to get into the circuitries for sound-improvement.
i’m also not such a big fan of the memorymoog: unreliable and expensive. afcourse the RL mod really helps the instrument a lot, but the price is also higher then.
also the six voices , when all function indeed, is not comfortable, as i need 8 to play a bit normal/ natural. therefore the jp8 and a6 andromeda have been my favourites, nowadays i would consider the prophets, like the p12.
the price for revision for a mini wouldn’t have to be over the prices i mentioned, if you don’t specifically need the high praised skills of RL nor the extended upgrading he’s offering, some good technicians can be found for the normal work , at least where i live.
last remark: the memorymoog never touched me so much in sound either as the mini does, one more reason why prices are high when compared to each other