I don’t know if it’s appropriate for me to post this notice here, but I wanted to let Moog enthusiasts know about my offering here before it goes to e-bay/ craigs list.
Mint/ Near Mint 100% functional MultiMoog with Owners manual, documents, ATA flight case, etc.
This is a truely beautiful example of one of the best designed and rarest Moogs. This one in show-room, museum quality condition. The price I’m looking for will, of course, reflect the extremely clean condition; but I’m very open to trade because I’m looking for a Mini model D.
I dunno, what if you had a guy who had bought a 2 minis back in the day and kept one in its original packaging. Then you finally opened it recently and replaced all the electrolytic caps…that’s pretty darn mint to me…highly unlikely but still possible
The definition of what is mint is an opinion; mint should be used guardedly. That said, there are definitely mint vintage synths out there; I’ve seen a number of them over the decades. Mint does not in fact mean the same thing as new, though sometimes they overlap.
Moogarchives.com is an awesome historical site for Moog info as well as for advertising Moogs for sale. Ebay’s the most effective means for buying or selling mint synths, IMO. A mint Multimoog and some patience will eventually net funds sufficient to cover a good part of the cost of a similar condition Mini. http://moogarchives.com/
I agree, and I hope it is understood that when I say “mint/ near mint”, I mean as close to that description as is possible on an almost 30 year old synth.
I honestly love this Multi; IMO it is one of the coolest looking synths ever made. It’s extremely well built, sturdy and durable (unlike many other Moogs). Also it is a great players synth with very good pressure sensitive After-touch. I’m always amazed at how well the after-touch works, and how useable it is. I wish it was on more synths.
Unfortunately, I am a player and not a collector of synths. I have too many already, and can’t really afford to keep up a collection. So when I decided to buy a Mini D, I also decided that this Multi must go to help pay for the Mini.
I remember Multis selling for years (throughout the 90s) at or around $500. And it came as a shock to me when I saw that, now, they are going (in this condition) for $2000 and up. I’d be happy for much less than that.
There are in fact mint synths out there, plus the definition mint is very subjective, so on both counts it is incorrect to make unequivocal assumptions that such things don’t exist without explaining why, when in fact they do.
Analogbass… with all due respect, if you can “see” mint, I need you over here in the shop pronto.
Here’s a list of what I’ve found in “mint” synths.
Cracked PCB connections- unit worked until moved a certain way
Bad components that worked until after 3 hrs, when they’d shut down
Bad capacitors- paste filled caps only last 15 to 20 years. Not 30
Fatigued metal and fuse elements - Fuses that just blow one day after being flexed too often.
Tarnished connector pins
Rusted or corroded hardware
Worn switch contacts and pots - worked, but little life left
Burned resistors
Mouse droppings / eaten wire insulation
Previous service evidence- all wire ties and many screws missing or loose
Leaky memory batteries
Undocumented internal mods or poor previous service performed
Degraded rubber- bushings, insulators, dust covers
Bent, but operating j wires
Loose internal hardware
Like a human, they may look great on outside, but have terminal cancer on the inside.
That’s why a doctor would never declare a person “healthy” by visually looking at them and seeing if they can walk and talk..
Same goes for a synth.
A unit can look great and operate, but drop dead the next day from all the things the “mint proclaimer” doesn’t know.
No such thing as a mint vintage synth.
The animal doesn’t exist.
It’s not subjective, it’s absolute.
In fact, bring me a vintage synth that I can find nothing wrong with and I’ll pay you for your time.
I’m that serious.
Believing in “mint” is like believing in the Easter Bunny.
These are electronics and they age whether sitting in the box or not.
-That’s a narrow definition of mint that no one uses; that is not the common usage. Mint applies almost always to what people see and is something that does exist with a small percentage of vintage synths.
-Synth internal horror stories have nothing to do with synths that are mint inside and out-I and techs i’ve dealt with have in fact looked at internals of mint synths that sometimes look like new. Not saying it’s common but it exists. Or, there are just a few things that have degraded and are then inexpensively replaced with new or are cleaned.
Therefore, there are in fact mint vintage synths, based on (1) the common definition of mint-the outward appearance that is accepted by 99.9% of the populace, and (2) for the very small minority of those who care like myself, internals that are either perfect or are restored to mint, sometimes with the help of sources such as chipsforbrains to acomplish this.
Looks may be what defines mint to you, but looks are only skin deep.
Equally.. and like humans… appearances can cause emotional responses that are quite beyond logic. From women to cars, good looks can cause money to flow.
So, I want to point out my reasons for being so anti-mint.
My efforts are not to criticize sellers as much as to educate buyers.
Mint can be regarded by a buyer as a rubber stamp of integrity.
It may be all they’re going on, having no experience with electronics.
In that way, they look at a synth as basically one item that either works or doesn’t.
They don’t consider the unit for what it really is: thousands of separate parts working in concert with each other.
It may well have to do with looks by a buyer or even a tech, but it seriously depends on what they’re looking for.
Not seeing something for what it is, can cost money.
Looking at the boards of an early minimoog doesn’t tell you that the carbon resistors are now 23% off. Experience does.
Now mint can be regarded by a seller as a implied warranty.
By attaching the term, they know they imply a high level of expectations.
A person can have very emotional responses to expectations dashed.
Consider my angle: I’m the guy that’s often put in the position of attaching an actual price to the …difference… between the perceptions of mint and the expectations of it.
In other words, I see units that were sold as mint all of time.
The customer can be embarrassed or even in denial and outwardly offensive.
This is the standard “My car broke. It’s YOUR fault Mr. Mechanic” scenario.
I am asked to deliver a laundry list of items inside that definitely weren’t mint.
The customers are not always happy with this. I’m giving them bad news.
Depending on their personalities, they can become self-blaming or blame others.
Often they’re not financially prepared to pay more money on top of an already inflated purchase price.
I would also like to point out that the word “restored” is equally thrown around with little definition. Just because a synth is cleaned up, has new bushings and whatnot doesn’t mean it is restored. Still, people believe this and pay top money for such units irrespective of the “restorer’s” experience.
Buying a broken mint or poorly restored synth is not a fun experience.
Truly, all of these vintage pieces are sold as-is.
I agree that “mint” is a pretty subjective term for synthesizers… and while I am usually the guy who rants about imperfect word usage, (don’t get me started on fat, or phat, or how fat and phat have different histories and different meanings, and how irritating it is that synth sellers tend to use them interchangeably, etc. etc.)
But this is one instance where the original meaning as been subverted by usage. People have been using “MINT” to describe all sorts of worthless garbage on eBay for the many years I’ve been using it. With bazillions of auctions happening a day, and bazillions of eager buyers reading these auctions every day, it’s very possible that words are going to be created, destroyed, and altered.
Whenever I have looked at a synth on eBay, I have almost wholly disregarded what the seller wanted me to think, and have looked directly at what they were saying. I have never thought ONCE that a seller was using the term “mint” literally… however, I assume that if they say a synth is “mint,” what they’re desperately trying to convey is that the synth is in unbelieveably good condition for its age, that it is fully functional, that it is cosmetically perfect, and perhaps that it has been worked on, cleaned, maintained, etc. If a person told me that no one had ever opened up a 30 year old synth, I would… :::ahem::: stray from that auction. : )
Mr. Lightner, first of all… I dearly wish I could afford you. : ) (my Mini needs the key contacts cleaned… at least, I think that’s what it is… and I might need a pot replaced, or at least tightened… I do not have the allen wrench requisite to loosen the danged knob!) Second of all, as a fellow lover of words and defender of their original meanings (or, at least somewhat original meanings in some cases), I salute your desire to protect the language from subjective and ineffective degradation, as well as your desire to make sure that people aren’t tricked or mislead about the condition of this wonderful antique equipment.
Oh, and Eric… I always wanted a Multimoog… and often planned to get one to add to my Micromoog so I could create a monster synth more powerful than the Mini… but instead, I sold my Micro and Sonic Six and bought a Mini… and never turned back. I think I can say pretty confidently that you will not regret this decision. : )
I think it’s irritating when people come out of nowhere and post here for the purposes of selling something… but when a forum member has been around here a long time and has contributed to a lot of discussions, etc. it doesn’t seem unreasonable at all for them to post equipment for sale (especially Moog!). Maybe that’s just me… or maybe I’m being elitist about forum members, but… : )
Well, I’ve been contributing quite a bit for the past year, so I hope that meets the requirements for posting sale items. Maybe no one is suppossed to regardless, but I haven’t seen this rule written anywhere… still, no one is interested anyway… which is strange to me…
It’s funny though, because I’m considering selling this Multi and a Sonic Six (also in beautiful condition-- just needs some repairs), to raise money for a Mini.
I’ve always wanted a Mini, and they’re definitely my favorite synth, but it’ll be a big sacrifice if I have to lose the Sonic and Multi. But, I think it’ll be worth it.
Oh, that’s what I was saying… I mean, not like it’s my decision, but you post frequently here and would not appear to be simply someone trying to use a forum for a momentary benefit.
I’ve seen people get pretty irritated over postings about Moog items for sale… and I don’t know what the problem is, as long as it’s not just someone out of the blue dropping in for the sole purpose of exploiting a forum community… but maybe I’m too lax or something, I don’t know. : )
Yes, I miss my Sonic Six. I mean, not in comparison to the Mini… but definitely for a synthesizer in its own right. It had a wonderfully discrete-sounding sound. Mine couldn’t be used without immediately sounding like a reference to some early synth recording. I loved it. I hated the crappy envelope, and the way that it had to be set up on a flat table and would not work on the stands I had at the time… but that’s about it. The aesthetics, for me, were a large factor… I couldn’t NOT be happy playing a synth that looked like the interior of a 70s era spaceship. ; ) As Roger Manning said, “it looks like furniture from 2001 [A Space Odyssey]”
Yean, that’s the main reason I have for keeping it… the way it looks. The ring mod and modualtion are pretty great too. But I already have a Mooger Ring Mod which is comparable, and LFOs are pretty easy to come by…
Dear lord…I wish everyone had taste as bad as you …then i could finally afford a Sonic Six!..
I think those synths are absolutely beautiful…but I’m also the guy that thinks 70s era furniture at the salvation army is awesome looking…
I think you may have misunderstood me! Of course, who wouldn’t with “couldn’t NOT,” but anyway. I was saying that I dearly LOVE the aesthetics of the Sonic Six. It might be my favourite synthesizer aesthetic of any I’ve had.
I also like 70s furniture. : )
