check out this thread… what do you guys reckon?loadsa talk going on at vintagesynth.com as well.
http://www.gearslutz.com/board/electronic-music-instruments-electronic-music-production/139079-new-analog-poly-dsi.html
or
http://www.vintagesynth.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=29662&postdays=0&postorder=asc&start=0
or
http://acapella.harmony-central.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1715005&page=1
It’s eerily quiet around here… 
Yeah weird. Wonder if Moog new about this coming…
This is a BIG new product and will impact on Moog in a good way i think!
Does this mean we should now expect a new analog poly from Moog? Well,… i dont think they really have a choice now but to make one.;o) It makes no sense not to make one now.
The great thing is DSI have shown their cards first so Moog can take their time to perfect their design and make a pro 08 killer!
Also the pro 8 looks great but they made a massive boo boo putting the wheels where they have.
So Moog its over to you…
bring it on
I think that Moog does not really need to make a polyphonic synth. After all, Moog’s expertise lies vastly in monophonic synths. Would a poly Moog be cool? - sure, but I rather see Moog further innovating their concept of monophonic synths. In that sense, something like the LP and P8 could happily coexist next to each other as they seem like good complements.
i think moog HAVE to make new a poly now purely because it makes no business sense not to.the memorymoog was incredible and the technology is available to do it cheaper and more reliably now and with the benefit of seeing DSI’s poly first to market.
i think its silly having your biggest competitor release a poly and not choosing to enter that area of business.its def a watch this space scenario.
I have been looking into buying an analogue poly, will be interesting to see if Moog comes out with a competitive version ie. MemoryMoog 2.
Remember, Dave Smith uses the current crop of Curtis chips in his Evolver series and apparently in the PRO’08. The Curtis chips contain several parts of functionality on a single chip or as they say the CEM’s are a “synth in a chip.” In truth it does take some external hardware to make and tweak the functionality but the core of the VCO, VCF, VCA ect. are on a single chip making the product cheaper and requiring less real estate on the PCB for all of those wonderfull voices!
By contrast, look inside a MiniMoog Voyager where each section is clearly labeled (except the Filter section 
). Dr. Moog’s design incorporates OpAmps, transistors, caps and resistors in the core of each tone generating/shaping section on top of all the other hardware required to make it sound the way people want a Moog to sound. There are alot of parts which require alot of real estate just for the single voice in the Voyager (see: http://www.till-kopper.de/voyager.html BTW, thanks Till for your great resources). Imagine how big and expensive an 8 voice MiniMoog would be.
I suppose Moog could develope it’s own “synth in a chip” as was done with the Alesis Andromeda but this would require much time and cost just to get the chips into production. Ultimately, would the end result sound like a Moog? The debates and flame wars would be aplenty!
There is a reason why people buy both Moogs and DSI gear. They each have their own style and sound. But who knows?
goldphinga wrote:
i think moog HAVE to make new a poly now purely because it makes no business sense not to.the memorymoog was incredible and the technology is available to do it cheaper and more reliably now and with the benefit of seeing DSI’s poly first to market.
Remeber the Polymoog? 1976–“Synth in a Chip”. Almost brought down the company by itself. That was then, this is now, but maybe Moog wants to stay true to Dr. Moog’s original vision. Anybody can be a “me too” synth company and put out some kind of polyphonic. Not to belittle the awesome P5, but I also think that Voyagers, LPs, and P8s can all coexist very nicely.
I agree, when I hear the Moog name I never think of over-engineered poly synths.
i would much prefer purchasing a poly moog…any plans by say…Jan 08?
ive been waiting for a poly analog…Pro-08 looks like the ticket but Moog would be my 1st choice if they release one. cmon guys retro is in with all the baby boomers 
throw us a bone guys lol
Cheers
The new Prophet is one good looking keyboard.
However, so is the Poly Evolver, and I just could not connect with that instrument. I ended up with an Andromeda. I still can’t really connect with that one either, though. Maybe the new P8 is the one for me. I just can’t seem to get the hang of the Andromeda, although it has unlimited possibilities.
The Memorymoog is one of the greatest synths ever made, but I do not want to purchase one because I already have two vintage synths, and I don’t want to worry about repair bills and hard to find parts. I guess that a LAMM model would be the ticket, but who can afford one? I think that there is room in their line for Moog to make a new Memorymoog (makes more sense as a manufacturer than Taurus pedals), but what would the price be on a new synth like the Memorymoog? Gulp!!
It remains to be seen if the Prophet 8 kills Voyager sales. Why would a synth newbie pay over $3,000 for a monophonic Voyager when they can buy an 8 voice Prophet 8 for $2,000? Unless you have to have a Moog, it just doesn’t make sense not to purchase the P8.
Two Grand for a new 8 voice is one helluva price, but already guys on the internet synth boards are complaining about the P8’s lack of flexibility. My guess is that it is probably fine for the average guy like me, but the guys who want to be able to modulate their modulators modulations would be better off with an Andromeda. It is a great synth, but man, I just can’t figure it out.
We will see if Moog will rise to the challenge to make something to battle the P8, but if they try to match the price point, is it really a Moog as we know it? Yet if they come up with a good copy of the Memorymoog for $7,000 would people buy it—they would have purchased a LAMM long ago.
Interesting times in Analog…
An analog synthesizer from Dave Smith is always welcomed (lol, you can never have enough analog, eh?)
I don’t know about the price though… plus it has a significant ergonomical mistake which is the wrong placement of the mod and pitch wheels. No matter how many times I have seen them placed above the keyboad, I never liked it. It just doesn’t feel ok for me.
I did however listen to a VERY nice sound in a demo..
well i was thinking that the new Moog poly should be based on the Lp and not the voyager to make it cheaper. use the rac type pots and keep it dead simple. almost like a 5 octave polyphatty! The memorymoogs interface (i have a plus model) is really intuitive so there is no need for a new moog poly to be as complex as the voyager.
some things id like to see on a moog poly
6 voice poly (no real need for 8 voice)
rac controls interface design from the LP
ability to blend 3 waveforms per voice like on the mm+
arpeggiator
mixer that distorts when pushed
the hold control form the mm where you can play a chord, press hold and move that chord around the keyboard by playing just one note!
above all just make it sound great and keep it simple.
nice ;O)
I have to agree with goldphinga…
However, I would be happy with a modern Memory Moog +
It doesn’t necessarily have to have 8 voices… 6 would be fine… and look at the
Poly Evolver, it only has 4!
What I think would have been a good idea a long time ago and still now, would be to make an rack version of the Voyager WITHOUT the knobs, etc… just an expansion box with extra voices all controlled by the Voyager.
That way, you could buy a Voyager and expand it. The addition of a user interface (knobs, display, etc) add to the cost of a synth, on an expansion box this wouldn’t be necessary (may just enough to configure its mode of operation).
Maybe Moog should have a poll and see if that is something that would sell AND/OR if people would just prefer a whole new synth.
As for me I like both DSI and Moog products, however, finances are what limit most people. So, people often buy what they think provides the most “bang for the buck”.
This is a tough situation for Moog.
Do you try to do a bang up job on a multi voice (read that $$$$) or do you go the route of DSI and go for bank for the buck? DSI really hit the nail on the head with a $2000 street price on their Prophet 8.
People on this board are saying “keep it simple”. But if you go the cheap route the synth geeks (and I mean that in a good way) will pan the instrument because it does not have enough flexibility for them.
I guess that Moog’s development department needs to decide who they would be building this thing for. Can they sell more if they sell at a cheaper price but build a keyboard that is not very versitile, or do they make a super hot synth and charge a bunch of money? Seems like the guys who want super versitile already have other options out there (A6), but now the cost consious guys have an option as well with the P8.
Boy, if I were in Moog’s shoes, this would be a very tough call.
I would hate to see them go into too many menus. While I give Moog credit for continuing to develop the LP and give the customers more options, I hate not having the info right up front, instead having to go into a menu system. Not much else they can do, however. It is great that they continue to make a great synth even better…
Flame mode on.
Well,… i dont think they really have a choice now but to make one.;o) It makes no sense not to make one now.
i would much prefer purchasing a poly moog…any plans by say…Jan 08?
We will see if Moog will rise to the challenge to make something to battle the P8
well i was thinking that the new Moog poly should be based on
This is a tough situation for Moog.
Rise to challenge?
Battle?
No sense not to?
The new moog?
Tough situation?
WTF?
I don’t think taunting Moog will cause them to make one, nor do I think the DSI synth is any threat whatsoever to Moog.
Not even a miniscule, tiny bit.
Does it say somewhere that Moog is even designing or considering a poly synth?
The polymoog tanked Moog originally.
The Chroma helped sink Arp.
The A6 put the nails in Alesis’ coffin.
Making a good poly synth requires a ton of money and time.
Even if they started now, they wouldn’t have one for sale by Jan 08.. that’s only 4 months away!
Hardware and manufacturing are one thing.
Producing good OS software is another.
Kevin,
Very good points, but maybe some other factors had something to do with the problems, rather than the fact that the companies were developing polysynths??
You are in a better position and business to understand this than I, but wasn’t the original Moog already in trouble before the Polymoog came along? The fact that they released the Polymoog and then needed 300 engineering changes would indicate that maybe the product was ill conceived or rushed into production.
As far as ARP, isn’t it widely considered that the Avatar guitar synth killed that company? The Chroma, in fact, was the one thing deemed of any value in the company when ARP shut it’s doors.
Both Moog and ARP were badly managed in those days. I think that this is what killed the companies, not polyphonic synthesizers (although I guess that you could say that development of poly synths might have been poor business management for those companies at that particular time).
Not sure what is going on at Alesis. The A6 is considered by many to be THE top analog poly synth of the day. You have really got to work at them to get a full understanding. I know lots of good synth guys who have discarded theirs for something else. Seems like it’s release was kind of anti-climatic–you never saw much advertising about the A6. Alesis has always made some pretty nice synths that never got much press, for whatever reason. Poor marketing?
Isn’t the fact that the Prophet was polyphonic (and it had a good patch memory system) what brought Sequential Circuits out of the garage and into the limelight?
I am not so sure that polyphonic analog synths are necessarily a company killer, although as you say, development can be expensive, and this cost, if not managed properly, can bring a company down.
Hey, part of the fun of this board is speculation. We have been talking about new Memorymoog or Taurus for a couple years here. Those Source lovers requests were not so off the wall with the LP were they? And the LP gets closer to a Source all the time, what with the addition of S&H and Noise. Can a OS sequencer be far behind?? At least maybe a stand alone sequencer…
In my posts, I don’t mean to taunt Moog. Moog is one of my favorite companies of all time. I do think, however, that there has always been a friendly rivalry with Moog and Sequential/DSI. I find it hard to believe that Moog will completely ignore the analog polysynth market and just let DSI (and others) have it all to themselves. I would be the first to admit that I could be all wet on that presumption, however.
Don’t you think that the dollar value of the Voyager just took a hit when you can buy a good sounding polysynth from DSI for more than $1,000 less? I listened to some of the P8 sounds on the DSI site and they sound pretty nice. Some even sound kind of Moogy!
Make no mistake, the Phatty is driving Moog right now. From my understanding, they are selling the crap out of the LP. Good for them. I want my Moog buddies around for a long time. It just makes sense that they might have a poly synth on the drawing board. I just hope that whatever they are working on does not put this great small company in jeopardy.
Don’t get upset at everyone because they are speculating. That is part of what this forum is here for. If we posted facts only, there would be nothing to read here!!
I think what makes the most sense if for Moog sell an expansion unit for the phatty since it would cost a lot less per voice than the voyager. If they could make say a 4 voice rack for $1000 it would be a big hit since you could get into the phatty for $1200 and then when you’re hooked (like me) you would gladly pay another $1000 to make it polyphonic.
How about Moog? Can you polyphony my phatty?
I doubt Moog was blind-sided by the new Prophet. People in the industry know what’s going on. I’m sure they have been working on future products that we will all want.
I’m wondering how the big Japanese companies are taking the ever-building revival of analogue synths.