stiiiiiiive wrote: I'm a bit surprised the Voyager is not the most vintage sounding
It's funny that you say that.... if you say Voyager OS and model D, I can't think of any two that are farther apart.
Just last week I was thinking about starting a thread asking people what is their favorite Moog sound, and maybe try to describe the sound of any which one into a word or two.
It is true that they are all different, yet at the same time, they all share the "same classic 24 dB Moog LP filter" if you read about them here and there.
But asking which one is the best is like asking which flower is the most beautiful. And describing sound into words is illusory.
I think sound is just felt, and when your ear gets trained using many different synths, at the finish line, you categorize them on a scale that goes from "like" to "don't like". But that's not as simple as that either because every synth can manage so many very different sounds.
My very first synth was a Roland SH-201, an instrument about which my opinion has not changed since day one. The Roland supersaw waveform is so agressive it drives me nuts. On the other hand, the SH-201 is capable of the most beautiful bells, chimes and pads. Probably the most under-rated synth I know. I own two of them and I don't want to ever part with them. The effects section alone is worth the ticket. On the feature list its it still ahead of everything : polyphonic, multi timbral, 4 Osc', 4 LFO's, LP HP and BP (12 and 24 dB), split keyboard, sequencer, arpegiator, looper, beautiful interface : no LCD screen, it's all knobs and switches, special effects with reverb and delay, built in soundcard, super easy to use, 3 EG's, D-beam controller, tap tempo, external audio processing, expression pedal input. All for $300 if you go e-bay. (sales pitch ends here). It's a shame many people see it as a toy.
My first "good" sounding synth (I thought at the time) was the Mopho. Over the years, I would say the DSI sound grew into one I care the least about.
The Clavia Nord Lead, probably the best VA around overall, is a bit bland I think. The panel layout and feel is repelling. 3 digit LCD is a farce. Yet it's a classic that has a place in every studio, 20 voices polyphony, 1000 presets and not too bad Hammond organ emulation might have something to do with it.
Putting sound into words is a game that never ends and whose rules change all the time. What can I say? One day you may think a square of lamb is one of the most delicate food in the world, and the next, you can't be satisfied with anything else than a good old cheeseburger.
