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Differences in sound sculpting on Sirin and Grandmother

Posted: Sat Apr 20, 2019 7:06 am
by MacYost
I'm in Europe and have a Sirin in back order. While waiting for it – it's delivery has been postponed 3 times already – I started wondering if a Grandmother is not a better synth. Maybe you can share your insights?

I immediately ordered the Sirin once I heard about it. I always liked the Minitaur concept: the big knobs, the small form factor and the full DAW / computer editor integration. But I never bought one because of its limited tone range. So I took notice when the Sirin was announced and ordered one in February. But during the long wait I started to investigate other Moog current offerings and I quite like the Grandmother.

I can see they are different beasts, but how different are they sound wise? Do the oscillators and filters in both synths sound the same, or are they different? Does it make a big difference that the SIrin oscillators only support two wave forms, while the Grandmother has four? Is the PWM on the Grandmother a big deal? Does the High Pass Filter on the Grandmother offer additional sound possibilities not on the Sirin? Are the 2 ADSRs on the Sirin nicer than the single one on the Grandmother?

I think I will like the one-thing-does-all configuration of the Grandmother (sound engine, keyboard, reverb, ARP/SEQ section), but I do have all the outboard and DAW stuff, so using the Sirin will not be a problem. I do like the fact that the Sirin has presets, but I also like the semi-modular expansion options that the Grandmother offers.

So basically, if I want to own one great, affordable Moog synth, which one is the better option?

Re: Differences in sound sculpting on Sirin and Grandmother

Posted: Thu Apr 25, 2019 4:47 am
by David Smyth
I'd personally go with Grandmother, unless Sirin's compact/no keyboard form factor is important for live use or something like that.

Sirin is based on the hot signal Taurus bass osciallators, while Grandmother has a kinda vintage modular sound to it. That's a matter of taste.

However, as far as I'm aware Grandmother has no presets - that might matter to you too. Being an owner of the Minitaur I am aware that they added a crude way of scrolling through presets in a firmware update. I imagine (guess) Sirin has similar functionality - but if it does, it's pretty crude/basic with no screen to guide you.

But everything else you said about the Grandmother is true, in terms of offering more tonal capability. I'd imagine it should be more expensive than Sirin?
The arp/seq section, high pass filter mode, reverb, osc pwm etc. all add further sculpting capability and the semi-modular architecture blows all that open in all sorts of ways.

Speaking of Grandmother, check out the new Matriarch just released.. Looks like it's Grandmother's big brother:
https://www.moogmusic.com/news/introduc ... fDfRhmSI_k

David
NZ

Re: Differences in sound sculpting on Sirin and Grandmother

Posted: Sat Apr 27, 2019 11:22 am
by MacYost
David Smyth wrote:I'd personally go with Grandmother, unless Sirin's compact/no keyboard form factor is important for live use or something like that.

Sirin is based on the hot signal Taurus bass osciallators, while Grandmother has a kinda vintage modular sound to it. That's a matter of taste.

However, as far as I'm aware Grandmother has no presets - that might matter to you too. Being an owner of the Minitaur I am aware that they added a crude way of scrolling through presets in a firmware update. I imagine (guess) Sirin has similar functionality - but if it does, it's pretty crude/basic with no screen to guide you.

But everything else you said about the Grandmother is true, in terms of offering more tonal capability. I'd imagine it should be more expensive than Sirin?
The arp/seq section, high pass filter mode, reverb, osc pwm etc. all add further sculpting capability and the semi-modular architecture blows all that open in all sorts of ways.

Speaking of Grandmother, check out the new Matriarch just released.. Looks like it's Grandmother's big brother:
https://www.moogmusic.com/news/introduc ... fDfRhmSI_k

David
NZ
Thanks for your reply. What I like most about the Sirin is not its compact form factor, but the fact that everything can be automated via MIDI. So recording into a DAW, I can replay every filters weep and envelop change as it was originally done. But for full and easy operation Sirin needs its software editor. And what happens if this editor is no longer updated by Moog? Then operation will be a lot less easy, using the front panels shift-function (yes, you can browse presets using the Glide+OSC Wave buttons, and it doesn't seem easy). And I also think now that if I really want full automation, I already have that with the soft synths that I own. I just have to find one that emulates the Moog sound...

So I decided to go for the full analog synth experience, and ordered a Grandmother. Yes, the Matriarch look even nicer, but it's out of my budget, so I'm just ignoring it as best as I can. And it probably won't be available in Europe until much later this year. The Grandmother will arrive on monday evening, and I'm really looking forward to playing it. :D

Re: Differences in sound sculpting on Sirin and Grandmother

Posted: Sun Apr 28, 2019 9:02 am
by stiiiiiiive
Congratulations:)