Help me make a decision in buying a Moog!

jamezdd73 · Post by **jamezdd73** » Wed Dec 03, 2008 1:42 am

Hi all,

I'm new to these forums and intend to buy a Moog Synthesizer in the near future. I've come to the conclusion that a Moog Voyager Performer will never be in my price range, particularly with the economic crisis in tow, so it's down to the Old School and the Little Phatty.

So what are your personal opinions?

Should I buy the Phatty or the Old School?

Which one offers more for its price? And will the lack of midi and presets in the OS terribly effect my life? Or is it worth giving up for an extra oscillator?

Cheers!
James

Voltor07 · Post by **Voltor07** » Wed Dec 03, 2008 1:53 am

How important are presets? I personally LOVE my LP. If you don't mind not having presets, get the Voyager OS. Much bigger sound, and lots more CV options. The LP is not a weak sounding synth, but two OSC's are not as big as three.

I would recommend the LP, but other users may suggest the OS. Have you checked out the various YouTube videos? Mine are linked in my New YouTube video post on the LP forum. Other users have vids as well. That may help you make your final decision. Good luck, and welcome!

jamezdd73 · Post by **jamezdd73** » Wed Dec 03, 2008 2:00 am

Voltor07 wrote:Have you checked out the various YouTube videos? Mine are linked in my New YouTube video post on the LP forum. Other users have vids as well. That may help you make your final decision. Good luck, and welcome!

Thanks for the welcome! I hope I can contribute well to the forum! It seems like a friendly place...

I've seen a lot of LP videos on youtube, maybe because it's more popular price-wise, however I have found few (if any) of the Old School. And no doubt the LP has a "Phat" (

) sound, especially from what I've seen! I'm really having a tough time making a decision!

Voltor07 · Post by **Voltor07** » Wed Dec 03, 2008 4:05 am

The LP has an arpeggiator, overdrive on the filter, lighted wheels and knob markers (if you do a lot of live performances on dark stages), and is very easy to use as a first analog synth. As much as I would LOVE to have an OS, I know that without the $20 patch book, I'd be lost!

Not to mention the low price...a whole lot less than the OS. Leaves more money for Moogerfoogers.

I will warn you. To become a Mooger is to become an addict. Moog makes the most expensive peanuts in the world as you can't have "just one".

Bryan T · Post by **Bryan T** » Wed Dec 03, 2008 4:08 am

Voltor07 wrote:I will warn you. To become a Mooger is to become an addict. Moog makes the most expensive peanuts in the world as you can't have "just one".

You know, there is a lot of truth to this for certain types of people. I'm definitely hooked.

To the original question, I'd suggest trying out a Little Phatty and see if it meets your needs. It is a pretty simple synth, but is capable of a wide range of sounds and is easy to use. After I spent 15 minutes with one at a local shop, I knew I had to have one.

Bryan

EricK · Post by **EricK** » Wed Dec 03, 2008 12:16 pm

Before you decide whats in your price range, why don't you try novamusik.com. THey have some of the best deals on Moog ive ever seen and they include lots of freebees.
You very well may be able to find a performer there for the price of an Old School somewhere else.

If I had to choose between any of the Voyagers and the LP, without question the Voyager would win every time.

The LP is a good little synth but you will spend much more time growing into something like the Voyager.

How much experience do you have with synthesis (analog, digital or even software)?

How much experience do you have on a keyboard?

THe Voyager is built like a tank, it has more of a range. It has a knob per function panel. It has a wide choise of CV ins (expansion box needed for CV outs) so it makes for a great master or slave synth. It is essentially a 21 century MiniMoog. You really can't beat it.
I would definately go with the Voyager if you can afford ANY of them.

If you have the opportunity, go to where they have both of the synthesizers and play both of them.

In my opinion, Any analogue synth is going to have quite a bit of a learning curve, but a knob per function panel is going to be much more straight forward. You will be lost on ANY analogue synth until you get past the learning curve but once you do, youll want to have more to explore, and the Voyager wins in this department if you ask me.

I had to be the one to send out the Voyager Love since noone has chimed in yet on the Voyager's behalf.

Both synths have their pros and cons (The Voyagers being mainly the price and possibly the weight)

Order now and get a free CP251.

Now you ask if Midi is an issue. Well in the tradition of Analogue, it shoudn't be. I rarely use my presets and when I do I use original ones. If you end up getting any amount of Moog gear, it will be mostly CV anyway and you will get a tremendous amount of modular style capabillity that way, but 3 Oscillators is always going to be better than 2!

Ill bet that NovaMusik can get you a Voyager Performer for 2400 or an OS for 2000, but they do have open box LPs for under a thousand.

Welcome to the forum, and whatever synth you choose youll be glad that you came to Moog. THey have been the industry leader fo so many years.

Anyone will be able to help you with any questions that you have.

Eric

jamezdd73 · Post by **jamezdd73** » Wed Dec 03, 2008 6:28 pm

EricK wrote:Before you decide whats in your price range, why don't you try novamusik.com. THey have some of the best deals on Moog ive ever seen and they include lots of freebees.
You very well may be able to find a performer there for the price of an Old School somewhere else.

If I had to choose between any of the Voyagers and the LP, without question the Voyager would win every time.

The LP is a good little synth but you will spend much more time growing into something like the Voyager.

How much experience do you have with synthesis (analog, digital or even software)?

How much experience do you have on a keyboard?

THe Voyager is built like a tank, it has more of a range. It has a knob per function panel. It has a wide choise of CV ins (expansion box needed for CV outs) so it makes for a great master or slave synth. It is essentially a 21 century MiniMoog. You really can't beat it.
I would definately go with the Voyager if you can afford ANY of them.

If you have the opportunity, go to where they have both of the synthesizers and play both of them.

In my opinion, Any analogue synth is going to have quite a bit of a learning curve, but a knob per function panel is going to be much more straight forward. You will be lost on ANY analogue synth until you get past the learning curve but once you do, youll want to have more to explore, and the Voyager wins in this department if you ask me.

I had to be the one to send out the Voyager Love since noone has chimed in yet on the Voyager's behalf.

Both synths have their pros and cons (The Voyagers being mainly the price and possibly the weight)

Order now and get a free CP251.

Now you ask if Midi is an issue. Well in the tradition of Analogue, it shoudn't be. I rarely use my presets and when I do I use original ones. If you end up getting any amount of Moog gear, it will be mostly CV anyway and you will get a tremendous amount of modular style capabillity that way, but 3 Oscillators is always going to be better than 2!

Ill bet that NovaMusik can get you a Voyager Performer for 2400 or an OS for 2000, but they do have open box LPs for under a thousand.

Welcome to the forum, and whatever synth you choose youll be glad that you came to Moog. THey have been the industry leader fo so many years.

Anyone will be able to help you with any questions that you have.

Eric

Thanks for the detailed response!

Seeing I live in Australia, we have only one Moog retailer in the country (luckily only about an hour from where I live) and I don't want to risk shipping an expensive (beautiful) product overseas.

The price for the Old School here is currently A$3400 (about US$2200) and the Little Phatty is A$2300 (about US$1500). It used to be a lot less, however the economic crisis caused all the prices to rise just before I was due to buy one!!!

I only own one other synthesizer currently which is a microKorg analog modelling synthesizer, and which I use to death! I've been playing keyboard/piano for about 4 or so years now and I figured for my next synth purchase I'd go for the big guns! I also use my laptop a lot for music production, so I know enough about the tech to use it.

I'm going to the Moog retailer on Saturday, possibly to purchase one and to give them each a test run.

Thanks for reassuring me about the lack of Midi and presets. Midi was never a huge deal to me, as I hardly use it, and you telling me that you rarely use presets has boosted my confidence a lot!

Thanks for the help!
I'll get back to you all on how I go!

James

Bryan T · Post by **Bryan T** » Wed Dec 03, 2008 7:00 pm

jamezdd73 wrote:Thanks for reassuring me about the lack of Midi and presets. Midi was never a huge deal to me, as I hardly use it, and you telling me that you rarely use presets has boosted my confidence a lot!

Just to play devil's advocate: MIDI and presets are both a big deal for me. MIDI opens up a lot of options that control voltages don't (or that require a non-trivial amount of equipment or cable routing to achieve). Presets are great for live use, auditioning sounds in the studio, or having a starting point for creating a new sound.

Bryan

EricK · Post by **EricK** » Thu Dec 04, 2008 12:30 am

Now I like Midi for controlling other instruments, but I have yet to be really sucessful with syncing the LFO or for controlling it with something like an MC-909.

THe presets, sometimes I just play around on some of the presets to refresh my memory of how cool the thing is, but what I want to do is dump all the factory presets to a hard drive and have 896 of my own original presets....so when you listen to my music youll be hearing all original programming.

With maybe a small exception here and there hehe.

But I do like the memory.

Basically if you can...get a voyager....at least if the economy bounces back you might can sell it and upgrade to a performer or an RME.

You can't go wrong with an RME and a midi controller.

Eric

EricK · Post by **EricK** » Thu Dec 04, 2008 12:33 am

AND,
theres nothing wrong with a Little Phatty either, you can always go the LP route and get a handfull of FOogers to go along with it.

THe Phatty just didn't do it for me.

I really hate to say this about a Moog product...but this was the stage I and not the Stage II.

But the sounds was definately there in full Moog force.

Id buy a Phatty RME if they made one for duophony.

Eric

Voltor07 · Post by **Voltor07** » Thu Dec 04, 2008 4:28 am

EricK wrote:AND,
theres nothing wrong with a Little Phatty either, you can always go the LP route and get a handfull of FOogers to go along with it.

THe Phatty just didn't do it for me.

I really hate to say this about a Moog product...but this was the stage I and not the Stage II.

But the sounds was definately there in full Moog force.

Id buy a Phatty RME if they made one for duophony.

Eric

Come to think of it, couldn't you make a Voyager using an LP with your beloved Atari...I mean...Micromoog?

EricK · Post by **EricK** » Thu Dec 04, 2008 11:12 am

I tell you what, on the internet, the MicroMoog gets a bad rap as a budget synth, as a poor mans model D, but before I ever owned a Voyager I cut my teeth on this brute force bass machine. Ive done stuff with this that only a well trained ear can discern it from a Mini.

It has some modulation capabillities superior to some other synths to make up for its single oscillator, and does some things the Mini can't and those can even be externalized with the right cable.

So you can dis on the Micro all you want, read all the bad reviews that you want but until you own one and master that puppy youll never know of what you speak!

And my Atari 400 rocks too.

lol

Eric

lets not get into this "my synth is cooler than yours" conversation because we all lose out to the Model D, and Model D owners lose badly to Modular Moog owners so theres no use.

Voltor07 · Post by **Voltor07** » Thu Dec 04, 2008 1:44 pm

EricK wrote:I tell you what, on the internet, the MicroMoog gets a bad rap as a budget synth, as a poor mans model D, but before I ever owned a Voyager I cut my teeth on this brute force bass machine. Ive done stuff with this that only a well trained ear can discern it from a Mini.

It has some modulation capabillities superior to some other synths to make up for its single oscillator, and does some things the Mini can't and those can even be externalized with the right cable.

So you can dis on the Micro all you want, read all the bad reviews that you want but until you own one and master that puppy youll never know of what you speak!

And my Atari 400 rocks too.

lol

Eric

lets not get into this "my synth is cooler than yours" conversation because we all lose out to the Model D, and Model D owners lose badly to Modular Moog owners so theres no use.

There's no argument about the Micro being a killer synth in the hands of a capable programmer...I was just saying that LP+Micro=Voyager+1 filter. I'd LOVE to have a Micro, and I'm still kicking myself for not buying the one they had at Music-Go-Round. I was unaware of it's capabilities as far as control goes at the time. Truly an amazing sounding beast, make no mistake about that.

But it DOES look like an Atari 5200 with a keyboard.

Not that there's anything wrong with that, of course. Actually, it's possible that the Atari looks like the Micro. Hmmm...interesting.

jamezdd73 · Post by **jamezdd73** » Fri Dec 05, 2008 2:45 am

I saw a micromoog once... it was only A$800, I'm not sure what that converts to but it was the same price as a new microKorg if that helps.

Voltor07 · Post by **Voltor07** » Fri Dec 05, 2008 3:25 am

jamezdd73 wrote:I saw a micromoog once... it was only A$800, I'm not sure what that converts to but it was the same price as a new microKorg if that helps.

That's about 540 USD...the going price for both those synths. You should have bought it. I wish I bought one when I had the chance.

Of course, it was sold before I knew of its CV interfaces. It would have gone great with my LP. Sounds better than even the most expensive Korg, IMHO...and I could only get a limited number of sounds out of it due to the fact I'm just starting out with analog synthesis.

Practice and knowing your instrument...those are the keys to creating sounds.