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Taurus 1 Sound vs. Taurus 3

Posted: Sun Feb 14, 2010 7:08 pm
by hendrkf
Those of you who have heard the new Taurus 3 in person who also have or are familiar with the Taurus 1... how do they compare side by side soundwise? Does the new one have the mojo of the original?
Thanks

Posted: Sun Feb 14, 2010 9:43 pm
by Cole Gaskins
Ah, the question of the ages. Will it ever be answered? Time will tell.

Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 12:08 am
by superd2112
I think our resident Taurus expert Mike C. (MC) should be able to answer this one for us, as he was fortunate enough to be at the studio with Moog for the critical listening & comparison tests. I believe his T-3 is scheduled to arrive tomorrow, so he could give us actual side-by-side comparisons with his T-1. My T-3 should be here Weds., but my T-1 is long gone, & I'll be comparing the two from memory (which aint what it used to be..) By all accounts, I think most folks would agree that Moog nailed it & hit this one clear out of the park. Not only can the T-3 do everything the T-1 could, it can get sounds & do things the T-1 can only dream about.

Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 9:07 am
by Brad
I suspect this question will be answered as quicky and definitively as the original minimoog vs. Voyager minimoog question.

Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 9:16 am
by superd2112
Brad wrote:I suspect this question will be answered as quicky and definitively as the original minimoog vs. Voyager minimoog question.
One major difference - While the Voyager was never intended nor advertised to be a sonic clone of the Mini, the Taurus 3s were advertised from day one to duplicate all of the Taurus 1's sound - and then some!

Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 10:38 am
by Brad
superd2112 wrote:
Brad wrote:I suspect this question will be answered as quicky and definitively as the original minimoog vs. Voyager minimoog question.
One major difference - While the Voyager was never intended nor advertised to be a sonic clone of the Mini, the Taurus 3s were advertised from day one to duplicate all of the Taurus 1's sound - and then some!
My point is that a comparrison is necessarily subjective.

Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 12:58 pm
by Mr Arkadin
Brad wrote: My point is that a comparrison is necessarily subjective.
Well no, because the D and Voyager don't have the same architecture so were never meant to sound the same, so how could they be compared?

Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 4:30 pm
by EricK
Im not trying to open up this big can of war worms, but wasn't the point of the T3 such that it is NOT a subjective comparison?

Its essentially supposed to be a perfect clone with extra attributes.

Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 4:32 pm
by Cole Gaskins
Told 'ya. :lol:

Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 4:38 pm
by Mr Arkadin
EricK wrote: wasn't the point of the T3 such that it is NOT a subjective comparison?
Exactly.

Apart from the worn components in a T1 (there are no new ones to compare to), they should sound the same. In fact a T3 probably sounds more like an original T1 than current T1s because of the aging process.

Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 6:02 pm
by Brad
Guys -- this is meant in the spirit of friendly debate . . . truly . . . but

Roland TB-303 vs. the many "clones."

Sequential Circuits Prophet vs. DSI Prophet '08.

I could go on.

I'm sure the Moog guys have done a heck of a job.

I ordered one!

You cannot 100% re-create a classic analog sound. Maybe 98.5%. The old components are usually not available. The newer ones are close but . . .

And we "gear heads" love to argue!

I'm sure at least one T1 owner will say: great! close! but . . .

Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 7:31 pm
by EricK
One thing I find interesting is that Ive seen the brutal battlefields that were Model D vs Voyager threads, and the development of the Taurus III plays an unique role here.

One argues that the Model D is superior on all counts...throws the word discrete around like an old rag doll, but the point always arises that Bob himself never set out to recreate the Model D.

Like it has already been stated, Moog intentionally set out to recreate the Taurus 1 in every detail, and then some.

I once compared a single oscillator of the Voyager to that of the Micro and the Micro sounded much different and in some cases, much more desirable. When they released the "Guess which one is which" sound demo, I most definately noticed a difference, and Ive never seen a T1 in person, much less could accurately guess which one it is in a blind test.

Which one is which?
http://www.moogmusic.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=8198


I think its a moot point to argue that they did not recreate the circuit based solely on the argument that you "cannot 100% recreate a classic analog sound." An experienced user on another thread pointed out that even different units of the same Make and Model don't sound exactly the same so to say Moog failed in recreating the Taurus is just splitting hairs perhaps.

I don't know why I bothered to open my mouth, I knew Id get sucked into the much that is _____ vs _______. :lol:

:D

Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 7:54 pm
by Mr Arkadin
i actually had a T1: T3 face-off booked for January, but the pedals got delayed. Hopefully we'll be able to reschedule. i was going to call up the Taurus preset, match levels on the mixer (with the volume turned down) and then do a blind test with the T1 owner.

Again it's not so much a case of differences (i bet two T1s wouldn't sound exactly the same), but whether it sounds good/has the vibe.

PS. The SCI v DSI was another bad example i'm afraid - the P'08 is not a P5 clone.

Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 8:26 pm
by Klopfgeist
Obviously Arturia's Moog Modular soft synth will always be better than an old wall of Moog modules, no question there... :wink:

Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2010 8:36 pm
by mayidunk
Klopfgeist wrote:Obviously Arturia's Moog Modular soft synth will always be better than an old wall of Moog modules, no question there... :wink:
Bite your tongue, you heathen!

:lol: