Modern Moog Modular?

electrical_engineer_gEEk · Post by **electrical_engineer_gEEk** » Wed May 02, 2007 10:04 am

Sweep, that is the craziest thing I've heard in my entire life....are you freaking serious???
You need a license to watch the BBC??
Does this extend to watching the tube at your friends house or a cafe?
This is soooo bizarre.....I can't even fathom it's existence

Sweep · Post by **Sweep** » Wed May 02, 2007 10:28 am

Unfortunately yes, I am serious. People outside Britain are always as amazed as you are. And peope in Britain who have a license are amazed at the threats and stupidities those of us who don't watch TV have to put up with.

It's done by property, though, so I can can watch TV at someone else's house or in a public place - which is how I know it isn't worth paying for.

martin · Post by **martin** » Wed May 02, 2007 10:51 am

they show scary ads on tv. they scare the shizzle out of you! in the ads, the license cop comes into your place and takes your tv away while you're watching some show with your buddies. or something along those lines. you're with your girlfriend watching coronation street, and some guy from the license police stampedes in and spoils it for you. how embarassing! don't get caught without a license! you'll end up without a girlfriend, a tv, and your reputation is forever shot. forever! aaargh! get a license! now! or you'll be darned to heck for the rest of ever!

or you can play a trick with them. stick a cereal box behind an old microwave oven, and let the license cops take that away. old washing machines, pc monitors and unused modular synths stacking up in your garage? no problemo, send em out when the license guy comes!

Sweep · Post by **Sweep** » Wed May 02, 2007 10:55 am

I haven't seen those ads - not having a TV.

I bet what they don't show is the license faschist demanding entry and then finding out there's no TV there, and that's why you don't have a license - and then the license faschist being questioned as to why he's been so obsessed with entering your house when you've been telling them for fifteen years that you don't have a TV.

Sweep · Post by **Sweep** » Wed May 02, 2007 6:12 pm

Looks like there's a solution. Asking around to see if there are similar sites to YouTube, these two have turned up:

http://www.veoh.com/

http://technorati.com/videos/tag/clipfish

Clipfish sometimes imports from YouTube, but that doesn't matter as the problem was logging on to the YouTube site, which is no longer necessary.

And to return this to being Moog-related, one of the sites had the original 1969 version of Gershon Kingsley's Popcorn. I'd only heard the Hot Butter version before.

synthetic · Post by **synthetic** » Mon Jun 25, 2007 3:56 pm

I had a small Synthtech MOTM modular for a while, it sounded amazing and the build quality was fantastic. (Because I built it!

I mean the parts and design was awesome.)

http://www.synthtech.com/motm.html

I had their 490 filter, based on the Moog, and it nailed that modular sound from the Beatles "Because." Had to sell it for finances, but I'm saving for a Voyager now. And hopefully some VX, CP and MOTM modules down the line.

analogbass · Post by **analogbass** » Thu Jun 28, 2007 10:21 pm

Doubtful the market for a modular would justify it, especially given the existing number of quality modulars already available:

A Moog modular wouldn't be practical in terms of either market share or manufacturing costs, given the dozens of other companies that already make good equipment.

Analogue Solutions (Concussor)
Analogue Systems (RS Integrator)
Bananalogue
Blacet Research
Buchla & Associates (200e)
Club of the knobs
Curetronic
Cwejman
Cyndustries (Cynthia)
Doepfer Musikelektronik (A-100)
Elby
Livewire
Metalbox
MFB
Modcan
Oakley Sound Systems
PAiA Electronics
Plan B
Sound Transform Systems (Serge) (Sound Transform Systems does not currently maintain a web page. Link leads to fan site w/comprehensive information on Serge synthesizer)
Synthesis Technology (MOTM)
Synthesizers.com
Technosaurus

nicholas d. kent · Post by **nicholas d. kent** » Sat Jun 30, 2007 5:25 am

There are actually a couple left off that big long list and a couple on the list not actually selling any modules at present. Some interesting points neither really pro nor con are that 2 companies are selling mostly cloned Moog modules from the 60s/early 70s and then the vast majority of companies out there now one could say are influenced by vintage Moog products. But on the other hand by the early 70s Moog Music had stopped developing any new modules. And I guess as the 70s rolled on there were quite a few other modular makers including Roland and Korg's patchable gear. So I mean to say there doesn't seem to be the biggest profits in modulars and there seems to be some history of a lot of people in the game and then a very regrettable loss of interest in terms of both innovation and finances.

The one thing that can be said is that the same person often buys more than one of quite a few modules. I'm sure that there are a few people who own more than one of a particular Moog product but my point is most modular owners don't stop with one... though many people now seeing that it is possible to build a system with many brands often opt to buy a different brand's module to compare and contrast.

I for one think the approach to building Moogerfoger pedals that are paractically if not already modules was a truly innovative one. One does hope that Moog Music would continue to make more pedals until one could create a complete synthesizer.

What surprises me is all the emphasis Moog Music seems to place on selling the same product in a different case edition. Namely the various Voyager editions. Now I'm sure a few people are buying one of these "new" versions of the same synth because say with all the lit panel markings they do look cooler on stage than the earlier editions, but I'd almost think that most new sales are people finally being able to save up enough to buy a Moog rather than people buying more than one or people being convinced by the new edition design to get one. Though I guess it's a "trick" that might be advantageous with some dealers... you know getting a little press, having a different edition name on the same thing.

Something that Moog Music seems to be missing out on imho is the potential market to sell more units by offering a functionally different configuration of something they already make. Maybe the RME is the only thing out that's along that line of thought.

Skip the wood end cheeks, build the Moogerfooger circuits into realistically rackable modules (as opposed to pedals you can awkwardly and inefficiently rack) -- with the patch connections on the same surface as the knobs. Offer a the last bits necessary to make a synth.

EricK · Post by **EricK** » Mon Nov 26, 2007 11:51 pm

electrical_engineer_gEEk wrote:i still have yet to meet anyone who has bought from MOOGCE.
Anybody here?

I have. Im in the slow and costly process of building a Moog Modular system from Mike Bucki (www.moogce.com) and I had him build a 921B Oscilator Driver. I cannot comment on its function because I have no power supply or cabinet but I can tell you that it looks awesome and looks like it is built pretty solidly.

I can post a pricelist that is up to date as of April 2006 and he hasn't informed me of any price increases yet.

For your information, I plan to purchase some modules from him and this is what the synth that I have in mind is going to look like.

a 22-24 ATA rack cabinet.

Using synthesizers.com rack frames (8 module 5 Rack units high)
starting from the bottom and working up.....

921 Oscilator Driver
921B Oscilator (x2)
921 Oscilator
904A VOltage Controlled Low Pass filter
911 Envelope Generators (possibly 2)
902 Voltage Controlled Amplifier (possibly 2)
923 Noise Filter
1528 Sample and Hold

I should have about 5 blank spaces in a rack frame to accomodate any Modules that I might not know that I need such as attenuators, multiples or CV panels, etc.

In aspace above that

Moogerfooger rack frame with a Ring Mod in it (possibly looking to get a delay as well)

And above that are the 2 expansion boxes mounted in their respective rack frames

COntrolled by either my MicroMoog or the Voyager (ill have to get one)

And the digital Brains of the Analog Cake that it is will be the

ROland Fantom XR occupying 1 rack space.

THis is my synth that I estimate to cost around 11K

WHile i realize that there is so much more that can be bought with other companies, I only seek Moog products and am willing to pay the price for them.

Respectfully,
Eric

CZ Rider · Post by **CZ Rider** » Thu Nov 29, 2007 1:12 am

EricK wrote:
I can post a pricelist that is up to date as of April 2006 and he hasn't informed me of any price increases yet.

Hey Eric,
I would be interested in seeing a current price list from Moog CE.
Been thinking about adding some modules to me system IP.
Thanks

EricK · Post by **EricK** » Thu Nov 29, 2007 12:12 pm

What kind of system do you have and what modules are you interested in?

Heres the list, i hope that theres no bandwidth issues...

Now these prices are for the system 15 and as you can see this price list is tailored to that particular system but it shows all of the products that he offers for the system 35 and the system 55.

Eric

CZ Rider · Post by **CZ Rider** » Thu Nov 29, 2007 2:39 pm

EricK wrote:What kind of system do you have and what modules are you interested in?

Thanks!
I have a 1969 System 1P. One of the earlier ones with the 901 oscillators.
It has 12 empty spaces to fill, so I thought it would be great to upgrade a few extra modules. I was looking for an extra 911 EG with a 911A dual trigger delay, 912 envelope follower, the newly styled 1528 sample and hold, and another new module the 995A reversable attenuator. Also possibly upgrading my 903 white noise only to the 903A with White/Pink.
In the future it would be great to add the 921 series oscillators and a 904B hi-pass, but at those prices that would be very costly. I still have room for a 921 and the 921a/921b/921b combo, it is the 3 grand part that makes it tough.

Here is pic of the System 1P with a dotcom 960/962 clone sitting in 9 of the 12 spaces I could fill with MoogCE modules!

EricK · Post by **EricK** » Thu Nov 29, 2007 4:49 pm

The 923 Noise Filter is a White/Pink noise generator with a Lowpass/Highpass filter and a cutoff frequency for both. go to Moogarchives for a great picture of it.

If you want to sell your white noise generator let me know.

I also have a Percussion Controller that i scored on Ebay.

JohnLRice · Post by **JohnLRice** » Fri Dec 26, 2008 9:46 pm

Hey, EricK! Did you get any of those top shelf Moog CE modules for Christmas???

I'd love to have some myself but . . . looking at those prices I almost lost my lunch!

I thought it would be cool to have a whole minimal 'voice' (2 or 3 oscillators, EG, VCA, LP VCF, noise) but even just getting a VCF seems really expensive at over $800 and hard to justify for myself. (and I'm pretty good at justifying stuff if it's cool enough!

) I wonder how much different, much less 'better', a Moog CE filter would sound over the COTK or MOS-LAB clones that are less than $300 or the Synth Tech MOTM clones I already have.

Thanks for the info!

EricK · Post by **EricK** » Fri Dec 26, 2008 10:13 pm

NO.

I think Mike Bucki will be the first one to tell you that they simply won't sound like a Moog.

I did get the downpayment for the taurus pedals, thats why my eunich 921a will stay that way for at least another year.

I just hope by the time I get my degree, Mike won't be retired or worse!

Basically you want the Moog filter? There it is, the original one right there. ALl the control inputs and sound of the opriginal and they are even built in those clunky space consuming module housings lol.

dotcom synths are probably the way to go if you want to get as close to Moog as possible and not spend the moolah.

BUT, while people say that with those you are paying for the Mog name only, you are paying for the sound and the quality.

If Bob didn't put his hands on it, MoogCE is the next best thing.