Voyager keyboard - how good is it?

[Ledbetter]

I agree that the Voyager keyboard plays great. Wouldn't a retrofit kit for the LP be a great thing to have? I would love the little beast even more with a Voyager-quality keyboard.

[stiiiiiiive]

I raise my hand for that too.

[MBlom]

I dreamt I was playing a Voyager the other night and understood what you meant by that "buttery" feeling. Hmm, dreaming about instruments I want, like I was seven years old. I don't know if that's a good sign, cute or just sad...

[stiiiiiiive]

Come on!! Cute, definitely cute!

[moogsaurus]

The 2 Voyager select series I own both have the Italian Fatar keyboard fitted, great response, pressure works neat, velocity does what it does. Dont rely too much on the presets -90% are crap,dive in and program the thing-very rewarding, I've programmed in a whole sound set, it does sing - only gripe is its not as buzzy as the early Moogs. 3 oscs, 2 LFO's, its the real deal, 2nd hand prices are'nt too bad either!

[Kenneth]

As far as the EB keyboard being of higher quality than the one on the OS, that really depends on when the unit was built. I have played on several Voyagers over the years, and what I have found is that earlier SN Voyagers, regardless of what series they belong to (Electric Blue, Old School, Performer, etc.), have cheaper keybeds that feel clunky, like the one on the Phatties pre-black end cheeks. Since my Old School is a later serial number (0478) and the keybed feels excellent, my thought is that Moog must have switched to a different manufacturer at some point between 2007 and 2010. That being said, no two Voyagers have ever played exactly the same for me, so I think it is very important to know how an individual unit feels before you buy.

[CZ Rider]

I have an early Voyager PE purchased in 2005. The action on the keybed seems nice enough, not cheap feeling at all. It has 10 screws holding the keybed. From what I gathered there was a time when Moog changed over to a different manufacturer based in China for the keybed. There were a few reported problems on this list about failing electronics. Have no idea what they use now but the difference in the then newer one were they had 8 screws holding them in. Perhaps Moog swithched again, or went back to the Fatar assemblies?

If I was unfamiliar with the Voyager key action, I would look underneath to see if it has 10 screws.

[stiiiiiiive]

Thanks for this, CZ.

Mine has 10 screws, is a later Old School and feels good to me

[Portamental]

Interesting. Mine (OS) has 8 screws. It's ok, not great. Model D plays much better.

[thealien666]

Well, then my early OS must have had 8 screws because it wasn't as good as the EB that I had also at the time. Thanks CZ for the info.

[tmoney]

Hi I'm Tom ,new to the sight. I bought a Phatty a couple of months ago and liked it. I kept looking on Utube and Moog's web sight. I bought the Voyager DVD, and watch the Bob Moog Documentary. The more I played with the Phatty the more the Voyager XL interested me. I e-mailed several of the Moog reps and they answered every dumb question I had. They were great. I had never seen a voyager or a voyager XL. I have 3 other keyboards beside the Phatty and 1 rack mount unit. I ordered a MiniMoog Voyager XL never seeing it in April, and recieved it July 17th. It is a work of art. My wife saw it and immediately wanted to touch it. She for the first time ever, hit a key on one of my synths, turned the knob to hear more samples and was amazed. Nothing else I own comes close to the XL's sonic sound. The workmanship of the wood case is flawless. The fit and finish of the face place is incredable. Rubber protective bumpers are placed exactly where they need to be. Every switch, every Knob feels like Mac Daddy high quality stuff. When I put a patch cable in a jack reciever it feels exactly right. No other connectors or fittings I have found or own feels that good. I am an ASE Master Automotive Tech and nothing I work on has that kind of quality. It is heavy. It is large. It is bad to the bone. If I had ever seen it in a music store I would have bought it on the spot where it took me months to make a decision on my other keyboards. I am still trying to find 2 of my keyboards that ran off with the rack mount when I started to play with the XL. The XL has made all my other stuff look weak. I wish Moog made a sequencer because I will have no other choice but the Moon 569, every other would vaporize next to the XL. Where I had to review the 2500.00 I spent on my last keyboard I am completely satisfied with the 7000.00, plus the CV out option I have spent on the Moogs. The videos, Utube, does not due this keyboard justice. I debated between the Select Series Voyager and the XL. I made the right choice even if it takes me an extra year to replace the difference. I hope this helps. I hope I am not too over the top, but it is my opinion for what it's worth. It is very good.

[Sweep]

Thanks, CZ Rider, for decisively clearing this up. My Voyager has a superb keyboard and I was always sure it must be a Fatar, and I've now been able to confirm that it is.

[stiiiiiiive]

Hi Tmoney, and welcome

Thanks you for letting passion speak. FYI I've just linked your post in a related topic, here.

[weemac]

So do the current ones have the Fatar or the Chinese key beds?

Eden.

[weemac]

So do the current ones have the Fatar or the Chinese key beds?

Eden.

I contacted Moog and they have confirmed that the current keybed for the voyager is the Fatar.

Good news!

Eden.