Moog Music Forum

hi - wow this synth sounds amazing! 1977

Worst instrument ever made. You'll end up throwing it out in a couple days.

Beautiful.

Lovely. Congratulations.

unfiltered37 wrote:Worst instrument ever made. You'll end up throwing it out in a couple days.

dammit I had this kind of feeling about it - seriously this thing does everything that my Andromeda can't and this is instantly my favourite synth ever

yea thanks and so far without any kind of issues

I've never hear Osc, Filter, Resonance like this - starting to think about selling my A6 but that has soooo many of the other bases covered

unfiltered37 wrote:Worst instrument ever made. You'll end up throwing it out in a couple days.

You haven't thrown yours out yet, have you ? If so, just tell us where !!!
I know I haven't thrown out mine. And not anytime soon either.

Congrats on getting your hands on such a fantastic sounding synth, TheZombieHolocaust.

unfiltered37 wrote:Worst instrument ever made. You'll end up throwing it out in a couple days.

it's making me think about selling my Andromeda which is kind of shocking to me

anybody recommend some toys for this synth

I want to get a strig plug a pedal?

namahshaman wrote:Lovely. Congratulations.

thealien666 wrote:

unfiltered37 wrote:Worst instrument ever made. You'll end up throwing it out in a couple days.

You haven't thrown yours out yet, have you ? If so, just tell us where !!!
I know I haven't thrown out mine. And not anytime soon either.

Congrats on getting your hands on such a fantastic sounding synth, TheZombieHolocaust.

Omaroo wrote:Beautiful.

yes thanks it was not easy to get one but in the end after being able to buy it locally test it in person beforehand and then just drive home with it....I had to buy - I would be too paranoid to buy one of these off Ebay and the ones that look good on there are wayyyy to expensive

for the first ten minutes of fiddling around with it I was underwhelmed but i was having a hard time getting used to the keyboard response which is as I have since found out semi-magical

if you guys want to hear it - i would actually appreciate some experienced ears on this. I recorded the first hour I got it home direct into logic with HD video also, if you have time maybe check them out let me know if you hear anything amiss of wonky with the Minimoog...on my youtube channel there's a MiniMoog playlist with all 10 videos in it. Or even check out the Andromeda stuff I have up there

to me it seems to be working perfectly but I don't have a lot of experience with Moog

thanks

http://www.youtube.com/user/TheZombieHolocaust

unfiltered37 wrote:Worst instrument ever made. You'll end up throwing it out in a couple days.

I only have the filter and Kevin Lightner is providing me with the envelopes. I'm excited just getting those pieces! The Minimoog is one of the most unique synths in the world. It can easily be recognized in a mix.

Voltor07 wrote:

unfiltered37 wrote:Worst instrument ever made. You'll end up throwing it out in a couple days.

I only have the filter and Kevin Lightner is providing me with the envelopes. I'm excited just getting those pieces! The Minimoog is one of the most unique synths in the world. It can easily be recognized in a mix.

So true.

I have (and have had or had access to) many other analog synths, but the Minimoog D is instantly recognizable amongst all of them. Mainly due to the very high content of harmonics from its oscillator's waveforms, and their slight distortion at low frequencies (particularly the sawtooth curved slope). And also the particular behavior of its low pass filter.

It's not one thing that make a Minimoog special. It's a winning combination of things. But the result is a superb, bold, powerful sound. It's rather limited in complexity, and even though Bob Moog tried his best to match the Minimoog D Sound when he was designing the Voyager, over 10 years ago already , and wanted to add all the missing modulation possibilities to it, the sound is just not the same.

TheZombieHolocaust wrote: it's making me think about selling my Andromeda which is kind of shocking to me

anybody recommend some toys for this synth

I want to get a strig plug a pedal?

CP-251 is a must. The MP-201 is the best expression pedal I have ever used. I rarely use it for anything else, which is kinda a waste but still well worth it for filter sweeps. I have an old moog foot pedal if you want to buy it, paid about $100 for it. Not very much range, but its cool to have with a model D. I would take a good wah pedal in trade. Another must for me is a space echo, but I have been considering getting rid of it, since I have been using my 1/4" mix deck for delays (best delay, analog or digital ever made). Sell the andromeda and get a Massive Passive tube EQ (sold my voyager for it), it makes the model D (and everything else) sound the same, but just soooo much better. I know its not likely you'll get one, but I have to recommend it, it's no joke. It's up there with the model D on my list of invaluable gear.

Kevin has an optikey device (not sure how he spells it) which looks very functional for turning the D's keyboard into a midi controller.

My OptoKey just sends and receives the 44 notes of the keyboard itself.
It doesn't receive or transmit any modulation or pitchbend, unfortunately.
However it does replace the entire contact board in a Mini and has very fast response.
This is good because when one removes their original contact board, they're also removing some spring tension from the keys.
The keyboard then becomes much easier to play fast.

As for checking out a Mini, I'd suggest a few tests:

1. Place the pitch wheel in the center and perfectly tune one VCO against the A-440 signal.
Then move the wheel some and place it again in the center.
If the Mini is no longer exactly in tune with the A-440, the pot may be bad.

2. Hold a high note on the keyboard, then play notes below it.
This can help indicate if the key contacts are dirty. (dirty contacts will "glitch")

3. Tune all three VCOs to the same pitch, then change the octave selectors one by one.
If they do not perfectly land on octave intervals, the instrument may need calibration.
If your Mini was an early unit, it could also be that it lacked a later update known as a buffer board.
But Zombie's Mini appears to be a more recent model which came with a buffer board already installed.

4. Check all switches for glitching or noise.
The switches most common to have problems are the two orange switches on the left and the noise's pink/white switch.
The A-440 and main output switch can also make noise when switching, but usually it's normal.

5. It's normal for the overload lamp to flash when the instrument is turned on, but it should not stay on.

6. Verify all pots for any noise when turning.

7. Check all keys for physical noise (clacking when pressed or quickly released.)

There are more tests one could perform, but this can give a rough idea what condition a Mini is in.
This particular Mini appears to be a later model and this is a good thing in regards to wear.

Fwiw, this below is a sheet I've used to evaluate Minis that arrive here for service.
It's not terribly gorgeous, but just helps document problems.

even though Bob Moog tried his best to match the Minimoog D Sound when he was designing the Voyager, over 10 years ago already , and wanted to add all the missing modulation possibilities to it, the sound is just not the same

oh cmon- can we please refrain from making Voyager owners feel they're not quite up to par on every single freaking mini post? did the author discuss Voyagers? and saying poor ol Bob Moog "tried his best" is a bit patronizing don't you think? no biggie, and I respect your opinion, I just had to speak up... and of course, you're a mini owner and I'm a Voyager owner, so we'll always have that need to justify- but I would never flaunt my Osc sync on a mini post...