Moog Music Forum

does anyone know where i can get a vocoder or who makes them these days? im just lookin for one for me band cos no ones used them for years (or so im told) so id like to get one

any help is appreciated

Digitech makes a simple vocoder call the Talker. You can find them on Ebay for around $120. Not the best but good for playing live.

Agreed that the Digitech Talker is your best bet for a vocoder for live use - fairly idiot-proof. I wish I still had mine.

Electrix made one called the Warp Factory that is quite nice. Stereo in/out, mic pre, built-in oscillator for stand-alone use, filters are more flexible than the Talker and capable of some really twisted sounds. Can be found on eBay also around $120. I got mine from GC that was presumed dead for $50. All it needed was a new fuse. Suckers.

Alesis makes an inexpensive one called the MetaVox. Has anyone used one of these?

I've heard good things about the MAM vocoder:

http://www.mam-germany.de/

Of course, if you have the cash for it, there's the Doepfer setup:

http://www.doepfer.de/a129e.htm

paia let's you make one for a pretty decent price....if you like fiddling.. try this vocoder out

http://www.paia.com/vocoder.htm

I really like the Electrix vocoder but there's a noticeable lag so it's not so good for percussive sounds if you're running it live. If you sample it or record it to your hard drive and compensate for the delay, it's fine. The best thing about the Electrix products is they all respond to MIDI controllers so you can automate your knob tweaking.

I think Zoom released an effects processor which included a vocoder and lots of other useful effects and was really cheap, maybe around $100. I'm not sure if this had a separate input for carrier signal though. I doubt it's as nice as the Electrix.

Opcode made a software vocoder plugin. There are probably others now too. With software, there is no longer any need for hardware vocoders.

So who wants to sell me their Sennheiser or Moog / Bode vocoder now?

I'd love to see a Moog Vocoder, but I'm not going to hold my breath.

Novation A-station had a 12 band vocoder I do believe...

Korg has supported them lately with the MS-2000, Radias, R3, microKorg, etc...

Electro-Harmonix has some vododer pedals worth checking out...

And TC Electronic has a vocoder pedal as well...

Hope that helps...

I use the vocoder in my Nord G1. Very flexible. And a ton of people are using them currently. Just not for Psiylon(sp?) voices.

+1 Electro-Harmonix
Got the "Voice Box", a bit ago. Great for live use, built like tank. Pretty much idiot proof as well.
Umm, who exactly told you that "no ones used them for years"? More like "'over' used them for years"

I just got a Korg VC10 for about $750. Beyond cool. It has a simple paraphonic tone generator. I thought this might be kind of cheesy, but it has an external input to patch in other synths, so I got it. But now I realize the internal sound works way better than any external source, and allows you to control the sound with the voice much better. I have heard other vocoders, including the moog, but I like the sound of the korg and roland VP keyboards better. I have never heard any digital vocoder that sonded good. The Native instruments has a decent one, i think part or Reaktor?, but its not the same kind of sound as analog at all. Speaking of Reaktor, has anyone ever created a modular synth with analog moogerfoogers or other modules? You can setup a keyboard so a key triggers an effect and you can use analog routing as well.

What is your budget?

Rolands SVC-350 is one of the best, usually go for $800-1300
http://www.vintagesynth.com/roland/vocoder.php

Moog's vintage Vocoder is stupid expensive, and a rare bird. Saw one in Chicago for 4k
http://www.vintagesynth.com/moog/moogvocoder.php


For less $$ try to find a BOSS VT-1, Roland VP-7 or a Korg KP3