Synthesizer Keyboards 
  		Synth Modules Drummachines Samplers Effects / Recording

Synthesizer Modules
 
Year Name Type Comments
 2006 Creamware Pro-12 Analog Modeling Fun unit, 90% of the Prophet 5 in a box. Functionally a few differences in the modulation part only. I made a youtube film testing one voice of it against a Pro One for its basic sound, and for a digital unit it held up very well. Big Oberheim sounds come in range if put in unison, and then it's still polyphonic, with adjustable voice detune. Great brass. But it lacks the envelope behaviour and quirks of real playing analog. Also, easier than other modules it can get stuck by MIDI double notes sometimes. Sold it to get a Prophet VS.
 2001 Yamaha DX-200 Digital Shamefully disguised as a 'loopfactory' toy, this the great DX7 synth engine, 100% compatible with the old DX7 sysex so you can easily load up the classic 80s sounds. Each time playing it, it amazes as it sounds so warm and good, yet from another world. The DX7 killed analog in the 80's. Slighty more clean sounding than the original DX7; also knobs giving more easy control over synth parameters. Morphing, unison, added filters and fx are also great. Should have had even more knobs for complete soundshaping. I'm not using it much, being an analogist, but absolutely a keeper.
1999 Quasimidi Polymorph Analog Modeling Berlin tech sounds in a box, very techno. But lacks substance when played next to real analogs, very mid-rangy, hard to mix. One would think it would do better with 4 oscs. Did not like this at all.
 1997 Novation Super Bass Station Analog Modeling Thin sounding unit, only the sub bass is nice. Used in my youtube track '2010' for bass. Some passable 303 presets. But the volume pots are too tiny for a normal grip and hard to use. Moreover, pressing any of the even smaller buttons requires a pin or a pair of scissors, and the unit should be fixed well or it will flip backwards when pressing buttons. Probably the worst module I had, didn't even keep it for CV/gate conversion.
 2010 Oberheim SEM Patch Panel version Analog Good but not what I hoped for. Ideal for a modular setup with analog sequencer, controlling multiple patch points; less ideal as a simple synth module. The filter is the best there is, the oscillator sound lies somewhere between the Pro One and Minikorg, but less character. Or maybe just too stiff competition. The saw wave is bit light compared to the pulse wave. Some people write about a 'third oscillator trick' routing one of the outputs back in, but this does not work as such, the difference is minimal.

Although it should be an exact copy, somehow it sounds much newer and more stable than the original SEM to me, I couldn't get it fit musically well in my otherwise 30+ year old setup. Could trade it for a Moog Source.
 2000 Korg MS-2000R Analog Modeling Very well designed synth, sounding a bit thin but its portability and interface just make you do better sounds. DWGS sounds are best. You can it take it anywhere, play it with its MIDI keys and save for later. Almost the only decent racksynth with this feature. Small knobs, but very responsive. Handy little light showing you original values of knobs you turn. Nice fx for some delay and phasing. All very easy controllable. Sold, but still miss it sometimes for arpy sounds, vocoder effects that I used it for (until the Roland SVC-350 came).
 1999 Waldorf Q Rack Analog Modeling / Digital This can do so much it's like studying a rocket lab sometimes. I started to understand it only when beginning with initialised sounds. But the features are there. Powerful digital oscillators (but not analog), nice PPG filters with overdrive, easy sequencer. Also quite portable and playable without MIDI keyboard. Yet its sound can't escape digitalness; someone said it always sounds like a recorded CD and I agree.
 1993 EMU Vintage Keys Plus ROMpler When having some analog synths already, this module sounds really flat and uninspiring. Even in double mode I couldn't get it to sound well. But I loved the dark mellotron sounds.
 1996 Akai SG-01V ROMpler Good dynamic sound, lots of great stringmachine sounds and all kinds of synthy classics. Editing makes nice sounds as well. But decided to design my own sounds from scratch.
 2003 Kurzweil ME1 (Micro Ensemble) ROMpler Useful module for instruments that can't be synthesized. Very good sound quality. Many pianos, wurlitzers, rhodes, lovely clavinet. Lacks a CP70 preset. The ooh / aah velocity-switch choir is a classic. Also extremely good percussion, divided over many keys so you can make some lifelike solos on timbales, congas etc. Recommended.
1996 Yamaha P50-m ROMpler The very best CP70 emulation one can find. Other pianos are just okay. Can be found dirt cheap.
 1995 Korg X5DR ROMpler Another very crisp sounding module full of very good sounds. JayB made some stellar soundsets for it esp for trance. However, editing it requires a LOT of patience, as going through the menus with the small screen and up/down buttons feels like painting the hall through the mailbox. Used it in quite some tracks, but eventually sold it for this reason.
 1996 Quasimidi Rave-O-Lution 309 Drums / Synth Boom sounds from the 90s in a box; used this quite much for some years, like in my Acid Allstars vol. 1 release "Acid Potion" (2008). Many knobs for controlling drum parts, sequencing is less easy. Drum and in/out expansions are nice, good for industrial, EBM etc. The sounds are sample based, but can be edited extensively. The synthesizer engine does not hold up.