The Synth Thread...

[Dave]

Nope! Bought it from a tiny shop in the middle of nowhere.

My next comment was going to be “damn, if you paid $1700 for another juno, why not spend $1500 and grab that Polysix instead for a different flavour”

I paid nowhere near the $1800 (half ) for the ones that are going for sale at Paul's (they've had two recently), and this thing has been serviced too. Though I might restore the factory patches because the ones the previous owner(s) made are less than stellar.

A polysix is cool for sure! Maybe if/when I sell my Moog Prodigy and Roland SH-2000, which aren't sparking joy for me...

Yeah $900 CAD is currently an excellent price for a 106 especially if it’s had the voice chips replaced. I bought mine for $750 3 years ago but instantly dropped an additional $450 on voice chips and a full service from Jim Nelson in Missisauga. Assumed chips/service would cost nowhere near that when I bought it and lack of homework whipped me good. No biggie, still love it to death.

I’ve never played a Polysix but have always found them most pleasing to the ear, if I had more than 11c to spend on gear these days I’d consider finding one (as well as making you an offer on that Moog )

[eggwheat]

I’ve just replaced a set of 106 voice chips for my friend who plays in the kaiser chiefs. If you have a 106/mks7 the voice chips will die guaranteed. The most common beginning sign is VCA bleed... so you’ll head a very faint note/s playing all the time which gets worse over time.

[Shadoweclipse13]

Damn Steven, that's awesome! Good price considering the CAD too!! Just curious, is your other Juno a 106? I can totally get on board with multiples Junos, but it would be cool if one was a Juno-6 or a Juno-60 and this one was a 106, just to shake things up.

[StevenO]

My next comment was going to be “damn, if you paid $1700 for another juno, why not spend $1500 and grab that Polysix instead for a different flavour”

I paid nowhere near the $1800 (half ) for the ones that are going for sale at Paul's (they've had two recently), and this thing has been serviced too. Though I might restore the factory patches because the ones the previous owner(s) made are less than stellar.

A polysix is cool for sure! Maybe if/when I sell my Moog Prodigy and Roland SH-2000, which aren't sparking joy for me...

Yeah $900 CAD is currently an excellent price for a 106 especially if it’s had the voice chips replaced. I bought mine for $750 3 years ago but instantly dropped an additional $450 on voice chips and a full service from Jim Nelson in Missisauga. Assumed chips/service would cost nowhere near that when I bought it and lack of homework whipped me good. No biggie, still love it to death.

I’ve never played a Polysix but have always found them most pleasing to the ear, if I had more than 11c to spend on gear these days I’d consider finding one (as well as making you an offer on that Moog )

For sure. A lot of people complain that they can't get Junos for $45 anymore, but also... So what? It's a classic synth and a classic for a reason. Everything, except behringer, is expensive for what you get. I like the Minilogue, for instance, just fine... But i'd take a Juno over it any day, and evidently I did because I have two! I couldn't say no to this one at that price, especially considering they're currently going for around $1500-$1800 in Toronto.

I think I'll definitely be getting rid of one, though. I can't really justify having both, even though it really is fun running a sequence on one and using the other for chords, pads, melodys, etc. I mean, what gets along better with a Juno than another Juno?

Hey, I'll do trades as well on the Moog if you've got anything interesting (it comes with a case as well).

[StevenO]

Damn Steven, that's awesome! Good price considering the CAD too!! Just curious, is your other Juno a 106? I can totally get on board with multiples Junos, but it would be cool if one was a Juno-6 or a Juno-60 and this one was a 106, just to shake things up.

Both of mine are a 106 (well one is an HS-60, but same difference). I actually think my HS-60 sounds better, or at least fatter, but I can't really pinpoint why, maybe just a little louder. I'd much rather have a 106 and a 60/6 but hey, a man can dream...

[redchapterjubilee]

It's been rumored that the HS-60 has a subtle bass boost in it as a result of the amp used to run the speakers, that somehow the outs are affected positively from it. Whether that is true or not I dunno. I've had both but not at the same time so I never compared them. I love my Juno. I owned it for a dozen years before the chips started to go bad. A few years ago I had Rosen Sound work on them (Shadoweclipse13, didn't you work there?) and I've not had a problem with them since. However, Josh Rosen did mention to me that often there's an output issue that comes up with Junos separate from the gunk on the voice chips. I have that problem now. I can't remember what he said was the exact problem but it wasn't something on the voice card, it was in the volume pot itself.

[StevenO]

This Juno had a bit of weak output due to the output selector switch at the back of it being a little dirty (it would come back to normal after some wiggling back and forth). Sprayed it with some deoxit and it's a-ok! My other Juno had the same issue but all good now. That's just run of the mill maintenance, so give it a try if you have some good contact cleaner.

[guitarsammy]

I hope they offer the Behrenheim as both a module AND a keyboard, if anything. I'd really like one, regardless. I can't say enough good things about their Model D, so I have no doubts that anything else they release now will be just as good.

Still, though... A prophet 5 clone would be amazing. How hard could one of those be to make for a company like them?

IN OTHER NEWS

I've been making somewhat cheesy Disco music with my synths lately and honestly it's been incredibly fun. It's also made me realize what I actually like as far as the synths I own. I definitely think I could get rid of my Roland SH-2000 and my Moog Prodigy. I just can't seem to make them work the way I want to. I'd like something to replace them though. I wonder what? Roland JX-3P/JX-8P with programmer? Prophet 6? String synth of some sort?

Here's a clip of the fun disco-ish stuff I've been mucking around with. A lot of it is 'live tracking' recorded at about 7 am on Saturday (those brassy Juno stabs are a little off to my ears). Anywho:

https://soundcloud.com/user-758583202/fun-disco

That's pretty great! Have you ever heard Black Devil Disco Club? Methinks you would like......

I've been working on a few tracks that feature an offset guitar (my G&L Tribute Doheny) and a synth (Behringer Deepmind 12):
https://soundcloud.com/timcorvid/aud-20190906-wa0004
https://soundcloud.com/timcorvid/sidings-2
https://soundcloud.com/timcorvid/shimmer-1

[redchapterjubilee]

This Juno had a bit of weak output due to the output selector switch at the back of it being a little dirty (it would come back to normal after some wiggling back and forth). Sprayed it with some deoxit and it's a-ok! My other Juno had the same issue but all good now. That's just run of the mill maintenance, so give it a try if you have some good contact cleaner.

Got it. Will give that a shot.

Not sure anyone would be interested but my electronic music output actually predates my offset guitar interest. I started making my weird electro music in 2001 when a bandmate gave me a cracked copy of Reason 1.0. It's called great unwashed luminaries. I've slowed way down with it since I started my own band in '08 but getting back to it more now that the band is 1000 miles away from me and I can only do it a few times a year.
https://soundcloud.com/kellyminnis/star ... ttractions

[Zork]

I was really hesitant with the behringers, but this one is hard to ignore: https://youtu.be/_lx-9mLB1V0

[mackerelmint]

Oh shit, a poly Boog? Guess I'm gonna just have to go ahead and get one.

[StevenO]

Oh jesus christ... Man, behringer is NAILING IT lately. They're also coming out with a Wasp clone as well, but who cares about that when there is a POLY D?!

I'm guessing it'll be in the near 2 Grand range... Sadly, but understandably. Behringer is really changing the game. I know people are upset by them coming out with clones (even though so many companies do that and not as well), but at least they are doing some different things with the clones as well, things that the originals could never do.

And I know this is asking a lot, but I wish more synths that had built in sequencers had one like the one on the Roland SH-01a. It has a 100 note sequencer and a screen to let you know which number you are at, which also helps with making sure your sequencers line up with other stuff (for instance, if the screen says it on 17, it means you have dialled in 16 individual notes or rests). It makes on the fly adjustments really easy.

[mackerelmint]

God, I hope it's not that much, even in canadian monopoly money. I guess we'll see. It's obviously not going to be as cheap as the original boog, what with the keys and the extra oscillator and the poly and the chorus and the sequencer, but I'd take a hard pass on anything over 800. If I can get an original boog brand new for 300...

I have Arturia's minmoog in my couple of generations old now arturia collection, and with sample robot one could sample some patches and throw 'em on a workstation like a Korg Triton, but that was the solution I came up with for the zero hardware compatibility with FM8 patches problem I have. Moogs and Boogs have knobs, and that's kind of the whole point.

And I'm not getting any of this crap until after I move back across the country in a year, anyway. Screw paying to move more stuff. If behringer manages to produce their mythic oberheim before then, I'll make an exception.



Artist's rendition of me playing on the fauxberheim.

[Zork]

I think they're holding back the price for a reason
and that's just another clever marketing trick up their sleeves.
They sell the VC340 for 500 bucks brand new and it's
got the same keybed, wooden sides, metalcase and all that. People are expecting a street price around 1000. I say it will be significantly less. The Poly D will sell like hot cakes.

[StevenO]

Oh I hope it's in the $800 range. But I'm just guessing and keeping my expectations in check, for my own benefit.