Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

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Lost to the Void
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Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by Lost to the Void »

The EMS Synthi is the best Synth I have ever played with or heard. IT is the only synth I suffer from true gear lust for.
But the 8 year wait and over 3 (or was it 8) grand price tag for a new one just stops me.
Hard to explain just how amazing they are unless you have used one (which I got to do at studio Makaton). It`s not west coast, or east coast, it`s EMS, their own thing. It works like nothing else, sounds like nothing else. The oscillators are raw sexy, the modulation is amazing, wide ranging pallete, and just amazing how tiny changes open up new worlds of potential.

Anyway. A Synthi clone is coming (without the patch bay though :cry: )
If they get the price down to under 3 grand, I`m in!!

https://ask.audio/articles/sneak-peek-d ... booth-news
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xonetacular
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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by xonetacular »

3k for a new synthi? I wish. There is a cornwall synthi for sale right now here for 15k and the person waited 13 years for it to be built. I see vintage synthis not in the best shape and needing work going for around 8k.

Anyway that's just a clone of the synthi expander with some added standalone features, not a full synthi. Still cool but very different and not close in features to a synthi.

Image


If you want a real full synthi clone they are out there. Still expensive and a long wait (though less than a year not multiple) to have one built but less than half the price of a real synthi (10-15k for a good condition or new build synthi).

Image

http://www.thesynthi.de/

hornet demos and reviews are good and I think he has a new synth coming that is like an evolved version of it

the new one is the Portabella which looks to be silver so looks more like a synthi. not much info but im sure it will be good.

youtu.be/v1O4WsmhS1c

demo is shit but it looks and sounds like a synthi and thats all ive seen of it

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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by Lost to the Void »

I think makaton paid about 8 grand for his synthi direct from EMS. 8 year wait though......
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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by xonetacular »

yeah pretty crazy to think how long people have waited

Now you have me thinking about the portabella. There's no rational reason for it I can get those sounds pretty easily with what I have but the synthi is sexy and I like not messing with patch cables sometimes and just having everything quickly accessible.

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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

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You can`t get the synthi sounds out of anything but a synthi.
Have you ever played with one?
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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by xonetacular »

Unfortunately no. Between my buchla 200ish and serge modular I can get close enough to every tone I've heard out of it in demos. The synthi sounds a lot like it falls between the two. Of course not exactly but I haven't heard any particularly unique tones that would be challenging to get close. They're all 70s circuits and have a lot of similarities.

Would be curious to hear examples of the type of sounds from the synthi you're talking about though.

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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by Lost to the Void »

It's not just the tones it's how you can control them and make them evolve.
The wiring inside a synthi is like nothing else. A known labyrinth of pathways.
I read an interesting article on a 1 to 1 copy and the insanity of the wiring inside, it definitely plays in to the complexity.
Until you play with one it's hard to explain.
Most of the videos I have seen are bellends making crappy scifi noises with it, but it's so much more than that. The basses you can get are so lush.
Just the quality of the sound as well, there is a richness, a harmonic depth that is quite rare in the sound.
I've still got a ton of recordings from when I spent a weekend at makatons studio, he has a big modular setup too, but as soon as I heard the synthi, I couldn't be assed with all the modular. I still need to turn those recordings in to something so we can release the collaboration...
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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by xonetacular »

Yeah that's kind of what I was saying the interface and mod matrix is what's appealing to me on it. I still consider the synthi a full modular synth.

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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by buffered »

to play with a synthi is to want one. These boxes are like nothing else. You just can't walk away from them.

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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by td3l »

Lost to the Void wrote:The EMS Synthi is the best Synth I have ever played with or heard. IT is the only synth I suffer from true gear lust for.
But the 8 year wait and over 3 (or was it 8) grand price tag for a new one just stops me.
Hard to explain just how amazing they are unless you have used one (which I got to do at studio Makaton). It`s not west coast, or east coast, it`s EMS, their own thing. It works like nothing else, sounds like nothing else. The oscillators are raw sexy, the modulation is amazing, wide ranging pallete, and just amazing how tiny changes open up new worlds of potential.

Anyway. A Synthi clone is coming (without the patch bay though :cry: )
If they get the price down to under 3 grand, I`m in!!

https://ask.audio/articles/sneak-peek-d ... booth-news
Well shit. Count me interested. The Synthi is the one piece of gear I suffer true lust for as well.

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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by xonetacular »

still though a quick look at it and it's not anywhere near a synthi

Image

Image

missing an oscillator, spring reverb, joystick, and the whole 16x16 pin matrix among other things that makes it what it is. doesn't even have a noise gen either.

edit: no ring mod either, come on...

only real alternative is the hornet/portabella

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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by Lost to the Void »

It's not meant to be a full synthi. It is what it is. Elements of one.
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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by gedda »

youtu.be/rWsFQXJirbU

edit: i think this is vid of that synthi clone you were talking about.

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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by Lost to the Void »

Even with that crappy demo it sounds rather nice.
I wonder what the price will be.
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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by SixOfOne »

There's a nice selection of interesting gear starting to come out again, there was me thinking I would be happy with what I have for a while.

Very interested to see what sort of price will be on this..

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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by Lost to the Void »

wow, I wonder what the price will be
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PixelKind
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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by PixelKind »

No info yet besides those videos. But it looks like they got at least a prototype done so shouldnt be too long

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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by Alume »

Cool project, has lots of character that one.

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Re: Affordable EMS Synthi??!!!

Post by xonetacular »

the hornet was 5000 euros so guessing portabella will be similar pricing if not a bit more


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