Sacred Synthesis wrote:Boy, do I agree with the last few posts. I now have about half the amount of equipment that I had about four years ago. I find clutter to be terribly stifling, and that having less instruments results in much better concentration, cleaner inspiration, and deeper exploration of the instruments I do have. If there's one state of mind that drains creativity, it's the constant hyper quest for the latest stuff. I'm definitely guilty of this. And I haven't even come close to exhausting the Poly Evolver, nor even the Prophet '08. If I never heard again of another instrument, I'm sure these two would more than suffice for all my musical needs for life. It's just that it's so difficult not to become interested in the latest "new and improved" synthesizer, when it's advertised and discussed all over the sites and forums and tantalizing video demonstrations (including "unboxing videos") begin to appear on YouTube. This is quit a difficult force to resist.
I agree... also if I look at all the synths I've had, and look at the best presets made by others, it's usualy some person who worked solely on that one machine who is behind the better sound... a sign that is really not that surprising because all time is focused on one thing. If you have a huge arsenal of synths, you end up having to share your resources on all of them, meaning mediocre experience with the machines in the long run.
Another thing that I've learned about myself is, that the more complex the synths are, the worse it gets... it seems as if I work best under limitations, that inspire me to actualy use the machines more.
This is also why I've lowered my selection to eight synthesizers, where I in the past easily had more than 16... but it gets overwhelmingly complex with so many... the mixer needs to be huge, there are cables everywhere, you need several MIDI interfaces, and making everything work nicely together is not always the easiest... on top of that, if pre 90's synths are involved you get maintennance and workarounds problems in addition because they lack communication features, have larger latencies etc. etc.
It's not many months since I decided to limit myself to eight stereo synths plus a single drummachine, and I decided I'll not have anything pre-90's and rather go for the flagship synths... quality above quantity so to speak.
It's not a lie to say, that I've spend more than 20 years with GAS syndrome, always waiting for something new before I really got down to making music... and I'm still there, but can see an end to it now. I'm tired of aquireing, instead of making music really.
So my own setup is from very carefuly selected instruments that I've chosen over a very long period of time, but most are either DSI or Waldorf.
DSI Poly Evolver Rack
DSI Prophet 08 Module
DSI Prophet 12 Module
Waldorf Microwave 1
Waldorf Pulse 1
Waldorf Pulse 2
ORLA DSE-24
DSI Tempest
I'm only planning two more synths... one being the Pro 2 or a Sub37 ... don't know which yet.
Besides that I need ONE synth with keys to work as a master keyboard at the same time, but this is the one causing me the most grief, because I'm really picky with quality here, and the size. Currently it'll be either Pro 2 Keys or maybe even a Blofeld Keys, but I'm not sure. I feel the Pro 2 keys should have been at least 4 octaves, not 3½.