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cheap beginner synthesizers?

Anyone have any recommendations for cheap beginner synthesizers, talkin like under 400. And what else I would need to produce?

Yamaha AN1X
You can get a used one for a really low price. I wish I bought one of them instead of my CS1X.

any of the korgs any good?

Beginner Synths For Most EDM.
Below are listed in my personal prefrence to how I would rate them.

JP - 8080 -$300 - $500
JP - 8000 - $500 - $800
Korg MS 2000 - $300 - $450
Roland Juno D - $600
Alesis Micron - $400
Alesis ION - $600

Anyone else feel free to add on

i wouldn't recommend to start with hardware synths as a beginner. it's much harder to set the whole thing up if you don't have an idea how all those things work.

what would u recommend then? and how would i connect rack versions to pc or keyboard?

Get a cheap midi controller

Are you complete beginer, or have you used sequencing programes b4?
If you are just starting out with little to no knowledge, I'd definatly recomend using reason. It has drum machines, synthesizers, effects, etc. It is a good learning tool for someone who wants to get a grip on a studio. From there you can look at what you want to do when you understand things more clearly.
Just downlad the demo and mess about. I'm sure thered be books out there about reason to help you learn it tho you'd have to look.

To recomend a synth when you want to produce music is probably not the best option. A synth is more likely to be used as a sound source (or several) to make up the overall production.

i wouldnt recomend you to start with reason cause as a closed system it is dated in my opinion. there are professional people doing professional tunes with it but it is kinda limited though. if you buy hardware later then the problems just start with reason. i also find the whole look of the gui is absolutely chaotic and inappropriate. back in the old days everybody was happy when a new device had fewer cables and a cleaner interface. now it seems like some people like to have moving animated cables in their sequencer. same for arturia plugins. thank god that ableton live gives you all the vsti-params in a clean interface without the hassle of all those flashing gizmos.
... that is just my opinion. maybe you like that kind of stuff. i would always recomend to choose a sequencer or device for ergonomics and workflow not for the style.

but anyway you were not looking for a sequencer but for a synth.... like many others said you shouldnt buy "a synth for beginners". before you buy a synth you should know what sound you want it to make. you can have fun with pretty much any synth if you are a beginner so something like an allround vsti might be an option. i got a wavestation with an atari back in 94 when i was 14 and i had fun with it for years (not that i produced something really usefull)

quote:

what would u recommend then? and how would i connect rack versions to pc or keyboard?

any midikeyboard will do (starting from 30�). to connect the synth to the pc you just need a decend audio-card. no need for multiple inputs if you just have this one synth. and you should get good cables.

quote:

Originally posted by thecYrus i wouldn't recommend to start with hardware synths as a beginner. it's much harder to set the whole thing up if you don't have an idea how all those things work.

Yup.

Go get yourself V-Station or Vangaurd. They're really easy to use and won't overwhelm you too much. Even though they are simple, they can put out great sounds, especially V-station imo. But what you should do is get a free/cheap synth and learn how synths work first. After you learn how synths work, and know how a sine/pulse/triangle/saw/square/whatever wave sounds like by heart, you can pretty much make any sound there is in your head. If you ask me, there is really no beginner synth really. It's all a matter of getting comfortable with what you have, and knowing how synthesis works, but since V-station and Vangaurd are pretty cheap and aren't too confusing, and if for some reason you don't want to produce anymore, you'll save money by buying those two, I suggest those.

I'm no pro yet, but my sound is always evolving. I know people here will back me up on this statement, it's not about what you have, it's about what you know/and your skills. Buying gear won't make you better. I've learned this the hard way.

yeah download superwave or triangle and learn synthesis first then
get a hard synth if thats what you want

if you already have knowledge with synths then id get a hard synth now if thats what you want over software.

and thats a whole new and old thread.

quote:

Originally posted by Eldritch Yamaha AN1X You can get a used one for a really low price. I wish I bought one of them instead of my CS1X.

Yeah, much underrated synth.

what did you buy then ? "NO!"

Good thread. Had the same question on my mind. Looking to become serious with music production, and am trying to learn all I can about soft synths and the like. I don't plan on getting any hard synths, just a decent MIDI controller.

I have my eyes on this controller:

http://www.guitarcenter.com/shop/pr...l_sku=102640398

What do you all think? I know many of you may think the 88 keys is overkill, but I have good reason for it.

Anyway, was thinking about the PRO-53, V-Station, Absynth and Vanguard. Any others that you think would be good for a nice melodic, progressive trance track? HALion 3? Hypersonic?

Thanks for any help!

Rhythm

Re: cheap beginner synthesizers?

quote:

Originally posted by eisbaer6 Anyone have any recommendations for cheap beginner synthesizers, talkin like under 400. And what else I would need to produce?

A good sequencer is in order; that much I know to be true. What else I know to be true is that everyone holds a different definition of a good sequencer. It is a matter of taste, but I sided with Cubase after much research, just because I think it is extremely powerful and more aligned with my needs. Others include Reason, Ableton, Logic, and Fruityloops, to name a few.

Rhythm

quote:

Originally posted by Rhythm Good thread. Had the same question on my mind. Looking to become serious with music production, and am trying to learn all I can about soft synths and the like. I don't plan on getting any hard synths, just a decent MIDI controller. I have my eyes on this controller: http://www.guitarcenter.com/shop/pr...l_sku=102640398 What do you all think? I know many of you may think the 88 keys is overkill, but I have good reason for it. Anyway, was thinking about the PRO-53, V-Station, Absynth and Vanguard. Any others that you think would be good for a nice melodic, progressive trance track? HALion 3? Hypersonic? Thanks for any help! Rhythm

this controller seems very nice and complete. But i would only buy it if i had some serious piano like playing abilities, which i dont so 88 keys is really unnecesarry for me. for that price i would defenetily get instead one of the novation remote sl (even the little one) , because of its amazing automap feature which makes it sooooooo easy ton control every parameter on most softsynths. for my way pf playing is more important to have easy and instant control of all knobs and faders on all vst synthetizers, than having many octaves of keys. And also there the Xiosynth which for $100 bucks less, has an audio/midi interface with preamps, built in real virtual analog synthetizer (hardware) and extensive capability for midi control. I would personally go for the Xiosynth and most probably will, just after i get my studio monitors.

quote:

Originally posted by pixxxan this controller seems very nice and complete. But i would only buy it if i had some serious piano like playing abilities, which i dont so 88 keys is really unnecesarry for me. for that price i would defenetily get instead one of the novation remote sl (even the little one) , because of its amazing automap feature which makes it sooooooo easy ton control every parameter on most softsynths. for my way pf playing is more important to have easy and instant control of all knobs and faders on all vst synthetizers, than having many octaves of keys. And also there the Xiosynth which for $100 bucks less, has an audio/midi interface with preamps, built in real virtual analog synthetizer (hardware) and extensive capability for midi control. I would personally go for the Xiosynth and most probably will, just after i get my studio monitors.

I appreciate your feedback. I will look into it. Yeah, I was choosing the 88-key for piano realism.

If you end up opting for software, I'd say go with RCGaudio Z3ta. Cakewalk sells it now though. The layout is great. There are 2 pages. One page is where the osc, filter, envelop, and modulation matrix are, and the other page is where the effects, equalizer, amp and such are. You don't even have to touch the modulation matrix. The oscillators are easy to use, and the manual is decent. Loads of presets, and more to download.


forgot to mention that this thing is a beast! you can have 64 notes, playing each with 48 voices...... ahhhhhhhhh

You can turn off 2x oversampling, and set it to low quality for good performance.

quote:

Originally posted by -_1_--Ben--_1_- what did you buy then ? "NO!"

I bought a ton of useful stuff, I learned the hell out of them and experimented on them for ahwhile. The thing is, right after I'm starting to get 'my sound' I only need a few vsts.

aha, hard or software ?

quote:

Originally posted by -_1_--Ben--_1_- aha, hard or software ?

I'm all software.

Yeah, I've only heard good things about the z3ta. I think I may purchase that one, too. So many choices, so little money. Oh wait, today's payday

quote:

Originally posted by Rhythm Yeah, I've only heard good things about the z3ta. I think I may purchase that one, too. So many choices, so little money. Oh wait, today's payday

also curious about a good midi keyboard somewhere in this under 600 or some other good synth programs. any info is appreciated.

Korg EMX-1?

How about the Korg EMX1? I've only tried it a few times in Guitar Center but it was a lot of fun. People on here have called it a "toy" but for beginners such as eisbaer6 and myself it seems like a good option. The only problem is it runs for about $500, but it's got synths, drums, effects, sequencer, etc all built into one sleek box. It even has some sort of (not fake) vacuum tube effect dealie.

Here's a couple clips of a guy playing one...not bad if you ask me:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kn4gRvcFlWc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iz4AMEgS2HM

Thoughts?

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