HELP WANTED: Synthesizers for Dummies...

kgmessier

@idexis said:
There are obviously several ways to find out why synths sound differently. One is to test many yourself, fun but takes a lot of time and money. Study the design, esp. the filters. This is hobby of mine, great fun but certainly not for everyone and definitely not if you're not math loving dude. You can get advice. I can recommend this book here. Clearly I don't know what you find expensive (US$52), but I think it's a very good straight on book to get "usable" know how quickly.

https://www.amazon.com/Musical-Art-Synthesis-Sam-McGuire-ebook/dp/B013RC65BK/ref=sr_1_1_twi_kin_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1501977752&sr=1-1&keywords=the+musical+art+of+synthesis

From the description on Amazon, this book looks to be right up my alley. Thank you, @idexis! (I have a degree in electrical engineering, so I have an ever-so-slight affinity for math. )

@audiblevideo said:
Try comparing at about 6;00 and 10:00 minutes.
Moog (style ladder filter) is "smudgy" (letting high frequencies through but not as cleanly/clearly)
vs
Yamaha (cs80 style) "brassy" lets more of the high frequencies through cleaner (not smeared or attenuated as you sweep through the frequency range)

I have to agree the difference is subtle, but makes the character of the synth in the sounds played. I offered this as a comparison because the oscillators themselves were zeroed out as a factor, since the two units are identical in hardware except the filters.

cheers.

That helped! Thanks, @audiblevideo. I think "brassy" is a great description of the SE80. It sounds smoother than the 5089 to my ears. On their own, I prefer the sound of the 5089's filter, but in application, I can see how it would be good to have both at your disposal.

audiblevideo

More on waveforms and filters

Telstar5

How about” Syntorial “app?

[Deleted User]

@gareth82 said:
I'm surprised no one mentioned Korg Gadget! As far as super simple synthesis goes you can't go wrong with the Phoenix synth for starters (basic subtractive synth, think classic analogue style) Dublin to learn basics of modular and then Wolfsburg to step it up another level. All simple synths plus sequencer, arpeggiator and chords on tap. If you want some tutorial stuff there's a ton of tuts based around Korg gadget synths, I know Jacob Haq does a lot on YouTube. Free version too if you want to have a look. By all means read synth explanations and videos but get stuck in and all that stuff will make more sense. Korg gadget stuff are all scaled down versions of different synth techniques. All the essential functionality is there but without over complicating things.

Well said! A newbie myself and Gadget beyond satisfies

Wrlds2ndBstGeoshredr

@idexis said:

I can recommend this book here. Clearly I don't know what you find expensive (US$52), but I think it's a very good straight on book to get "usable" know how quickly.

https://www.amazon.com/Musical-Art-Synthesis-Sam-McGuire-ebook/dp/B013RC65BK/ref=sr_1_1_twi_kin_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1501977752&sr=1-1&keywords=the+musical+art+of+synthesis

This one is interesting too:

https://www.amazon.com/Welshs-Synthesizer-Cookbook-Programming-Universal/dp/B000ERHA4S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1507387848&sr=8-1&keywords=synthesizer+cookbook

oat_phipps

@Wrlds2ndBstGeoshredr said:

@idexis said:

I can recommend this book here. Clearly I don't know what you find expensive (US$52), but I think it's a very good straight on book to get "usable" know how quickly.

https://www.amazon.com/Musical-Art-Synthesis-Sam-McGuire-ebook/dp/B013RC65BK/ref=sr_1_1_twi_kin_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1501977752&sr=1-1&keywords=the+musical+art+of+synthesis

This one is interesting too:

https://www.amazon.com/Welshs-Synthesizer-Cookbook-Programming-Universal/dp/B000ERHA4S/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1507387848&sr=8-1&keywords=synthesizer+cookbook

Those books can be great, but I'd recommend them in conjunction with picking one synth you like the sound and interface of and doing your own random fiddling and exploration. It's necessary, and then the books can augment and accelerate that.