SOUND ON SOUND
Looking like a star cruiser, or something from the film 2001 (rather than just the year), Alesis' Andromeda is the first analogue polysynth that approaches the complexity of a digital workstation. But does analogue necessarily equate to quality?
Ever heard a synth talk? If you have, it's due to formant synthesis. Gordon Reid explores the theory of analogue formant synthesis, how it relates to the human voice and modern digital synths like Yamaha's FS1R.
Onboard effects may seem like a relatively recent synth innovation, but even old modular synths offered analogue effects. Although they were basic, the freely patchable nature of modular synths allowed them to be used to create convincing acoustic instrument sounds — thus effectively physical modelling. Gordon Reid explains how.
![Figure 1: [top-left] A paraphonic synthesizer. Figure 2: [bottom-left] A fully polyphonic analogue synthesizer. Figure 3: [right] Octave divider boards.](https://dt7v1i9vyp3mf.cloudfront.net/styles/teaser_large/s3/imagelibrary/s/synth1_2_3-0101-muEtxP7wD74DHo.jL_rSEge628JVxWw1.gif "Figure 1: [top-left] A paraphonic synthesizer. Figure 2: [bottom-left] A fully polyphonic analogue synthesizer. Figure 3: [right] Octave divider boards.")
This time, Gordon Reid explains how various analogue synth manufacturers attempted to create workable polyphonic synths by employing digital technology.
The XV88 is the first of Roland's new XV range of synths to sport a keyboard, and also adds all manner of real-time control facilities. Gordon Reid checks it out with two of the new SRX-format sound expansion boards.
In the final part of our two-part Retrozone, Gordon Reid charts EMS's further achievements, the reasons for their decline in...
Gordon Reid tries out Philips' updated dual-deck CD recorder, and finds that a number of improvements have now made the machine more useable in the studio.
![Figure 1: [top-left] A simple monosynth. Figure 2: [bottom-left] A four-note broken chord played on a low-note-priority monosynth. Figure 3: [top-right] A four-](https://dt7v1i9vyp3mf.cloudfront.net/styles/teaser_large/s3/imagelibrary/s/synth1_2_3_4-1200-LnVd8udvvUlbYzHRUn7emBwcts7cRLAI.gif)
Having explored the way monophonic and duophonic analogue keyboards work, Gordon Reid puts away his Minimoog and Odyssey and descends into the complex world of polyphonic synths to a flourish of complex jazz chords.
In the first part of a two-part series, Gordon Reid charts the rise of EMS and their creation of the world's first self-...