3 Great Synths Compared
|
PROPHECY |
NORDLEAD |
MINIMOOG |
|
|
Oscillators: |
|||
|
Audio Oscillators |
3 |
8 ‑ 24 |
3 |
|
Polyphony |
1 |
4 ‑ 12 |
1 |
|
Number of oscillator types |
7 |
1 |
1 |
|
Number of oscillator modes |
12 |
4 |
1 |
|
Number of waveforms |
Unlimited |
Unlimited |
6 |
|
Pulse Width Modulation |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
|
LFO Pitch Modulation |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Audio frequency Pitch Mod. |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Oscillator sync |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
|
Sync modulation |
Yes |
Yes |
‑‑ |
|
Fine Tuning |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
|
Cross Modulation |
Yes |
No |
No |
|
Ring Modulation |
Yes |
No |
No |
|
Noise |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Pitch bend |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Performance Capabilities: |
|||
|
Number of notes |
37 |
49 |
44 |
|
Velocity Sensitivity |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
|
Pressure Sensitivity |
Yes |
No |
No |
|
Modulation wheel |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Pitch controller |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Ribbon controller |
Yes |
No |
No |
|
Other controllers |
Yes |
No |
No |
|
Filters: |
|||
|
24dB/oct LP filter |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
|
12dB/oct LP filter |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
|
High pass filters |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
|
Band pass filters |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
|
Band reject filters |
Yes |
No |
No |
|
Filter resonance |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Filter oscillation |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
|
Filter tracking |
Yes |
Yes |
4 options |
|
Envelopes: |
|||
|
Dedicated Envelopes |
‑‑ |
2 x ADSR |
2 x ADSD |
|
Assignable Envelopes |
6 x ADBSR |
1 x AD |
None |
|
No. of Envelope destinations |
97 |
4 |
2 |
|
Envelope inversion |
Yes |
AD only |
No |
|
Linear response |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Exponential response |
Yes |
No |
No |
|
LFOs: |
|||
|
Dedicated LFOs |
4 |
2 |
Osc3 has LFO mode |
|
No. of LFO destinations |
103 |
6 |
2 |
|
Number of LFO waveforms |
30 |
3 |
6 |
|
Sample & hold |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
|
Arpeggiator: |
|||
|
Arpeggiator |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
|
No. of fixed modes |
5 |
3 |
‑‑ |
|
User programmable modes |
5 |
0 |
‑‑ |
|
Effects: |
|||
|
Number of effects |
7 |
0 |
0 |
|
Waveshaping effects |
2 |
0 |
0 |
|
MIDI: |
|||
|
MIDI capability |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
|
MIDI channels |
16 |
16 |
‑‑ |
|
Multi‑timbrality |
No |
4‑part |
‑‑ |
|
SysEx functions |
Yes |
Yes |
‑‑ |
|
Functions controlled by MIDI |
Almost all |
5 |
‑‑ |
|
Velocity sensitivity |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
|
Aftertouch sensitivity |
Yes |
No |
No |
|
Miscellaneous Functions: |
|||
|
Portamento (Glide) |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
|
Transpose +/‑ octave |
Yes |
Yes |
No |
|
Trigger modes |
3 |
3 |
1 |
|
Standard Memories: |
|||
|
Patch memories |
128 |
99 |
0 |
|
Performance memories |
‑‑ |
1 |
0 |
|
Expansion Cards: |
|||
|
Patch memories |
64 per card |
697 per card |
0 |
|
Performance memories |
‑‑ |
100 per card |
0 |
Pros
- Mind‑boggling power and flexibility.
- Having, in one neat box, seven markedly different synths...
- ...costing merely £142 each.
- Everything else.
Cons
- The sheer number of parameters (or is that a pro?).
- Having to learn how to play a real synth all over again.
- Not owning one.
Summary
The return of the mighty monophonic synthesizer. Who knows, maybe the late '90s will see the re‑emergence of guys wearing long flowing capes who fling knives into their keyboards. Playing the Prophecy stirs some long‑forgotten feelings, and when you consider the functions you get for the price (less than £1,000, remember) there's almost no excuse for buying anything else.