Hot dog purveyor Gray’s Papaya in New York is beloved for its “Recession Special”: two dogs and a drink. Their champagne is made from coconuts. And you don’t just scarf these down in bear markets; you enjoy them any time.

Dave Smith’s monophonic Mopho synth is perhaps the greatest recession special in the history of synthesis. It’s got the soul of a single voice from the Prophet ‘08 analog synth, but with sub-octave generators, distortion that they claim ranges to “extreme skronk,” and the ability to process audio input. Interestingly, that means its “skronkiness” and input processing address some of the complaints I’ve heard from people who didn’t immediately take to the new Prophet. The whole, 7.5×5″ package, with the 100% analog signal path mono synth, the Curtis analog low-pass filter, and a Mac/Windows editor, costs just US$400 street.

And then there’s that mysterious “Push It” button.

If you want some hands-on experience, our friend Chris Randall of Analog Industries (and Audio Damage) just got his:
Honky Mopho

I’m about the last person to mention the Mopho (I was out of town when it launched), so I went to the good peoples of Dave Smith to get a little more information. DSI’s Andrew McGowan responds.

And yes, we get to hear something about the ever-mysterious upcoming Dave Smith – Roger Linn LinnDrum II, which this is not.

Tenori-on Meets Kyma from Nomad Cinema on Vimeo.

US distributor Keyfax NewMedia reports that it has Yamaha’s Tenori-On in stock and shipping out now. (Pre-orders began at the beginning of May, but this is apparently the first the US unit has made it to our shows — unless you happened to win one from createdigitalmusic.com, that is, in April, in which case you know who you are.)

Every time I mention Tenori-On, despite the awe and lust it inspires in some musicians, someone raises the point of its somewhat retro-styled, simple sound bank. Fair enough: the minimal sounds are fantastic in the hands of creator Toshio Iwai and were specifically programmed and voiced to match his aesthetic. Other people, perhaps, not so much. So it’s interesting that reader Steven aka Nomad Cinema sends along this video (seen at top) of the Tenori-On paired with the absurdly deep luxury modular synth Kyma, along with a couple of beloved new analog synths. He writes:

In order to tap the real power of Yamaha’s new Tenori-on, it helps to pair it with external equipment capable of producing more satisfying sounds than the somewhat lackluster soundset included with the Tenori-on itself. In this video, no internal Tenori-on sounds were used whatsoever. Tenori-on is functioning purely as a sequencer with external equipment, including advanced sound-shaping from Kyma and analog synthesis from Alesis Andromeda and Dave Smith’s Prophet ‘08. Sequencer data coming from Tenori-on is processed in Ableton Live (utilizing midi scale and chord filters, as well as injecting some generative randomness) before reaching Kyma, Andromeda, and Prophet ‘08.

That to me remains the Tenori-On’s unique strength: to me it’s really an alternative step sequencer, exploded into an array of flashing lights and animated with game-like motion. This is to me also another way in which it isn’t a Monome, which feels more like an intelligent, programmable set of pads an an extension of your software, in comparison to the Tenori-On which seems to be re-imagining a giant pixel as a controller. I will be getting around to showing off some hands-on applications very soon, at long last.

There are few names who have had so profound an impact on music technology as Dave Smith. Three decades after the introduction of the Prophet-5, and nearly 25 years after the first MIDI product shipped, his new creations remain some of the most sought-after musical instruments available. The new Prophet ‘08 is capable of producing just as much excitement as some of those earlier landmarks. That’s why we’re pleased to offer this entirely non-exclusive interview with –

Yes, that’s right. I said “non exclusive.” The word “exclusive” gets thrown around a lot, usually meaning something that really isn’t terribly exclusive at all. But in this case, we’re pleased to collaborate with our friends at the leading Spanish-language music technology site, Hispasonic.com. I worked with Xabi to brainstorm some ideas to talk about, and Xabi conducted the interview. For those of you for whom Spanish is your native language, definitely don’t miss the version on Hispasonic:

Dave Smith, el profeta de los sintes

Here in English, Dave talks about the genesis of the new Prophet-8, and reflects on synthesizers and musical instruments in general. I’m not sure I’m going to agree that only hardware synths are “real instruments” and software synths are best for beginners, until they get “serious.” (I would absolutely agree that’s the case with emulation, and that software synths should go their own way, both of which seem to be his main points. Hopefully we’ll get to do an in-person interview soon.) But I will agree that Dave truly creates real instruments, and his unique angle on design should be a challenge to hardware and software developers alike. And not even the most die-hard software lover could argue with the musical prowess of the Prophets — and their creator.

As we discovered when the elevator broke at the 6th-Floor Handmade Music party last month (ahem), actual analog gear is heavy, to say nothing of expense. There’s nothing quite like the real thing, in terms of sound, behavior, and tactile feedback. But the “next best thing” has some definite advantages. And competition for virtual alternatives is heating up. IK Multimedia and Arturia pack an unprecedented number of analog models into a single package for a pretty low price; Arturia now even throws in a keyboard to seal the deal.

Arturia’s Virtual Experience vs. IK’s Moogs: Fight!

The approach of each product is different. IK uses their sample engine, Arturia uses their “TAE” engine from their other virtual vintage products. IK has some additional multi-effects and sound-warping power; Arturia has arguably more hands-on control. IK is entirely focused on Moog and even endorsed by Moog Music; Arturia has a cross-section of classics. And, oh yeah, Arturia is also throwing in an actual hardware keyboard (pictured a little later on).

Hmm… if only we could read the spec sheets for these tools simultaneously. Wait — we can! Go, go, gadget HTML table!

Nothing appeals to most electronic musicians more than a home studio filled with vintage instruments. But few of us stop to consider the responsibility we take on by purchasing an old Moog Memorymoog, Sequential Prophet-5 or even a mammoth E-mu Emulator II: They require constant care and attention. I’ve owned a number of classics and have become fairly used to popping them open from time to time for a bit of calibration or a quick fix.

To make matters worse, there’s a dark cloud looming on the horizon: Many electronic designs from the 1970s and 1980s don’t age well. If you’re not careful, your beloved vintage instrument can be seriously damaged by leakage from the battery that preserves its patch memory, or fall victim to chip or component failure. Here’s a quick look at some of the most common problems that can befall older instruments.