FelixGubbins

On 01/04/2024 at 10:29, BigRedX said:

There are a couple of reasons why these synths are so cheap. One will be that with parameter access they will be difficult to program without a computer editor. The other is due to their age things will be starting to go wrong with them. The Roland keyboards from this era are notorious for glue failures on the key weights causing them to become detached, rendering the keyboard useless, and although fixable it takes a lot of time and effort. There are also likely to be problems with the battery backup of the user memories.

 

Unless you are happy with the factory presets or there is a readily available selection of free decent 3rd party sounds that are easily loaded in, I personally would steer clear of all the synths that you have suggested. Also from what I recall of these synths, the sounds will now be quite dated. Unfortunately any decent synth with MIDI with close to one control per parameter will be more than your £200 budget,

 

If you are determined to go with one of the synths you have suggested approach with caution and make sure everything is working as it should be before parting with your cash.

Thanks BigRedX, appreciate your comments. To be fair I have been noticing a lot of these having dead keys, sticking buttons etc. Looks like I need to review my finances and my expectations. Thankfully I don’t have to panic about it just yet as there are no gigs in the calendar 🙁. 

44 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

Your problem is your budget of under £200. What have you seen that fits into this?

 

Otherwise I'd be recommending the Behringer Deepmind 12.

I’ve seen the Yamaha SY series, Roland D series (10 & 20), Korg X2 and X3, all seem to be possible to get in the £100-200 range. I’ve read reviews on these but they’re very varied, seem to be somewhat subjective, and haven’t helped me narrow things down. I lost out on an X3 at £135.56 (my brother used to have one so I thought I’d give it a go) last week but this was the only one of that kind I’ve seen that looked viable. Others have had keys broken or not working, or are too far away to pick up. One other thing I should say is I’m after a synth with 61 keys or more. 

Thanks for responding, should’ve been more specific so apologies for that. The Doepfer is just the midi controller module. I need a synth to provide the sounds, samples, etc. Good-to-have would be sequencer and arpeggiator. I prefer a synth keyboard as opposed to rack-mount plus keyboard controller as, to my mind, It’s simpler and less to go wrong on stage, though happy to be corrected. Happy with 80’s and 90’s sounds, it’s really as a first pass at getting into keyboards again (used to play a bit of piano and had a Juno 6 back in the day). The music I would be playing is classic and prog rock so skewing towards that would be good, but it’s all about creating from what’s available, so the particular sound palette is secondary. 

Hi Basschatters, I’m after some synth advice. Context is I’m building bass pedals using the Doepfer MBP25 module and need a cheap MIDI synth to plug it into for gigging. Looking at what’s available on eBay, I’m struggling to make figure out what to go for. Budget is under £200 so there’s plenty available, but too many for my lack of knowledge. Any advice on good models to look for would be appreciated. 

Many thanks,

Russ

My band are looking to record an album and are after a decent, not-too-pricey studio in the Nottingham / East Midlands area. Any recommendations?

Cheers,

Russ 

My favourite Rotosound endorser is most definitely Geddy Lee. Listening to Permanent Waves back when I was 16 helped open my eyes to rock music and I've been a devotee ever since. With Geddy's bass being such a big part of their sound, it's obvious that Rotosound play an important role in that. If Geddy thinks Rotosound are the strings that perform best for him I think it's hard to not be swayed!

What wattage is it, and how much does it weigh?

Hmm iv got a nice rosewood jazz neck that this body would love to meet. What would p&p be?

It's my favourite colour! Damn, don't have the money atm. GLWTS

Played one of these before. Nice 😋 GLWTS

I shall be following with interest. I have a small room destined (wife willing) to become a music room so am looking for ideas

Tempted, but short of cash unfortunately. GLWTS

That's such a beauty!! GLWTS

[quote name='bartelby' timestamp='1495643852' post='3305577']


I did get some white blotches, I thought some moisture may have got under a coat of superglue. I just sanded it back and started again.
There are some small white spots which are where glue dust got stuck in divots.
But as a first attempt I'm pretty pleased already. I thought it was pretty easy to work with tbh.
[/quote]

Think I will have to go back at some point and do the same. Did you use a low or medium viscosity glue? I just used a tube of bostik from Rymans which might have been my mistake.

Looks good already. I've just "finished" a defret of an old maple Hondo II P neck using superglue and veneer but got some white patches. Also found horrible to work with. That said it's a lovely smooth finish but I've kinda given up for now

Wish I had £200 spare! GLWTS

I wonder just how good it felt to play. A bit rough I reckon, even if they did spend time smoothing the neck down. How many people played it and weren't prepared to say it was any good?

Shouldn't an MIA have a high mass bridge?

I bought a set of 9050Ls as my first set of flats and put them on a P bass. I'm rather impressed, especially for the price.

I'm a bit like this on my Fender USA Jazz. Bought immaculate and kept as such until I caught it with another bass (and no, I don't mean she was being unfaithful lol) so now there's a 1cm graze on the edge. It's pearl blizzard to not that noticeable, but I notice it. I keep thinking I should try and touch it up (OMG the innuendos are coming thick and fast ... there I go again!)

Personally I'd go with the Jazz or the Ricky. I have both (MIA Fender and a 4001) and while I love the Ricky to bits I think the Jazz has the edge. If you're considering a Ricky I assume you have a fair sized budget so you'll have a bit of scope. Try lots and pick the one you like best.

I can't get any enthusiasm for Grabbers at all, don't have a big thing for Tbirds, but I do love the look of EB3/SG basses. I think it's a very personal thing. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, as they say.

Oh dear. I need to remortgage my house ... GLWTS

That's stunning. GLWTS

Years ago, when I was short of money, I sold my lovely Hohner Jack to a friend for £75. I really regret it now as it was a super bass. I tried to buy one a few years ago on eBay but the sale fell through. It only reached £180 which is a really good price as well so it irks me even more that they go for so much now. Don't think I could justify a replacement at the moment.

About 10 years ago, again short for money, and frustrated at my lack of progress with it, I sold an Aria Pro II Cat fretless to a friend for £100 (much better) but I'm now regretting this as well as I'm wanting to try fretless again. Neither bass has really been replaced, but my Fender MIA jazz does pretty well tick all my fretted bass boxes so I can't complain. Still looking out for something to scratch that fretless itch, though, but I think I might go for fret lines instead of a plain neck this time ...