MODAL Labs Synthesiser

[JottoSW1]

Am mulling over used 61 key synths and this has caught my eye locally

 

Modal Argon . Cheaper than the used Gear4Music one on offer.

 

Anyone who can comment on these please advise me ...JOdeV 

[BassTractor]

20 hours ago, JottoSW1 said:

Am mulling over used 61 key synths and this has caught my eye locally

 

Modal Argon . Cheaper than the used Gear4Music one on offer.

 

Anyone who can comment on these please advise me ...JOdeV 

No personal experience with this one, sorry, but it does come highly regarded especially with the latest firmware upgrade.
Modal have had their share of quirkiness and bugs, but I get the feeling this one is among their best in those respects.

Are you only looking at wavetable synths, or is this more a matter of price point and similar?
From the corporate mumbo jumbo, I can't make out whether it lets you make your own waveforms. If it doesn't, it's just a "synth with wavetables" as a competitor honestly called its machine. To me personally, it'd be on my shortlist even if it appears to be just a "synth with wavetables", as it sounds luvverly and highly usable.

Do make sure you can get the latest firmware though; Modal have a long history of financial problems, and I'd not trust the website to be there "forever".

 

[Woodinblack]

I have an Argon 8, which is the one with fewer keys (but exactly the same synth). I also have a Carbon 5, which is the smaller carbon.

It is a very deep synth which definitely has its own character, most of that comes from its wavetables, it sounds fairly digital. Its fun to play with though I have never played it live. 

 

5 minutes ago, BassTractor said:

From the corporate mumbo jumbo, I can't make out whether it lets you make your own waveforms. If it doesn't, it's just a "synth with wavetables" as a competitor honestly called its machine. To me personally, it'd be on my shortlist even if it appears to be just a "synth with wavetables", as it sounds luvverly and highly usable.

 

You can't - it is 'just a synth with wavetables' but that doesn't detract from what those wavetables are, and how many there are (and that you have multiple wavetables that you can merge between. I have a synth you can load wavetables on, the Blofeld, and I don't.

 

If you are after a synth with its own character and not trying to emulate anything else, it is a great synth - I don't know what the 61 key keyboard is like, but the smaller one on mine is a really nice keybed.