The idea for this thread is shamelessly stolen from Razmo, who uses it to talk about gear issues that specifically interest Razmo. This thread will be like that, except I'll talk about gear that interests me. Call it a vanity thread, but I think it's a pretty good idea for everyone, since it doesn't need to be tied down to a specific product.
My gear rant thread won't be as interesting as Razmo's, because I don't buy gear very often.
In fact, I'm actively ruling out buying gear this very moment. Sort of.
When Winter NAMM 2016 came and went without DSI releasing a new monosynth, I was a little disappointed. Sure, the OB6 is a great achievement and, as they say, "What do you want, an egg in your beer?"* I was hoping for a single-voice synth based on the Prophet 6. But so maybe DSI wants to be the polyphonic company. Can't blame them. Maybe the Pro 2 is going to be DSI's only monosynth for a while. Can't blame them. So I started to take a serious look at the Pro 2.
Part of this process is, I've been watching Paul Dither's excellent YouTube series of Pro 2 demos. Mr Dither's love for the Pro 2 is apparent, as is his musical and technical talent. The Pro 2 sounds deep and capable in his hands. It's probably fair to say that he makes the Pro 2 sound as good as it possibly can sound. I've also spent much time with the Automatic Gainsay videos, and pretty much everything else I could track down. But pd's videos are, in my opinion, pretty definitive on this instrument. If you're going to love the Pro 2--or not--you'll probably know from pd's demos.
Sadly, the Pro 2 does not step my personal mast. It doesn't move my soul. I'm okay saying this without pointing out any particular shortcomings of the instrument. I recognize it as a great instrument in the same way I recognize Seven Samurai as a great film; it just doesn't seem to do it for me, and there's no use analyzing it.
This isn't a very good rant. I don't need a new synth right away. Even if I had loved everything about the Pro 2, it would have been several months down the road. Right now, I have a couple of instruments that do continue to move me, in the Little Phatty and the Evolver, so I don't mind staying put and seeing what comes along.
There's a slight possibility of me winding up with a Sub 37, but I need to spend as much time looking at that as I've spent looking at the Pro 2. I also wouldn't be horribly surprised if I buy a MEK. But most likely, I'll just wait in a zen state until a monophonic Prophet does or does not materialize. I do love the sound of the Prophet 6, much more than the Pro 2, and I know that a three-octave monosynth version would be lovely.
So there it is. /rant
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* Ew...? I'm not sure why they say that.