The End of the Moog Voyager

[Sacred Synthesis]

It's hard to imagine the synthesizer world without the Moog Voyager, and yet, production of it is coming to an end.  I must admit that, still, when I think of the synthesizer in a general way, the first image that comes to my mind is my old Minimoog Model D.  The Voyager has been for almost fifteen years the next best thing.  When I got back into synthesizer six or seven years ago, the first thing I did was buy a Voyager and then a Prophet '08.  It was a gorgeous piece of musical furniture - a pleasure to play as well as to admire -  although I eventually sold it and bought a second Prophet '08, as I slowly learned I had more of an ear for the DSI sound. 

I suppose this will be a boost for the Pro 2, and possibly for the forthcoming Vermona 14 as well.  But it also begs an obvious question: What's up Moog's sleeve?  There is now an immense gap between the Moog Sub 37 and the Moog modulars.  Surely something new is soon going to fill this gap.  Any information?  Any educated guesses?

The Mother 32 will certainly be an interesting instrument to watch (I don't know if this image is authentic.):

http://i.imgur.com/y2MYsGb.jpg

[dslsynth]

From reading the unofficial DSI forum my impression is that the OS and the voice boards of Moog Voyager could benefit from an update both on the analog electronics and digital control sides of things. So my guess is that Moog are working on a new flagship instrument that will be more expressive and possibly even cheaper. I mean look at how much more front panel controls Sub37 got compared to L*ttl* Ph*tt*. There are certainly room for improvements. And one could even imagine some of the analog electronics design ideas progressing from the Voyager into the new instrument. But it will be different and it will sound different.

Regarding Pro2 I honestly think it needs some external VCO module assistance. Finally someone made such a demo (via unofficial forum):


Looking forward to the next demo version with three VCOs, four DCOs with super waves and using the delays for chorus. That could sound lovely. And lets not forget that given Moogs entry into eurorack world there is a chance they could make VCO and VCF modules that can integrate well with Pro2. But that may end up costing more than a Voyager.

PS: It was a Voyager Old School that you had, right?

[chysn]

My prediction is that the Voyager will be replaced with something Voyager-like in form factor, in the same way that the Little Phatty was replaced by something Phatty-like. My further prediction is that it will be a continuation of the Minimoog line. It'll be called "Minimoog Some Word."

The Moog Eurorack rumors are interesting, but I hope they don't give up on wood cabinets.

[Sacred Synthesis]

PS: It was a Voyager Old School that you had, right?

Yes, it was a Voyager Old School.  I never liked the touch surface of the other editions and wanted to polish my programming abilities without the crutch of memory.  But I was disappointed in general with the tone of the sawtooth waveform and frustrated that, in order to have simultaneous vibrato and PWM, you had to sacrifice the third oscillator.  I did buy a Moog CP-251, and that helped, but it was a hefty price to pay for one LFO.

The Sub 37, although having too small a keyboard and lacking the ability to delay vibrato by controlling modulation depth with an envelope (as far as I know), is much more to my liking and sounds much nicer.  I've come very close several times to buying one, but every time, the small size makes me change my mind.  I'm a big synthesizer guy.

 I hope Moog expands on the Sub 37 idea and builds a larger monophonic instrument.  I expect they will, since mono is their heritage.

[Sacred Synthesis]

My prediction is that the Voyager will be replaced with something Voyager-like in form factor, in the same way that the Little Phatty was replaced by something Phatty-like. My further prediction is that it will be a continuation of the Minimoog line. It'll be called "Minimoog Some Word."

No, the "Minimoog Some Word" would be an awful name.  It's too vague. 

But yes, It's difficult to imagine Moog without a Minimoog, without something that looks like a Minimoog.  I, too, expect it will be revived, perhaps with all-new circuitry and a different sound.  After being away from synthesis for so many years, I was amazed how unstable the oscillators still were at this late date in synthesizer development.  Even though Moog removed the A-440 tuning tone from the new Minimoog design, the instrument still needed to be repeatedly retuned after warm-up.  I started to wish the tone was still there for retuning by head phones.  (For those who never experienced it many years ago, that's what you'd have to do in the middle of a set/performance - put on your head phones and retune the Model D to that tone.)  It's probably what made me appreciate the DCO, even though digital control violated my analog purity ideal.  All things considered, I slowly shifted in my tastes from Moog to DSI, regarding both sound and voice architecture.  Now I would find it difficult to work without the standard 4 oscillator/4-and 2-pole filter/4 LFO/3 envelope DSI design.

[Sacred Synthesis]

This was my set up about six years ago in our old crowded apartment, and then the set up now:

[dslsynth]

Your new studio certainly looks more Smithy these days. ;-)

[Sacred Synthesis]

It sure does, and it works much better for me now.  But I still have an inherent respect for things Moog, especially the Minimoog. 

[dslsynth]

Me too! Look forward to see you get your first discrete electronics machine with tuning stabilized VCO's and a better sounding filter. Had any chance to pet a Prophet-6 or a Pro2 yet?

[chysn]

More info, linked to from the Moog Music Facebook page, so presumably accurate:

http://thecreatorsproject.vice.com/blog/moogs-new-synth

[BobTheDog]

PS: It was a Voyager Old School that you had, right?

Yes, it was a Voyager Old School.  I never liked the touch surface of the other editions and wanted to polish my programming abilities without the crutch of memory.  But I was disappointed in general with the tone of the sawtooth waveform and frustrated that, in order to have simultaneous vibrato and PWM, you had to sacrifice the third oscillator.  I did buy a Moog CP-251, and that helped, but it was a hefty price to pay for one LFO.

The Sub 37, although having too small a keyboard and lacking the ability to delay vibrato by controlling modulation depth with an envelope (as far as I know), is much more to my liking and sounds much nicer.  I've come very close several times to buying one, but every time, the small size makes me change my mind.  I'm a big synthesizer guy.

 I hope Moog expands on the Sub 37 idea and builds a larger monophonic instrument.  I expect they will, since mono is their heritage.

It is the triangle for me that kills it, really nasty I don't know what they were thinking about.

I still really like my Voyager though, it is basically a "One trick pony" of a synth, but something about it appeals to me. I guess because as long as you stick to what it is good at it sounds pretty good. And of course it's visually apealing. The knobs are really nice as well.

I tend to keep mine in "Panel Mode". where it acts like the XL. I use a VX-251 and MP-201 with it doing multiple roles with my modular, I think it's a sad day that they are getting rid of it.

The new Mother-32 looks interesting, been looking for somewhere in the UK to order it from but no luck yet...

[dslsynth]

Official intro video for Moog Mother- 32:

[chysn]

Sacred Synthesis: As somebody who has long been a critic of modern synth names, what do you think of the name "Mother?" I'll be ever waiting for the other shoe to drop with the introduction of the MotherFooger.

[dslsynth]

Honestly I hope to see a HooterFooger first! ;-) . o O ( run for cover )

[BobTheDog]

Only one oscillator

[Sacred Synthesis]

I still really like my Voyager though, it is basically a "One trick pony" of a synth, but something about it appeals to me. I guess because as long as you stick to what it is good at it sounds pretty good. And of course it's visually appealing. The knobs are really nice as well.

I found the Voyager to have tremendous visual appeal - all that gorgeous wood.  It was so hard to sell it.  And I've always thought the adjustable control panel was a superb design, especially if the Minimoog was sitting on the top of several keyboards.  Sound-wise, again, the sawtooth disappointed me, but the pulse width modulation was as smooth and rich as Kerrygold butter.

[Sacred Synthesis]

Sacred Synthesis: As somebody who has long been a critic of modern synth names, what do you think of the name "Mother?" I'll be ever waiting for the other shoe to drop with the introduction of the MotherFooger.

You know me too well, Chysn!  Yes, the thought occurred to me, but in my naivety I'm trying to give Moog the benefit of the doubt.  If such a name is given to it, then that will be one more synthesizer I'll never own.

[Sacred Synthesis]

Only one oscillator

But there's fun to be had in putting together an original synthesizer system.  Imagine a DSI Pro 2 controlling a couple of Moog 32s.

[dslsynth]

As for the Mother-32 only having one oscillator it still seems to be able to produce both waveforms at the same time. So think about it a bit in the same way as the oscillator section of Doepfer Dark Energy. And there is an external input so that more oscillators can be added.

What I am wondering is if or more likely when Moog releases an analog oscillator eurorack module. Would love to see a great sounding module with variable waveforms like Voyager oscillators and hopefully two or three VCO's in one module including a mixer.

Speaking of multiple VCOs: Would a synth with four VCOs actually work well and be of practical use? I am in my usual voice architecture reflections dreaming of a DSI synth with four VCOs and four digital oscillators (shall we call them PCOs?).

As for the product name discussion I would be a bit worried about the visual appearance of the MoonerFooger, assume that the MuterFooger will have no internal connections while finding the MooterFooger somewhat debatable. So in the end I'll stick with the HooterFooger for its great visual appearance and focused feature set.

[chysn]

Only one oscillator

Sort of par for the course for semi-modulars in this price range (see, for example, Pittsburgh Modular System 10 and Dark Energy). Ultimately, the intention is for it to be part of a bigger modular system. The three-Mother rack costs almost nothing ($80), and they really seem to be encouraging multi-Mother systems.

So the single-oscillator doesn't bother me. No, the thing that gives me pause is the pared-down envelope generator. This falls short of the classic Minimoog ADS. Again, you're supposed to add stuff to it, but I'd have preferred a decent EG to start with.

The Mother-32 is tempting, but I don't see one in my own personal future. I'm more likely to get another Minitaur, which has two oscillators already and two five-stage EGs. If I ever dive into modular, it will be more likely with a Pittsburgh Modular system, and start down the road of slowly building a huge Frankenstein.