The Use of the Prophet as a Power Chord Guitar

[Chuck Cohen]

I used to make the Prophet 600 sing back in the day in 1984 and after.  We all loved new strange interesting sounds and sweeps, but especially awesome were the useful ones we could use in live gigs.  Back then, no one ....I repeat, NO ONE used a keyboard or synth to emulate a backup power chord guitar, with maybe exception of someone like Jan Hammer.  In the band I played in we had one guitarist, and whenever he took a solo, it always felt like the power or bottom dropped out of everything, so I started on a venture to fix that.

I used to modify and make my own custom patches on my Prophet 600, but on this go-around, I plugged up and ran the Prophet 600 through a Boss Heavy Metal HM-2 distortion pedal.  I specifically started twiddling knobs until I got what I wanted.  End result?  The best damn power-chord guitar emulation you could get from ANY synth at the time!!  I then used these patches to play power chords & crunches live when our guitarist took his solos.  ...and this was back in the 80's.

It worked way better than expected.  People in the audience at our gigs were like ...."where in the hell is the other guitar player"?

The recordings are old, but if you would like to hear what this sounded like, you can go to my "Prophet 600 Project" page on ReverbNation at https://www.reverbnation.com/prophet600project, or just google "chuck cohen prophet 600".  Check it out.   

Side note:  I knew other keyboardists that rushed out to get a Boss Heavy Metal Pedal, so they could do what I was doing.  They couldn't duplicate it.  I don't think it was my synth-programming skills at all, ...I think most of it had to do with the awesome sound of the Sequential Circuits Prophet 600 itself.

If any one else has a good story, set-up, or effects or pedals that they have used on their rig or synths to emulate guitar or anything else, let us all know here.

[blewis]

The first time I knowingly saw a Prophet 5 live was in a tiny club where this guy was running it in unison through a Marshall half stack. 

[Goldcoin]

Power chords are commonly played on amplified guitars, especially on electric guitar with intentionally added distortion or overdrive effects. Power chords are a key element of many styles of rock, especially heavy metal and punk rock.

[Manbird]

Power chords are commonly played on amplified guitars, especially on electric guitar with intentionally added distortion or overdrive effects. Power chords are a key element of many styles of rock, especially heavy metal and punk rock.

Ah, the grand cacophony of amplified guitars, resounding through the ether with gusto! Power chords, those majestic creatures, find solace upon these strings, their melodies soaring through the electrified atmosphere. But not content with mere resonance, they seek augmentation through intentional distortion and overdrive effects. It is within the vibrant realm of rock, where these chords hold sway, their potency unchallenged. Heavy metal and punk rock, in particular, bear witness to their ubiquitous presence, for power chords, ever the masters of amplification, are indelibly etched in their pulsating rhythms.

[558]

Power chords are commonly played on amplified guitars, especially on electric guitar with intentionally added distortion or overdrive effects. Power chords are a key element of many styles of rock, especially heavy metal and punk rock.

Ah, the grand cacophony of amplified guitars, resounding through the ether with gusto! Power chords, those majestic creatures, find solace upon these strings, their melodies soaring through the electrified atmosphere. But not content with mere resonance, they seek augmentation through intentional distortion and overdrive effects. It is within the vibrant realm of rock, where these chords hold sway, their potency unchallenged. Heavy metal and punk rock, in particular, bear witness to their ubiquitous presence, for power chords, ever the masters of amplification, are indelibly etched in their pulsating rhythms.

I am getting reflections of a PBS special on electric guitars here

[Manbird]

Power chords are commonly played on amplified guitars, especially on electric guitar with intentionally added distortion or overdrive effects. Power chords are a key element of many styles of rock, especially heavy metal and punk rock.

Ah, the grand cacophony of amplified guitars, resounding through the ether with gusto! Power chords, those majestic creatures, find solace upon these strings, their melodies soaring through the electrified atmosphere. But not content with mere resonance, they seek augmentation through intentional distortion and overdrive effects. It is within the vibrant realm of rock, where these chords hold sway, their potency unchallenged. Heavy metal and punk rock, in particular, bear witness to their ubiquitous presence, for power chords, ever the masters of amplification, are indelibly etched in their pulsating rhythms.

I am getting reflections of a PBS special on electric guitars here

Or, you're seeing Goldcoin's wiki quote run through an AI chatbot's imagined Frank O' Hara, but who's counting?

And just to remain on topic, the P5 has always been an easy go-to for the "power chord" sound for me. Tune the oscs a 5th apart, sawtooths, unison... sorted!

[g3o2]

Emulating a guitar convincingly is not only about sound but also about the controller (keys, surface, etc.) and the reactivity of the synth engine to the movement of each of your fingers, including slides and beyond. Obviously, the synth needs the necessary internal or external mod matrix to bind the expressive playing techniques to the synth engine. Prophet 12 comes to mind, or perhaps Prophet 6’s and OB-6’s MPE modes. A continuous playing surface has the advantage of enabling polyphonic slides and vibrato.

Find here a demo on the Continuum and another one on the Linnstrument:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eOKGXXU8Nw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wDy0GFgHjU