Cheap Synths

>>71284474
I have a monologue and its great

>>71284558
Does it being monophonic ever run you into trouble?

How often do you find sounds you can't recreate well?

I started with a MicroKorg XL, it was a great toy to learn how to play- plus then you will learn what monophonic and polyphonic sound like- they're both very different and for diferent purposes-

Now i got a Sub phatty on the way home and got myself an electron analog rytm- which sounds great-

MS 20 Mini is pretty great, it's very versatile if you like fuckin around with the patches and such.

The monologue looks pretty dope specs wise, but the sound doesn't really appeal to me from the demos. I'd have to try it in person though

>>71285032
Are patches straightforward to learn?

What do you think of how the Microbrute sounds in comparison to the Monologue? They're both ~the same price.

How would you guys agree with this?:

https://www.gearslutz.com/board/so-much-gear-so-little-time/1129622-korg-monologue-vs-arturia-microbrute.html

https://www.reddit.com/r/synthesizers/comments/5pvzr8/microbrute_vs_monologue_beginner_advice/

volca keys is in fact a cool instrument but not if you want to do serious recording stuff. as you already said they are "toy-like".
but if you just want to play around with sounds and sequences they are a good way to start considering you can even plug a midi keyboard in so you don't have to use the touchpads. you can also combine it with the volca sample/beats/bass/whichever you want because they can sync bpm. i've spent hours doing that, it's very fun even if you suck at it.

if you want most value you might be better off with a midi controller and software synths. it's kind of boring and gay though imo

>>71285865
Ehhhh, desu I've thought about a MIDI controller + software synth but I don't trust my computer not to fuck something up if I get a software synth.

I like the idea of an analog synth because it does nothing but make sounds. I don't want my computer to take forever starting up if I ever want to jam or play with friends.

Soft synths are the way to go for sure if you're on a budget. Analogues are a mixed bag for a beginner since there's more that can go wrong with them than digitals. Sunrizer is a really good soft synth and you'll be able to learn on it and then decide if it's worth buying a hardware synth. Plus it's only about $10 USD.

>>71285358
The patches are a great way to understand synthesis, you can do a lot of really versatile stuff with it, but it isn't necessary for playing it, and there are lots of patches you can look up online to get you started. They all depend on what you want to do with them. If you want to use the on board sequencer and save your knob tweaks the monologue is the way to go, If you want to play chords get the minilogue, and if you want to make weird sounds, fat basslines, or BOC type leads that's what the MS-20 is best for. I have an MS 20 and a Nord lead 2 that I use for bass and leads respectively, the only real drawback for the MS20 is the keyboard and the size (it takes up a lot of space). I was kinda tempted to get the monologue, it's got some great features, but I just don't need it, and the minilogue doesn't seem that appealing, I'd want a bigger keyboard for a poly, and it's supposed to be clicky. With instruments it's best to try them out before you buy them, and the most worthwhile shit is either to go dirt cheap to get your feet wet (I bought a monotron and got a lot of mileage out of it before I had any other analogue synths, and before that played a bunch of thrift store keyboards) or high quality instrument that you'd want to use for a long time and will maintain it's resale value. The synth market is currently full of a bunch of mid level bullshit that aims to be affordable, but has a lot of shortcomings so you have to buy something else. It's cheaper in the long run to buy high quality and maintain it than rack up a bunch of middling bullshit.

With hardware synths, you really get what you pay for. I have several synths, and the only ones I get regular use with we're all over $1000.

I occasionally bust out the volcas for walking to class or whatever, but not for recording or playing in bands.

My microbrute is nice for the money, but it's not fun to use it when jamming with other musicians. I like it more for running sequences.

As for mobile music making apps, I use Xenon groove synth constantly. One little app that has two monosynths, a polysynth (with FM, PCM samples, or garden variety oscillators with waveshaper), a PCM synth, Fuck loads of drum samples, and a decent sequencer.