{"id":21,"date":"2008-05-13T15:26:44","date_gmt":"2008-05-13T15:26:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.innovativesynthesis.com\/?p=22"},"modified":"2013-05-23T10:39:57","modified_gmt":"2013-05-23T10:39:57","slug":"dedicated-effects-for-synth-players","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.innovativesynthesis.com\/dedicated-effects-for-synth-players\/","title":{"rendered":"Dedicated Effects for Synth Players"},"content":{"rendered":"

While guitarists get all the fun with their ever-increasing number of effects pedals, there\u2019s a worryingly small selection of \u2018proper\u2019 hardware effects for us neglected keyboard players. The two requirements I personally need for an effect to be suitable is that it must be rack mountable, and have stereo outputs and inputs. The 2nd<\/sup> of those requirements makes many effect pedals useless. However, there is still a wide variety of suitable hardware for synthesizer players out there.<\/p>\n

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For those who enjoy the analog and vintage sound, look no further than the Boss Microrack range. They are half the size of a normal 19\u201d rack unit, and come in lots of different flavours, including the highly regarded RBF-10 flanger and the RPH-10 phaser unit. Modules generally run for no more than \u00a350\/$100, so while they are getting on a bit and can break down, they\u2019re so cheap you can afford to buy a new one should something go wrong. Boss also produced a small selection of \u2018full rack\u2019 effects around the same time, which sound equally as good and are equally as cheap, the highlight of which is the CE-300 chorus unit \u2013 you won\u2019t find a great-sounding analog chorus effect for cheaper!<\/p>\n

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If you want to stay in the vintage domain but your wallet is of infinite size, look no further than Roland\u2019s classic range of late 1970s rack mount effects. You\u2019ve probably heard of the classic \u2018Dimension D\u2019 rack unit, which in good condition will most likely set you back a four-figure sum. Still, a little cheaper is the excellent SBF-325 chorus and flanger unit, which features extensive modulation capabilities for all things \u2018detuned\u2019.<\/p>\n

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Modern rack mount stereo effects are also manufactured, but sadly are few and far between. The eclectic synth company \u2018Vermona\u2019 produces a variety of gear, including their own \u2018PH-16\u2019 phaser, and one of very few rack mount ring modulators produced \u2013 the \u2018RM-1\u2019. Both are available cheaply, and don\u2019t forget to check out their \u2018Action Filter\u2019 too. Speaking of which, external analog filters are the perfect compliment to a digital synthesizer, and are best placed at the start of the signal chain. The top dedicated filters around these days include the well-known Sherman Filterbank, and the newly released Schippmann \u2018Ebbe und Flut\u2019 \u2013 super expensive and super nice.<\/p>\n

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Of course, you may be wondering what the point of all these over-sized single-purpose effects is. Well, while on stage a cheap multi-effects box can be handy, nothing beats a classic piece of analog machinery processing your sound in the studio. And while analog synthesizers are important to this, don\u2019t forget that analog effects in your signal chain are essential also, and can work wonders on non-analog sounds too \u2013 so keep your eye out for these bargains.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

While guitarists get all the fun with their ever-increasing number of effects pedals, there\u2019s a worryingly small selection of \u2018proper\u2019 hardware effects for us neglected keyboard players. The two requirements I personally need for an effect to be suitable is that it must be rack mountable, and have stereo outputs and inputs. The 2nd of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.innovativesynthesis.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.innovativesynthesis.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.innovativesynthesis.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.innovativesynthesis.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.innovativesynthesis.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.innovativesynthesis.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":345,"href":"https:\/\/www.innovativesynthesis.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21\/revisions\/345"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.innovativesynthesis.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.innovativesynthesis.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.innovativesynthesis.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}