[A6] potential a6 owner questions

[Chris Pickett]

Hi guys,

(this should be plain text only; my previous messages were both HTML and 
plain text)

Okay, well given three words of warning I am now reconsidering.  As far 
as the A6 sound goes, I'm convinced (even from the so-called "cold / 
thin" factory presets) that it's absolutely wonderful.  I know that 
dance and techno have bad name among musicians because almost all of the 
stuff you hear outside of a relatively unknown and small group of 
producers and labels is (IMHO) total crap, but there's definitely a 
place for the deep, lush, and spacey sounds I heard (again, factory 
presets).  I can hear the difference in recorded music between VA and 
the real deal, although I find mp3's and CD's tend to blur that 
distinction for me (as opposed to vinyl).

Anyway, I'm now back to thinking about getting a Yamaha S90 as a master 
keyboard with great piano action, and learning the ropes from there.  It 
has the option for an AN1x plug-in board with 5 voices, some good synth 
sounds, and lots of sampled instruments.  I suppose I can always pick up 
an A6 in a couple years (<sigh>) once I feel comfortable with everything.

Cheers,
Chris

Mark Kopec wrote:

>I would like to second the word of warning to you about your proposed A6 purchase. This is not a beginner's synth. 
>
>You should be interested in the Moog and Oberheim sound. If dance music is your interest, you will be disappointed. The A6 is not a dance and techno synth. Many of them get sold under this false impression. Then the owner sells the synth a few months later after it goes unused. The problem is not the A6 but the mismatch between expectations and reality.
>
>Good luck in whatever you decide. 
>
>Best regards,
>
>Mark 
>--
>
>On Sun, 04 May 2003 19:53:04  
> Chris Pickett wrote:
>  
>
>>Hi,
>>
>>First, this might be a little off-topic for this list, but since I see 
>>myself as an A6 owner in the future, I was wondering if you kind people 
>>could help me out.
>>
>>I've been a DJ for 7 years, and ended up (after a long trip through just 
>>about all genres) getting really into deep / jazzy / vocal house; 
>>Masters at Work, Larry Heard, Joe Clausell, Kerri Chandler, Ron Trent, 
>>Moodymann, etc. etc.  I got kind of tired of all the music coming about 
>>1.5 years ago, and haven't really bought any records since then, and 
>>actually started buying CD's again.  Never thought that would happen.
>>
>>Anyways, I have a couple of mixtapes that I want to master and put on 
>>CD.  So I bought a sound card for my laptop.  Then I decided my mixer 
>>wasn't good enough, so I bought a new mixer.  Then I wanted an effects 
>>processor for my new mixer so I bought one of those.  Then I wanted a 
>>BPM counter to sync my effects box accurately with my records.  At this 
>>point it feels like a closed system and I can be a little happy.
>>
>>I then (hours after promising myself that I wouldn't do any more 
>>shopping until those mix CD's were finished) was looking for a master 
>>keyboard and spent some time reading reviews and listening to the Yamaha 
>>S90 and Kurzweil stuff.  I wasn't too happy with the synth sounds of the 
>>S90 but was sold on the keyboard action (everyone said it was the best 
>>ever).  Then I happened upon 3DarkHours' mp3's at sonicstate.com and my 
>>heart skipped a few beats (and then I did the obligatory "read every 
>>link Google returns" thing).
>>
>>Basically, I've now decided I want to put together a small home studio 
>>and I want the A6 to be the centrepiece.  I am more interested in buying 
>>a few quality components than something like the MC909.  Money is not 
>>really an issue for me at this point.  I don't really have much 
>>experience with synthesizers except that I had a 303 for about a month 
>>(it was fun), have played a bunch with ReBirth, and played classical 
>>piano for 10 years.  Oh, and I love the sound of them.  But before I get 
>>too carried away, I really need some opinions on how to proceed in this 
>>whole gear buying mess.
>>
>>Here is my current gear list:
>>
>>3 Technics SL-1500 MK2's (+/- 9.9% digital pitch control, much better 
>>for recording than 1200's -- not good for playing out or scratching though).
>>
>>1 Technics SL-1200 MK3 (Japanese, equivalent to MK2 over here).
>>
>>3 Ortofon Nite Club cartridges + stylii.
>>
>>Sony MDR-Z700 DJ headphones (crap, but I wear them outside and stuff).
>>
>>Gemini PS626 3-channel mixer (old and crackly)
>>
>>Rane Empath 3-channel mixer (in the mail).
>>
>>Korg Kaoss Pad 2 FX processor (nice, but I don't have enough control).
>>
>>Red Sound Micro Sync BPM Extractor (to sync MIDI clock to live sound / 
>>turntables) (in the mail).
>>
>>Thinkpad A20p Laptop (750 MHz processor, 384 MB RAM).
>>
>>Digigram VXpocket V2 PCMCIA laptop soundcard (24-bit A/D and D/A).
>>
>>Marantz PM-62F 180W amp (home stereo stuff, about $700 U.S. to replace 
>>with new equivalent).
>>
>>12-gauge speaker wire.
>>
>>Some 20-year old monitors / bookshelf speakers that sound good to me but 
>>I could probably do with a second pair.
>>
>>A Denon dual tape deck (DRW 580).
>>
>>=============
>>    
>>
>
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