Crumar Multiman

The Multiman is a very simple instroment. Just select some sounds using the big rocker switches and you are away. I love the simplicity of this instroment. Its just a pleasure to play.

Despite being over 30 years old, the Multiman boast some impressive features. There is a really awsome keyboard split. You can split the keyboard into two sections and have two seperate sounds up. It also lets you mix the volume of each sound - excellent. There is a bass section on the bottom octaves so you can accompany your playing with a very powerful bass which cuts through well. There are only 5 sounds but any number of these can be layered together in any combination for a big lush ensemble. Once you have layered some sounds you can mix the volure of each part. This is good fun. There is a vibrato effect and a slider for sustain legnth.

The Multiman sounds extreamly warm and lush - this is going to put you off digital instroments for life. How do they get them to sound this rich without the use of a chorus effect? Like the other Italian stringers the Multiman sounds very clean and crisp. All the sounds are fantastic. The Piano is a great sound. Its not at all realistic but still sounds wonderful. The Clavichord sound is actually a very convinsing Harsichord. Its the most realistic Harpsichord i have ever heard on an analogue instroment - great for playing 'Golden Brown'. The Brass is a killer sound. Its nice and meaty and even has its own dedicated filter. It has loads of reonance and goes into self-oscillation. The Strings are very good. I like to mix the Strings with the Brass and have the rich strings with resonant filter sweeps below them. Try mixing the Strings, Brass and Harpsichord together. This is one of my favorite synth patches of all time.

Mine seems to be very reliable. I don't have any problems with it. The only thing wrong with mine is one of the keys which does not trigger the Piano or Harpsichord but triggers everything else - strange. This is not a problem because its a key which i don't use too often.

Not a clue.

If this went missing i wound be really upset. Mine is the origional 1975 Multiman and is almost impossable to replace. I love mine to death and use it as my only stringer.

As above, the presets on this synth are magnificent. They bring music to life and anyone using digital strings will go purple in the face upon hearing these. The piano is kind of rubbish but all the batter for it. It's the sound you always imagine a Casio 'electric piano' will give you but never does. Plinky plonky and dusty.

This is a fully polyphonic keyboard and although the action of the keys is kind of plasticy it is still a joy to play. The only effect it has is a built in filter for the brass sound but mine doesn't work!

The sounds, as covered above are absolutely brilliant. The strings and bass are outrageously effective and give your music an instant feeling of forboding.Really!

Hell yeh. This thing is built to last and becomes its own box using a clip-on lid. It is big though...and heavy. It also has screw-on legs but the years have kind of taken it out on them and we've started just using a keyboard stand. It has never once given us a moments stress.

Do they still exist??

I play in a live band writing mostly instrumentals. Until buying the Multiman we used a Moog Rogue/Prodigy, Roland Jupiter 4/JX3p, Korg 700, Jen sx1000, Roland 606/505, Mattel Drumatix! You get the picture. Anyway, on buying this, the spectrum of sounds we were able to create multiplied tenfold. Amazing.
It is fully polyphonic and has a split keyboard, each half of which has sliders to mix amounts of the following instruments: Brass, Piano, Clav, Cello and Violin. The lower half also has a Bass sound which, basically slays any other clean sub-bass sound I have ever heard. Especially if you drip a wee bit of piano into the mix. The strings are straight out of Death Wish and, when mixed with brass/clavinet become irrisistably hip hop. The brass/clav together make everything you play sound like a Dr. Dre produced tune.
It also features a simple vibrato/sustain setting which adds depth and mystery and a massive volume pedal which is invaluable for big string swells. Beware buying one that has no pedal as all the sounds default to a long decay/sustain i.e. no percussive short tones available. I know because we forgot it at a gig once and the sound was utterly drowned!!!