Moog Source

The presets (or at least what was on it when I bought it) are pretty lame, but presets usually are. Editing is fairly simple, but lacks the flexibility of knobs or sliders. Never seen the manual, but if you want to send me a copy, by all means do so.

Monophonic, low note priority. Keyboard action is decent for a synth. No fx, no MIDI, although retrofits are available. The on-board note sequencer is a total pain and practically useless. If it were step-entry instead of realtime, it would have been at least somewhat useful. The PATCH sequencer is pretty cool, though. It allows you record patch changes, so you can get some wacky wavetable-type sounds if you cycle through really fast. The tempo is set by the LFO, which limits usefulness somewhat.

Not a synth for copying other instruments, unless you're trying to sound like a different Moog. It's got the classic 24 db/oct filter, and can make some real fat bass and lead sounds. The membrane panel limits expressiveness somewhat, since you can only alter one parameter at a time. It's got the standard pitch/mod wheels, and those can go a long way for changing the sound in real time while playing.

Mostly reliable. I've had it overheat before, but only once and under unusualy conditions. I understand the membrane panel is impossible to replace. I wouldn't gig without something as a backup.

not applicable.

Considering what I paid for it, it was an insane deal. If lost or stolen, I'd probably replace it with a Prodigy instead. I really don't care for the membrane panel interface. I'm considering getting the Kenton filter CV input, which would definitely make it a bit more useful. I love the oscillator sync sound, especially with pitchbend. You could probably get some Jan Hammer-type guitar tones with this feature.

Editing patches is simple - just punch the appropriate parameter button on the touch panel, and twirl the data wheel. Not as intuitive as a bunch of knobs, but much better than a tiny LCD and layer upon layer of menus. Incidentally, the weighted data wheel is kind of cool - give it a spin and it keeps on going. Good for smoooooth filter sweeps.

Accessing the extended functions (sequencer, arpeggiator, etc), on the other hand, is rather clumsy.

Monophonic. Keyboard is typical synth-action: you're not gonna be playing Bach on this thing anyway, so don't worry about it.

It's got 16 patch memories, which is anemic by today's standards but is nice to have in a Moog.

The built-in sequencer can record two separate sequences with a total of 44 notes. It records in realtime, and it's very difficult to get it to loop evenly, making the sequencer pretty useless.

The arpeggiator, on the other hand, is lots of fun. It's actually more like a step-sequencer than a typical arpeggiator. You can key in any 16th-note pattern, up to 24 notes in length, and it'll loop it. The only limitation is that playing the first note a second time denotes the end of the arpeggio. Kind of dumb, but that's how it is.

No MIDI, of course, but it does have CV and S-TRIG (the same jacks serve as both ins and outs). (Most analogues use V-TRIG; you will need a special cable or convertor to drive the Source from most CV systems. See http://machines.hyperreal.org/manufacturers/Moog/schematics/moog.trigger-convert.jpg.)

I turn into Stevie Wonder every time I play this thing. The sounds sit nicely in the mix and overall it's very musical.

The voice architecture isn't terribly sophisticated, so your sonic palette is admittedly kind of limited, but it's got a nice warm sound. Very nice funk bass and bright leads.

The oscillator sync sounds amazing. When sync is turned on, moving the pitch wheel only bends the second oscillator, producing a swirl of buzzy harmonics. Awesome feature!

The filter is buttery-smooth. There are two ADSRs: one for the VCF, one for the VCA.

The LFO has triangle and square waveforms and can modulate both the VCF and VCOs. Unfortunately, VCO mod affects both oscillators even with sync on, so you can't use it to automatically sweep the second oscillator as described above.

Bottom line: It's not a machine for complex programming, but it holds its own as a source of warm bass and bread-and-butter analog. I'm giving it an 8 based on the warmth of its sound and NOT on its sonic range.

Mine's never failed me. Seems to be pretty solid.

Moog's been defunct for years now. If you can't find a repair person, email me and I'll try to recommend someone in your area.

Given the absurd prices of everything Moog these days, I don't think I'd buy another one if it got stolen. If you find it for $400 or less, grab it, but don't pay E*Bay prices.

I find myself using it mostly for basslines, funky leads, and bleepy sequences. I haven't yet built the V-TRIG > S-TRIG convertor circuit, so I haven't been able to sequence it yet. I'm sure it will become a more vital part of my studio once I get around to this. There are MIDI retrofits available but they are mad expensive.

Not a vital organ, but a good auxiliary synth.

Let's get this straight from the outset - THIS IS NO MOOG. I own a Prodigy and Minimoog, and this thing sounds like neither. Its absurd 80s method of accessing parameters is so unrewarding and lacking in spontaneity as to make it the laughing stock of the range. If you want to tweak in real time, don't go near this thing.

Monophonic with no FX, it has a pretty simple design with a pretty tatty keyboard attached.

It can vaguely imitate some Moog sounds - the middle range stuff is the most succesful. The filters aren't too bad, but what F*****G use are they if you can't tweak them properly in realtime alongside the resonance etc?!!. Its pretty poor to play and doesn't have the sharpest EG.

It is actually very dependable. Its never broken down and I use it as a backup to the REAL thing on stage.

I've been using synths for about 16 years now, and I have to say this is the biggest disappointment. It looks quite cool with its bright colours and neat surface layout but underneath the tricks don't serve the magician. OK as a backup, but frankly my SY99 and Reaktor do better Moog imitations than this thing. I may pay to get it stolen.

The Source is a monophonic analogue synthesizer made by Moog in the early 80's. It offers sixteen preset patches which can be edited. The best of which is the Taurus preset. All editing is done by pressing a membrane touch pad and turning an editing dial on the left side of the control panel. This can be tedious since all parameters can only be edited using this one dial. Other than that, it's very easy to use.

The Source has many basic synthesizer features. Two oscillators, two ADSR envelopes, lowpass VCF, sequencer, arpeggiator, and LFO. The sequencer only stores up to 64? notes (it's not much) so it is really not too helpful. The LFO only has triangle and square waveforms but they can be routed to either the oscillators, filter, or both. The arpeggiator is cool and so is the sample and hold function. It doesn't have a factory MIDI but you can install an Encore MIDI kit which also fives the Source 256 patches!

The Source produces classic Moog sounds. Deep basses, leads, filter sweeps, and strange noises are what it's good at. It's not good for strings, brass, or pianos. Perfect for electronic music. What it does, it does very well.

Solidly built, metal casing with wood sides. Only problem might be if the membrane panel is ruined it would be extremely hard to replace. Stays in tune well so I think it's safe for outside the studio (just protect that membrane panel!).

Moog is out of business but if you look hard enough there are places on the net that might sell parts for it.

The Source is definately a great synth which is often overshadowed by the Minimoog. Though it isn't as nice as the Mini it is waaaaay better than a Rogue, Micro, or MG-1. I have played and own many Moogs and I think that the true cheaper alternative to the Mini is the Source. It often times goes for about half the price of a Mini. It is also the only *monophonic* Moog with patch storage (16). True Moog sounds at a reasonable price.

Only 16 presets, but a few of them are quite good. All the presets are editable. Every parameter is editable with only one or two button pushes and the sensibly laid out front panel makes it easy to handle quick changes. Pity there's only one big knob for editting. It feels fine and is responsive though.

Monophonic, so don't expect to play chords, unless they're the unison kind achieved through detuning the oscillators a number of semitones. No effects, no expandability unless one counts cassette dumps. Two digit display for parameter values, octave switches, volume and tuning controls. Everything else is membrane switch controlled, which undoubtably saved costs. The built in sequencer is line short of a joke, limited to a few dozen notes at best. It almost never plays back at the rate one recorded to it, which is damned annoying. Worse is that both the sequencer and the arpeggiator, when in use, effectively disable the LFO! The arpeggiator is not real time, but rather a sort of on-the-fly sequencer. Don't even bother unless you're using it solely in the studio.

It's a Moog, so the sounds are uniformly excellent. Though not as good as most Moogs at bass sounds, it does a reasonable imitation of a Taurus pedalboard. Excellent lead sounds, good synth percussion and chugga-chugga grooves with the LFO controlling the filter. When the hard sync is engaged, the pitch wheel only affects the synced oscillator, so roaring solo timbres are easy to achieve, and highly recommended as the best sound this box produces. No pulse width modulation, which is a shame, but smooth filters (with resonance that goes all the way into self-oscillation) and great portamento. Very poor modulation routings: noise cannot be routed to any control input, no audio input, filter FM only from the LFO. No velocity or aftertouch control. The bottom line: it does "Lucky Man" just fine, but don't try "Frankenstein". Good, solid, basic sounds without much ornamentation.

The octave switches stuck a little, but there were no other problems while I owned it. An early microprocessor based synth, so breakdowns are to be expected, but of the two models I've played, neither had any great flaws. Probably most defective ones are long gone, so check the nice wooden end cheeks: if there are few scratches or nicks, you've got a keeper. The processor is a Z-80 (still used in Nintendo's Gameboy!!) so that shouldn't be hard to fix. Moog Music is finally back in business after more than a decade.

I parted with my Source to buy a Prophecy. I miss it a little, but it wasn't a Minimoog, despite what the old Moog ads would have us believe. A fun synth to use, but put alongside a Sequential Pro-One, OSCar, ARP Odyssey, or even a Korg Mono/Poly, it doesn't come off so well. All the others give far more latitude in programability, sound almost as good (perhaps even better in some cases), and cost not much more than a Source will. It's your call, folks. Wish list: a decent modulation section, more memories, a sequencer that could actually be used, ditto for the arpeggiator.