DSI Prophet 12

[James Coplin]

First and foremost, if I sounded irritated or snippy, I'm not at all, tone
just gets lost in emails so no worries...

> > However,
> > while in the most basic sense, the particular instrument may be
> > irrelevant to what can be done, the instrument does matter more than I
> > think you suggest.
>
> I agree and I don't suggest such a thing.
> An instrument can be something very individual and then of course an
> absolutely personal preference.
> But I'm not entirely sure if that applies to electronic instruments in
general.
> I think the lines are blurry, very blurry.

This is true.  I would know in a second if you changed out the piano I am
used to playing with another one, even if it was the exact same make and
model.  If you did the same to my synths, I doubt I would notice except in
cases where I had made "improvements" to the circuits that altered the
instrument enough to matter.  Even then, the character of the timbre would
for all practical purposes be the same.

> If someone already has a particular keyboard/synth/drum machine etc. of
> course this person might have some strong personal attachment to this
> which inspires her/him and she/he loves to play.
> But I really beg (in general) to differ and look at every case to see if
it's not
> just hype!

On this point I'm not so sure.  I've owned an obnoxious number of synths
over the years but there are a couple that still resonate with me in the
way my childhood piano does.  My Oberheim SEMs are just so lyrical and
beautiful that I can really make them sing and ache when I play - at least
to me.  They resonate with me in a very particular way that just isn't
achieved with similar patches on other gear even other analog vintage
pieces.  The new ones do not have the same affect either.  The white faced
ARP Odyssey is another synth like this for me as is the Voyetra 8.  Now
that I think about it, maybe there is something magic in white synths?

Now, while these are all analogue, I don't think that is really the
defining factor.  I also absolutely adore the way Omnisphere sounds and I
love to play it as well.

> Yes, might be, but could you try a Prophet-12 already?
> I wouldn't abandon the idea that this new thing might deliver some
positive
> surprises for us before scrutinising it.

I'm actually interested in trying one but I doubt I would buy one.  It is
the first DSI product I've heard that I like the sound of, at least from
the videos.  I think if I were starting off today without the gear I have
it definitely would be on the top of my evaluation list.  I still have to
wonder at the pricepoint.  At $3000 I could get an Oberheim OB-8 or
Xpander.  Will the Prophet 12 be able to unseat these in terms of sound
and functions?  Maybe, we'll have to wait and see.  The companies who
should be concerned are Access and Clavia.  I have always had a hard time
with their pricing structure and a $600 MS-20 and a $3000 Prophet 12 are
potentially market changers is they deliver.

> > The
> > PPG would be another good example.  I have a Wave 2.3, Waldorf
> > Microwave I, and the PPG VST plugin.
> > They all sound good and are capable of essentially the same thing but
> > there is some creepy gritty voodoo in the PPG that makes me always end
> > up back on it when I am tracking.
>
> which you don't find in the VST plugin?

I don't like the sound very much although I do really appreciate the
interface.  It sounds good but it doesn't quite nail the spooky grit of
the original.  Here I am splitting hairs admittedly.  I already had the
Wave 2.3 and Microwave I when the VST came out.  If you want the PPG
sound, get the plugin or the Waldorf Microwave I.  Both are way better
values than the real thing.  The Microwave I in particular is a great
sounding synth.

> > In the
> > end, it is one of the only old vintages I don't have or have had in my
> > setup that I've always wanted.
>
> I'm sure there may be more opportunities to acquire one!

The problem is that while I'm not cheap, I am also not impulsive.  It
takes a lot to get me to drop more than $2000 on a synth.  Also, I need
the rack and those are considerably more rare.  Thus timing becomes
everything.  I've never seen a rack come up in good condition, around
$3000 or less, when I also happened to have the cash.  There have been a
couple of boards these past months but I am sitting on my cash in case I
can twist Mr. Maddox's arm to let me buy an Aurora rack with some
polyphony.

James R. Coplin