MATRIXSYNTH-B: 04/26/10

Monday, April 26, 2010

Roland JP8080 Analog Synth Module

NOVATION A STATION NOVA SYNTH RACK

via this auction
"download the users manual here
British synth makers Novation take their now classic BassStation Rack to the next level. The A-Station is polyphonic, adding 8 voices of polyphony to their 1-unit rack-mount synth. Unlike the original BassStation and Super BassStation which were real analog synths, the A-Station gets its voice architecture from the SuperNova synths, which use analog sound modeling. The A-Station has the layout and shape of the famous Bass Stations, but its guts are basically a slimmed down SuperNova.

It has 25 knobs for real-time control, and all knobs transmit MIDI controller messages. The A-Station has three oscillators which provide sawtooth, triangle, sine and pulse width modulation. There's even a simple FM synth engine which can be dialed in for sharpening the sound. Oscillators may be set to Unison or Sync'd operation and a Noise source is also included in the waveform engine. There is a nice lowpass resonant filter with switchable 12 or 24dB/oct slopes and ADSR controls. A second ADSR envelope is available for the oscillators, as well as two LFOs with sample-and-hold and MIDI sync.

On-board effects include reverb and delay. Their send levels can be controlled by the Mod wheel which is a nice effect. A 12-band vocoder is also on-board for processing external mono sounds such as drum loops or vocals. The A-Station's pads sound great when vocoded with external sounds. External sounds can also be used as an oscillator, run through the filters, envelopes, etc. with much better results than were possible on the original Bass Station. There's even a built-in Arpeggiator whose speed synchronization and sweep range can be stored with the program for instant recall. For clean analog sounding synth bass, punchy leads, pads, filter sweeps and more - the A-Station is certainly a great piece of kit to have around!

Specifications:
* Polyphony - 8 voices
* Oscillators - 3 osc with Square / Saw / Variable Pulse / Tri / Sine / Double Saw / Double Tri / Double Sine waveforms. Osc 1-2 sync, FM, external audio in (mono)
* LFO - 2 LFOs: triangle, saw, square, sample-and-hold; with panning, speed and delay parameters
* Filter - 12dB / 24dB switchable resonant low-pass filter with programmable output EQ
* Envelopes - 2 ADSR envelope generators plus FM attack/decay
* Keyboard - None
* Effects - distortion, stereo chorus/flanger/phaser, stereo panning, delay and reverb, 12-band vocoder
* Arpeggiator - up, down, up/down, up to 4 octaves, latchable
* Memory - 400 in 4 banks, (200 factory sounds)
* Control - MIDI IN/OUT/THRU
* Date Produced - 2001"

AKAI MPC500 MPC 500 Sampler Drum Machine Groovebox 128M

via this auction
"MPC500 is the first portable MPC. You can sample and create music wherever inspiration strikes: on the subway, on the plane, or even at the beach! Whether you're traveling around the globe or just across town, MPC500 is a perfect fit for your backpack, messenger bag, or briefcase. Beats and productions created in MPC500 can be dropped into your computer via USB or into your main MPC with the swappable CF card when you get back into the studio.

MPC500 is a 48-track sequencer with a 32-voice stereo sampler. It has 12 velocity and pressure-sensitive rubber MPC pads. 16MB of memory comes standard and can be expanded up to 128MB. When connected to a Mac or PC via USB, you can drag and drop data between the computer and your MPC500's CF card, just like a hard drive. Because MPC500 is compatible with other MPCs, MPC500 is the perfect way to extend your studio into your mobile lifestyle."