This "project" is simply going to be me answering question via the written word that have been asked of me over several years, at different shows, venues, studios, or in bars and many other different social situations, by many different people.
Some of the basic questions that will be addressed shall be, "what is a good synthesizer to buy?" "How do you program that thing (the synthesizer)?" "What's the difference between an analog synthesizer or a digital synthesizer?" You know...your standard inquisitive fare.
So, I'm looking at this as a beginner's guide to "synthesizers" based on my observations, studies, and real-world applications in both studio and live music environments.
Therefore, the first question any wannabe future "Synth Lord" needs to ask themselves is...?
For what purpose do I wish to purchase a synthesizer?
Prudence indeed, would beg that before you pay out your hard earned cash, or extend a line of credit, that you define your NEED!
With that having been said and for the sake of this particular exercise, I will make a general assumption that you have a specific musical purpose for your purchase. So, here goes...
Before we discuss the reasons why you wish to learn how to program a synthesizer, and before we discuss what "school" of synthesis you wish to master, grasshopper...we need to look at the basic nature of what a synthesizer is.
First and foremost, "synthesizer" is a general term; it's like saying, "car."
So, just know that buying a synthesizer is like buying a car. There are entry level "econo-boxes," there are luxury rides, there are utility trucks, etc. Again, synthesizers are the same. Some synthesizers are Chevrolet Prizms, Toyota Camrys, Maserati MC12s, Ford F-150s, or Cadillac Escalades. Each machine serves a purpose at various price points. As you well know, there's a whole "lotta" different cars out there vying for your attention and dollars. It's the same deal with synthesizers. Your job is to figure out what machine will help fulfill your interests.
You buy the car you need, not necessarily the car you want, based on a core of reasons that are important to you.
Ultimately, you buy the car based on how it's going to improve the conditions of your life.
As an example, depending on your financial and life situation, you buy the Hyundai Sontana, perhaps a SUV, or Minivan if you have a family. You buy the 2 door Mercedes if you're single and cruising to work and the after-hours social scene. You buy the Ford F-150 if you're an independent contractor and you're going to use it for your daily work day duties. I think you get the geneal idea.
You apply the same needs assessment to your synthesizer purchase. Do you need a synth that's equilivant to a family minivan, meaning lots of practical features, such as getting the family to Disneyland, picking up the family Christmas tree, and going to the grocery store? Do you need a synth that acts like a Maserati? Meaning, that you don't have a family to take to Disneyland, but you do like showing off the "0 to 60" test in an impressive fashion to your friends. So, the lesson here is that some synths are practical general purpose machines and some synths have a rather narrow focus of functionality.
This leads us back to our original question: For what purpose do you wish to purchase a synthesizer? Do you want a "synth" with a classic piano, strings, and brass timbre? Do you want a "synth" that will lend cutting-edge growling space lasers within your mix? Do you want a "synth" that adds atmosphere and texture to your arrangements? Will you need to play full chords? Is paying $3,500 for a "synth" that allows you only to play one note at a time a problem? Do you want a "synth" with onboard effects such as reverb or are you going to line out into an external effects box? Do you plan on using this "synth" with a computer in a studio or live music setting, or both? If you are going to use a computer, do you want to use MIDI or USB connectivity, or both? Do you want to use MIDI to have multiple timbres playing at one time? If you use a computer-based sequencer, but you don't want to bring your computer on-stage, would you like a built-in sequencer to run your SMFs? What are SMFs? Oh, they're Standard MIDI Files. What does that mean? Uh...at this moment let's not worry about that, but we'll discuss that at a later time. Of course, various synths have several of the aforementioned capabilities "all in one." With that said, I do realize that the list of questions is quite literally endless; however, you can plainly see that there's some homework to be done before entering a financial agreement with an online seller or local retail outlet.
So, the next question one has to ask themselves is "what genre" or "style" of music do I wish to add a musical synthesizer? Once you answer that particular question you can eliminate 90% of your confusion.
In our next chapter, we'll answer the last 10% you need to know to finish your musical synthesizer needs assessment.
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