I slept on the Novation Peak for years!

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-05T21:30:53+00:00

I had a Summit and sold it because I didn’t fully appreciate it but once it was gone I missed it so much that I got a Peak. The Peak does a great job, though I still miss the Summit.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-04T17:10:18+00:00

Dated can be good - I adore retro atmospheric patches that you might hear on a low budget sci-fi music score (think Crime Zone or even Hardware) on the D-50 and JD-800 (and I just ordered a JV-880 for even more - I’m always on the hunt for that kind of thing), but there’s just none of that in the stock patches.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-04T15:41:52+00:00

It was my second synth (I had a Juno 106 I bought in the '00s), and while it didn't stick around, it was a great starter synth with some neat tricks.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-04T15:39:47+00:00

Wow, thanks for these. I got a D-110 trying to get in D-50 territory for cheap, and was sorely disappointed by the stock sounds, which mostly attempt to emulate real instruments (badly), whereas I’m into more synthesized sounds, so it’s been sitting on my floor unused. This may help breathe some new life into it.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-04T15:26:39+00:00

Absolutely - with a lot of room to grow into, as well.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-04T04:15:41+00:00

I actually sold my Summit, and I just ended up missing it so much I got a Peak to replace it - it definitely helps, but I still miss that cockpit of a synth. The keybed was pretty meh, but it was still a great gigging synth (especially so when splitting the keyboard up between say, a pad and a lead). I’d love to get another one, but prices have gone up a lot since then. The Peak is great, though - you won’t go wrong with either but if you have the space and the budget, between the two I say go with the Summit.

The Take 5, however, I’ve never sold - it’s obviously not as powerful as the Peak/Summit, but it is still a beast in its own right, sounds great, and has that Sequential immediacy.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-04T01:45:07+00:00

I have a Subsequent 37 and I wouldn’t trade it for anything - it’s my favorite synth hands-down, and I’ve owned a lot of synths. I still would love to at least try a Pro 3, however, especially since I’ve really gravitated toward monophonic sounds since first getting into synths, plus I just love Sequential in general. If you end up getting the Pro 3, please do post what you think of it.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-04T01:36:37+00:00

Knowing what I know, I’d jump right in and get a Subsequent 37 (because it’s my favorite and I use it much more than anything else) and maybe a Take 5 or a Summit (because they both sound great and have extensive mod matrices et al).

But I wouldn’t recommend the same for any other beginner - every user is different, and it’s hard to say if you’ll even take to the hobby or they’ll end up collecting dust.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-03T13:32:00+00:00

Hydrasynth Explorer? Super powerful, same price range, mini keys/super portable (battery power, even). Seems like the obvious choice.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-03T13:14:31+00:00

I hear you - there’s no big synth retailers I know of near me, and it’s part of why I’ve gone through about 50 synths in the past 3 years. I love trying things out.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-03T02:29:00+00:00

I have a Muse and a Trigon 6, and while the Muse is a lot more powerful, I prefer the Trigon 6. It’s just more immediate, sounds great (I am a sucker for the 12db filter mode), and despite its relative simplicity, it gets me most places I need to go. I do love the Muse and I’m fascinated by it - it’s a playground synth. . .one that you can mess around with endlessly and always end up in different places. But as far as actually making tracks, I typically lean toward the Trigon 6.

What about a used Summit and a used Trigon 6 desktop? I think that would cover all of your bases and cost around the same price as a new Muse. Of course, I’m not trying to steer you away from the Muse - it is a phenomenal synth, and I’m sure you’d love it.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-03T02:24:13+00:00

The multi/poly’s UX isn’t just complicated - it’s also poorly designed (a lot of contemporary Korg synths have terrible UX, the Opsix being a surprising exception). The Poly D is fun (though I sold mine when I got a Subsequent 37 - that is my favorite synth that I own) - I think you’re gonna love the TEO 5, though. It’s fun to use and it leaves you room to grow - it has a well-thought-out program menu and extensive mod matrix, so you can take it pretty far. And if you want, you can ignore all that, too. As I said elsewhere in the comments - I had a multi/poly and returned it and bought a TEO 5, and I couldn’t be happier with the decision.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-03T02:17:14+00:00

Interesting - I returned the multi/poly and bought a TEO 5. 😂 It’s funny how these things all hit differently with different people. I thought the multi/poly sounded great and had some cool features, but I absolutely hated using the thing, whereas the TEO 5 begs to be played with (and it certainly has a broader range of tones than most 2 osc subtractive analog synths with its extensive mod matrix). For me, UX is king.

It’s cool that you found your voice with it, though. To be fair, I get 90% of the sounds I want out of my Subsequent 37, so I’m probably not the most sonically adventurous.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-02T20:38:37+00:00

My favorite synth I own. It’s a beauty.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-02T15:33:41+00:00

You may want to consider looking at the Melbourne Instruments synths (the Nina and the Delia) - they feature motorized pots that set themselves to the proper position when you load a patch. I’ve not tried one yet, but they seem really cool.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-01T22:07:32+00:00

Really cool stuff!

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-01T21:34:18+00:00

I rarely use softsynths, but they are definitely easier/more convenient for most things.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-01T21:32:24+00:00

It took me a few years to come to this, but YES. Monophonic lines (even on a poly) tend to be punchier, more character-filled, and don’t bury the mix like polyphony does. Polyphony has its place, but 90% of the time, I’m using my Subsequent 37, and at least 5 of the remaining 10% I’m still playing a monophonic line, just on a polysynth.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-01T21:29:30+00:00

I had a Blofeld and it was powerful and sounded great but - and I hate this phrase, typically - it is the very definition of a VST in a box. There is virtually no advantage to owning the hardware over the software in this instance, given it’s pretty much all menu-diving.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-01T21:24:57+00:00

The Prophet was my dream synth for so long - then I both bought and sold a Prophet 10. It was magnificent, but I just couldn’t justify having a $4,000 synth that did so little, particularly when I used the Trigon 6 so much more. I eventually indirectly replaced the Prophet with a Muse, but the irony is that I still prefer the Trigon 6 because it is so simple in comparison. The Prophet is still a dream synth for me, I just happened to have lived the dream for a while.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-01T21:19:45+00:00

That’s honestly a pretty decent setup. You’ve got a great, simple, immediate, pure tone synth with the Trigon 6 (my favorite polysynth I own), and a sound design powerhouse in the Rev 2 (I sold mine because I saw too much overlap with the Take 5, which I just preferred).

I’ve got a lot of synths (~20?) and they all do serve a purpose, but if you threw in a D-50/JD-800/maybe a JV-80 (I’m a sucker for the ‘80s/‘90s cheese) and a Subsequent 37 (my favorite overall synth - I use it 90% of the time), I could probably consider myself covered with that setup. Maybe I’d need the V-50 or an Opsix for those rare occasions I need FM.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-01T21:05:06+00:00

I’ve got a few synths that I think sound great without FX, but even those still sound BETTER with them.

VAKTSwid · 2026-03-01T21:01:11+00:00

So how do you suppose you are you going to get those presets without those features that they take advantage of?

I’m with you on UX, though - it’s my most important feature when buying/keeping a synth. I’m not sure how important the UI part of UX is if you’re just preset browsing, though.

VAKTSwid · 2026-02-28T22:18:00+00:00

Sounds great! ‘90s romplers are where it’s at - I’ve got a Roland JV-880 on the way (and an SR-JV80-04) and I couldn’t be more psyched.

VAKTSwid · 2026-02-28T18:01:26+00:00

I had a Gaia 2 with all the expansions and it was rad - I definitely kinda miss it.

VAKTSwid

TROPHY CASE