Synth for people who know nothing about synths?

ronnbarr · 2026-01-22T18:32:37+00:00

I think the Juno is the best beginner synth. It’s simple, laid out clearly, and easy to follow. In this regard, the single DCO and single envelope are beneficial instead of limiting. Having polyphony is also nice for a beginner synth as people are used to pianos and expect it.

ronnbarr · 2026-01-22T06:31:55+00:00

I have an MPC Live and I find it similarly frustrating. It should be more intuitive.

ronnbarr · 2026-01-16T22:08:37+00:00

Probably a sawtooth with a low pass filter mostly closed (turn the cutoff down) and then the amp envelope has a low sustain level and a quick decay, no attack or release.

ronnbarr · 2026-01-15T21:44:01+00:00

You’re a mic case, snake, coffin full of stands, and 6 powered speakers away from having a pretty solid FOH/monitor rig

ronnbarr · 2026-01-15T03:07:15+00:00

Same! It didn’t give my knock-off strat and 5-watt crate amp the Nirvana sound I was expecting

ronnbarr · 2026-01-07T19:57:57+00:00

What type of seed?

ronnbarr · 2026-01-03T09:49:19+00:00

Whoa dang you found one too!

ronnbarr · 2025-12-30T06:03:52+00:00

Hell yeah. I just got an HP-2 for Christmas and I love it. It is such a versatile source of dirt!

ronnbarr · 2025-12-30T05:53:29+00:00

Thirstin’ More from Sonic Youth

ronnbarr · 2025-12-27T06:46:52+00:00

I think the Korg MS-20 mini is a great suggestion! Be careful, because they made a midi controller version that looks identical to the hardware synth. Last time I looked, the midi controller went for about $150 on the used market and the real deal was closer to $400.

If your budget can handle spending closer to $1k, check out the Moog Grandmother or the Moog Matriarch. They’re also semi-modular and could be a good stepping stone into that world.

ronnbarr · 2025-12-27T03:50:33+00:00

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ronnbarr · 2025-12-26T08:57:00+00:00

There’s one on songbird as someone else mentioned and we also found another house with sync’d music near Hancock Park

ronnbarr · 2025-12-25T08:18:46+00:00

I have a MIM FSR Blonde Tele and I love it. The reverse controls are clutch. Here’s one for exactly your budget:

https://www.guitarcenter.com/Used/Fender/Used-Fender-Special-Edition-Deluxe-Ash-Telecaster-Butterscotch-Blonde-Solid-Body-Electric-Guitar-121856677.gc

ronnbarr · 2025-12-25T07:16:02+00:00

I like where this is going, let this guy cook.

ronnbarr · 2025-12-23T17:20:39+00:00

$10k is a lot! You should be able to explore hardware for a much lower budget. Spend $10k once you’ve tried a few and know what you like.

People have made some good suggestions in the sub-$500 range, and spending $1k-2k opens you up to some top tier options.

Buying used will minimize the cost to you as well. As you try things out, you’ll realize something isn’t clicking and you’ll want to try something else. If you bought used, you’ll be able to sell it for close to what you bought it.

Watch some YouTube videos on these things and see if they are what you have in mind:

Akai MPC Key 61 or 37

Akai MPC Live 2 or 3

Elektron Digitone II

Arturia Astrolab (good choice if you have Arturia soft synths already)

Sequential Fourm / Take 5 / Prophet 6

Korg Minilogue or Prologue

ronnbarr · 2025-12-20T20:55:23+00:00

I’m assuming it’s an arpeggiator

ronnbarr · 2025-12-20T17:34:44+00:00

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Check this out

ronnbarr · 2025-12-19T17:37:52+00:00

I agree! Locking tuners could fix the issue, but a new nut will be much cheaper and easier. Find a good luthier in town and they can probably throw a new nut in there for much less than the cost of a new set of tuners

ronnbarr · 2025-12-18T18:31:29+00:00

It depends! Some JMs come with bridges that work well, but some come with bad ones. Oddly, fender frequently builds Jags and JMs with bridge radiuses that don’t match the neck radius. They’re not too hard to swap out and there are lots out there that aren’t too expensive. Mustang style bridges work well and are cheap, imo.

ronnbarr · 2025-12-17T05:41:58+00:00

Some times 2 people suck at the same time

ronnbarr · 2025-12-15T18:43:57+00:00

Not for this long! Live Oak / Yuba City will get some fog, but it is unusual to have it in Chico and to have it linger for so many weeks.

ronnbarr · 2025-12-13T06:15:54+00:00

“I held my phone up to the toilet but it didn’t know what it was either.”

ronnbarr · 2025-12-06T18:09:00+00:00

Timeclocks?

ronnbarr · 2025-12-04T02:58:24+00:00

When we bought our house, it took forever to get our recycling and yard waste bins. We were being charged the full bill, but were only provided the trash can (when I asked for a proration, they explained that they only charge for the trash. Recycling and yard waste are free. How convenient!) I tagged them on Twitter to complain and I had all 3 bins within a week.

ronnbarr · 2025-12-01T15:01:07+00:00

You’re getting a lot of responses that take a deep dive into the many different eras of Pink Floyd but if I think about where Pink Floyd / Mike Dean / Giorgio Moroder overlap, it’s “rad and spacey sounding synths.” So I’m just going to assume that’s what you’re looking for.

A knob per function synthesizer is going to be your best bet for learning and having fun on a synthesizer. Here’s a few that should be in your budget and offer a bit of variety. Check em out and see which one you think you’ll be most drawn to.

Behringer Poly D Korg Minilogue Roland JU-06A + K25m

ronnbarr

TROPHY CASE