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From: mark@apple.UUCP (Mark Lentczner)
Newsgroups: net.music.synth
Subject: Re: The ultimate synth
Message-ID: <6555@apple.UUCP>
Date: Tue, 9-Jul-85 15:45:24 EDT
Article-I.D.: apple.6555
Posted: Tue Jul  9 15:45:24 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 13-Jul-85 12:17:52 EDT
References: <2810009@acf4.UUCP>
Organization: Apple Education Research Group, Cupertino CA
Lines: 33

[]
About three years ago I spent alot of time developing the
design for just such a beast: entirely digital synthesizer
with not only digital osciallators, filters, and effects,
but virtually any other thing you'd care to program.  The
modules were all polymorphic, they could be oscialltors one
in one patch and filters the next and their interconnections
were alterable.  It was expandable (add more processing
power as you desired) and could support more than one
performer playing it at a time (wow, what an idea, a whole
band playing into one big synthesizer that could do all
sorts of things based on the interaction...).

Problems:
 * It would require a ton of software to make it usable
   by anyone but computer music programmers.  And I mean
   a ton, like many megabytes of object code due to the
   complexity of the thing.
 * It probably would cost too much to build a DX7 look-alike
   (16x6 modules + ~20 more @ $200 a module = $23,300) but
   that same hardware would be many times more flexible than
   a DX7 much more like a Fairlight or a SynthClavier (sp.?)

I'd sure like to see one, though.  I find most synthesizers
on the market (like the DX7) far too limiting for my tastes.
(Oh give me those patch cords...)

-- 
--Mark Lentczner
  Apple Computer

  UUCP:  {nsc, dual, voder, ios}!apple!mark
  CSNET: mark@Apple.CSNET