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Here is a look at some of the wonderful instruments I work with:

Ensoniq ASR-10

This is the "Mothership" for my synth rig, a beautiful sounding sampler and synthesizer with a lot of character and practical use! The ASR-10 may be almost 30 years old, but thanks to its warm and creamy sound texture and intuitive design, the this digital sampler has remained a favorite. I acquired my ASR-10, used, in 1994, but even today, I realize how much the ASR-10 still shines as a MIDI keyboard controller, sequencer, and effects processor, not to mention some of the most pleasing sounds in my music! Check out my track, "Chasing Shadows" to hear the ASR-10 all by itself:  LISTEN TO IT HERE

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Roland SynthPlus 10

I've had this synth since 1997, when I picked it up at a pawn shop for only $180! And it has been a favorite for a classic analog sound that is hard to beat! Identical to the Roland Alpha Juno 1, this synth is a classic for 80s synthpop, 90s techno, and everything in between. For my ambient music, I absolutely love this synth for bold and warm pad sounds, bouncy basses, and zippy solo leads. Check out my audio demo, showing some of my favorite sound patches:  LISTEN TO IT HERE!

M-Audio Venom

This is an underestimated synth that has been flying under the radar for several years now.  This is because M-Audio unfortunately had to discontinue their manufacturing and development of the Venom synthesizer shortly after it was released in 2011. Marketed as a dirty, gritty, and edgy virtual analog synthesizer for a contemporary sound, the Venom is actually also very talented at emulating traditional fat analog and dreamy digital synth sounds!   Even though it was geared more for edgy dance music, I found the Venom can still sound warm, imaginative, and quite beautiful for ambient music.  

Here is a video demo I made, showing custom sounds I programmed with the Venom.  You can hear some of these sounds in my most recent Cloudwalk albums. If you are a Venom user and interested in the "Cloudwalk Collection" soundset, you can download the soundset for free at: http://www.venom-synth.com/venom-patches/

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Realistic (Moog) MG-1 Concertmate

In the 1990's, this was a best-kept secret for cash-strapped musicians!  That's because the MG-1 was originally sold by Radio Shack to home consumers and perhaps ignored by a lot of serious musicians, but aspiring techno producers in-the-know could pick up one of these little babies in a second-hand store for next to nothing! And the cool secret: The MG-1 was a real all-analog synthesizer, actually designed by Moog Music and completely capable of a classic Moog sound. I picked my own MG-1 up at a pawn shop in 1994 for only $75, and its been a favorite! Older analog synthesizers do have a tendency to wear down, and recent years have seen my MG-1 in need for some serious maintenance work, but you can hear the little synth in my albums "Skyscapes" and "Age of Discovery." I'm hoping to have this old timer back up and running for new music soon!

Yamaha DX27

You almost can't get any cheaper for a used synthesizer than the Yamaha DX27.  I got this one off of EBay for $50, but it is still a fun and creative instrument to work with . This is a little brother to Yamaha's famous DX7 digital FM synthesizer. I almost started overlooking the DX27, since today's software synthesizers can easily work with the same types of digital sounds very well, but when I used the DX27 in a recent concert, the 30-year-old synth did a great job with an expressive voice of its own!  Check out this audio demo of the Yamaha DX27: LISTEN ON SOUNDCLOUD

Yamaha SLG110n "Silent Guitar"

About 8 years ago, I started to notice all kinds of frame style guitars online, and I was immediately captivated by the minimal and sleek designs! After a lot of research I happily picked the Yamaha SLG110n.  It has to the best guitar I have ever had, and I prefer it over many nylon string guitars that I have picked up.  The minimal frame body allows for an extremely quiet acoustic sound (about as soft as an unamplified electric guitar), which means, with headphones, you can practice without disturbing anyone! Also, by removing upper frame, it packs up as a convenient travel guitar, and when you play through a PA system...it has virtually no feedback! With that direct sound from the pickups, it is also perfect for playing through effects, and when you are playing live, its space-aged look can really turn heads!

Psychic Modulation Cubix

If there is an all-time favorite software instrument for my music, it has to be Cubix, by software developers Psychic Modulation.  Debuting as a freeware synth in the 2006 KVR Developer Challenge, Cubix is a 4-part drum synthesizer and sequencer, combined with an arpeggiating virtual analog synthesizer, that is still available for free download.  This little music maker is a lot of fun for creating your own custom drum kits and live grooves, all very tweakable and oddly creative for imaginative music.  The arpeggiator is so versatile, sometimes I will perform with it, without even engaging the percussion section!   http://www.psychicmodulation.com/plugins.html

Alesis QS6.2

Although this synth was released in 2003, it has more the design of a 1990's digital synthesizer, however, it still has some some nice contemporary features.   I bought it used online a few years ago, and, like many older keyboards, it came with its share of challenges. The build quality is very loose, and the top 5 keys are dead, so this synth needs some time to be worked on, but it has a unique sound of its own.  You can hear it shine in my "Live at the Tragic City Alternacon" album, and I hope to use it again soon!

Hohner Classical Guitar

I've had this trusty guitar for about 18 years.  It's a basic, entry-level classical guitar with a solid top. Guitar is almost like a different world of music for me, as I volunteer to play for things like weddings, art walks, and community events, but I'm planning on incorporating more guitar into Cloudwalk projects in the future.

Kawai K5

In 1987, Kawai came out with the K5, a digital synthesizer that used additive synthesis.  This was a very obscure synth through the years, and it never got much attention.  This was probably because the larger synthesizer manufacturers in the late 1980s had innovations in sound that the K5 could not compete with.  I had barely heard of it, myself, when a synth tech friend of mine generously gave me a rack mount version of the K5, and later swapped it out for the beautiful keyboard version. Programming this synth is very complex, but it can produce an original voice of its own. It's sound is very unique with a touch of digital nostalgia that I love.

Here is a demo video I made, showing what the original factory sounds sets were like. 

Korg Wavestation Legacy Edition

Korg entered the 1990's by producing the classic Wavestation digital synthesizer. This was a creative take on electronic music, as this model used various methods of crossfading or chaining sounds together to create complex tones that modulate and evolve in different ways. For an early digital design, the Wavestation still can sound beautifully smooth, punchy, or lush today! In 2004, Korg reissued the Wavestation as the Legacy Edition, a software version that just about anyone could get their hands on. Even though the Legacy Edition has a graphic interface to make it easier to work with, it is still an incredibly complex synthesizer to program, but this is countered by wonderfully produced preset sounds. The Wavestation Legacy has been a mainstay in my music, being featured in many of my albums.

Synth1

This has to be, by far, the most popular freeware synthesizer ever made, and with good reason! Synth1 is incredibly versatile for a myriad of analog style tones, and it sounds big, fat, and beautiful! Designer Ichiro Toda originally released this synth way back in 2002 to be an emulation of the Nord Lead virtual analog synthesizer, but over the years, Synth1 has developed its own big following. https://www.kvraudio.com/product/synth1-by-ichiro-toda

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Synapse Audio Dune

In 2012, I won a copy of this software synth in a music contest, and it's proven to be a very creative music tool with rich, fat sound and almost endless programming possibilites! Today, Synapse Audio has already moved into version 3 of Dune, and given it even more features.  Although this synth was perhaps designed more for dance music, I found Dune has great richness and color for space music as well!

Check out the music video for my track, "Approach to Tau Ceti."  All of the sounds were created on Dune version 1.4.

Majken's Chimera

As much as I love working with just about any synthesizer, many are very traditional in design, using ideas that go back decades.  However, Chimera is a nice little freeware synth that has a very original approach.  It uses white noise generators than can be tuned and warped toward or away from smoother-sounding pitched tones.  This is a wonderful synth for inspiring imaginative ambient atmospheres.   http://www.majken.se/

SQ8L

In the late 1980's, Ensoniq released the ESQ-1 and SQ-80 synthesizers, two classic designs that used a combination of digital and analog sound generation.  About 20 years later, Siegfried Kullmann released SQ-8L, a faithful software emulation of these legendary instruments, not to mention one of the most impressive

freeware you can find!  I love the sounds of the 1980's, and the classic sound of SQ8L can really bring you back! You can hear this softsynth taking solo parts in various tracks of my music, and it really shines!   http://www.buchty.net/ensoniq/

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Krakli Cygnus

Filled with eccentric digital sounds, Cygnus is a freeware synth that seems to evoke the depths of outer space.  I've used this softsynth on just about every Cloudwalk album.  It is especially good for creativing underlying atmospheres that have movement or adding a touch of strange otherworldliness. 

DatSounds OBXd

DatSounds created this software emulation of the Oberheim OBXa, one of the most iconic analog synths ever made! Compared to many freeware synths, OBXd has a bold sound with a lot of character.  I first got turned onto this synth in 2014, when I used it for a One Synth Challenge music contest, and now, OBXd has even taken center stage as a sweet solo synth.  The video is of a song by software synth guru Manfred Wasshuber using only OBXd.

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