last year i acquired a sub phatty for what i thought was a steal-- $500-- and while it's been great, after playing my friends minimoog it left me wanting more.
i was pretty set on upgrading to the sub37, but knew it'd leave me with the same core tonality seeing as it utilizes the same engine as the phatty.

a minimoog isn't really in my budget-- plus the amount of time my friends has spent in the shop has me paranoid about getting one and going down the same route--, but i've been thinking about a few other options:

-voyager
-source
-midimoog/midimini (what's the going rate for one w/ original minimoog guts these days?)

there's a source listed locally in great shape with a replaced battery and recent service for $1100 usd that i'm considering. would the battery replacement add or detract from overall value? coming from a guitar background, any mods/replacements generally greatly detract from value so am wondering if the same applies to synths, though i realize there's much more stuff that can go wrong/need fixing/wear out on a synth.

biggest difference will of course be 2 vs 3 osc's, but after watching a slew of source demo's i think i'd be just fine with its 2...

same friend has a voyager and while it sounds great, i never found it to get in the realm of a minimoog. in fact, my friend prefers my sub phatty to his voyager- go figure.

the source has kind of won me over, but the interface seems less than ideal for someone who likes to tweak a lot while playing. still, the sound is captivating, imo, especially for bass.

ideally would want the studio electronics midimoog, but really have no idea how to go about getting one these days and what i should expect to pay.

I think the Source sounds great and is perhaps the closest to the mini in sound and bigness. It has patch memories and can be fitted with midi easily. I had that done to mine and I'm pleased.

midimoog sounds fantastic. very close to the latest version of minimoog i.e. the "new oscillator board. the girth of tone is the same, if its ever so slightly less brutal but sweeter/liquid in the filter. i know it uses de facto pcbs from that minimoog, so i wondered where this subtle change of tone comes from. some think its the "better" psu. last one ive seen was arround 1500 UKP. think that was a good price all things considered.


strictly tone quality wise, ime that its' the best of the three. after that i'd go for moog Source, if you can live without the knobs. i use it together with my old oscillator board minimoog and its simply fabulous sounding. two flavors of old moog sound.


compared to oldies, was never a fan of voyager sound myself. nonetheless, if you need a three oscillator moog of sorts, with all the modern embelishments like midi, velocity, preset memory etc etc.. maybe it can work for you.

Studio Electronics Midimoog go for a lot of cash.

Just sold my Source.. liked the sound but couldn't deal with the limitations
it was fragile & I hate to pay for stuff to be "serviced" no midi .
The interface was fine once you get the hang of of it real simple took like 10 min

I wouldn't want to gig with one it just felt like it was going to break & I dont like that feeling.

how much is "a lot of cash" roughly? very curious as i couldn't even find any complete listings on ebay so really have no idea whatsoever. midimoog is the ideal remedy for me, but afraid of what it'll cost!

re: source reliability, really that bad? i've read quite a few posts in various threads citing quite solid reliability, but i guess it's quite individual? only area of worry to me would be the membrane, but the one i'm considering locally had a recent service/given a clean bill of health (+ new battery).

Last one I saw sell on Ebay was around if not over $2,500.00..

But that was awhile ago everything vintage seems to go up in price..

$2,500 seems pretty reasonable, imo. hoping i can track one down this year for around that price.

There are two models one is a real Mini Moog inside a rack the other is a copy by SE..

yes, i was going to elaborate and write that $2,500 seemed a good price especially if it was one of the ones w/ vintage moog innards (pre-se pcb). hoping to find one of those at that price!

while i wait though, the source seems like a fun option to hold me over!

too slutty.

id pay that much only for one with the minimoog boards inside.


NEXUS-6, funny you mentioned Source as fragile... mine is like a tank. new capacitors. very sturdy and stable, i just used it live several times this spring, and it sounded fabulous, powerful over a big PA. it is actually my choice for a "live" moog, as mini is too expensive, to freakin big and heavy, and finally less stable in changing conditions like fluctuating temperature etc. i took it to a gig just recently too, and said.. no more.

i also work rather fast with the Source. have been thinking of modding it to add filter and pwm control via knob, and via CV. this combined with my little euro case would allow for a lot of things like filter fm, pwm etc etc. i was thinking two original moog knobs to the empty panel surface on the left. but dunno.. hate drilling such a beautiful instrument.

Maybe Im just heavy handed ...

The SE Midimini isn't much cheaper than a Model D in decent condition. The Source has a nice tone, but the interface is not at all to my liking (and it sounds like you don't like it much either). Neither has the sort of MIDI spec that integrates well into a modern production environment, but if you're into playing and tweaking by hand in realtime that might not be a big deal for you (unless the interface doesn't let you tweak much in realtime). I own a Voyager and I love it, having zero desire for a Model D, Source, or Prodigy (which you might consider looking into). The Voyager can be polite, but once you know its tricks, it can be an absolutely massive sounding synth. This is especially true if you combine it with an external oscillator and overdrive the mixer section. Alternatively, you can patch in an overdrive/distortion/fuzz/gain effect on the mixer-out/filter-in loop. But these "external" tricks aside, I've found that many of the complaints about the Voyager come from people not knowing how to program it. The whole "the filter doesn't open all the way!!!" complaint is totally false, for instance. For my money and preferences, the Voyager is the top gun Moog monosynth. Its synthesis capabilities far outshine the Model D, as do its modulation options [velocity, aftertouch, dedicated LFO, full ADSRs, tracking, XYZ pad, etc.}. It also has a vast range of CV I/O, stereo filters that can function in hipass mode, full MIDI implementation, and patch memory (if that's important to you). It was Bob's final word on the Minimoog. And you can buy it new with a warranty. I don't really care if it can sound exactly like a Model D. It can do things the Model D could only dream of. And it can also do a pretty convincing Model D impression, while it's at it.

If you really need to have _THAT_ Model D sound and don't really care about exploring the full depths of what analog monosynths have to offer, then by all means get a Model D or a MIDIMini. If that's what you want, that's what you want. (Also look at the SE-1X while you're at it, though). But if you want to go down the rabbit hole with a modern monosynth with a ton of modulation capabilities, synthesis possibilities, realtime control options, and more to offer you as a keyboard player, the Voyager wins. Especially if you learn to program it (and maybe throw in an overdrive or external oscillator whenever you want to whip out your Model D impression).

I have, and gig regularly with, the SE Midimini. If memory serves, it has the original Model D guts in the form of the VCA and VCF Moog boards. The VCO board is the SE clone (this is the difference with the Midimoog), but general consensus is they did a great job. I must say I agree, and the machine has quite remarkable tuning stability, which is a godsend in live situations. Besides goodies like midi, velocity, and osc sync, I believe I have read reports by several users that the Midimini and Minimoog sound virtually identical in A/B tests (same with the Midimoog). I would agree, although I never played the two in the same room.
Highly recommended.

Hope this helps
best regards
Massimo

so while i wait for an se midimoog/midimini to become available, i've decided to grab the source that's for sale locally as the price seems quite fair.
my only question now is this: how does a replaced battery affect the value of a vintage synth? that's the only thing done to the one i'm looking at.

I'd say it increases the value of the synth because replacing a bad battery with a good battery will return it to its original operating condition, at least as far as being able to retain custom patches in memory when it is turned off.

Of course if someone did a terrible job of replacing the battery by scratching, bending, breaking things and/or not putting the screws back etc then it would lower the value.

Synths are not comparable to guitars, in fact some go even more high in price when they have been moded to use midi.

Source sounds a hell of a lot better than Voyager or any other modern Moog. I've had a Source, Voyager, and LP at the same time and it isn't remotely close. Modern Moogs sound like there is a blanket over the monitors for whatever reason. I've never used a Midimoog but they are basically a model D so I don't think you would be disappointed by any of those options, so you just need to weigh form factor, price, and availability, because sonically they will all deliver. Source is as good as D acoustically.

I've had 4 sources and haven't had an issue with any of them. I'd trust one that worked well in the studio for limited live use.

Reface

I had Minimoog in the '80s which I replaced with a Source because I was playing live a lot. The Source, IMHO, while having the 'Moog' sound fell somewhere in between the Mini and the Prodigy that I also had then.

I now have a MiniMoog OS and IMHO it's a much nicer sounding synth than the Source - I've compared it my recordings from the time. I can get really close to the Mini sounds I used - though ymmv, of course. Never played a Voyager itself, but Adam Holzman has one and he produces sounds very close to the original Model D.

Stephen

I've also had Source, Phatty & Voyager. Loved the Source, had mixed feelings about the Phatty, absolutely enchanted with my Voyager (which is the only Moog I've kept). For vintage moog on a budget it's hard to beat the Source but certain Mini patches really require that 3rd oscillator / second (FM rate) LFO...

Also consider the SE Boomstar 5089,
or the micromac D

Putting one parameter access membrane on a Moog is like dressing a ninja in Crusade chainmail.

Dudos, what about a Moog Prodigy? Can we get some love for the Proddi yo?

I second the Macbeth Micromac D. It has the vintage Moog tone similar to the Source but you get a much better interface and three oscillators. Also has CV I/O, two LFO's and MIDI. Oh and it is also new.

…but lacks patch memory.

ugh, i'm like 95% set on the source-- planning to grab it tonight--, but past experiences w/ vintage (and seeing my friends model d always in the shop) has me a tad apprehensive... the synth has been maintained by a former moog tech (that was w/ the company when they were in new york state) and had the battery replaced. super clean, but still...

It's a shame about that interface though. I'd take a Prodigy over a source any day of the week. I'd also take a Pro-1.

I have a Source, Phatty Stage 2, Minitaur, Voyager and have played Mini's extensively. The Voyager is by far my fave. Nothing touches it for Mini-moog esque yet refined easy to work with bass. Im not big on lead sounds myself. The Source is a great sounding piece of kit too but like the mini and the memorymoog (which i also have) you have to work much harder to get it to fit in a mix as they do sound bigger but this to me isnt always a desirable trait. The Voyager is a producer's dream with all the Midi capabilities and CV connections plus the unmistakeable Moog growl and power. There is definitely a little less top end than the older Moogs- this is due to more lofi OTA's used on the older synths which impart distortion on the sound, for most applications it's not a problem, i just use a little hi-shelf boost, or as has been said previously use a distortion pedal in conjunction. Otherwise, you can get the slew rate mod done which opens up the tops. If I had to choose one Moog mono out of the ones I have it would be the Voyager by a long shot.

i made a mistake and the price of the source is actually $1300 usd.
an older voyager also came up for sale locally today @ $1500, only issue being a raised key.
which would you guys guy with? fell in love w/ vintage moog sound and after hearing my friends minimoog next to his voyager there was no comparison, imo.
decisions, decisions...

jeeze, after watching a slew of demos of both synths, i truly can't help but feel that the source beats out the voyager sonically by quite a large margin...
i wish this wasn't the case as i'm paranoid at the thought of owning another vintage synth-- especially one w/ a membrane interface--, but that sound, man!
even w/ two oscillators the source just sounds so much huger than the voyager... is it just me?!