Bright and weedy... that's a new one for a moog

See I love the slim. Love it. Yeah it's got it's annoying points as do most anything else (cutoff and res on the same pot, really?) but it's the last with bobs direct input and until I've just started to really program my sub which I initially thought was anaemic at best (the difference is weird volume drop when using the presets and direct control - the synth comes alive when you use the direct control)
I like both these better than all the voyagers I've played (never played an old moog - just the new ones......)

YES! I know. Not what I was expecting when I bought it.

I have slim phatty too and that's not how it strikes me. Maybe just different ears, but maybe your unit is defective? Have you emailed support about it?

The Little Phatty Stage II models are going for blowout prices at some places. I think JRRshop just sold out of the one with CV for $1099, but they still have stock of the regular LP and the white edition for $999.

The Phatty is one of the darker synths I own, if anything there is a lack of top end even with the VCF fully open. I would definitely not call it bright or weedy, but that's taste and perception for ya.

I did some comparison between my SP & BS2 to see what I was on about, since your responses made me think that I was off.

I have to close the filter on the SP, otherwise there is an unpleasant high frequency harmonic content to the oscillators, particularly when it's in the sawtooth part of the range. Do you think this could mean there is something wrong with my unit?

In comparison, the BS2 is much tamer, smoother than the SP. Closing the filter just a little bit helps round out the sound, but a raw sawtooth osc doesn't have that same high harmonic harshness that I find in the SP.

Anyway, I'm trying to offer an intelligent opinion, and I appreciate you chalking it up to perception and taste, nectarios. But maybe I'm missing something?

Maybe record some audio examples? I haven't noticed anything like that, though I have no BS2 to compare and it could be a difference in hearing. To me the phatty sounds great with a couple of detuned saw oscs and the filter wide open.

Also, I find that the FREQ adjustment on Osc 2 on the Slim Phatty doesn't have much of a sweet spot.

BS2vsSP.aif

1st and 3rd scales are the BS2
2nd and 4th are the SP

Both patches are two detuned sawtooths, filter wide open

Hmmm. Just to be sure, the overdrive in the filter section and osc sync are not engaged? No modulations present? If the answer to all of those was no, I think you have a defective unit.

Well I ended up pulling the trigger on a Bass Station 2, Komplete Audio 6 and a headphone amp. So stoked. I believe a Slim/Sub Phatty is definitely on the short list now, or perhaps an Evolver or something.

Either way I'm sure this will keep me busy for a while and it should be a fun setup when I get my octatrack.

Thanks for all the feedback and great advice. Will update after I've played with it a bit.

No overdrive.
No osc sync.
No modulations.

Would you mind posting what your SP sounds like with two detuned saws, filter wide open? Thankfully the place I bought it from has a two year warranty in case it is defective. Thanks in advance if you're willing to help.

Glad to help. The sample you posted sounded like there was some weird, nasty clipping going on somewhere. That and your comment about difficulty tuning the 2nd oscillator lead me to believe something is wrong with your unit. Glad you have a chance to return it or have it fixed.

Attached is a sample from my Slim Phatty, open filter, 2 saw oscs (level about 50% as I think there's a little bit of overdrive when you crank the oscillators), fully open envelope with no release. At the end I play around with Osc 2 pitch just to show you how easy it should be to adjust (just sweeping the knob from one side to the other and zeroing in on some harmonies)

Just wanted to update this in case someone stumbles across this in a similar position. My BS2 just arrived and overall I am really satisfied. Build quality was a bit of a disappointment, everything feels solid enough but it's pretty obvious they used that ultra cheap hard as hell plastic for everything and the keybed's aftertouch leaves a bit to be desired. Sound wise it's great, covers tons of territory. Couldn't be happier though I still need to dive into the manual, there are a ton of params and sometimes with the digital control it's a bit confusing to figure out what's causing this or that sound but once you program it back down the basics it's clean and fun. I think my next purchase will be a Pulse 2 or Minitaur.

Thanks for all the input!

Now there's a gearslut if i ever saw one.. buy one synth, and already contemplating your next purchase..lol.

As for build quality.. To me the keys feel better than the moog LP. And at least there's aftertouch. I'm not sure, but i've heard people say that inside there's actually a metal chassisinside.. correct me if i'm wrong here.

For me BSII was one of the best build quality, everything is so tight and and accurate. Switches are good, knobs are tight (try Minibrute switches that are loose from the box or ms-20 knobs). And I love plastic as it reduce weight a lot. Only thing feld like this is Nord Modular and old 90s synths like DX7.