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Archive for March, 2009
Song a Week
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Farfisa Fast 2
The cheapest of the Farfisa Fast Series organs, the Fast 2 may just be the cheesiest organ I have ever heard. That Farfisa bite of the earlier Compact Series is gone, leaving you only with a smooth cheeseball sound. I think they were trying to make the line sound more like the Vox organs, but I don’t think they quite hit it. It still sounds good through a distortion pedal, but this one, she is not used so much.
The cheesiest of sounds? Yup. The coolest of looks? Absolutely, second only to the Cordovox White Elephants, the dual tone orange and blue of the Fast 2 still makes this one in demand. Every detail was laid down for the looks on this one, right down to little orange balls on the feet of the legs.
Did you know that there are internal speakers on these? There are two, with an additional volume pot if you take off the plastic piece from the bottom of the organ.
Farfisa Mini Compact
The most affordable of Farfisa’s Compact line, the Mini had enough features, not all of them of course, but enough to bring that unmistaken Farfisa sound to a gig, without breaking the back! Our first Mini came from Midwest Buy and Sell for $20. It had no power cord, was painted black, missing fuse cover, etc… Some simple fixes, and I was hooked. We still had some note issues, with the dividers on the oscillators not working. When a second Mini popped up on Craigslist for cheap, I bought that, and used one for parts (I can’t remember which one…).
I think I sold both of them to a nice guy in Chicago to continue my work when I got the Vox Jaguar.
Octave Cat SRM II
The Octave Cat is the biggest, meanest, fattest sounding analog synth I have ever heard. I may dare to say that it is thicker than a minimoog due to the fact that it gives you the option of blending in the different wave forms, rather than selecting which one. The Sub-Octave oscillator blended in makes for some deep, deep bass. This was used throughout Bad Guy Music, and in a few choice places on Surface to Air.
Still in our studio, but not used as much anymore. The oscillators are not that stable, so the drift in and out of tune. Also, the scale is off, so switching up to a high sound from a bass sound will require a quick retuning. Probably just mine, not all of them though…
Realistic MG-1 (Moog)
Ah, this was my first analog synthesizer. It was a great way to learn, and an easy thing to lug around and add into our rock show that we were playing at the time. The filter and the oscillators were of course not as fat as the traditional Moog synths (there was a reason Radio Shack sold it, not Moog!), but it cut through the mix like nothing else.
Sadly it was sold to a group of hipsters here in Chicago with it’s custom made foam lined 60s suitcase that I got at AmVets. I hope you guys are still playing it!
Wurlitzer Electronic Piano Model 200
Our lovely Wurli has treated us well. Purchased via ebay from an older jazz musician on the East Coast, this piano has sure seen some gigs. When we got it, the amp was blown, the wood mounts inside were cracked, and it seemed like just about every tine inside was out of tune. Countless hours and dollars later, she emerged as great as ever. Through a distortion pedal, it’s the meanest sounding thing you’ve ever heard, clean, it’s the sweetest.
Usually under the fingers of Matt, the wood keys get slammed and caressed down to produce a sound like no other.
Surface to Air
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Released 2008
Bad Guy Music
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Released 2005
Vox Jaguar Combo Organ
While we are the utmost fans of Farfisa, and with no offense to them, the Vox Jaguar is by far the easiest, lightest, most well thought out Combo Organ ever made. The Jaguar is the little sister to the many versions of the Continental, having only a few sound sculpting tabs, and vibrato. To the casual user though, it sounds like Paul Revere and the Raiders just stepped up on stage!
It is extremely light, easy to service, and has a great flat top for laying effects (like the Maestro PS-1A Phaser and the Maestro MPF-1 Parametric Filter which should come standard with every combo organ!
