Matrix 6

There's one for sale locally for a good price...I'm tempted to pick it up. From the demos Ive heard it sounds like it would fit in well with my current synths...think there would be too much overlap with the A6?

Sonically, it seems somewhere in the middle of the DW-8000 and the Andromeda.

A matrix is a matrix, nothing else sounds like it except a matrix 1000 and the 6R.

What is the good price? Make sure the membrane buttons are in good shape.

Guy is asking $250 - I may have missed out on it though...

Its the 6R btw, not the keyboard.

buy it, try it, if you don't like it resell it. A 6R is still in demand (unlike my Kawai K1).

Awake, how do you like your DW-8000? Do you use it a lot? I've thought about buying one, as they have been going for as low as 135 dollars on ewwbay.

I love my DW-8000! You can really make some killer sounds on it, and its dead easy to program, even with the single data slider. You can control filter cutoff with the joystick and any parameter to the slider so there's plenty of room there for real time tweaking.

For $135 man, don't hesitate! The filter, noise generator, and delay really make this synth unique, IMO. Not to mention the wavetables for the DWGS system were made on a Synclavier!

Here's a quick demo, raw DW8K with no external FX or processing:

http://www.awakeaudio.com/Synths/Korg/DW8000/Demos/DW8000Pads.mp3

The two patches at the end are a JD-800 and a Kawai K5000s....

Youre damn right DonSolaris - right now I run all my synths through a Mackie Onyx 1220. Which is nice, but I'll tell you...now that I have made a move to mostly hardware in all my compositions the weak links in my signal chain are exposed.

Don't do it. It is a basic DCO synth and you already have those mod routings in the A6. Better invest your money in a good preamp, if you plan to record stuff with A6.

You know, you got yourself a good high-end synthesizer. But that is just beginning of the story. Now it is time to get a good quality preamp (ideally a tube based) and some mastering compressor such as GSSL (or clone). Consider these two before entering the digital path in your soundcard.

Be prepared - these two can cost you as much as the secondhand A6. But that' the cost of owning a high end gear - if you want to use its full potential.

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I was editing my message and now it turned after your response. That's funny.

Wow..this is like a bad episode of Lost!!

LOL - I will reply to your time-warp edit:)

You're right, I was working on a track last night and one thing I did notice is that VST's I would normally rely on - EQ, compression, etc 'cheapened' the sound of the A6 and it sounded noticeably better and was easier to mix all by itself.

That doesnt go for all software though - Arts Acoustic reverb still sounded very nice:)

Im already planning on upgrading my I/O at some point...I may build those tube pre's myself to save a little $$.

Some sounds are good, while others aren't really my cup of tea. But overall, it doesn't seem to have the richness that most analog synths have. The K5000s at the end might be totally digital, but it's still smoother and richer than the DW-8000 to my ears... while the JD-800 has that buzzy quality at the top end that I don't really like.

I'm trying really hard to like the DW-8000 because it's costing peanuts right now, and because Kevin Moore played one

Maybe it will sound good with effects added to it?

ha! That's why I bought the DW-8000 in the first place:)

What kind of sounds are you looking for ChristianRock? The DW8K isnt as big and rich as a true VCO or even a DCO analog - its basically a digital synth with analog filters but in that respect it has its own unique tone - it fits very well in a mix with the rest of my gear.

I agree with Don, a good preamp and a good compressor can make a world of difference... I have middle-of-the-road equipment on both counts, a dbx 586 (tube preamp - good, hopefully great now that I got a good deal on a few NOS Mullard 12AU7s) and a dbx 1066 (compressor - pretty good since I never use more than 3:1 ratio for anything, mostly 1.5:1 or 2:1).

It would be nice to get top-of-the-line stuff but I don't think I'll have the $4K I would need anytime soon, so this will have to do...

I don't record to a DAW though, I record to tape so I use the tape itself to do compression on some things like drums.

The prefer the Obie Matrix sound over the Andromeda's. That's basically why I returned my Andromeda and still have two Matrix 1000s around. I do think the envelopes on the Andromeda are faster and it is better at bass, but I prefer my Matrixes for their more vintage tone and the Matrix is still very nice for doing crazy modulation stuff. But since you have a $1800+ synth in the Andromeda, you should definitely use it. For me the price did not justify the sound which I thought was rather insipid. Thing is for $250, the Matrix is reasonable. You can try it and if you don't like it, sell it later. Don't take our word for it!

The number one thing I always look for is nice pads... if it can do those sounding rich and full, it will do most other things I want to (like leads and bass). I'm actually introducing synth sounds to my songs now and I'm not sure yet where they will take me... so far I've used sampled stuff and the samples in my Fantom XR... and right now I'm recording one song that has a synth bass instead of my bass player, a few songs with piano sounds and at least a couple where I'll do synth leads (if the heavy piano action of the A-80 lets me do something decent).

So what do you use the DW-8000 mostly for? I might actually get one just to use it as a controller for synthesizer sounds instead of the A-80

And I figured with the Awake name that you might have been into Dream Theater at some point... though what you do now doesn't have any resemblance of your past musical taste?

So what do you use the DW-8000 mostly for? I might actually get one just to use it as a controller for synthesizer sounds instead of the A-80

I thought the DW-8000 was awful as a controller (went through two that had basically the same bad action and you couldn't get high velocity levels no matter how hard you played it), that's why I now own an EX-8000.

But what do I know, Depeche Mode's Alan Wilder used one as a controller on their Music for the Masses tour and was satisfied with it.

What I heard so far, makes me believe the Matrix is a very limited synth...

No comparison with the A6, totally different beasts...

Tho I don't own neither

Other than the velocity levels (which could be a setup issue), how did you like the feel of the keys?

Then you haven't listened

... and as far as for the DW being "thin" and digital... well.

A clip of mine

Then you haven't listened ... and as far as for the DW being "thin" and digital... well. A clip of mine

I have to say, those DW8000 sounds are better than the stuff I've heard so far.

On your clips list, is there something that has 6R sounds? I'd love to hear them. Considering how cheap they are, it's another synth I would love to come to love

The number one thing I always look for is nice pads... if it can do those sounding rich and full, it will do most other things I want to (like leads and bass). I'm actually introducing synth sounds to my songs now and I'm not sure yet where they will take me... so far I've used sampled stuff and the samples in my Fantom XR... and right now I'm recording one song that has a synth bass instead of my bass player, a few songs with piano sounds and at least a couple where I'll do synth leads (if the heavy piano action of the A-80 lets me do something decent). ... And I figured with the Awake name that you might have been into Dream Theater at some point... though what you do now doesn't have any resemblance of your past musical taste?

Yep that's where its from, my favorite DT album! I actually started getting interested in synths when I started listening to DT/Rush, and then sometime in the late 90's the Rave movement blew through town and the rest is history...

I'm still really into metal, keep my guitar chops up and also play bass in a local rock band. When it comes to synths though, I like to explore a lot of electronic music styles - hence the bleepiness;)

So what do you use the DW-8000 mostly for? I might actually get one just to use it as a controller for synthesizer sounds instead of the A-80

All kinds of stuff really - synths are kinda like paint you know? Generally its great for some bass stuff, wierd chimey tones, synth FX...big thick, rich pads arent its strong suit IMO.

In this clip, the DW8000 is the sound on the sides of the mix, the 'wowowowow' sound:

DW-8000 LFO Pad

As far as a controller goes - the key action is really springy/clackety but the joystick is great. I used to own an A-80...if you try to hit the DW8K like you can beat on that thing, it will probably crack in half

Then you haven't listened ... and as far as for the DW being "thin" and digital... well. A clip of mine

Nice clip grumphh...totally agree the DW8K is anything but thin!

I have to say, those DW8000 sounds are better than the stuff I've heard so far. On your clips list, is there something that has 6R sounds? I'd love to hear them. Considering how cheap they are, it's another synth I would love to come to love

Thx

And i do have an old clip of the M6r:

All M6r

This one is not really that musical, but you get an idea of the sounds it is capable of. No Fx of course, as in all my demo clips.

Slow and awkward. Better to not use it as a controller. And there is no way to change the velocity curve on the thing. Some pluses are the arpeggiator which is not available on the EX8000.