if you carefully select the right controllers, you've got quite some power directly at hand, and having to push some extra shift or select buttons to have your set of knobs control other parameters (like with your APC40) really isn't that hard to do when you think it through a bit and set it up right.
the andromeda.
it was on my wanted list for many many years, and I finally decided to get one when I thought they stopped making them.
I could be wrong about this (there was a time I was posting tons on vintagesynth, but I'm hardly on any forum any more these days) and I never looked it up, but I have the impression that they finally stopped making them (it's not on the alesis US (or was it EU ?) site anymore), so I figured before used prices went up, I'd better get one.
anyway, I've had mine from october and absolutely loved it.
the dual filters (and how flexible you can route them), the way you can put a sine post filter and have ring modulation post and pre filter. (this is fucking awesome for your harmonics and fundamental !!)
the tracking generator, all the selectable envelope slopes (you really don't find that enough on analog synths), the HUGE modulation options.
plus the fact that it's a bliss to play with.
I've been playing piano for over 20 years now, so I'm always a bit sceptic about synth keyboards (although I realize that synth action is great for some stuff, I prefer semi-weighted or fully weighted whenever possible), but the andromeda is great to play on, plus it comes with all these easy extra's, like your chord function, or the way your transpose works,
and a ribbon controller.
![Laughing :lol:](./images/smilies/icon_lol.gif)
plus I LOVE the story behind this thing as well.
Dave bryce, the guy that was on the design team back then and works with Dave Smith (the inventer of MIDI, still version 1.1) nowadays, hangs out at vintagesynth from time to time, and talked about this a lot.
the really had to fight for many many months to get this thing finished, cause back then digital romplers were controlling everything, and no marketing guy thought they'd ever sell more than a couple dozen pieces.
but anyways, you shouldn't buy a synth for that reason obviously, but it does put an extra smile on my face when I think about this...
I'm glad I didn't get this synth years ago cause back then I'm quite sure I'd get frustrated by it, but nowadays, I'm very very very happy with it.
did you check out the "tips & tricks" manual ?
there's a lot of good stuff in there as well, if you get frustrated by it at times.
but I sure wouldn't advise anyone newbie to get the andromeda.
too complicated. too many options.
to me, I've always found the andromeda VERY intuitive to program (and I'm far from an expert, but after owning and programming hardware synths from all kinds of manufacturers with all kinds of different interfaces over the years, I do think I can judge an interface from experience.
but interfaces are a personal thing as well, so...
![Laughing :lol:](./images/smilies/icon_lol.gif)
but if it's any comfort, it seems the andromeda gets bought and sold a lot.
the people that keep it, can't stop raving about it (my apologies)
and the others never really connected with it, I guess.
what did you dislike about it ?
I'm curious to know.
and what other gear would you prefer to the andromeda ?
btw, anyone who bothered to check out your tracks and knows a bit about sound design, would know you could handle an andromeda steevio.
nice tracks !
![Wink ;)](./images/smilies/icon_wink.gif)