Retro Synth Ads

Octave Plateau Sequencer Plus "State of the art shouldn't create a state of confusion" advertisement, KCS 1986

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Wed, 06 Aug 2025 22:23:00 +0000

Octave Plateau Sequencer Plus advertisement from page 17 in the February 1986 issue of Keyboards, Computers and Software (KCS) magazine.

As you know - I'm a fan of illustrations in synth adverts. Ads like Sequential's Ear Force, Octave's Cat synth ad, or Vibronic's drawing of a Moog modular, all should be put on T-shirts as far as I'm concerned. I even have an artwork tag that I've hopefully kept up to date that will help you find more.

The illustration in this ad (which would also make a great t-shirt) shows a frustrated, overwhelmed man standing over a reel-to-reel machine with more complex recording tools including a mixer and various effects in the background. There is also an illustrator's name - "Stau '85", but some quick google searches didn't bring up any other illustrations but the person. Dang.

The good... the ad title is large and bold, and it's a clever and memorable play on words that tee's up the key message that technology can be easy to use with OP's software. The subtitle below the image is also of a good size, and includes the product name - Sequencer Plus. It also supports the key message. The copy also includes a clear call-to-action - contact us to get a brochure.

The bad... I find the ad to feel cramped - the title, subtitle and copy all seem to almost fall over each other as well as with the imagery. Another half inch of white space around everything would have made all the difference.

My only other beef with the ad is the amount of ad copy. Probably could have cut a few lines with a bit more editing to make more room around everything, including the two paragraphs.

BUT, if someone actually tries to cut down the text, DO NOT get rid of the Voyetra Eight name drop that occurs in that second paragraph. If readers get that far, its a great flex.

I'm a little sad that one of the rack units in the illustration doesn't resemble a Voyetra Eight. :(

MPC Electronics "The Kit", including Synkit, The Tymp and The Clap, October 1983

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Tue, 29 Jul 2025 17:17:00 +0000

The Kit, including the Synkit, The Tymp and the Clap, from page 29 in the October 1983 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

Its been hard for me to blog these last couple of years due to medical issues that I won't get into at the moment. But lately, as I flip through magazines aimlessly, certain ads have jumped out at me. Hence the resurgence in blogging as of late.

And this ad is a great example of one that jumped out of the pages and right into my eyeballs. Funny enough, I'd never heard of these little units, and didn't think I'd find much on the Interwebz about them.

Boy, was I wrong.

One quick Google search and up pops a goldmine of info. Three links in particular, stood out.

But first - we got to address the design of the ad itself. Obvious... it's cleverly designed to target keyboardists, using a clean black-and-white aesthetic and bold, engaging typography. The headline—"A compact electronic drum kit for keyboardists who may already have their hands full"—immediately addresses the ad’s intended audience with a witty, relatable hook.

The image features a keyboard above a well-arranged display of The Kit’s touch-sensitive pads and companion devices, highlighting the compact size and modularity. The layout draws attention downward from the eye-catching headline to the product, and finally to the detailed body text, which explains the functionality, flexibility, and benefits of the system. Emphasis on user-friendliness, performance versatility, and integration into existing setups makes the ad both informative and persuasive, reinforcing The Kit as a practical and innovative tool for modern musicians.

Now back to the Googles... because a quick search brings up a few interesting links.

First, we've got an article on the Kit written by Rick Palmer for Music UK, December 1982, thankfully kept online by Muzines! Wonderful! It also includes links to ads related to the review.

What we learn is that “The Kit” is a compact, battery-powered electronic drum kit designed for finger drumming, featuring pads for snare, toms, bass drum, and hi-hats, with customizable sensitivity and decay. The top panel houses volume controls for each sound, tone control for the cymbal, and tempo/rhythm selectors for six pre-programmed hi-hat patterns. Additional controls include rocker switches for beat patterns, time signature, and start/stop, as well as LED beat indication. It offers individual ¼" outputs for each sound, a pre-mixed output, two 3.5mm trigger outs, and inputs for external footswitches and a power supply.

In addition, we learn that while the unit feels awkward at first, users can quickly adapt and discover its versatility, especially with high-quality snare and tom sounds. It offers outstanding value, appealing to drummers and non-drummers alike.

Add-on units expand the system’s capabilities:

“The Clap” delivers a decent handclap sound with controls for noise mix and decay, though it lacks trigger integration with the main Kit.

“Synkit” produces versatile synth-drum sounds with pitch sweep capabilities, ideal when triggered from the main Kit’s toms, although its decay control is finicky.

“Tymp” offers low-pitched, noise-heavy sounds more suited to effects than traditional percussion, but suffers from inconsistent sensitivity and lacks adjustment options.

The best news... that's not the only article on the kit you can find online - there is also another link to an article from Muzines from the January 1984 issue of Electronics & Music Maker. It includes similar info, but also introduces us to the Bass Drum Pedal/Hi-Hat on/off accessory that can be connected. Also included is pricing info - always a treat to see!

One weird Amazon link that popped up was to "The Kit Operating Instructions", providing us not just with a colour image of the main unit, but a summary of the history of the company. Summarized from the page:

MPC Electronics Ltd was founded in 1982 in Cambridge by Mike Coxhead to produce and market "The Kit," a compact electronic drum trigger device invented by Clive Button, designed to be played with fingers instead of sticks.
After refining the design, the improved Mark 2 version gained acclaim at trade shows and sold widely in the UK, Europe, and North America. The company released complementary accessories such as bass drum pedals and sound modules like The Clap and Synkit.
In 1983, Button introduced a more advanced version—the Music Percussion Computer—with eight pads, onboard memory, and compatibility with home computers, influencing future products by Roland and others. MPC later developed full-size drum pads and synth modules, but despite several innovations, the company folded in 1986 after Button moved on to work for other firms. Many units of The Kit remain functional today, and a comprehensive manual and history booklet documents MPC’s contributions during its brief but impactful existence.

Here's a picture of the unit in colour... gotta say, I wasn't expecting the red or the gold.

Want to learn more about it's designer Clive Button? Check out his website. It provides even more history!

Yamaha SY-22 "Vector Synthesis" advertisement, Keyboard 1990

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Wed, 16 Jul 2025 23:19:00 +0000

Yamaha SY-22 "Vector Synthesis" advertisement from page 39 in the September 1990 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

In a crowded world of 90s synths, the SY-22 vector synthesizer dared to be different. With FM, sample playback and joy-stick driven sound design, its still loved by a small group of fanatics. I've never owned one... and I still consider myself one of those fanatics.

According to the InterWebz, after Sequential Circuits, responsible for the Prophet VS (Vector Synthesis) was bought by Yamaha, Dave Smith "served as the President of the DSD group at Yamaha, producing a mini VS in the Yamaha SY22, but when ownership of Sequential was passed to their newly-acquired Korg, Dave oversaw that as the Korg R&D group in California, who designed the very successful Wavestation."

Interesting. Explains why the Wavestation and SY-22 both came out so soon after each other.

Looking at the SY-22 itself... first, lets get this out of the way. No low-pass filter. Ugh. Okay, we can move on, because what it does have is AWM synthesis, 2-operator FM synthesis, and vector synthesis via a joystick. And now lets throw in stereo onboard effects, as well as velocity keys with aftertouch. SAAAAAAY-WHAAAAAAT?

All for under $1100.

So its not an SY-77. Too bad... The SY-22 has vector synthesis.

So its not an SY-55. Too bad... The SY-22 has vector synthesis.

I think you can see where I'm going with this. Its got vector synthesis. Like I said above - I've never owned one. I don't think I've even heard one on purpose. But in my head, its just got to be cool sounding.

And Jim Aikin, managing editor and Keyboard reviewer back in 1990 agrees. Kinda.

See... he was going on vacation the day the Korg Wavestation arrived for review. So he didn't get to review it. And instead, he came back from vacation with the Yamaha SY-22 waiting for review. so he switched it on and was 'pleasantly surprised'.

Why do I know this?!?! Because the same issue of Keyboard that includes this advertisement, also includes Jim's full-length review of the SY-22.

According to the review, each patch on the SY-22 "can be programmed with its own vector. Once you've found a set of waveforms that you like, you can go to the "record level vector" page and use the joystick to do a real-time recording of a sequence of up to 50 vector positions." FIFTY positions. Then you can edit each position, loop the entire thing, etc. Smashing!

One thing he does note that is a real downer is that the joystick doesn't send or receive midi data. Yup. You heard that right... there's no way to record the movements into your favourite sequencer. Jim acknowledges that Yamaha needed to keep the cost down somehow.

Jim goes on to review the sounds ("usual mixed bag"), patch programming ("fairly predictable"), effects ("short, but no big around"), and multitimbral operation ("fairly standard"). Still, in the end, Jim explains that vector synthesis "gives the SY22 a sound that's unique in its price range", and even calls the real time recording of vector movements "the most significant innovation in synthesizer design that we've seen in the last couple of years".

Nice. Jim done good.

The Yamaha SY-22 may not have achieved mass-market fame, but its combo of vector synthesis, FM synthesis, and sample-based warmth makes it a hidden treasure for all you creative musicians.

Alesis HR-16:B "Killer B" advertisement, Keyboard 1990

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Wed, 09 Jul 2025 21:42:00 +0000

Alesis HR-16:B "Killer B" advertisement from page 102 in the September 1990 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

Before software ruled the studio, drum machines like the Alesis HR-16B offered an affordable and surprisingly powerful way to get your industrial tracks bangin'. Released in the early 1990s as an update to the original HR-16, the HR-16B isn't as well-known as the TR-808 or have the power of modern groove boxes, but it carved out its own corner of electronic music history—and for one.... very... good... reason.

From the ad: "47 samples, pre-produced with reverb and processing for a killer rhythm assault right out of the box."

That's it. Right there. Those sounds. Right when industrial music was seeping into the mainstream. Nine Inch Nails, Ministry, Front 242.... goth clubs were also banging.

The ad tries to promote its high sample rate16-bit samples, but compared to today's standards, that limited gritty aesthetic, along with a fairly intuitive interface, is what makes this drum machine sought after today. Its no surprise that I'm blogging about it so close to the Kawai R-100/R50 drum machines... another industrial fav.

And don't get me started on the glitching... I'll just leave this video right here.

The ad itself stands out when you are flipping through the magazine. Arriving on page 102 would usually be a checkmark against it, but it comes just pages after the wonderfully HUGE Public Enemy article... so I won't hold it's placement against it.

A giant title "Killer B" quickly grabs your attention. And then we get sparse content that is easy to read. And then, of course, is that gothy-black machine sitting atop a giant foam B.

As good and attention-grabbing as the ad is - and very ON-BRAND for Alesis - I can't help thinking the design doesn't cater to its audience. Those black-clothed, industrial leather jacket wearing Nitzer Ebb loving fans that would want to put down their hard-earned cash. AKA Me!

I don't know what the answer is... but the designer could surely have put a little bit more time and effort into solving the problem and getting a bit more grit into the design of the ad.

Novation Drum Station brochure, 1998

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 30 Jun 2025 17:51:00 +0000

Novation Drum Station two page colour brochure from 1998.

Gonna keep it short... it's been a while since I've blogged and I've kind of forgotten how to do it. No really. I'm trying to get my mojo back, but this is really hard.

A while back in 2021 I posted a four page 1996 Novation Drum Station brochure. Fast forward a year or two, and Novation has taken a shrink ray and bumped that brochure down to a two page reference sheet. One page, two sides to be exact.

Gone is that lovely front cover image. Instead, Novation has taken the Future Music Platinum Award that used to live on that cover, and plunked it onto the front half of this brochure. But, They have also added a little blurb from the June 1997 issue of Electronic Musician. Go them!

Believe it or not, the rest of the content is almost exactly (if not exactly) the same between the two. The same bullet points. The same sub-titles of the different section. Same order.

Oh wait... one other big different... NO BLOCK DIAGRAM. BOOOOOOO!!!!! I do love me a block diagram.

One other little thing that is bugging me. That marble-y texture Novation chose to have in the background of the front and back of the page. Not a fan. Too distracting.

Okay - like I said. Keeping it short. Probably for the best because I'm grumpy. If you didn't notice. :)

Kawai R-50 "The Right Stuff" advertisement, Keyboard 1987

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 20 Dec 2021 18:09:00 +0000

Kawai R-50 drum machine "The Right Stuff" full page colour advertisement from page 81 in the December 1987 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

Although it was in June 1987 that the R-50 started appearing in ads alongside the R-100 (see my last blog post), in November of that same year the R-50 finally got the spotlight to itself. This ad above appeared on and off until early 1988, getting bumped periodically by an ad for Kawai's additive synthesizer the K-5.

This ad was a big departure from the R-100/R-50 80s themed extravaganza that came before it - with a much more standard title/content/photo layout - and the content efficiently spelling out the features of the R-50, including its polyphony, pitch and pan abilities, on-board effects, pad programmability, Midi out the wazoo, and... my favourite... the alternate sound chips. More on that in a second.

Although Keyboard never devoted a full review to the R-50, it did make the Updates & Short Takes section of the Magazine in the January 1988 issue. Yes, you heard that right. Although the R-50 began appearing in ads waaaaaay back in June 1987, it would be seven months before any kind of review showed up.

Wowza is right.

I do give Jim Aikins credit though - its a nice, small compact review - just like the R-50 itself. We end up with about two columns of content devoted to the machine.

Jim starts by pointing out that the $495 R-100 is about $300 cheaper than the R-50. I like this, because it lets me know that the R-100 was still on the market at this time. Also, I dig historical retail prices in general.

Much like my relatives would do when over for Christmas dinner, we first get a lot of chatter about what's missing in the younger sibling compared to its bigger brother (okay, maybe I'm projecting a bit).

Buttons not velocity sensitive
Half the memory
50 of the 100 patterns are non-programmable factory rhythms
Song construction simplified (no repeat loops or tempo changes)
No punch-in recording and song overdub features
No DIN sync jacks
In individual outputs

Geeez... sounding even more like me being compared to my older brother. :)

But, the R-50 did have a few improvements like those assignable pads I went on about in the last post, some new effects, and some amazing midi tricks including midi triggers.

And, because I can't, and won't, stop talking about them, Jim also mentions those alternate sound chips. Read what he had to say...

"Two additional plug-in voice chips ($129.00) suggested retail) are compatible between the R-100 and R-50. You have to open up the unit to install the new chips, but we're told that Kawai is planning to market a built-in switcher that will hold all three chips and let you choose whichever one you prefer for the current song.".

This is the first I've heard that Kawai had planned to market their own switcher for all three chips. I'm my head, I'm thinking this would have been a kit that gets installed at the shop.

But correct me if I'm wrong - I don't recall this ever on the marketing. And I'm wondering if maybe Kawai decided that rather than market a switcher, they decided to market a new R-50 entirely - the elusive R-50iii - that contained all three chips.

I just happen to have one of those R-50iii. Time to open 'er up and see how those chips are installed.

Kawai R-100 and R-50 drum machine "Overnight Sensation" ad, Keyboard 1987

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Wed, 15 Dec 2021 21:34:00 +0000

Kawai R-100 and R-50 drum machine "Overnight Sensation" full page colour advertisement featuring Jan Hammer and Steve Smith from page 73 in the June 1987 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

Wowza. There is so much 80s goodness to unpack in this little rare advertisement. It only ran twice in Keyboard - the June and August issues... but should have had a much longer run, dammit.

First - lets look at those 80s design elements. Have you ever seen anything more 80s? Those pink, blue, yellow and purple colours? That "torn page" design element traveling through the middle of the ad? Even the logo for Kawai's "Electronic Musical Instruments Division" with its lines, Keyboard keys knock-out, and other various chunkiness. Reminds me of Roland ads running around the same time period (see right).

11/10 for design.

Next - 80s endorsements! Steve Smith and Jan Hammer - pure 80s peeps endorsing pure 80s drum machines. Jan Hammer, of course known for Miami Vice (did I mention the 80s!?!?!?) and Steve Smith, known for his work with Vital Information and Journey (80s!!!!!).

The ad copy only solidifies the whole 80s vibe with references to Miami Vice, a keyboard review quote, and the trifecta of 80s brand marketing jargon - the "combination of sound, features and price".

My head is gonna explode!!!!

Here's the thing though - there is just so much going on in this ad, that the whole reason for its existence almost gets lost - and that's the introduction of the R-50 itself. This little guy came out at under $500, and although it lost a few of its bigger brother's great features like velocity-sensitive pads, less memory and, arguably, the fact that half the patterns are uneditable, it did keep all 24 sounds.

But more importantly, in my head, the R-50 represents what in my mind was a huge leap forward for drum machines:

The sounds are mappable to any button.

Look at older drum machines, and you see each button has an instrument label under it. Bass Drum. Snare Drum, Hi Hat, etc. Great when memory cost a lot and there was only a limited number of sounds you could fit in a machine. But memory costs were coming down, and programming was improving.

Some manufactures would get around this button/sound dilemma by stacking sounds on the limited number of buttons. Like the R-100 - only 8 buttons, but three sounds were assigned to each one. But, hard-coded non-the-less.

The R-50 represents that new era of drum machines that were just labeled Pad 1, Pad 2, etc. Like the Roland R-8 or Korg S3. Suddenly, you could have a wack of sounds onboard, and just assign to different pads as needed. Primitive menu diving.

And this brings up to the other really exciting thing announced in this ad almost as an afterthought:

"Both machines have the same great sound and easy operation. And both accept Kawai's new interchangeable sound chips.".

Say what now?!?!?

Yup. And those new sounds rawk even more than the standard ones.

There's a lot more to say about those chips... coming up soonly!

Kawai R-100 drum machine "What good is playing loud if you can't play soft?" advertisement, Keyboard 1986

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Sat, 11 Dec 2021 21:23:00 +0000

Kawai R-100 drum machine "What good is playing loud if you can't play soft?" full page colour advertisement from page 11 in the November 1986 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

This gorgeous advertisement appeared in Keyboard Magazine from around November 1986 to February 1987. Somehow Kawai found a little hole in time between promo'ing their K3 ad they had been running, and a K3/K3m/computer ad that kicked the K100 to the curb in March 1987.

It deserved more. More real estate. More promo. More time.

This thing is still a beast. A living, breathing animal. Seriously.

You see, I'm not just a fan of the R-100, but also a trained biologist. Botanist/zoologist to be exact. Sure, my last 25+ years in Marketing may have dulled some of this here scientific noggin (*points at head*), but if there is one thing I can still do, it's identify the life cycle of living, breathing organism. And included in that category is gear that would follow the classic Keyboard Magazine life-cycle. NAMM article. Spec sheet. Ad. Review.

Take the R-100 for example.

I first tagged a wild R-100 specimen while hunting in the forests of the September 1986 issue of Keyboard Magazine. Even though I had just entered university as a science undergrad, I'd like to think my catch-and-release game was already in top form way back then as I flipped through a Summer NAMM article and found this write-up under the "Drum Machines" subheading.

"Kawai continued to expand their line of professional products with their R-100 drum machine ($795). The R-100 has 24 32kHz, 12-bit companded sounds on board, including agogos, timbales, and china bell. It also has a selectable clock rate, tap tempo, individual outs, stereo outs, MIDI key assignments, and real-time tuning.

To put the time period in perspective, also roaming the forests of theis September 1986 issue was Korg's new DDD-1 drum machine ($999.95).

Needless to say, I tagged both for future observation and data collection before pushing forward in my quest to find more info on this new Kawai drum machine.

It would be a few months after that initial interaction that I would see the elusive R-100 again while staked out in my little observation hut. I remember I was sipping some hot chocolate I'd made by the fire pit when I saw fleeting images darting across a deer path.

Two shadows leaping through the underbrush toward a stream.

I squinted... remained motionless... and there, in the Spec Sheet section of the December 1986 issue of Keyboard (a month after it's first sighting in an advertisement - okay, no life cycle is perfect), crouched down along-side a K3m, quietly drinking from the stream, was another sighting of the R-100...

"The R-100 digital drum machine features touch-sensitive pads which trigger 24 12-bit/23kHz sampled sounds. Real-time control is provided for tuning, panning level, and sensitivity of each sound. Memory capacity is 100 patterns, 100 songs, and 10 chains. The unit records velocity, tuning and stereo pan for each note. Song position pointer and MIDI data dump are included in the MIDI implementation. The clock rates are variable and a sync-to-tape function is included. Other features include song overdubbing, programmable tempo and volume changes, and ten separate programmable outputs (two stereo, eight direct). The R-100 drum machine :$795.00."

But as I moved in for a closer look, the R-100 caught my scent and they both took off into the night brush. I returned home, telling the tale of this second sighting of the R-100 to all that would listen.

Then, FINALLY, while walking through the dense woodlands of the February 1987 issue of Keyboard, I found what I was looking for. A review of this magnificent beast by Dave Fredrick!

The article starts, as most reviews do, with a brief intro that includes this rather scientific, fact-based observation on the rather short history of the digital drum machine:

"In as little as six years, we've seen the digital drum machine evolved from a $5,000, 15c rhythm device to today's fully dynamic, keyboard-controllable, tunable, user-sampling MIDI drum machine. And most of these instruments are priced under $1,000. Ain't life grand!"

Grand indeedy!

After a nice thorough review of the instrument, the reviewer concludes with what would become general consensus pretty much everywhere - Kawai had a winner on their hands with the R-100.

Yes indeedy!

Dave especially liked some of the new features not yet found on other drum machines, like being able to individually assign instrument, tuning and pan placement for each key on a MIDI keyboard, and the "repeat and jump structure" of the pattern sequencer.

I would have to agree. To this day, the R-100 is one of those pieces of gear that will always have a place in my heart. And, on my specimen table, where it sits waiting the next chance to be turned on.

More Kawai to come in the near future.

Roland JX-3P and PG-200 "Programmable/Preset/Polyphonic Synthesizer" brochure, 1983

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Tue, 30 Nov 2021 18:42:00 +0000

Roland JX-3P synthesizer and PG-200 programmer "Programmable/Preset/Polyphonic Synthesizer" four page colour brochure from August 1983.

Well, well... another "We design the future" brochure. I got a million of them. Okay - maybe a few are duplicates.

Can you blame me? Look at this beauty. All the signs of a Roland brochure from this era - like this JX-8P brochure I published back in 2020 - and the blog post that holds the record by far for hate mail regarding my position on the statement "Too much gear reduces your creativity". But that's another story.

Where was I... oh yeah - the multitude of other We Design the Future brochures (and those that came after the tagline was dropped, but kept the same design format). At least 11 tagged on the blog to date, and as I find others - like that JX-8P brochure I've scanned, I add the tag to those posts too.

The centrefolds in these things never disappoint. Flip the cover page open and you get that big gorgeous photo. I don't care if you love or hate the sound or the programming of this thing... it looks awesome. This is what an 80s synthesizer front panel should look like. Yeah yeah... knobs are great - but I equate those with 70s synths. A real 80's synth has one big data knob. Or at most, one or two sets of up/down button. Think Yamaha DX7. Or Oberheim Matrix 6. :)

But the real history here is Roland's introduction of MIDI to their brochures. The tech was so new, companies were still fiddling about with their buzz words.

"MIDI BUS"

"... can be hooked up with..."

"MIDI BUS connector".

All oddly awkward and satisfying at the same time.

Roland gives up a bit of real estate on the back page (not enough in my opinion) to discuss MIDI even more.

"Today's modern digital technology has made it possible to automatically control and synchronize a remarkable variety of electronic instruments. A personal computer can even be incorporated in such systems which usual require no special knowledge or operational techniques. The only problem is that individual makers have in many cases employed mutually incompatible connections and this greatly reduces the performer's potential. A new universal BUS system called MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital interface) solves this problem. It accepts all connections from instruments and devices of a standard signal. Now any standard musical instrument or computer can be connected using DIN cords for both input and output. Thus, MIDI expands the potential of performers and brings unprecedented convenience to the realm of electronic music. The Roland's JX-3P and Jupiter-6 are equipped with the MIDI Bus terminal. "

Probably a few more months before the words "MIDI" and "cable" are finally strung together in a sentence.

And I love it.

Moog Retail Price List, 1977

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 08 Nov 2021 20:18:00 +0000

Moog Retail Price List from January 1, 1977.

Good lord. I haven't posted since August. Time is just flying since I took a new work gig in the spring. Told myself I was "retired" back in 2016, but after some consulting work during the height of COVID, I found an opportunity I just couldn't pass up.

Anyways, I found this write-up sitting half-finished in my drafts, and thought it was a gooder since it includes some comparisons to other Moog pricing brochures I've already published. In particular, a 1974 brochure I posted in 2012 and a 1980 brochure I posted back in 2018.

This 1977 brochure sits right in between, so I'd expect prices to fall somewhere in between as well. Let's take a look at a few....

Minimoog:

1974 - $1,595.00

1977 - $1,795.00

1980 - $1,995.00

Satellite:

1974: $595.00

1977: $695.00

1980: not on the list

Sonic Six:

1974:$ 1395.00

1977: $1495.00

1980 - not on the list

Micromoog

1974: not in the list

1977: $795.00

1980: $895

Taurus:

1974: not on the list

1977: $795

1980: $1,195

Wowza! In fact... two wowzas.

First wowza - we can see how the Minimoog seemed to transcend all those other Moog products. The Satellite, Sonic Six, and Taurus came and went, never appearing in more than two of the brochures, but the Minimoog just kept on truckin'!

The second wowza was that price jump for the Taurus Pedals. All other price jumps were exactly one hundred bucks on the nose. But that Taurus Pedals jumped an astonishing $400 within three years. I wonder what caused that kind of drastic change in pricing?!?!

From a purely design perspective, there's a few interesting elements I'd like to touch on. First, is that signed photo of Keith Emerson. Not surprising since he had been a long-time spokesperson for Moog. And awesome that he shows up in a pricing brochure of all things. It's a big step up from the 1974 brochure that featured that little conductor dude that was their kind-of mascot back in those mid-70s days.

Don't get me wrong, I still think Moog could make a killing slapping that little dude on a t-shirt. Just look at him over there ---->

He even looks better on that Minimoog brochure that came out around two years previously. Look at him with the Moog logo behind him.

Now put THAT image on a hoodie!!!!

Moog Dude. On a t-shirt. NOW!

Anatek "Pocket Products Catalog" brochure, 1991

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 16 Aug 2021 13:07:00 +0000

Anatek "Pocket Products Catalog" 10 page fold-out colour brochure from 1991.

Since moving into the new house, I've taken the few opportunities I've had to go through some of the boxes of brochures I've acquired over the years but never put into their protective sleeves. And just yesterday I did just that, and came across *this*.

Now'r days, people will joke that Eurorack modules are the synth-equivalent of Pokemon.

"Gotta catch 'em all."

But, I submit this brochure before the court as evidence that the original synth-equivalent of Pokemon were these little babies.

I can vividly recall going into my local synth haunt and seeing these stacked into their swiveling wire display stand. Okay, "vividly" may be a strong word. Maybe it didn't swivel. And now that I think about it, maybe it wasn't a wire frame. Was there even a stand?!?!? Gah. I'm old.

Point is, they were there. And they left an impression. And the urge to collect.

There was no date on the brochure, so of course I started Googling to try to remember when exactly these popped up on the radar. Didn't take long to find Creation Technologies Wikipage and some great info.

"1989 - Creation Studios, a high end music recording studio is built in North Vancouver by Barry and Jane Anne Henderson. Barry Henderson was also Music Products Division Manager at Anatek Microcircuits, a hybrid manufacturer in North Vancouver, BC with revenues of $1M USD. He and his team developed the Anatek line of MIDI and audio products including the now famous line of small MIDI signal powered MIDI processing accessories called "Pocket Products". "

Boom! Further reading explains how in 1991 a partnership lead to the name "Creation Technologies", which is the name you will find on this brochure, and why I decided to date this brochure to that year.

And look at that - Oh Canada!

Two other great historical facts can be gleaned from that wiki page. The first is this:

"The most famous of the Pocket Products, Pocket Merge, sold close to 10,000 units and generated over $1.6M in revenue in 1989, the product launch year."

Niiiiice! What a great little tidbit of knowledge to blurt out next time you are in someone's studio and they happen to have a Pocket Product sitting around. One thing I'm always interested in when it comes to vintage gear is the number of units manufactured.

The second great historical fact is this:

"Creation had a vision for becoming a high quality global contract manufacturing enterprise and developer of RADAR, the world's first multi-track digital recording system for professional recording studios."

Say what now? I had no idea the peeps behind some of the simplest midi/audio tech devices of the time period were also responsible for one the most complicated and expensive pieces of audio tech at the time as well.

Surprisingly, my squirrel instincts never kicked in even though they still cost less than those Boss half-racks on eBay and there is always at least a few of them for sale.

*looks at eBay again*

Dammit!

Roland TR-727 drum machine "The Rhythm Composer that keeps you in the groove..." brochure, 1985

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Tue, 27 Jul 2021 14:24:00 +0000

Roland TR-727 drum machine "The Rhythm Composer that keeps you in the groove..." four page colour brochure from October 1985.

Hey! Has it really been 20 days since 707 Day!?!?! Well golly-geeeee!

Happy 727 day, peeps!

No better way of celebrating than by scanning this lovely beast from the archives. (Yes, I also flinched when I used the word "beast" to describe a vintage brochure of a vintage drum machine). But there ya go. What's done is done.

The 1984-1986 period was an awkward one for drum machines. It was like watching your teenager go through puberty. You wanted to look away, but had to keep one eye on 'em to ensure no one got anyone else pregnant, make sure they washed their face, and wait it out until they grew into a fully (semi) functioning adult.

In the case of drum machines, it was watching them make that transition from analog to digital, while keeping one eye on the cost of memory as it slowly came down.

Okay, not the best analogy. Let's just say there was a lot going on and a lot of moving parts.

As 1984 ticked by and 1985 reared its ugly teen-age head out of the bedroom after a three day binge of Fortnite and McD's, it was just a matter of time before the intersection between the cost of memory and the cost of manufacturing hit that sweet spot. Someone got the bright idea that they could just swap out the digital sounds in a drum machine they had already manufactured, give the casing a new paint job, and slap it on the back, out the door, onto music store shelves.

And to that end, we had Boss come out with their Super Drums (DM-110) and Super Percussion (DM-220), Yamaha with their RX21 and RX21L, and of course Roland with their TR-707 and TR-727.

Each pair housed in VERY similarly manufactured boxes, with their sounds switched out for alternative percussion sounds.

It was an interesting and short-lived (experiment) solution to keeping the price-point of your drum machine down until memory came down to the point you could start really backing one single machine with tons of sounds. If I recall, it was Boss/Roland that managed to get their percussion-based boxes out the door before Yamaha, but feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

Anyways, enough about those other two - I've got brochure scans ready to rock for a later date. Today is the day to let the 727 shine.

Quickly - we've got the classic Roland "We design the future" layout. Cover with large font up top and sexy photo on the bottom. And what a sexy photo this is - pairing the 727 with the Octapad PAD-8, looking longingly at each other in the subdued lighting. I can here the TR-727 softly whispering "come hither". Put some lace on that PAD-8 and this could be a Harlequin Romance book cover. Just saying.

Let's face it, Roland was expecting a large audience of the 727 to be trained percussionists, and as a friend of many percussionists, I can tell you that they love to hit things. The PAD-8 becomes the perfect companion for programming a TR-727. Although with the rigid timing of the 727, it possibly could have ended up to be more frustrating in the end.

With their interest peaked, the reader slowly opens the cover to reveal the inside pages. And it doesn't disappoint. The Roland TR font makes me so happy, as do the large photo and diagrams included! What's interesting is the shear amount of text packed into those pages - especially on the right page.

So much so, that they really had to compromise the negative space of the pages to fit it all in there.

Compare it to the 707 brochure and you can see what I mean. Subtitles are crowded in the 727 brochure, and even the line spacing of the paragraphs seem claustrophobic.

But now I'm just quibbling. It's still lovely. 9.5/10.

Now flip to the back page and we have that PAD-8 again. Coming back for some more of that sweet sweet 727 lovin'. And it looks like it brought it's friend along for a good time.

Bow-chicka-wow-wow.

The perfect upsells.

Have a safe and happy 727 day.

Roland TR-707 drum machine "A brand new digital drum machine" brochure, 1985

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Wed, 07 Jul 2021 19:10:00 +0000

Roland TR-707 drum machine's "A brand new digital drum machine from Roland "four page colour brochure from March 1985.

Hey there! Happy 707 Day. My fifth happiest day after 303 Day, 808 Day, 909 Day and 606 Day. Oh wait... 202 Day. And 101 Day. Wait. 272 Day. Okay, my eighth happiest day of the year.

But its still a great day! It beat our 358 or so other days. Not too shabby.

All that aside... let's keep this short and sweet. Just like the 16 beat patterns found on this thing.

Based on the classic "We Design The Future" brochure style of the period for Roland, this thing is gorgeous. It hits all the right notes. Large images. lots of breathing room. Cool red laser effect when you flip open the brochure. A marble. Yeah... even the marble.

Like many of the other brochures in this series, the cover has a theme - in this case, some kind of metal thingy behind the 707. It's actually a little freaky on the eyes, ain't it? But that don't matter, because as soon as you open the brochure, you get that large image of the TR-707 and lots of info including the specs.

But even better than the marble and lazer found on those inside pages is the back page. Because here we have the lovely older brothers of the the 707 - the TR-909 and TR-606. I love that even as MIDI started overtaking previous sync standards, Roland kept that fire burning under the TR-606. I can't fault them for that (606 Day beats 707 Day by three other days!!!

Like I said. Short and sweet. because I have a job now. A real one. And its fun too.

Have a safe 707 Day! Enjoy!

Novation Super Bass Station brochure, 1997

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Wed, 02 Jun 2021 16:29:00 +0000

Novation Super Bass Station four page colour brochure from 1997.

Sure, the BassStation was (is) cool. So what could be cooler? The SUPER Bass Station.

Want to know what is not cool though. For the follow-up, Novation decided to make BassStation two words. Super. Bass. Station.

Grrrr....

Okay - with that out of the way. The first thing I need to point out is that I love Novation's consistency (except for that whole name thing). This looks amazingly similar to the Drum Station brochure I posted previously. Same design inside and out.

Just look... two peas in a pod.

Front page: Same "floating gear on black reflective texture" look to it.

But, unlike the Drum Station, this Super Bass Station brochure has not one, but TWO awards. The Future Music Platinum Award and The Mix Editor's Choice Award. Both from 1997, which is how I dated the brochure.

The inside pages are also follow the exact same format too. Large image. Diagram and text. But I find the blue theme in this SBS brochure much more appealing.

Even the back page has the specs in the same type of box as the Drum Station brochure.

So, what made the Super Bass Station... so... er... super?

Well, according to Wikipedia...

"Super BassStation (1997) added an arpeggiator, noise source, ring modulator, an additional LFO bringing the complement to two, a sub-oscillator (an octave below Oscillator 1), analogue chorus and distortion effects, keyboard filter tracking, stereo outputs and panning, enhanced memory, analogue trigger signal output and more to the original design."

First, even Wikipedia wants to make BassStation one word. You are wise, Wiki... you are wise.

Second...

"and more...?"

Okay, make me do some work.

Looking at the specs from both the BassStation (one word) and Super Bass Station (three words), one other thing jumps out at me almost immediately...

The envelope times have been increased quite a bit!

BassStation (one word)

Attack time: 1 ms to 5 sec

Decay Time: 3 ms to 10 secs

Release Time: 3 ms to 10 secs.

Super Bass Station (three words):

Attack time: 500 us to 20 secs

Decay time: 1 ms - 20 secs

Release 1 ms - 20 secs.

Nice.

There is one other thing that stood out - the Super Bass Station (three words) lost their CV and Gate inputs. There are only outputs now! But, I guess to make up for it, Novation added that Clock Out to sync that lovely new arpeggiator they added in. Fair trade I guess.

Interesting comment about the arpeggiator. Novation specifically markets it inside the brochure as:

"over 100 Arpeggiator patterns - TB-303 types with slides through to 9/8 and shuffle."

Okay, I get why they want to keep promoting this as a TB-303 sounding device. But really?

REALLY?

Novation Drum Station brochure, 1996

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 13 May 2021 20:52:00 +0000

Novation Drum Station four page colour brochure from approximately 1996.

So, it's looking like May could become Novation month. Well, the last half of May any way. I've been drilling down into their brochures and I'm really liking what I'm seeing. But first, a little house-keeping....

I haven't posted anything for almost a month a half. And that last post was my April Fools number - its been about two months since my last real post about the BassStation (one word). I know I've had droughts before but this time I actually have a reason. I got a job. No really... a REAL job. Digital marketing of course. But this time with a dash of business development involved too. Anywhooos, point being that time is becoming a little more limiting. Let's hope I can keep this going. Probably means keeping 'em short and sweet.

Now back to this lovely brochure.

After Novation's mind-blowing launch of the BassStation (one word) around 1993, it was hard to think they could follow it up with something that, personally, I found even more mind-blowing. Mind-melting even. That product - the Drum Station (two words).

Novation called their sound creation system A.S.M. - short for Analogue Sound Modelling, and state in the brochure that the technology "re-created with stunning realism the original character and flexibility of the TR-808 and TR-909 drum sounds". Weirdly, although the acronym A.S.M. is peppered about the first half of the brochure, it isn't until halfway down the second page that we actually learn what it stands for.

Instead of spending time on needless definitions, Novation decided to go straight to the jugular of P.C.M.-based systems on page one, explaining just how crappy and un-variable sampled sounds are.

"Yesterday's analogue drum machines, while not as authentic sounding as today's digitally-sampled equivalents, have the character and warmth which PCM-based systems just can't seem to replace. What's more, a sampled version of an analogue drum sound loses all the variability of the original as the sound is "frozen" in just one of the myriad combinations of the editable parameters which the original machines offered."

Bam! That's how you hit 'em where it hurts.

The intro goes on to explain that this is why there has been a resurgence of analogue drum sounds (true) and that the TR-808 and TR-909 are the much sought after "dream machines" (also true).

And with full control over parameters, these sounds could be as varied as the originals.

So how did it sound...? Unlike the BassStation (one word), which I'm already on record saying it doesn't sound much like a TB-303, this thing was a dream machine. Sure, no sequencer - it had to be controlled through MIDI (and most likely a computer sequencer). But who cares. It cost a lot less than a TR-808 and TR-808 - even at 1995 prices.

So yeah. Love it.

The brochure itself is lovely too. A gorgeous front page that has the Drum Station (two words) floating over top a black reflective texture of some sort. Very reminiscent of Roland textures from their "We design the future" period of the 80s. Inside we have a really large photo spread of the front face, a cool block diagram and lots of juicy info. Back page - the specs in a black font in a large light yellow box with rounded corners.

I mention the colour and shape of that box because I have an older version of this brochure that is slightly different. On the back page that box is square and black, with a white font. Exact same info in the exact same order. Just a different colour theme.

And that's not the only difference. This version of the brochure has that cool "Future Music Platinum Award" logo and blurb on the front page with a July 1996 date. The other version of the brochure doesn't have that award info, suggesting it probably came out earlier - maybe even 1995 when the machine was first released.

If you can find one of these (the machine, not the brochure) for a decent price. Definitely worth picking up. Great sounds. Rack mountable. Lots of tweaking.

Yum!

MMC-202 "Understanding Technology Series" advertisement, Sequencers! Sequencers! Sequencers! Magazine 1983

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 01 Apr 2021 17:07:00 +0000

MMC-202 "Understanding Technology Series" full page colour advertisement from page 263 of the 1983 Third Quarter issue of Sequencers! Sequencers! Sequencers! magazine.

Okay - what's not to love? The much loved MC-202 upgraded to MIDI?

It was hardly a secret that just before the launch of MIDI, Roland was already nearing production of their MPU-401 Midi Processing Unit interface and breakout box for many brands of personal computers including Apple, Commodore, IBM/PC and AT... even the MSX and Sharp X1. But Roland's accompanying family of MSQ series hardware sequencers were still months away from production and they needed something out there fast.

I can imagine the board meeting...

Executive one: "We got all these MC-202 spare parts lying around!"

Executive two: "Remove the synth to make room to retrofit in some MPU-401 guts!"

Executive three: "Slap an extra "M" on to the name".

Well... job well done, dammit!

Design-wise, this MCC-202 advertisement follows along the evolutionary path of many of Roland's other "Understanding Technology Series" advertisements, appearing shortly after the TR-808 and TB-303/TS-404 ads from the same time period.

Sadly, this MMC ad was the last in the series to appear in print - a fitting end and big F-U to CV/Gate and a big hello to MIDI.

Sure, the MSQ series, and in particular the MSQ-700 is always getting the spotlight when it comes to early Roland hardware MIDI sequencers, so not to many people choose to remember that when Roland founder Ikutaro Kakehashi and Sequential bossman Dave Smith unveiled the MIDI standard in 1983, it was Kakehashi who whipped out the new MMC-202 MIDI sequencer from his backpack the following day to a boothful of surprised music journalists and musicians. Walking over to the Sequential booth with MMC in hand, he connected it to the Sequential Circuits Prophet-600 and Roland Jupiter 6 that had just been connected and showed what MIDI could do.

Kakehashi was soon touring with the MMC-202 where ever he was invited, demonstrating the little sequencer along with some of Japan's most notorious DJs. It was no surprise that these demos led to over two years worth of huge sales throughout Belgium as well as the Long and McQuade in Regina, Saskatchewan.

Cute little ergonomic buttons. Easy to program. What's not to love. <3

Novation BassStation "Analogue for the 90s" brochure, 1994

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Fri, 19 Mar 2021 16:49:00 +0000

Novation BassStation "Analogue for the 90s" six page full colour brochure from 1994.

So... I decided to just randomly pull out a brochure. When I reached my hand in, all I knew was that I was in the "Kawai" - "Oberheim" section of the shelves, but that was it.

The result?

Novation BassStation!

Not Bass Station. Not Bassstation.

BassStation.

Now, before I get into a bit of history, I thought I'd explain my scan placements above. This is one of those (technically termed) crazy-fold brochures. So, the top scan is the front page. When you open up that front page to the right, you see the two pages I've put up next. Then, what happens is you flip that second page out to the right (again), revealing two more inside pages - so I've got the second page again, but this time it's shown with pages 4 and 5 as it would if laid out in front of you. And finally the back page.

Get it? Good.

I remember when this sweet machine came on the scene in 1993 - is was around the time that "Big Synth" was starting to dig the vintage stylez again. For example, in 1991 Roland rolled out the JD-800 with its distinctly analog-style interface. Used analog synth prices were also starting to rise (we complained back then!).

And all of a sudden... Boom. Novation, outta what seemed like nowhere, pulls the covers off their BassStation.

To hear Novation tell the story...

"When creating Bass Station, synthesiser developer Chris Huggett took the outer shell of MM10 and added the same Filter and VCA as his now legendary Wasp synthesiser to develop an instrument with it’s own unique sound and instant pedigree."

Nice. Wasp guts are cool.

But what's not so nice? Novation's own use of the two-word "Bass Station" in that online article ON THEIR OWN SITE. Wussup with that? I want consistency, dammit!

Anywho - it wasn't the Wasp guts that me and so many others were drooling over... it was the idea that this thing could sound like a 303!

Roland "Roland Rhythm Machines & Sequencers Vol. 1" catalog, 1985

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Wed, 03 Mar 2021 19:05:00 +0000

Roland "Roland Rhythm Machines & Sequencers Vol. 1" eight page full colour catalog from March 1985.

Happy 303 day! The most happiest of happiest days!

I'm gonna try and get a little 303 video ditty created before March 3 (I did - and posted!), but figured I'd scan something a little bigger than the normal one page advert or four page brochure and yap a little bit less about it.

So here we have Volume 1 of the "Roland Rhythm Machines & Sequencers" catalog, containing not just the lovely TB-303, but also the TR-707, TR-909, TR-606, CR-8000 & CR-5000, SBX-80, MSQ-100 & MSQ-700, and JSQ-60. Say all that in one breath.

One of the most interesting things about this brochure is the date - 1985. Roland was well on their way pushing the new MIDI standard, but they still had a few of their DCB and DIN devices on display.

But even more interesting is the inclusion of the TB-303. Most online resources would tell you that 303 production stopped, and the rest of the stock was sold off cheaply in 1984... so to see it pop up in a 1985 brochure makes me more than a little happy. Someone in a 1985 boardroom was saying "This MIDI thing is really taking off... but... just... in... case... we still have a few more of those 303s kicking around out there, let's put it in a catalog one more time.

Enough yapping. Back to 303'ing. :)

ARP "WonderArp" ad, Down Beat Magazine 1973

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Tue, 23 Feb 2021 19:17:00 +0000

ARP "WonderArp" half-page black and white advertisement from page 25 in the June 21, 1973 issue of Down Beat Magazine.

To date, I've posted three of the many many ARP ads that were popping up in Downbeat magazine during the 1970s. Each one very unique, but yet they all go together like peas in a pod.

These include a '74 Jimmy Page as well as '75 Carpenters and Pete Townshend ads. Aren't they gorgeous?

Now here's a forth, much earlier 1973 ad featuring Stevie Wonder and the ARP 2600. It's much simpler in design and although it still has the 'call to action' mail-in portion, its not that distinctive circular design with the ARP logo bullseye we see in later ads.

More interesting that the design is what's available in those mail-in sections. In the WonderARP ad we get checkboxes for:

send me everything you've got on all the ARP synthesizers, including free demo record
$6.00 for the 2600 manual
$1.00 for Odyssey manual
$9.95 (regularly $14.95) for a 45-minute cassette course on playing the Odyssey live

In the Carpenters and Jimmy Page ads, we get three choices

$9.95 cassette (as above)
free demo record
free full colour catalog.

And finally, in the Pete Townshend ad we still get three choices, but they include a new item!

213 page "learning music with synthesizers" for $7.50 plus 50 cents postage and handling
$3.00 "Who's ARP" silkscreened poster
free ARP demo record and catalog

From a collector's point of view, this is a treasure trove of information on what's floating around out there - and I'm always on the look out (for a half-decent price).

Demo records and manuals I got... but those other items... woooooo-weeee! I want 'em all.

First, there's that cassette on learning to play the Odyssey live. Never seen it in real life... but someone's gone to the trouble of taking what I believe is the cassette tape created by Roger Powell and published by ARP in 1973 and added pics from an ARP booklet to create a video. They've plopped it up on Vimeo - you can click on what I believe is the cassette cover below to hear the cassette.

The second item of interest is that "Who's ARP" poster. I've only seen one or two pop up in online auctions, like this photo I found online.

The third document that catches my interest and I've never been able to get my hands on is that 213-page "Learning music with synthesizers" book. And even if I had it in my collection - fat chance of me scanning it. I can't sit still long enough to scan 213 pages! Go talk to mu:zines... patience of a saint, that one... (shout out!)

Luckily for all of you, if you had done a quick search online chances are you would have found a scanned copy like I did over at thesnowfields.com (PDF). Not the best quality, but a fun read if you are into that sort of thing. :)

Here's an image of the front cover of the second edition from 1974.

Written by David Friend, Alan R. Pearlman and Thomas D. Piggott, the book is based on programming the ARP Odyssey but, as said in the preface by Mr. Friend, "the theory and techniques can generally be applied to any synthesizer". And he's not wrong. Filled with tons of diagrams and drawings, the book is broken up into three parts - Theory, Operation and Applications. Like I said... a good read.

Now that I've got those out of my system... back to scanning...

And I've scanned one page. That's enough for today.

ARP / Mu-tron price lists, 1980

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Fri, 12 Feb 2021 18:09:00 +0000

ARP / Mu-tron price lists from January 1, 1980.

Given that I'm a HUGE fan of price lists, you'd think that I would have pushed this out the door a lot sooner, but I just never got around to it. Even more surprising, I'm not gonna focus on the prices at all*.

* I reserve the right to change my mind

Instead, when I looked back at these scans I became more curious to the relationship between Musitronics and ARP, and quickly found that the history isn't remotely close to being as bright and rosy as I had wanted it to be.

TO summarize... according to Wikipedia, Mu-tron, short for Musitronics, was a musical effects company founded by Mike Beigel and Aaron Newman in 1972. Beigel was an engineer who had been working on a synth project at Guild Guitar Company when the president of the company was killed in an accident. The new president wasn't as interesting in synths (what the heck?!?!) so Beigel and another former engineer new Newman from GGC, pulled the envelope filter outta that synth and called it the Mu-Tron III.

By 1979 Musitronics had 35 employees and was churning out a number of effects units out of a retrofitted chicken coop. Eventually, they decided to sell to ARP Instruments on a royalty basis, but unfortunately ARP folded in 1980, before they could collect any money.

Okay, I summarized a lot.

But even if my severely summarized ditty isn't bumming you out enough already, Musitronics tried to keep going as Gizmo Incorporated, but it ended when Aaron Newman suffered a heart attack.

FACK.

I hate everything about this story. But the connect between these two companies is important history, the details of which we don't hear much about. So, here are two scans to help keep those companies connected just a little bit longer.

Okay - let's end this on a happy note - LOOK AT THOSE ARP SYNTHS.

There - much better.

Roland "We design the future" MC-202 Microcomposer brochure, 1983

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Tue, 02 Feb 2021 16:16:00 +0000

Roland "We design the future" MC-202 Microcomposer 8-page colour brochure from 1983.

Happy 2/02 day! And I got a doozy for ya. Behold the magnificent MC-202 "We design the future" brochure.

Over the last couple of weeks, we've heard a lot of about hedging. In particular, GameStop's share price skyrocketing, messing with hedge funds that poured huge amounts of cheddar into shorting Gamestop's stock. And then those hedge funds having to hedge those shorts by buying stock at an ever increasing price, making the stock go even higher. Or, at least that's how I understood it. Don't @ me if I'm wrong.

Point is... Hedge. And I'm thinking this MC-202 brochure is kinda symbolic of Roland's hedge against MIDI. I'm not saying Roland was against MIDI - NOT AT ALL! They were definitely on the forefront of the technology. I just think, like any good company would and should, they were hedging their bets.

More on that in a bit. But first, for some background info (and because its simply amazing!), we need to flip through the brochure.

Like most of the "We design the future" brochures, we get that classic front page - a large red title, large artistic image, that lovely logo top left. Flip to page 2 and 3, and we continue Roland's classic brochure format with a large image of the featured piece of gear and some great marketing info. Yum!

But then something weird happens. We turn the page to what should be the back of the brochure.

WHAT THE?

More info? That's right - no back page here. Instead we get two more pages on how to use the MC-202 specifically. So awesome. Lot's of diagrams. Lot's of info. Read through that an you are pretty much an expert on programming the MC-202.

*throws manual in garbage* Thank you very much.

Okay... NOW let's flip the page and take a look at what's on that back page...

SHUT THE FRONT DOOR! EVEN MORE INFO!

First a page titled "Play Bach" that puts those programming chops we just memorized on the previous two pages to work to actually churn out some Bach on the MC-202. No kidding. And across the street we get a page devoted to the "Expandability of the MC-202" which includes a Who's Who list of kick-butt Roland products while describing what's going on on the back panel of the 202.

Wicked.

Then. FINALLY. We turn the page and get the classic brochure back page that Roland is known for. Info on Roland's TB-303, TR-606 and SH-101.

Interestingly, all these devices on that page have one thing in common (besides being Roland gear):

No MIDI.

MIDI was just around the corner and by 1983 Roland, who was a big developer of MIDI technology, had already started on the design of Roland's first MIDI interface - the MPU-401. But what if MIDI didn't take off? What if it was a dud?

I believe Roland spent significantly more resources, print ink and page real estate on this MC-202 brochure to hedge that MIDI bet. I realize, in the grand scheme of things, the cost of this brochure would pale in comparison to the cost of the development of that MPU-401 interface. It's really more of a symbolic hedge after spending significantly more money on developing Roland's next gen non-MIDI gear - the TB-303, TR-606 and SH-101.

Yeah, sure, I have no data to back any of this up. It's just a hunch.

But I did just hedge my comment by saying I have no data to back any of this up. :)

Aaaaah. Hedging.

Roland MKS-50 Polyphonic Synthesizer Module "The newest Juno synthesizer..." brochure, 1987

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 28 Jan 2021 19:00:00 +0000

Roland MKS-50 Polyphonic Synthesizer Module "The newest Juno synthesizer..." four page colour brochure from 1987.

Oh man - first post of 2021 - and what a way to start! The MKS-50!

Like the Alpha Juno 1/2 brochure that came out the previous year, and that I blogged about back in September 2019, this little feller follows Roland's classic (and consistent) "We design the future"... eeeer... design. My favourite part being a lovely front page that includes a large title and creatively placed featured piece of gear.

In this case the MKS-50 is floating above what looks to be silvery sheets of paper of some sort. This ties back nicely with the photograph used on that Alpha Juno brochure where the two synths are sitting on top of a similar type of paper.

Okay - let's talk about the elephant in the room. That huge burn mark that starts on the front page, and actually makes it's way to the second and third page as well. It was sent to me this way. Honest. I don't even smoke. Now, usually I would do a little photoshop magic to remove these types of blemishes, but in this case I kept it in. Sure, that's partly laziness on my part, but also because its indicative of how many brochures are sent to me in this type of condition and, well, I kinda cool in its own way. This brochure has seen some dark times. It encapsulates 2020. Poor thing.

Thinking back, I'm pretty sure the MKS-50 was my first Roland module. I had a a few Roland keyboard synths including an Alpha Juno 2 at the time, but as space started getting slim, I began to actively hunt down rack version of synths that I already had and then would dump the keyboard version when I found it's rack equivalent. And it was when I stumbled across what eventually became my MKS-50 that I first came in contact with another most incredible piece of gear - the PG-300 Programmer (it's in the brochure, too!).

I cannot stress enough how important Roland programmers were to me and many of my friends. You gotta understand that many synths from this time period replaced the visual feedback that came with one-control per function operation for some type of small display - the DX-7, Sequential Six-Trak, Korg DW synths, Kawai K's... the list goes on. The Alpha at least had the giant alpha wheel to help quickly dial in the specific parameter you were looking for, but it was still annoying as heck.

Having that PG-300 gave me the immediate visual feedback I'd been missing with the Alpha Juno - and I was hooked! And it's built like the MKS-50 - like a tank! I started tracking down other programmers for my other synths, managing to grab the PG-800 for my MKS-70 as well as the PG-1000 for my D-550 before the secret was out of the bag and prices of the programmers started to skyrocket. Never managed to grab an MPG-80 programmer for my MKS-80 and now that prices are hovering around the $2000 mark, chances are slim I'm ever gonna get one.

I don't even think there are any hardware alternatives. I've read that the Virus TI can be programmed to pump out the right sysex to program an MKS-80, but like I've already stated above... I'm lazy.

And don't even start on software editors. Ugh.

ARP 2600, Omni-2, Piano and Quartet infosheets, 1979

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 31 Dec 2020 20:25:00 +0000

Set of ARP 2600, Omni-2, Piano and Quartet infosheets from 1979.

Catalogues, info-sheets, brochures? I just don't know which is which anymore. I definitely haven't been consistent over the last 11 or 12 years that I've been yapping on and on through this blog. And my tags are a dog's breakfast because of it.

In my head, catalogues are usually larger marketing documents that contain a little bit of everything, bound together in some way. Saddle stitch, glue or whatever.

Love 'em.

I got a lot of 'em.

Roland. Korg. Casio, Akai... they even have covers that say "catalog" or "catalogue" on 'em with a year/date and volume number - very official looking. But scanning large catalogues takes a lot of time and I'm an "efficiently lazy" person by nature, so you don't see a lot of them on the blog.

Info-sheets, on the other hand, are those one-pagers (often two-sided) that contain a lot of information and specs on one instrument. Often, they are part of a larger group of similarly designed info-sheets like the ones above. And usually I scan these similar documents all at once, and then spread out their posts over time so that in my head I feel like I'm being more productive.

I gotta tell ya, lately I've been feeling like I'm running out of things to say.

How many times can I say...

"Lovely!"

"Consistent design!"

"Logo!"

"Font!"

"Large photo!"

"Diagram!"

"Did I mention diagram!"

Now, I gotta say that all of the above applies here and posting them all at once really shows off the lovely consistent design with large photos and diagrams. I could literally post a scan and just write LCLFLDD underneath the images and call it a day.

There isn't much else coming outta my head these days synth-related.

Hence, lets continue on with my original thought. Where was I? Catalogues. Info-sheets... oh right...

Brochures.

Brochures, in my head, are usually smaller that catalogues, but larger than info-sheets. Maybe stapled if they are more than two pages.

Sometimes they tell the company story and feature more than one instrument - I'm thinking in particular of that 1974 "Arp Story" brochure that I had posted earlier this month.

But, isn't this just a catalogue?

To make it even more confusing, each of those pages can also be found in the wild as individual "info-sheets", and ARP even created addition info-sheet inserts for this brochure of newly released instruments to increase the shelf life of the original brochure.

But how about those Roland "We design the future" brochures I fetishize over?

Drool.

*tick tick tick*

(Its literally two hours later because I started looking at these lovely beasts. I still have so many to scan from this series.)

Anyways, like those ARP info-sheets above, these Roland brochures feature one instrument and usually contain a diagram or two, some specs, and are part of a larger group of similarly designed documents. The only real difference between those ARP info-sheets and these Roland brochures is a fold. Seriously. A FOLD.

I guess my point is that I have no standardization.

Hey... I'm surfing around the blog now... what about this ARP "promo/datasheet"...?

Or these Moog "reference sheets"... ?

Do I go back and change them all to "fact sheets" now?

So much work.

Double ugh. :)

ARP "From Jimmy With ARP" advertisement, Downbeat Magazine 1974

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 31 Dec 2020 20:25:00 +0000

ARP "From Jimmy With ARP" half-page black and white advertisement from page 41 in the June 20, 1974 issue of Downbeat Magazine.

Well, look at this! I hope you are noticing the trend. As part of trying to get all my 2020 ARP 50th anniversary celebration posts... eeer... posted, I've been uploading quite a few ARP pieces this month, including two of the many ARP advertisements from the time period that used a very similar half page, black and white format.

And now... I've posted the third. With more to come.

I love that all three of these ads all fit into a theme, but yet they are all very distinguishable from each other. There isn't a stagnant "photo/artwork at top" - "text in the middle" - "Logo in bottom right" format to them. Each of the ads has kept a unique look. As unique as the different artists that are featured in each one.

One other thing I like about all three ads is they all contain one of those little cookies I went on about in my last Carpenters ad. This earlier ad uses the code "DB-620" (Downbeat June 20), but curiously leaves out the "year", unlike that those other 1975 ads included (DB 1-16-75). Looking at a few of the other earlier ARP ads like the Edgar Winter ARP ads that appeared around six months earlier, they too used the earlier cookie format that didn't include the year. No real other comment to make on that fact - just interesting that they changed the format.

Another little thing that separates this earlier ad from the others is the little picture in the bottom right hand corner of three of ARP's products. This little photo also appears in Edgar Winter's Frankenstein and Freeride ARP ads, but not in Billy Preston's Space Race ARP ad or Stevie Wonder's WonderArp ad (none which I've posted yet). Once I've mapped out the timeline for all these half-pagers, it will be interesting to see when exactly they were added and removed.

My past experiences of 'Zep run along the same lines of The Who. I didn't really understand or 'get' the synth influences first time around. The one thing I do notice when looking back, is that fans of Townsend were much more accepting of the band's use of synthesizers where Led fans weren't so sure they shared their favourite band's love for them. Just my observation - your mileage may vary.

Now, where deeper knowledge of most Zeppelin songs flew over my head (except for the mandatory ever butt-grabbing Stairway to Heaven), there was one song I was always willing to get behind...

Carouselabra.

For some reason I've always had an affinity for that one. Maybe it was the synths that first got me hooked? Maybe? It could also have been that some of the dreamier parts reminded me of Alan Parson's stuff. I dunno. Hard to say. But I can tell you when the topic of Led Zeppelin came up with friends at a party, I would turn the convo towards that song, and trying to convince them to play it on whatever stereo system was handy.

Just for fun, I googled the song to see what others had to say, and this rather interesting post on Cheatsheet.com came up - "What Robert Plant Regretted About Led Zeppelin’s ‘Carouselambra’". It takes a little bit of a deep dive on the lyrics of the song.

Go Cheatsheet! Go Carouselabra!

And okay... go Stairway to Heaven!

ARP "Meet the Carpenters new string ensemble" ad, Downbeat Magazine 1975

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 17 Dec 2020 18:06:00 +0000

ARP "Meet the Carpenters new string ensemble" black and white advertisement from the March 27, 1975 issue of Downbeat Magazine 1975.

I'm a cookie addict. As someone who likes to eat. As an online marketing professional. As a curator/archivist. Yum! But more about that in a sec...

Following hot on the heels of my post about ARP's 1975 advertisement that featured Pete Townshend of The Who and his 2600 is this lovely promo featuring the Carpenters and ARP's String Ensemble. As far as I can tell, this advertisement showed up in various issues in a few different publications in 1974 and 1975, but I've even seen it referenced in 1976 as well.

It's interesting that it got so much page time, so rather than blog about The Carpenters, a band I unsurprisingly know very little about, I thought I'd take a look at the marketing side of things. In particular, the little "cookie" that followed this, and many other ads around like gum on a shoe to tell the company where someone saw this advertisement.

In a way, it's similar to the common digital cookie that can end up following you around the web, annoying you with an ad for a Home Depot lawn mower you were looking at earlier in the day. ARP placed a cookie in the mail-in section of many of their ads, so if you bothered to fill it out and mail it in, ARP knew you were responding to this very specific advertisement. You can see that cookie in the close-up below (red box).

DB 1-16-75.

Downbeat, January 16, 1975.

I can hear you say "but you said this advertisement was from the March 27, 1975 issue!" It sure was, but the advertising campaign or budget utilizing this ad probably first appeared in the January issue. Smart.

If you look closely at the Pete Townshend ad I posted, it has a DB 6-5-75 cookie, so that particular ad campaign probably began in the June 5, 1975 issue of Downbeat - the one I scanned! And, if you compare it to the same ARP/Pete ad that appeared in the May 22, 1975 issue of Rolling Stone, you can see it uses a different code - RS-142.

So, RS = Rolling Stone. But what the heck is that 142? Well...

I'm not sure. No, really. Not sure at all.

The May 22, 1975 issue of Rolling Stone was issue 187. Since Rolling Stone was produced bi-weekly (I think?!?!) at that point, it would mean that if that number referred to the issue number, the first appearance of this ad would be almost two years before. Which doesn't appear likely. So, yeah. Still a mystery.

But the point is, when all those cut-out return forms start making their way back home, those little cookies let ARP have a better idea of which ad in which magazine worked best to get you to respond.

When I first started noticing these cookies in magazines, I first thought maybe the code wasn't a company code at all - maybe it was included by the magazine as a courtesy or to show the company that got the form back that the reader saw the ad in that particular magazine. To try and solve this question, I started looking at other ads that included mail-ins.

Sure enough, many other ads included a little cookie in their clip-out sections as well. But, the cookie in different ads were often in different formats. For example, in that same issue of Rolling Stone that the ARP RS-142 cookie is found, we also get the company below using a fictitious department called "Dept RS" as the cookie. This is interesting because if the reader decides they don't want to cut out the form from their precious magazine, they would still use this address to write to the company and the company would STILL know how the reader found them since the address on the letter would have included the cookie.

Another ad for a reggae record from the same Rolling Stone mag used the PO Box (Box 6/RS) for their cookie:

"Feelin' High". Ha! Yes, I'm nine years old.

And finally, this Monty Python ad below from the same mag has just a little "rs" in the bottom right corner. Adorable.

I've seen them in all manner of magazines. Those I collect - like Contemporary Keyboard/Keyboard, Electronic Musician, Electronics & Music Maker, etc... as well as magazines I just happen to be flipping through at a friends house or online. From the 70s to the 90s and beyond. Those little cookies are everywhere.

I get especially excited when I see an ad with a cookie, but the cookie is for a different magazine entirely. It's like someone forgot to update the ad for the new mag. That's pure adrenaline! Makes my day.

Once I started looking for them, I couldn't stop, and to this day I still look for them.

Now you will too! You got lots of time during your covid lock down anyways.