Joy of Synths #26 Used & Pre-Owned Synths
Account of buying a cut-rate synth in Tampa in this non-musician’s guide to creating sounds for podcasts, videos, and sampling for music using analog synthesizers.
9/5/2024 GUITAR CENTER
I bought my first synth used from Guitar Center (GC) online back in 2018. They had a nice 45 day return policy so back to the store all the gear went, sparing me return shipping cash, restocking fees, or having to resell a synth I did not like. In comparison other sellers have a 15 day return window.
GC ONLINE
GC used gear listed online pools from GC retail stores across the US if the store lists it somehow on the GC website. GCs online photos are limited in quantity (1) and quality, and the variable of whether or not it comes with original box, power supply, and cables, so it’s all a leap of faith.
Recently I picked up a used B. Model D synth from GC online for $99 as the retail store misclassified it as a TD-3 with a Model D photo.
This Model D has a rattle though, likely due to the poorly packaged shipment. They refunded the $20 shipping fee. I kept the synth because I’ve never seen a Model D for $99 and if it is truly messed up then that’s another sound to play with.
SEARCH FOR PITTSBURGH MODULAR SYNTHS
A month back I was searching online for Pittsburgh Modular (PM) synths in general, and then specifically their SV-1b. Google- of all places- returned a $449 price drop of a potential blackbox SV-1b at Guitar Center, Tampa. This was in late July, and given the single image on GC’s site, it was hard to tell if it was a blackbox, which is a self-contained powered unit, or a module without power intended to be mounted in a powered Eurorack rack. If you look at the screenshot above you’ll see that Reverb seller lists the blackbox module, which is clickbait as the SV-1b ships as a module or blackbox. A module is not a blackbox, though PM did upgrade modules to blackboxes for a fee back in 2020.
I knew I had to drive roundtrip to Tampa anyways in about a month so I figured I’d wait and see it in person. If it sold in the next 30 days then no problem. Turns out The Tampa GC is one plaza over from the Goodwill on Hillsborogh. Not hard to get to from the Tampa Convention Center.
WHERE IS IT?
I have not set foot in a GC since 2019. I had a hard time finding the SV-1b in the store. Mostly because it was boxed, in a Blackbox box, not out in display as a module or Blackbox. Because it was boxed, this unit didn’t sell. The box just says “Blackbox” on it. And their online photo makes it hard to tell if you’re buying a module or Blackbox with no mention of original box.
Mind you, in 2020 the module was $599 and powered Blackbox was $699. I was able to upgrade an onsale $480 module to a scratch and dent Blackbox for a total of $550 new.
In 2024, well, the GC sales people were recent hires so they had no knowledge of where this SV-1b was stored or where it came from. Their store computer only told them it was first listed for sale in 12/2023.
JOY OF SYNTHS, PLURAL
I bought it because it was $449 pre tax, I didnt have to pay $20 shipping, and it was boxed w the $20 power supply, some dingy discolored blue patch cables, and the $15 MIDI adapter. Plus it has a 45 day in store return policy, whereas if I had non-buyers remorse and ordered it online I might have to ship it back rather than return instore.
If I already own a Blackbox SV-1b why get 2 of the same thing? Good question. That’s the joy of synths. Now I have one to modulate the other, or 4 Osc, 2 filters, 2 envelope generators, 2 LFOs, and 2 mixers. Or I can mix one into the other’s mixer. Or mix Control Voltage from one or both to modulate the other.
SV-1b VS 2600?
For context, this Summer I bought and returned pre-price drop B. ARP2500 modules and a Eurorack rack. With this money back and price drops I decided to order the B 2600. (Oddly prices on Behringer $199 synths were raised to $219.) Well, the B 2600 Gray Meanie sold out and that 8/3/24 backorder has extended from Sept 2024 to Dec/Jan 2025.
Despite having never resold an instrument, the resale value is useful for decision making. Of the two options- a 2600 or SV-1b, the SV-1b is out of production and resells for $550 as a module on Reverb. So if I don’t return the SV-1b I can resell it for an even $500 and not lose money. Given that the 2600 will eventually be available new, well, a resale loss would be likely. Put another way, the 2600 lost $150 in actual resale with the $150 price drop.
While I already own a SV-1b, I also bought and returned the 2600 in 2022. It was nice but too big compared to smaller synths like the SV-1b, which is 48 HP, or horizontal pitch. I simply had no good place to store a 2600. I still don’t.
MIDI SPLIT CONTROL
In reading the SV-1b’s manual I noticed it has a MIDI to CV module with velocity, which is great if your MIDI controller sends velocity messages based on how hard (fast) or soft (slow) you press the keys. This CV can go to the Voltage Controlled Amplifier for dynamics of loud and soft variations.
There is no MIDI THRU but that’s an easy fix.
Two SV-1bs also means I can control both synths w 1 controller and a MIDI splitter cable OR use a Korg SQ-1 at 16 steps to control 1 and a SQ-64 to control the other at different tempo. I’ve wanted to try that for so long.
KNOWN POTENTIAL FOR GREATNESS
In Melrose Audio Studio in August I played an original grey SV-1 and revised SV-1b together and liked the sounds more than solo B. Pro-One recordings.
This second SV-1b will show me if owning two of the same thing sounds as good in practice as on paper. I have the PM Stereo Okapi mixer module so I can feed one SV-1b into left channel 1 and second SV-1b into right channel 2 for panning. But I’ll skip the Okapi and record each mono synth into the recorder’s mono left and mono right WITHOUT mono mix and wait until software to blend the two together.
UNAWARE SHOPPING MANIA
Goodwills Hunting (pun by ABT)
Going to Tampa was always going to be a shopping trip. I was buying a bunch of $7 -$8 golf clubs at two Goodwills for a total of 11 irons/clubs for under $100 total. I rationalized I had spent $25 at Popstroke putt putt hours before so it wasn’t such a bad golf expenditure. Plus a new putter at a sporting goods store runs about $100 and rising. It’s the old adage of it would cost me money NOT to buy 11 golf clubs/irons. (Update: money well spent! Orlando Goodwills have lesser clubs for money money.)
So this golf binge reflects shopping mania, which hides as hyperfocus. I had plotted this SV-1b purchase for a month, and well, I had planned to walk away if it was a Eurorack module, if it was missing the power supply, and if it didn’t have the MIDI adapter cable. Since all my conditions were met, I completed the sale mostly because I felt calm and not overcome by a rush of adrenaline. It was divine providence. It was meant to be, for possibly 45 days.
Alas, shopping mania does figure into it as I continued shopping at the Tampa Library used bookstore and buying $6 of 2 criterion DVDs and books. They have an honor policy and no change, so I was lucky to have $1 bills in my bag. Shopping mania also figures into me writing paragraphs about shopping at 3am in the morning.
PROBLEMS SOLVED
Back to synths. This second SV-1b feels like it solves a problem I didn’t know I had. I’ve combined other synths together and created interesting sounds. I really like the sound of the SV-1 and 1b together, so having two SV-1b synths and a controller in house allows for more recording and patching with minimal footprint.
The second SV-1b also solves the shopping mania problem. My interest in owning other synths is now dormant. That restless psychic need is settled. I own a second SV-1b. I feel rich, like someone with $200 limited edition sneakers or a $1200 suit. The SV-1b cost is worth it for the psychic relief from troubles I did not know I was struggling with.
Now, I understand Pittsburgh Modular doesn’t see a penny of a used SV-1b instrument just like ARP Foundation sees nothing from a Behringer 2600, to the best of my knowledge. But I started playing synths with the SV-1, and bought the SV-1b in 2020, and love that I have a second one set up in 2024. Again, psychic relief as the SV-1b solves problems I didn’t know I had and can’t fully articulate. I just feel relief.
Back to the Golf Clubs: not everything fits. I bought a 5 and 6 iron in Tampa. I tested them yesterday. The 5 was consistently sending the golf ball high and far. The 6 was hitting either a ground ball or low and short. So the 6 goes out of the golf bag. The 5 works awesome so that stays. More is more but the golf game is about hitting the ball the least times possible. I like hitting the ball so I’m fine with building skills on the driving range. (9/17/24 Update: I played with the clubs at a 9 hole walking course on Disney property for 40% off due to aeration. I had a feeling afterwards that maybe I’m just a driving range golfer. That’s more fun than chasing a poorly hit ball poorly down the fairway.)
Same goes for synths. One instrument may give a better feel than another. I don’t care for more than a few synths I own or bought and returned. I bought too many based off specs rather than sounds. Alas, they don’t fit where I am right now. It’s not the right instrument right now.
FINDING THE RIGHT INSTRUMENT
This search for the perfect instrument is not an endless quest. A suggestion is to find a synth with a lot of patch points to rewire the instrument with another synth. Again, the second SV-1b solves my problem with pairing one SV-1b with other synths. It satisfies the desire to discover new sounds with new synths, or in this case, new-to-me synths. So I’m done for 2024 synth shopping and I have zero interest in owning a B 2600 when I have 11 hours of studio time to play an ARP2500 and Antonus 2600, plus ARP Omni, in October 2024. Amen.
War inside my head: Behringer Vs Pittsburgh Modular
I took stock and I now own 3 PM synths (2x SV-1b and the original Voltage Research Lab), 1 PM designed synth (East Beast), and 4 PM modules (a 2+2 Mixer, 2x Harmonic Interpolation Flamingo, and a Stereo Okapi mixer.)
I have 5 behringer synths that thru Amazon two were free. I’ve spent much more money on PM instruments and modules. The cost of 3 Behringer Synths is $579 with the stand. That equals what I paid for my first PM SV-1b. A 3:1 ratio.
Should I be outraged? No. Different companies have different development and assembly set ups.
Some people love Moogs. Others are Buchla proud. Or this brand or another. For example, I love littleBits Korg Synth kit more than other synths I own. If how an instrument is organized makes sense to you then go with it.
9/7/24 THINGS ARE DIFFERENT THIS TIME, SERIOUSLY
Its Sept 7, my birthday, and the SV-1b is the gift. The best gift ever!
Things are different this time. I tell myself that everytime. “This is the last one. I am complete. I am made whole.”
So my next great synth is the synth I got started with in 2017 the SV-1 and its 2020 reissue SV-1b. Now, 7 years later, 2024, I have 2 SV-1bs! Awesome and inspiring!
After all else I’ve bought, returned or kept SINCE 2018, well. I’m done with that consumer journey. Now and hereforth it’s about playing, recording, editing and applying the sounds.
This Joy of Synths newsletter will shift focus off buying synths and gear to the next step of everything else after you part with cash. (Please don’t go into debt. 20-30% APR is criminal but credit cards get away with it.).
Alright. This means the playing/recording/releasing process will be documented in this Substack newsletter.
END NOTE
Happy September 17th!
Next issue of Joy of Synths skips October 1 and releases on October 15, 2024 as travel is scheduled Sept 29-Oct 2, 2024 and I need to lock-in and learn how to maximize either the Korg SQ-64 Sequencer or the Behringer Swing. Cheers!
All Content Copyright 2024 Anthony Torres, All Rights Reserved.