This article will be a great introduction for everyone curious about electronic synthesisers and technology focusing on EMS Synthi A and EMS Synthi AKS. Expand your knowledge and get some creative inspiration!
EMS and its synthesisers
EMS stands for Electornic Music Studios. This is an electronic instrument manufacturer from Cornwall, England. EMS Synthi is one of their synthesiser. The first one being VCS3 and later came AKS, which is basically an updated version of VCS3 and Synthi A with AKS being a keyboard and a sequencer with it. EMS Synthi AKS is one of the most iconic and mysterious synthesiser of all time. Even to this day, none of the hardware or software synthesiser can give out the kind of unpredictable soundscape as of EMS Synthi. With this it still remained one of the most heavily sought synthesiser to all the synth-nerds that is out there.
EMS Synthi A was first available in the market in 1971 the time when Robert Moog’s Minimoog hit the market.
The unique look of EMS Synthi A
The look itself captured lot of top notch people’s attention at that time. The most interesting was you could carry it like a briefcase. When you close the Synthi AKS, it looked a briefcase. This portability feature itself was one of the most attractive feature of the Synthi AKS.
When you open up the Synthi AKS, you are as if, exposed to complete new dimension inside an space shuttle with various colorful knobs and stuff. The keyboard was absolutely in blue. All of the functionality that you could interact with is blue on the keyboard section.
The innovation behind Synthi AKS
If we take a look at the Synthi AKS’s top panel with filled with knobs, one of the most unique invention was the patch matrix system. Synthi AKS was the first to bring the patch matrix system and getting rid of the patch cables, which could get so riddling and mess over large complex patch.
Synhi AKS itself is a modular synthesiser. One of the another interesting thing you could do, was to hook up another signal coming in from another electronic device or instrument which Synthi could add a layer of extra versatile sound to it.
Musicians working with Synthi AKS
Synth AKS was used by musicians like Pink Floyd, Jean michel Jarre’s mighty Oxygene, Equinox, a lot of Klaus Schulze’s magnificent works. Brian Eno popularised it by utilising its signal-chain-editing. Brain Eno always got down to the deepest of every synth he owned. You can hear it’s sound via youtube or the artists mentioned here.