The MG-1, aka the “Radio Shack Moog” was my introduction to analog synthesis. In the early 1990s, you could find these between $150-200 used. It was the Minilogue of it’s time. The filter was excellent, you could crank the resonance and play it like a 3rd oscillator. The sound was thick, it was an excellent first synth.

It's hilarious that even with all the modern affordable analog monosynths this is still worth a half a kidney 😅

@chinmeysway

2 жыл бұрын

It’s not, it’s just over-hyped like pretty much all moogies!

@Cjx0r

Жыл бұрын

looks like we got a easel guy over here

@ZenMountain

Жыл бұрын

?? Half a kidney? No. You need to get a job man.

@thesimulations8900

8 ай бұрын

Love the simplicity and the fact that 3 techs near me (Detroit) can keep this running for the rest of my life. A lot of newer gear seems disposable. When it breaks, just buy the latest new one. Not sure any of these guys would work on newer smd synths. One day though the newer stuff will need servicing. Then what?🤔

The MG-1 has a real human soul trapped in it to get some of those voices. I love the way it mopes and hums like a sad robot.

Even though the designers trimmed away the wheels at the bottom end of the keyboard it still feels like a complete synth. Listening to this particular demo, it's hard to believe this was intended as a budget model.

Hahaha I remember seeing these in Radio Shack, god I’m old

I found one of these in a music shop for $50 in 1996! It was in perfect shape. I had an EMU sampler at the time and sampled the hell out of it. I felt pretty good when I eventually sold it for $300 around 2000. Fun synths, but today I’d buy a Behringer Model D.

@videosuperhighway7655

8 ай бұрын

Now they are worth 9000 dollars.

Still watching so sorry if you touched on this in the video , but an interesting note is the engineer behind this is none other than Paul Schreiber of Synthesis Technology (also the founder of the MOTM format synths).

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

I didn't know that ! Actually, I wrote in a for-sale listing that the organ was just 4 voices(not sure where I got that), and he is the one who corrected me! I had no idea he was the man behind it 😂🤣😂🤣

@SynthAddict

2 жыл бұрын

damn, Paul gets around :-)

@handmadeindustrial

2 жыл бұрын

Paul is so helpful. He’d talk to me for hours on the phone when I was building his modules.

So many synths, and just one life… :)

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

That's why I buy and sell so many, so much to experience!

I have the MG1 from 1984 ! still works! I use it with my Korg monologue

I'm loving your content. So glad the algorithm brought me here. Hopefully the channel keeps blowing up!

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

I hope so too!

Great demo! Never had the pleasure of using one of these. That poly section is awesome!

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

Poly section surprised me, for sure!

"MY SPACE ECHO" fr tho, quality guide to getting the most out of the MG-1, appreciate it 👍

@JorbLovesGear

Жыл бұрын

Thanks! happy to have it out there

Had a little obsession with these a few years back after seeing a band called POW! use one extensively during their live set. In the end went to and picked up a Poly D as a modern sort of alternative

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

That'll do the job too, good stuff!

@thesimulations8900

8 ай бұрын

Saw Thee Oh Sees a week ago and John Dwyer was using this and a Teenage Engineering OP-1 live. Sounded great.

I HAVE it. I LOVE IT. i love the poly mode mixet in to the mono with portamento

Oh man, this takes me back. Had one 27 years ago. At that time i was all for digital so i moved it on... Recall lfo to vcf made a kick-arse kick drum that i used to jam along to. The foam behind the sliders rots awfully. I did the mod to send audio in through the filter. Was great on drum loops. Glad YOU have got one bro. Cheers. Ps, i have only ever one here in Australia, and that was my one...

@clazza65

2 жыл бұрын

I got mine in 1983 from Tandy on the Gold Coast, my very first synth. Still in great condition. I have a second one just for parts, if needed. They are out there.

So much gear to love, right Jorb? :)

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

Absolutely! In a lot of ways, too much to love. Lol

What a nice synth and nice channel 👍

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

Cheers, really appreciate it. Im quite proud!

The price is wild but given the thickness of the mono sounds, having 2 osc to blend (very primitive but that PULSE was incredible) and the poly mode with the smooth squarewave. The filters are incredible sounding too. Kinda hate that i like it lol. Okay i changed my mind its too much but still very applicable to a lot of different situations. Would cop if seller wouldnt kno.

A fantastic emulator is available with a lifetime free license called Surrealistic MG-1 Plus. I own both and have not played the Moog for months in favor of the emulator. Have it pinned right on my taskbar.

great synth!

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

For a consumer grade instrument, it really does rip. Even 40 years later!

@SpikesStudio3

2 жыл бұрын

What would you know? (Chuckling to myself). Love your work too. Jorb should have more subs. Whats wrong with people? Dont they appreciate talent and good things?

They should’ve kept that poly organ feature going on other stuff. That’s awesome! The noise generator sounds fantastic as well. Nice!

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

Cheers! Yeah they really did throw a lot of ideas into this one little keyboard. Such a cool bit of history.

@flurng

Жыл бұрын

Agreed! I have one & I love the poly organ sound! I mean, let's face facts; it sounds UBER-cheesy on its own, but I mix it in about 1/3 volume with the oscillators ("tone sources ") & it really fattens the sound up nicely! Plus, I can hold chord harmonies and play melodies over top of them! But my favorite trick is to tune the oscillators a fifth apart, then tune the organ up a major third, and from there , I tune the oscillators slowly up a half step - so the sound seems to rise, while going minor at the same time! It gives a rather jarring, mournful effect, since typically, one expects the third to alter, rather than the whole chord!

Rediscovered my moog 1 after been put in the basement and forgotten since i bought it. Cleaned it up think i wiil learn how to play it.

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

Sheesh, that's a lot of synth to abandon!

Nice one, I got the Rogue about 14 years ago as my first Moog, fun stuff and I got it over the MG-1 due to the PB/mod wheels - the ring mod seemed weak and the organ section seemed just OK in the early demos I checked but you made this sound great - I should gave bought both since the MG-1 was only $500 on eBay back then :-) nice use of the oscilloscope too, I got a free one from work when I got the Rogue, so I could see and hear what was doing, learned how to make a sine wave pretty quick on the Rogue

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

I'd love to try a rogue at some point, definitely. Thank you! I bought it specifically for doing visuals like this, I like accomplishing it all with hardware.

@robertrossignol4445

2 жыл бұрын

Does the Rogue have the same rotting foam problem that the MG-1 has?

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

@@robertrossignol4445 not sure!

@johnmiddleton4291

Жыл бұрын

@@robertrossignol4445 It does, and it's a real pain to clean out if it's gotten into the sliders and switches. You would likely have to buy replacements for them.

I have an v1 Arturia MiniBrute which I love, but if could get an MG-1 in good shape for $350 or under, I'd go for it. I like that aggressive organ-like tone in Poly mode, and you can do a lot more with it using the filter and modulation, as demoed here.

Had one in the mid 80's but sadly had to sell it, got $45 - yes Forty Five for it, they're now 20 times that price, I miss that synth, a lot better than people gave them credit for.

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

Different times! At the time it was a fair price. They still show up used, maybe get one again!

@Sinultimata

2 жыл бұрын

@@JorbLovesGear Would love too but I'll wait until they drop in price (yes I know I'm dreaming) - there's one on Reverb but I'll pass on the money he's asking and found one on eBay for $450 a while back and it looked like it had been thrown off a cliff! I'll fall over one one day and just display it. Great channel by the way!

Realistic keeping it real😎🚬.

Would love to mod one of these someday

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

This one's for sale 👀😁

I found one of these at the garbage dump once. It didn't work sadly, and the local music shop said it was beyond their capabilities to repair, so I sent it to someone on an internet forum I used to post in

@JorbLovesGear

Жыл бұрын

turn out good?

@keyjamman8376

Жыл бұрын

I threw one in a garbage dump then bought another years later. Great bit of kit. The poly with S&H filter is gorgeous!

@glottis5

Жыл бұрын

@@JorbLovesGear no idea, guy never mentioned it again

i wanted this to be my first synth sooo bad since i saw jared warren using it in big business!! unfortunately they were already hella expensive a few years ago and shipping from the US to europe also was insurmountable for 16yo me 😵

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

They are very cool. I like it a bunch! Do miss having it around

Does anyone know the proper cable to use to hook up to a scarlet 2i2 interface? Im a newb

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

Is yours still stock rca jacks? One unbalanced 1/4in to rca cable

This distortion on the SAW waves is too severe deviation from the original. On both MG-1 and MG-1 Plus, I can't replicate most sounds in this video when calibrated the same way. To your credit tho, I like yours the most.

I doubt they'll get less expensive anytime soon. 10 years ago you could pick up a jx3p, dw8000, alpha juno, Delta, etc for next to nothing. They're all getting close to $1000 now if not already. Anything vintage and analog is basically a collectors item now.

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

Yeah, it's all getting sort of overblown. It makes sense! Fewer are going to be on the market as time goes by, but it still is getting out of control

@noisetheorem

2 жыл бұрын

It’s really getting insane. Synths like the Ensoniq SQ80, which have exact emulations ones software are selling for crazy prices. And they’re all getting to that age where the internals aren’t going to last and parts are going to be impossible to get (lots of custom chips in those 80s hybrids). I certainly wouldn’t invest in one.

@brianschiller4053

8 ай бұрын

Yeah, I am really glad I got my dw8000 and jx3p when I did. They have almost doubled in price in the last 5 years.

@BrianMarshall1

8 ай бұрын

@@brianschiller4053 I bought my jx3p for about $175. I think I paid $250 for the PG200 later. While I loved a lot of the sounds I found myself not wanting to set it up every time I wanted to use it. I finally sold it along with my jp8000, xp-30 and a few others. Now if I could just go back to the mid 90s and buy up every $150 vintage synth I saw I'd be retired by now.

@canmeyer-vr7ru

6 ай бұрын

Naaah.. not really.. ! They will be way much more sought after

Gzammmm

Now just put yourself in my shoes jorb. Imagine that you've never seen this video and "tubby" was not part of your synth vocabulary? What then?

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

LMAO. I guess it's in your vocabulary now.

@iancain6647

2 жыл бұрын

@@JorbLovesGear always a pleasure bro

Why buy this when u can get a grandmother?

@JorbLovesGear

2 жыл бұрын

Assuming there isn't some great deal on one, only if your fascinated by old stuff. Otherwise? Grandmother wins

@biggrime

2 жыл бұрын

@@JorbLovesGear yea I know sometimes people just like the older stuff. Especially if you used to own one back in the day

@johnmiddleton4291

Жыл бұрын

@@biggrime The thing with old stuff is that you pretty much have to commit to learning some electronics and working on it all yourself. Even if you have a local tech and lots of money, so much can happen when moving, storing, and playing these older synths you really have to get you hands dirty to achieve anything. Luckily, most repairs are not that tough to learn, but it's certainly almost a hobby in itself that can quickly distract from making any music. Not a bad thing, as I think I've gotten more pleasure working on old synths over the years than recording stuff.

@biggrime

Жыл бұрын

@@johnmiddleton4291 you right about that.

@cubdukat

Жыл бұрын

This is for those of us who couldn't afford a Grandmother, regardless of how much better off we may or may not be with one instead of this.

$1000+ and no stock anywhere, no thanks I'll rather buy a behringer Model D or Pro800