WALDORF Q PHOENIX - LONELY HEARTS AD
Posted on Wed 23 March 2011 in entries
I think you had better sit down before reading this next piece of news…. and have a packet of tissues at the ready… because this is a rather sad blog post I’m afraid… it’s the news that we have one of, if not the very last brand spanking new Waldorf Q Phoenix available for sale. It’s the end of an era, and only one more person can get in on the act… could it be you?
WALDORF Q PHOENIX – THE LEGEND
The Waldorf Q synth was first released in the distant past of 1999, and became an instant hit due to its scarily accurate analogue sound… despite the fact that it included no analogue circuitry! The following year, Walorf released the MicroQ, a compact rack version of the larger Q synth. In 2002, the release of the Q+ built upon the success of the Q, and contained 16 true analogue filters to add to the pure analogue illusion that the synth was creating. Finally, in 2007 Waldorf completed their Q synthesiser project by giving synth addicts one last chance to own a piece of history, re-releasing each of the Q models with the limited edition 'Phoenix’ label.
WALDORF Q PHOENIX – THE SOUND
Waldorf have to be one of the most underrated synth manufacturers out there. Despite the fact that people seem to have heard of them, I don’t know many people who actually own a Waldorf synth, and I’m not sure why this is because their products are awesome! From dirty basses to killer leads and floaty pads, Waldorf synths don’t disappoint, and the Waldorf Q Phoenix is no different. Just flick through the Youtube video below, and you will be a) amazed at the quality of sounds this thing produces, and b) in desbelief that this thing is NOT an analogue synth! The complex sound of the Waldorf Q Phoenix is achieved using a flexible voicing section with up to five oscillators and two multimode filters per voice and even today, the Waldorf Q Series remains the standard for virtual modeled analogue synthesisers.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95RwkdTNpg8&feature=related
The Waldorf Q Phoenix is a 16 part multi-timbral synthesiser with 32 voice polyphony. It comes loaded with 300 single, and 100 multi programs, plus 100 step sequencer patterns, and 20 drum maps, although you can of course also create and save your own!
WALDORF Q PHOENIX – SYNTH FEATURES
Where do I start! The Waldorf Q Phoenix features pulse waves (with Pulse Width Modulation), sawtooth waves (fantastic for rich leads), triangle waves (a good place to start when making Garage-style basslines), and sine waves (excellent for sub basses), plus 2 wavetables with 128 waves each (perfect for creating all manner of unique sounds). On top of these, the Q Phoenix also features a sub oscillator, Frequency Modulation (which produces some classic retro sounds), oscillator sync (restarts linked oscillator cycles when the main oscillator restarts a wave cycle), a Noise generator (to add extra character to a sound), and a Ring Modulator (to add further character to a sound, or to produce your own Dalek sounds!)
Onto the multimode filters now and as I’ve already mentioned the Waldorf Q Phoenix features 2 of these with a number of different types, including a fat comb filter and the legendary PPG filter! And once you’ve finished playing around with the filters, the Waldorf Q Phoenix features a freely routable Modulation Matrix with 16 slots, allowing you to add some all important movement into your patches.
In addition to all this, the Waldorf Q Phoenix also features a highly programmable arpeggiator with controls including swing, glide, chord, etc, and a Step Sequencer with 32 steps. These 2 features allow you to create some really complex dynamic patches.
Of course, modulation features would not be complete without the inclusion of LFOs, and the Waldorf Q Phoenix features 3 of these, and 4 envelopes with enhanced ADSR configuration and loop and one shot functions.
To really fatten up your sounds, the Waldorf Q Phoenix also features Poly, Mono and Dual Unison modes, and if you’ve utilised all of these features and still think that your sound needs something extra, then it’s a simple process to assign up to two individual high-quality effects per sound, choosing from reverb, two types of surround delay, tap delay, chorus, flanger, phaser, distortion, delay, 5 FX, and a vocoder with 25 bands.
In fact, the Waldorf Q Phoenix includes far to many features to write about without overloading you with data! Just know that for synthesis, the Waldorf Q Phoenix is the bomb!!!
WALDORF Q PHOENIX – CONTROLS
With 58 endless rotary controllers giving you access to a whole host of important synthesis parameters, the Waldorf Q Phoenix is highly programmable, and allows you to create sounds of almost unlimited complexity and beauty (or filth depending on what type of sound you are going for!)
In addition to the dials, the Waldorf Q Phoenix also features 39 buttons for editing, a 2 × 20 character display, a 5 octave keyboard, pitch bend and modulation wheels, and 2 control buttons! This synth really is a tweakers dream, allowing you to get thoroughly hands-on with the whole sound shaping process.
WALDORF Q PHOENIX – CONNECTIONS
The Waldorf Q Phoenix features 6 mono analogue outputs (3 stereo), 2 mono analogue inputs (1 stereo), one Coax 44.1kHz S/PDIF output, and MIDI In, Out and Thru connections. The Waldorf Q Phoenix also features connections for incorporating keyboard accessories into your set-up, with 2 switch inputs (for use with sustain pedals, Gate Ins, etc), and 2 CV inputs (for foot pedals, external controllers, etc), and of course a power supply socket.
WALDORF Q PHOENIX – SUMMARY
As I’ve already said, it’s the end of an era, and we at Absolute Music will be sad to see the last Waldorf Q synthesiser leave our warehouse. However, at the same time it would be much sadder to see this legendary synth gather dust and not get played! So I guess this blog post is a bit like a lonely hearts add:
‘One brand new Waldorf Q Phoenix synthesiser seeks playing partner. Ideal companion would be a synth enthusiast who knew how to push my buttons and turn me on… and off when you’ve finished with me… (if you need any hints it’s just a little switch on my back). Partner may either be old and experienced, or young and willing to learn, but above all they should have a passion for making sweet music and be up for experimenting with my many controls. Also, I would prefer you to have nice legs and a perm. People with mullets or comb-overs need not apply.’
Not my words, the words of the Waldorf Q Phoenix! Hurry though, because by the time you read this, the last ever Waldorf Q Phoenix may have already disappeared off our shelves FOREVER…