Hey there!
My name is Michael, and I've been infected.
Music has always been part of my life.
Whether it was singing and whistling on the swing set in the back yard when I was 2 or 3...
Or recording my first track ever on my mother's organ in 1983/4...
Whether it was purchasing my first synth (a Siel DK-80, which I still own) around the same time...
Or starting to record and produce for friends soon after...
Whether it was a year or so of piano lessons in grammar school...
Or playing Alto and Tenor Sax from 6th - 12th grades, including Jazz Band...
Whether it has been playing keys, bass, sax or drums at church for the last 27+ years...
Or recording my own projects and producing for others in my humble home studio for the last few years...
Music has always been part of my life.
Since the DK-80, I've also owned an Ensoniq Mirage rack (recently sold), Roland JX-305 Groovesynth (currently own for the 2nd time, for sale),
Korg X3 (sold, now own an X3R, for sale), E-MU Planet Earth (for sale),
Korg Triton Pro (for sale, will likely buy a Triton Rack someday), Korg OASYS 76 (fully expanded and for sale, likely buying a KRONOS 88),
Yamaha DX7 (mint for sale), Roland SH-201 (didn't care for, sold), Korg Electribe ESX-1 (sold)...
I've always had a Workstation (or several), and have delved just a little into the more electronic-sounding units,
but I've always had difficulty getting "the sound" I wanted from my music, and didn't really know what to do about it.
A few years ago, I was so frustrated that I decided I was either going to hang it all up, just keep something "decent", like the Triton, and just play for fun,
or I was going to completely "re-boot" my setup, essentially starting over, and try to more effectively accomplish my musical goals.
That's when I first started finally selling off some of my original gear and trying new things.
When I first started seriously working with my DAW, and bought PreSonus Studio One Pro.
It's also when I ventured into the OASYS, which has been an amazing addition to the studio.
I also begin looking much harder at VSTs, and Native Instruments' Komplete 7 starts looking VERY appealing...
But even with the OASYS, I'm having trouble defining "my" sound. So I keep looking...
Korg announces the KRONOS, and it looks to be a lot more suited to recording in a DAW; one of my biggest beefs with the mighty "O"...
But that is otherwise very similar to the OASYS, and won't cure my current issues...So I keep looking...
I ask for advice on some very active synth forums, and I begin to expand my horizons, while narrowing my focus...
Something I've heard of, but never really researched begins to come into focus...The Virus TI Keyboard.
It has the 61 keys with aftertouch, traditional pitch and mod wheels and inspirational sound I'm looking for...
It has apparently DEEP programmability with essentially unlimited patch storage that I need to explore custom sounds...
It is not just a traditional cheap VA, it has wavetables, tons of effects and resources, and more...
Yeah, I'm infected...
It looks like the Virus is the synth I never knew I was always looking for...
Now I just have to find one in my budget...It's tax time, I'm selling everything else I own anyways...
Thanks, Access...
~Michael
http://www.Michael-Blue.com
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Michael-Blue/343585060534
http://soundcloud.com/michael-blue/tracks (mostly newer stuff)
http://www.soundclick.com/memb…cfm?member=michael%2Bblue (mostly older stuff)