# Gear You Regret Buying?



## robgb

Back before most of you were born, I bought a hardware sequencer called the Yamaha QX1 for $3,000 1980-something dollars, which is equal to $9,642.40 today. I don't know what possessed me to buy it. It was the first of its kind and I visited the shop several times before I plunked down the money and took it home.

It was a great unit, but literally three months after I bought it, Yamaha came out with a newer, more advanced model at a third of the cost. I can't tell you how much that killed me. And while I got a lot of use out of it, to this day I regret spending that kind of cash on a piece of gear that was obsolete three months later.

https://medias.audiofanzine.com/images/thumbs3/yamaha-qx1-153652.jpg

Anyone else have any gear they regret buying?


----------



## Gerbil

A Houston controller for Cubase. The faders would never reset properly and the buttons felt like I was pushing Haribos.


----------



## Michel Simons

Mackie Control. I hardly ever used it and after my desk collapsed (don't ask) I never ever used it anymore.


----------



## sostenuto

Initial release of Komplete Kontrol S-49 Keyboard /MIDI Controller.
Major updated model not so long after which flushed my value down the toilet.
I must say this one works but with notable design flaws corrected by version 2.

Pitch Bend and Mod Wheel _Touch_-Sliders were such a poorly conceived design.
My bad …. will not likely purchase first model of any hardware again …..


----------



## Henu

An Alesis electronic drum kit years ago. 

Never felt comfortable using it compared to a real kit, it took way too much space in my studio room and I felt I played the drums much better with my fingers than with the cramped and weird-feeling laggy pads instead. (I've been playing drums with keyboards since the late 90's and am actually quite good at it, haha!)

Right now it resides at my son's room and he's enjoying playing with it, so it's not wasted, luckily.


----------



## Jeremy Spencer

sostenuto said:


> Initial release of Komplete Kontrol S-49 Keyboard /MIDI Controller.
> Major updated model not so long after which flushed my value down the toilet.
> I must say this one works but with notable design flaws corrected by version 2.
> 
> Pitch Bend and Mod Wheel Sliders were such a poorly conceived design.
> My bad …. will not likely purchase first model of any hardware again …..



Although I don't regret purchasing my S88, I have gotten used to the sliders. However, sometimes I accidentally touch the adjacent pitch bend strip which is a total nuisance.


----------



## wst3

this could be a long list<G>!

AKG C3000 - the only microphone I've ever tried for which I can find no use.

Alesis 3630 - brilliant concept, horrible execution. I eventually modified it to make it passable, but could never bring myself to inflict in on another. One of a very few pieces of gear I sent to the landfill.

Bellari Two-Channel Tube Preamp, can't even remember the model number. I also modified this, and it was OK as a microphone preamplifier, and outstanding as a DI for electric bass. But I spent more to upgrade it then I spent on it. And a lot of time. Possibly a good education, but I could have lived without that entire debacle.

Akai S900 - ok, I don't regret it, but I didn't get much use out of it before software samplers arrived in force (think Giga-Sampler). Prior to that I had used Ensoniq samplers, and still have an ASR-10 in the rack which sees some use. On the plus side (sometimes you have to go looking<G>) I did get some really cool libraries, which I imported into GS, and still use. I should probably import them into Kontakt, but I have no idea where I put the original CDs.

Ensoniq SQ-r - not a bad device, actually a pretty good little rompler. But the timing was awful, I bought it at street price about a month before Ensoniq was purchased. The price dropped dramatically at all the usual places. Had I known I'd have waited for the fire sale. Not a lot of call for it these days, but I have that, and a Proteus 1 with the Protologic (??) expansion in the rack. They can be fun... just with I'd spent less on them<G>.


----------



## Erick - BVA

Nectar Midi Controller (can't remember the model). Broke after a few months.

Samson Meteor --limited application, and even for that (voice-over) it's not that great. Only benefit is that it's USB, so you have a little more flexibility. Still overpriced.

I-Rig Mini Keys --overpriced plastic piece of junk. Didn't break but for $70 I'd expect higher quality feel/build. Got it so I could get Sampletank 3 Full Version. Still not sure if I can sell the controller and retain Sampletank. 'Cause I definitely want to sell it. Could be good for a beginner, hobbyist. Definitely couldn't get more than $15-20 for it I'm sure. I'd feel like a criminal if I tried charging more.


I don't really buy a lot of gear, but on a side note, there are some things I have been extremely happy with lately.

Korg Monologue. Really love it. All I can really compare it to is the analog emulations I own --(repro 1 and 5, and the legend). Not a great comparison for sure, but the difference between analog and digital is pronounced. Youtube videos don't really do comparisons like that justice. Have a lot to still learn, explore and create.

Tascam DR44-WL. That thing is a workhose and has gotten me through a lot of projects. It can record pretty much anything very accurately, and is fairly quiet. USB bus powered or batter powered (so really great if you're recording inside, so you never have to use batteries). But nice to have the portability as an option. I've dropped it more than a couple of times, and still working great (I don't recommend that of course). Condensor mics are known for being fragile. Maybe I've gotten lucky thus far.


----------



## Quasar

Roland Juno-G synth. It had a defective LCD screen, which was a big issue for a lot of people who made the mistake of buying this, and the defect was never properly acknowledged or rectified.


----------



## Vik

Yamaha VL1.


----------



## kitekrazy

robgb said:


> Back before most of you were born, I bought a hardware sequencer called the Yamaha QX1 for $3,000 1980-something dollars, which is equal to $9,642.40 today. I don't know what possessed me to buy it. It was the first of its kind and I visited the shop several times before I plunked down the money and took it home.
> 
> It was a great unit, but literally three months after I bought it, Yamaha came out with a newer, more advanced model at a third of the cost. I can't tell you how much that killed me. And while I got a lot of use out of it, to this day I regret spending that kind of cash on a piece of gear that was obsolete three months later.
> 
> https://medias.audiofanzine.com/images/thumbs3/yamaha-qx1-153652.jpg
> 
> Anyone else have any gear they regret buying?



Other than their wind instruments Yamaha is on my blacklist. They create the most doorstops. I wish I would have bought a RME Hammerfall instead of the SWXG1000 after the turn of the century. It would still be in use. 

There are also numerous smaller audio interfaces I've wasted money on. I'm still using an I7 4790, AMD FX6300 and still getting a lot of mileage out of my M-Audio PCI cards.


----------



## kitekrazy

Sibelius19 said:


> Nectar Midi Controller (can't remember the model). Broke after a few months.
> 
> Samson Meteor --limited application, and even for that (voice-over) it's not that great. Only benefit is that it's USB, so you have a little more flexibility. Still overpriced.
> 
> *I-Rig Mini Keys --overpriced plastic piece of junk. Didn't break but for $70 I'd expect higher quality feel/build. Got it so I could get Sampletank 3 Full Version. Still not sure if I can sell the controller and retain Sampletank. 'Cause I definitely want to sell it. Could be good for a beginner, hobbyist. Definitely couldn't get more than $15-20 for it I'm sure. I'd feel like a criminal if I tried charging more.*
> 
> 
> I don't really buy a lot of gear, but on a side note, there are some things I have been extremely happy with lately.
> 
> Korg Monologue. Really love it. All I can really compare it to is the analog emulations I own --(repro 1 and 5, and the legend). Not a great comparison for sure, but the difference between analog and digital is pronounced. Youtube videos don't really do comparisons like that justice. Have a lot to still learn, explore and create.
> 
> Tascam DR44-WL. That thing is a workhose and has gotten me through a lot of projects. It can record pretty much anything very accurately, and is fairly quiet. USB bus powered or batter powered (so really great if you're recording inside, so you never have to use batteries). But nice to have the portability as an option. I've dropped it more than a couple of times, and still working great (I don't recommend that of course). Condensor mics are known for being fragile. Maybe I've gotten lucky thus far.



Got one of those. I'm into mini controllers due to space. I probably wont buy another controller that uses micro USB ports. Mine had issues and a new cable from the 99 Cent Store fixed that. Small controllers are hard to sell used. I basically got it for the iPad but my amusement with portability came to a quick end.


----------



## Quasar

kitekrazy said:


> Other than their wind instruments Yamaha is on my blacklist. They create the most doorstops.



Really? If I am ever again looking for a digital piano, Yamaha and Kawai are the only two brands I'll likely consider. Nothing but great experiences with Yamaha P and CP series DPs.


----------



## kitekrazy

Quasar said:


> Really? If I am ever again looking for a digital piano, Yamaha and Kawai are the only two brands I'll likely consider. Nothing but great experiences with Yamaha P and CP series DPs.



Those would be the exceptions. Pro audio gear - never.


----------



## benuzzell

michelsimons said:


> Mackie Control. I hardly ever used it and after my desk collapsed (don't ask) I never ever used it anymore.


I feel your pain. I managed to wangle one for about half price rrp on eBay some years back, and didn't really find a need for it. I ended up just using it for the jog wheel and transport controls, until one day it suddenly dawned on me to just sell it on. Such a relief, and opened up so much desk space!


----------



## Erick - BVA

kitekrazy said:


> Got one of those. I'm into mini controllers due to space. I probably wont buy another controller that uses micro USB ports. Mine had issues and a new cable from the 99 Cent Store fixed that. Small controllers are hard to sell used. I basically got it for the iPad but my amusement with portability came to a quick end.


It feels like an old toy piano where the black keys don't really work (even though in this they do). It really just feels like a kid's toy. I'm afraid I'll break it if I touch it just the right (or wrong) way.


----------



## Nick Batzdorf

robgb said:


> Back before most of you were born, I bought a hardware sequencer called the Yamaha QX1 for $3,000 1980-something dollars, which is equal to $9,642.40 today. I don't know what possessed me to buy it. It was the first of its kind and I visited the shop several times before I plunked down the money and took it home.
> 
> It was a great unit, but literally three months after I bought it, Yamaha came out with a newer, more advanced model at a third of the cost.



The QX-5, right? It was a great sequencer. I used the heck out of mine.


----------



## stixman

M-audio Axiom pro 49....defective board resulted in BSOD...I did finally get it working by flashing the os after years of it being a handy doorstop!


----------



## Robo Rivard

Steinberg MIDEX-8. They dropped driver support for it. It became just a piece of useless plastic.


----------



## stixman

I love my Midex8 and I have the smaller Midex3 works great in windows 10! Ltb technology works great for my v-drums!




Robo Rivard said:


> Steinberg MIDEX-8. They dropped driver support for it. It became just a piece of useless plastic.


----------



## Leon Portelance

Quasar said:


> Really? If I am ever again looking for a digital piano, Yamaha and Kawai are the only two brands I'll likely consider. Nothing but great experiences with Yamaha P and CP series DPs.



I love my Yamaha P-140.


----------



## Jeremy Spencer

kitekrazy said:


> still getting a lot of mileage out of my M-Audio PCI cards.



2496 by any chance? I still have one in my slave, just in case! They were (and still are) good cards.


----------



## Craig Allen

wst3 said:


> this could be a long list<G>!
> 
> AKG C3000 - the only microphone I've ever tried for which I can find no use.



Right! What is it about that mic? So harsh!
Many years ago I bought both the 3k and the FET 47. What an incredible difference!
The C3000 is about the only AKG mic that I've never liked.


----------



## Quasar

Wolfie2112 said:


> 2496 by any chance? I still have one in my slave, just in case! They were (and still are) good cards.


M-Audio made a wonderful series of affordable PCI cards. I had the little Omni Studio package, a Delta 66 card with a breakout box, 2 XLRs etc... It was fine for my needs, and the only reason I gave it up was the non-native PCI legacy bridge thing didn't work well on my new PC build, so I had to abandon it.


----------



## pmcrockett

My first MIDI controller was an M-Audio Radium 49, and it was pretty bad. Ugly, poor build quality, and sticky keys with bad action. I think it was maybe only around $100, and I definitely got my money's worth out of it, but I frequently wished I'd gone with something more expensive. Once I upgraded to something better, I opened the Radium up and wired a full-size church organ pedalboard into it in place of the original keys, and then I was finally at peace with the situation.


----------



## dpasdernick

Oooh, this thread is made for me. Thank You Robgb for starting it.

1) Roland V-Synth. Just bought it recently and the touch screen started acting funny. It's been with Roland now for almost 2 months waiting for a part. Tragic. I'm going to lose money on it when I sell it. I hates it I doesssssss.

2) Most of the other f*&king hardware synths I bought over the past 4 years trying to relive the glory days when Omnisphere does 90% of it and you don't have to wiggle midi and audio cables to coax the 'lectricity through them.

(I do love my Yamaha SY-99. You play a chord on that thing and your 3rd testicle drops.)

Hardware I love:

1) My trusty XP-80.
2) Ancient Teac 144 Portastudio - wrote more songs on this puppy than Michael Moore has chins.
3) An Octa-Plus Ludwig drum kit in cherry red wood with custom Tama hardware. (so sad I sold it, sounded great and was a bigger chick magnet than brad Pitt in Thelma and Louise)


----------



## kitekrazy

Quasar said:


> M-Audio made a wonderful series of affordable PCI cards. I had the little Omni Studio package, a Delta 66 card with a breakout box, 2 XLRs etc... It was fine for my needs, and the only reason I gave it up was the non-native PCI legacy bridge thing didn't work well on my new PC build, so I had to abandon it.



I have 2 2496, and a 192. I have a Terratec EWX2496 that was running on Vista 64 beta drivers and even though it seems to work without flaws it would show up errors in W10 on a Gigabyte AM3 board. My M-Audio FW410 still works too.


----------



## robgb

Nick Batzdorf said:


> The QX-5, right? It was a great sequencer. I used the heck out of mine.


Yep. That's the one that came out and completely bummed me out. Better machine, much lower price. Although I did use the QX-1 for years.


----------



## jonnybutter

Vik said:


> Yamaha VL1.



I loved my VL-1! I will admit that I got it used though. Pretty expensive!


----------



## Nick Batzdorf

I still have and love a VL-1!


----------



## jonnybutter

I bought PARIS - anybody remember it? It was pretty cool and sounded good. Obsolete quickly though


----------



## Nick Batzdorf

PARIS was designed by Stephen St. Croix (or a name very close to that) who died way before his time. Very nice guy.

The fellow who reviewed it for Recording magazine when I was there was a Pro Tools fan, and he wasn't effusive. That required some political finesse!


----------



## JPQ

Quasar said:


> Roland Juno-G synth. It had a defective LCD screen, which was a big issue for a lot of people who made the mistake of buying this, and the defect was never properly acknowledged or rectified.


Risk display problem is reason why i selled my Juno-G. btw my worst purchase what i never used anything is still Roland U-110 with few expansion cards.


----------



## Saxer

Windows slave PC.
I'm such a Windows noob. I needed someone from a PC shop to get my network configured but now I can't go to internet with this PC anymore. Well, I can but this shredders my slave connection. If I then want to go back to slave mode I need to watch hours of YT videos of youngsters explaining network gibberish until they show the sub-sub-under-menu where I have to click strange settings.... oh I hate it! I also didn't find a solution to backup the whole system. It works now but the day the system drive crashes will be the end of this PC and all the useless time invested.
I had a MacMini as a slave before and I just had to switch it on. I know what to do on Mac. I wish I never bought a Windows machine! Next slave (if ever necessary) will be a Mac.


----------



## jonnybutter

Nick Batzdorf said:


> PARIS was designed by Stephen St. Croix (or a name very close to that) who died way before his time. Very nice guy.
> 
> The fellow who reviewed it for Recording magazine when I was there was a Pro Tools fan, and he wasn't effusive. That required some political finesse!



yes! Stephen St. Croix! Sounds like a made up character, but I remember him now. kind of brilliant as I recall. Ensoniq also made a lot of very cool stuff back then.


----------



## Prockamanisc

Saxer said:


> I'm such a Windows noob. I needed someone from a PC shop to get my network configured but now I can't go to internet with this PC anymore. Well, I can but this shredders my slave connection. If I then want to go back to slave mode I need to watch hours of YT videos of youngsters explaining network gibberish until they show the sub-sub-under-menu where I have to click strange settings.... oh I hate it! I also didn't find a solution to backup the whole system. It works now but the day the system drive crashes will be the end of this PC and all the useless time invested.


Everytime I adjust anything on my Slave PC, I pretty much waste the entire next day having to fix network issues. I remember wasting 3-4 ENTIRE DAYS trying to get Thunderbolt set up on it, and when I finally had my breakthrough moment (which came 2 weeks later, after I had given up), the transfer speeds were pathetic, so I just went on without it.


----------



## Loïc D

*Yamaha A5000* sampler (used) somewhere around 2002. Right before Kontakt 2 was released with DtD option. 
Now decorates my parents' attic with his friend the bulky SCSI CD-Rom reader.

*Behringer Ultrafex 2* (exciter). Died in my arms. I had an electric shock while trying to fix it, so I threw it after a few memorable swears (in French, see Matrix movie).

*Yamaha MDR 7509*. Useless for mixing or mastering. Aging horribly quick. 

*Roland MA20 monitors*. Horrible sound. The car radio of my late Renault 5 was sounding better.

Probably also a ridiculous amount of useless stompboxes.

Lava lamp.


The good thing is that I bought them long time ago. 
Seems that my gear taste has since improved. Oh wait, no, that only my wallet.


My favorite good old gear (other than guitars & basses) :

*MOTU 828 mk2 *: my audio interface for years (now with lots of adapters). I'm currently thinking about buying better gear (UAD or MOTU) and keep it for extra converters / ADAT / filling the rack spaces.

*Emagic MT4 *: undying small cheap midi interface.

*Access Virus B* : created so many sounds on it. All lost after an update. Then I learned the power of midi dump.

*Yamaha THR10* : amazing versatile piece of gear with clever 2 stereo channels (processed/dry) USB interface.

And of course, my *MBPr late 2013*.


----------



## PaulBrimstone

A horrible little Casio DH-100 wind controller in the 1980s. It was shaped like a tiny sax, was really plasticky, and I bought it for a then-girlfriend who had expressed an interest in, ahem, blowing MIDI notes. Neither girlfriend or Casio worked out.


----------



## reddognoyz

A Muse Receptor. A cool box but more for live use I think, well built, but not a really deep feature set and it crashed once and I had to send it back to get reset. A PC would have been a better choice but this was 15 years ago and the cult of Mac was strong.


----------



## Wally Garten

Arturia Drumbrute. It takes up a lot of desk space, and while it has a cool interface, its drum sounds are somewhat uninspiring. (It's all synthesized, not sampled.) Plus I just bought it like five or six months ago, and now Arturia has come out with a more compact version, so I may not even be able to sell it for anything like what I bought it for.

(On the other hand, Arturia's Keystep and Beatstep Pro are little marvels, so... can't win 'em all.)


----------



## Morning Coffee

Sorry, there is no one I can really whinge to about this, so I will post it here on this forum. The worst and most useless purchase I ever made was one of these!






But more to the point, the 8 track Tascam 488 portastudio cassette recorder I bought just before everything started being recorded on hard disk recorders! And then the Zoom MRS-1044 Hard disk recorder I bought just before everything started being recorded on computers! And the Boss GT5 effects unit (good product) for guitar, but only because it dropped in value and was superseded within a short period of time by way more inexpensive versions.


----------



## Wally Garten

Morning Coffee said:


> Sorry, there is no one I can really whinge to about this, so I will post it here on this forum. The worst and most useless purchase I ever made was on one of these!



I actually think that is more practical than the lawnmower we bought, which is electric and requires you to drag around a heavy-duty power cable behind you while you mow. Didn't really think that one through....


----------



## Morning Coffee

Wally Garten said:


> I actually think that is more practical than the lawnmower we bought, which is electric and requires you to drag around a heavy-duty power cable behind you while you mow. Didn't really think that one through....



It was practical for me at the time, lighter in weight, more environmentally friendly to use, no paying for petrol or electricity, made me do more exercise, but the only problem I had is that it didn't cut grass very well! Yeah, years ago, a neighbour of mine had an electric powered lawn mower, I was always worried that he would run over the cable and electrocute himself haha.


----------



## wst3

only thing worse than a corded electric lawn mower is a battery powered lawn mower. I could get maybe 30 minutes run time, which translated to three days (or more) of mowing. UGH!

I still have a reel mower, but with 3/4 of a acre it isn't very practical. It does, however, do a fantastic job - if you keep the blades sharp and use it slowly.


----------



## Morning Coffee

wst3 said:


> only thing worse than a corded electric lawn mower is a battery powered lawn mower. I could get maybe 30 minutes run time, which translated to three days (or more) of mowing. UGH!



lol! You poor man! I didn't even realise they existed. I guess solar powered lawn mowers will be next.


----------



## Nick Batzdorf

My answer to the original question:

1. Several f-ing expensive internal computer cards - such as Pro Tools TDM (NuBus and then PCI) - that became obsolete with new Macs (and I'm old enough to remember when Macs were hopelessly out of date after three years).

1A. Two or three expansion chassis.

2. Anything to do with storage before SSDs. Every drive either broke or was too small in no time flat.

3. 50 billion obsolete cables that are now in boxes I should throw away.

The common theme is that they're all computer peripherals. I can't think of a piece of music or audio equipment I regret buying, although I can think of some I regret selling.


----------



## greggybud

ADAT's & DAT's. (And all the controllers VHS tapes, DAT tapes that went with them)


----------



## jneebz

Nick Batzdorf said:


> although I can think of some I regret selling.


1. JX-3P 
2. JX-8P (stolen)
3. S-50
4. Fantom X88
5. Moog Realistic Concertmate MG-1


----------



## jcrosby

1. A 1980 Gibson RD with a Photon Guitar Synth that I traded a dead-on mint 1970 SG Special for. (Easily the dumbest and most impulsive gear decision I've made.)
2. TC-Electronic Triple-C
3. Powercore and every plugin that came with it.


----------



## charlieclouser

jcrosby said:


> 3. Powercore and every plugin that came with it.



While I loved my PowerCores, I only ever bought one plugin for it - MasterX5 - which I still miss everyday.... 

*sniff... I'll always love you, MasterX.... sniff*

But I got contacted by a guy from Adelaide and he bought two of my five cards off me - and he recently contacted me wanting more! So if you have PCIe cards for sale, hit me up and I'll give you his info.

As to gear I regret, there's too much to list - but one that's staring me in the face right now and pissing me off is the Gotharman's Little Deformer mk2 with SP-Box. It's little sampler / sequencer box with an arcane user interface, along the lines of the Elektron stuff, which is impossible to use unless you make it your religion and use it all day, every day. Otherwise you'll never remember all the shift-key functions that are required to use the darn thing. The only reason I bought it was because of the SP-Box, which was a breakout box with a grand total of ONE mono audio output, but had the exact D>A and filter chipset from an SP-12. I foolishly figured this would be the key to getting that old-school-sampler crunch, but it's so fiddly to use that I only lasted one afternoon on the thing before putting it in the "to be sold" pile.


----------



## Saxer

NI Maschine
Thought it was fun to program beats by tapping pads (and it is fun) but it's so inconvenient to use this thing as a plugin that I spent much too much time trying to integrate it into a workflow but it really never works as helper, more like an obstacle. And in the end I never used it in a single track.


----------



## jcrosby

charlieclouser said:


> While I loved my PowerCores, I only ever bought one plugin for it - MasterX5 - which I still miss everyday....
> 
> *sniff... I'll always love you, MasterX.... sniff*
> 
> But I got contacted by a guy from Adelaide and he bought two of my five cards off me - and he recently contacted me wanting more! So if you have PCIe cards for sale, hit me up and I'll give you his info.
> 
> As to gear I regret, there's too much to list - but one that's staring me in the face right now and pissing me off is the Gotharman's Little Deformer mk2 with SP-Box. It's little sampler / sequencer box with an arcane user interface, along the lines of the Elektron stuff, which is impossible to use unless you make it your religion and use it all day, every day. Otherwise you'll never remember all the shift-key functions that are required to use the darn thing. The only reason I bought it was because of the SP-Box, which was a breakout box with a grand total of ONE mono audio output, but had the exact D>A and filter chipset from an SP-12. I foolishly figured this would be the key to getting that old-school-sampler crunch, but it's so fiddly to use that I only lasted one afternoon on the thing before putting it in the "to be sold" pile.


I actually loved the TC plugins. (I did sink a ton into them though...) I actually thought MasterX 5 was f-ing awesome, (as was P.C. Virus, MD-3...), whether they'd run and remain stable was unfortunately another story though... Always hoped TC would migrate to UAD but seems like we're way past that being a reality now...

Thanks Charlie, I only had a couple PCI cards and put them on ebay when I moved to move to UAD. (As well as all plugins.) I get why someone stick with them if they're working for them though, not only were they excellent, they still stand up to some of my current favorite plugins...


----------



## charlieclouser

jcrosby said:


> Always hoped TC would migrate to UAD but seems like we're way past that being a reality now...



Tell me about it. I've been waving that flag to both the TC guys and the UA people for years. I'm a UA endorsee and I've known a lot of those folks for decades, but so far no luck. I think once Behringer / Music Group gobbled up TC they basically cut any products that they didn't like - including any cross-company licensing agreements like the ones that allowed my beloved TC/Dynaudio AIR speaker systems to exist. Gone in a flash due to possible conflicts between Dynaudio products and other Music Group products. Last time I was at NAMM and chatting with the TC guys all they could do was basically shrug and say, "I dunno man...."

I've also begged Clemens and Jan-Hikkert from the Logic team to license (or just reverse-engineer!) MasterX5 / Finalizer technology and call it "MasterComp" for Logic, and I've had them over to my studio and demonstrated the unique sound, ease of use, and strangely "floating" auto-makeup-gain thing that MasterX5 does.... but so far no MasterComp. 

Oh well.


----------



## BGvanRens

Saxer said:


> NI Maschine
> Thought it was fun to program beats by tapping pads (and it is fun) but it's so inconvenient to use this thing as a plugin that I spent much too much time trying to integrate it into a workflow but it really never works as helper, more like an obstacle. And in the end I never used it in a single track.



Just as I was thinking about something that I regret, I saw this.

Even though I got it in a bundle at the time, NI Maschine Mikro MKII + Komplete 10 at the time for 600 euro. Only bought it for having a Kontakt license. The Maschine + Mikro are just catching dust. Don't have the desk space for it anyway. Sometimes I'd like to believe I would have been better of by just buying Kontakt at the full retail price. The Mikro also freezes my PC on bootup if I leave it connected. Eventually I gave up on trying to make it work for me, as you said, so inconvenient to use as plugin.


----------



## MartinH.

BGvanRens said:


> The Mikro also freezes my PC on bootup if I leave it connected.



I've had tons of trouble with my NI Komplete Audio USB interface. I sold it and bought one from Focusrite that works MUCH better. I'm unlikely to give NI hardware another go.


----------



## HeliaVox

MartinH. said:


> I've had tons of trouble with my NI Komplete Audio USB interface. I sold it and bought one from Focusrite that works MUCH better. I'm unlikely to give NI hardware another go.


The only problem I ever had with any NI hardware was that damn audio interface of theirs. Worst purchase ever. 

The only other regret I have is that I bought a Theremini on impulse. I used it once and its been sitting in the closet ever since. One day I promise I’ll get around to using it!


----------



## jcrosby

charlieclouser said:


> Tell me about it. I've been waving that flag to both the TC guys and the UA people for years. I'm a UA endorsee and I've known a lot of those folks for decades, but so far no luck. I think once Behringer / Music Group gobbled up TC they basically cut any products that they didn't like - including any cross-company licensing agreements like the ones that allowed my beloved TC/Dynaudio AIR speaker systems to exist. Gone in a flash due to possible conflicts between Dynaudio products and other Music Group products. Last time I was at NAMM and chatting with the TC guys all they could do was basically shrug and say, "I dunno man...."
> 
> I've also begged Clemens and Jan-Hikkert from the Logic team to license (or just reverse-engineer!) MasterX5 / Finalizer technology and call it "MasterComp" for Logic, and I've had them over to my studio and demonstrated the unique sound, ease of use, and strangely "floating" auto-makeup-gain thing that MasterX5 does.... but so far no MasterComp.
> 
> Oh well.


It's a bummer alright. TC made pretty incredible plugins. The MD3, VSS3 and original Character are still some of the nicest sounding ones I've owned. (the new version of Character sounds nothing like the powercore one unfortunately.) 

It's frustrating they've released some of them for PT, but not AU or VST... Glad VSS3 is out again though, just wish they'd release the rest of the Powercore plugin line as natives. 

MasterComp sounds like a pretty frickin great idea. Hell I bet a multiband version of PhatFX could do a damn good job of recreating the sound of MasterX 5. (Feel free to put in a word )


----------



## DavidY

Morning Coffee said:


> Sorry, there is no one I can really whinge to about this, so I will post it here on this forum. The worst and most useless purchase I ever made was one of these!


I heard that they are the way to a perfect lawn.
All you need to do is run one of those over the lawn *every day*...
... which of course never happened when I had one. 
They really don't like grass that's in any way long.


----------



## Alex Fraser

The add-on effects card that was available for the Akai S5000/6000 samplers. I remember listening to the reverb for the first time and being disgusted. Waste of space.

Novation Launch Control. (not XL) Nicely designed bit of hardware, but the internal memory kept randomly re-writing itself and drove me up the wall.

Any Alesis midi keyboard controller. (I've had 3.) Random note dropouts and velocity craziness. Never again.


----------



## Greg

Doepfer lmk4+ hated the clunky feel and massive case. Luckily it completely died for no reason and now sits in my garage.


----------



## YaniDee

Ever buy old gear with these obscure (ROM) batteries that had to be soldered off / on? By the time I got around to paying the music store for the repair job (2yrs later) , the battery had died again..
I once also bought a used Yamaha QY300 sequencer and when I did a "factory reset", it erased every single pattern, including the factory ones! Had a diskette, but the drive didn't work..Any how that's old junk now..


----------



## dflood

Digi 001 and Digi 002, before I finally bailed on Pro Tools for Logic. Since then, two generations of Apogee Duet and some good mics have served me very well for analog input. I know a lot of people really love their hardware and it’s very impressive to walk into a studio that looks like the pro audio department of a big music store, but I’m happiest keeping it to a bare minimum.


----------



## jacobthestupendous

LowweeK said:


> *Yamaha THR10* : amazing versatile piece of gear with clever 2 stereo channels (processed/dry) USB interface.


+1


----------



## ag75

reddognoyz said:


> A Muse Receptor. A cool box but more for live use I think, well built, but not a really deep feature set and it crashed once and I had to send it back to get reset. A PC would have been a better choice but this was 15 years ago and the cult of Mac was strong.


I loved the Muse Receptor. But agree it was primarily used for live playing. Ivory piano loaded onto a receptor was solid and reliable.


----------



## ChunkyBloke

Casio DG20 - absolute utter pants


----------



## GdT

*Presonus Faderport*
Endless trouble reconfiguring Control Surface setup on Logic 10.4
Works for a while then goes nuts.


----------



## HeliaVox

IDK what I was thinking, I just bought Korg's new Electribe Wave iOS app.
Maybye I'm just getting older, but man, all these beatboxes are starting to sound the same to me.


----------



## MaxOctane

@robgb You should change the title of this thread to "Amazing gear you've never regretted buying."

Hilarity will ensure.


----------



## Mr Mindcrime

Nick Batzdorf said:


> although I can think of some I regret selling.


I'm with you on this......


----------



## Mr Mindcrime

My introduction to MIDI and "Sequencing" was something I think called a Roland MT-32. The buttons were so hard to push and getting anything accomplished was a real chore. I sold it and never looked back. Never was real happy with that purchase.


----------



## IFM

Mine is somewhat recent. The 0-Coast synth. The sound was somewhat cool I'll admit but although it is a Eurorack size it comes bolted into its own case and cannot be removed...add to that the graphics on the unit are very difficult to read. I returned it for something from Pittsburgh Audio. I don't use these things for bleeps and cricket sounds either.


----------



## rootstudio

robgb said:


> Back before most of you were born, I bought a hardware sequencer called the Yamaha QX1 for $3,000 1980-something dollars, which is equal to $9,642.40 today. I don't know what possessed me to buy it. It was the first of its kind and I visited the shop several times before I plunked down the money and took it home.
> 
> It was a great unit, but literally three months after I bought it, Yamaha came out with a newer, more advanced model at a third of the cost. I can't tell you how much that killed me. And while I got a lot of use out of it, to this day I regret spending that kind of cash on a piece of gear that was obsolete three months later.
> 
> https://medias.audiofanzine.com/images/thumbs3/yamaha-qx1-153652.jpg
> 
> Anyone else have any gear they regret buying?


The QX1 sure looked cool, though. I think owners felt power using it (if they knew how to, at least) until the QX5 came along, that is. But all the other manufacturers played the same game.

My useless piece of gear was an Aphex C2 with big bottom. Billed as a sound enhancer, it was more of a sound shredder. I sold it after three days when I realized I would never use it on anything.


----------



## rootstudio

Vik said:


> Yamaha VL1.


That's a good one


----------



## danbo

https://www.expressivee.com/touche (Touché) - a stupid device and a stupid purchase


----------



## rootstudio

danbo said:


> https://www.expressivee.com/touche (Touché) - a stupid device and a stupid purchase


Do you mean that collaboration between Buchla and Rosenboom?? If so, I didn't know you could even buy one. If not, then I don't know this thing.

An nevermind, I followed your link, this is something completely different alright.


----------



## redlester

robgb said:


> Back before most of you were born, I bought a hardware sequencer called the Yamaha QX1 for $3,000 1980-something dollars, which is equal to $9,642.40 today. I don't know what possessed me to buy it. It was the first of its kind and I visited the shop several times before I plunked down the money and took it home.
> 
> It was a great unit, but literally three months after I bought it, Yamaha came out with a newer, more advanced model at a third of the cost. I can't tell you how much that killed me. And while I got a lot of use out of it, to this day I regret spending that kind of cash on a piece of gear that was obsolete three months later.
> 
> https://medias.audiofanzine.com/images/thumbs3/yamaha-qx1-153652.jpg
> 
> Anyone else have any gear they regret buying?



I bought a Yamaha QX7 sequencer in the mid-80's. It wasn't mega costly but I still needed to take out a small loan to buy it! I remember speaking on the phone to the hire purchase company, and when he asked me what the money was for and I said "a sequencer", after a silence he said "oh, I'm sorry did you say a sequinned suit?" 


I bought a UAD Apollo 8 Duo just a few weeks ago. I don't regret it totally, but had I known about the x6 being round the corner I would probably have waited.


----------



## IFM

danbo said:


> https://www.expressivee.com/touche (Touché) - a stupid device and a stupid purchase


Huh that thing looks kinda cool really. What didn't you like about it?


----------



## Parsifal666

MaxOctane said:


> @robgb You should change the title of this thread to "Amazing gear you've never regretted buying."
> 
> Hilarity will ensure.



It's interesting (to me at least) how often this regretful topic comes up. I wonder if some of the folks here spent more time on the user manual and walkthroughs apropos to the instruments(s) (not to mention actively using such in their compositions) as opposed to examining the vi's supposed faults right off the bat they'd be so regretful.

But it depends what each person is looking for on their musical journey, of course. 

I get inspired over and over again by EW Hollywood, Stormdrum, Earth EDNA, Albion III, BHCT, Evo 2, Garritan CFX, the Hein solo instruments (haven't tried the ensemble yet) and plenty of others.

I guess I could make things more succinct in saying that for the most part I'm so darn happy with the majority of my virtual instruments I could just poop. I've complained enough about the duds.


----------



## SamplesSlave

rootstudio said:


> That's a good one


Agreed.

WX-5 + VL-1. I had great hopes, but it didn't work out.


----------



## danbo

IFM said:


> Huh that thing looks kinda cool really. What didn't you like about it?



Well to be fair I need to spend more time with it, I spend a few hours trying to understand it and got frustrated. I want to use it as a CC controller for expression and volume, being two axis it seemed like a good way to control both, but I couldn't get it to work out. It can be CC programmed, but the way they handle the axis (it resets to zero) was problematic. It was past the return date so I just got some sliders which have worked better. At some point I'll find some use for it or eBay.


----------



## fiestared

The Oberheim digital sequencer ds-2a, that I bought ($$$) in Guitar Center LA, not the GCenter you know but the one that was on Sunset but on the opposite side, years ago. I still have it in my basement... The one I loved was the Sequential Circuit Studio 440


----------



## MillsMixx

I bought some Doepfer Dark Energy and Dark Time modular gear a while back when l first became a synthaholic, and while most would think that sounds like a non-regret l was in way over my head. 

At the time l knew nothing about voltage control or the world of modular. 

To have those delightful little boxes on my desktop was a very cool idea at the time but I eventually ended up selling them on Craigslist for less than what I paid due to my lack of experience.

I suppose my biggest regret now is selling them as I'd love love love to have them back.


----------



## StefanE

KORE + KK88 because they are outdated by NI.


----------



## chimuelo

Dexibell SX7 Module.
Should’ve listened to the Integra 7 Super Natural Module first.
Now I got both.


----------



## puremusic

danbo said:


> Well to be fair I need to spend more time with it, I spend a few hours trying to understand it and got frustrated. I want to use it as a CC controller for expression and volume, being two axis it seemed like a good way to control both, but I couldn't get it to work out. It can be CC programmed, but the way they handle the axis (it resets to zero) was problematic. It was past the return date so I just got some sliders which have worked better. At some point I'll find some use for it or eBay.



I've had my eye on that thing for awhile, nice to hear about how it actually functions.


----------



## IFM

Time to revive this old thread instead of a new one...

I've gone through a lot of gear through the years so I'll only cover the most recent:

KL88 mkII: I don't like the heavier feel than the Mk I and it's not a joy for me to play for hours on end. Replaced with my older MkI and all is well (besides the louder keybed of the mkI)

Roland System 1-m modular: I have the keyboard System1 which is fun for now but ultimately this modular version never got used and I've since sold it.

Various Eurorack gear: I just can't get into it...I love synths and have some favorites but so far nothing here has wow'd me.

iConnectivity MioXL: They dropped one USB port from the regular Mio10 and made the interface even more difficult. Returned after two weeks and put the Mio10 back in.


----------



## Loïc D

Don’t know if I already replied earlier but : Yamaha A5000 hardware sampler.

Let me make you dream about it : proprietary format without libraries released, poor build quality, tons of menus, heavy & cumbersome as a dead horse, expensive, noisy fans, released right before the rise of software samplers...
The only thing I liked is the onboard effects, I’m a 4-phase phaser bitch...
Though “vintage” by the time, its resell value is next to 0.


----------



## Greg

Outboard mixing gear in general. I love the sound of it but it just takes so much time to use. Time that could be better spent focusing on the composition and production as well as money that could be spent for things that actually make sound. Plus it makes my studio way too hot in the summer.


----------



## Rex282

Sensory Percussion drum triggers.

Great idea buggy as fuck, zero competent tech help.I posted a simple question how to trigger SD 7 months ago,..They just answered with a terrible tutorial unhelpful.I'm amazed they are still in business.Hopefully someone more competent will develop this idea.As is I spent way more time just trying to make it barely work.Very ,very ,very disappointed.


----------



## Patrick de Caumette

Hans Zimmer Piano


----------



## Peter Satera

Patrick de Caumette said:


> Hans Zimmer Piano



Why's that? I was considering it...


----------



## Patrick de Caumette

Peter Satera said:


> Why's that? I was considering it...


I find that overall, it does not feel special in the way that it responds, nor sounds.
I was able to get some nice textures in the upper , soft register.
But overall, it was a big disappointment.
Not organic, not flowing.


----------



## Ben H

Akai Z4. Cost an arm and a leg and I never really gelled with it.
Didn't have the heart to get rid of it at the time, and now it's worth nothing anyway.


----------



## tmhuud

Fun(ny) thread. I guess kind of the opposite for me. Most hardware I bought (well GEAR - in terms of synths and modules) I think once I bought one , I ended up buying more. Bought one TX81Z , ultimately ended up with 4. A Proteus 1+, ended up with 3, a D-50, ended up with it and the D-550. I guess I count myself lucky.
The gear I ALMOST REGRETTED buying was stuff I pined over forever but ultimately ended up ‘dodging the bullet’ (the Mackie Control comes to mind).


----------



## RSM

Bought 7 string guitar about a year ago. Thought that it would be the best thing ever... Nothing wrong with the guitar itself, it just seems that it doesn’t deliver for me. So sticking pretty much with my old 6 stringer.


----------



## Fredeke

- The Mackie Big Knob Studio+ monitor controller died on me just after the warranty was over. Before that, the knob was beginning to crackle.
I replaced it with a Palmer Monicon XL, which I returned right away because of two instances of bad design: 1. no input gain, so no level matching possible between sources; and 2. when two buttons are pressed simultaneously, only one registers - so it's impossible to toggle seamlessly between sources, or speaker sets.

- I bought a Moog Minitaur _and_ a Moog Sub37, only to realize that the Minitaur is just a stripped down (and bridled!) version of the Sub37. I can reproduce any sound of the MT with the S37 exactly.



Greg said:


> Outboard mixing gear in general. I love the sound of it but it just takes so much time to use. Time that could be better spent focusing on the composition and production as well as money that could be spent for things that actually make sound. Plus it makes my studio way too hot in the summer.


I mix in the box for that same reason, but I use outboard gear for mastering. It's a good compromise.


----------



## Fredeke

Iswhatitis said:


> So I regret not keeping it more than buying it. Also regret selling all the guitars, basses, synths, percussion and drums I used to own as they are all so much more expensive to buy today.


I feel you.

The one time I was more lucky is with Elektron's SID Station, a geeky synth built around the Commodore 64's sound chip. It was extremely nerdy to use and sounded very dirty. But since it was a limited edition, I sold mine (after 3 years of never using it) for twice the original price.


----------



## TomislavEP

1) Roland EM-2000. I've bought this arranger keyboard more than 20 years ago. At that time I was more into performance and improvisation rather than composition and production and I've had a number of arrangers through the years. This particular one was quite expensive back in the day and one of the rare cases of me having a flagship instrument at the time. Unfortunately, it hasn't aged well and is one of the few pieces of equipment I have but I don't use anymore. I've tried to sell it a couple of times for a pittance but finally given up thinking about the original price I've once paid for it, so I've kept it out of nostalgic reasons.

2) Rode M5 Matched Pair. Though I primarily work with VI's and DI instruments, I would also like to be able to record some acoustic sources now and then. Since my current studio isn't soundproof, I rarely have the opportunity of absolute peace and quiet, so I didn't want to invest in some pricey microphones for the time being. Though M5's have decent reviews, I've never had much luck with them, especially when trying to record relatively quiet sources like fingerpicked classical and acoustic guitars, at least not when using audio interfaces which I have at my disposal.

3) Avid Mbox3. For a while, I've tried to stick with the most budget-friendly way of maintaining a Pro Tools rig, but after switching to REAPER and Focusrite interface I kind of regret this, even though third-gen Mbox series is (was) the best one, both regarding features and the actual quality.

4) M-AUDIO Axiom 49. I bought this more than ten years ago and I'm still using it along with my Studiologic SL 990 Pro as a MIDI keyboard controller of choice. It has everything one could potentially wish for, even aftertouch, but I often regret not buying a larger model for easier work with keyswiches. Also, the 2nd gen of Axiom shifted the sliders to the left which is IMO a good move, but alas you can't find it in stores anymore.


----------



## Fredeke

Oh let me not forget the Roland A-800-Pro keyboard:
- impossible to save settings without the computer software
- aftertouch too stiff to actually use


----------



## mjsalam

Yamaha DSP Factory + the optical expansion + the AX88 IO unit. The much advertised integration with Cubase was never fully realized. It really just added complexity and was pretty quickly orphaned by Yamaha and Steinberg. Still have it all packed up from when I almost sold it.

I'll add a Yamaha 01V as well. Bulky unit that was really unintuitive to navigate. I'm really not sure why I bought this thing at the time. Eventually sold it for nowhere near original spend.

On the fence about this one but I'll still throw it in - K2000 w/sampling add-on. So bloody expensive at the time. It was my first introduction to sampling and the first real synth I ever owned. I found the VAST engine really painful to work with, the IO was really noisy - storing/recalling samples - 3.5" disk, then Zip drives, then super flaky Jazz drives ugh...cringing even now. I did have fun with it at the time though and learned a lot through it. I still have it - every once in a while I decide to use it as my keyboard controller as I do like the keys. And i'm surprised every because the screen won't light up then I remember it needs 4xAA batteries!! AND it's so bloody heavy. Bah! Ya ok I guess I do regret buying it.


----------



## Heinigoldstein

1]
Many years ago, shortly after world war II I bought a PPG Wave 2 for nearly 11.000.- Deutsch Marks. It was supposed to be the heart of their upcoming big system (don‘t remember the name). Half a year later, they announced the Wave 2.2 and stated, that the Wave 2 will not be able to operate the system. I was even lucky to be able to sell it for half the price after one year. 
2)
5 Years later, I bought a Sequential Circuit Studio 440 for around 8.000.- DM. It was a sequencer, SMPTE synchronizer and Sampler. An all in one wonder machine.....that did not work in real life at all. It crashed on nearly every studio job I was booked, a total disaster !


----------



## Fredeke

The DSI Tempest: a wonderful live instrument, but not really suited for studio work. One reason is the individual outputs are hard mapped to synth voices, instead of instruments. Voice assignation is tricky at best, and comes with limitations.

Great for performance, though - but I wasn't good at playing it.


----------



## Stringtree

A Behringer Powerplay Pro-8 headphone distribution amplifier that I traded something for. The pots are dirty, and they're glued in. What a mess. Nice I/O but this is a terrible situation. Yuck.

A Sennheiser MD441-U that sounds like a cheap telephone. I've narrowed it down to a capsule problem and will take it apart to avoid the horrible service charge. I suspect it was dropped by the delivery company. 

Greg


----------



## crandallwarren

HeliaVox said:


> The only problem I ever had with any NI hardware was that damn audio interface of theirs. Worst purchase ever.
> 
> The only other regret I have is that I bought a Theremini on impulse. I used it once and its been sitting in the closet ever since. One day I promise I’ll get around to using it!



Hey, I'm just curious about your experience with the Theremini. This is something I'm interested in, primarily for controlling CC parameters for strings, etc. Was anything in particular that you found was more cumbersome then you were expecting? Or was it a learning curve thing? Thanks!


----------



## tav.one

NI Maschine
Other than some interesting instagram posts and impressing the prospective clients with its lights it has not got much use here.


----------



## HeliaVox

crandallwarren said:


> Hey, I'm just curious about your experience with the Theremini. This is something I'm interested in, primarily for controlling CC parameters for strings, etc. Was anything in particular that you found was more cumbersome then you were expecting? Or was it a learning curve thing? Thanks!



I play piano, keyboard, woodwinds, voice, and guitar. I've taken lessons on french horn, viola, cello, and various percussion. 
NOTHING I've learned has prepared me for playing the Theremini. 
So, yes, there is a learning curve, lol. 

I don't use midi or cv on the unit, but from reading the manual, the cv out can be set to 5 or 10v and the pitch antenna can be set to a variety of MIDI cc #. 
It uses a 2.0 mini B port for MIDI communications.

The only thing cumbersome about it, is the learning curve of a new instrument. 
If you are looking only to control cc parameters, there are many more affordable units on the market, because it's more an instrument than a MIDI controller.


----------



## dpasdernick

Morning Coffee said:


> Sorry, there is no one I can really whinge to about this, so I will post it here on this forum. The worst and most useless purchase I ever made was one of these!



Get the MIDI retrofit for this puppy and you'll be singing a different tune...


----------



## BWG

Akai S6000 Sampler, spaffed a stupid amount of money on it with the massive(!) internal hard drive (which is probably now smaller than my studio computers RAM) only to accept that I despised using it after 2 months. I sold it for very close to what I'd paid for it and spent the entire time I was dealing with the guy who bought it convinced my mates were winding me up. I couldn't believe anyone else would be stupid enough to part with cash for it.


----------



## edhamilton

Someone added up all the apple products they had purchased.
Calculated if they had bought apple stock instead on that same day.

At current apple stock prices it was several million dollars.

just to add to our gear regrets.


----------



## shponglefan

I think my biggest regret is the Elektron AnalogKeys. While I'm generally a fan of Elektron's gear, I just didn't click with the Keys. Its feature set is great, but I never liked the sound. Too narrow a sweet spot and I just couldn't get it to sound how I wanted. Especially in the higher frequency range, it just doesn't sound that good.


----------



## Fredeke

I was disappointed with all the monitor controllers I bought.

I considered all models under $600 (because $600 is already far too much for a monitor controller, in my opinion), and tried all with 3 inputs and 3 outputs, which is what I need.

Here's the chronological story of my disappointment:

- Mackie Big Knob Studio+ : was great but the knob started crackling after a year or two, and then it suddenly died on me right when the warranty was over. Since I wasn't going to reward them by buying the same one again, I then tried the...

- Palmer Monicon XL : great features and controls, but unusable because the clickless buttons are apparently read by a cpu that can only read one at a time - so it's impossible to mute one pair of speakers and activate another simultaneously. Same with inputs: No A/B compare is ever possible. Also it was impossible to adjust the input or output gains to get everything at a consistent level. Completely useless.

- Behringer Control2USB : outstanding features! Everything you'd want is there. And it's twice cheaper than the second cheapest one. Of course there's a tradeoff, and that tradeoff is that components' quality is shit: The knob started crackling all the way after only a couple of weeks - and not a little. The sound is not very transparent (the distortion sounds good actually - too good for serious monitoring). I expect it to die in the next few months, but for such a cheap price, I don't mind. Mechanically, the connectors seem rather sturdy, so there's at least that. Anyway, that's what I'm stuck with.

Unless someone has a better suggestion?

PS: Regarding Mackie and Palmer monitor controllers, I must say the passive versions are excellent. Alas, I need the features of an active one for the studio.


----------



## Fredeke

BWG said:


> Akai S6000 Sampler, spaffed a stupid amount of money on it with the massive(!) internal hard drive (which is probably now smaller than my studio computers RAM) only to accept that I despised using it after 2 months. I sold it for very close to what I'd paid for it and spent the entire time I was dealing with the guy who bought it convinced my mates were winding me up. I couldn't believe anyone else would be stupid enough to part with cash for it.


When was that? Recently? Because I would agree with you by today's standards. But back in the days when it was released, I purchased the S5000 (which is basically the S6000 in a simpler chassis) and I loved it! It was my 3rd sampler (after a Roland S330 and an Akai S1000) and by far the best and easiest to use.


----------



## Sly

Morning Coffee said:


> the Boss GT5 effects unit (good product) for guitar, but only because it dropped in value and was superseded within a short period of time by way more inexpensive versions.


I love my GT5, bought it when they came out Full of analogue opamp goodness and I think also bucket brigade chips (need to check the latter). I gigged with mine back in the day, as did Johnny Marr. Now I don't use it so much but it is always around. I also put my old 1970s Kawai synth through it if I want to add a bit of delay or reverb, sounds great! It also does some more far out stuff that is fun (space echo setting for example lol!)


----------



## dgburns

Fredeke said:


> - The Mackie Big Knob Studio+ monitor controller died on me just after the warranty was over. Before that, the knob was beginning to crackle.
> I replaced it with a Palmer Monicon XL, which I returned right away because of two instances of bad design: 1. no input gain, so no level matching possible between sources; and 2. when two buttons are pressed simultaneously, only one registers - so it's impossible to toggle seamlessly between sources, or speaker sets.
> 
> - I bought a Moog Minitaur _and_ a Moog Sub37, only to realize that the Minitaur is just a stripped down (and bridled!) version of the Sub37. I can reproduce any sound of the MT with the S37 exactly.
> 
> 
> I mix in the box for that same reason, but I use outboard gear for mastering. It's a good compromise.



I was considering the minitaur. I was under the impression that it does the two oscillator beating thing the taurus pedals do, only with software. I was under the impression that this sound stayed in the same interval as the notes changed, but that this is not possible with any other synth. This is what was supposed to make the minitaur ‘special’. I can get close to taurus with sub37, but I can’t get the two oscillators to beat in unison at the same rate as the notes changes. 
Was I wrong?


----------



## Technostica

Half of a Nepalese Temple Ball.
I should have bought the whole ball.


----------



## Fredeke

dgburns said:


> I was considering the minitaur. I was under the impression that it does the two oscillator beating thing the taurus pedals do, only with software. I was under the impression that this sound stayed in the same interval as the notes changed, but that this is not possible with any other synth. This is what was supposed to make the minitaur ‘special’. I can get close to taurus with sub37, but I can’t get the two oscillators to beat in unison at the same rate as the notes changes.
> Was I wrong?


I don't know about that, but after simultaneously owning a Sub37 and a Minitaur, I can say the Minitaur is a stripped-down Sub37 with a bridled range. I've done a systematic experiment: every sound from the Minitaur can be identically recreated on the Sub37 - and mean _identically_. So there was absolutely no point in buying both.


----------



## Yury Tikhomirov

Fredeke said:


> I was disappointed with all the monitor controllers I bought.
> 
> I considered all models under $600 (because $600 is already far too much for a monitor controller, in my opinion), and tried all with 3 inputs and 3 outputs, which is what I need.
> 
> Here's the chronological story of my disappointment:
> 
> - Mackie Big Knob Studio+ : was great but the knob started crackling after a year or two, and then it suddenly died on me right when the warranty was over. Since I wasn't going to reward them by buying the same one again, I tried then the...
> 
> - Palmer Monicon XL : great features and controls, but unusable because the clickless buttons are apparently read by a cpu that can only read one at a time - so it's impossible to mute one pair of speakers and activate another simultaneously. Same with inputs: No A/B compare is ever possible. Also it was impossible to adjust the input or output gains to get all sources and speakers at a consistent level. Completely useless.
> 
> - Behringer Control2USB : outstanding features! Everything you'd want is there. And it's twice cheaper than the second cheapest one. Of course there's a tradeoff, and that tradeoff is that components' quality is shit: The knob started crackling all the way after only a couple of weeks - and not a little. The sound is not very transparent (the distortion sounds good actually - too good for serious monitoring). I expect it to die in the next few months, but for such a cheap price, I don't mind. Mechanically, the connectors seem rather sturdy, so there's at least that. Anyway, that's what I'm stuck with.
> 
> Unless someone has a better suggestion?
> 
> PS: Regarding Mackie and Palmer monitor controllers, I must say the passive versions are excellent. Alas, I need the features of an active one for the studio.



I used to have two of them. And ended up with a strong feeling that that they do color the sound in a bad way. So the day when I plugged my cables out from RME straight to the speakers (after loud “woah!”, tbh it was taking pillow out from ears kind of experience) was the last day of any monitor controller on my desk. Then I found a wonderful RME Arc USB controller and never looked back. It is one of the best investment I made (both RME and Arc USB).


----------



## muziksculp

tav.one said:


> NI Maschine
> Other than some interesting instagram posts and impressing the prospective clients with its lights it has not got much use here.



Same experience here, I have the Mk3, I couldn't really gel with it, or find a fluid workflow, or to integrate it into my DAW, even the sounds it offers always needed to be enhanced with plugins, they sounded quite flat when loaded without effecting them.


----------



## jononotbono

Robo Rivard said:


> Steinberg MIDEX-8. They dropped driver support for it. It became just a piece of useless plastic.



Nah man. Steinberg offered unofficial driver years later because there were people at Steinberg that loved it. I loved my Midex 8 until I moved to Mac about 5 years ago when the drivers wouldn’t work for OSX. It forced me to buy a new midi unit (went for a Motu Express 128 which is great but cost a lot at the time) but at the time I was pissed I couldn’t use it anymore.

I kept the Midex 8 (still have it in my UK music lab) as I loved it so much as I didn’t want to throw it away. Thinking about it, when I see it again, I might attach a gold chain to it and wear it like a necklace in tribute. 😂


----------



## jmauz

jononotbono said:


> I might attach a gold chain to it and wear it like a necklace in tribute. 😂



Hipster.


----------



## Fredeke

Yury Tikhomirov said:


> I used to have two of them. And ended up with a strong feeling that that they do color the sound in a bad way. So the day when I plugged my cables out from RME straight to the speakers (after loud “woah!”, tbh it was taking pillow out from ears kind of experience) was the last day of any monitor controller on my desk. Then I found a wonderful RME Arc USB controller and never looked back. It is one of the best investment I made (both RME and Arc USB).


I'm afraid I would hate having to route everything through and via a computer interface. But at least the Arc is cheap, so yeah maybe I'll try it some time.


----------



## kgdrum

For me it would have to be the Linn 9000,this unit was so buggy when Linn folded Keyboard magazine had an article on “Tips from the Pro’s : how to use the Linn 9000 without crashing it” or something along those lines.

2nd place would be the Akai Z-8, I loved the S-900 I had previously but like another person posted earlier in the thread I never warmed up to the Z-8..

Thankfully I eventually actually sold both units. I the actually got $3000 for the Linn so it wasn’t too bad.
I took a big loss on the Z-8 ($500)but was happy to finally get rid of it.


----------



## BWG

Fredeke said:


> When was that? Recently? Because I would agree with you by today's standards. But back in the days when it was released, I purchased the S5000 (which is basically an S6000 in a simpler chassis) and I loved it! It was my 3rd sampler (after a Roland S330 and an Akai S1000) and by far the best and easiest to use.



This was probably 1999-2000 or so, the S5000/6000 were brand new and I just hated everything about it.

I'm sure it was a great sampler but I had an insane amount of regret about buying after about a week!!
Funnily enough I also had a S330 (with a green screen monitor!) & S1000 both of which I loved and thought the S6000 would just be the perfect step up but OMFG I hated it.


----------



## Fredeke

BWG said:


> This was probably 1999-2000 or so, the S5000/6000 were brand new and I just hated everything about it.
> 
> I'm sure it was a great sampler but I had an insane amount of regret about buying after about a week!!
> Funnily enough I also had a S330 (with a green screen monitor!) & S1000 both of which I loved and thought the S6000 would just be the perfect step up but OMFG I hated it.


Ok then


----------



## Morning Coffee

Sly said:


> I love my GT5, bought it when they came out Full of analogue opamp goodness and I think also bucket brigade chips (need to check the latter). I gigged with mine back in the day, as did Johnny Marr. Now I don't use it so much but it is always around. I also put my old 1970s Kawai synth through it if I want to add a bit of delay or reverb, sounds great! It also does some more far out stuff that is fun (space echo setting for example lol!)




I love Johnny Marr's work in The Smiths! Don't know much else about him except that he used the GT5 at one stage (no pun intended!), then moved on to the GT 100.

I don't use my GT5 much anymore either, but I bought it for a few grand brand new, so there is no way I will get rid of it for the peanut prices it attracts now, might as well keep it! I love the Whammy pedal effect!


----------



## Fredeke

wst3 said:


> Alesis 3630 - brilliant concept, horrible execution. I eventually modified it to make it passable, but could never bring myself to inflict in on another. One of a very few pieces of gear I sent to the landfill.


Yeah same experience here. It was my first compressor (circa 1993), and it was horrible.

But... did you know it's the mastering compressor that gave French Touch its distinctive sound? Yeah I know it's a terrible idea, but apparently Daft Punk and co. had that in their studio because it's cheap. So they used it for mastering their music (again: WTF?????), and nobody said anything because they were inovative artists aiming for a new sound or whatever.

I remember buying Daft Punk's album "Discovery" in 2000, because I loved the music, and even though I like pumping EDM masters, I found the pumping effect on that album horrible (especially on the featured song Digital Love). Well, it's from an Alesis 3630, and some like it apparently. Yuk.


----------



## PaulieDC

M-Audio Code 61. Has the potential to be an all-around great controller. Keybed feels pretty good even for piano. Drum pads that transpose to -2 so easy peazy Spitfire keyswitching. Full transport support for Cubase. Knobs and sliders for all the mics and settings in VSL Pianos, Spitfire Libraries incl BBCSO's setting that are controlled by the big "wheel" thing that takes up 43% of the real estate on your 4k monitor, etc etc. What's not to like?

Only the most important property of a controller: VELOCITY. Total nightmare. Black keys SERIOUSLY louder than white and M-Audio in their infinite silence won't attempt a firmware update. It's not just that, it's something about the velocity overall that doesn't play a piano patch sweetly for lack of a better term. I have the VSL CFX and Garritan and R275 and I'm thinking that piano libraries were a JOKE, you felt like you were fighting the tone or something. Believe me, I tweaked both keyboard and library curves to no avail. Then one day I plugged my little Korg microKEY Air 37 into my tower and started playing Clair de Lune on the Garritan CFX and I almost fell back out of the chair... I couldn't believe how even and sweet and REAL the piano sound was! I then tried the intro to Toto's Hold the Line on both keyboards and the micro was PERFECT, and the M-Audio was so weird I don't know how to describe it. Same exact outcome on the VSL and R275. It's not just a matter of using VSL's or Cubase's velocity adjustments per key, it'd just a matter of getting rid of it.

I listed the M-Audio on OfferUp and it sold at 10am this morning to an EDM producer. Perfect. Everything is hit at 127, it will suit him just fine.

NOW: SL88 Grand or A-88 MKII?? Hmmmmm....


----------



## Fredeke

PaulieDC said:


> M-Audio Code 61. Has the potential to be an all-around great controller. Keybed feels pretty good even for piano. Drum pads that transpose to -2 so easy peazy Spitfire keyswitching. Full transport support for Cubase. Knobs and sliders for all the mics and settings in VSL Pianos, Spitfire Libraries incl BBCSO's setting that are controlled by the big "wheel" thing that takes up 43% of the real estate on your 4k monitor, etc etc. What's not to like?
> 
> Only the most important property of a controller: VELOCITY. Total nightmare. Black keys SERIOUSLY louder than white and M-Audio in their infinite silence won't attempt a firmware update. It's not just that, it's something about the velocity overall that doesn't play a piano patch sweetly for lack of a better term. I have the VSL CFX and Garritan and R275 and I'm thinking that piano libraries were a JOKE, you felt like you were fighting the tone or something. Believe me, I tweaked both keyboard and library curves to no avail. Then one day I plugged my little Korg microKEY Air 37 into my tower and started playing Clair de Lune on the Garritan CFX and I almost fell back out of the chair... I couldn't believe how even and sweet and REAL the piano sound was! I then tried the intro to Toto's Hold the Line on both keyboards and the micro was PERFECT, and the M-Audio was so weird I don't know how to describe it. Same exact outcome on the VSL and R275. It's not just a matter of using VSL's or Cubase's velocity adjustments per key, it'd just a matter of getting rid of it.
> 
> I listed the M-Audio on OfferUp and it sold at 10am this morning to an EDM producer. Perfect. Everything is hit at 127, it will suit him just fine.
> 
> NOW: SL88 Grand or A-88 MKII?? Hmmmmm....


I'm still looking for the perfect keyboard/controller. Currently I have the Codec 61 and it's... ok. I'm just not a fan of semi-weighted keys. I loved the keybed of the Keylab 61 (not the Essential!), which is a soft one, but the controller part didn't agree with me at all.



PaulieDC said:


> NOW: SL88 Grand or A-88 MKII?? Hmmmmm....


To me, the A-Pro (mk1) had its issues too: impossible to remember settings without a computer; aftertouch was far too stiff and not nuanced enough. Too bad. It was almost perfect. I'm curious to know how the mkII fares in regard to those points.

Still looking around, and open to suggestions.



PaulieDC said:


> I listed the M-Audio on OfferUp and it sold at 10am this morning to an EDM producer. Perfect. Everything is hit at 127, it will suit him just fine.


----------



## Michael Antrum

I bought a Nektar Panarama 62 key and realised my mistake straight away. They black keys and white keys felt like they had come from different manufacturers and it was a noisy as hell. Went straight on eBay...

I now use my trusty Nord Stage 2 EX as my main controller.... But that’s not exactly a cheap way of doing it - unless, like me, you’ve already got one.

What we should really be talking about is the gear we regret selling.....

I still regret selling my M1, mainly for sentimental reasons, but also my Roland XP80, Jen Sx1000,


----------



## Fredeke

wst3 said:


> Alesis 3630 - brilliant concept, horrible execution. I eventually modified it to make it passable, but could never bring myself to inflict in on another. One of a very few pieces of gear I sent to the landfill.




It's actually not as bad as i remember (but i'm still fine without it)


----------



## jonnybutter

Michael Antrum said:


> I still regret selling my M1, mainly for sentimental reasons, but also my Roland XP80, Jen Sx1000,



I loved my M1. It was built like a tank, sounded great, and played great. I sold it many many years ago, just to clear out my studio. A mistake


----------



## dcoscina

In 1986 I followed up a purchase of my first synth (roland Juno 106) with a Yamaha DX27... I’d be toying with the idea of getting a Korg Poly 800 or even the DX100 because both were portable- but I got the DX27 which, unlike the DX21, had an even thinner sound. I eventually found layering the DX with the Juno worked well. But as a fairly broke high school junior, money like that took a while to put together from my part time job. Oh the Roland TR727 was also an odd choice because I didn’t have a proper basic drum machine - tho I recall eventually trading it for a Yamaha rx11


----------



## emilio_n

PaulieDC said:


> M-Audio Code 61. Has the potential to be an all-around great controller. Keybed feels pretty good even for piano. Drum pads that transpose to -2 so easy peazy Spitfire keyswitching. Full transport support for Cubase. Knobs and sliders for all the mics and settings in VSL Pianos, Spitfire Libraries incl BBCSO's setting that are controlled by the big "wheel" thing that takes up 43% of the real estate on your 4k monitor, etc etc. What's not to like?
> 
> Only the most important property of a controller: VELOCITY. Total nightmare. Black keys SERIOUSLY louder than white and M-Audio in their infinite silence won't attempt a firmware update. It's not just that, it's something about the velocity overall that doesn't play a piano patch sweetly for lack of a better term. I have the VSL CFX and Garritan and R275 and I'm thinking that piano libraries were a JOKE, you felt like you were fighting the tone or something. Believe me, I tweaked both keyboard and library curves to no avail. Then one day I plugged my little Korg microKEY Air 37 into my tower and started playing Clair de Lune on the Garritan CFX and I almost fell back out of the chair... I couldn't believe how even and sweet and REAL the piano sound was! I then tried the intro to Toto's Hold the Line on both keyboards and the micro was PERFECT, and the M-Audio was so weird I don't know how to describe it. Same exact outcome on the VSL and R275. It's not just a matter of using VSL's or Cubase's velocity adjustments per key, it'd just a matter of getting rid of it.
> 
> I listed the M-Audio on OfferUp and it sold at 10am this morning to an EDM producer. Perfect. Everything is hit at 127, it will suit him just fine.
> 
> NOW: SL88 Grand or A-88 MKII?? Hmmmmm....


Exactly same experience to me. A Keyboard with a lot of great ideas, perhaps perfect if exist the Code-88 . The keybed is so-so but decent for the price and to record instruments in the studio.
But the velocity is a big problem and the general construction is quite poor. Ah, the drivers for Mac stoped in El Capitan... 

I changed it for a Roland RD-2000. Night and day, of course, but the price is also absolutely different.


----------



## Michael Antrum

jonnybutter said:


> I loved my M1. It was built like a tank, sounded great, and played great. I sold it many many years ago, just to clear out my studio. A mistake



Funny that I was disucssing this on another forum fairly recently. The M1 has a special place in my affections.......

_The Korg M1 always brings back warm memories for me. I was working at London Zoo at the time and dating a smoking hot young lady who also worked there. I’d been sticking some money aside when the M1 arrived in a blaze of glory. I remember going to Chappell’s of Bond Street and spending a happy few hours putting it through its paces - I mean - a keyboard with a built in FX section - wow !!!

Anyway, I was telling this young lady all about it and she asked to come and hear it. She insisted on putting a bit of money to it, and I remember getting a rare black cab back to our flat in Alexandra Palace, with a large brown box sitting on the floor. 

I thanked her properly (quite a few times and twice on weekends in fact ) and dived into the arms of my other passion...

The M1 was with me for many years, but I eventually sold it - wish I hadn’t now, if only for sentimental reasons.

As for that hot young lady - 

We celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary this year, and I still thank her regularly, but sadly, not normally twice on weekends anymore....

So the Korg M1 - for me, the finest keyboard in history....

Edit: To this day she always insists on telling people she found her future husband at the zoo...... _


----------



## Technostica

Michael Antrum said:


> _To this day she always insists on telling people she found her future husband at the zoo...... _


 
It could be a lot worse, you could have met at a screening of Zoolander.
No relationship could withstand that.


----------



## marcus3

Right now the keith 12 step. I thought I was going be able to use it for some basic organ pedaling. That didn't work no matter the sensitive level, I can't just tap the notes like I need.


----------



## zwhita

Ooh! Resurrected gear thread!!

Regret Buying:


*Echo Indigo I/O* - Went through 3 of them at over $200 each. They just sort of sputter and die at random. Laptop getting so hot probably accelerated their demise.
*Blackface ADAT* - Bought used and it went South after a few hours' use. Converters still work from the analog inputs going to the optical out though, so I've kept it.
*Korg Kaoss Pad Quad multi-effects* - Didn't care for the sound character. Not as versatile or interactive as I'd hoped. Insert effects revealed the device had a absurdly noticeable latency.
*Akai S5000* - Bought in 2000 for over $1100. Arrived with the broken OS that actually corrupted hard drive file systems randomly after a save. An update fixed the catastrophic bug, but I soon discovered NI Battery and Sonic Foundry's Acid, so it collected dust. Great sounding filters and DAC, and I even liked the workflow since I had previously owned a S2800, but I couldn't even sell it for 1/4 what I paid for it.
*Akai MPC 1000* - Even with JJOS, I just never liked the workflow. Gave it a try, but I'm just not an MPC guy. I have a 1010 Music Blackbox now and am quite happy with it.
*Korg ARP Odyssey* - eh, I kinda like it for soloing but it absolutely doesn't have the unstable and abrasive charm of the vintage mk2 I once played. Way too polite to deserve the Odyssey brand. Lots of people seem to hate the small keys, but that never bothered me.
*Roland Jupiter 8* - Yes you're probably confused why I would put this. It can't play a bad note and really is the king of polysynths. But it was too big and bulky and I didn't care for programming with sliders. Because it was so easy to get a nice sound, I tended to be lazy with it and not explore. It is somehow less inspiring to me to sound so refined. I only used it in a handful of recordings: it mostly ended up being wasted on countless hours of noodling. Mine was also in desperate need of servicing, and JP-8 servicing is extremely complex and time consuming. I have a Prophet 6 now(with the vintage mode update) and am quite content with that. It encourages me to explore far more than a JP-8 ever could. I know everybody prefers the OB-6 but I didn't care for the tone. Doesn't hold a candle to my SEM Pro.
*Roland JX8P* - Thought since I liked the Alpha Juno I would like this too. It's somewhat different and I lost interest in its sound quickly.
*JL Cooper PPS 100* - Thought I was being clever by getting something that could convert SMPTE to Midi clocks to bypass PC Midi Jitter. Might have worked fine if this unit was actually easy to use, but it's not user friendly in the slightest. I have an Expert Sleepers USAMO for this task and it's far more useful.
*Retrokits RK-002* - Bought it to extend the functionality of my Korg Volca Sample, then two months later the free Pajen OS came out, instantly rendering the RK-002 obsolete.


Regret Selling:

*Akai S2800* - Spent so many hours with this thing. Sampled all the synths at the local music shop as part of the deal for buying it from them. So many floppy disks full of rompler goodies that I re-looped one sample at a time myself. Great sounding filters and the workflow was the best. Kinda soured on me when the SCSI interface fried and I had shortly thereafter moved on to a Kurzweil K2000 with an external Zip drive. I still miss the experience of using it, mostly.
*Roland Jupiter 8* - Ha, Ha you knew it'd be here too. Nothing quite comes close that I've ever played. A real performance instrument. Perfect tone. Ah well, I'll always know what quality synthesis really sounds like.
*Minikorg 700S* - Modded it to have CV/Gate control, Filter Resonance amount and Filter Audio In. Wasn't very versatile but totally unique character with the diode filters and super-bright tone discrete oscillators. The person I bought it from told me he missed it and I wasn't using it much at that point. I felt guitly and sold it back to him with no profit.
*Akai AX-60* - Very dark sound, but a unqiue distorted quality in the filters. Midi was very responsive considering its generation of digital control. I like everything I ever recorded with it.


----------



## marcus3

@zwhita I'm not MPC fan to. I started with the 500 but upgrade to 1000 and changed out the pads knobs and tried the free jj os. Then sold it and went for mashine mikro...it was okay. 

Another gear I regret was the Mopho x4!!! ahhh that strain my neck it was sore for 2 weeks!!!


----------



## mscp

Everything in the studio gets used or repurposed. I have 0 regrets.
One of my early morning routines is to research about what I need to get while drinking coffee. I'm in the zone when I do that. lol.


----------



## digitallysane

Native Instruments Komplete Kontrol M32.
Completely dislike the keyboard action (velocity all over the place and black keys are basically on/off), the KK 8 knobs approach and interaction (interference, rather) with Cubase/Nuendo.

Not using it at all.

Not a "regret" though as owning it facilitated a heavily discounted Komplete purchase... which I'm also not using  (for now, at least).


----------



## easyrider

Fun thread,

Ive just bought :

Roland GP-8 For peanuts in mint condition 😋
Yamaha SPX 990 peanuts in mint condition.😋

Both excellent units.

I’m suffering from plugin overload at the moment and need this….I’m on the lookout for a decent Lexicon reverb next….


----------



## Jhickin

I bought a Microsoft Surface 2, on a whim when I was a student spending cash I really didnt have, the intention being I could use it as a laptop AND a tablet to read/play music from.
It did both jobs terribly, The keyboard and trackpad were awful, and the charger never felt like it fully worked right and then just gave up completely just after the warrenty expired. Awful Awful Awful, still shudder about that wasted money


----------



## Marcus Millfield

I was on a Hammond organ binge a few years ago and subsequently bought myself a Viscount Legend clonewheel. Beautiful instrument, sounded great and played the heck out of it... Until I played it too much and now am beyond sick of the sound. Am happy to see it go.

Oh, and all the softsynths I ever bought. It took a while to figure out controlling softsynths is definitely not for me.


----------

