It had a very protracted and painful development cycle. Heres a classic analog polyphonic synthesizer from 1983, the oberheim ob8. I have been an oberheim user ever since the first modular came out and have acquired the ob 8, matrix 12, matrix, obmx 12 voice, ob 12 and a marion msr2 and i have waited years for someone to do a virtual oberheim that was worthy of the name. But my favorite for sound and easeofuse is the obx. Babic oberheim obxa obxa info and spec obxa fan page obxa page with tips german sos obxa the ob family. The oberheim two voice may have started out as just an incomplete four voice, with the space for two of its sem voices left empty and sold at half the price. Read on wikipedia edit history talk page print download pdf. The oberheim dmx was the second digital drum machine ever to be sold as a commercial product, following the linn lm1 drum computer in 1980. This listing reflects our current inventory and is updated daily, so if a part is shown with a buy button, we should have it in stock. The ob8 is part of the famous obline, and was a refinement and evolution of oberheims obx and obxa. I had enough components to build up six complete 2 voice cards. Obmx 12 voice, ob12 and a marion msr2 and i have waited years for someone to do a virtual oberheim that was worthy of the name.
In our search for unparalleled sonic character, we looked to one of the most revered synthesizers ever made. Oberheim ob mx 1994 analog rackmount module synthesizer projected by donald buchla and not by tom oberheim as anyone would expect the obmx module has been a total commercial flop on the market with a lot of lawsuit stories and legends. Recently ive had some issues with clicking from it, but i suspect it may have something to do with my antique video card. The music side of this site contains the sounds of silicon breakdown music here about silicon breakdown. From what i understand you need to use a 1554 voice card for the old style blue monday, rockit etc.
Out of the box the ob mx comes with one two voice expansion card which contains the two oscillators, 4 multistage envelopes, 3 lfos, and filters. I had to scavenge some cem3374 vcos from a chroma polaris, which i hated to do, since the chroma is a fine instrument itself. Oberheims later synths like the obx and obxa abandoned the relatively bulky sems in favor of individual or compact voice cards, and common cabinetry and power supplies. Oberheim ob 8capacitor replacement voice card these are the capacitors we replaced to fix the tuning problem. An enhanced version of the obx, the obxa also was available in four, six, and eightvoice configurations, offered 32 program memories, polyphonic portamento, and polyphonic sampleandhold, and in addition to that, it offered the ability to split the keyboard, or double up the voices so that two voices would sound for each key that was. The obmx claims to deliver the classic oberheim and minimoog sounds while. The ob x was the first oberheim synthesizer based on a single printed circuit board called a voice card still using mostly discrete components rather than the earlier sem synthesizer expander module used in oberheim semimodular systems, which had required multiple modules to achieve polyphony. The four and 8voice models included a preset programmer which allowed the user to store and recall most sound settings, and you could. Each voice is a separate mono synth with independent signal path and comprehensive global tuning options.
I suspect that a lot of errant voice boards that are out there just need recalibrated. Oberheim ob8 obxa obx vsti opx proawesome oberheim ob8 obxa obx vsti opx. About this synththe oberheim ob8 is a subtractive analog synthesizer launched by oberheim in early 1983. Manual owners manual 194 pages oberheim xpander service manual service manual 39 pages oberheim two voice instruction.
Ay389, programmable 3channel sound generator, dip24, download. A quick glance at the three instruments reveals a striking similarity to the point where you begin to question whether there was indeed any differences at all. After leaving it off for a week it was perfect for about 10 minutes. The calibration procedure is pretty complex and requires a scope and preferably the voice board extender card that lets you get to the board while the unit is on.
While it seems to promise the sounds of the moog and the oberheim. Silicon breakdown has been a source of music as well as free information and pictures of analog synthesizers since 1999. Oberheim obsx 48key polyphonic live performance analog synthesizer. On warmer days it was worse, on colder days it was almost in tune. Page 106 obmx two voice cards contain two complete synthesizer voices, identical to the voices that came in the obmx. Out of the box the obmx comes with one two voice expansion card which.
Oberheim ob8capacitor replacementvoice card these are the capacitors we replaced to fix the tuning problem. The obmx was oberheims attempt to make a modern modular synth. It can use one or two eproms, either 4k byte 2732s, or 8k byte 2764s. In 1976, it seems, oberheim built a dedicated case for their two voice. The ob mx uses some digital pots with builtin nonvolatile memory. A general knowledge of electronics and soldering is assumed. First of all, like the rest of my reverse engineering projects, i stripped the card down to the bare pcb, carefully inventorying each component, and noting any post. Included with the sale is a uk iec powercable, and we will also include a pdf copy of the user manual. About oberheim ob mx don buchla made this when oberheim was sold to gibson. The obsx featured the same vcovcfvcas of the obx and a voice card design similar to the obxa in which polyphony was based on the number of 2voice pcb cards installed using cemcurtis chips. This buyer purchased opx pro, then sold his oberheim ob mx 12 voice on ebay in less than 2 weeks.
Synthesizer oberheim ob mx user manual 109 pages synthesizer oberheim ob xa owners manual. The oberheim twovoice may have started out as just an incomplete four voice, with the space for two of its sem voices left empty and sold at half the price. Panasonic 3 volt battery for oberheim dx ob 1 ob sx ob x ob. Dave continued, last summer, the idea of a new version of a classic ob polysynth came up and i realised that it would be relatively straightforward if we used the prophet 6 hardware and software architecture and then worked together on the voice card design and the frontpanel layout. The obmx can be upgraded with up to five cards that give it an additional 2 voices of polyphony each, for a. The four and 8 voice models included a preset programmer which allowed the user to store and recall most sound settings, and you could glide from one note or chord to another using portamento. Its not polished and impeccable like, say, the revered an1x, but hey the an1x is not able to make sounds like the ob 12 and its interface is a joke compared to ob. Ive owned quite a few oberheim synthesizers over the past 12 years, from the standalone sem, to the 4voice, ob8, xpander, and matrix12. View online service manual for oberheim matrix6 synthesizer or simply click download button to examine the oberheim matrix6 guidelines offline on your desktop or laptop computer. Oberheim obmx just a simple demonstration of some patches. See sound examples below to see how fat 4 voices can be.
Recently fully tested by a professional shop and everything working perfectly. An enhanced version of the ob x, the ob xa also was available in four, six, and eight voice configurations, offered 32 program memories, polyphonic portamento, and polyphonic sampleandhold, and in addition to that, it offered the ability to split the keyboard, or double up the voices so that two voices would sound for each key that was. The tolex and metal hardware will be removed from the wooden case and replaced with new vinyl and hardware as well. Oberheim synthesizer ob8 ob xa ob mx dsx xpander, ob1, sem. Each sem in an oberheim polyphonic generates one voice or note. Very glad i purchased yet another vsti this buyer purchased opx pro, then sold his oberheim obmx 12voice on ebay in less than 2 weeks. Trilogy moog memorymoog oberheim ob1, ob8, ob xa paya proteus. The oberheim page at mm with software and info for the matrix 6 plus a patch file for the oberheim xpander. Above is a picture of an oberheim ob x 4 voice synthesizer the ob x came in 4, 6, and 8 voice configurations. Again, the equivalent pk25 is about 8 times more expensive, and in greece at least, the pk7 costs 2.
The oberheim ob 8 is a 61 key, 8 voice polyphonic duotimbral analog synthesizer, featuring dual oscillators with sync, noise generator, resonant 12db or 24db low pass filter cem3320, dual adsr envelopes, three lfos, 120 presets, chord memory, arpeggiator, tape and proprietary interfaces. Not only will you be able to enjoy increased polyphony, but the additional voices will also allow you to. The oberheim ob8 is a 61 key, 8 voice polyphonic duotimbral analog synthesizer, featuring dual oscillators with sync, noise generator, resonant 12db or 24db low pass filter cem3320, dual adsr envelopes, three lfos, 120 presets, chord memory, arpeggiator, tape and proprietary interfaces. Oberheim electronics is a manufacturer of audio synthesizers and a variety of. Programmable polyphonic synthesizer 79 pages summary of contents for oberheim two voice. This is a huge amount of work and is reflected in this units high price. A few 1678a voice cards were manufactured, using a slightly different cem3350 filter instead of the cem3320. This is an extremely powerful, classy sounding analog polysynth, and thanks to the numerous knobs and buttons.
I purchased a couple more ob mx s off of ebay, one with no voice cards and one with one. The tom oberheim tvspro is a twovoice, twoway multitimbral, pure analog synthesizer that incorporates two classic synthesizer expander modules with a 16step, twovoice analog sequencer and a 37note, twovoice velocity and aftertouch keyboard. Up for offer an original oberheim 2 voice card for obmx. The obmx can be upgraded with up to five cards that give it an additional 2 voices of polyphony each, for a total of 12 notes of polyphony when maxed out. The 1675 voice card uses a low pass cem3320 voltage controlled filter vcf to smooth the digital output.
Otherwise, the 1678a is pretty much identical to the 1675c, and. Here is the factory demo on a fully loaded, 12 voice obmx rackmount synthesizer designed by don buchla. When properly installed, this oberheim two voice card will increase the number of available voices in your obmx by two. In 1976, it seems, oberheim built a dedicated case for their twovoice. Trilogy moog memorymoog oberheim ob1, ob8, obxa paya proteus. Oberheim ob8 the ob8 was the last in the ob trilogy of synths starting with the obx in 1979, moving on to the obxa in 1981 before arriving at the ob8 in 1983. When properly installed, this oberheim two voice card will increase the number of available voices in your ob mx by two. All used electronic parts are tested and guaranteed working. Just remember that it has its quirks and downsides glitchy sound, no sequencer, etc. Panasonic 3 volt battery for oberheim dx ob1 obsx obx obxa ob8.
The oscillators would not tune very well and were further out when you transpose the keyboard higher and higher. The 1554a and 1554b voice cards use a single 2732 eprom. Obxa manual download obxa patch book obxa patch book. The obx saw the light of earth in 1979 and was the first fully programmable polyphonic synth built by tom oberheim. The obmx, possibly one of the most misunderstood synths of all time. Oberheim ob8 the ob8 was the last in the ob trilogy of synths starting with the ob x in 1979, moving on to the ob xa in 1981 before arriving at the ob 8 in 1983. Oberheim dmx type 1554a and 1554b voice card configuration. Oberheim electronics is an american company, founded in 1969 by tom oberheim a former designer and contract manufacturer for maestro, which manufactures audio synthesizers and a variety of other electronic musical instruments. Oberheim dmx type 1675 voice card configuration the type 1675, 1677 and 1678 voice cards, also known as the mark ii, were designed to be even more flexible than the 1554 voice card. Drums are not from the oberheim hope you enjoy the demo. Oberheim matrix 6 samples for kontakt 237 nki 1792 wav 24bit mac pc mpc download. The ob sx featured the same vcovcfvcas of the ob x and a voice card design similar to the ob xa in which polyphony was based on the number of 2 voice pcb cards installed using cemcurtis chips. Oberheim synthesizer ob8 ob xa ob mx dsx xpander, ob1.
Page 106 ob mx two voice cards contain two complete synthesizer voices, identical to the voices that came in the ob mx. The obx was the first oberheim synthesizer based on a single printed circuit board called a voice card still using mostly discrete components rather than the earlier sem synthesizer expander module used in oberheim semimodular systems, which. It is basically a recreation of the original two voice synthesizer from 1975, but. The obmx is a modern synthesizer module with an audio path that is entirely analog. Oberheim ob8capacitor replacementvoice card oberheim ob. Jan 27, 2012 here is the factory demo on a fully loaded, 12 voice ob mx rackmount synthesizer designed by don buchla.
Oberheim matrix6 synthesizer service manual pdf view. Oberheim obmx 8 voice analog rack synthesizer used perfect. I believe you need to configure it as explained in oberheim dmx type 1554 voice card configuration and furthermore by going to oberheim tom 1tom 2 voice card configuration. Fixed power supply, internal cleaning, new higher capacitance and voltage rating caps, new bridge rectifiers bumped way up in current capacity and voltage ratings, voltage regulators were all high current output and rock solid 5 vdc for the digital circuits of the ob8, battery replaced with a holder so in 5 to 7 years i can change the battery. This document is intended to provide guidance for those wishing to modify oberheim dmx voice cards.
Oberheim ob8capacitor replacementvoice card oberheim. The obx is a twooscillator analog synthesizer has 4, 6, or 8 voices of polyphony depending on configuration. This buyer purchased opx pro, then sold his oberheim obmx 12voice on ebay in less than 2 weeks. I believe you need to configure it as explained in oberheim dmx type 1554 voice card configuration and furthermore by going to. Oberheim obsx obx obxa ob8 dsx switch with led obsx obx obxa ob8. The opx pro has blown me away with its accuracy and detail to recreate the perfect oberheim. Out of the box the obmx comes with one two voice expansion card which contains the two oscillators, 4 multistage envelopes, 3 lfos, and filters. We dusted off archived schematics of this 1979 behemoth and painstakingly recreated the entire signal path. The tom oberheim tvspro is a two voice, twoway multitimbral, pure analog synthesizer that incorporates two classic synthesizer expander modules with a 16step, two voice analog sequencer and a 37note, two voice velocity and aftertouch keyboard. The ob sx was envisioned by designers to be a smaller, lighter, more durable live performance version of their then flagship ob x. Its not polished and impeccable like, say, the revered an1x, but hey the an1x is not able to make sounds like the ob12 and its interface is a joke compared to ob.
Oberheim electronics is a manufacturer of audio synthesizers and a variety of other electronic. Polyphonic synthesizer 34 pages synthesizer oberheim ob xa service manual. The obsx was envisioned by designers to be a smaller, lighter, more durable live performance version of their then flagship obx. This oberheim obxa is now sold as at 21st july 2017. I had always assumed that these were recalibrated upon booting up the ob mx. This is the same filter chip used in the oberheim obxa and ob8 synthesizers. The dmx is a programmable digital drum machine manufactured by oberheim electronics. Oberheim obmx 1994 analog rackmount module synthesizer projected by donald buchla and not by tom oberheim as anyone would expect the obmx module has been a total commercial flop on the market with a lot of lawsuit stories and legends. These correspond to the three pushbuttons for a voice on the dmx front panel, from top to bottom, in that order. I have been an oberheim user ever since the first modular came out and have acquired the ob8, matrix 12, matrix, obmx 12 voice, ob12 and a marion msr2 and i have waited years for someone to do a virtual oberheim that was worthy of the name. On this site you will get to know the sonicprojects sensational remake of the legendary ob x for vst and reaktor. Ob mx tom oberheim tom oberheim founded oberheim, later oberheim as a company got property of gibson, now it is viscount so oberheim is not tom oberheim now tom oberheim founded marion systems later also no more active.
Oberheim dmx drum machine type 1554a and 1554b voice card configuration guide. Obmx tom oberheim tom oberheim founded oberheim, later oberheim as a company got property of gibson, now it is viscount so oberheim is not tom oberheim now tom oberheim founded marion systems later also no more active. The original design team was replaced with veteran synth designer don buchla, who restarted the project pretty much from scratch and was able to bring it. Oberheim electronics was a monolith in the development of the synthesizer. A real device was used for endless tunings and comparisons to get as close as possible. This item will be fully electronically restored prior to sale rebuilt to work like new or better. Im sure not, but it really seems to capture that oberheim obx vibe pretty well. Nov 11, 2011 oberheim ob mx just a simple demonstration of some patches.