WAVE MACHINES
The 70s were a golden age for analogue subtractive synthesis. The technology had matured and developed to a point where there was a wide range of instruments, from simple portable mono-synths all the way up to large, complex modular monsters. But by the end of the decade, advances in semiconductor and microprocessor technology made it possible for existing digital synthesis theories to be made into commercial reality, which opened the door to completely new ways of synthesising sound, too.
As the 80s picked up pace, the colossal price of early digital synths, such as the NED Synclavier and Fairlight CMI, began to tumble and the number of different synthesis techniques on offer proliferated as designers and synth experts explored the new possibilities on offer. The big winners of this period were FM and sample-based synthesis; yet for all of their benefits, these were distinctly lacking when it came to the sort of hands-on immediacy and flexible sonic character that epitomised analogue subtractive synthesisers. But two types of digital synthesis – one contemporary with the rise of FM, the other with the rise of S&S – tried to do things a bit differently…
TALK TO THE PALM
German musician and keyboard player Wolfgang Palm started his synth design company, Palm Products GmbH, better known as PPG, in 1975. The company’s initial releases failed to gain much attention, but they did establish Palm as an inventive and imaginative innovator: his Minimoog-inspired 1020 mono synth was the first to use digitally controlled oscillators (in other words, it stayed in tune!) and his 340/380 system was one of the earliest attempts at computer-based synthesis and sequencing. But despite all
