Instead of having one Kenton Pro Solo per analog synth, I thought it would be wise to have only one MIDI-to-CV -converter to Rule Them All. So I got this, and it’s perfect for that: you can have up to 4 synths connected to it (or 12, if you’re not picky about pitch accuracy), or you can configure it for use with, say, a modular synth. Quite easy to use, and has worked really well. Still didn’t get rid of my Kenton’s, though.

Eventually the battery died, and it was the kind that required some heavy soldering work. That, and the fact that I really didn’t feel I had missed it while it sat there unused for several year, led me to part with it.

OK, then. Time to go seriously analog. My plan was very simple: to build a modular synthesizer one module at a time, and spend serious quality time with each new module in order to truly learn it. I ordered an empty 6U case, and oscillator and an lfo and sat down and waited. While I waited, I happened to place the winning bid on an entire full 6U system from eBay. So much for going slowly.

Doepfer has a truly excellent setup of modules and they are very reasonably priced. Still, before my modular grew out of proportion, I decided to go for another brand, the Synthesizers.com modular. So I sold the Doepfer and ordered a dotcom instead. 

Main reasons for not keeping Doepfer: small plugs feel a bit flimsy, small modules are a bit unergonomic, and it isn’t black 🙂
My Doepferlessness didn’t last for long, though…