Post by sys700 on Sept 16, 2009 13:32:42 GMT
Hi:
I'm a new member from Michigan. I stumbled across this forum while searching for documentation for an ailing Polymoog 203a I recently bought and resurrected.
I was first introduced to the haunting sounds of the Polymoog back in 1979 when I bought Gary Numan's "Cars" on 45. That song blew me away - so alien - so unique and haunting compared to anything else I had heard. I think I actually preferred the b-side "Metal" at the time. I also bought The Buggle's "Video Killed the Radio Star" and Blondie's "Call Me" on 45 around the same time. Those 3 songs started me on a musical journey through a lot of post-punk groups and much of what is considered New Wave today. And all three used Polymoog's! Back in the early 80's this music was considered alternative, at least where I lived in northern Ontario. And being from Canada, I was also a huge Saga fan, and they used the Polymoog quite a bit on msot of their early albums.
I was in a band in college in the late 80's, performing mainly cover versions from the early 80's, including Numan, Devo, Men Without Hats, etc. We did Down in the Park and a couple others, but trying to recreate analog textures on late 80's digital synths was an exercise in frustration. I ended up drifting away from these sounds in the early 90's only to rediscover them again in the mid-90's after trying to figure out what Enya was using to get the synth textures on her first release. After picking up a Juno-60 and Six Trak in my local classifieds, my obsession with all things analog had begun.
Around 1993 I started buying up every analog synth I could afford, building up my recording studio for a future release. At the time, synths were relatively cheap, but I knew one day they'd be worth a lot more. At one point I found a Polymoog in my home town for $300 but when I turned it on it wouldn't power up. They sold it to me for $100 and my tech repaired it for $25. I kept it for a couple of years, and really liked the sounds I could coax out of it, but when a friend questioned the wisdom of owning such a fragile synth, I decided to sell it, thinking I could replicate the sound with my Jupiter-6 and/or D-50. I didn't have any effects to run it through either, so it sounded kind of weedy and thin at the time. I tried to acquire one afterwards, but they were always broken or beat up and had risen in value.
In 2003 I released a CD and EP under the name I SATELLITE: (www.isatellite.info). I have some recent demo tracks here: (www.myspace.com/isatellite) and some additional tracks here: (www.isatellite.info/music.html). We Rock Like Crazy released one of my songs as a 12" single in 2005 in Germany. After that release, my life took me on a side journey for about 5 years (involving two separate moves) and during that time my studio was dismantled, sold off, and/or packed away in boxes until only recently.
I've since bought alot of my old synths and drum machines back, including a PPG Wave 2.3, Linn LM-1 Drum Computer (owned by Genesis), and a 203a Polymoog in non-functioning condition (on eBay for $650 a few weeks ago) - Serial number is 3119.
The Polymoog arrived 3 weeks ago wrapped in several layers of blankets. These were not just your ordinary run-of-the-mill blankets. We're talking zebra stripes, fuzzy pink leopard, cheetah, and other wild game! This was then covered in a thin layer of bubblewrap and shipped in a cheap box which literally wrapped around the synth so you could feel it on the ends. Due to an eBay glitch, the synth was accidently shipped to my old address, 3 hours away, which had an unlisted number. Needless to say, I was a bit concerned that I would never see it again. Fortunately, a friend picked it up for me, and it arrived in one piece. It's the cleanest Polymoog I've ever seen. And $200 later, it's now working perfectly, aside from a couple key contacts that need cleaning.
That's about it. Looking forward to conversing with other Polymoog owners.
I'm a new member from Michigan. I stumbled across this forum while searching for documentation for an ailing Polymoog 203a I recently bought and resurrected.
I was first introduced to the haunting sounds of the Polymoog back in 1979 when I bought Gary Numan's "Cars" on 45. That song blew me away - so alien - so unique and haunting compared to anything else I had heard. I think I actually preferred the b-side "Metal" at the time. I also bought The Buggle's "Video Killed the Radio Star" and Blondie's "Call Me" on 45 around the same time. Those 3 songs started me on a musical journey through a lot of post-punk groups and much of what is considered New Wave today. And all three used Polymoog's! Back in the early 80's this music was considered alternative, at least where I lived in northern Ontario. And being from Canada, I was also a huge Saga fan, and they used the Polymoog quite a bit on msot of their early albums.
I was in a band in college in the late 80's, performing mainly cover versions from the early 80's, including Numan, Devo, Men Without Hats, etc. We did Down in the Park and a couple others, but trying to recreate analog textures on late 80's digital synths was an exercise in frustration. I ended up drifting away from these sounds in the early 90's only to rediscover them again in the mid-90's after trying to figure out what Enya was using to get the synth textures on her first release. After picking up a Juno-60 and Six Trak in my local classifieds, my obsession with all things analog had begun.
Around 1993 I started buying up every analog synth I could afford, building up my recording studio for a future release. At the time, synths were relatively cheap, but I knew one day they'd be worth a lot more. At one point I found a Polymoog in my home town for $300 but when I turned it on it wouldn't power up. They sold it to me for $100 and my tech repaired it for $25. I kept it for a couple of years, and really liked the sounds I could coax out of it, but when a friend questioned the wisdom of owning such a fragile synth, I decided to sell it, thinking I could replicate the sound with my Jupiter-6 and/or D-50. I didn't have any effects to run it through either, so it sounded kind of weedy and thin at the time. I tried to acquire one afterwards, but they were always broken or beat up and had risen in value.
In 2003 I released a CD and EP under the name I SATELLITE: (www.isatellite.info). I have some recent demo tracks here: (www.myspace.com/isatellite) and some additional tracks here: (www.isatellite.info/music.html). We Rock Like Crazy released one of my songs as a 12" single in 2005 in Germany. After that release, my life took me on a side journey for about 5 years (involving two separate moves) and during that time my studio was dismantled, sold off, and/or packed away in boxes until only recently.
I've since bought alot of my old synths and drum machines back, including a PPG Wave 2.3, Linn LM-1 Drum Computer (owned by Genesis), and a 203a Polymoog in non-functioning condition (on eBay for $650 a few weeks ago) - Serial number is 3119.
The Polymoog arrived 3 weeks ago wrapped in several layers of blankets. These were not just your ordinary run-of-the-mill blankets. We're talking zebra stripes, fuzzy pink leopard, cheetah, and other wild game! This was then covered in a thin layer of bubblewrap and shipped in a cheap box which literally wrapped around the synth so you could feel it on the ends. Due to an eBay glitch, the synth was accidently shipped to my old address, 3 hours away, which had an unlisted number. Needless to say, I was a bit concerned that I would never see it again. Fortunately, a friend picked it up for me, and it arrived in one piece. It's the cleanest Polymoog I've ever seen. And $200 later, it's now working perfectly, aside from a couple key contacts that need cleaning.
That's about it. Looking forward to conversing with other Polymoog owners.