Micromoog
Synthesizers December 7th, 2010
The Micromoog was Moog and friends’ solution to making synthesizers affordable to poor starving musicians. It has a fraction of the features (and 1/3 of the oscillators) that the Minmoog has, but still has quite a few of its own. A multitude of rotary and rocker switches provides flexible routing options without making it difficult to operate. Even though it’s only got 1 oscillator, it has a variable doubling control that divides it down one or two octaves for extra Moogy phatness.
Features:
- 1 Variable-Waveshape Oscillator
- LFO
- Envelope Generator
- 24db/octave Filter
- Noise Generator
- Sample and Hold
- 32 Key Keyboard
- Mod Wheel
- Ribbon Controller for Pitch Bend
- Monophonic
- All Analogue
The best part about this particular Micromoog is that it was found in a dumpster and still works great. Why somebody would throw something like this out I have no idea, but they obviously didn’t know (or care) what they had. When I first plugged it in I expected a puff of smoke or at the very least silence. It fired right up though. Right away I was able to play the filter with the keyboard. After some wiggling of dirty pots I was able to get the oscillator to make sound. Overall it needs some cleaning, the keyboard needs some new bushings and I think one of the rotary switches needs to be resoldered, but it works great. Even the ribbon controller, which tends to have problems on these Moog synthesizers, works just fine.
Cosmetically it’s a bit scratched, there’s an extra hole in the back and the sweet sweet simulated woodgrain finish is starting to peel, but it’s not too bad for a synth that was made in the late ’70s and stuffed into a dumpster.
