Lyricon II Classic Wind Synthesizer

[Gandalfe]

My friend QuinnTheEskimo is tempting me yet again. Unable to find a slide sax he offers this.

This is an EXTREMELY RARE Lyricon II classic wind synthesizer. Unbelieveable! Nothing sounds like a classic analog synth, and the Lyricon II combines great analog tone production with great breath control and keywork to create a synthesizer that you can play as a woodwind. This instrument is in excellent condition and works well as is. Pics tell the rest of the story!

 

[MartinMods]

I had one back in 1979 or so (a I or a II, I can't recall) and used it with a 4-voice, Oberheim SEM synth. There were some design issues with it, IMO.

The key contacts tarnish, and no matter how diligently I cleaned them, they failed to function perfectly, all the time.

The octave keys are additive. One volt equals one octave, each key adding one volt to the pitch control voltage. To get the 3rd octave, one must keep both octave keys depressed, and that seemed unnatural and problematic for me.

The keywork seemed cheaper than the cheapest saxophone. The springs were too short or tensioned wrong, as the mechanism didn't feel snappy. When the WX7 came out, I was thrilled at how it felt and responded like a real, quality instrument, by comparison. I never went back.

Good thing: No MIDI delay!

 

[SOTSDO]

But...

...is that the original lacquer?

I tried one of these way back in the day, and like our ancient saxophone modifier, I felt that it was cheap feeling under the hands. Iffen I was looking for a wind controller, I too would take a different route.

Iffen I was lookin'...

What the world really needs is a wind controller designed by a committee of woodwind players. Wait, that's not quite right

What I meant was...

A committee of single reed players

A committee of clarinet players

A committee of Selmer clarinet players

A committee of Selmer bass clarinet players

A committee of Selmer older model bass clarinet players

A committee of Selmer older model bass clarinet players from Saint Louis who were born in the year 1949.

There, I fixed the problem.

 

[SOTSDO]

Seriously...

...or, more seriously, what I would like would be a robust controller that would allow the following:

1) Line or battery power, and with a battery compartment that would not corrode up solid, like certain controllers of my acquaintance

2) The ability to shift not only the arrangement of one set of keys (as is common on modern controllers), but the ability to install any variation of woodwind fingering system (from flute to bassoon and all in between) on the same controller body, and then to be able to reassign the keys as one desires.

3) A low-key (in appearance) appearance - no flashy silver color schemes or big logos and lettering.

4) A companion synth setup that would incorporate the carrying case for both the synth and the controller (as seen above)

5) Would not cost an arm and a leg, all in.

I'm not holding my breath...

 

[pete]

I know that Peter Ponzol was involved in some way with the Lyricon projects. There's your sax input .

There's no real attraction for me for analog over digital or vice-versa. The only thing I'd want to know is how the thing sounds and feels. When you buy a WX-7 or other controller, you're worried about JUST feel. The sound is going to come from whatever tone generator you get. The Lyricon is both a controller and tone generator. Unless you like both the feel and the sound, you've gotta skip it.

 

[hakukani]

I wanted one of these soooo bad, until I heard Roland Kirk play one on Kirkatron on a tune called Lyriconon.

It sounded like a harmonica. I was very disappointed.

 

[MartinMods]

I know that Peter Ponzol was involved in some way with the Lyricon projects. There's your sax input .

There's no real attraction for me for analog over digital or vice-versa. The only thing I'd want to know is how the thing sounds and feels. When you buy a WX-7 or other controller, you're worried about JUST feel. The sound is going to come from whatever tone generator you get. The Lyricon is both a controller and tone generator. Unless you like both the feel and the sound, you've gotta skip it.

The problem with analog tone generators from this era is temperature induced pitch drift. You had to tune the oscillators every few minutes. When the Oberheim Xpander came out (with automatic "tune" button), I dumped the Lyricon and the Oberheim SEM beast, and got one of those, plus a WX7 and a couple of FM modules. That is a nice setup.

 

[pete]

The problem with analog tone generators from this era is temperature induced pitch drift.

I thought that was supposed to be the attraction of analog synths . (Seriously, I've heard people argue that and they're right, to an extent.)

As mentioned elsewhere, I had a WX-11 and owned one of the Yamaha FM synths, the FB01. It was a tad cheesy. Then again, so was most music in the 1980s . The major benefit was that the FB01 was built to really support the breath controllers -- and Yamaha did have one that was JUST a breath controller: no keys or anything.

Unfortunately for synth makers, I don't particularly have any need for a synth sound. I'm in need of duplicating acoustic instruments and rather standard electric ones (Hammond B3, electric bass, things along those lines).

Ah, my frivolous youth, spending money on bunches of synths and sample units ....

 

[MartinMods]

I thought that was supposed to be the attraction of analog synths . (Seriously, I've heard people argue that and they're right, to an extent.)

As mentioned elsewhere, I had a WX-11 and owned one of the Yamaha FM synths, the FB01. It was a tad cheesy. Then again, so was most music in the 1980s . The major benefit was that the FB01 was built to really support the breath controllers -- and Yamaha did have one that was JUST a breath controller: no keys or anything.

Unfortunately for synth makers, I don't particularly have any need for a synth sound. I'm in need of duplicating acoustic instruments and rather standard electric ones (Hammond B3, electric bass, things along those lines).

Ah, my frivolous youth, spending money on bunches of synths and sample units ....

Well, yes, and no. A certain degree of instability is preferable when tuning two oscillators to the same pitch - like two saxes playing unison sound fatter than one - but, when the oscillators start drifting into non-related key centers (slight exaggeration there) you start to find that annoying.

The FM modules do sound cheesy....alone.... but if you mix them just right with a nice analog Xpander or Matrix 12 (all analog, but with Midi control) they really add something to the analog sound. There isn't one synth sound source that does everything.

 

[pete]

It's interesting trying to decide what really "sounds" good. For instance, the (circa early 1990s) Korg M1 sounded as good as or better than competing synths of the time, but the way the sound was generated was by taking a simple tone that sounded about as cheesy as the FB01 and add bunches of effects to the tone, resulting in a nice, fat sound. So, is it tone + stuff = good or good tone + extra stuff = really good? Is Rebecca Black a good singer or does Rebecca Black + Autotune = a good singer?

 

[pete]

BTW, here's another Lyricon for sale. Cheaper. Some pics of the mouthpiece, too.