Formanta Polivoks - Soviet Synth Sensation
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 22 ส.ค. 2024
- In which I play and demo the vintage Formanta Polivoks, a two voice paraphonic analog synth from 1980s Soviet Union. I love this wild and strange instrument, it has been on my wishlist for ages. It sounds nothing the synths available in the "west" at the time and follows its own unique ideas.
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Thank you for this presentation! However I wonder why are you take audio signal from the headphones output? The signal here is a liitle bit distorted because it passes through headphones amlifier which itself is not hi fi amp. It's better to take audio from the main output. And other thing. No need to press and hold any key to demonstrate or use looping envelopes of VCF and VCA. It's enough to switch on the switch ON in VCA section. It only imitates pressing the key or in other words it sends GATE signal to EGs.
I feel honoured to see you here! Honestly, I did not have the adapter to go from the regular out, so I used the headphone. Will mind that in the future. Thank you for making these utterly unique Synthesizers.
@@Hainbach Thanks a lot!
WOW- the ACTUAL Vladimir Kuzmin!!! What great, incredible work you did w/ this vintage beauty. One of a kind!
Thanks to you, and Hainbach for having this exchange in public, and in English. I feel like I've snuck a peek behind a door which I was not supposed to open.
@@vladimirkuzminpolivoks Looking forward to your upcoming new version with Behringer ! I’ve wanted this synth since Jexus’s demo 13 years ago !
Sounds like an MS-20 that smoked five cigars and smashed a bottle of whiskey every day for 30 years.
Bottle of vodka*
@@gayfrogs4206*five papiroses.
Fun Fact: The Polivoks is the synth that was used in the soundtrack for Doom 2016
I knew I recognised it!
*a synth
eurorack modular synths were used for sound design
Да! 👍🎹🔊
Any video showing that?
That’s why I’m here
This thing sounds as if every single parameter is modulated by a tiny amount of white noise at all times. It is so fantastic.
2:37 Analog Worms Attack
9:28 Moustache (half a scissor)
14:00 Lambs Anger
Oizo!! Lambs Anger is one of my favorite albums!!
4:20 suddenly doom
I don't know if it's my age or what, but you could show me any old junk with "Soviet" written on it and I'd be all "oooh.... nice..... interesting"...... and the Polivoks being decidedly "not junk" and a synth to boot is just terrific!
U.S.S.Arrghhh!
@@T.H.W.O.T.H Я не понимаю
I'm totally with you! 😅
Synth music and sounds sound oddly familiar and I feel like I'm recalling music from a time prior to my birth.
@@T.H.W.O.T.H the sec ok nd that I saw this he said it. Wtf
One of my fav synth. I have a Polivoks for ten years now (even used to have two of them!) and several other vintage Soviet machines. Truly amazing and really built like tanks, even the toy ones like the 'Pif' little organ. Once you got over the generally crappy keyboard, the definitely weird connections (sound signal or power) and batteries plus, with the Polivoks, the quite tricky calibration process, the soundscapes you can generate are always... powerful and surprising. A tip for those who prefer a more conventional setting for signal path: the Altair 231 is a real carbon copy of the mini Moog, but, owning both, I have to admit that the Polivoks is definitely 'more fun to compute' - to tell it the Ralf & Florian way. Another very interesting synth, more on the Roland/Yamaha style is the Aelita...
Bonus fact: with all those machines, due to the vast room inside and the dedicated 5 pin Din connectors used for absolutely everything (signal in and out, headphones and pedals), installing a midi kit is generally a piece of cake...
I really miss the times (the late 2000s) when you could get a working unit in exchange of a bottle of vodka because nobody knew how to use it musically... and thanks to guys like Mick Gordon it's now expensive as hell
I remember just before Acid House my local second-hand shop had 3 303s a 101 and 2 808s in the window for very low prices (but I had no money) later , I got a good job (and acid house got invented) and I had the money but cheap 303s were a thing of the past.
Ahhh.... so Mick Gordon used one... makes a lot of sense! I really enjoyed his work on the Doom OSTs. And I've loved anything to do with the Polivoks since first hearing it.
Prices will come down, when the B-brand comes with a clone....
and now even more so, thanks to guys like Hainbach
I was first introduced to this instrument by a band I enjoy called collide, amongst their strange instruments is a warr bass, the formanta polivoks, and a few others.
I saw a blip of the voks' in one of their music videos [look around the 1.56 mark th-cam.com/video/mRh1aT5xNRI/w-d-xo.html ], and By the time i figured out what it was, they were prohibitively expensive.
Been looking forward to this. Fantastic and nasty sounding synth and _that_ design!
Great talk through / play through Hainbach, thoroughly enjoyed it.
Thank you! This was one of those fast and fun videos, which is nice to do from time to time.
The Polivoks deserves so much more recognition!
This synth really sounds like Hainbach! Rich and complicated and warm and not ordinary!
Nice synth, love the style of it, very industrial hardcore 80's no nonsense. Who needs colours when you sound this good. I also love the white noise as a modulator, that's just crazy.
HAINBACH, "Привет!" from Russia. Polivoks is a cool synth, the filter of this synthesizer is truly amazing. There is not a single capacitor in it, which is unique for VCF design!
No capacitors! Woah! I want a schematic now.
Privet, Nikolai!)
@@edgeeffect google "polivoks vcf schematic" and look for images. Moreover, this vcf has a small count of components which costs almost nothing. Pretty easy diy toy.
@@edgeeffect the author exploited internal frequency response of programmable opamps, so they alone became integrators, without any external capacitor. As far as I remember, the cutoff frequency is controlled by the current you apply to program the opamps. Besides this, it is an SVF design.
Probably the design is the result of not having certain components or them being too expensive.
If I remember correctly, this synth is the inspiration for image-Line's Sawer VST :)
The Polivoks has a unique capacitorless filter design, no other synth (at least not the western ones) has the same. I also own one of these and it really reminds me of a Korg MS-20 colliding with a Minimoog, having the good characters of both of those synths. It's (the Polivoks I mean) also remarkably low noise and the output is even balanced, which is not the norm even on modern mono synths. Other than that, it's a super simple synth actually, and if you take it apart you can see how crude and simple the architechture is... But that sound is something probably never be done again... Modern components don't sound as good for one reason or another (debatable), old components are noiser, less linear but for the ear they just create better tones. The Polivoks for me is my favorite monosynth along with my MS-20. Both have that unmistakable "vintage" character, but the MS-20 is actually noiser but of course a much more flexible synth thanks to the patchbay. But the Polivoks can do a lot from bells to fx to screaming leads to super pretty leads to super raw basses to even pads. There is nothing like it.
You should check out the Formanta guitars & basses they made. Loads of crazy switches & knobs, so plenty of tone options. Some have even got their own built-in fuzz circuits, which I find legit cool. It's fair to say they weren't afraid to experiment 🤣
When you were switching the generator waveform controls I was loving that deep bass thump every time you switched it and was going to comment on it then I hear you say how great the switching noise is at 6:33! I guess great minds, or ears, do think alike! Cheers from Louisiana! P[>
My school had one back in 1989. We had no freaking idea what to do with it!
uuuuh! I live in Kachkanar where all Polyvox synths are from and my grannys life was dedicated to the Formanta factory))))
I have this synthesizer . I have been using it for many years. Great sound. The filter is alive. It is a great synth.
Wow!!! Congratulations dude! It's sound is breathtaking... I can't wait to hear you use it in compositions.
Самовозбуждающийся фильтр Поливокса, после прогрева синтезатора начинает жить своей жизнью.
Бгг)
Even the pads sound angry ^_^
im not really that into synths I am a guitar player but I love listening to the audio on these videos so much with my headphones
Any synth called Formanta had better have some interesting filter. My friend has 2 of these, and neither one is working, so he told me I could have a look inside to see whether I can get it singing. I suspect that there’s something going wonky when we try to power it here in Ye New World. Those instructions for calibration that you’ve mentioned are probably very valuable for this instrument. It’s VCA is really something I’ve not ever seen the likes of. AWESOME! THANKS AGAIN, never a dull moment!!
Of course I have one. One of the best synths ever made. Hainbach get a Alisa 1377 a soviet miracle too. Sounds like nothing else as well!
Sounds beautiful, unique design. Very “hardbody” as we say in the States.
Such amazing sounds you got out of that beast! I'd love a whole record of songs like the jam at 12:34, great work!
You 2 are made for each other! What a great track at the end. Make more please!👌
That jam at the end was absolutely incredible!
blyat! i love this synth so much i built my eurorack around the erica polivoks filter; the character is just as powerful imo (not gonna get into A/B nitpick comparisons because they just 'got' it imo. this synth does have a lot of added value with the additional parts (compared to a modular system like mine). so cool you have one now!!!
Privet from Russia! Spasibo for this video =)
Совэцки синтезатоr ест очен харощи.
Oh my, I've wanted one of these for about 15 or 20 years, I think
I love my Harvestman Polivoks VCF (and Geiger Counter, Doepfer filters, etc.), I can't wait to get my Eurorack set up and running again.
Chiptune will be fun with the Noise Engineering Ataraxic Translatron and Mutable Instruments Edges, I've been extremely moved by Mega Man music in particular lately! Mixing that with analogue gear may be interesting. Plus, I should finally have a guitar amp again at the end of the week (finally, plus, I got a 15" bass cab to run it through, so I can send bass, synths, even my TipTop BD808 through my guitar pedals!), it's been too long (I gave my Fender Frontman 15 bass amp to my son when he started playing guitar a few months ago).
The Harvestman/Industrial Music Electronics sells their IME1982 Polivoks VCF for Eurorack. One of my favorite modules because of the gritty character. IME claim they designed and built their version in consultation with Kuzmin, using NOS Russian electronic components. You get low-pass and Band-pass outputs, but no high pass. On the other hand, it has 2 audio inputs with attenuators so you can use it as a mixer too.
Very enjoyable, thank you.
This thing makes some interesting sounds, thanks for sharing!
I’m happy that you have it! Hainbach + Polivoks = new sound magic.
Great video. I bought one, as well. Love it.
Subtlety and ergonomics were certainly wasteful conveniences to the proletariat.
This beast sounds more "electric" than any other synth in the world, a real character! Congrats on getting one! The Erica synths Polivoks VCF was my first DIY eurorack module and I love it, but got to say it sounds nowhere near as decadent and nasty as this. Whats with the capless potentiometers on the logo plate, oscillator tuners?
My first run-in with the Polivoks was synth guru Jexus' demo over this unit.. You really do get such a raw Industrial sound out of it!
Funny to see you turn knobs and nothing happens. I have that too with the polivoks from time to time :) enjoy. And beware. Ears might get more then they like
Ah, so this is the synth that inspired FL Studios Sawer softsynth....
sawer is the best
A very cool synth. I'd love one but it's outside of my price range.
12:35 sounds amazing!!!
HAINBACH #1 video, as always!!! I bought an Infradeep PVX 800 on the strength of your video. Something impossible in Soviet communist times? They processed my credit card payment and everything, and it comes in a military style solid wood Ammo box. It's a joy, with both CV and MIDI, plus audio input (with its own level knob), to process external sound through filter, amp and delay/flange effect. Imagine: Polyvox with third wavetable oscillator from Waldorf NW-1.
Pew pew pew! Vintage Lazers!! :D , I'd love an eurorack module based on this synth. Fun.
ELTA polyvox-m pm-02 is the way to go :)
Sergio Kalynychenko really any video?
Awesome demotrack you made there Mr. Hainbach
Легендарный синт.Я его хорошо знаю.Его называли Поливокс Калашникова.Мог автоматную очередь сделать.Лично пробовал.Очень похоже.
One of my favorite! And very underestimated I think.
Filter resonance distortion is scary and distinctive.
It absolutely sings of doom
The drums and synth sound fantastic!
I had one of those back in the days. Pretty nasty sounding machine. Lots if industrial sounds. I also had Estradin, Aelita and Ritm2. Now those last two were fantastic. Absolutely amazing magic sound.like out of this world. There is an old soviet cartoon where they have been used. It's called "The secret of the third planet". I totally recommend to watch it for visual and sound". Amazing instruments! And the filters get better with time. They age like wine, nothing like modern stuff. Interesting video none the less! Cheers from Russia!
Привет, Хайнбах! My respect from Russia.
Yes Hainbach! Yes! What a great sounding machine! 😁👍🤘👊
For those who want more flexibility there is Harvestman modules and of course Erika synths modules. I have the Erika Synths diy Kit and it has the remade can transistors in it and sounds damn good. Loads of flexibility inherent with a modular.
Cheers, Hainbach for doing a review on my fav synth from my childhood.
first time wating for a premiere, hope its interesting, freundschaft
Those filter sweeps sound like something from the Chernobyl soundtrack.
i had one for a while with MIDI implementation and it was sooooooo cooooool! love it
Привет, Хайнбах!
Super gnarly! Would love to play one
There really is an interesting comparison between synths from different nations/cultures due to the sounds they can create. This synth can be clean & digital 80's sounding yet in a second and meddling with the filter and resonance it's in dirty alley mode and spewing mess and grit out. There is a slight overlap in the way synths were made, with logical signal processing patterns, but this really does have a nice sound covering the full spectrum of bright sounds and some seriously dark sounds.
Very interesting synth indeed.
Учитывая то из каких комплектующих он собран, довольно не плохой синт. Был такой в нашем ДК, не пользовались
В 80х играл на таком. Хорошая машинка.😊
Hi Hainbach, really like the video. If you have Reaktor there is a virtual synth called Monovoks that sounds really good. It's free to download but with the player, you can use it only for a limited amount of minutes. Have a great day and stay safe.
I looked up Russian synthesizers after Kevin Penkin mentioned them in Trash Taste Podcast lol
Yeah.... a sequence with those looped envelopes and an LFO would be marvelous.... extra marvelous if you can also clock them REALLY slow.
I had a little giggle at the disappointment apparent in the phrase "It's a rather musical effect, not one designed for crazy sound effects, I feel." That speaks to me.
So then these machines beg the question, who were the soviet electronic artists?
Eduard Artemiev
Check put Alyans
@@altvibr RIP Oleg. 😢
Sans Eduard Artemiev and Alyans, we had Vyacheslav Mescherin, Alexandr Zatsepin (he did some electronic hi-jinks), Biokonstruktor, Centr (no relation to early 10's crappy hip hop group, I mean the one with V. Shumov), Arsenal (mostly jazz, but with some synths), Tekhnologiya, Nochnoi Prospekt, Stuk Bambuka v XI Chasov, or even that anti-Soviet crap Televizor.
Those knobs are hilariously huge 😂
I got a russian drum machine and it sounds like nothing else. I mean it does but its like better
а я играл на таком в школьном ансамбле, жалею, что тогда не знал о техно, спасибо за видео
Wow, i love the sound.
I have the Polivox samples by Hideaway Studio. That guy has lots of old stuff including a Novachord and Eminent 310.
And the Folktek Omnichord peeks out and thinks: What the hell is going on? Can I join?
TH-cam has started recommending me soviet synth videos. I’m not complaining.
Nice jam at the end!!!
Wow, I expected it to cost much more! I guess still fine working PVs are getting rarer an rarer. This instrument is kind of the anti-VST in a way. It feels so dated and mechanical engineered... чудесно!
Hey, I’ve both midi kit for my Polivoks in Russia for 70 €. Installed in few minutes. Works perfectly. Let me know if I should give your more details about. Nur zur Info...Und Danke für eine schöne Review!
Woher bezieht man die?
Cool it sounds pretty intuitive
This is soooooo good!
I feel like this is what a horse hears in its head after eating a bad batch of shrooms
This Synthesizer is one of a Kind, because every unit will be have in a slightly Differenz way. The reason for this are the parts, which were used. They came from chancelled russian rocket programs and disassembled units. So, in the end, all the parts, scrambled together, have diffent values, in percentage and manufacturing. But this is the true charakter of these units.
Hi from Russia, Man. This is realy fuckin amazing synth.Its hard to find this thing in good condition, but i hope someone like behringer makes this in desktop version.Dreams..dreams..
There is one from ELTA music
Not sure if you have set it up particularly for this purpose or this is the natural characteristics of the synth itself, but some of the sounds remind me of the test equipment you were using Hainbach! I think you have the voodoo and magic to make anything sound like as you wanted ...
Hello
At the university where i studied was a little electronic music studio. One of us had build a "raw" synthesizer. I would say, about the filter, this was not a Voltage controlled filter, but a "devil controlled filter". While hearing you presenting the Polyvoks i found again, about the filter, the same "grunge" sound. Surprising. If i can find a mail address i will send to you one or two pieces recorded with this "crashing" crazy machine.
NEKO
9:39 !!! ГОЛОСОВАНИЕ !!!
Nice vidéo!! Thanx Man!!🤪👍
Would Behringer care to make a version of this great synth? It would kill.
It seems that Behringer hired Vladimir Kuzmin to work on a remake of sorts.
I heard this was the synth used to create the bass line in Goldfrapp's Train.
Hainbach my dude. I know you know Bastl. Peter Edwards made a synth called Softpop. Its like a circuit bendy noise machine with crazy feedback signal path, you can sequence too. Very raw analog sounds. But I assume it’s probly not your style because you once said you didn’t like tiny patch cables lol. You get used to it though!
sounds so good...
Illich (Lenin) would be proud of this part of USSR) just kidding. But mr. Kuzmin the developer of Поливокс is a pure genius.
Привет! Im too plays on the Polyvoks! It that real cool synth! 💜🔥🎹🔊
What's the closest VST for this? I've seen a couple around but all the comments I read said they sound nothing like the original hardware (and after watching this demo, I have to agree...)
So punk 😎sounds incredible!
Klingt echt geil. Behringer clone in 3, 2, 1... ;)
The one to get is the version 1, I think it was made until 1989. Then the components were changed, markedly worse.
Soviet tech - either so bad that can randomly set itself on fire (like TV Rubin) or extremly sturdy and reliable (like this thing or Kalashnikov...)