Artist Picks: Best Music Gear of 2023 Part 2

2023 is soon drawing to a close-so, we're taking a look back at the year, and taking account of all of the weird and wonderful instruments that gave us some inspiration this year. Synthesizers, drum machines, and Eurorack modules to samplers and effects, this year had no shortage of inspiring instruments.
So, we reached out to some of our friends and content creators to fill us in on their year, asking one simple question: what was the coolest piece of gear you got this year? For some, that meant brand new releases, but for others, it meant sitting down and digging into classic instruments.
In this video, we hear from:
00:00 Red Means Recording on the Elektron Syntakt
01:07 Midlife Synthesist on the Akai MPC X SE
03:20 DivKid on the Intellijel Cascadia
06:30 Jorb on the Roland S1
09:13 Bo Beats on the Teenage Engineering OP-1 Field
12:45 Trovarsi on the Anti-Kulture Precision Disruptor
Read more about all of this gear on our blog, Signal: bit.ly/3MEhpfE
Shop the Featured Gear and Brands
Elektron Syntakt: bit.ly/3SFylGJ
Akai: bit.ly/3sARf70
Intellijel Cascadia: bit.ly/3ujV1SI
T-Rex The Replicator D'Luxe: bit.ly/3MLK0A6
Roland AIRA Compact S-1: bit.ly/40E3rR1
Teenage Engineering OP-1 Field: bit.ly/3sEHODx
Anti-Kulture's Precision Disruptor: bit.ly/3QKxhP4
Check out our friends' work here:
Red Means Recording ‪@RedMeansRecording‬
Midlife Synthesist ‪@MidlifeSynthesist‬
DivKid ‪@DivKid‬
Jorb ‪@JorbLovesGear‬
Bo Beats ‪@BoBeats‬
Trovarsi ‪@Trovarsi‬
#bestmusicgear #musicproduction #synths
Don't forget to Like and Subscribe for more videos about synthesizers, effect pedals, modular synths, and more!
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Perfect Circuit is an independent electronic instrument shop with an online store at www.perfectcircuit.com/ and a Burbank, California showroom at 2405 Empire Ave. We're open seven days a week, 12-8 PM, and our entire inventory is available to try out in person. Get your hands on the most excellent analog and digital synthesizers, effect pedals, Eurorack modular synths, drum machines, recording gear, and more!
Learn about electronic music, techniques, and gear on our blog, Signal: www.perfectcircuit.com/signal
Follow us on our socials:
Follow us on Instagram. / perfect_circuit
Follow us on Facebook / perfectcircuitaudio

[@Trovarsi]

Thanks PC! It's great to be in the company of some of my favorite synth people!!🖤I'll be posting a detailed video on the Precision Discrupter in the coming week.

[@ummagumma33]

Love that Jeremy was just like "Syntakt...welp, see ya later"

[@TRC_PNW]

Syntakt 💪

[@cadiac75]

Hey Jorb, I would also have suggested the S-1. It’s such a great gear. ❤

[@IntiAlonso]

Thumbs up to @JorbLovesGear for being the only one recommending a synth affordable for the masses. Down to earth.

[@killzekat]

If you're talking about the whole serie... I'd also mention the Syntakt, mentioned by RedMeansRecording in the first part, it's pricing is just right for such a great standalone Groovebox with such identity when it comes to it's sound!

[@IntiAlonso]

@@killzekat yeah, the Elektron machines are worth every penny, but my point is that almost 1k is quite the money for a lot of people and not many can spend that in one piece of equipment, so is nice to have budget friendly gear getting praised here and not just high end things.

[@vertigev]

+1! Love Jorb

[@crybo]

That Cascade! Want! Checks price…….. that Roland S-1 yeah!

[@DivKid]

Lovely to be in good company and around good gear, thanks for getting us all involved! The full performance from my section is here - kzbin.info/www/bejne/h2HVaJSNqMRjebM patch breakdown and everything else mention on the channel too.

[@bcroson82]

If you’re not literally hanging gear from the ceiling you’re doing it wrong. I’m claustrophobic just looking at Ben’s studio! But it’s amazing.

[@mrm1dn1ght53]

bruh the first demo lmao he's goofy with it

[@robertsyrett1992]

I admit, I have been using the digitone almost not at all since I acquired the syntakt.

[@julian_cisneros]

T R O V A R S I ⚡⚡⚡ Buying Disrupt by the end of the year

[@Trovarsi]

It's a fun one! I think you'll love it.

[@wholeheartedsongs]

i cam see how the Op1 field would really bring out the best in you due to both it's immediacy and limitations. That said the Polyend Tracker Mini is my favorite gear of 2023.

[@ropeburn6684]

It also brings out the worst in you due to costing as much as a used car, and you can't even live in it while you're now broke and homeless.

[@solmare_]

obligatory "check out the Dirtywave M8" post

[@gooneybird808]

Jeremy is just the best

[@switchon1325]

Après avoir test la BassLine de Erica Synth, ben elle envoi du lourd gras et baveux

[@SmallWorldBigThings]

Trovarsi 👍 Bo 👎 BTW: My personal "gear of the year 2023" is Synthstrom Deluge.💪

[@killzekat]

All artists here did great but , RedMeansRecording's section is just something else! The editing and twisted SF style! Loved it!

[@jamesbond339]

Jeremy is a national treasure! That was equal parts unsettling and funny as all.

[@cybermortal1983]

Haha wow these comments are 😂 The sequencer Trovarsi showed looks really fun but the price is a little on the high end even for Eurorack.

[@entropybentwhistle]

Gizmos!

[@unfamiliarenvironments]

Guitars in the rafters - Ben is the king of kings

[@dengyun846]

Well-fastened overhead pipes are a blessing from above, literally. Just need to pay attention to the hot ones.

[@kirkyoung4147]

FOR HOW LONG HAS THE INTRO BEEN CHANGED

[@tron944]

No surprise Bo Beats picked the OP-1 Field. In the last few years his reviews have become more hurried embargo-lifted get it out there videos. He goes on about how the OP-1 Field is a perfect travel unit, I agree for the size only. But then mentioned the limitations and of course the price. I am finally understanding that he is loosing touch with his earliest audience, like myself, he is not as humble and sincere as he use to be. I get that he NEEDS to generate revenue from his videos. But, throw us a bone once in a while, like talk about your production and setup once in a while. Mix in used affordable products with modern ones to show that you still connect with a broader audience of music producers and enthusiasts.

[@BoBeats]

Hey! Appreciate the feedback. Definitely looking to mix things up more in 2024. This year has been mostly focused on moving houses and setting up a new studio. And I feel like I need to refocus a bit for 2024. In regards to OP1F I did mention more than just the price being an issue, and furthermore I have a 20min deep dive video where I discuss the problems with it in depth. But this was ”my personal pick of 2023” and its simply the thing I’ve used the most. Probably because of its portability. But I do hear you, appreciate your thoughts on what you’d like me to focus on. It is also difficult to know exactly which videos of mine you see thru the algorithm. If I look at my output for 2023 its definitely quite varied in terms of video types. Not all reviews. Studio tours, studio build videos, guest appearances, discussion videos and one or two buyers guides. I think unfortunately embargo videos are the ones most people see, and might not represent all what has been going on with the channel.

[@nagchumpalot]

It's about selling gear.. Do your own testing of gear either borrow from friends or buy and return.. don't go by some KZbinrs review you don't know what suits you until you try.

[@geocache66today]

Wot? No WOOVEBOX ?

[@eddy_sonik]

👍i LoVe ! 💙⚪❤

[@eddy_sonik]

kzbin.infoHb0iHBckQZI?si=QK863vBuAn65pKB6

[@metafordsounds]

Gotta say, Bo Beats has to be the best example of “gear doesn’t write songs.” Don’t get me wrong.. his reviews are highliy informative and all, but god damn if his musical demos don’t just instantly make me either just skip those parts, or in worst case scenario just boycott the product all together.. Every other featured youtuber/demo’er/artist in this video bring their own relevant artistic usecase to the video, while Bo on the other hand.. like, what are his demos even supposed to contribute? I’m not gonna try to catogorize his style, but consumer friendly audio would, in the loosest terms possible, most certaintly be the opposite of whatever he creates. Smh

[@enochroot9438]

Selects The OP field as his choice then states all the flaws, shortcomings & exorbitant price? When you think of all the other great gear available for this price it's ridiculous

[@talweg384]

He is not a musician. He plays just to sell gear. You can hear it. And on top of that he recommends the OP 1/field... Sad.

[@sub-jec-tiv]

KZbinrs aren’t ‘Artists’ generally speaking. They’re media figures who make average (or in some cases below average) music. DivKid excepted of course.

[@baseboardmatt]

First dude watches way too much Tim & Eric. Or, rather, the perfect amount. 🤡

[@vampiresforesl]

Uh, "Artists" or influencers? Sarah Belle Reid is the only artist I've seen in this series.

[@i-never-look-at-replies-lol]

that's right: let the shills & nerds tell you what you must CONSUME. BUY IT BUY IT BUY IT. you will never be a complete person and your studio will never be complete until you OWN THE THING. feeling empty inside? JUST SPEND THE MONEY TO FILL THE VOID.

[@theinnerdreamer7043]

You sound bitter! Not making no money off your tunes ? Do you need a hug ?

[@YoungwhiteBranch]

I feel insulted:()

[@fentanyljones6956]

Edgy.

[@rockstar-technology]

Go off

[@arisumego]

facts

[@thomp9054]

What, you don't want to include the prices to scare everybody off? Lol I don't know how anybody can afford anything these days. Jorb's the only real one

[@dengyun846]

A bit of a salty comment, but all of these recommendations are a bit suspicious, like they're all high-margin, lowest-common-denominator gifting-friendly picks. I almost suspect that most of these youtubers didn't even make the picks themselves, but rather agreed to the marketer's idea. The sequencer at the end seems legit though.

[@JorbLovesGear]

They let us pick whatever we wanted, perfect circuit is way chill to work with. Not everything is a conspiracy, everybody has talked about liking these same things on their own channels.

[@dengyun846]

​@@JorbLovesGear @JorbLovesGear no conspiracy, just business, there's nothing suspicious about it. Sh-01a is better though imo 😂

[@brendablock8790]

Promo-SM

[@devondetroit2529]

Artists? More like influencers aren’t they?

[@Dudderlyful]

CONSUME

[@el_dani]

Push 3? Oh, no shop distribution, no mentioning by paid influencers

[@davidpinto1195]

All I see is expensive gear that might not be selling that well except for the Roland volca ripoff

[@robertsteinberger5667]

Bo beats, shame on you! Those teenage engineering stuff is just way too overpriced and should be ignored.

[@TheBANDEMIC]

Whata are you gonna do if he likes it? I'd love one but yea out of my price range and i know that and I'm OK with that 👍