Bad Gear - Novation Bass Station - Bassless TB-303???

[@AlexBallMusic]

Obi Wan: That's no Moog... it's a Bass Station!

[@AudioPilz]

The bass is strong in you

[@nicksouthcote8826]

Well played, sir. Well played.

[@prodby_luffuate]

Seeing you here was a pleasant surprise!

[@AlexBallMusic]

@@prodby_luffuate I'm always here. One of my favourite channels.

[@thomasheys902]

Hello there!

[@davidmay268]

Fun story. We used to play live with a superbassstation. During one performance the bass kept disappearing each time there was a big bass hit. Eventually we worked out it was the bass vibrating the cutoff knob, which was set to zero and overriding the preset value. So yes, all the bassstations have wobbly knobs

[@AudioPilz]

Wow, that's REALLY wobbly😂😂😂

[@diveanddrown4988]

Strange... Mine doesn't have wobbly knobs at all and I've never encountered such problems when performing live...

[@foxholeartist]

Novation has a secret weapon that makes it impossible to criticize them. Chris Calcutt is a blessing to synth community

[@AudioPilz]

Freaking legend!

[@spaceranger145]

DCOs are totally analogue, I mean my grandmother has a pace maker but I'd still say she's more human than robot.

[@AudioPilz]

That's the greatest metaphor I've heard for a long time

[@scoreeclectic]

Strike! I think with this statement we can end this issue forever!

[@BoomBubbleBustRepeat]

Next up on Badgear... The Pace maker!!

[@ropeburn6684]

So that is why another DCO synth by Waldorf is called Pulse.

[@citruesilver]

Hilarious but oh so true

[@eightcoins4401]

I dont think I ever said it before, but its so refreshing to see the set up recordings without some fake shit in frame....unlike how it tends to happen on all those channels where you wonder if theyre influences. And table that isnt spotlesslly clean with no wear which shows its actually being used outside of being a recording backdrop

[@AudioPilz]

Happy to hear that! Thanks!

[@ChrisSmout]

I've got a beer, it's the weekend and there's a new Bad Gear video: what a great combination! I kept missing these when they used to go for £80-£100 in London a few years ago for the keyboard version. Definitely worth having if you don't have other monosynths.

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! Those synths were bloody cheap a few years back

[@thomaslthomas1506]

G&T but hell yes!

[@KlaraKopf]

Cheers, Chris! I somehow knew we both would met here. Greetz!

[@ChrisSmout]

@Slater Slater aw man what a steal!

[@ChrisSmout]

@@KlaraKopf prost!

[@ldtregent]

I bought a Novation Bass Station when the came out. There were no real new analog (vco or dco) alternatives at the time. It has been used live many times and literally traveled around the world twice with me since and it still works perfectly. Several of the patches are the same ones I programmed into it when I first got it. I bought a Bass Station 2 several years ago and the knobs are already falling off. It has never traveled anywhere except from from the store to my studio. No screen? I grew up on ARPs, MiniMoogs and MicroMoogs. No screen needed. :)

[@AudioPilz]

True, we are spoiled nowadays

[@kaarefestvog6540]

Cursed VHS cassette. I fell off my chair.

[@AudioPilz]

It's haunting me!

[@archaicmelody8119]

@@AudioPilz Me too and I don't even have one.

[@eternalgoldenvoid6988]

I had the rack and the keyboard for decades. Nothing but love for both.

[@AudioPilz]

It's a classic

[@robert__]

The quality of these videos is second to none. You're doing an amazing job on them, you nail it every time. I love this series!

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! Very happy to hear that!

[@agentvx8320]

Oh sweet, another episode of my favourite KZbin show, "Really Not Actually All That Bad Gear". ;)

[@AudioPilz]

What's bad after all?😅

[@therealb3yond]

I think the bass-station realy shines when you use external audio (pads,vocals) and you can control the filter with midi-notes so you get realy funky stepped filterchanges aaaaaand if you turn up filter 24db selfoscilate and use it for sinewave basses it generates the most deep subbasses

[@AudioPilz]

The filter input is a nice feature, indeed

[@SisterRose]

I felt like I was back in the 90s playing Wipeout when you turned on the distortion

[@AudioPilz]

LOVE Wipeout

[@theshadowsea5556]

Man, that was/is a great game and the soundtracks were great.

[@Black_Agent_Seattle]

Novation's problem was marketing this as 303 clone, which it isn't. It's just a standard two Osc mono synth. Way more like the 101 than the 303. It also has plenty of bass, no doubt. And yes, DCOs ARE analog, they're just under digital control. Their output is 100% analog.

[@AudioPilz]

The WaspStation;)

[@dfreeman120]

Thx for clearing that up

[@KreapOfficial]

They never marketed this as a 303 clone. there was a preset on it that was setup to act like a 303 but that’s about it. The magazines took to that far too literally. I got mine the day it came off the ship here and it’s still working and I use it for some things.

[@Michael_Smith-Red_No.5]

My first analog synth was a Bass Station keyboard. I traded an Ensoniq EPS for it. It was '96, filter-sweeps were still a thing. Much, much later, I bought another one, and still love it. Even more than the first one. I like the filter.

[@AudioPilz]

C'mon, filter sweeps are still a thing ;)

[@Michael_Smith-Red_No.5]

@@AudioPilz Yes, they are :)

[@AveragePicker]

LOL Your "rack" at 2:35! I had nearly that same "rack" in the early 90s. A bandmate was complaining that we needed to purchase a rack to hold the accumulation of rack gear. I stacked them up, wrapped duct tape around them and said, "there you go, a rack."

[@AudioPilz]

...that's how you get racks ;)

[@the_end00101]

the Bass Station 2 is an incredible synth that will make the thunder come from the subs. It definitely brings the bass!

[@AudioPilz]

Never tried the 2. Looks nice

[@DeliriumElectric]

@@AudioPilz it gets a thumbs up from me

[@lesterfalcon1350]

Owned a Bass Station in 93' and the rack in 94' long with the Drumstation either that same year or one after. None came with wobbly knobs. I now only have the Bass Station 2, and it is indeed a mightier beast than it's predecessor. Really ticked all the boxes that may have been crossed off before, great response from Novation.

[@bouncytrapbeats]

Just gonna put it out there... I'd like to see some hated plugins on this channel.

[@AudioPilz]

What would be your plug of (not) choice?

[@laev2516]

AudioPilz nexus

[@rejectedsynths]

Look no further than Delay Lama VST, the script to this episode (includung all the half assed jokes) is basically going to write itself 👍

[@joshuam8406]

@@AudioPilz please do D-Verb

[@bmhater1283]

@@AudioPilz V-Koder

[@jeremyjohnson7676]

The best sounding and most used Distortion for the 303 is the ProCo RAT.

[@AudioPilz]

That's most probably true. I have to get one

[@tehrobotjesus]

MXR Distortion+ is up there too

[@pauloquist6150]

DS-1 is most common but Rat is #2 and arguably better.

[@thedoublek4816]

Blues Driver, anyone?

[@nicolasdranehc8418]

@@thedoublek4816 tb+bd1 , i do.

[@AngrocSound]

As a proud owner of a Bass Station Rack, and who is actively looking for more of them to put in my rack, I am a bit flabbergasted seeing it in this series. Naturally, it's no TB303 emulation, but if you don't have it with that mindset, I think it's one of the silkiest monosynths out there. Also, I think the form factor is excellent, great if you have narrow studio space that relies on racking gear. And... I find myself confused when people say it can't do bass. It's mostly what I use it for. But again, I guess it depends on the kind of things you are looking for here. I guess next you will feature the Andromeda A6 and I will realize that I just have bad taste in gear. :P

[@AudioPilz]

The "lack of bass" - comments surprised me as well

[@anthonybrett]

The channels a bit "tongue in cheek" so to speak. I mean he had a DX7 on two weeks ago, one of the greatest synths ever made. ;) I own two bass stations myself, keyboard and rack, they are amazing machines. Every bit of gear has its "cons". This channel just shows those off in a fun way.

[@SPAZZOID100]

Brett Anthony DX7 was great??? Not with that interface.

[@anthonybrett]

@@SPAZZOID100 Oh i know it was terrible! But... the sales they amassed don't lie ;) That being said, there are any number of great SYSEX controllers (I use Patchbase on iOS which is amazing)

[@gramsey3165]

Maybe it lacks bass, but it compensates for this with a smooth silky vanilla sound. Much better than a lot of the harsh modern analogue monos, Arturia comes to mind.

[@AudioPilz]

True, it always stays smooth

[@KlaraKopf]

I agree in full.

[@ackerkartoffel8627]

Maybe as a lead?

[@gelatinous6915]

You would NOT like the BSII then

[@sammorgan4451]

@@gelatinous6915 why? It does both really well.

[@andyjackson3891]

I bought one back when it was released...then sold it...then regretted it. YEARS later, I was gifted one, along with a DrumStation. I LOVE them all over again. A great wee synth for putting another layer on your sounds. Granted, you have to work it, but I really like it, and won't let it go again!

[@AudioPilz]

Why don't I get presents like that?😅

[@stereoroid]

I have a Novation Xio, and would recommend it for this series. It’s powerful virtual analogue, but that power is hidden behind layers of menus with only a few knobs that have multiple functions. I couldn’t get in to programming it until I set it up in Ctrlr, and found a lot to like (e.g. decent multi-fx, arpeggiator, one-shot LFOs), but I also found the sound quality degrades as your sound gets more complex, like the CPU can’t crunch the numbers quickly enough ...

[@AudioPilz]

Great idea!

[@briandale5645]

If I need to smile and can't I just watch your tube. It work's every time !

[@AudioPilz]

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

[@ItsDoctorAmatic]

That Snythwave&Roll-track sounds SO much like a PSX MegaMan X (4-6) track!

[@AudioPilz]

The vintage console feel is strong in this one

[@user-cz3fv4yr6e]

Totally got one yesterday, so stoked!... It only has 1 wiggleKnob.... I'm super excited about the CV!I forget but theres something special about the CV, volt per octave kinda thing... Also distortion pedals- Outlaw Effects - Widowmaker, Boss Xtortion. Wicked awesome overdrive - Earthquaker devices - Plumes(green and yellow)

[@AudioPilz]

There's a jumper inside the unit for switching CV/Midi direction

[@user-cz3fv4yr6e]

@@AudioPilz Thank you for the tip! .......| I only just got this moments ago... The bass station is an outstanding piece. Driving it with the model:samples for example is quite ample.... babample.... Youre doing the good work!

[@marcoabyss]

NOTIFICATION SQUAD! i'm totally into this synthwave & roll jam.

[@AudioPilz]

A new genre!!!

[@DigitalFactor]

I bought a Bass Station in the middle of the 90s and use it until today. Now, most time for analog effects during a song. I also use it on stage, but sorry the plastic-body isn't made for it. But the first time I tested it in the store the windows vibrated. It was love at a first side.

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, heard in a few times used by live bands. Lotsa bass

[@noisetheorem]

The Bass Station is like that one tool in your Swiss army knife that you never ever use, except for that one or two times when it was exactly what you needed to open that can of beans and stave off starvation. In that instance, it was absolutely that tool that you needed. Unfortunately, the cans all have pop-tops now making it totally useless.

[@AudioPilz]

That sums it up nicely!

[@GeneralTarik]

My semi dyslexic self saw the word “Bass” and the letter “N” in the thumbnail and wondered why your Alesis Nanobass had blue instead of orange knobs. Great vid as usual!

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!! Lol

[@Bod8998]

Kafka in the background metamorphosis great story

[@AudioPilz]

I agree. Also liked "The Castle"

[@OscillatorCollective]

The Bassstation was the first synth I bought as an adult in the early 2000s. I always enjoyed it. I was new to working with synths so I didn’t have a reference to judge it against other than 80s and 70s classic gear I only read about. Once I bought a few other synths I did find myself using the novation less and less, but it always had a special place in my heart. I found the sound to be fine if not overwhelming.

[@AudioPilz]

Bass Station is a classic and often misunderstood

[@noth606]

I got to try all manner of old gear in the 90s, but the first one that really clicked for me was the OG keyboard bass station. It was out of my league pricewise, I was broke but I really liked the sound of it.

[@quantum.9883]

2:05, "Novation Bass Station Analog Monophonic Synth TB-303 Moog"

[@AudioPilz]

Obviously a natural-born salesman

[@elekktrikk_home_video]

I feel you :) Had one of these since 1995 or so. Filled the memory up to slot 99 and that was it. Finally I found out about the quantization of the CV-in (what? no quarter tones?), sold it, together with all other 19” stuff (such as mb33, ms-404). Such a relief. So much happier with xoxbox and monologue. Great episode! Thanks a bunch!

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks for watching!

[@seanwolfe5161]

I had an original Bass Station. I kinda wish I didn't get rid of mine. It was a great little keyboard, can be battery-powered, and was immediately programmable. I used to use it a lot in this Indie-Rock improv band (hey it was Chicago in the mid 90's). The guitarist/bass player used to have a joke about the keyboard, based on a famous Star Wars quote (we were also nerds). "That's no Moog... It's a Bass Station!"

[@AudioPilz]

It's a cool "band"-synth. Alex Ball quoted that, erm, quote somewhere in the comments

[@seanwolfe5161]

@@AudioPilz DOH! He beat me to it! But like I said, it was the 90's man...

[@snarfusmaximus]

I have the keyboard version. My only real criticism of the synth is having one set of knobs for multiple functions, such as the envelope generator for setting both the filter and volume envelopes. I suppose panel real estate was a bit short so I'm probably nitpicking.

[@AudioPilz]

That confused me, as well

[@HenryCullenDaveTheDrummer]

They were alright. Just sucked at being a 303 clone, but they were good for lot's of other things. Fiddly though.

[@AudioPilz]

Let's call it the LeadStation;)

[@davesklar420]

Thank you!!!

[@klaassiersma4892]

I'v got the keyboard one from new, and it's a keeper, it was the only analog mono synth you could get at the time so it was a no brainer plus you can use it for more than bass alone. I have got the bass station 2 too and the ultra nova i realy love the things.

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, it indeed was a pioneering product

[@vinyljunkie07]

It's worth mentioning they all sound different. The BS keyboard sounds different to the rack, the 2 is superb but lacks the weirdness of the originals and the Super Bass Station wants to sound like 101 all the time. The Bass Station's biggest down fall wasn't so much with the product but rather the marketing which pitched it as some kind of 303 emulator, which it wasn't. The design had nothing to do with the 303 and was actually based on the EDP wasp albeit whilst it annoyed people on the internet I don't think this hurt sales as they sold an absolute shed load and with the success they were able to fund the their virtual analogue technology used later. My biggest complain with the old Bass Station line (2 not included) was not it's DCO's but rather the software control which limited a lot of old analogue/digital hybrid synths at the time and not just the BS. The Bass Station has software generated envelopes which are slow and sound kinda shitty. These were improved a little on the rack and then the super bass station. If your BS keyboard is lacking low end it could be dry joints on the output capacitor or just a crappy capacitor which will make it sound like a HPF has been put on the output

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, back then there was no internet to complain about the marketing😅

[@paraworldblue]

I've never tried an original BS1, so I don't know the weirdness you're talking about, but I recently got a BS2 and it has almost more weirdness than I know what to do with! That said, I think most of the weirdness came from the recent firmware update (designed with input from Aphex Twin) which, among other things, lets you put a different patch on every key, which allows you to use it as a VERY weird drum machine.

[@marksparrows]

In fact I sold my super bass station because of the lack of bass... I should have checked the caps first... Oh well 😅 it had sloppy midi timing as well though, despite replacing the firmware EEPROM

[@marksparrows]

When I closed the filter the sound disappeared 😔

[@TheAnthraxBiology]

Although the plugin doesn't integrate very well with Ableton, the sounds I get out of it are fantastic. It makes for a very strong low end with the filter turned down and brilliant leads higher up. I would recommend the plugin to everyone.

[@AudioPilz]

Haven't used it for ages

[@23jackleeder]

A naked 303 without any overdrive or delay is well er... cute I suppose. I believe it found redemption in acid after being hated on by a lot by people. Fiddly sequencer, plastic body and being so old it's probably quite cheap by now. Could do an episode?

[@AudioPilz]

Heard about that one ;)

[@23jackleeder]

@@AudioPilz Have you heard about: "Widara Distant Voices Theremin". I don't own one yet but it's on my radar. Could it be decent? Or could it be some sort of deadly mutation of the "dubreq stylophone beatbox" in a new theremin form?

[@cornoc]

dunno about cheap, i see them going for 3000-4000$ on ebay (mindblowing since i feel like i saw em for under 1000$ a little over a decade ago)

[@mybriefcase2585]

Woah, I've struck KZbin gold this morning! Brilliant channel!

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks for watching, stick around!

[@ozd1803]

Although I'm a pretty big novation fan I still do agree with most of the stuff that you said, but I still do use it quite often.

[@AudioPilz]

I think it comes down to a matter of taste

[@RichieWitch]

I completely understand your sentiment. I have a BassStation Rack that I've owned for about five years, and although it sounds out-dated and one-dimensional, I just can't bring myself to part with it. It's now a patched into my Eurorack modular as an additional oscillator and a MIDI-to-CV converter. BTW, I contacted Novation about the loose knobs and they sent me replacement potentiometers that fixed that issue (if you're handy with a soldering iron and don't mind cracking the case open). Ultimately, I purchased a Hypersynth Xenophone to take on the analog monosynth duties in my studio--love the sound of that thing!

[@AudioPilz]

I have to get new knobs!

[@raspberry1440kb]

DCOs are just VCOs with a digital parameter controlling the voltage.

[@AudioPilz]

You know, I know,... ;)

[@aikighost]

@@AudioPilz Yes but does gearslutz know? :)

[@thepauloapo]

Sure they're both analog, but do they sound the same?

[@raspberry1440kb]

@@thepauloapo When left at static positions yes

[@ropeburn6684]

@@thepauloapo DCOs are generally more precise. Some say that's good, others say it's somehow a bad thing. However, things like analogue FM work much better with DCOs because of the precision.

[@klaassiersma4892]

I have the keyboard version of the bass station 1, its a real early one wich i own from new it was the first analog synth in a long time, and i like it.

[@AudioPilz]

That one's a keeper!

[@EmergingPatterns]

We need a bad gear about qy serie stuff. I have... mixed feelings about them

[@AudioPilz]

As I said, I would have to take half a year off to make an episode about them

[@EmergingPatterns]

AudioPilz ahahahah I did two track with my qy70, released them and said « come on ! Are you gonna spend your life on it! » now I use it as an expander sequenced with my digitakt

[@doordedeur]

I had a QY10 for a while. I couldn't find out what to do with it. I managed to sell it with a profit. Even worse than the QY10 is the Korg PSS60. In its time it was a promising box with auto accompaniment, PCM drums and FM sounds. But the software was like beta version 0.1. It had so many foults that it was practically useless. Could there be anything worse than a Korg PSS60? What about the Philips PMC100 Music Composer. You have to be masochistic trying to get any music out of that thing. It's very hard to understand and operate and the membrane keys aren't playable at all.

[@BenColemanUK]

I was looking at some of the QYs recently to use as some sort of MIDI song recorder. I quickly regained my sanity

[@EmergingPatterns]

To be fair, tricky did the core of his LP maxinquaye on a qy22. Facts

[@theaylesburycyclist8756]

Decent bit of kit.!!! I've still got mine somewhere. Haven't used it since about 2001. Watching this, makes me want to dig it out...🤗

[@AudioPilz]

A lot of fun can be had with this one!

[@holdnent]

Hey, do kaossilator and kaoss pad (small ones) and poly 800

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah! Kaossilator Pro and Poly800 are hard to find, unfortunately

[@s.fleming2441]

KP3 i have a major love hate relationship, actually all of them.. they add rediculous noise to signal chains and have stupid RCA outs. but are also super fun. In my early 20s I spent years chaining various Kaos products together. And they were awsome until I moved into learning to record. I think they are nice when used sparingly. ...yes do these!

[@raistaparta]

AudioPilz you mean Poly 800 are hard to find... for what they’re really worth!

[@holdnent]

@@raistaparta really ?. i had poly 800 mk 1 poly 800 mk 2 and poly 61 before. they are sucks. i get rid of it

[@holdnent]

@@s.fleming2441 yes i have kp3+ and i used with my mixers fx send return. i think its really useful. i ment small ones. kp2 maybe i dunno

[@TheBelse]

I also spat out the cones on a pair monitor speakers ...what a day ...it was bass that blew the cones out ..ironically. ..hanging by the springs.

[@AudioPilz]

Haven't killed any speakers for a long time ;)

[@OrionRahl]

This puts out more bass than my TD-3 does. I don't care much for the filter, though.

[@AudioPilz]

I agree

[@onkelberra3166]

@@AudioPilz tweak the pots then.

[@aciderrant2983]

I once repaired one bass station and I repaired a lot of TB303. Bass station is a bass synthesizer and TB303 is also a bass synthesizer. Electronically they are very different and it's been 20 years that it's ridiculous to compare them. I consider BS it more like a kind of WASP oriented bass with midi and better DCO. I think it's like comparing it with a minimoog. I have a pro one we can also do with sounds like the TB303, but as a bass station it's not the same thing. Anyway the SLIDE function which is a particularity of the TB303 that is not present on other synthesizers and even the accent that is not just a simple velocity parameter but simultaneously modifies the filter envelope. We could compare any analog synthesizer capable of doing bass and which has a VCF with TB303, but it wouldn't be serious. And also the interest of the TB303 is to be able to quickly make cool patterns in 6 steps, 4 steps, 5 steps, etc, with slide accent and not to use an external sequencer via midi. But there is a flaw, you have to stop between groups of patterns. I will even add lastly that if we cut the output of the VCO going to the input of the VCF of the TB303, and that we solder the electrical wire to route the VCO to the input of the VCA, we realize that the oscillator of the TB303 has a sound signature of its own. But you have to try to hear it.^^ And also TB303 suffers from a characteristic sound defect, the click of the VCA. It's always funny these comparative videos with TB303 when you're a bit interested in the circuit and the charactéristics , we know it's a joke..

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks for the clarification and please excuse the clickbaity title ;)

[@aciderrant2983]

@@AudioPilz I really like your videos. But i can be wrong because i understand spoken English less well than written English. I just wanted to say that bass station can do a lot more than TB303, but it doesn't imitate it very well like many synthesizers. On some patterns it's possible to make a 303 style, but that's all. I know people who bought it to make acid music, they quickly gave up this idea and sold it. Bass station is not expensive and if it has bug, it's very difficult to repair it because the shematics were not shared and novation refuses to do it . It was the keyboard version that i had repaired the sound was good but the manufacturing quality is close to a children's keyboard, plastic bontempi. Much worse than the legendary plastic TB303. Ah, ah. When i see the prices on ebay it's even more funny that TB303 has exorbitant prices, bass station should not cost more than 100€...

[@kristianTV1974]

Managed to completely forget about the QY10 for at least 25 years now..

[@AudioPilz]

Sorry for bringing that up😢

[@marcelofp75]

@@AudioPilz qy10 for another episode

[@aksen303]

bought the bass station keyboard and drumstation back in the 90s brand new when released. the wobbly knobs thing was on BOTH of them fresh outta the factory. bought a second hand BS keyboard a few years ago, purely for the nostalgia. treat it as it's own thing and not a 303 clone, and it's...perfectly fine.

[@AudioPilz]

It seems like there were units with proper knobs (as some wrote in the comments) - that's unfair😅

[@aksen303]

ok, now i'm just retroactively angry for 19 year old me...

[@Catonator]

I have to say, I was slightly baffled by the title. The Bass Station rules! It's got the same kind of sound as the Nord Lead, but without the annoying metallic filter. I think the BS2 does a better job at delivering the sub, though. It's still a super neat little racksynth. Also as an owner of a QY10, if you ever end up learning how to operate it, please tell me too. The drum sounds on that are great, but so far it's only been a source of samples for my sampler.

[@AudioPilz]

QY10 is a neverending story for me;) I was surprised by all the comments saying it's got no bass

[@Gainn]

The QY10 is clunky, but it had some good ideas. I like the 70 though. Pair it up with a KS Pro or preferably a Novation SL mk3 and you have something that doesn't sound out of place today. Hmm.. I know what my first video in a fucking age will be now.. QY x SL..

[@2112jonr]

Agreed, the BS2 is definitely better for sub bass, but the BS rack isn't lacking. That said, I've got a BS rack, but it's the BSII I usually turn to. Odd with the knobs being loose though, I picked mine up used and all of them are rock solid even though the case says it has been through a war or two. The build quality is pretty industrial.

[@quiltclips]

I went for the "Betamax" of the 303 clone world , the Control Synthesis "Deep Bass Nine" a British 19' rackmount analog mono synth, that had build issues ,a built in timing lag ,and hard to turn, not very tweakable ,rubber knobs, that gave you fingers like a potato picker at Christmas. To be fair though it had a decent filter and a handy audio input. Ultimatley though it bombed.

[@AudioPilz]

I've seen these on the web - they look super interesting!

[@ringtangting]

I'll give you this one, but don't touch the keyboard version! The BS1 was my first synth, still use it quite a lot. Got it for 125,- It's super simple and it's my friend.

[@AudioPilz]

Won't mess with your friends, then...;)

[@extralifedisco]

Those little rackmount synths are an ergonomic disaster, but they sound great! I've never had a BS1, but I think the Bass Station 2 is probably my favorite monosynth of all time. The sounds are huge and the user interface is perfect, with full-size keys, aftertouch, nice mod/pitch wheels, and well-spaced knobs and faders. It even has an "original value" led. The filter is perhaps the weak point, as I have never once used the "acid" mode on the filter (it sounds nothing at all like a 303!). However I think it does do moog, cs-15, and dx-100 sounds with style and ease.

[@AudioPilz]

Some sounds reminded me of the DX range, too

[@decaystar]

There is a small easter-egg hidden in this, which many don’t think about. Besides a different kind of 303, then you also get a CV/Gate converter ;)

[@AudioPilz]

True, but one of the CV/Gate jacks of mine is broken, unfortunately

[@decaystar]

@@AudioPilz ahh I see that should be a easy job, if you know how to desolder and solder :)

[@lolatu4402]

That was its best feature and the one I used the most. Had it hooked up to a moog keyboard

[@odinmp5]

I had one of this when it came out. In the era of the rompler this thing was fresh air... Sometimes i miss it.

[@AudioPilz]

So many alternatives around these days

[@wooki321]

makes sense to use a metal zone in an episode of „bad gear“

[@AudioPilz]

There's the iconic "Metal Zone for everything but metal in stereo"-episode. Doesn't sound so bad;)

[@Skootavision]

No I still love it😂. And I think these DCO's are just digitally clocked analogue oscillators - so analogue, but no tuning issues.

[@AudioPilz]

You know, I know,... ;)

[@Skootavision]

I know ;)

[@crunchyfrog555]

I have a QY-10 too. I used it for years as a general portable notepad for ideas. About 12 years or so ago I ended up buying a QY300 going dirt cheap, and surprisingly I still use it regularly as a kind of general sequencer (as I tend to shy away from using DAWs). As for the BassStation I never bothered with one but I do have a Novation XioSynth. The sounds are OK-ish, but the interface is absolutely the worst I've ever used. The screen is unreadable and the idiotic printing is dark on a dark background. It would be night on impossible to tweak this live unless you knew it inside out. That's probably worht having a look at some time - see if you agree about how utterly dreadful it is to use.

[@AudioPilz]

The xio is on the list

[@crunchyfrog555]

@@AudioPilz Oh why am I not surpised? I'd like to say "great minds think alike" and all that, but I'm as dumb as a bag of hammers. I look forward to seeing that one - keep up the great content.

[@oracle-0018]

Just my two cents The tb303 is the bad gear it was supposed to emulate a real bass guitar! I like your show it is informative!

[@AudioPilz]

True that! Thanks!

[@christianvandalstrom8337]

I like the bass station 1, but not for bass sounds.

[@AudioPilz]

The LeadStation ;)

[@jnorten]

Bass Station 2 is the best Mono bargain out there, super flexible and great sound. Way better than the OG BS. I owned an OG BS back in the day, as mentioned, was pretty revolutionary. New Analog synths, especially with CV, were totally uncommon back then.

[@AudioPilz]

Total pioneer back then

[@JorimvanHove]

Owned an A-Station many years ago, regret selling it though. Check out the Korg nanoPAD, now THAT was bad gear!

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, the Korg nanos can be quite annoying

[@DJDigitalJosh]

I owned the A-Station also. It was pretty good, but think I wanted the JP-8080 at the time instead. I have the bass station 2 now. I wish it had 3 oscillators. Oh well.

[@S.tebban]

I love that synthwave & roll instrumental.

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@Uz7Racer]

Ich hatte mal mit ner Bass station 2 das Vergnügen und finde, es ist mehr ein klassischer synth und eher vergleichbar mit dem Monologue von Korg... nur das sich der Monologue nach einem deutlich hochwertigeren Instrument anfühlt

[@AudioPilz]

Musste auch an den Monologue denken

[@technodrone313]

my friend had the keyboard version back in the day. it was cool for its era...

[@AudioPilz]

Nice!

[@travishayes6678]

Liked this video for the reference to the exhaustive debate about DCOs. That kind of wankery is my guilty pleasure.

[@AudioPilz]

What is more, I think there's nothing wrong with digital oscillators

[@mauhammer4390]

Deine Show ist der Hammer! Love it and learn everytime from it !!!! Schön produziert sauberes englisch und bei den ganzen Fakten immer noch n Lächeln ins Gesicht zu zaubern ist 1. Klasse !!! Nimm do mal ne Roland tr 8 s in die Mangel. Big up to u !!!

[@AudioPilz]

Besten Dank!

[@jabelsjabels]

I wonder if there are any bootleg-style synths / noisemakers you can find on wish.com or similar sites?

[@AudioPilz]

Is there anything that isn't on wish?

[@roryjineffect]

Sounds more like the territory of Simon the Magpie

[@schoovaertssimon7904]

Had one, love it..had the 808/909 "clone" also, loved it all

[@AudioPilz]

Nice, I'd love to have a DrumStation!

[@EnviroDouglas]

It was a noisy piece of gear, but thick sounds.

[@AudioPilz]

Yes, it's phat;)

[@eyesonkites7199]

Had one of these. Replaced it with a Moog Minitaur. Never regretted it. Perhaps I wanted something the Bass Station wasn't really designed for, sustained subby bass lines for more ambient-like music. The bass station also felt flimsy. All in all, not the worst thing I've owned.

[@AudioPilz]

Minitaur is another level

[@petertauscher316]

ok, but who else wants to have "Bad Gear" T-Shirts? me for sure :D

[@AudioPilz]

Working on it!

[@petertauscher316]

@@AudioPilz Nice! :D

[@davesandison2588]

And me

[@johndeaux3703]

If you ever do that QY-10 video, it was good for one thing besides being a paperweight/doorstop. It's built in preset sound for 'moog' or something is the sound used in the beginning of the Elastica song 'Connection'.

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, great sample!

[@milesamara]

Dieser Kanal wird 100% explodieren.... Editing ist herausragend!

[@AudioPilz]

Besten Dank!

[@thd3sign]

Er hätte es verdient ;)

[@WenzelAudio]

Sein Akzent hört sich gar nicht deutsch an... ?

[@petertauscher316]

@@WenzelAudio Österreicher is er, der Bursch! :D

[@myblueextremes1526]

Great video! Keep 'em coming. Would love to see you try out a Novation A Station. I suffered with that thing for years. Oh and a Roland D110. Another synth with a rabbit hole of a menu system.

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! Yeah, have to do one of the oldschool digital Rolands

[@justindefreitas3287]

For some reason my bass station has survived in my ever evolving studio. It's badly behaved, impertinent and irreverent! The ability to use (and automate) the filter for anything you plug into it's audio input is great! Got mine for £60 years ago! Thanks for the great video!

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks for watching!

[@mikemeengs4124]

I bought mine for the built-in MIDI to CV converter. The sound wasn't too bad at the time, and I could record filter sweeps into my ASR-10's sequencer.

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, works great in that application!

[@nekurobaito]

This station is BASS, but does it SLAPP?

[@AudioPilz]

CHECKMATE!!!

[@fysja]

I love this synth; 1u rack space, 12dB / 24dB analog filter and you can connect it to EVERYTHING.

[@AudioPilz]

True that!

[@BoomBubbleBustRepeat]

OH boy here we go.... ☕

[@AudioPilz]

Danger Zone!

[@ToyKeeper]

Thanks for this insight into the original Bass Station! Its successor is a classic, but I never really looked at the original before.

[@AudioPilz]

Always a pleasure, thanks for watching!

[@largepoodle6036]

this thing is a beast for psytrance bass, combine that with mixing and this thing is the bees mothafuckin knees

[@AudioPilz]

Cool idea! Used the MS404 for that in the TomCat video

[@largepoodle6036]

@@AudioPilz the things you were doing in this video reminded me a lot of Shpongle, except for the drums. But all the other elements sounded super ideal for that style of music

[@largepoodle6036]

@@AudioPilz whoever made that bad review saying this thing has terrible bass sounds must have not known how to utilize it properly, cause that was a killer synth bass

[@alexwestconsulting]

I coincidently almost bought one of these yesterday. Got a circuit instead. Now I’m jamming w the trio of circuit, mono station and bass station 2. Very fun dawless setup. I remember the OG bass station making serious waves when it came out but somehow never ended up with one. To my shame I have a couple Mc-303’s though, I’ve had a bunch of other novation gear over the years, controllers and synths, but never liked the novation sound or build quality but the new stuffs is so good. I’ve got a couple beat step pros as well, but getting a launchpad pro for cv next within novation ecosystem.

[@AudioPilz]

If the price is right it can be a cool purchase

[@davesklar420]

DUDE CLEARLY DOESN'T REALIZE THIS SYNTH WAS LEGENDARY FOR IT'S OTHER BASS SOUNDS NOT A TB 303.

[@AudioPilz]

...but it was sold as a 303-type synth;)

[@DocBolus]

I played with the keyboard version of this in a jam space rock warble band once when I wasn't plugging away at a fretless bass. Immense fun at the time as it had all the nobs!!!! In other news my first proper sequencer was a QY10 and I quite liked it, wrote my first proper track on it. I left it in the USA by mistake with a friend I was visiting and the story is he lost it when his home got hit by a hurricane. Still miss it a bit.

[@AudioPilz]

BSes are great as a "band"-synth

[@coen123]

one month before the announcement of the Aphex Station... you released this video too early, could've gotten those hype cycle views! :)

[@AudioPilz]

Damn, that totally slipped my attention. Thanks for posting

[@danemusic5242]

so happy you do these videos, it keeps gear prices low and makes an audience that sells more gear. Can you do one on the Yamaha cp (tell them theres no presets or something) that thing is a little out of my budget and hasn't dropped price much.

[@AudioPilz]

Great suggestion, thank you!!!

[@ricochetpig]

That’s a bassless accusation 😬

[@AudioPilz]

Lol, good one!

[@bigmoneysteppa]

The A-station was great. Was happy to flog the basstation after.

[@AudioPilz]

I have yet to try it!

[@bigmoneysteppa]

@@AudioPilz well worth a few hours. Absolute classic.

[@SPAZZOID100]

Have one. Plastic chassis, slow envelopes. Even Behringer kills it.

[@AudioPilz]

True, but it took Behringer over 30 years to get to that point

[@madikma3616]

Hi, I had an MS-101, I sold it. I bought an inexpensive BS rack, and I do not regret it, because the newest is much more musical. The Beringer filter is unpleasant and the low frequencies are overestimated, because of this there is an unpleasant shade in the sound. Verdict: Behringer - sub bass and fx (super envelopes and low bass) Novation - everything else (very musical instrument)

[@rars0n]

You made it sound really good. It does some things quite well, and adding some effects really opens it up a bit. I agree with everything you said. I get some of the criticism. I especially would not personally care for trying to tweak a rack unit like that (especially with wobbly knobs), so the immediacy of something like the TB-303 (or rather, the Behringer TD-03 since that's all I can afford) is a lot more interesting and inspiring than the Bass Station. I will say that I'm in love with the Bass Station II and I really want to get one fairly soon, before Novation stops making them and they become impossible to find. It's got a few unique aspects that other synths in the

[@AudioPilz]

You can't have enough mono synths😅

[@citruesilver]

Tied hands = even better menage a trois 😂

[@AudioPilz]

Oh, an expert;)

[@NathanChisholm041]

Man, the Bass station is an icon! And the knobs are loose because the nut at the back needs tightening.🤘

[@AudioPilz]

Ah, thanks for the heads up!

[@phxx3054]

my bass station survived a 160 km/h car accident on the Autobahn together with me. I will never part with her

[@AudioPilz]

Happy to still have you around. Be careful with the velocity at max;)

[@b.benjamineriksson6030]

So romantic!

[@regortex3364]

I love your channel, I too have soft spot for the Metal Zone. I have the Super Basstation and like it a lot. I use it with Roland PK-5 for a Faux Moog Taurus setup and it works well, no lack of fat bottom end there. The knobs are too close together and the way it sits in a rack make hard to be a live knob tweakers dream, but I do like it a lot.

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you so much!