Studio Electronics CODE 8 Synthesizer Overdrive Demo

[@Maschinestorm]

Neat vintage looking Kurzweil. The code is something i've been looking at for a number of years.

[@DavidDelbridge]

I do love the CODE 8. It sounds better than any of my vintage synths and has two extra voices, which is nice.

[@VickersDoorter]

Great sounds and demo. Sounds pretty similar to the distortion effect on my DSI Poly Evolver.

[@DavidDelbridge]

Thanks!

[@talbi89]

No worries enjoy the code its a great synth

[@damondrobinson3313]

I enjoyed your demo David, can I ask a question I'm a bit muddled with, does the little switch you are using to overdrive your Omega control the Discrete OpAmps, ? I'm guessing not and thinking they are two separate things and if that's the case how does the Discrete OpAmps upgrade affect the sound ? Thanks so much

[@DavidDelbridge]

Glad you enjoyed the demo! Yes, the Discrete Op Amps upgrade is separate from the Fuzz upgrade. I've not heard it without the Op Amp upgrade, but received pre-purchase advice from multiple Gearslutz that the upgrade "improves the sound substantially - takes the harshness off the high end and rounds the tone." The whole conversation is here: gearspace.com/board/electronic-music-instruments-and-electronic-music-production/1136645-studio-electronics-code-8-quot-od-quot-not-quot-od-quot.html. There's also mention of a main VCA upgrade that is no longer offered. I spoke with Greg St. Regis (SE) about it and he says it's a nightmare to install, so he doesn't do it anymore. Of course, that just makes me want it more. :-) By the way, most of the aforementioned CODE owners recommended against the Fuzz option in favor of outboard distortion boxes. I've been happy with the Fuzz switch but recently added a Thermionic Culture Vulture Super 15 to the studio and get what they're saying. It requires more tweaking (all-analog - no memories), but the distortion is gorgeous (or shrill, if that's what you're after). So, count me among the converted. It's overkill for synths alone, but if you have access to anything like it already, I would try it first. You can always upgrade your CODE later, if you change your mind. All the best!

[@damondrobinson3313]

@@DavidDelbridge Thanks David, I thought that was the case but it was hard to find any info elsewhere about the fuzz switch. Anyhow strangely enough I actually received my Omega Code 8 today (same as your model with the fuzz switch) I was just in the process of contacting my retailer to highlight an issue when I saw your reply. Mine only has the stock filters (Mini and Obie) and when I play a patch that uses the Mini filter voice no.7 makes no sound. Kind of spoiled my day really but I'll hopefully get it resolved without having to send my unit back. BTW the fuzz switch is quite surprising, on some patches it adds a muffled distortion I'm not that keen on but on other patches it adds a whole layer of saturation that brings out some wonderful harmonics, GREAT SYNTH, the tone is amazing, and apart from the setback I couldn't be happier

[@DavidDelbridge]

@@damondrobinson3313 Sorry to hear about your trouble. It's not uncommon for CODE sound boards to get jostled in shipping. You might need to open the unit up and re-seat the ailing board or merely one of its ribbon connectors - not fun but not particularly difficult either. If you've ever added an expansion card to a PC, you'll be fine. Give Greg a call at SE - he hand-builds these units himself and is super reliable. Good luck!!!

[@damondrobinson3313]

I just uploaded a video of the fault on my page, I'm tempted to open it up and have a look but maybe I should wait for advise from SE

[@damondrobinson3313]

@@DavidDelbridge Thanks for the heads up earlier, my Omega is now functioning fine, that filter board was indeed loose. Phew !!! I'm so relieved :)

[@TubeAmpNut]

What model/brand studio desk is that? I have a Kurzweil Midiboard as well and want a desk for it that can support all its weight.

[@DavidDelbridge]

It's a custom build. After banging my head against the wall for a good long time, I concluded there's no other way. The commercial options (e.g., Argosy) simply can't account for its unusual size (to say nothing of its weight, as you've already discovered). When you strip everything else away, the real problem comes down to the MIDIBoard's height. Place it too low, and your knees won't get underneath it. Too high, and your desktop is at your chest. The solution I chose was to support the MIDIboard at it's rubber feet with a platform that has a cutaway for your legs, so that your knees are just brushing the bottom of the MIDIBoard itself - not the desk. In my case, this puts the desktop at 31" - an inch over the standard range of 28-30" for an office desk. And this puts the MIDIBoard's keys (the tops of the white keys) at 27.5" - an inch and a half below that of a typical concert grand. Neither is ideal, but that's what the MIDIBoard gives us to work with. And this gives my legs 25" of (snug) clearance. Those with shorter legs can easily modify the design to push things lower, if they don't mind a piano keyboard that is well below standards. But here's the important bit: Without the cutaway, I'd lose two more critical inches of leg room, forcing the desktop to a whopping 33" high. Not only does this make for awkward ergonomics but also bad acoustics - in my studio, an early reflection point between the monitors and my ears. Given the time and expense that went into building my studio, I wasn't about to kill the acoustics with bad furniture. I've been using this desk for around two years now and am very happy with it (surprising for a first-generation Delbridge design). The only thing I would improve is placement of the mouse and QWERTY keyboard. As is, they sit on the desktop above the MIDIBoard, requiring a slight reach forward - not the best ergonomics. I compensate with the armrests on my office chair - my elbows are supported, reducing strain on shoulders and back. If you're interested in tackling this project, I'm happy to share my SketchUp drawings and cut sheets. Just say the word and I'll throw together a blog post on my website with detailed instructions and links to the downloads. I hope this is helpful.

[@talbi89]

Amazing sounds man you got any additional filters on that beast?? I use to have the omega 8 with the CS-80 filters wish i never sold it...........keep up the great work

[@DavidDelbridge]

Yeah, I grabbed the CS-80 filters too. :-) Beyond that, I couldn't decide between the 303 and 2600 filter upgrades (and I was already over budget), so I left the second bank empty for now. And that's sorta why I shared this - there's some nice upgrades available for this monster but not enough demos. If I get my hands on those, I'll post some more vids. Thank you for the kind words!

[@johnargosino6218]

Great video! Nice demo! Had a few questions for you: I got a Code 4 a few months ago, and I noticed that the main rotary encoder wheel "jumps" sometimes, going up or down 1 number the wrong direction when cycling through patches, but it's random and not all the time. Have you noticed anything like this? Also, when I power off the unit, the display lights up again very briefly before turning off. Does yours do that? Maybe I only have 4 voices so there is residual power left in the power supply? Thanks

[@DavidDelbridge]

Yeah, I experienced a few quirks fresh out of the box. In my case, the "MIDI" button appeared to be triggering randomly. Here's a demo: kzbin.info/www/bejne/oaqyo3x7rNiGZ6c. The longer the unit was powered on, the worse it got. To complicate matters, the problem was dependent on the position of the Q dial. The symptoms would change (or go away) every click, but in a pattern that repeated every four clicks. Some replacement parts fixed the problem but gave rise to a new one - the knobs would appear to generate pseudo-random changes (with corresponding MIDI CC data) every so often - usually one to five minutes apart, but sometimes hours apart. These changes were often unnoticeable (e.g., "env3 amt" on a patch that doesn't use "env 3") except that the "Compare" button would always start blinking on its own (as it should whenever changes are made to a patch). Though determined to fix it myself and avoid the wear and tear, I ultimately shipped the unit back to Studio Electronics for warranty service. I'm happy to say it's been 100% rock-solid ever since. I recommend you contact Greg St. Regis at Studio Electronics. It's pretty much a one-man show over there, so he's very busy but very knowledgeable. These are boutique instruments, produced on demand rather than on a production line. According to Greg, the company sometimes receives a bad batch of outsourced chips that produce a signature set of symptoms in just a handful of synths. Share your symptoms with him and he'll probably know the cause right away and how to fix it - hopefully, without requiring an RMA. I hope this is helpful. Good luck! Thank you for the props.

[@johnargosino6218]

Hello David, thanks for the reply much appreciated! Wow, your unit looked like it was possessed before lol! Glad you got that sorted out though. My unit is practically perfect compared to how yours used to be, I almost feel bad complaining about a number jumping up or down very seldomly! Still, when you pay this kind of money for something you wanna feel like you got a solid product you know? But it was reassuring to me that I wasn't the only one with some kind of issue, albeit very minor, as I know very few people (zero ha) that have one of these that I could ask! I think I'll probably leave it alone, as I might "cause" another problem hahaha. You're right, Greg is a great dude...I actually picked up both my Code and SE-1X from his house (I'm local to them) and seeing all his hand built work is just amazing; real analog synth enthusiasts for sure!!! Well once again I appreciate your time and response have fun making tunes!

[@DavidDelbridge]

If you change patches through your DAW or MIDI controller, I can see forgetting that the problem even exists, but if you're under warranty, personally speaking, I'd get it fixed anyways. At a minimum, it'll improve the resale value should you ever decide to eBay it. [Gasp!] Likewise, all the best!

[@sebastiandior1315]

What Kurzweil is that?

[@DavidDelbridge]

Kurzweil MIDIboard.

[@talbi89]

Do you have the OD and discreet omp installed?

[@DavidDelbridge]

Yes, this CODE has the Discrete OpAmps upgrade installed. I should probably make that more clear. I'll update the description. Thank you for bringing it to my attention.