Synth Site | Jen | Synx 508

Synx 508 At a Glance
Picture needed	Released: 1983 if released at all \| Specifications Read reviews

Adam Aurex writes:

I doubt whether the Synx 508 ever got into full swing, (and many would thank goodness!!) but there are a few in circulation, all are tempermental and seem to have a mind of their own, the styling is a sort of cross between oberheim OBXa and Elka synthex although far shorter than either front to back.. there are actually some good features!!, one is the sequencer which seems to do as it pleases (or I don`t know how to work it), another is instant preset editing. I wish my prophet had this select a preset and twiddle away system.. another strange thing is that despite being italian, prototype? and incredibly tacky, there is little or no zipper noise from the DAC when editing, unlike a Prophet 600, OBMX or CS70m.. The 5 voices are on a cardframe inside the synth and it would seem can be upgraded to eight. the VCFs, ADSRs, and VCAs are all CURTIS!!!!, shame the filter resonance is different for each board and non adjustable.. I don`t know what the Oscillator technology us! ed is but it Ain`t Curtis, so maybe DCOs or those odd two transistors are the OScs??.. Basically I see the synx508 as a collectors piece only, a curio and one which had (when it functions correctly) a better digital scanning / memory system than it deserved it can sound great but you`ll need a quadraverb and a brave heart, BTW does Synx mean half a SYNtheX,.. no way, but a Rare and exclusive piece non the less..

Comments About the Sounds:
there are a good selection of presets but usually sound awful without an external multi-effects unit, the ones marked good above are with an external reverb unit, the onboard Phaser/ensemble/Chorus are superb and deserve a better synth.

(Thanks to Adam Aurex for this info.)

Links for the Jen Synx 508

	More Synth Gear Best US prices on many current models
	The Jen Synx-508 room at Synthmuseum.com History and technical information about the Synx-508.

Try the Jen links page for more..

Synth Site | Jen | Synx 508

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