Basic stuff: Keys feel great. Tied with the K5000, probably nearly the same Fatar brand. Knobs feel fairly solid. Panel is flashy but quite functional; it blends in with my studio, but may not with yours. Build quality is much more solid than typical Alesis.

Programmability: The thing does not shine until you command it to do otherwise. And unlike many synths, the presets are a bad point to start with, because a lot of them are heavily modulated (leading to unpredictable results). I find the best sounds often come from an initialized patch gone simple, adding as you go. Ranks up with the Matrix 12 in terms of possibilities, but different sounding.

Sound: Think of a Memorymoog, than replace the oscillators with something brighter (ala ARP), and add a bit of Matrix 12 weirdness. Not quite the presence, but can get there with judicious use of Unison X and panning. Perhaps additional features later in OS life will add more presence with more features. All knobs are very sensitive; makes finite programming a bugger but makes sweeps real easy. Ribbon control adds to expressiveness as well. Digital effects merely enhance the synth over the PA. This synth is best experienced over a PA cranked loud. :)

Likes: The sound is great. The interface is a joy to program for such a complex synth. It's real easy to bring up a modulation and

Dislikes: A bit on the bright side, ala the Waldorf Q (or ARPs for that matter), for an analog. In fact useful range of pot is a bit low (first 1/4 is the best sweep).

Also, really, the OS is still in a state of unkemptness, which is typical for an initial-released product these days. In one year you'll be singing the praises of the OS just like the (initially buggy and so much more incomplete) Waldorf Q, I bet.

Best features: Pads, some basslines, brightly agressive sounds, weirdness, "classic" analog sounds. Keep a monosynth for "snappier" basslines but this is a stage replacement for (Prophet 5 / Memomrymoog / Oberheim OB-?) IMHO. Programmed correctly only the sound-picky will notice the difference.

OVERALL: Some people need complex analog, some people do not. This is the first complex analog since the Matrix 12 (the OBMX does not count), and already it beats it feature for feature. Programmed right, the bass kills virtuals out of the water; the "Unison X" produces stacked pads and stabs that sound WAY thicker than a VA as well.

Recommended if you are an "early adapter" now. Wait until the OS is solidified for the rest of us, and you'll be much happier. :)

Also: Only recommended if you enjoy analog. People hype analog a lot, but few have experienced a massive polysynth. So try before you buy. I personally love the unpredictability and the added harmonics but some will desire some other sound.

Great job by Alesis on many of the features that make sound programming fun.

Solid build, knobs feels great (I still can't believe this is from Alesis), sounds incredible, it is a true labor of love from a bunch of analog synth fanatics, and it shows! It incorporates much of the best of the golden age of analog, while also taking it further than it ever went before. I am truly thrilled with it (couldn't ya tell?)!

However, I really like the playability and the 16 outputs are teriffic for running through my effects systems. I agree that the keyboard could be better. I'm stupid, so I'd pay an extra grand for a complete lack of knob-wobble and some kind of cast-iron case hehe.

I have a lot of modeling synths (Triton, MS2000R, An1x, the electribes) and of course, pure analog is rather rich. I think there are definately people who don't really appreciate the nuances between sounds. My only other peice of pure analog gear is the Juno 60, which I find I play a lot more than make sense, so I went with the Andromeda. Now that I have the andromeda, I'm quite happy. It does what it claims, and my expectaions are quite satisfied. Worth the money. I'm probably gonna sell the MS2000R (okay vocoder tho) and a bit of other kit (some Electrix stuff). I'm giving the andromeda a 4/5 because a 5 to me gives me more "innovation" in the mutilation or chaos-based-reasoning kind of scale. I remember things like the old buchla's and other modulars that were extremely experimental and had a lot of goofy ideas (Source of Uncertainty, etc...). It seems that everyone requires apple-apple and orange-orange comparables to war over. The andromeda makes a very good sound (good dynamics, not too compressed), and as far as interface goes, it's very sweet and workable. Could use some more insanity tho ;)