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Moog modular synthesizer refers to any of a number of monophonic analog modular synthesizers designed by the late electronic instrument pioneer Dr. Robert Moog and manufactured by R.A Moog Co. (Moog Music after 1972) from about 1963 until 1981. more...

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History

By 1963, Robert Moog created the first modern, realtime playable and reconfigurable music synthesizer and demonstrated it at the AES convention in 1964. Moog employed his theremin company to manufacture and market his synthesizers which, unlike the other 1960s synthesizer manufacturers, featured a piano-style keyboard as the standard user interface. Moog also established standards for analog synthesizer control interfacing, with a logarithmic one volt-per-octave pitch control and a separate pulse triggering signal.

Interest in Moog synthesizers increased after Wendy Carlos' 1968 Switched-On Bach which featured Carlos' custom-built modular synthesizer as the only instrument featured on the recording. This new popularity led to the 1970 release of the classic Minimoog and subsequent Moog synthesizers, modeled after the larger modular systems and designed for portability, usability, and affordability.

The Moog modular synthesizer is considered by enthusiasts to be the original and definitive synthesizer. Although digital synthesizers and samplers are generally more user friendly than a modular synthesizer and available at a fraction of the price that it would take to acquire and maintain a modular system, modular Moogs continue to be valued by collectors and musicians alike.

Nearly 20 years after production of Moog systems ceased, VST software manufacturer Arturia released Moog Modular V, a PC software version of the Moog modular system which overcame many of the Moog's analog deficiencies and added new features including note polyphony (modular systems could only play one note at a time) and digital storage of patches for instant sound recall.

Basics

The Moog modular system consists of a number of various modules mounted in a cabinet. Each module performs a specific signal-generating or -modifying function. These modules offered unprecedented control over creating sounds by allowing a user to modify primary sound waveforms (sine waves, square waves and other waveforms provided by voltage controlled oscilators or VCO) with amplitude modulators (voltage controlled amplifiers or VCA) and frequency modulators (voltage controlled filters (VCF) or fixed filter banks) and other modifiers. Envelope generators provided further control by modulating the attack, decay, sustain and release (ADSR) parameters of the VCAs, VCFs and other modules. The modules are patched together with ¼ inch patch cords. The patch cords and module parameter knobs could be adjusted in countless ways to create a nearly infinite number of sounds. The final sound was heard ('triggered') from the system by pressing a key on an attached keyboard or pressing on the ribbon controller.

Read more at Wikipedia.org