SynthModules

John's analysis is very good.  The differences for me were the
signal-to-noise ratio and the MOTM community.  Many folks have made
some fine music with the .com synth, but it was not for me.  I had a
mix of .com and MOTM and was frustrated by the noisiness of the .com,
which I sold to a very happy buyer.

If price is truly not a concern, I would go with the MOTM.

Mike

--- In SynthModules@yahoogroups.com, "john mahoney" <jmahoney@g...> wrote:
> > im getting ready to start on my modular...and in doing so i have
> > taken notice of the difference in price between the MOTM kits and the
> > synth.com units.
> 
> This isn't really the best forum for this question; perhaps the
group name
> (SynthModules) is a little confusing. But I'll answer, anyway!
> 
> 
> > are the MOTM units really that much better? ... i took a look at a
> > few modules ..like the ring modulators for both... the MOTM is more
> > than 2x the price ...but it also has a ton of controls where as the
> > synth.com unit has none.
> 
> Quality? Let's look at signal-to-noise. According to the Synthsizers.com
> FAQ, the dotcom VCA has "a signal to noise ratio of 82db (CD quality is
> around 96db)." The MOTM-190 has a dynamic range of "better than 100dB."
> That's a very big difference.
> 
> Features and price difference? The MOTM-190 is 2 VCAs or a ring
mod+VCA. The
> dotcom Q116 is only a ring mod (which can presumably be used as a
VCA). The
> MOTM-190 is more like a Q116 plus a Q108, but it's very hard to compare
> modules because there always seems to be an extra feature on one or the
> other. The BLEND control on the MOTM can avoid the need for a mixer, for
> example. The dotcom Q108 has an inverted output, which can be handy.
> 
> MOTM is more expensive than dotcom, period. But MOTM modules tend to
pack
> more functions into each module, which helps to reduce the size and
cost of
> the total synth  (fewer modules = less cabinetry and  fewer power
> connections).
> 
> If you are not too hung up on the appearance, you can mix & match
dotcom,
> MOTM, and other modules. There are power connectors to make this fairly
> easy. Choose your cabinet carefully, though; for example, dotcom and
MOTM
> use different rack mounting brackets. The dotcom wood cabinets --
which use
> wood screws for module mounting -- will accept both formats (except
for one
> row of one of the slanted cabinets, I forget the details).
> 
> > also any thoughts on the paia 9700 ???
> 
> A completely different animal, IMHO.
> 
> I'm on the verge of getting one of these:
>     http://www.synthesizers.com/system-entry1.html
> But you can rest assured that I'll eventually have MOTM modules,
too. Along
> with my MOTMized PSIM-1.
> --
> john