Oberheim

Oberheim OB-X8

$4,000.00 USD

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The Oberheim OB-X8 is the modern return of one of the most celebrated polyphonic analog synthesizers of the early 1980s. Announced in May 2022 and designed by Tom Oberheim himself together with Marcus Ryle and the team at Sequential, it brings the voice architectures of four classic Oberheim polysynths — the OB-X (1979), OB-SX (1980), OB-Xa (1981), and OB-8 (1983) — together in a single instrument. The original OB-X was Oberheim's answer to the Prophet-5 and helped define the sound of polyphonic analog brass, pads, and stabs on records by artists including Rush, Prince, and Queen.

The OB-X8 is a true 8-voice analog synthesizer with two discrete SEM/OB-X-lineage oscillators per voice, offering sine, saw, square, triangle, and noise sources with hard sync and cross-modulation. Its filters cover the whole Oberheim family: the classic 12dB/oct discrete SEM-style filter (with added high-pass, band-pass, and notch modes), plus genuine Curtis-based 12dB and 24dB filters that recreate the OB-Xa and OB-8 sounds. A "Vintage" knob adds voice-to-voice variation for the slightly loose, imperfect character of the originals, and unison mode with programmable detune stacks all the voices for huge leads and basses.

Playing it feels as good as it sounds: a 61-key Fatar keybed with velocity and channel aftertouch, pitch and modulation levers, and a dedicated performance section. Split and Double modes divide the voices into two bi-timbral groups of four, and over 600 patch memories are organized into five banks — one each for the OB-X8, OB-8, OB-Xa, OB-SX, and OB-X — so the character of each classic model is a bank change away. A built-in arpeggiator and sequencer, programmable per-voice panning, and a full set of MIDI (5-pin DIN and USB) and control-voltage-style inputs make it as at home on stage as it is in the studio.

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