Oberheim Matrix synthesizers

{{Short description|Series of analog synthesizers}} thumb|300px|Oberheim Matrix-12 (1985–1988)

'''Oberheim Matrix synthesizers''' were a product line of subtractive analog synthesizers from Oberheim featuring a system of modulation which Oberheim called "Matrix Modulation" as a method of selecting and routing elements that dynamically shape various aspects of the sounds it produces. Matrix synthesizers continue to be popular due to their characteristic late-1980s analog sound and leading patching and filter capabilities.

These five products fall into two groups. The ''' Xpander''' is a six-voice rack-mount synthesizer with voltage-controlled oscillators and very flexible voltage-controlled filters. The '''Matrix-12''' is in effect two Xpanders plus a keyboard. The second group consists of the '''Matrix-6''' synthesizer, with DCOs, and much more standard filter capability. It had two rack-mount variants, the '''Matrix-6R''' (Matrix-6 without keyboard) and the '''Matrix-1000''' (low cost preset version with extended memory).

== Models== {|class="wikitable"  style="vertical-align:center;text-align:center;" |- !width="100"| !width="200"|'''Xpander'''<ref>[http://www.vintagesynth.com/oberheim/xpander.php Oberheim Xpander page] at Vintage Synth Explorer</ref> !width="200"|'''Matrix-12'''<ref>[http://www.vintagesynth.com/oberheim/mat12.php Oberheim Matrix 12 page] at Vintage Synth Explorer</ref> !width="200"|'''Matrix-6'''<ref>[http://www.vintagesynth.com/oberheim/mat6.php Oberheim Matrix 6 page] at Vintage Synth Explorer</ref> !width="200"|'''Matrix-6R'''<ref>[http://www.vintagesynth.com/oberheim/mat6.php Oberheim Matrix 6 page] at Vintage Synth Explorer</ref> !width="200"|'''Matrix-1000'''<ref>[http://www.vintagesynth.com/oberheim/mat1000.php Oberheim Matrix 1000 page] at Vintage Synth Explorer</ref><ref>[http://www.vintagesynth.com/manuals/OberheimMatrix1000.pdf Oberheim Matrix 1000 manual] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160429052749/http://www.vintagesynth.com/manuals/OberheimMatrix1000.pdf |date=2016-04-29 }} at Vintage Synth Explorer</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/1994_articles/jun94/oberheimmatrix.html|title=Oberheim Matrix 1000|work=Sound On Sound|date=June 1994|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150607013124/http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/1994_articles/jun94/oberheimmatrix.html|archivedate=7 June 2015}}</ref> |- style="vertical-align:top;text-align:center;" ! Image(s) |180px |180px|Oberheim Matrix-12 synthesizer top view with background erased. |180px |90px |90px |- ! Polyphony | 6 voices || 12 voices || colspan="3" | 6 voices |- ! Oscillators | 12 VCOs (2 per voice) featuring CEM3374 | 24 VCOs (2 per voice) featuring CEM3374 || colspan="3" | 12 DCOs (2 per voice) featuring CEM3396 |- ! Filter | colspan="2" | Multimode, 15 variations of low / high / band / notch / phase shift resonant filter based on CEM 3372 w/ external switch circuitry|| colspan="2" | low-pass filter using CEM3396's LPF ||same as 6R but different capacitors |- ! LFO | colspan="2" | 5 (per voice) (plus 1 global for vibrato effect) || colspan="3" | 2 (per voice) (plus 1 global for vibrato effect) |- ! Envelopes | colspan="2" | 5 (per voice) || colspan="3" | 3 (per voice) |- ! Layers | 6-part multitimbral with up to 6 zones || 12-part multitimbral with up to 6 zones || colspan="2" | 2-part multitimbral with up to 2 zones || monotimbral |- ! Memory | colspan="2" | 100 patches, 100 multi || colspan="2" | 100 patches, 50 multi || 1000 patches (800 preset, 200 user) |- ! Form Factor | Desktop|| colspan="2" | 61-key (velocity & channel aftertouch) || colspan="2"| Rackmount |- ! Production | 1984–1988 || 1985–1988 || 1985–1988 || 1986–1988 || 1988–1994 |- ! Price | US$3995 || US$6399 || US$1695 || US$999 || US$599 |}

==References== {{reflist}}

==Further reading== *{{cite magazine|url=http://www.muzines.co.uk/articles/oberheim-matrix-1000/3978|title=Oberheim Matrix 1000|magazine=Sound On Sound|date=September 1988|pages=54–56|issn=0951-6816|oclc=925234032}} *{{cite magazine|title=Oberheim Matrix-12|magazine=Future Music|issue=61|issn=0967-0378|oclc=1032779031}}

==External links== * [http://www.vintagesynth.com/ VintageSynth.com] has specifications and photos * [http://www.ob6000.de/ OB6000.de] The Editor for the Matrix 1000 * [http://xplorer.programmer.free.fr/ Xplorer] A free, realtime editor for the Oberheim Matrix-12 and Xpander synthesizers

{{DEFAULTSORT:Oberheim Matrix Synthesizers}} Matrix Category:analog synthesizers Category:polyphonic synthesizers