The original OB-X is one of the classics. A sublime synthesizer that was one of the first poly synths to combine full programmability from a single set of controls and portability. You’ll find it all over the music of the 1980s including, of course, Van Halen’s Jump.

Fast forward 40 years and Oberheim has reclaimed its legacy with the new and extraordinary OB-X8. It has that classic Oberheim sound because it is built to the same exacting standards and combines the designs of the OB-8, OB-X and OB-Xa in one machine. It has the ability to pull a huge smile across your face. It’s 100% analog in nature and is full of warmth, punch and nostalgia.

The OB-X8 has 8 voices of polyphony using two VCOs per voice that have their heritage in those original 80s synthesizers. The filters come from the classic SEM and OB-X synths with an additional filter that offers the OB-Xa and OB-8 tones. You can run two tones at once, either layered or split across the 61-note velocity and touch-sensitive keys.

It looks every bit like a proper Oberheim synthesizer and sounds fantastic. The controls are large, obvious and beg to be tweaked. It’s full of fantastic presets that will inspire you on your own journey. If you’re looking for classic synthesizer sounds, then the OB-X8 is the finest analog polyphonic synthesizer on the market.

Street Price: $4,999
Oberheim.com

The Sequential Prophet 5 was the original polyphonic synthesizer that changed everything. It brought the concept of multi-voice synthesis into one, portable and playable machine and enabled Oberheim, Roland, Korg and everything that came after it. Over it’s life from 1978 to 1984 there were three versions plus a double keyboarded Prophet 10. For the new, modern and reimagined Prophet 5, Sequential has taken the best from all the versions and created an awesome legacy synthesizer that oozes style and competence.

The Prophet 5 is built on the exact same components and designs of the originals but with updated stability and expressive enhancements. But Sequential wanted to keep the character of the originals intact and so has built in desirable fluctuations and flaws that you dial in with the Vintage knob. So you can find your own level of cleanliness or grittiness and flutter.

You have two CEM 3340 VCOs per voice and 5 voices on the Prophet-5 or 10 on the Prophet-10. There are a couple of filters to choose from; the Dave Rossum-designed filter from Rev1 and 2, and the Doug Curtis-designed filter from the Rev 3. All of them can be overdriven into self-oscillation. The layout, modulation options and waveshapes are all very straight forward by modern synth standards but that’s part of the charm that’s shared with the OB-X8. These are great synths precisely because the workflow is so well designed and easy to follow. Anyone can stand in front of one and start crafting sounds – they are a joy to play.

The Prophet-5 and 10 voice version are classic synths that sound every bit as good as they look.

Street Price: $3,599
Sequential.com

Moving on from the classics into a modern take on the concept of analog polyphonic synthesizers. Arturia has a gift for finding expression and fluidity in synthesis, and the Polybrute reflects this beautifully. The form and architecture may give clues to the influences, but this is an altogether busier and more complex beast.

The Polybrute has 6 voices that can twist and morph through sounds and ideas with seamless movement. You can interact with the changes through musical expression, morphing abilities and radical features. You don’t just find a sound and play it; you can push through it, making the evolution part of your performance. This is a fun synthesizer!

You have two oscillators, a noise source and two separate filters with an innovative master cutoff control. The Steiner-Parker Filter and the Moog-inspired Ladder filter can be used individually or together in both series or parallel for some unexpected sculpting. For modulation, you have three LFOs and three envelopes and a comprehensive routing matrix to push movement into every corner of the synth.

The innovations come in the ability to morph through sounds with your fingertips. The waveforms don’t switch from one to another; they glide and morph through shapes. Tie that into the expressive controls of the Morphée controller or ribbon controller, and you have amazing ways to alter sound.

With a modern approach and high-quality effects the Polybrute pulls the power of the Sequential and Oberheim analog synths into the future.

Street Price: $2,699
Arturia.com

The Hydrasynth takes us in a different direction with advanced wavetable synthesis. Rather than analog oscillators, we have three wavetable engines that can conjure up a myriad of waveforms and raw complex sounds. The synth is designed for maximum flexibility, giving you expressive control over endless possibilities.

Each oscillator gives you a selection of 219 waveforms. These can be taken on their merits or combined in a bank of 8 waveforms which you can then morph between. The banks are usually fixed on wavetable synths, whereas with the Hydrasynth, you can arrange them however you like.

From the sound source, you dive straight into the Mutators. The Mutators will modulate, bend and sculpt your waves in all sorts of interesting ways. You can make FM sounds, put waveforms in sync, modulate the pulse width, sweep harmonics and shift the phases. It’s a regular funhouse of waveform abuse.

But we’re not done yet. Next, your three oscillators are mixed with noise, ring-modulated and pushed through a pair of filters. There are 16 filter models to choose from in the first filter and the second backs it up with a gorgeous 12dB multi-mode filter inspired by the SEM. For modulation, there are 5 LFOs and 5 envelopes and a routing matrix to connect it all together.

Add in an arpeggiator, macro controls, digital effects and a well-designed workflow, and you’ve got a digital synth to be reckoned with. It’s also available with a deluxe keyboard, no keyboard at all or the more portable mini-keyed Explorer.

Street Price: $2,699
AshunSoundMachines.com

This is the synthesizer Behringer has been working on the longest. When they set out to redefine the synth landscape by bringing back the legends of the past, it was this synth that they had in mind.

The UB-Xa is based upon the classic Oberheim OB-Xa from 1981. It was superbly lush 8-voice analogue synthesizer that defined the sound of the early part of the decade. The UB-Xa attempts to recreate it using modern versions of all the same circuitry at a vastly reduced cost. And honestly, Behringer has got it about right.

You’ve got the same basic architecture with 2 VCOs per voice based on the CEM 3340 chip and the 12dB/oct and 24dB/oct CEM 3320 based low pass filter. That alone defines the foundation of the tone. But Behringer has taking things further by pumping up the voice count to 16-voices, split it into a stereo signal path and made it bi-timbral. That means that you can run two sounds at once, split or layered across the keyboard. That feature alone turns it into a very different synthesizer.

They keyboard is a newly designed 61-note full size semi-weighted keybed with polyphonic aftertouch. This means that each key can modulate its own note independently. There’s also room for 512 presets. The only thing missing is any effects, but then the origianl didn’t have any either. All the controls are on the surface, ready to be manipulated.

The UB-Xa looks and sounds great and is available at a stunning price point.

Street Price: $1,499
Behringer.com

The COBALT8 is a compact, sturdy and unassuming synthesizer. It quietly goes about its business producing warm and pleasing tones, smooth modulations and usefully musical soundscapes. It’s a solid synth that you can play on all day and feel the time just slip away. It’s not flashy or extravagant, but it’s a synth that I’ve got a lot of time for.

COBALT8 is an 8-voice extended virtual analog synthesizer. This means that it generates its waveforms in digital oscillators and pretends to function like a classic analog synth. The thing is that COBALT8 does this really well. The sound and warmth are superb, and its innovative oscillator engine gives it some nicely unique character. The oscillators are groups rather than individuals and you have stack them and unison them for some huge sounds.

While you do have regular waveforms, Modal Electronics has come up with a series of algorithms that are more like modular patches. You can load two algorithms and then move, crossfade, mix and morph to find your ideal tone. The result is a collection of quirky and lively sounds that are animated and interesting before they plunge into the filters.

There are over 30 filter types that have the flexibility to move smoothly between modes. So changing filters becomes part of your patch. COBALT8 also has a 512-note sequencer and arpeggiator with up to four powerful automation lanes. There are three envelopes, three LFOs and a nice digital effects engine for huge sounds.

It has a joystick for additional control, a fantastic keyboard that you can also get as a bigger version than the standard 37 notes, and an App that provides full on-screen editing beyond the hands-on interface. It’s a great little synth with all of the charm of an analog without the cost.

Street Price: $799
ModalElectronics.com

The hottest new synth in town is the deliciously hybrid MiniFreak. It blows the lid off the earlier MicroFreak and oozes into a larger space of 6-voice polyphony and dual digital sound engines. The sounds are inspired by the bleeps and bloops of modular synthesis and in particular, those from the multi-oscillator Plaits from Mutable Instruments. It takes that monophonic space and transforms it into a fascinating polyphonic experience like none other.

It’s funny-looking but in a good way, a way that engages with you and pulls you in closer. It’s software driven and hardware interfaced to give you a playable surface to investigate the weirdness of the sound engine. There are 22 different oscillator types running from waveforms to chords, filtered sounds to supersaws, FM to formant and more. And you get to choose a different one for each oscillator and then play with its parameters.

MiniFreak is massively experimental while also being warm and rewarding when you just want some synth sounds. The SEM-style analog filters are lovely, bringing multi-modes of colour and shaping. And the modulation can come from all sorts of places. A solid digital effects engine gives it loads of room to breathe.

It’s not just a synth with a keyboard either because the keyboard is surrounded by other possibilities. There’s a sequencer and arpeggiator in here with lots of exciting modes, variations, spontaneous movements, repeats, ratchets and randomisations. It’s always got more things to do.

MiniFreak is fabulously unconventional and is the synth you need if old analogs leave you cold. Do it differently.

Street Price: $599
Arturia.com

One of the smaller synthesizers from Korg but one filled with an unexpectedly accessible FM synthesis engine. Korg calls it “Altered FM”, and while it harks back to the classic Yamaha DX7 it actually has a world of its own to explore.

FM is famously hard to program with pages and pages of parameters and adjustments to make. The Opsix boils that down to something powerful right at your fingertips. Each slider offers dramatic shifts in tone and character and reveals a whole range of digital sounds while the display keeps you informed on how things are changing.

Each slider and knob combination looks after one of the 6 operators in the FM engine. The Opsix then categorises the sorts of synthesis available to push you in the right direction. From regular subtractive, through semi-modular, analog, waveshaping, additive and classic FM. It’s the range of filters that really set it apart from other FM synths adding a whole new dimension.

There are 30 high-quality effects available to manipulate sound and polyphonic motion sequencing to generate rhythms, melodies and soundscapes. All of it can be routed and modulated with ease and endless exploration.

The Opsix is different and yet opens you up to familiar territory and rewards you with amazing sounds. It takes the DX7 into the future.

Street Price: $599
Korg.com

I’ve created a buyers quick-link guide to stores as a companion to this article that you can access here.