I‘m so glad to own one of this beasts. The sound is incredible. And the Curtis filter is the best ever with all its different filter modes. A full modular system software based from 84. Lightyears ahead of its time.
Alex, every demo track you create for your videos, every single one, is more interesting and enjoyable to listen to than 99.9% of synthwave tracks that exist today. I mean that quite literally. Excellent stuff, good sir.
@@Patriotic_Eagle1995 Mmmmmm…. It really isn’t, provided you are a big fan of Alex Ball’s style. Honestly, I love Alex Balls music so I’m inclined to agree with the OP. But I can totally understand not everyone is going to agree with my preferences ;)
@@Patriotic_Eagle1995 Perhaps, but I've done a bit of searching, although I'm aware not exhaustively, and I've heard nothing that isn't 4 measures, repeated literally ad nauseum. That's my description of synthwave, in a nutshell. Compose 4 measures of music, add and subtract a few instruments as you go, repeat. Alex's tracks are more interesting and enjoyable than that. Hence, the comment. Very few synthwave artists that I've heard are doing more than that. However, if you know of some, I'm interested.
When I was in High School I wandered into a music store. Saw one of these in the keyboard section, next to the other keyboards and synths it looked like the most futuristic thing ever. Somehow figured out which keyboard it was connected to and started fiddling with it. After about 5 minutes some balding guy with a ponytail and too much cologne crawled out from under a rock and yelled at me not to touch the most expensive thing in the store. Chasing me out into the street. Little did he know I would grow up to also not able to afford one as a middle aged guy.
If that’s true, you absolutely could have afforded this or a Matrix 12 (or a Jupiter 8 along with almost any analog synth?) from the early 90’s into the early 2000’s. Your comment is not accurate. This synth would have been very realistically attainable even 10 years ago. I’m guessing the Xpander could have been had for $1500-$2500 in the early 2010’s? Matrix 12 price would have been higher at that point, but it was probably still in the range of OBX8 today? Xpander was definitely a fairly reasonable purchase 10 years ago.
@@alicelaranjeira3127 Synths were dirt cheap in 90’s, and well into the 2000’s, dummy. There are plenty of stories of people buying Jupiter 8’s for $800, or TR-808’s for a few hundred. Go down the list of the greatest synths and it would have been the same story, with very few exceptions (CS 80 would be an exception, but even that could have probably been had at a good price)
This certainly expanded my head. Mind blowingly flexible for the time. Seriouly outstanding. Massive shout to you Alex for putting this video together.
The second demo of the CV gate driven, 7 channel synth is so catchy, I want more! That is an amazing instrument, thanks for creating this historic view of an innovation that we can only now use fully. Any odds that it can be reverse engineered and offered up to a wider audience? 20,000 singing modular rigs are crying out for their daddy!!
I have Lloyd Cole's (The Commotions) Xpander that he gifted me for doing sound programming on his "Antidepressant" album and I've used it quite a bit. I had no idea that it could do this much! Thanks for the history and walkthrough! I'm really going to start to dig into this thing after having it since 2006. Inspirational!
I had several vintage polys.. Jupiter-4, P5 rev 3, all kinds of Junos and tried some modern Polys as well. The only one which stayed is the Xpander. Best polysynth in the world for me personally. It's has a character, it's own life and personality.
Wow, how strange, after months of watching your videos, to suddenly hear the names of people I know lol. I worked with Marcus and Michel at Fast Forward Designs (which became Line 6). And I knew Marcus for years before working for him (he was a friend of a friend). I even made some tracks in the evenings after work using the Xpander that was sitting unused on a back shelf. It wasn't completely working properly and made some even more interesting sounds. :)
I can't thank you enough for making such Incredible and informative videos on your channel. The music examples always sound great and I love the humor you inject I to every video whilst giving an in depth historical overview. Your channel and skills on UA-cam are priceless.
I'm looking up gear used in the early years of Nitzer Ebb. According to Bon Harris they had "two of everything" for better polyphony. He pretty much states the Xpander(s) and Akai samplers were the core "with the usual analog stuff" as well. The FM Bass here definitely sounds like one used on Belief! Alex, also it's been a few years but asking again if a history dive on EMS is gonna see the light of day. Last time you said it has not been easy finding the synths. Hope that works out some day.
Who needs Netflix, when there’s great content like this to watch! Entertaining, informative and appropriately witty! Can’t believe I turned down buying an Oberheim Expander for about £400 in the late 80’s. Just because it wouldn’t fit in the bedroom I had at the time in my parents’ house 😫.
Thank you so much for another fantastic synth history lesson! I really like that period, with the "overly digital" control scheme. And I *love* your videos and demos. (Also I literallly LOLd at the "ALX" sound 😁)
When I got up this morning and enjoyed my German coffee, I asked myself "Was ist der Xpander?". And now I watched your video and the question is settled once and for all. Thank you Herr Ball.
Hoping there's an Oberheim documentary coming up soon, along the same lines of your other ones for the likes of Roland and ARP. Oberheim has a special place in my heart ever since I found a battered DX drum machine in a junk shop as a teenager (this was in the days before eBay or Reverb when such things could still happen). I subsequently owned an Oberheim OB-X and a Marion MSR-2 - the latter being Tom Oberheim's ill fated but rather wonderful synth from the 1990s. I'd add Nitzer Ebb to the list of notable Xpander users as well. They used it heavily on their first albums for Mute, possibly inspired by Daniel Miller having one laying around.
The Xpander has always been one of those magical synths for me. Not in the least because of Orbital and Sasha. There is a certain amount of grittiness to its sound that I find so incredibly beautiful. Thanks Alex for another excellent video! The retro-esque video effects are fun.
A connoisseur's synthesizer, a modular with patch memory and an all-analog circuit path with stable tuning. Add the slick industrial design and a practical VFD user interface that has only just recently been matched nearly 40 years on. 15 filter types, 5 envelopes and 5 LFOs with complex triggering modes per multi timbral voice. 1984. Wow, what an achievement! The Matrix 1000 offspring is also a highly capable and sonically pleasing machine (like all Oberheims), but the Xpander / Matrix 12 is still the dream machine.
Thank you for another superb video: I always lusted after an Xpander (well, anything Oberheim, really!) and I remember this coming out in 1984 and reading about it in E&MM. My favourite user of the Xpander is probably Allan Holdsworth (RIP) who used one with his Synthaxe to astonishing effect. Marcus Ryle's name comes up everywhere there's classic synth and audio gear too. Love the "Fond" song too...
I love the fact I get to see these wonderful synths being used, documented and explained. This will be an important resource just to see them for many years to come! And while quite serious in tone, Alex brings in the comedic value I love about your videos!
Interesting to learn more about my absolute favorite synth! I used it earlier this week in the studio and it's such a beast. The producer was floored by it!
Thanks once again Alex, for yet another entertaining nostalgia trip. I never had an Xpander but I think I remember hearing a demo/ad for it on the ES&CM cassettes, which I was buying eagerly at the time. The sound is quite familiar!
Fantastic synth, the Expander is one the Vince Clarke favorites, he said that the modulation possibilities are endless. Humm, maybe there is space for Oberheim doc. Posible tittle: SEM, The history of Oberheim!
Takes me back to 92 when I had access to one of these in a college music course. Wish I had the skills back then that you clearly do. I love your attention to detail, sense of humor and musicality. Thanks for this!
Man, I've lusted after the Xpander since ... well, 1984. I always associate it with Nitzer Ebb's killer bass sounds. I remember playing with one in a music store when it first came out and I was blown away. BUT ... they cost almost $4,000 in 1984. That's roughly equivalent to $11,400 in today's money. (And people complain about synths costing too much today!)
I had the pleasure of spending many hours noodling around with the OB Expander in the 90s ❤❤❤ Sounded so good. I new the programming side of that panel so well. An incredible instrument
Excellent history background, demo, and magnificent performance of the Expander. That song you made was AMAZING!!! The Expander and Matrix 12 were definitely way ahead of their time and they very much remind me of the advanced analog polysynths of today with all of these custom routings and modulation capabilities, like the Prophet Rev 2 (as you've mentioned), the Polybrute, and the Moog One, and yes, the ASM Hydrasynth (eventhough it's all digital). Thank you for making this superb video. I most certainly enjoyed every minute of it!
Chuffed that I had the privilege to put the 1000th like on this. Having just got my Matrix 6 back from service, it has some Xpander DNA and great value for money, especially when I originally purchased it. The Xpander & Matrix synths sound quite different from the OB series and the SEM based Oberheims, but all three lines are great. Thanks for another fantastic demo and retrospective.
Damn dude, everything was going stellar as usual and then you dump FOND on us. What a song!?! The Mellotron jam was also next level. You're songwriting is just getting so damn good!! I'm so excited to see what you keep doing.
Another classic video from the master. You must have a lot of synth details floating around in your head. I always wondered what this beast did. This community was much more innovative in the golden years of synths. The originality was so much more back then. Great video and thanks for explaining this vintage beast. Loved the original music too.
I use the accompanying Oberheim Xk MIDI controller every day as my main keyboard! It looks like any other classic OB synth of the era and has just the right features. I love it.
In 2001 I bought a vocoder from an ad in loot (remember that?) and went off on the tube to Fulham to pick it up. The seller turned out to be Simon Berry who ran platypus records. He had an insane studio, tons and tons of amazing gear. We got chatting, I asked him what his favorite synth of them all was and he said the Xpander. Straight away, didn't even have to think about it. Since then it's been the one bit of pukka vintage gear I've always really wanted, and a few years ago I was lucky enough to get a really nice one. I don't think I've ever bought anything else that had moved my music on by so much. So, so deep and just sounds phenomenal.👌
Wow great to watch. I bought one in 1985, matrix 12 and loved it! sold it and regret it for many years and decades. Then I bought another one 2016 thank God. %$$$$ crazy!
Whenever you enter a room the ALX sound has to play and everyone has to awkwardly stand in silence and wait for it to finish xD Thanks for the demo of this fantastic piece of gear! :)
You could have told me Multi Demo 2 came directly from Beck’s “Hyperspace” record and I would have absolutely taken your word for it. This whole video was so wild. What an incredible instrument.
Gotta hand it to DJ Sasha for actually naming one of the best dance tunes of all time after a beloved Synthesizer. Xpander is truly an awesome track, that is worthy of the name.
I love mine. And my Andromeda A6. Pretty special design team. Also ADAT & Line 6! Had to thank Marcus in person at Superbooth last year. The M1000 is the same architecture as the M6 but with 1000 presets. The M1000 / M6 are DCO the Xpander VCO. My M1000 compliments my Xpander nicely. The M1000 is a bit like a JX8P.
Those synths sounds so good today because those guys knows what they are doing, the were brilliant people, even in today's synths you fill find influence of the older ones, guaranteed! I'm glad to have the opportunity to saw all that stuff when they came out including the invention of MIDI. Cheers!
@@carlosserrano3985 The Xpander is a crown achievement of engineering. The voice architecture & modulation matrix are top notch. This synth is too hard to clone so i'm holding money aside for a good deal. Don't expect a behringer clone any time soon.
@@denzilstudios7072 Absolutely right, the Xpander is a gem, Alex said the same thing Vince Clarke said, it's like a modular without patch cables. In the case of Behringer who knows if they are working on something but I can say they have Oberheim products in their minds, if the Xpander is one of those I really don't know. Cheers!
I had use of a matrix 6r in the early 90's loved the sounds on it. Totally remember first time I saw Orbital using the expander when I saw them at Megadog in Sheffield just amazing
All I heard at the beginning was warm warm and warm...and all I felt was a big warm cuddle 😁😁😁 And I never even knew about Sasha's Xpander album was name aftert his lovely machine. I need to dig out my CD of that and have another listen. 😁
Thank you Alex for the historical and acoustic insights. I always thought the "OB-Xpander prototype" you are referring to @6:42 was a desktop module of the OB-8 to just expand the OB-8 keyboard's voices (or for being used together with the OB-SX)
Yeah, I got the info from Marcus himself. It was basically a multitimbral box with discrete control of the voices; a stepping stone towards the Xpander. I'll have to ask EMEAPP what's the deal with it as they have it now. Would be cool to see more photos.
I recommend this is listened to in stereo… sounds fantastic. I think Tom ‘n’ Dave (Smith) really gave the Japanese giants a run for their money and helped push the envelope (oh, see what I did there) with new technology. What an exciting time the 80’s were for synths!
Steve Porcaro's Starlicks video always makes me laugh because he was off his head on Coke. He did recreate the Rosanna brass sound on the Xpander. It was originally done on his Polyfusion modular synth sequenced by a Roland MC4 or MC-8.
This synthesiser is so sharp that Alex's hair got cut during the making of this video.
😂
I‘m so glad to own one of this beasts. The sound is incredible. And the Curtis filter is the best ever with all its different filter modes. A full modular system software based from 84. Lightyears ahead of its time.
Alex, every demo track you create for your videos, every single one, is more interesting and enjoyable to listen to than 99.9% of synthwave tracks that exist today. I mean that quite literally. Excellent stuff, good sir.
Thanks Ben, much appreciated.
Please, show us the path to the 0.01%.
I mean, they're nice demos, but this comment is embarrassingly hyperbolic and blatantly untrue, lol
@@Patriotic_Eagle1995 Mmmmmm…. It really isn’t, provided you are a big fan of Alex Ball’s style. Honestly, I love Alex Balls music so I’m inclined to agree with the OP. But I can totally understand not everyone is going to agree with my preferences ;)
@@Patriotic_Eagle1995 Perhaps, but I've done a bit of searching, although I'm aware not exhaustively, and I've heard nothing that isn't 4 measures, repeated literally ad nauseum. That's my description of synthwave, in a nutshell. Compose 4 measures of music, add and subtract a few instruments as you go, repeat. Alex's tracks are more interesting and enjoyable than that. Hence, the comment. Very few synthwave artists that I've heard are doing more than that. However, if you know of some, I'm interested.
When I was in High School I wandered into a music store. Saw one of these in the keyboard section, next to the other keyboards and synths it looked like the most futuristic thing ever. Somehow figured out which keyboard it was connected to and started fiddling with it.
After about 5 minutes some balding guy with a ponytail and too much cologne crawled out from under a rock and yelled at me not to touch the most expensive thing in the store.
Chasing me out into the street.
Little did he know I would grow up to also not able to afford one as a middle aged guy.
If that’s true, you absolutely could have afforded this or a Matrix 12 (or a Jupiter 8 along with almost any analog synth?) from the early 90’s into the early 2000’s.
Your comment is not accurate. This synth would have been very realistically attainable even 10 years ago. I’m guessing the Xpander could have been had for $1500-$2500 in the early 2010’s? Matrix 12 price would have been higher at that point, but it was probably still in the range of OBX8 today? Xpander was definitely a fairly reasonable purchase 10 years ago.
@@79Glitcharen't you precious. You have no idea or business saying what people can and can't afford now or before.
@@alicelaranjeira3127 Synths were dirt cheap in 90’s, and well into the 2000’s, dummy. There are plenty of stories of people buying Jupiter 8’s for $800, or TR-808’s for a few hundred. Go down the list of the greatest synths and it would have been the same story, with very few exceptions (CS 80 would be an exception, but even that could have probably been had at a good price)
@@79Glitch dude, you have no idea what was the financial situation of the OP.
Luckily now we got great plugins that are more than capable.
This certainly expanded my head. Mind blowingly flexible for the time. Seriouly outstanding. Massive shout to you Alex for putting this video together.
Thanks. I've been wanting to do a proper (as in, let's go multi mode etc) Xpander video for a long time. Satisfying.
@@AlexBallMusic Sublimely executed Alex. So glad ( you ), got your hands on this baby . 🙌🏾🙏🏾
This thing is absolutely mental. The video effects during the multi demos were pretty awesome by the way, well done!
Yeah, quite remarkable for the time.
Loved the video graphics... a kind of Ready Brek in green :)
As ever, a great mini history lesson in synths, cheers dude.
Not only mental, but also mentally big! :)
The second demo of the CV gate driven, 7 channel synth is so catchy, I want more! That is an amazing instrument, thanks for creating this historic view of an innovation that we can only now use fully. Any odds that it can be reverse engineered and offered up to a wider audience? 20,000 singing modular rigs are crying out for their daddy!!
Excellent stuff! I remember Andy Bell calling out the Xpander in an Erasure concert IIRC. Not many synths get name checks in gigs!
I have Lloyd Cole's (The Commotions) Xpander that he gifted me for doing sound programming on his "Antidepressant" album and I've used it quite a bit. I had no idea that it could do this much! Thanks for the history and walkthrough! I'm really going to start to dig into this thing after having it since 2006. Inspirational!
I love your demo tracks and how the effects are always “period correct”
One of my heroes Vince Clarke`s favourite synths , he still raves about it to this day !
I had several vintage polys.. Jupiter-4, P5 rev 3, all kinds of Junos and tried some modern Polys as well. The only one which stayed is the Xpander. Best polysynth in the world for me personally. It's has a character, it's own life and personality.
Thats expensive matrix expander
Wow, how strange, after months of watching your videos, to suddenly hear the names of people I know lol. I worked with Marcus and Michel at Fast Forward Designs (which became Line 6). And I knew Marcus for years before working for him (he was a friend of a friend). I even made some tracks in the evenings after work using the Xpander that was sitting unused on a back shelf. It wasn't completely working properly and made some even more interesting sounds. :)
I can't thank you enough for making such Incredible and informative videos on your channel. The music examples always sound great and I love the humor you inject I to every video whilst giving an in depth historical overview. Your channel and skills on UA-cam are priceless.
Top notch Alex! The sound of this synth is amazing. I'd pay money for Fond, it makes me feel intensely happy.
Thanks Kilian!
I'm looking up gear used in the early years of Nitzer Ebb. According to Bon Harris they had "two of everything" for better polyphony. He pretty much states the Xpander(s) and Akai samplers were the core "with the usual analog stuff" as well.
The FM Bass here definitely sounds like one used on Belief!
Alex, also it's been a few years but asking again if a history dive on EMS is gonna see the light of day. Last time you said it has not been easy finding the synths. Hope that works out some day.
Who needs Netflix, when there’s great content like this to watch! Entertaining, informative and appropriately witty! Can’t believe I turned down buying an Oberheim Expander for about £400 in the late 80’s. Just because it wouldn’t fit in the bedroom I had at the time in my parents’ house 😫.
Ah damn. You should have commandeered your parent's room in the name of synth. We need a flag.
Thank you so much for another fantastic synth history lesson!
I really like that period, with the "overly digital" control scheme. And I *love* your videos and demos.
(Also I literallly LOLd at the "ALX" sound 😁)
Cheers Henning. Once I started dabbling with ramp generators, there was only one thing for it....
One of the few vintage synths I actually would want to own.
What an absolutely bonkers synthesizer for the time. Even for our time, this is crazy.
Allan Holdsworth and Michael Brecker did amazing things with the expander, showing off its expressive capabilities and incredible sound.
Yes, I believe Brecker used a wind synth to play sounds from the Xpander.
Two Xpanders were/are the constant major workhorses of Steve Roach. That alone is a testament itself to the greatness of this synth.
Your synth videos are the best on youtube! I love watching, learning & drooling. Thanks, Alex.
Thanks!
The Xpander and Matrix 12 are the most powerful vintage polysynths ever made! Essentially unmatched, even today... Thx for showcasing!
Marcus said he was planning on a Matrix 24 before leaving 🤯
@@Death_By_Media I didn't know that! So cool... When did he say that?
@@SacSynths_Jack_Z In one of the OBX8 interviews GeoSynth maybe ?
Thanks so much for demystifying this well-known yet obscure classic 👍
It's funny because it's like so many synths now, so it's probably become easier to understand in that context.
When I got up this morning and enjoyed my German coffee, I asked myself "Was ist der Xpander?". And now I watched your video and the question is settled once and for all. Thank you Herr Ball.
When I was in a synthpop band decades ago we had a song named Xpander. The only synthesizer we had was a Roland XP-10.
Hoping there's an Oberheim documentary coming up soon, along the same lines of your other ones for the likes of Roland and ARP. Oberheim has a special place in my heart ever since I found a battered DX drum machine in a junk shop as a teenager (this was in the days before eBay or Reverb when such things could still happen). I subsequently owned an Oberheim OB-X and a Marion MSR-2 - the latter being Tom Oberheim's ill fated but rather wonderful synth from the 1990s.
I'd add Nitzer Ebb to the list of notable Xpander users as well. They used it heavily on their first albums for Mute, possibly inspired by Daniel Miller having one laying around.
Indeed. I love Alex's synth history lessions.
The Xpander has always been one of those magical synths for me. Not in the least because of Orbital and Sasha. There is a certain amount of grittiness to its sound that I find so incredibly beautiful. Thanks Alex for another excellent video! The retro-esque video effects are fun.
Ahhh I loved "Fond". Top notch video as usual, Alex!
Cheers David.
A connoisseur's synthesizer, a modular with patch memory and an all-analog circuit path with stable tuning. Add the slick industrial design and a practical VFD user interface that has only just recently been matched nearly 40 years on. 15 filter types, 5 envelopes and 5 LFOs with complex triggering modes per multi timbral voice. 1984. Wow, what an achievement!
The Matrix 1000 offspring is also a highly capable and sonically pleasing machine (like all Oberheims), but the Xpander / Matrix 12 is still the dream machine.
Thank you for another superb video: I always lusted after an Xpander (well, anything Oberheim, really!) and I remember this coming out in 1984 and reading about it in E&MM. My favourite user of the Xpander is probably Allan Holdsworth (RIP) who used one with his Synthaxe to astonishing effect. Marcus Ryle's name comes up everywhere there's classic synth and audio gear too. Love the "Fond" song too...
I made it the way through and I'm still fond. You're knocking them out of the park lately Alex. The Korg story was fantastic, and so was this one.
Another favorite artists who uses the Expander is Steve Roach.
I love the fact I get to see these wonderful synths being used, documented and explained. This will be an important resource just to see them for many years to come!
And while quite serious in tone, Alex brings in the comedic value I love about your videos!
Interesting to learn more about my absolute favorite synth! I used it earlier this week in the studio and it's such a beast. The producer was floored by it!
Thanks once again Alex, for yet another entertaining nostalgia trip. I never had an Xpander but I think I remember hearing a demo/ad for it on the ES&CM cassettes, which I was buying eagerly at the time. The sound is quite familiar!
Fantastic synth, the Expander is one the Vince Clarke favorites, he said that the modulation possibilities are endless.
Humm, maybe there is space for Oberheim doc.
Posible tittle:
SEM, The history of Oberheim!
Takes me back to 92 when I had access to one of these in a college music course. Wish I had the skills back then that you clearly do.
I love your attention to detail, sense of humor and musicality. Thanks for this!
I love your documentaries ❤
Man, I've lusted after the Xpander since ... well, 1984. I always associate it with Nitzer Ebb's killer bass sounds. I remember playing with one in a music store when it first came out and I was blown away. BUT ... they cost almost $4,000 in 1984. That's roughly equivalent to $11,400 in today's money. (And people complain about synths costing too much today!)
Love it. Love all the knowledge and videos over the years my friend....keep em up! Merry Christmas
I had a Matrix 12. Always regret letting that one go! Rich and deep and amazing!
Great vid, always know I'm in for a treat with this kind of content. You never disappoint!
I had the pleasure of spending many hours noodling around with the OB Expander in the 90s ❤❤❤ Sounded so good. I new the programming side of that panel so well. An incredible instrument
Awesome, as usual. I will have “Fond” stuck in my head all day.
Loved that final Outro Jam piece! Lovely stuff.
Blimey! I had no idea how capable this was! And 3 plus decades ago! Wowsers. 😮 amazing vid, as usual..
Excellent history background, demo, and magnificent performance of the Expander. That song you made was AMAZING!!!
The Expander and Matrix 12 were definitely way ahead of their time and they very much remind me of the advanced analog polysynths of today with all of these custom routings and modulation capabilities, like the Prophet Rev 2 (as you've mentioned), the Polybrute, and the Moog One, and yes, the ASM Hydrasynth (eventhough it's all digital).
Thank you for making this superb video. I most certainly enjoyed every minute of it!
Chuffed that I had the privilege to put the 1000th like on this. Having just got my Matrix 6 back from service, it has some Xpander DNA and great value for money, especially when I originally purchased it. The Xpander & Matrix synths sound quite different from the OB series and the SEM based Oberheims, but all three lines are great. Thanks for another fantastic demo and retrospective.
Alex what an excellent video, sythersizor demonstration and very interesting hearing the history, great music again.
Thanks again!
@@AlexBallMusic 👍
Damn dude, everything was going stellar as usual and then you dump FOND on us. What a song!?! The Mellotron jam was also next level. You're songwriting is just getting so damn good!! I'm so excited to see what you keep doing.
Another classic video from the master. You must have a lot of synth details floating around in your head. I always wondered what this beast did. This community was much more innovative in the golden years of synths. The originality was so much more back then. Great video and thanks for explaining this vintage beast. Loved the original music too.
I use the accompanying Oberheim Xk MIDI controller every day as my main keyboard! It looks like any other classic OB synth of the era and has just the right features. I love it.
Great video Alex, I love this!
This is first class, information, education, entertainment and pretty nice songs too. Thx Alex. Greetings from Germany.
Very interesting. I really enjoy your synth history videos. You bring the best sounds of the synths you demo. Well done!
In 2001 I bought a vocoder from an ad in loot (remember that?) and went off on the tube to Fulham to pick it up. The seller turned out to be Simon Berry who ran platypus records. He had an insane studio, tons and tons of amazing gear. We got chatting, I asked him what his favorite synth of them all was and he said the Xpander. Straight away, didn't even have to think about it. Since then it's been the one bit of pukka vintage gear I've always really wanted, and a few years ago I was lucky enough to get a really nice one. I don't think I've ever bought anything else that had moved my music on by so much. So, so deep and just sounds phenomenal.👌
This synth is so beautiful I could weep.
I love your videos Alex, so entertaining and those synths I always lusted after. I'd love to see a video on the Synthaxe
Wow great to watch. I bought one in 1985, matrix 12 and loved it! sold it and regret it for many years and decades. Then I bought another one 2016 thank God. %$$$$ crazy!
Whenever you enter a room the ALX sound has to play and everyone has to awkwardly stand in silence and wait for it to finish xD
Thanks for the demo of this fantastic piece of gear! :)
You could have told me Multi Demo 2 came directly from Beck’s “Hyperspace” record and I would have absolutely taken your word for it. This whole video was so wild. What an incredible instrument.
Oooh I love those beasts. Had a mate with a Matrix 12 and a CS80. That was FUN! jamming on those two.
Glad to see you had your Ready Brek(or radium) before tackling this monster
This was the pinnacle of analogue synths. Awesome demo!
Love this part 5:58
Gotta hand it to DJ Sasha for actually naming one of the best dance tunes of all time after a beloved Synthesizer. Xpander is truly an awesome track, that is worthy of the name.
Passion Pit vibes on the Multi Demo 2: Fond. Very Nice!
Cheers.
Alex glowing like you have had your ready brek. Great demo track as usual.
Jam & Spoon have defined an entire musical genre with the Xpander. Stella's famous filter sound was created with it.
Love this format - while watching I can't wait for the next part of the story, and can't wait for the next demo. :)
As always a great detailed look at these amazing instruments
Best demo of Xpander, hands down.
Dayum, you put some beautiful shine on the vocals on that second demo (Also, all the stuff the other comments said already ;)
Your channel is the best channel on UA-cam for synth enthusiasts like myself. Thank you!
True, Alex is beast!
I played/programmed this lovely synth in college - to make a 'controllable thunder' patch for an opera in college. Everyone jumped! - I was pleased. 😅
Never seen anyone make this synth play like you do. Awesome job Alex!
Thanks!
One of my all-time favorite synths!! Thank you for doing this video about it. I just loved it! :-)
These videos are really amazing. Excellent work!
Hello Alex: I am coming to understand why you are so understand why you are so interested in these wonderful old products. Stay safe and well.
another belter, demo 2 is fab. my fave synth channel, and there are few♥
I love the Multi demo 2 : Fond, excellent and thanks for your content mate
i want this so much. i was able to work with one at conservatory in the early 90s. it is a BEAST!
very interesting! love your musical synth documentaries !
Alex, you adorable nerd, this is an incredible video. Thank you.
Nerds unite!
I love mine. And my Andromeda A6. Pretty special design team. Also ADAT & Line 6! Had to thank Marcus in person at Superbooth last year.
The M1000 is the same architecture as the M6 but with 1000 presets. The M1000 / M6 are DCO the Xpander VCO. My M1000 compliments my Xpander nicely. The M1000 is a bit like a JX8P.
Waaauw, what a jawdropping dope synth. The sound is just spectacular!!!!
Those synths sounds so good today because those guys knows what they are doing, the were brilliant people, even in today's synths you fill find influence of the older ones, guaranteed!
I'm glad to have the opportunity to saw all that stuff when they came out including the invention of MIDI.
Cheers!
@@carlosserrano3985 The Xpander is a crown achievement of engineering. The voice architecture & modulation matrix are top notch. This synth is too hard to clone so i'm holding money aside for a good deal. Don't expect a behringer clone any time soon.
@@denzilstudios7072 Absolutely right, the Xpander is a gem, Alex said the same thing Vince Clarke said, it's like a modular without patch cables. In the case of Behringer who knows if they are working on something but I can say they have Oberheim products in their minds, if the Xpander is one of those I really don't know.
Cheers!
Demo 6… worth the wait… thanks for this treat of a review
Man , thats some luvely sounds. That first 35 seconds to me sums up what i lust after, beautiful!
For some reason I love multiple subdisplays on synths and keyboards. Pa5X, Xpander, Moog One, what else?
Great video and bravo on the Fond jam, that was dope!
A friend had one and a matrix 12 and we both agreed it was and is probably the best sounding poly synth ever.
Would love a go on one of those!
9:01 when you've been waiting all day to poop and it's finally time
Haha!
I had use of a matrix 6r in the early 90's loved the sounds on it. Totally remember first time I saw Orbital using the expander when I saw them at Megadog in Sheffield just amazing
Das war wieder absolut großartig, Alex! Vielen Dank!
All I heard at the beginning was warm warm and warm...and all I felt was a big warm cuddle 😁😁😁
And I never even knew about Sasha's Xpander album was name aftert his lovely machine. I need to dig out my CD of that and have another listen. 😁
That album is a gem of electronic music, especially the song Xpander, 10/10
Thank you Alex for the historical and acoustic insights. I always thought the "OB-Xpander prototype" you are referring to @6:42 was a desktop module of the OB-8 to just expand the OB-8 keyboard's voices (or for being used together with the OB-SX)
Yeah, I got the info from Marcus himself. It was basically a multitimbral box with discrete control of the voices; a stepping stone towards the Xpander.
I'll have to ask EMEAPP what's the deal with it as they have it now. Would be cool to see more photos.
Today on "Synths I would sell my left kidney for": the Xpander (and his double-sibling, the M12)
😍😍😍
I recommend this is listened to in stereo… sounds fantastic. I think Tom ‘n’ Dave (Smith) really gave the Japanese giants a run for their money and helped push the envelope (oh, see what I did there) with new technology. What an exciting time the 80’s were for synths!
Steve Porcaro's Starlicks video always makes me laugh because he was off his head on Coke. He did recreate the Rosanna brass sound on the Xpander. It was originally done on his Polyfusion modular synth sequenced by a Roland MC4 or MC-8.
Yeah, he seems a little floaty.