EMS VCS 3

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A VCS-3: Top left the three main oscillators, bottom left the patch field and bottom right the joystick; Keyboard not in the picture

The VCS-3 is a monophonic analog synthesizer designed by David Cockerell and first introduced in 1969 by Electronic Music Studios (EMS), London. As the very first portable synthesizer, the VCS-3 was one of the most commercially successful and technically groundbreaking devices of the analog era of the 1970s, combining great sonic performance with hitherto unknown clarity and handiness. At a time when synthesizers usually took up entire studio walls and weighed over a hundred kilograms, but at the same time cost several hundred thousand pounds, a suitcase-sized device at a price of around 1000 pounds back then can be considered a great step forward. Not least, this fact ensured the widespread use of the device in the 1970s, which, along with the Minimoog , which appeared a little later, and some devices from the Arp company, was one of the synthesizers that made electronic music a breakthrough and made synthesizers socially acceptable in popular music. It is still manufactured today by the German company EMS Rehberg and can be obtained there. The following model variants of the VCS-3 were the Synthi-A and the Synthi-AKS . For all three - technically almost identical - models, the term VCS-3 is very often used synonymously, for example on Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon , where several Synthi-AKS can actually be heard.

Model history

The plug connections on the VCS 3

The L-shaped housing made of wood is characteristic of the version of the VCS-3 presented in 1969. Many details have been adopted in successor models. This first version with the designation MK I (for Mark I, i.e. the first version) was followed around 1972 by the MK II version , which was characterized above all by a significantly improved tuning stability. The tendency to get out of tune is common to all analog synthesizers of this generation, but was extremely pronounced in the VCS-3 MK I. Not least because of this, the VCS-3 still has the reputation of being unsuitable as a melody instrument, but unbeatable as a noise machine. While the latter can hardly be denied - as can be heard not least from Jean Michel Jarre's classic Oxygène - the former is no longer applicable to the later models. Nevertheless, VCS-3 was used relatively rarely as a lead instrument.

The model variants Synthi-A and Synthi-AKS also appeared around 1972 . The former is technically largely identical to the VCS-3 MK II , but dispenses with the wooden housing and is instead built into the upper lid of a briefcase. The Synthi-AKS differs from the Synthi-A in that it has an additional sequencer built into the lower case lid and a touchpad-like keyboard - “K” and “S” in the model name stand for “ Keyboard ” and “ Sequencer ”. While keyboard and sequencer were still very rudimentary and not comparable to today's devices, this combination of synthesizer, sequencer and keyboard in one device - and packed in a briefcase - was nevertheless a groundbreaking innovation for the time. Until the end of the era of analog synthesizers in the early 1980s, there was no device that could offer comparable performance in such a space-saving and inexpensive manner. Another innovation was the installation of loudspeakers, which made it possible to work on sounds independently of an amplifier system.

technical structure

Similar to the Minimoog , which was developed a little later, the VCS-3 has three oscillators , but with the difference that the third oscillator is mainly intended as an LFO and can only be used as a sound generator in the lower audio range. The first oscillator provides a sinusoidal and a sawtooth voltage with an infinitely variable proportion , the pulse width of which is also infinitely variable. The second oscillator generates a square wave and a triangle wave with the same control options as with the first oscillator. The third oscillator is identical to the second, but has a much lower frequency spectrum. Unlike the first two oscillators, this one is primarily used to generate control voltages , for example for filter processes , but can also be used as a third sound generator in the bass range.

In addition, the VCS-3 essentially offers the classic units of an analog synthesizer such as a low-pass filter with adjustable quality, ring modulator , noise generator , envelope generator (ADSR), reverb unit , equalizer and voltage-controlled amplifier (VCA). There are also various inputs for both control voltages and audio signals . The latter can be mixed with the sound sources of the VCS-3 and processed with the modulation units, which enormously expands the variety of sounds of the device and what its great potential is today. With the help of the control voltages, the individual components of the device can be controlled, in particular the audio oscillators, which means that the device is now even MIDI- capable and, in the past, as it is today, can be controlled via external keyboards. In addition, the VCS-3 offers a two-axis joystick for sound modulation, the axes of which can be wired as required (for example filter cutoff frequency on the x-axis, filter quality on the y-axis).

Another special feature of the VCS-3 is its hybrid architecture between modular synthesizer and non-modular synthesizer. Modular synthesizers ( EMS Synthi 100 , Moog Modular Systems, Arp 2500 ) consist of individual modules that can be interconnected and combined as required. It is also possible to add new modules later if required. The advantage of the modular architecture is the great versatility and virtually unlimited variety of sounds. Disadvantages of this architecture are the enormous size and weight and a difficult-to-see tangle of patch cables with which the signals are transmitted from module to module. Non-modular synthesizers (Minimoog, Arp Odyssey), on the other hand, offer the most common units permanently wired to one another in one housing, so that they are very clearly arranged and small and can do without cables running outside. The disadvantage of this architecture is the very limited variety of sounds from the outset, which does not allow any unusual combinations to develop new types of sounds.

The VCS-3, in turn, has an architecture that combines the advantages of both designs. Although the number of components is fixed from the start and integrated into the housing to save space, the order in which they are connected, unlike almost all other compact devices, is open. The VCS-3 avoids the cable tangle problem inherent in modular systems with a patch panel in which the outputs and inputs are combined in a matrix so that units can be connected very quickly and intuitively by plugging pins at the corresponding intersections. In particular, a sound can be prepared by only half-deeply inserting pins, which can then be produced in seconds by pressing down the corresponding pin, which is not possible with other synthesizers of this generation. The patch panel architecture is typical of EMS and, despite its advantages, has not caught on, partly because such structures have become technically superfluous with the advent of digital synthesizers.

Possible uses today

Even if the technology is comparatively old, there are still possible uses for the VCS-3 today in which it can hardly be surpassed. It is true that sound generation is complex and sounds cannot be saved, but the device offers a warmth and character that - like many other analog synthesizers of the era - is unmistakable and cannot be replaced by digital devices. Its elaborate handling requires very precise and experienced knowledge of the device in live use, which is why it is almost never seen on stage. In the studio, VCS-3 are still used today as musical instruments, but also as sound generators in the area of ​​sound design. Here in particular, the open architecture makes the device very timeless, as it is very easy to connect to modern devices. For example, great soundscapes can be created by feeding a choir sound from a modern polyphonic device into the VCS-3 and then mixing it with the internal oscillators controlled via MIDI . This "polyphonic sound with an analog character" that has now arisen can then be modulated, for example, by the very characteristic filter or alienated by other components of the synthesizer. Then reverb and delay effects can be added in the usual high quality with modern effect devices , so that unique sounds with the character of analog devices can be created with the same high sound quality of modern productions.

Use in rock history

In 1969 the VCS-3 was first heard on the band's debut album White Noise An Electric Storm . Other rock groups that used the instrument included Roxy Music , Tangerine Dream , Pink Floyd , King Crimson and The Who . Tangerine Dream in particular already used several of these devices on their first albums ( Alpha Centauri , Atem und Zeit ). Here, however, the VCS-3 still serves as a pure background noise. On Phaedra , the VCS-3 is used in a more sophisticated way, especially to modulate the sounds of other instruments, such as those of a mellotron . The VCS-3 performs a similar function on the LP Who's Next : In the song Won't Get Fooled Again , it is also used as a sound manipulating instrument. You can hear a Hammond organ that generates a basic sound that is alienated by the filter and the AF generators of the VCS-3 and triggered with an impulse. A very well-known example of a VCS-3 deployment is the song On the run on the Pink Floyd LP The Dark Side of the Moon . In truth, these are several models of the Synthi-AKS variant , whose sequencers have been connected and overlaid with a large number of other VCS-3 tracks. Except for the distorted guitar sounds at the end and the voice recordings, the piece consists exclusively of VCS-3 sounds, for example the hi-hat is actually a short high signal from the noise generator. Other well-known examples of VCS-3 sounds in Pink Floyd are the song Welcome to the machine on the album were Wish you here , where the bass line and all machine sounds from VCS-3 derived, and the wind at the end of the song were Wish you here on same album. VCS-3 was also used very massively on the album Oxygène by Jean Michel Jarre , where in particular the wave noise, wind and similar effects were generated by the VCS-3.

Web links

Commons : EMS VCS 3  - collection of images, videos and audio files