E is for educational, it has no matrix but patch cords, it's filter is multimode and all modes can be used at the same time.. is has a sensor keyboard and a ribbon controller to slide through the notes.. also built into a suitcase like the Synthi A / AKS

a digital sequencer "EMS universal sequencer"
which is quite like the one in the KS keyboard on the AKS Synthi A Versions (the suitcase version..)

the blue KS keyboard is a metal touch sensor kind of keyboard. you can slide on it like on the EDP wasp ;) it has a sequencer with 256-note digital memory.

btw: EMS stands for electronic music studio.

EMS Filters are made of Diodes instead of Transistors (remember: it was 1972) by David Cockerell,
this David was one of the bosses in the EMS history, the first one was Peter Zinovieff. Till 72 he was EMS and thats where he met hugget. Cockerell went to E-Harmonix and Ircam for a short time later.

later Chris Huggett doing the EDP synth, akai's sampler line and the oscar.

tim orr , who did the power tran synths (transcendent 2000) was EMS till 77.

there are also:

the Hifly, some sort of "pink floyd"-guitar synth (with a strange look).. and the synthi E, tht has BPF and HPF also, but most of it is reduced and only patchable by special patchcords. E stands for educational, bit it had that filter option and those patchcords were easier to use when dealing with external modules, so this may be a good synth module for modular freaks! (rare and yellow).

the EMS Polysynthi was a flop. only 50 were made and it had some sort of switch matrix for easy routings, but nothing special on that machine. aaah, yes.. it was red!

the "putney" is just because of the town that the EMS was produced in (part of London). this synth is quite the opposite of a minimoog - philosophically. so it works great with a minimoog side by side. "the klinik" used this synth quite often. brian eno and david voorhaus and jarre of course are also well known users. (jarre had 6 of it in a "rack")

MIDI/CV control by other synths: thats not easy (WARNING: no guarantee or something for those who do it!) you can do it at rehberg! because of that 0.32V/Oct. (standard is 1V/Oct):

1) you can use one of 2 CV ins, so you can patch ,what you want to control by CV

2) the CV for OSCs is different.. so you need a converter:

follow this :
http://www.synthfool.com/emsmod.html
or this

its "LFO"=OSC3 ranges to 500Hz!! the OSCs 1 and to range to audio speed of course.. the OSCs frequency is tuned by only one knob.. (more like a frequency generator in a laboratory). build in reverb spring! (modable!) the filters are very british 18dB/Oct. (like the tb303, haha).

the different colors are for different use! the EMS has a simplified Envelope Generator (2x) called trapezoid (thats the "shape"). you can mod something by just putting in one of those "resistor-pins". you can still order an EMS at Ludwig Rehberg in Ditzingen, germany. the sound is very "clinical"-cold (and thats meant as a good thing!) FM FX at audiospeed. and typical "british"-filtersound (like chris Huggetts inventions OSCar, EDP wasp)

no one has ever done this, but the "user port" on the AKS can be used to patch the synth, so you may use a computer to do so! there have been modifications to the EMS VCS 3 and AKS.
there are also very rare versions with keyboard or external keyboard of the VCS-3 around. the aks has a keyboard that fits also into the aks briefcase cover.

this is a synth that you should not use with a "keyboard".. its sooooo useless! :)
the sound is very special.. a newer system that comes close is the macbeth m3x from scotland. (uk: distributed by analogue solutions, the company that sells and makes the vostok, that also has a matrix like the EMS but has wavetables and a korg MS20 filter instead of the british-style EMS filters.)

note: older models have different tracking of OSC1&2 and OSC 3:while the first oscs use 0.32V/Oct Osc 3 used 0.26V/Oct only! be aware when buying one! so the CV control by other synth is very difficult, so you need the info on the left (MIDI)

the ENV: its only one and a bit strange: has just Attack and Decay and a hold after attack phase and a so called off (thats a retrigger after a certain time or not at all.. so imagine an lfo triggering the ENV.)

ps: did you know, that the colors of thosed pins have different meanings?

click the matrix to see source and destinations..

modifications (sync for the OSCs): here

pins: white: 2,7k at 5% tolerance
red only 2% tolerance

the synthi 100 uses 10kohm! so they are NOT the same!

the EMS AVS is the software emulation of the EMS synthi A, well even EMS / rehberg say "it is not the original" but since there was some approach before rehberg may have found a nice agreement (well done!! thanks!!) and sell the VST PC-only plugIn for 350€ now under the name of EMS AVS
here: http://www.ems-rehberg.de

click to enlarge..

something similar but for no money you can get "synth in a case - SIAC" as a reaktor ensemble, okok it is not a real EMS, but ..

some audio:
typical:

emsFM_FX.mp3
emsSELFmodSpectrum.mp3
EMS_abstractMarsch.mp3
emsFMbeat.mp3

these are 2 EMS VCS3, one modded...

thanks:
Pic from the Parallel Worlds studio, Greece":
www.shimarecords.co.uk

..click on pic to enlarge..

I should not talk about the Synthi 100, that had 12 OSCs like the VCS3 had, 8 filters and a very biiig matrix.. matthias becker (wrote for keyboards mag/germany and did the synthesizer von gestern (vintage synthesizers) books & CDs). He had to break in some walls to get it into his living-room ;) it had quite similar idea of patching and specs.. but think BIG here. the EMS is the one on which Dr.Who was played and recorded.

the sequencer control, btw: a filterbank is in there, too..

the 60x60 matrix of the EMS Synthi 100

beside Jürgen Haibles clone there is this one

the EMS HiFli , look very.. hmm..

its a pitch (octave) shifter
Phase Filter
and Fuzz (Distortion)

controls: 2 Pedals (can't see it? I did not take a photo, but they are underneath somewhere..)

• Octave Filter Bank (8 Filtres)

• Pitch to Voltage Converter

• Random Voltage Generator

all matrix pics can be enlarge (click on them..) -->