Synth bass suggestions

the mini nova is pretty darned cool, I'd go that route if I were looking at a microkorg. I was in the same position as you a few months back, but ended up deciding to go full analog and got a Moog Sub Phatty during a 200 dollar off sale at guitar center.

 

I'd look for a used alesis micron. Cops a lot off those classic moog basses for a fraction of a moog.

 

Alot of options here, but I would say look at the MicroKorg... all you have to do is learn a little bit about synthesis to get a bunch of great voices on it, and you'll save a good bit of money compared to a lot of the other options on the same level. the honestly it's hard to go wrong with a lot of the choices above

 

I hate mini keys, so of your options, I'd go Bass Station. But, also consider a DSI MoPho keyboard, which will give you tons of possibilities with it's built in sequencer, or a Moog Phatty,( Sub or Little). May need to shop used for these, but they are serious synths with awesome sounds.
I also play both bass and synth, and use a Little Phatty and DSI Evolver. Wish I still had my MoPho though, it's quite a powerful little yellow box.

 

How about a laptop or tablet and a 25 or 49-key controller? There are plenty of cheap, good sounding synth programs too. If you already have a laptop, that's a bonus too!

 

The Novation mini nova would be great choice. The Maudio Venom is what I'm using for bass synths for most part. Does em very well.

 

if you're looking at the bass station, compare that to the Arturia Mini Brute, and the Moog Sub Phatty.

IMO the sub phatty blew the Arturia out of the water as far as sound and flexibility. It was well worth the extra money to me. but I definitely would've been looking at the bass station had it been available at the time.

 

I'm happy with my Roland Gaia. I might be happier with something else, but for my needs, it works well.

 

that's a good choice to get started! full size keys too!

 

That or an Akai MikiAK. Same brain in those 2 as the Alesis Andromeda from what I understand.

 

i love the looks of that little synth. how does it sound?
how the programmability?
the micron is a bit of a pain to create patches with.

and to the op, if you have the scratch, a moog would be the way to go.

 

I like the Bass Station simply because the controls are all on the front panel. No menus to deal with. Plus it's derived from one of the all-time great bass synths.

 

Artura mini brute, amazing sounding and in your budget new...

 

The Micron and Miniak share the same synthesis engine with the Alesis Ion. The Andromeda is a fully analog synth.

I have a Micron and aside from the factory presets having the most worthless parameters mapped to the knobs on top, it is really a blast. Much more capable than I will ever need and in a very handy form factor. Its got an emulation of all the famous analog synths. I guess I'd like it to have a three prong IEC connector out back for power, but then everything I've picked up lately is powered with 9V AC.

 

Admittedly, I am not a synth expert, but it sounds good to me. I play in a hip hop band, and my main patch is similar to an 808 tone, and it works very well. Programability is great, especially live, as all the controls are in front of you. This was a big selling point to me compared to my MicroKorg, as were the full size keys.

 

I have an Electroharmonix Bass Microsynth. It's a lot of fun, but you have to use it however you set it up (iow, no memory slots). I was using it to make the big Moog "bwaaaaaaaaoooowwwww" intro note for Rush's Tom Sawyer.

 

I think if you go with a used slim phatty or Minotaur you'll be able to get your money back out of it if you change your mind later. they're so small that you'd be able to sell it online without spending a bunch of money shipping. you can just buy the keyboard controller that you like. the user interface on the Minotaur seems a little more traditional and easier to use without the learning curve of the slim phatty.

if it were me, I'd go minitaur.

 

I know nothing of synths. What's good for mimicking db & double horn & strings? separately, not all at once. Is that even how they work? Pardon my ignorance.