SynthAxe
Encyclopedia
The SynthAxe is a fret
ted, guitar
-like MIDI controller, created by Bill Aitken, Mike Dixon, and Tony Sedivy and manufactured in England
in the middle to late 1980s. It is a musical instrument that uses electronic synthesizer
s to produce sound and is controlled through the use of an arm resembling the neck of a guitar in form and in use. Its name comes from the words synthesizer and axe, a slang term meaning guitar.
The SynthAxe itself has no internal sound source; it is purely a controller and needs synthesizers to produce sound. The neck of the instrument is angled upwards from the body, and there are two independent sets of strings.
The fretboard is continuously scanned and sends signals to synthesizers which produce the sound. The left set determine the pitch played, through contact with the frets on the neck and by sensing the side-to-side bending of the string. The right set of strings are velocity sensitive; these strings can be plucked, strummed or damped in the same manner as a guitar's. A keyboard made up of nine keys can also be used to trigger notes instead of the strings.
An electronic tremolo
bar can be used for standard whammy bar effects, or can be redefined to produce different MIDI output (e.g., filter cutoffs, volume, etc).
When originally produced, the SynthAxe carried a price tag of 10,000 pounds
(approximately $13,000 US dollars) and eventually sold for about $8,000.00. It was such a sophisticated and expensive piece of machinery that few were sold making it difficult to keep the company afloat. Eventually Virgin Games took over the distribution but let it go after a couple of years.
Because it is no longer produced and very difficult to locate used units (fewer than 100 were made), most musicians who desire a MIDI guitar controller often use more current alternatives, such as Roland or Axon systems that can convert a guitar's output to MIDI via 13-Pin cables and outboard devices.
Prominent players are Allan Holdsworth
, using the SynthAxe on his albums Atavachron and Sand extensively.
Fret
A fret is a raised portion on the neck of a stringed instrument, that extends generally across the full width of the neck. On most modern western instruments, frets are metal strips inserted into the fingerboard...
ted, guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
-like MIDI controller, created by Bill Aitken, Mike Dixon, and Tony Sedivy and manufactured in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in the middle to late 1980s. It is a musical instrument that uses electronic synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
s to produce sound and is controlled through the use of an arm resembling the neck of a guitar in form and in use. Its name comes from the words synthesizer and axe, a slang term meaning guitar.
The SynthAxe itself has no internal sound source; it is purely a controller and needs synthesizers to produce sound. The neck of the instrument is angled upwards from the body, and there are two independent sets of strings.
The fretboard is continuously scanned and sends signals to synthesizers which produce the sound. The left set determine the pitch played, through contact with the frets on the neck and by sensing the side-to-side bending of the string. The right set of strings are velocity sensitive; these strings can be plucked, strummed or damped in the same manner as a guitar's. A keyboard made up of nine keys can also be used to trigger notes instead of the strings.
An electronic tremolo
Tremolo
Tremolo, or tremolando, is a musical term that describes various trembling effects, falling roughly into two types. The first is a rapid reiteration...
bar can be used for standard whammy bar effects, or can be redefined to produce different MIDI output (e.g., filter cutoffs, volume, etc).
When originally produced, the SynthAxe carried a price tag of 10,000 pounds
Pound sterling
The pound sterling , commonly called the pound, is the official currency of the United Kingdom, its Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, British Antarctic Territory and Tristan da Cunha. It is subdivided into 100 pence...
(approximately $13,000 US dollars) and eventually sold for about $8,000.00. It was such a sophisticated and expensive piece of machinery that few were sold making it difficult to keep the company afloat. Eventually Virgin Games took over the distribution but let it go after a couple of years.
Because it is no longer produced and very difficult to locate used units (fewer than 100 were made), most musicians who desire a MIDI guitar controller often use more current alternatives, such as Roland or Axon systems that can convert a guitar's output to MIDI via 13-Pin cables and outboard devices.
Prominent players are Allan Holdsworth
Allan Holdsworth
Allan Holdsworth is an English guitarist and composer. He has released twelve studio albums as a solo artist and played many different styles of music over a period of four decades, but first drew attention for his work in jazz fusion...
, using the SynthAxe on his albums Atavachron and Sand extensively.