for sure it is a special machine. it let’s you do quite unusual things.
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if you have never owned any DSI gear then you need to understand that his synths certainly do have a particular sonic profile that skews towards: gritty, dirty, loud, angry, hot, sharp, etc.
IMHO - these kinds of synths are best for industrial music, punk, metal, etc… and when it comes to that kind of sound, the first brand of music gear I think of is DSI, easy
so thats something to keep in mind… yes its possible to cover a bit more ground than this, but its not going to hit that “silky smooth buttery” type vintage sound without some work, sometimes quite a bit
HOWEVER - it can make some ear ripping brain melting sounds quite easily - and also the feedback loop thing he puts in all his synths gives them all the capacity to make certain kinds of sounds that you just cant make with any other synth… albeit plenty of people have no use for such sounds
So - thats something to consider heavily because its something you will experience whenever working with DSI gear
if “raw”, “in your face”, “edgy” DIY kind of music is your kind of thing, then yeh DSI stuff is a natural fit…
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Hmm. I’ll have to think that over a little bit, and keep that in mind when I listen to demos.
I wish there were a gear shop that had a Tempest I could play around with.
Interesting. Over here, the Tempest is like an abomination on the second hand market. Difficult to sell, and always cheap (in relation to other markets).
Agreed! I got mine for £850 off Ebay - poor sod would have walked away with about £725 after fees and postage. The occasionally pop up for £1000-£1100 but haven’t seen one for less than that in a long time.
For me, it isn’t such a bad thing. If I saw one at £850 I’d buy it immediately and probably get the guilt like I did last time! At £1000+ I need to really think about it before opening the wallet which, in theory, should make it more of a keeper long term!!!
Yeah 850 is a good price, for you at least!
I think I sold mine for 850 but that was years ago. I had one lined up last year for 800 but something at home went tits up and I had to splosh the dosh there instead. Steve Guttenberg (gutted)
I have a Pro 2 to keep me happy DSI-wise but I will always miss that Tempest, and while I think of it I’ve seen second hand Tempests going for more than a brand new Pro 2, that is total squirrel frenzy nuts.
My problem was I stupidly sold the Tempest without spending proper time with it! So gonna cost me to get back into if I go down that route again. 
Sorry, bro. I’ve certainly done stuff like that before. With the Machinedrum, actually
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Okay. I had an intimate jam session with my RYTM and my A4 each by themselves. I love that gear so much. I’m so glad I didn’t buy that well priced Tempest, I wouldn’t have been able to part with either of them and I’d be broke.
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That’ll teach ya.
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I’ve said this x1000.
Eventually sold the stuff
I play in a band now and I’m considering switching to 100% ITB for the band just so I can continue my incessant gear swappage.
EDIT: Also because the other people in the band can’t seem to avoid messing with my machines and it drives me crazy.
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I both see your point and can’t blame them. I know, for me personally, I can’t keep my hands off this equipment. It’s SO COOL!
I WISH I could feel the same passion for an ITB set up. That would save me so much space, time, effort, and money
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I have Live Suite and Maschine, plus a Launchpad Pro. This is actually a very versatile and fun setup.
About the only thing I would miss is the Octatrack. May still use that one. I will have to practice snarling at people when they reach for it though. That is one machine I really cannot let people mess with, too much going on with it.
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this is only a dream, a fantasy - in reality you will find it takes quite a bit more time and effort to get near to the same results… but it takes a very long time to realize it because you are dealing with very long term timescales here… you might be able to bang out a track in a day easy on a PC DAW, but ultimately come back to some tunes you cranked out on the PC vs some tunes you cranked out on hardware, see how it all adds up.
Basically - as with all things - the overriding reality for everyone in every situation everywhere, is psychology. Your own mind. Your own thoughts and emotions and ideas and perspectives and opinions and all that.
We have a saying: “the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence”.
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I’m gonna play devil’s advocate here, and tell you why - as a Tempest lover - I could still go for an A4. I’m doing this to make you feel better @Ryan but I do mean every single word.
If it was important for me to have full control over the composition, and also be as creative as I can with polyrytms, parameter locks, trig conditions and so on - and this all makes a big difference in a track - then the A4 just laughs at the Tempest while finishing its second ice cream, the Tempest not getting any at ice cream at all, not even a sorbet. The Tempest, in comparison, is limited, surprisingly so for being something focused on percussion.
For as much as the Tempest’s American oscillators seriously kick some Scandinavian ass, they can’t do anything that sounds convincingly like FM or other similar metal funky stuff. For what they do, they beat the A4 in attitude and character. But the A4 could just say - well, you just keep doing that then, and I’ll just go over here and do my own thing, which you can’t, anyway. Which is kind of like how Scandinavians react every time they meet an arrogant American anyway (most Americans I’ve met are not arrogant, but super friendly and mega polite - but for a people know to have some attitude and at the same time allow Trump to become the Republican candidate, you just gotta walk away and realise, sometimes, some dudes just don’t get it).
You can make a complete track within the A4. Not just in terms of composition, but in terms of mastering. Tweak those filters, add those fx, work those volumes and you’ve got something straight into Overbridge that you can take to stage or release. You can do the same with the Tempest, but it’s untamed and even if you get there, it’ll be a lot more specific, and not a trick you can repeat over and over until you just sound a lot like the same, all over again.
If you’re into micro rigs, which I am, the Analog Four’s inputs can’t be ignored. It’s a mini mixer with fx to boost. It’ll eliminate the need for one extra device, cables that device would need, and other such stuff.
It’s smaller and the OS seems prepared for all kinds of eventualities. The Tempest is larger (not huge, but larger), and the OS seems to wing it from time to time. Lot of eventualities the developers weren’t prepared for, and struggling to fix, as it were.
So I really think the A4 makes a very strong case against the Tempest, not the least for its more complete package and its tighter options to integrate with other stuff.
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The Tempest sounds amazing and is more fun
I’ve owned both before; the Tempest once, and the A4 four times. If I were to choose between the two now, I’d choose the Tempest with a mixer and some fun effects.
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Noise as a modulation source on the Tempest is a great way for making your sounds dusty. I really enjoyed using it on various parameters.
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AR>A4 my .02
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