First one’s not even free.
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If you see threads like that Mono Machine, Machine Drum - they are highly sought after - shortly after beeing discontinued. P12 will for sure not get old in that sense - it has so many areas where it shines - its a future classic.
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I used to have the P12 module, but someone offered me a RE201 Space Echo for it and couldn’t pass it up. I’ve really been missing it and finally scored a P12 keyboard in trade last weekend.
So great to have it back, but I do miss the module version. It’s amazing how fast the module is to navigate and how much you can get out of such a small package.
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True, i like the form factor, small powerhouse. Its also very good readable, top display the angle of it makes it very comfortable without any extra stand.
For anyone still undecided over Prophet 12 vs Novation Peak, I picked up a used Peak and have been doing some comparisons. The differences are much larger than I expected. Here’s a little audio demo of them playing a simple sawtooth with some panspread, slop and a filter opening up.
The Peak has a more diffused and smooth sound. The Prophet has that typical Prophet ‘brassy’ sound. I do really like both. The biggest thing I find frustrating with the Peak right now is the horrible menu diving. There isn’t even a shift or anything to go through the pages quickly. What’s the point of having a knobby interface if it takes endless click-click-clicks for 20% of the featureset? Hoping I’m just missing something in the manual right now.
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I don’t think you are. The menu is pretty much a two-handed affair. In my experience, all the knobs of the Peak are inviting, but not as useful as I thought they’d be (I’m not modulating pitch often or using the FX).
As someone who recently sold their Peak, that’s interesting to hear. You would say you find the P12 interface to be more friendly?
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The Prophet 12 has an Elektron style interface. Everything is 1-2 button presses away and then controlled with 4 potentiometers whose function is indicated by the screen below it. It’s ridiculously fast for a module like this. Even mod routing takes 3-4 clicks.
I like the interface on the peak, but the fact you cant even hold the page buttons to scroll through is a travesty. I’m going to write them a feature request I suppose. These 2 buttons are going to be worn out in a year at this rate.
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Thanks for sharing 
Yeah, I put in a request to add some more functionality to that patch knob. My thought was: hold some combo of buttons to go into “patch edit mode” and then patch knob could be freed up to do something useful (like scroll through pages!). Hope they implement something nice for you and the Peak owners!
Peak and P12 certainly seem like a powerful combo sound-wise
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Peak owner here. 
This is starting to look even more like I should’ve muted this thread the minute I saw it ten days ago. As though I needed any more convincing of the awesomeness of the P12 after all the praise (and great music) from @circuitghost…
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Yeah, sorry about that. Worst part is, there’s more on its way, all Prophet 12 stuff. Might as well warn you right now. It’s sounding preeetty good.
No but seriously, thank you for the kind words on my music. There’s not a track I’ve done the latest year, doesn’t have the Prophet 12 smeared all over it. Really, there’s nothing like it. I’ve recently had mates throw their Summits, Prophet 6’s, Digitones and stuff after me (even a store thew a Digitone after me), and I’ve had some time with the Prophet 5 as well,
But there’s this (and heeere we go) haunting, melancholia character to the Prophet 12, like I said a few posts before this one, like dust and dirt, a dry wind or those sparkling particles in the attic air.
But you gotta search to find them, because they’re not immediately obvious in the synth’s default patches (in fact, those sell it short), and the magic hides within the combination of traditional oscillators and the wavetables, and then blend all that with the characer section and go for the delay - not as a classic delay, but as a way to increase the room for the sound, kind of like if you had four walls, where would you put them to make the room nice?
I could go on. Probably will, a few replies after this one.
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I know. I haven’t heard it yet but I know.
Perhaps the only thing that’s kept me from getting a P12 is that in your case I always tell myself that the awesome sound is due to extensive resampling, Chase Bliss pedals and the SSL Six. Okay, two things. The other being I know there isn’t a preset called “secrets of circuitghost” on the P12.
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You’re not wrong lots of CB and SiX going on in the mastered tracks especially.
This might sway you either way. This is only Prophet 12, played live, bi-timbral, from the Deluge sequencer -
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It figures someone who goes by “circuitGHOST” would like a synth for its haunting character… 
Looking forward to the new music (also, look at that waveform!). This thread makes me sorta regret springing for an A4 mk2 when I had some mad money late last year. I should have been more patient. Then again, who knows, maybe I’ll get a turn with a prophet 12 in the future. For now, I definitely have my hands full.
edit: after playing the clip once, the waveform changed back to something more “normal” from the swooping curves I first saw. Maybe I’m spending too much time at my computer desk…
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Oh, you
Actually, my dream machine is the Prophet 12 with a sequencer that at least in philosophy works like the Deluge or the Blackbox sequencer, with Chase Bliss-style fx. If such a thing existed, I would write entire pieces on that one and never want for more. Mono-timbral can never be complete on its own, with an exception or two. Bi-timbral can sustain entire albums.
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A description that invokes GAS indeed.
I found that the Deluge was able to do “dusty” better than the Peak for me. People knock it, but for now, I’m contenting myself with the Deluge’s synth engine.
We need to get you in a R&D room somewhere asap!
Seriously. I’d do it for cookies and pizza, for as long as it takes.
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One thing I learned on my Pro2 which I am curious if it works on the P12 (I assume it will) is take a wavetable osc and set the wavetable so it blends towards the same waveform, when you blend to it you end up with a nice saturated type effect that is different from the Drive. Not really sure what is actually happening, I can only assume that the interpolation algorithm is doing something odd yet good.
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Yes, blending between the same wave on the P12 does affect the wave in a similar manner - whether it’s exactly the same I don’t know, but there is definitely waveshaping involved in that case.
Describes my experience with the Prophet 12 so far 
Definitely going to give this a try as well tomorrow!
On a scale from 1 to 10, how stupid would it be to be watching Youtube videos on the P12 at half past midnight Finnish time? 
It’s been almost two years since I took a good look at the P12 and I feel I’m seeing it with different eyes now. Back then I was probably looking for something that sounded a bit safer, more instantly recognizable. Ended up with the OB-6, which I sold for a Peak last year.
So the Peak would have to go if I ever decided to get another desktop synth. Just makes no sense to have them both (I’m serious, would make no fucking sense). I’m into that ”dust and dirt” kind of vibe and it always felt weird to try and do that with the OB-6 although it could do that as well (the lack of lfos was a bummer though). Peak can do that, as proven by the Jogging House patches, for example, but I’m just having a hard time to actually find the Peak’s real character. It can sound like many things but it hasn’t revealed its true soul to me yet. So going from a ”character synth” to a ”versatile synth” and next maybe to another ”character synth”? I dunno… I say this is at least 80% GAS and I always buy second hand so I’m safe for tonight.
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