Ehem…
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It has to meet certain functional criteria.
- Must play well with others (sync)
- Must have enough outputs relative to voice/timbre capability. (OT’s 4 outs is just enough. DN’s single stereo out will do thanks to OB multitrack. Drumatix has 6 voice outs)
- Must have loads of memory (patches, sequences, kits/parts, yada yada) since I often work on multiple projects at a time.
- Must be portable enough to fit into an airline carry on.
I am less intrigued by how it sounds. EQ/Comp/FX go a long way and can make weak sounds strong, and dull sounds bright/interesting. I’d rather deal with something dull/weak sounding that has the functionality mentioned above than something that sounds breathtaking but has no memory/sync/multi-outs/portability. I’ll take function over form every time.
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Some factors I consider:
How supportive is the community? I look at whether there is good unofficial support for the instrument if it skews to the somewhat more complex side of things. I bought my OT because of the community. Before that I bought my MV-8000, thanks to the community. Don’t underestimate the power of community. You know you’re in the right place when other users are willing to downgrade their OS to a previous version so they can confirm a bug for another user.
Reliability and features at release 1.0. I know product life cycle management and I know that bug fixes are unavoidable. That said, I expect the unit to function as stated on the box and in the adverts. Period. This is non-negotiable.
On samplers, I/O flexibility is important to me. The 4 outs on the OT are what I consider bare minimum. I’d prefer 6-8 outputs like my other samplers, but then the OT isn’t a traditional sampler so I’m willing to deal with it.
On synths I look for character and flexibility. Complex instruments don’t scare me off as long as I get rewarded for my time and effort. I like to have a blend of analog, VA and digital synths as I feel I’m able to cover more ground than if I had a huge eurorack setup or 8 analog monosynths. I like variety and I appreciate an instrument for its strengths, I don’t get hung up on whatever perceived shortcomings might exist in the opinion of those on the internet. I expect the instrument to possess some novel characteristics.
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I’m a sucker for hearing an incredible sound and deciding “I want that”.
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Guys, dont forget the Looks! Also Important. All orangeish, yellowish Gear is a No Go for me. Monomachine e.g. in the contraire is a fantastic Industrial Design. Better than any Axel Hartmann Designbox Synth so far…
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After having way too many different synths over the years and while being wowed by things like prophets and oberheims (which i have loved and miss) the lack of integration with certain things led me to this concept- its all about feature set. By that I mean both typical “features” i.e. (lfos, envs, effects, sequencing) but things like full midi implementation, memory and how it can interact with other gear. I have decided that flexibility, options, control and intuitiveness/ease of use are important to me. This is why elektron just naturally speaks to me. But even with my other gear - its difficult to own a piece that is inherently limited in what it can do for the set up as a whole.
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Get one if you can! Basically a modular synth in a box. Really cool potential.
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All musicality / playablity for me. I play guitar, cello and sing, and want my electronic instruments to feel as responsive and musical as the physical ones. No deep menu diving. Right now im just using DT and DN, the sequencers are super fun to play, and the digitone can be incredibly expressive if you dial in the mod wheel and after touch right. I also enjoy the process of “tuning” the ratios to create different timbres, its strangely organic for how digital the actual process is. Might pick up a Grandmother to fill the mono synth / portamento lead role but im happy where im at 
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Having the DT, I definitely want things with some midi capability if I want to use it live (ex: the Evolver has prog change 
, but the Tr8 and Volca FM don’t have PTN or prog change 
).
Also, one of the main points is something that I can grow with. Something that can extend to many different domains well. I can use it for a bass here, a lead there, or a snare, and it all works.
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I’ll admit it… price has a big influence on my gear choices. Along with some others mentioned above (dislike too much menu-diving and complexity). The quality of ITB choices these days and my lack of keyboard playing ability means I’ll probably never spend more than $1000 on an individual hardware synth. For instance, the thought of buying a Moog One would be like going to the moon - inconceivable.
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You’re on my wavetable 
Stuart Francis…
‘Is my girlfriend happy with my body?
A small part of me says no’. 
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I’m bloody shocking with GAS, so I’ve developed a few rules I am (mostly) sticking to:
- My mixer is 12ch so nothing that does not fit in there.
- How enjoyable/intuitive is it to use. If it doesn’t make me grin or engage me it’s out.
- How unique is it. Don’t buy it if it duplicates an existing function.
- Utility, e.g. my MPC is the sequencer, sampler and drum machine so it’s a keeper.
- Size and looks - I’m vain enough and short enough on space that this is important
If I don’t stick to these I end up in a cycle of researching, buying, not using and finally selling endless boxes, and spending no time using what I’ve got. If I see something new I like the first thing I try is to replicate it with existing gear, thus actually learning the machines I own (albeit slowly).
Works for me anyway
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what influences your purchases?
Mostly nostalgia and the one-box-does-it-all fantasy.
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Damn, just what I wanted to write, almost to the letter…
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Nostalgia? In what way?
I guess I briefly chased the ‘one box does it all’ thing a few times myself over the years. Funny, now it’s practically the last thing I’d want!
For me these days it’s three things: money, sound, and design.
Money/financial constraints are a very important influence. They make me carefully consider my options, versus buying everything under the sun and mastering none. I’ll probably never be able to afford a Moog One, but being limited by my budget keeps me more focused.
Sound for me is not just an initial tonal characteristics of a piece of gear that I might gravitate towards, but how broad the “sweet spot” of sound that it is capable of. For example, almost every patch setting on a SH-101 or Minotaur is gold, whereas I can make only two good sounds with my Volca Keys (they are surprisingly good however.)
Design is not just about aesthetics but choices and limitations, and how those allow you to focus on actually making music or not. One can make a great pad on a Digitone from a default patch much faster than, say, a Virus Ti Snow because of the choices the designers made when setting up the interface, sub-menu structure etc.
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I should have clarified this.
Addendum:
Unless it is a 606 clone!
The TT-606 has a far more advanced sequencer than my Acidlab Drumatix, but the TT-606 hats and cymbal don’t have that crunch. And so even at twice the price, I have kept the Drumatix instead.
So I suppose for a few choice things, the sound has to be there before other considerations. But the flexibility of being able to sequence the Drumatix with my OT for more “advanced” rhythms helps overcome this exception to my rule.
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So I suppose for a few choice things, the sound has to be there before other considerations.
100% with you there. I have a DSI Tetra and really don’t like that you need the editor to get the best out of it. But oh my word the range of sounds that comes out of that teeny box. So it’s a keeper.
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I tend to buy stuff that I wanted as a kid, when I started making music long ago, but that were out of my reach at the time. Of course, this is mostly deceptive… you can’t beat kid’s dreams with reality. I then resell.
I still chase the unicorn-does-it-all. Some machines are pretty close actually (at least for my use case). I’m a sucker for anything that combines sampler/sequencer/synthesis/effects.
I have to add this one too:
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