I thought I would chime in with a different perspective.
I agree that presets as starting points can really change a synth’s experience, and it’s also true that advanced sound creation on the Gemini is complex (heck, I’m still learning things after having a Super 6 for a year, and now the Gemini for a year). But I think this synth is worthy of the time and effort.
l’ve owned more than 25 synths from the 80’s forward, including icons like a Jupiter 8, Prophet 10 and modern synths like the Deckard’s Dream, Hydrasynth and Polybrute. I have never been more inspired playing an instrument than when I start moving sliders and twisting knobs on the Super Gemini (though the Polybrute came close, just couldn’t get over the crappy keybed feel).
Synths with display screens and menu buttons can often be much clearer for understanding what you are setting up (and for recreating things). But there’s something about the immediacy and fully tactile nature of the Gemini that appeals to me.
I didn’t spend all my time on it (I recently was busy producing a series on Musicians of Vancouver Island), so when I would come back to it I would sometimes forget how to do things. But as I invest more time in it, I get faster at driving sounds in the direction I want them to go. I’ve also set up a slightly complex MIDI setup so that the Gemini can be both my MIDI controller, but also slaved to a Nome II masterclock for my solo jam setup (Gemini, Tempest, K.O. II).
I think one of the best things you can do to learn this synth is put both layers in Manual mode and explore. Sure, you have to read the manual, or go to Youtube, etc.; there’s a lot to dig into. But having all of the controls exactly reflecting the sounds you are hearing could be indispensable.
I’m not an expert in “Modern Pop” sounds (as that’s not what I gravitate towards), but I feel like those types of sounds are sample or loop based synths, which is definitely not what the Gemini is. It would be cool to have some Modern Pop analogue synth references to refer to, to see if I could drive it that direction. @AparatBlue give me a song reference to go to.
While in no way a “tutorial”, I did make a video Exploring the Super Gemini when I first got it. I’ve been considering the idea of doing more Super Gemini specific content for my channel for a few reasons. Because I love the Super Gemini and want to dive deeper, and I’m aware that the number of videos out there are limited, but also because we’re considering a move back to Victoria, and I would be losing my full production studio and downsizing my collection and productions.
Let me know what interest there might be, or what types of things you would like to see covered. Maybe I could schedule a live-stream for a convenient time.
Cheers