Is the Super 6 Desktop good for a beginner?

Bear with me, as I know the question seems ridiculous.

Been learning synthesis through Syntorial and hoping to get my first hardware synth in a couple months.

The Super 6 seems awesome as a knob per function synth, and I love the sound of it from the demos I’ve seen.

With the lack of screen, is the Super 6 still a good option for a beginner? Are there any other quirks about the synth to consider?

I’ve seen comments about midi clock drift, portamento fixed rate and reverse saw being used for the LFO.

Any insight is much appreciated

I would say yes, coming from Syntorial it’s a great choice. If you’ve comfortably worked your way through Syntorial then you’ll be able to immediately directly apply much of what you’ve learned to the Super 6. There will undoubtedly be some quirks and differences in terminology and so on, but these things are the flavours that make it fun exploring these instruments.

The lack of a screen is a personal preference. For some people it’s a decisive flaw. For me it’s a well considered intentional omission. I patch differently with UDO instruments, I listen differently. I enjoy the screen free workflow.

But you’d have to give it go yourself.

For a first synth purchase I’d also consider:

  • synthesis types
  • sequencer
  • effects
  • form factor

How much do these things matter to you? Are you after one synth that’ll do a bit of everything, are you happy to supplement any deficiencies with additional devices, software, etc.

There’s a lot of breadth in the UDO instruments but they don’t compare to say a Waldorf Iridium.

The sequencer is rudimentary and fine, but not as immediate as a keystep or deep as a elektron.

The effects are high quality and great, but limited compared to a Sequential Take 5, Novation Peak.

All that said, I absolutely adored the S6 when I had one. I think it’s a solid choice.

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It might seem a bit excessive for a first synth due to the cost (compared to the typical beginner recommendations), but it was my first hardware synth and it has been fantastic. I had only really dabbled with Pigments and some of the other Arturia soft synths before that.

The set modulation routings are so well thought out and, inadvertently, very educational. And then the mod matrix has plenty to dive into and indulge more of your curiosity and ideas.

The lack of screen only occasionally bothers me when I’m revisiting a patch I made and trying to figure out how I did something, but connecting to the third party editor software would probably solve that.

I’ve tried several other synths since getting the S6 (TEO 5, Novation Peak, multi/poly) and none have matched up when it comes to A) raw sound (seriously, I could sit and just play with oscillators for hours) and B) how quickly you can get into making sounds and exploring and tweaking and ending up in all sorts of territories. And, from a learning how to use synths perspective, my time with the Super 6 made using those other synths so much more natural (and also appreciative of the S6’s complete lack of menu diving).

If you’re comfortable with the price, I’d wholeheartedly recommend. My only minor caveats are that it really does benefit from using a reverb pedal/plugin (not as a necessity, just for extra enjoyment), and that the presets can be a bit underwhelming - my impression of the synth really skyrocketed after diving into making sounds.

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