Moog Minitaur

147

Monophonic Bass Synthesizer

  • Each function has its own control element
  • Two VCOs with sawtooth waves (exactly the original Taurus respectively) and additional square waves
  • Mixer for VCO signals
  • Moog Ladder Filter delivers authentic Taurus1 and Taurus 3 sounds
  • Two ADSR envelope generators in the Minimoog-Style
  • LFO controls VCO and VCF - MIDI clock sync
  • Minitaur's sound generator can be fully controlled via MIDI
  • USB port and a MIDI-DIN plug
  • Analogue control inputs for pitch
  • Filter volume and gate - allow control through pedals and control voltages (everything from Moogerfooger to modular synthesizer)
  • Audio input for processing external audio signals through filter and mixer section
  • Headphone output
  • High-quality sheet steel housing
  • Rev2
  • Audio output: 6.3 mm mono jack, unbalanced
Available since May 2012
Item number 278451
Sales Unit 1 piece(s)
Design Desktop
Polyphony 1
Sound Generation Analogue
MIDI interface 1x In
Storage Medium USB to Host
USB-port Yes
Effects Yes
Arpeggiator No
Number of Analog Outputs 1
Digital Output No
Display No
Optional Expansions No
Special Features None
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$599
The shipping costs are calculated on the checkout page.
Available in several months
Available in several months

This item has sold out and has been re-ordered. Unfortunately, our supplier cannot guarantee delivery within the next three months. We recommend that you choose a suitable alternative from our store.

Standard Delivery Times
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147 Customer ratings

4.6 / 5

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80 Reviews

T
Amazing synth, Moog sound on a budget!
TrEr 24.03.2017
I got this synth primarily for overdubbing electric bass on a project that was heavily inspired by 70s prog rock. Needless to say, it's absolutely superb for that role but it's also great for a lot of other stuff.

It definitely sounds like a real Taurus. I'm sure some subtle differences can be found if comparing them side by side but for all intended purposes this IS a Taurus, just without the pedals. But it's also a lot more versatile than the old Taurus. You can definitely get the old school Taurus sounds but there's a lot more on offer too, much more tweakable.

Some of the controls are only available when connecting to a computer via USB. Personally I don't like this way of controlling an analog synth but I guess it can just be seen as an extra bonus feature. To include all the controls on the physical unit would probably have raised the price too much. And the "extra" controls aren't necessary to get great sounds out of the Minitaur. The real physical knobs on the unit have all the functions you would expect on this kind of synth so the USB thing isn't really a problem, it just makes me feel like I'm paying for something I'll never use.

It's a shame that Moog has limited the range (MIDI notes 0-72) of this amazing synth though. I can't see any reason for this other than Moog not wanting it to compete with their more expensive models. The bass tones certainly are unique but within it's limitations the Minitaur can be a great lead synth as well. To limit it to bass duties is a ibit of a waste in my opinion. Still, no other synth (except the original Taurus) can produce these kind of FAT bass sounds so bass will always be it's main feature. And even with it's limitations the tonal range is wide enough for lots of stuff besides bass.

Build quality is amazing, light years ahead of Volcas, Roland Boutiques or similar "toy-like" plastic synths. I would have absolutely no hesitations about tossing the Minitaur in a bag and use it extensively for gigging.

Highly recommended if you need the fattest sounding synth bass in the world and can live with the limited tonal range!
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buy the synth, love the filter
Nicola L. 04.05.2015
There is no hype behind the Moog brand: what they produce are nothing but outstanding products.

This is probably the cheapest Moog synth you can buy, and I feel like saying that, if you can afford buying only one synth, make it this one. Its biggest, and in my opinion, only limitation is the number of octaves it covers (it is a bass synth, after all).

You may want to try some of the built-in factory presets, but honestly after 30 minutes of playing with it, you will forget about presets, plugins, and any digital witchcraft (that the Minitaur supports anyway): you will just want to turn knobs! It will be at this point that you understand what they mean when they talk about 'shaping the sound with your hands'. All the controls are so intuitive and responsive, that you just know what to do.

And it because of its great responsiveness and intuitiveness, that I also use it a lot as a modulation filter on practically anything. This is probably not as complete and featured like the Moogerfooger MF-101, but until I can afford buying one, the Minitaur will act as an excellent stopgap.

One last note: with the latest firmware revision, the Minitaur can also work as a MIDI2CV converter. This is not listed among the feature in the product description at the time I wrote this review.
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Le Faune 14.01.2019
Nice
pros:
the sound is nice, the built is sturdy, integration with editor is neat.
cons:
probably me, I hear some low (in volume) white/pink noise type of sound over any sound I play (using headphones). will try to hunt it down, but could come from my lack of experience with analog synths. Seems to be in all of the editor patches tho, it is modulated too, with no apparent link to the modulation rate on the synth itself.

Will edit if I find my fault
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envelope is strange
STk3000 15.07.2019
like all moog synths the envelope is kind of strange.

you can get used to it just expect it to have a mind of it's own.

other then that, you get the moog sound, even if it is a bit harsh on the mids (i know it's supposed to be for bass) and highs, no where near a full moog but still the same flavour.


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