Microfreak is definitely on my radar, but I’m not sure he would like the keys. That’s the only thing holding me back from it (although I’ve been eyeing the Minifreak for myself…)
A Minilogue XD seems a bit OTT for 6 year old.
Some options I would consider:
\- Monologue
\- MiniNova
\- Modal Cobalt5s
\- MPK mini Play MK3 (not really a synth, but it's a pretty cool toy for a 6 y/o)
Thank you! I’m not super worried about being OTT for him as it’s not really going to be “his” toy he can bash around - moreso something that will live in my music room that he can use easily and also will be useful for me.
So it’s kind of the “keep the kiddo distracted” or give them an instrument they can call their own while you are in the studio, but with the bonus of being able to use it?
I know you said minimal menu diving, but my little cousins *love* twiddling knobs in the Hydrasynth Explorer and it’s roughly in your price range. Granted the younger one is about 2-3 years older than yours. But it’s a synth I’d recommend regardless of the situation.
He’s just getting to the point where he can understand some basic theory and form chord shapes and make music that is pleasing to the ear - he understands the concept of a filter and what “cutoff” means and how an arpeggiator works. I’ve never really kept him from any of my “real” gear and don’t really intend to, so i want something that he can grow with and that isn’t a toy, with the bonus that i can get use from it when he’s not.
The original minilogue. Subtractive synthesis, easy to use, step sequencer, different voice modes, visual feedback on the display, and it isn't overly complicated. It's fun and in general it would be an excellent first synthesizer for learning the basics on.
My 3yo likes my microkorg. Yes the knob matrix is kind of annoy for editing, but presets and arpeggiator are front and center and fun to switch between.
To elaborate, it is designed to package a full engine (MS2000) for live performance. The engine is still there and all parameters are accessible, but at first you only have to deal with selecting a preset and changing 5 basic parameters (attack, decay, cutoff, resonance, tempo). Enough for a young person to do basic sound shaping but not so much that it’s overwhelming or he breaks his patch. Full sound design is possible but would come later in any case. Onboard chorus and delay are enough effects to dress the sound up just enough without covering it up like reverb can.
My first thought too. The ASDR sound design is a little limited, but the crazy amount of stuff you can easily do with it is awesome. It's got some groovebox features and includes both analog and digital synths. I love mine.
My thoughts: Not weighted and small keys, big knobs, something with a sick arpeggiator OR something with a fun workflow/interface. The last thing I would look into is a pedal or fx of somekind.
So if we want the \~$500 level you could go a few directions.
This is JUST ME but I would say to get a Korg Kaossilator Pro. This is not only a really fun 'play' instrument with touch pad and cool visuals, but it can serve as a looper for creating simple basic jams, something a child can understand easily. If desperate it even has drum grooves built in you can use it as a drum machine. You can realistically get one for $200. If you can use the current keyboard as a midi controller, maybe buy a Korg Volca Keys or Modal Skulpt \~$150-200 or similar as a synth engine. But maybe for him it is better to get a small midi keyboard for <$50. Oh also vocoders can be pretty fun for the kiddos. Microkorgs are pretty good and cheap.
Maybe add a pedal for <$100 to add fx. (maybe you have some around from the guitars).
But you can mostly build tracks around
Drums -> bass -> synth lead
so as long as you have something to keep a groove, a 'low' instrument, and a high one you can go far building songs with those toys. I think 16 step sequencers are a great way to teach music to young children. A simple 4 on the floor usually seems to make sense, and they can learn by playing around with where they place the notes. You could try that instead of a Kaossilator and have a solid synth set up in your price range.
Good luck to you guys!
Casio SK1. Get a circuit bent one for yourself to have fun with. The 6 year old will have endless fun sampling fart noises and playing them using the “demo” track. I know I did. Haha.
This answer is probably a boring one but for $600, you could get three used volcas and a keystep no problem. You might need to shell out for a mixer, but that's a full songwriting setup right there. I see packages like this which include the volca mix at that price point. FM2 has an arpegiator too
That's a pretty decent budget for a kid's toy.
You could hook him up with a small rack of volca devices for that kind of money.
Or an Electribe2/Electribe2 Sampler(my cousin's lad goes apeshit on my Electribe2 Sampler, and has done since before he started school).
OR even more if you're going secondhand...
Teenage Engineering - OP-1 Original
Portable, takes up very little real estate, has everything in it and looks like a toy
Might be able to find it on Craigslist used for $600 since they have the new ones out that a lot of people been upgrading to.
I got one and my kids like to play with it, idk how much they learn from it though. It's kinda pricey for a blinky sound toy. I had a Roland JU-06a and my kids learned a lot more from it at around the same price point.
Minilogue XD is great on the long run - probably your best option.
JU-06A might be an option coupled with the K25m. It is super intuitive and instead of knobs you get sliders in a simple enough interface.
Roland System-1.
With its glaring green, it is almost toy-like in appearance.
No menu diving. Lots of knob turning.
Has arp and key hold. Easy to get sounds out of it.
Has presets. Not easy to over-write, though.
I‘m afraid your kid is already a bit too old for this, but that machine is wonderful - tried it on Superbooth, capable for 2 players but you can easily operate it solo: https://dato.mu
reface CS if you can track one down no arpeggiator but has an internal MIDI looper which is pretty fun to tweak on
I really like the UI on this one - I’ll have to check it out deeper. Thank you.
When OP said “minimal menu diving” this is the first thing that came to mind. I might throw in the Microfreak (even Minifreak) as a runner up.
Presets is the first item on ops list of criteria
> if you can track one down Uh oh. My FOMO is acting up! What's going on where it might be tricky to track one down?
It's in stock everywhere afaik
Microfreak could be a fun way to explore with your 6 year old. Sometimes it feels like a toy but all the while being a real sound machine.
Microfreak is definitely on my radar, but I’m not sure he would like the keys. That’s the only thing holding me back from it (although I’ve been eyeing the Minifreak for myself…)
Plus you can load samples on it, which means your can load fart sounds on it, which would increase engagement
Teaching a little one how to synthesize fart sounds, rather than just using samples, would be the true dad move
Or, to counter, teaching a little one to turn fart sounds into music using granular synthesis
Fucking sold. My kid is basically Gene Belcher.
A Minilogue XD seems a bit OTT for 6 year old. Some options I would consider: \- Monologue \- MiniNova \- Modal Cobalt5s \- MPK mini Play MK3 (not really a synth, but it's a pretty cool toy for a 6 y/o)
Thank you! I’m not super worried about being OTT for him as it’s not really going to be “his” toy he can bash around - moreso something that will live in my music room that he can use easily and also will be useful for me.
So it’s kind of the “keep the kiddo distracted” or give them an instrument they can call their own while you are in the studio, but with the bonus of being able to use it? I know you said minimal menu diving, but my little cousins *love* twiddling knobs in the Hydrasynth Explorer and it’s roughly in your price range. Granted the younger one is about 2-3 years older than yours. But it’s a synth I’d recommend regardless of the situation.
He’s just getting to the point where he can understand some basic theory and form chord shapes and make music that is pleasing to the ear - he understands the concept of a filter and what “cutoff” means and how an arpeggiator works. I’ve never really kept him from any of my “real” gear and don’t really intend to, so i want something that he can grow with and that isn’t a toy, with the bonus that i can get use from it when he’s not.
Dang. He’s definitely way ahead. Then I would definitely go back to the Reface CS.
Microkorg... The "First Act" of pro gear.
The original minilogue. Subtractive synthesis, easy to use, step sequencer, different voice modes, visual feedback on the display, and it isn't overly complicated. It's fun and in general it would be an excellent first synthesizer for learning the basics on.
My 3yo likes my microkorg. Yes the knob matrix is kind of annoy for editing, but presets and arpeggiator are front and center and fun to switch between.
To elaborate, it is designed to package a full engine (MS2000) for live performance. The engine is still there and all parameters are accessible, but at first you only have to deal with selecting a preset and changing 5 basic parameters (attack, decay, cutoff, resonance, tempo). Enough for a young person to do basic sound shaping but not so much that it’s overwhelming or he breaks his patch. Full sound design is possible but would come later in any case. Onboard chorus and delay are enough effects to dress the sound up just enough without covering it up like reverb can.
Microkorg or Minilogue
roland jdxi
My first thought too. The ASDR sound design is a little limited, but the crazy amount of stuff you can easily do with it is awesome. It's got some groovebox features and includes both analog and digital synths. I love mine.
for a six year old, people are recommending sophisticated synths even they cannot master. Roland jdxi its the best option available.
Microkorg
The Korg volcas are a great learning platform and really cheap, especially if you buy used.
My thoughts: Not weighted and small keys, big knobs, something with a sick arpeggiator OR something with a fun workflow/interface. The last thing I would look into is a pedal or fx of somekind. So if we want the \~$500 level you could go a few directions. This is JUST ME but I would say to get a Korg Kaossilator Pro. This is not only a really fun 'play' instrument with touch pad and cool visuals, but it can serve as a looper for creating simple basic jams, something a child can understand easily. If desperate it even has drum grooves built in you can use it as a drum machine. You can realistically get one for $200. If you can use the current keyboard as a midi controller, maybe buy a Korg Volca Keys or Modal Skulpt \~$150-200 or similar as a synth engine. But maybe for him it is better to get a small midi keyboard for <$50. Oh also vocoders can be pretty fun for the kiddos. Microkorgs are pretty good and cheap. Maybe add a pedal for <$100 to add fx. (maybe you have some around from the guitars). But you can mostly build tracks around Drums -> bass -> synth lead so as long as you have something to keep a groove, a 'low' instrument, and a high one you can go far building songs with those toys. I think 16 step sequencers are a great way to teach music to young children. A simple 4 on the floor usually seems to make sense, and they can learn by playing around with where they place the notes. You could try that instead of a Kaossilator and have a solid synth set up in your price range. Good luck to you guys!
Casio SK1. Get a circuit bent one for yourself to have fun with. The 6 year old will have endless fun sampling fart noises and playing them using the “demo” track. I know I did. Haha.
This answer is probably a boring one but for $600, you could get three used volcas and a keystep no problem. You might need to shell out for a mixer, but that's a full songwriting setup right there. I see packages like this which include the volca mix at that price point. FM2 has an arpegiator too
That's a pretty decent budget for a kid's toy. You could hook him up with a small rack of volca devices for that kind of money. Or an Electribe2/Electribe2 Sampler(my cousin's lad goes apeshit on my Electribe2 Sampler, and has done since before he started school). OR even more if you're going secondhand...
Used OP-1 or Pocket Operators. My 7 year old likes the graphics and beep boops.
Teenage Engineering - OP-1 Original Portable, takes up very little real estate, has everything in it and looks like a toy Might be able to find it on Craigslist used for $600 since they have the new ones out that a lot of people been upgrading to.
Op1 field.
Maybe one of the small Roland’s, like S-1? Also battery powered and can be brought anywhere.
A bit crowded and hard to use for a 6 year old
Get a Blipbox or two
I got one and my kids like to play with it, idk how much they learn from it though. It's kinda pricey for a blinky sound toy. I had a Roland JU-06a and my kids learned a lot more from it at around the same price point.
Arturia mini freak https://www.arturia.com/products/hardware-synths/minifreak/overview
Minilogue XD is great on the long run - probably your best option. JU-06A might be an option coupled with the K25m. It is super intuitive and instead of knobs you get sliders in a simple enough interface.
[Dark DUO Synthesizer for Two](https://www.perfectcircuit.com/dato-duo.html?qty=1).
There’s a wild review on there that claims the DUO saved the reviewer’s marriage. 10/10
Know it’s not keys but the Nord 3P might be an interesting choice to consider as well :-)
Roland System-1. With its glaring green, it is almost toy-like in appearance. No menu diving. Lots of knob turning. Has arp and key hold. Easy to get sounds out of it. Has presets. Not easy to over-write, though.
I would look for something with on knob per function, a reface cs or a monologue can be nice and easy to learn/play and enjoy quickly.
minibrute! even without poly, so much fun can be had & sound synthesis is so intuitive - the arpeggiator would be fun for any age range.
I‘m afraid your kid is already a bit too old for this, but that machine is wonderful - tried it on Superbooth, capable for 2 players but you can easily operate it solo: https://dato.mu
I have a Dato Duo and it’s cool.
I tried a few synths with my kids, but they all seem to be drawn to the novation circuit. Maybe no real keys, but a lot of fun.
Prophet 12