Product Description

The Model D in the hands of Geddy Lee has delivered legendary basses, melodic leads, and rich analog tones that are iconic and indicative of Minimoog’s creative influence on musicians.

Musicians and Rush fans can now tap into a piece of music history that’s been used to create legendary tracks, the Minimoog is an instrument that has stood the test of time and the Geddy Lee Minimoog Model D is a collector’s item to be cherished for decades to come.

“This is science meets music and I think it’s important to recognize the role technology plays in all artforms” - Geddy Lee

Originally released in 1970, Minimoog Model D was the world’s first portable synthesizer and served as the archetype for all electronic keyboards that followed. The all-analog instrument gained acclaim for combining the colossal sound of the 1960s Moog modular synthesizers with the accessibility of pre-wired modules—meaning that it could be played instantly and intuitively with no patch cables required. It was quickly embraced by a diverse roster of performers, including Rush frontman Geddy Lee who enraptured generations with his unique brand of prog rock.

In addition to Geddy’s signature red finish, this model of the Minimoog offers a hot-rodded VCA circuit, dedicated LFO controls, top panel CV jacks, spring loaded pitch wheel and MIDI integration.

For musicians and collectors seeking both inspiration and history, the Geddy Lee Minimoog Model D combines the legendary analog sound of Moog with a distinctive aesthetic that honors Rush’s iconic legacy. More than a collector’s piece, this is the most playable and celebrated synth of all time, featuring powerful modern enhancements for today’s music creators.

When the Model D first rolled out in 1970, it represented a consolidation of the expansive Moog modular systems into a compact and portable package. Rather than offering an intimidating web of patch cables and knobs to navigate, the Minimoog's fixed architecture made it so much easier to instantly craft musical and satisfying sounds—with enough room to make things weird if you wanted to. But with its segmented panel layout, clear labeling, and smart parameterization, the Minimoog Model D remains approachable even if you've never touched a synthesizer before!

The 2022 edition of the Minimoog Model D maintains the exact choice and placement of circuit components as the original version from the 1970s, with a couple of new tricks and conveniences built-in for modern players. Physically speaking, the wooden cabinet is built from Appalachian cherry, locally sourced from near Moog's factory in Asheville, North Carolina, and is complemented with a hand-finished aluminum chassis housing the core circuitry. But from there, you'll find the same powerful three-oscillator configuration, iconic lowpass ladder filter with plenty of resonance, and crunchy mixer section that isn't afraid to offer overdrive and coloration for a thicker sound.

But along with the elements that give the Model D its sound, the control and shaping components are equally important in completing the Minimoog experience. Filter and amplitude envelopes offer independent contours over timbre and volume, allowing for dramatic swells and prominent plucks. On the original Model D, it was possible to decouple oscillator 3 from the keyboard and use it as an LFO to modulate the filter. But on this version, a dedicated analog LFO was added next to the pitch and mod wheels—pull the knob up or down to select between triangle or square waveforms, and dial the rate accordingly. Speaking of the pitch wheel, it now features a spring-loaded design to automatically return to the center position, allowing for more freedom in those wild lead lines.

Rounding out the enhancements on the 2022 Minimoog, you'll find MIDI ports, a luxurious Fatar keybed with velocity and aftertouch, an internal mixer feedback modification for more easily achieved overdrive, and several additional CV I/O jacks to more easily incorporate external instruments and devices in your studio. The 2022 edition of the Minimoog Model D is perhaps the definitive version of this legendary instrument, packing in the same iconic sound but with all the advantages of modern synthesizers included.

Key Features:

• An authentic modern issue of the iconic Minimoog Model D analog synthesizer
• Fully analog signal path using exact component choice and placement of the original from 1970
• Locally-sourced Appalachian cherry wooden cabinet
• Hand-finished aluminum chassis
• Three analog VCOs with eight selectable waveforms: triangle, tri/saw blend (osc 1 and 2), reverse saw (osc 3), sawtooth, square, wide rectangle, narrow rectangle
• Oscillator 1 follows global Tune control and keyboard input
• Range switches for all oscillators and fine-tune controls for oscillators 2 and 3
• Keyboard control bypass switch for oscillator 3
• White and pink noise generator
• Mixer with external audio input
• Internal feedback mod allows for quick and heavy overdrive
• Iconic lowpass ladder filter with resonance
• Filter and Loudness envelope generators
• Additional LFO with triangle and square waveforms
• Modulation controller section blends and selects between Oscillator 3, Filter envelope, Noise generator, and LFO control sources
• 44-note Fatar keybed
• Spring-loaded pitch-bend wheel—first ever used on a factory Minimoog!
• Main and headphone outputs
• A-440 test tone for tuning and signal testing
• Low and high-level audio outputs

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