List of classic synthesizers

This is intended to be a list of classic instruments which marked a turning point in musical sound or style, potentially worth an article of their own. They are listed with the names of performers or styles associated with them. For more synthesizer models see Category:Synthesizers.


 * Alesis Andromeda (Duran Duran, Killing Joke, Nine Inch Nails, Orbital, Depeche Mode)
 * ARP 2600 (The Who, Depeche Mode, Brian Eno, Stevie Wonder, Weather Report, Edgar Winter, Jean Michel Jarre)
 * ARP Odyssey (Gary Numan, Kraftwerk, Ultravox and their former frontman John Foxx, Styx, Herbie Hancock, Covenant, Alphaville, Klaus Schulze)
 * Buchla Music Box (Morton Subotnick, Nine Inch Nails, Suzanne Ciani)
 * Casio VL-1 (Trio), Human League
 * Clavia Nord Lead (Polysics, Nine Inch Nails, Covenant, The Killers, God Lives Underwater, Zoot Woman, The Weathermen, Jean-Michel Jarre, Depeche Mode)
 * Casio CZ-101 (Erasure, Covenant, They Might Be Giants, Moby, Ore, Depeche Mode)
 * Elka Synthex (Jean-Michel Jarre, Stevie Wonder)
 * E-mu Emulator (The Residents, Queen, Depeche Mode, Deep Purple, Genesis, New Order, The Rolling Stones (Chuck Leavell), Vangelis, Stevie Wonder)
 * E-mu Emulator II (John Carpenter, Depeche Mode, Peter Gabriel, Jean-Michel Jarre, New Order, Pet Shop Boys, Simple Minds, Stevie Wonder)
 * Fairlight CMI (Thomas Dolby, Duran Duran, Jean-Michel Jarre, Jan Hammer, Peter Gabriel, Herbie Hancock, Queen, Mike Oldfield, Pet Shop Boys, Art of Noise, Kate Bush)
 * Future Retro 777 (Richie Hawtin, BT, The Chemical Brothers, The Crystal Method, Aphex Twin, Deadmau5)
 * Hammond organ (Procol Harum, Deep Purple, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Yes, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Uriah Heep, Pink Floyd, Genesis, Led Zeppelin, The Stranglers)
 * Korg DSS-1 (Uriah Heep, Ore, Steve Winwood, Joe Zawinul, Depeche Mode)
 * Korg DW-8000 (Keith Emerson, Depeche Mode, Alphaville)
 * Korg Karma (Peter Gabriel, Jordan Rudess, Rick Wakeman)
 * Korg M1 (Bradley Joseph, Queen, Pet Shop Boys, The Cure, Vangelis, Joe Zawinul, Depeche Mode, Gary Numan)
 * Korg MS-20 (Mira Aroyo, Neon Indian, Covenant, Verdena, Alphaville)
 * Korg MS2000 (Crystal Castles, Depeche Mode)
 * Korg MS2000B (Ladytron (all four members))
 * Korg Trinity (David Bowie, Depeche Mode, Faithless, Matthew Bellamy)
 * Korg Triton (Bradley Joseph, Derek Sherinian)
 * Korg Wavestation (Depeche Mode, Gary Numan, Genesis, Jan Hammer, Dire Straits)
 * Kurzweil K2000 (Jean Michel Jarre, Richard Wright, Duran Duran, Covenant)
 * Kurzweil K250 (Stevie Wonder, Paul Shaffer)
 * Lyricon (Michael Brecker, Tom Scott, Chuck Greenberg, Wayne Shorter)
 * Minimoog (Reuben Wu (Voyager model), Kraftwerk, Gary Numan, Roxy Music, Pink Floyd, Rush, Yes, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Stereolab, Devo, George Duke, Rick Wakeman, Sun Ra, Camel, Depeche Mode)
 * Moog modular synthesizer (Wendy Carlos, Tomita, Tonto's Expanding Head Band, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze, The Beatles, Depeche Mode)
 * Moog Polymoog (ABBA, Gary Numan, Kraftwerk, Blondie, Yes, Genesis)
 * Moog Taurus (Rush, Genesis, The Police, U2, The Rentals, Steve Hackett)
 * Hartmann Neuron (Hans Zimmer, Peter Gabriel, Guns N' Roses, David Sylvian)
 * Oberheim OB-X (Japan, Jean-Michel Jarre, Killing Joke, Prince, Queen, Rush, Styx, Tangerine Dream, Ultravox)
 * Oberheim OB-Xa (Gary Numan, Rush, Depeche Mode, Prince, Queen, Laurie Anderson, Styx, Thompson Twins, Van Halen)
 * Oberheim Four-, Eight- & Two-Voice (Herbie Hancock, Lyle Mays, Prince, Depeche Mode, Supertramp, Rush, Styx, Vangelis, Weather Report)
 * PPG Wave (Rush, Tangerine Dream, Depeche Mode, Gary Numan, Nine Inch Nails, The Fixx, Thomas Dolby, Alphaville)
 * Roland D-50 (Jean-Michel Jarre, Enya, Erasure, Gary Numan, Prince, Sting)
 * Roland JD-800 (Bradley Joseph, Keith Emerson, Genesis, Depeche Mode, MC Hammer, Gary Numan, William Orbit)
 * Roland JP-8000 (Asia, The Crystal Method, Depeche Mode, The Prodigy)
 * Roland Juno-60 / Roland Juno-6 (A-ha, Enya, Eurythmics, Ultravox, Depeche Mode, Howard Jones, Nils Frahm, Oneohtrix Point Never)
 * Roland Jupiter-4 (Gary Numan, John Foxx, Duran Duran, The Human League, Simple Minds, Covenant, The Cars, Depeche Mode)
 * Roland Jupiter-8 (ABBA, Queen, Rush, Duran Duran, Depeche Mode, OMD, The Cars, Huey Lewis and the News, Alphaville, Journey)
 * Roland SH-101 (Ladytron, Grimes, Chris & Cosey, Daft Punk, Devo, Eurythmics, Jean-Michel Jarre, Depeche Mode, Yazoo)
 * Roland TB-303 (Acid House)
 * Sequential Circuits Prophet-5 (ABBA, Berlin, Phil Collins, The Cars, Level 42, Bryan Ferry / Roxy Music, Steve Winwood, Genesis, Japan, Yellow Magic Orchestra, Talking Heads, Vince Clarke, Men Without Hats, Depeche Mode, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Kraftwerk, Paul Hardcastle, Gary Numan, Peter Gabriel, Wally Badarou, Weather Report)
 * Steiner-Parker Synthacon, the Steiner VCF is a totally different take on the classic filters appearing in other synthesisers up to 1975. (Depeche Mode)
 * NED Synclavier (Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Laurie Anderson, Frank Zappa, Pat Metheny Group, Sean Callery, Depeche Mode, Sting)
 * EMS VCS3 (Todd Rundgren, Roxy Music, Hawkwind, Pink Floyd, BBC Radiophonic Workshop, Jean-Michel Jarre, Tangerine Dream, Brian Eno, King Crimson, Depeche Mode)
 * Yamaha CS-80 (Electric Light Orchestra, Vangelis, Genesis, Eddie Jobson, Toto, Stevie Wonder, Paul McCartney)
 * Yamaha DX-1 (Dire Straits, Elton John, Herbie Hancock, Stevie Wonder, Depeche Mode)
 * Yamaha DX7 (a-ha, Queen, Rush, Steve Reich, Depeche Mode, Zoot Woman, Covenant, Genesis, David Foster, The Cure, Brian Eno, Howard Jones, Nitzer Ebb, Front 242, Jens Johansson)
 * Yamaha Motif (David Bowie, Ray Charles, Bob Dylan, Green Day, Elton John, Stevie Wonder)