Oberheim Electronics

Oberheim Electronics

Founded	1969
Headquarters	Oakland, California
Key people	Tom Oberheim, founder
Products	Signal Processing, Synthesizers, Sequencers, Drum machines

Oberheim Electronics is an American company, founded in 1969^[1][2] by Tom Oberheim (a former designer and contract manufacturer for Maestro),^[3] which manufactured audio synthesizers and a variety of other electronic musical instruments.

History and Products

Oberheim Electronics

Originally a manufacturer of electronic effects devices (most notably the Maestro phase shifter),^[3] and briefly an ARP Instruments dealer,^[3] Oberheim went on to create several ground-breaking products in the early days of synthesizers and electronic music including the DS-2 (one of the first digital music sequencers) and the Synthesizer Expansion Module (SEM).

Oberheim polyphonic synthesizers

SEM (1974-1979, 2009-)

Oberheim 4 Voice (1975-1979)

One of the first commercially available polyphonic synthesizers, Oberheim's Two-voice TVS-1, Four-voice FVS-1 in 1975,^[1] and Eight-voice in 1977,^[4] which was the four voice frame with an external 4 SEM module, configurations were based on the SEM. The Two-voice synthesizer included a two channel voltage controlled sequencer, and the Four-voice and Eight-voice machines included a rudimentary Programmer, capable of recalling sound settings.

OB-1 (1978/1979)

OB-X (1979)

OB-8 (1983)

Xpander (1984)

Oberheim's later synths like the OB-X and OB-Xa abandoned the relatively bulky SEMs in favor of individual or compact voice cards, and common cabinetry and power supplies. Oberheim continued to make synthesizers until the late 1980s. Other notable Oberheim synthesizers include the OB-1 (monophonic), the OB-8, the Xpander, the Matrix-6, the Matrix-12, and the Matrix-1000 marketed after the acquisition by Gibson.^[5][6]

Oberheim drum machines

Oberheim's DMX drum machine, a staple of early hip-hop music,^[7] lent its name to the Producer Davy DMX, electro musician DMX Krew, and is still used in dancehall reggae music.

DMX (c.1981)^{[citation needed]}

DX (c.1983)^{[citation needed]}

Prommer (1984)

Matrix-1000 (1988) Oberheim / Gibson     Echoplex Digtal Pro [8]

OB-Mx (1994)

Both Marcus Ryle and Michel Doidic worked for Oberheim as instrument designers before later helping develop the groundbreaking ADAT multitrack digital tape recorder for Alesis, and then moving on to found Line 6 together.^[9]

Oberheim/Gibson

Oberheim closed its doors in 1985, they were acquired by a group of lawyers who changed the name to Oberheim ECC with Tom creatively still at the helm, although he would leave the company within a couple of years to start a new venture called Marion Systems. After a second bankruptcy in the early 1990s Gibson Guitar Corporation, a larger musical instrument manufacturer (who, incidentally, also owned the Maestro brand) acquired Oberheim, in collaboration with Don Buchla, they produced the OB-Mx.^[10]

Ironically in 1986, Gibson split away from parent company Norlin, who also handled distribution of Oberheim's major competitor, Moog Music.

OB*12 (2000)

Oberheim/Viscount

The trademark was later licensed to Viscount International, an Italian digital-organ producer. Viscount developed in a few years various instruments that were very innovative for the time and are still requested: the digital synth Oberheim OB*12,^[11] the guitar DSP GM-1000 with lot of effects,^[12] the MC series of master keyboards,^[13] and the

MIDI-to-CV converter panel for the SEM