Conference napalm::guitar

    Never tried one, but I think the guitarist most associated with the
    Synthaxe is probably Allan Holdsworth.  He did a bunch of albums using
    the Synthaxe almost exclusively.
    
    There's also something called the "Synthaxe Drumitar" whose only
    user (only one that I know of at least) is "Futureman" from Bela
    Fleck and the Flecktones.
    
    Does anyone know if the Synthaxe Drumitar was a real "product" or
    was it something special that Futureman crafted from a Synthaxe.
    I think it was a product, but I had never seen nor heard of it  before
    becoming familiar with Bela Fleck & the Flecktones.   And I'm usually
    "up" on all the latest MIDI gear.  Or at least was until about 2 years
    ago.
    
    	db
    
    

    
    	Is this the same instrument that Judas Priest used on the "Turbo"
    	album?
    
    	If so, I liked it.
    

    It's important to note the differances between a Synth-Axe and a
    conventional guitar with a pickup/pitch-midi convertor. 
    
    There is a bumper crop of guitars with built-in pickups and
    also lot's of pickups that can be added to just about any guitar
    which works with a "pitch-to-midi convertor". Roland makes the
    most popular versions of these. These are relatively inexpensive
    but the tracking is still fairly slow and if you play too fast, 
    you tend to get glitches. 
    
    The synth-Axe is one of very few instruments with a fully wired
    fret-board. Each string/fret position has a sensor which sends
    a separate signal to the built-in microprocessor. The synth-Axe
    is also unique in that it has two sets of strings, one that you
    fret and one that you pick. Neither set of strings has to be
    tuned to any specific pitch because the instrument does not 
    sense pitch. The strings that are attached to the neck are 
    essentially place-holders, just there so that the instrument
    feels like a regular guitar. The set of strings that you pick
    captures the attack of each note. The microprocessor integrates
    the signal from the wired-fretboard with the attack signal from
    the picked strings. The 2 sets of strings are not in line with
    each other. The neck is mounted on a fairly steep angle to the
    body, which is supposedly an ergo-dynamic design to make it 
    easier to play. 
    
    The synth-Axe has performance that is far superior to the common
    pitch-midi setups, but the price is out of this world. The last 
    I heard the Synth-Axe was priced around $9000 and it is useless
    without some sort of sample player. I'm sure they were sold in
    very small volumes. I've never seen one up close. The Synth-Axe 
    is in the same league with SynClaviers, Fairlights, and other 
    high-end synthesizers. Not intended for mere-mortals like us!  
    It's a cutting-edge invention. Considering how far synthesizers
    have come in the last 20 years, we may someday see something 
    with this level of performance at a price that the average
    musician can afford, but it's not likely to happen any time soon.
     
		trivia question- What was the first instrument to feature a
    fully wired-fretboard ? 
    
    	Mark
    
    

    Didn't this also have a set of 3 keys which you could press instead
    of picking the right hand strings?  You could use these to get 
    simultaneous attack on all 6 strings at once.
    
    I saw this thing I'm describing on an episode of PBS's "Rock School"
    demoed by a young British lady who, as I recall, was quite a good
    guitarist.
    
    And another thing.  How does the Synthaxe handle hammer-on/pull-offs?
    Or does it even try?
    
    	Rick

    Re .3:
    
    I believe that the first instrument with wired frets was the Guitorgan,
    first sold around 1968 or so. It used segmented wired frets to control
    on board organ tone generator circuitry (from Thomas?). I recollect
    that notes triggered when fretted; there was no string pick sensing.

    The Guitorgan is correct. This is essentially a Gibson Barney Kessel
    copy with electronics that many agree were way ahead of their time.
    Teisco Del Ray owns one of these and featured it in articles and
    calendars. 
    
    Mark

    
    	I was going to answer Guitorgan...shows my age. On one of
    Holdsworths recordings "Atavacron" he does this blazing unison solo 
    using the Synthaxe and on another track, his ordinary guitar.
    
    	What amazes me is his speed on both instruments; recalling that the
    Synthaxe fret spacing doesnt get smaller as you go up scale. No prob
    for Alan! He can do either instrument at top speed.
    
    	Joe