I’m new to the forum and can’t figure out the difference between these boards or if it’s even the right option for me. I make hip-hop beats and need synths and drum kits (808 type style). Mo skool sounds good and I’m thinking about getting that but I’m sure I will wear the synths out soon. I wanted to know which board has the most flexibilty as far as editing so i can create my own sounds.. And there’s tons of libraries out there for way less, will one board honestly be better than 150 dollars worth of synth libraries? I don’t own any plg boards so I don’t know what other capabilities they may have.

Re: difference between plg150dx and plg150an

The PLG150-AN provides a synthesizer based on subtractive analog synthesis. It’s a virtual analog synth, which is modeled to sound like the classic synths of old (allegedly heavily based on the Prophet 5), and it’s a very capable board for making all sorts of analog synth sounds from progressive rock leads and pads all the way through to sounds found in more modern genres.

The PLG150-DX is the equivalent of the classic DX7. It’s synthesis method is totally different and based on frequency modulation. I think the DXs have come back in vogue in modern music for bass sounds and the “classic FM bass sound”

What’s the difference between the two? Quite a lot. Analog synth sounds tend to be warm, thick and lush. FM sounds tend to be more reminiscent of natural instruments, a little thinner than analog synths but far more responsive to playing dynamics, and much more suited for creating percussion and bell sounds. But FM can also be thick and lush when properly programmed.

As to which is most suitable for you, I can’t really answer that as “modern music” is lost on me! At a guess, I would say the AN board would be more suitable based on the patches I’ve heard available on my AN1x that are aimed at modern styles.

Personally, for my style of music (progressive rock and ambient styles) I have several flavors of both analog and FM synthesis in my sound rig, and I wouldn’t be without either. I wouldn’t expect FM to do a thick stacked and detuned mono synth lead (with all available voices on one note) that an AN1x or PLG150-AN can do, but neither would I expect an analog synth to produce dynamic and expressive marimbas, kotos, harps, etc. that my FS1R and SY77 can do.

Re: difference between plg150dx and plg150an

Considered getting the plg150an until I looked up some reviews, and most people seem to think its not worth the money. I hear to do any real editing you need to use the editor on your computer which probably wouldn’t be a problem for me, but I’ve read here of people getting 2 or 3 for some reason, whats that about? I thought one was expensive enough, not that the money would be so much of an issue if it was actually worth it, but for 800 dollars I’d rather invest an extra 200 towards an MPC. What’s the popular opinion here? I’m hoping the reviews I read were from people who didn’t know any better because I want one of these boards, but as for now I think I’m just purchasing libraries.

Re: difference between plg150dx and plg150an

The PLG150-AN is a model of an analog synthesizer. Analog synths roamed the planet between the years of 1971 and around the mid 1980’s… they evolved from single and duo-note polyphony and maxxed out at about 8 notes of polyphony… (Yes, yes, I know about the Matrix 12 and the Prophet 10… but they were actually two Matrix 6’s and two Prophet 5’s in the same box).

So limited polyphony was normal for analog synthesizers. Arguably the most popular polyphonic analog synth was the Prophet V (which sold for about $5200 back in 1982 dollars).

So at about $1000 per note of polyphony and the amount of heat they generated - they sort of went away… The larger they got the more heat the generated and they had major issues with staying in tune.

Other devices that looked and sounded like analog synths came along that increased polyphony - but they were really just glorified electronic organs. (Like the PolyMoog)

Anyway, the PLG150-AN is just 5 notes of polphony - if you get one, you must be comfortable with that. That is the nature of the beast. If you never owned an analog synth, this undoubtedly will seem wierd to you… but that is what analog was all about. They did not do emulative sounds… they were used principally for leads, pads and basses… Beyond that the sounds were simply described as “synth” sounds.

You can get a second PLG150-AN and get a 10 note engine. And if you get a third you will have 15 notes of polyphony (there was never a real analog synthesizer with that many notes of polyphony!!!) But that is what it is about.

(Other) people’s opinions of any sound - can/should always be taken with a grain of salt - and you should form your own opinion (it is allowed and highly recommended) because when you are looking for a sound for YOUR music, only YOU should be the judge.

Analog sounds very much ‘behave’ different from sample-based sounds and that is the appeal. The PLG150-AN is a virtual analog synthesizer (means there are no samples or digital recordings of any kind - it emulates the real deal! ...even though it is all done digitally, it is based on, or modeled after, the old voltage control system). 1Volt per octave… this is why old analog synths had such problems with tuning - the voltage changed and they would go out of tune!

Hope that helps. There are audio demos of the PLG boards and you can make up your own mind: 
PLG Expansion boards listen to the MP3 Demos