[sdiy] GRP Genesi

Sat Jul 11 02:45:47 CEST 2026

Cherry Audio has a Pro Soloist plug in with many of the extra ("under the
hood") control capabilities you speak of, in addition to a mod matrix,
split and layer functions, and several other niceties. I'm sure it requires
a good keyboard with aftertouch to really get the most out of it.
https://cherryaudio.com/products/pro-soloist

Tim (Amateur Soloist) Servo
---
"Imagination is more important than knowledge." - Albert Einstein

On Fri, Jul 10, 2026 at 3:36 PM Michael E Caloroso via Synth-diy <
synth-diy at synth-diy.org> wrote:

> The ProSoloist/DGX architecture is unique and none of ARP's other synths
> had that architecture.  And the routing of filters and EGs changed between
> presets.  So no, the Explorer is nothing like the PS.  Several of the
> presets - not just the Fuzz Guitar - are inimitable on any other
> non-modular synth.
>
> You were not alone sneering at "preset synths"...  I was also arrogant
> owning synths with a panel full of knobs and switches.  A friend offered to
> sell his PS to me for a good price, and I thought "gee this sounds pretty
> darn good".  The aftertouch is stellar.  When I assign AT to volume and
> pitch, I can get a natural sounding vibrato.  None of my other gear with
> aftertouch could duplicate that effect.  The new GRP module misses out on
> the aftertouch.
>
> I wasn't keen on the early Genesis/Tony Banks' connection when I bought my
> PS, so my exploration of the PS was not biased by Genesis.  While the Fuzz
> Guitar presets are good, many of the other presets sound organic.  The
> flute preset is uncanny - I can hear a tone an octave above the
> fundamental, but there's nothing in the circuit that generates the octave
> tone!
>
> A lot of inspiration came from the 2500 modular when laying out the
> architecture in the design phase - voltage controlled filters, fixed
> highpass/bandpass filters, PWM.  I've never seen any schematic for the
> early Soloist to compare its architecture to the ProSoloist.  I know that
> the Soloist had the 4027 (or 4017?) VCO module, probably the 4020 EG
> modules, the fixed filters were encapsulated in modules, and a resistor
> matrix to configure the presets.  Due to premature degradation, the
> aftertouch element did not have a long life in the Soloist.  When it was
> first shown at NAMM, Jeremy Hill was busy fixing Soloists that were
> breaking.  I've seen one YT video of a restoration of a Soloist and they
> were NOT service friendly!
>
> After the poor reliability became known in the field, the decision was
> made to design the ProSoloist.
>
> Many owners dreamed about hacking a panel full of controls into a PS...
> not worth the effort as you would be limited to VERY discrete settings of
> EG, filter cutoff/resonance, etc.  Other than VCF cutoff, those sections
> are not CV controlled - IE the ADSR elements were limited to 3-4 discrete
> values per stage set by resistors that were shorted to ground via the OC
> outputs of the ROMs.  There's no way to get continuous control of those
> sections.
>
> MC
>
>
>
> On Fri, Jul 10, 2026 at 3:23 PM Paul McLean <keysndrums at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> In my youth I would sneer at any preset synth (though I did enjoy fooling
>> around with the ProSoloist in the music store). Not for anyone serious
>> about synthesis and only for people who couldn't be bothered, or didn't
>> have the wearwithal to learn. (Funny how arrogant we can be in our youth).
>>
>> The thing is, you can't discount how GREAT the ProSoloist/ProDGX sounds!
>> And you can't sneer at folks like Steve Walsh, Tony Banks, Denish DeYoung,
>> Michael Bodicker, Suzanne Cianni and the tons of other artists that used
>> the thing. Just can't replicate that "Fuzz Guitar 1" preset.
>>
>> I found myself buying a ProDGX a few years ago and love it.
>>
>> I've been amazed at just how much synthesis capability the ProSoloist/DGX
>> has; VCO (w/PWM), voltage-controlled low-pass filter,  4 high-pass filters,
>> 10 band-pass filters, AR and ADSR envelopes, plus all the aftertouch
>> options. I asked SynthChaser about the possibility of patching one out, but
>> that guy is way too busy!
>>
>> Pity ARP didn't develop it further.
>>
>> Btw, I always read about how the ARP Explorer was a more patchable
>> sort-of ProSoloist. I played an Explorer for a while and I can assure they
>> have little in common beyond the shape of the case. Just sayin'...
>>
>> - Paul McLean
>> Denver, CO
>>
>> On Mon, Jul 6, 2026 at 9:42 PM Donald Tillman <don at till.com> wrote:
>>
>>> On Jul 6, 2026, at 5:25 PM, Michael E Caloroso via Synth-diy <
>>> synth-diy at synth-diy.org> wrote:
>>> >
>>> >
>>> >
>>> > Other competitors - Moog, Roland, Yamaha, etc - had their preset
>>> synths but none lasted as long as the PS [...]
>>>
>>> Nobody else had the Tony Banks solo from Genesis' "Cinema Show".
>>>
>>>   -- Don
>>> --
>>> Donald Tillman, Palo Alto, California
>>> https://till.com
>>>
>>>
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