Moog Grandmother

It wouldn’t be a Moog without the
classic 24dB transistor-ladder fi lter,
which here offers controls for Cutoff,
Resonance, and (bi-polar) Envelope
Amount, along with a three-position
switch for setting up two different
key-tracking amounts. Jacks are
provided for Input, Output, Envelope
Amount In, and Cutoff In. You
needn’t be told that the fi lter sounds
brilliant – you’ve heard it before. It
is, of course, capable of self-
oscillation, and can be played in
tune from the keyboard.
The lone Envelope generator is a
typical four-stage affair, with knobs
for Attack, Decay, and Release, and
a vertical slider for Sustain. Jacks
include Trigger In and both positive
and negative outputs.
There’s an LFO, hardwired to the
mod wheel with Sine, Saw, Ramp,
and Square waves. You get a knob
that controls the rate, and three
more determine the amount of
modulation sent to oscillator pitch,
fi lter cutoff, or the pulse width of
offers jacks for VCA In, VCA Amount
In, and Reverb In. A three-position
switch allows the VCA to be
controlled by the envelope generator
or set to drone indefi nitely. The third
option is Keyboard Release mode.
This acts as something of a limited
envelope generator, with an
instantaneous attack, full sustain
and a release time determined by
the release time of the main ADSR.
This doesn’t quite make up for the
lack of a second envelope generator,
but it helps.
both oscillators. Modulation patch
points include Rate In, Sync In,
Wave Out, and Sample & Hold Out.
This last one really is a nice touch,
as it can be used alongside the
selected LFO waveform.
Spring chickens
The LFO can be pushed into the
audio range and can be played from
the keyboard, sequencer/arpeggiator,
or over MIDI or via CV inputs. This
allows for some huge three-oscillator
sounds. The Grandmother’s VCA
ARP & SEQUENCER
The Grandmother’s Arp/Seq controls occupy the vertical sliver of yellow along the left-hand
side. Here, you can switch between the arpeggiator and a 256-note sequencer. A three-
position switch is used to toggle between the arpeggiator and the sequencer record modes.
The arpeggiator is standard stuff – switch it on, hold down a fi stful of notes, and the
Grandmother will dutifully play them back in the order in which they were played. You can
also choose forward/backward or random play. You can elect to play only the notes played,
or repeat an octave higher or one octave higher and then two octaves higher.
The sequencer mode allows for more complex passages. Up to three sequences may be
stored in memory (retained
between power cycles). It’s
strictly a step sequencer –
no real time recording –
with notes entered from the
keyboard itself. Rests, ties,
and accents are entered
using the three buttons
above the pitch and mode
wheels. Recorded
sequences can be latched
and transposed on the fl y
by pressing any key.
The toggle switch used for
selecting the arpeggiator’s
octave is also used to select
which of the three stored
sequences is played.
THE ALTERNATIVES
Moog Mother-32
£520
Moog’s other
semi-modular has
more of a modern
character and lacks
the playability of the
Grandmother. It’s
compact and more
affordable though
moogmusic.com
Korg MS-20 mini
£420
The MS-20 reissue
is a few years old
now, but remains a
bargain source of
retro semi-modular
synth tones
korg.com
Arturia
MiniBrute 2 £485
Arturia’s semi-
modular doesn’t
have the retro Moog
heritage or spring
reverb, but it’s
arguably better
equipped overall
arturia.com
The Grandmother ticks
a lot of boxes. It’s an ideal
instrument on which to
learn the basics of synthesis
Reviews | Moog Grandmother
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