The ARP 2600 is without a doubt one of the finest analog synthesizers ever. It is very popular and has been used by artists for over 20 years in all forms of music, especially today's electronic music.

Extended information

The 2600 is a professional, semi-modular, monophonic, patch-cable synthesizer that competed directly against the first professional Modular Moog synths during the early 1970's. Unlike other modular systems of the time which required you to pick and choose modules that you (or the manufacturer) then had to mount inside a case and wire together, the 2600 is semi-modular with a fixed selection of basic synth modules internally pre-wired and ready to go! Most of these connections can be "re-wired" with patch-cords and clearly labeled patch-points. This made the 2600 more user-friendly, portable and easier to create sounds with!

The 2600 is a 3-VCO analog beast capable of creating some amazing sounds thanks to exclusive ARP technologies. Truly a model of analog synthesis, the 2600 has plenty of switches & sliders to satisfy all your tweak-able needs. You have the freedom to route the sounds that originate from its oscillators anywhere you want. If you have a keen understanding of signal-flow and understand how the different synth modules operate, you can create some of the most musically expressive analog sounds ever! It even has a built-in spring reverb, amp and stereo speakers.

There's a lot of history here, and we think we've finally sifted through all the myths & rumors & disinformation to finally have a good breakdown of all the different versions of the 2600 that have existed over its decade-long production run. They are all a little bit different, some with changes due to instability issues, some due to legal issues, and some for cosmetic reasons. It's accepted that while the 2600's became more reliable and serviceable as their production progressed, they also became worse sounding, especially among models made after 1972. The best sounding models are the oldest and rarest.

Technical specifications

# Polyphony - Monophonic
# Oscillators - 3 VCOs: VCO 1 saw / sqr; VCO 2 saw / sqr / tri / pulse / sine; VCO 3 saw / sqr / pulse (Model 4011 VCO on early 2600s, replaced by Model 4017 VCO, replaced by Model 4027 & 4027-1); White Noise Gen: Continually variable from LF to pink to white (Model 4016 Noise Gen replaced by Model 4022).
# LFO - Patchable with tons of modulation sources and shapes; Model 4015 Sample and Hold.
# Filter - 24db lowpass, self-oscillating; Digital Ring Modulator: AC or DC coupled. Model 4012 VCF (1970-76). Model 4072 VCF (1976-81).
# VCA - Env 1: ADSR
Env 2: AR; Linear or Exponential control; Envelope Follower
Model 4010 VCA on early 2600s, replaced by Model 4019 VCA.
# Effects - Spring Reverb
# Keyboard - Remote Keyboard with 49 keys (Models: 3601, 3604, 3620)
# Arpeg/Seq - YES via ARP Model 1601 Sequencer
# Control - CV/GATE

Information above is courtesy of www.vintagesynth.com