ARP2600 - Fundamentals of Music Technology - Cyborgstudio.com

SECTION13KEYBOARD CONTROLSA KEYBOARD WITH HISTORYSince the ARP 2600 was in production for such along time, it underwent many changes. Some of thefirst changes were very obvious. The color of thecabinet was changed from blue to gray and the overallshape and construction of the cabinet housing werechanged drastically. The most obvious changes afterthe early changes were changes to the keyboard.ARP produced several different keyboards for the2600. The earliest keyboards were the model 3601keyboards. These keyboards were highly distinctivesince they had a long wooden handle that stretchedtheir entire length. Their two control knobs are onthe front of the keyboard rather than the top. Theyoffered minimal control and required two cables toconnect to the cabinet. These units are as rare as theblue and gray cabinets they accompanied.These 2600’s (distinguished by the long woodenhandles) are commonly referred to as “blue meanies”or “gray meanies” for many reasons, not the least ofwhich is that some of the circuit boards inside themare sealed in epoxy. Repairing a circuit like this is no Figure 13-1: The keyboard’s control paneleasy task and is considered by many to be impossible.Persons selling 2600’s today will often incorrectly advertise them as ‘gray meanies’ simply becausethey have a gray cabinet or epoxied modules. However, a true gray meanie is the most rare of allof the 2600’s and can easily be distinguished by its long wooden handle. Some people estimate thatonly five or six of these units were ever built. A true gray meanie typically brings two to three times asmuch as a gray-faced 2600 such as the one pictured in this book.Notice in Figure 13-1 that the keyboard control panel has orange markings on it, indicating that it wasone of the last ARP produced. This particular keyboard does not match the cabinet pictured in thisbook. However, many synthesists prefer the added features of a late version of the keyboard along withthe sound of an earlier version of the cabinet (i.e. one with a Moog-style filter).When ARP started producing 2600’s covered in Tolex, the design of the keyboard was changed tomatch it. The unit’s physical depth was greatly reduced, and the long wooden handle was replaced witha small plastic one. These models were dubbed the 3606, and are fairly common. They required onlyone cable rather than two to connect to the cabinet, and offered control over portamento and interval.098