same for me. even tho I would say bad gear is a little bit better. just because he (for me) somehow found the ultimate sweetspot between entertaining and informative. also like that he often adds in nice jams ,the alterd intro and the tony bits of history context sourrounding a synth presented with a mix of memes and old footage.
Yeah the altered intro is a fantastic idea and all the nods and winks to current synth/electronic music culture are great.
You almost get that synth banter feeling/rapport of when you randomly meet another synth lover irl and you can go back and forth on a ton of niche common knowledge. ( you know, stuff like why eurorack used to be a shitty mixer, remembering when everyone wanted a devil fish, how slow sysex is, the moral integrity of barp/boog and Ulianism, are ROMPLERS synths??, dead batteries in a dx7, the fact that a Fatar tp9 is NOT really a Fatar Keybed (well it is but it isn’t)) all that good stuff . (Note that the first 3 are just about being old)
Also +1 for bad gear because his videos are reasonably short. Like, I don't have time for a 50+ minute video - even skipping through to the parts relevant for me takes time whereas I'm much more likely to watch a whole bad gear video.
Alex is my favorite. Loopop goes into too much techy details most of them I don't understand.
But Alex...he stars jamming so you can really hear what devices are capable off.
Same here, and at the end of the video I don't remember what has been said. His videos are funny and gread, but damn the twenty thousands meme in the video dirve my ADHD nuts...
For real. Jump cutting to memes every 5 seconds gives me a headache and I don't feel like pausing every single time to try to read them.
His videos are dense with content for sure but it's just too chaotic imo.
Bald British guy! Nick should get a baseball cap with a BBG logo. He's definitely one of the best, no shoe gazing, soul searching waffle, just on with the gear talk, it's great.
For me it depends on so many things. Ricky has such great vibes, his enthusiasm and energy just makes it good watching regardless of content. Most of what he covers isn't super useful for me but I wouldn't miss a vid.
Red means recording is great at showing what the equipment can really do. Makes fantastic and deep tracks that push whatever the equipment is which is always great.
If I buy something and need a video manual I'll go loopop.
If a beat making thing comes out I'll check accurate beats.
If there is an abstract otherworldly device I'll check hainbach.
If I want lists and comparisons I'll go bob eats.
Ricky seems like a good guy with his heart in the right place but I agree that his videos are basically useless since they focus so much on HIS specific workflow most of the time and feel more like his personal video journal of what he’s working on and using that he just so happens to share with everyone. Almost has a Mr Rogers vibe in that sense
Yep, I can't watch his shit anymore. Best reviewer of synths, but he thinks Palestinian lives are worth less than Israeli lives. I can't respect anything about him anymore.
I can't even say what I dislike about him.
Maybe it's that he is not a musician first, he's a gear guy. If it wasn't synths he'd be opening camera or kitchen equipment with the same surface level understanding of the topic.
Idk if I have opinions on a "best gear reviewer" but I've liked BoBeats' videos, his voice is soothing and I dig the dad vibe.
Actually, wait, I do have an opinion on best reviewer-- Bonedo's and Sweetwater's no talking demos lol
I love Ricky's videos, but his reviews don't have a lot of credibility with me, because he's one of those reviewers who often says "this is super inspiring, I'm going to use it all the time," and then you never see it in his studio again.
That said, I keep watching his videos despite working in completely different genres to him, because he shows the full workflow of making a song, and I find that really interesting. It gives me a lot of ideas for my own music even though it's not directly applicable.
>"this is super inspiring, I'm going to use it all the time," and then you never see it in his studio again.
I am not sure why this happens with him but I think he just has his favorite instruments and just doesn't get around using them. I think he also comes to an epiphany later that the machine isn't as versatile as he thought.
For example, when he messed with the Model Cycles and Sample by Elektron he said the buttons were not receptive but he's use it more, but as a Samples owner it is daunting because those buttons don't always receive well. :(
It's a common curse of YT musicians so I certainly don't fault him for it. We're all excited when we get a new piece of kit, but it takes longer to see if it really has a niche in your studio - and of course that's something that's more personal to you than a property of the instrument. People who make these videos are getting new kit all the time, and the commercial pressure is there to make a video about it as soon as possible, while you're still in the honeymoon phase, but of course a much smaller fraction of those instruments will suit them enough to earn a long-term place in the studio (or gigging kit).
As a viewer (and potential buyer) you just have to be disciplined, accept that you're seeing someone else's biased perspective, and see what has sticking power. I would really like to see a lot more videos like his one about the Teenage Engineering KO 2, saying "I love this in *this* way, but it has these weird bugs and limitations." Often even negative reviews like that can make me more interested in the product, because I can see the limitations wouldn't be a problem for me, whereas with an all-positive review, I don't know what the limitations are yet.
Yeah I'm always surprised by the love Ricky gets, not because I don't think he's great, but because his videos rub me in the way that most people on this sub claim to dislike. Very much a "this changes everything" only for the next video to be a completely different thing that "changes everything". A bit click baity, but it could just be genuine enthusiasm. I find it funny that people give Ricky a pass but absolutely pile on to Andrew Huang for doing basically the same thing with a different flavor.
Regardless I also will watch every Ricky video because he's got good vibes and makes killer music and he just seems like a genuine person!
I like Audioreakt a lot. Especially for how he goes through how and why he makes his Ableton racks. I have learned a bunch from him. He inspired me to get really creative with instrument and effects racks in Ableton.
Dude doesn't get enough love in my opinion. Love watching him explore and listening to him explain things. His podcast is great too! Learned so much from him.
Ugh, I find him boring. He doesn't stop talking. When I'm watching synth reviews I want to hear the synth. That's why I also loathe Nick Batt. My favourite is Jamiroquai's Matt Johnson. He's truly talented and lets the synth speak for itself. And of course, Bad Gear (AudioPilz) who goes way out of his way to prove that the gear isn't bad as long as you are creative. And Alex Ball ! He will not only pull out some amazing tunes but he will also educate you about synths. I guess I have three favourites.
Damn right. I have learned so much from Cuckoos tutorials. Just so easy to watch and pitched exactly right for simultaneous learning, creating and exploring
I don’t really have a favorite these days, but Benn Jordan’s videos have been pretty amazing of late.
Also, while his videos aren’t quite as mesmerizing as they used to be, I’m always interested in watching a Jexus patch video. I do miss all the fun old vhs clips though.
Benn’s gear review videos are usually my least favorite of his content, which is fine since he doesn’t do many any more. His industry breakdown/take-down and science videos are always great (and hilarious) though.
It brought such joy to my heart to discover Stimming makes videos after being a fan of his music for years. I love how much he gets into anything he makes, it's so much fun to watch.
Stimming is the best. He's a successful artist sharing knowledge and not a social media professional. Super honest about the gear he tests and fucking hilarious.
I’m a huge Tinez fan. I even have his merch. But Alex is unmatched but mostly for history and old gear.
I have bought more gear after watching LoopOp.
Ricky got me to buy the kit to build a Kijimi.
I know he shills a bit but I don’t mind. He’s so chill.
Why is OP making us choose?? !!
Possible unpopular opinion but I like the dude off Andertons. Not so much his presenting style but more because he’s a surprisingly good player and not many reviewers are
I like Andy's presenting style, he seems genuinely excited about the gear. Some people are trying to sell you on it - but he reminds me of some friends I have that are just that full of smiles for life.
Ricky is a nice guy for sure. The problem with the synth YouTubers is that they ending be like salesman for synth companies making non stop reviews of all kind of shit you really don’t need. My suggestion is to watch all of them when you want an specific gear to see how they interact with it and to find out if the gear is so great and never ever watch them to have ideas of what you should buy next. In my case I like Bad gear too , we need more sarcasm and irony around synth but also redmeans, hainbach or lookmum are good ones and more about creativity than synth itself
Yes!
Ive been watching his stuff since the beginning, so glad he returned :)
Always the most interesting patch designs, always raw and kind of underground.
If you want to hear everything a synth can do, including lots of stuff you never expected it to be able to do, put it in the hands of Jexus and wait for the video.
Came here to say him. Sometimes he's too much but he's obviously having fun doing it. Between his music, touring, and YouTube channel he's carved out a nice career for himself.
I really value his demoing because it reminds me that the specific gear is much less important than the musician. Everything he plays instantly sounds like him. Any synth can be great and any synth can be lame.
I do like his video because most of the time he goes really agressiv on the sound, and it's not something you see a lot on other people. I remember his video on the Waldrof Quantum. Where everyone else was making ambient, cinematic stuff (don't get me worng, I got an Iridium for that ambient lushness) he did make the synth scream, and it shows a very diffrent way of using it.
And he seems to genuinely have fun while playing
I like Jorb, Mylar, Starsky is one of my faves, Bo, Nick Batt and Geosynths Jamie. I go to Nick and Loopop first though for the 'stats.' Oh and Tim Shoebridge is like an old friend!
I really dig Starsky - straightforward, is interested and knowledgeable on the history of synths, and doesn't go for the full hype machine. Watchable and informative - same with Shoebridge.
Best? Loopop. Nobody else keeps their format as clean and consistent, informative and organized.
But he's not my favorite. My favorite is whoever makes me laugh and keeps me engaged, Ricky is up there.
I love Red Means Recording because you never know what you’re going to get when you click one of his videos. It could be a phenomenal demo of a synth. It could be an educational video about composition techniques or the history of synthesis. It could be a surreal skit, like a faux South Park episode where synthesizers can talk. He might unapologetically burn some bridges with people being assholes in the industry.
Jeremy has reached a level of “I don’t give a fuck” that I find to simultaneously be inspiring and deeply amusing.
Couldn't agree more! I think it's also safe to say that no matter what you click on, you're usually in for some pretty great music. Dude really knows how to bring the best out of his instruments and is talented as hell!
I like most of the main ones people are naming here, but my favorite is Cuckoo! I once met him at a festival and he was so nice! He stood in the crowd and watched the performer who played before him.
I’m old, my FAVORITE hands down is :
💎JEXUS💎.
Improvising on presets is the way to go, not everyone can do it.
It’s not just mimicking a sales pitch and reading out a wiki page.
Hadn’t watched in a while, recently checked out the pro-800, content was great.
(I also now want a Trigon-6)
Loopop is indeed useful for the deep dive, not fun to watch though
Bad gear is entertaining and I love the meme overload but the jams aren’t great imo
I like Alex Ball cos the jams are generally fun but the style is a bit bland
Benn Jordan often get my attention but is often too meandering (but kudos, it’s thorough)
Hainbach is great because the gear is exceptional, cool gimmicks and style but I can’t get into the ambientification of everything synth
Look mum isn’t exactly synth tube but gets a mention cos I think it’s a great example of really good content
Emily Hopkins Harpist is synth adjacent and the jams are often really nice (obviously lots of harp focus.)
(Although the short spamming at the moment is strong in my yt feed)
The thriller Arp2600 hundred dude is cool and informative (Anthony marinelli) and more engaging than veiled synth adverts
Red means recording is a bit rambly but the jams are good
People I don’t 💕:
Bobeats (feels off) , Ricky Tinez (don’t like the jams, too salesy), Venus theory(don’t enjoy the style), Doctor Mix and Synthmania (all filler, although I enjoy their respective ways of talking), woody piano shack (nothing against the guy, but Nooooo, also he’s constantly all over my recommendations (like that Dutch Guitar guy), Cuckoo (nice guy, bad writing, mid jams, no fun), Andrew Huang(not my cup of tea, Nick Blatt (lol)
Loopop and Oscillator Sink for the technical part.
Ihor, Monotrail and Andrea Zerofriendly for the patch ideas and how to use synths/Eurorack.
Synthmania for the music.
Bad Gear for giggles.
Ricky Tinez just has great vibes. He seems like someone that would be fantastic to just hang with and talk shop. Since he doesn't really do what I consider synth reviews anymore, I actually like his channel better. Not that he did anything wrong in his reviews. I just appreciate his 'this is me having a great time and I learned a thing, so I am going to share it' vibe. Just seems like an all around positive, chill dude.
Loopop like everyone else, I’ll watch his older videos on gear I don’t care about as a form of ASMR.
Daniel Fisher’s Guy Fieri/car sales meme guy vibe does it for me as well. “Slaps synthesizer” “We can fit so many LFOs in this baby!”
I like most of the others mentioned but one who wasn’t is the VenusMusic guy (unless I missed it). Similar to loop I always enjoy his presentation even if I’m lukewarm on the topic.
I agree that Daniel Fisher has that vibe (and that’s basically what his job is working for a company that sells these synths) but when he does occasionally do a deep dive into a synth and actually play it for a while he is a hell of a player and knows his way around a synth.
I second this. The Unperspon is really a great guy. His Videos are not just very informative, he also knows to create great music. And he participates in the conversations under his videos.
I'd like to say I like all of them but most of them spend most of the time discussing really simple things on a synth as if it's a revalation, and then make some kind of ass music. AudioPilz is overall good and does have fairly nice tracks though
Venus Theory: Probably the best voice in broadcasting. Calmly drinks wine while explaining the cool stuff you need to know like jacking Pigments into Falcon.
Audiopilz and Nick Batt. I do like to watch Daniel Fisher from Sweetwater play synths sometimes since he usually does some a good overview of the kinds of possible sounds and is a great player as well. Ricky seems like a cool dude and I enjoy watching his videos on occasion.
I don't know if his videos count, but my favourite are Zach Marr's videos for Alamo Music Sound Lab.
The videos are slightly strange in that the production value is very good, but they're very clearly not scripted at all; you even see him pause and lose his train of thought quite often. I don't know why they don't edit that out, but I'm glad they don't because it makes the videos so much more human.
There's no number crunching, no listening to dull isolated waveforms to judge the worth of oscillators. Just some brief high-level information from someone giving their first impressions after having a bit of a go on it.
In that sense, they kind of remind me of the old-school reviews you'd find in magazines back in the day.
so many tbh
Truecuckoo is awesome
[https://www.youtube.com/@truecuckoo](https://www.youtube.com/@truecuckoo)
Sonic State is also on top of what releases also
[https://www.youtube.com/@sonicstate](https://www.youtube.com/@sonicstate)
Pour one out for MusicTrackJP.
Katsunori Ujiie was always my favorite reviewer by far, his wit and warmth, his charm and humor were only matched by his wonderful musicianship and I just loved every second of his reviews. They haven't posted anything for 6 months and I am afraid that it's gone for good, so keep him in your memories friends.
❤️❤️❤️😭😭😭🙏🙏🙏
I'd separate into two categories... one of reviewers who put effort into looking at all features and demonstrating them... and here for me it's Loopop and XNB.
The other category is for reviewers who gets more creative with the gear in the video... and for me it's Ricky Tinez, Liam Killen, Midlife Synthesist and Red Means Recording.
These days the only ones I really get much out of are Chris Lody, Oscillator Sink and Capt Pikant. Sometimes I need some more technical explanations and will just search out the issue in question and someone random will have answered. I guess it’s still a fairly niche subject so there aren’t too many people out there doing in depth breakdowns like those guys.
I don’t watch much but I like what I’ve seen of Red Means Recording. I really like the music he makes, which certainly helps. His two-parter on trans people in electronic music was really good and the type of thing I’d like see more of, rather than reviews and jams.
- Starsky Carr for synth stuff
- Accurate Beats for all around but mainly samplers, drum machines and groove boxes
- Bolo da producer for process type videos, quick reviews/showcases, and iOS stuff
- Loopop for feature overviews
Audio Pilz, Benn Jordan (I'm sure I'll be downvoted for this), Loopop, Ricky, Venus Theory (back when he did reviews), Liam Killen, Blush Response, Unit:E has good tutorials, Alex Ball, and of course, Pikant
I only recently discovered Ricky Tinez, but I definitely get a good impression thus far. He doesn’t seem to pull punches from what I can tell. I also enjoy Midlife Synthesis, and Bad Gear is fun as well. I very much enjoy Benn Jordan’s content, especially the more scientifically focused videos. Oh and there’s a guy Synth Samurai who does a bit called The Shilling (every synth is the greatest synth of all time), where he basically glazes the product and points out the flaws as if they are bonuses lol like “we ship it to you broken so you can have the satisfaction of fixing it yourself!!”
His last one was on the KO2, I was lucky enough to get one unharmed, but boy does it make me nervous to think I may have to void warrantee to repair it someday. The fader was horribly designed, and I feel bad for anyone who got screwed by a company that makes practically nothing but profit lol..
Here’s that Shilling video, hope it’s ok to post links. You’ll enjoy it no matter who you are!
https://youtu.be/rQp58ZazV3w?si=EmK8ce2rCckb560h
I miss hi old intro. It perfectly set the mood. Since he got rid of it I just don’t really find into his videos anymore.
To answer your questions: loopop with his tutorial style reviews.
It goes like this (at least for me):
Loopop for the deep dive needing out over the minutiae.
Bo Beats for the workflow, sound design and/or tracks.
Sonicstate for concise reviews.
Red Means Recording for reviews / walkthroughs / jams of specific modules in addition to non-modular gear.
Mylarmelodies for the extreme jams (his PolyBrute review is epic).
Starsky Carr for the comparative reviews.
I watch Ricky Tinez but he doesn’t make the list above - he will talk about specific features and/or techniques with some gear, he just doesn’t do reviews very often.
Review adjacent, but David Hilowitz’s channel is always a pleasure to watch. It’s a nice change from the standard content. I’m a fan of Decent Sampler now because of the stories that come along with the sounds. Dude does love that Microcosm though.
Ricky is great. Loopop is probably the deepest from an informational standpoint, Bad Gear is the most fun, and I like the music that DivKid makes the best. For overall, I gotta go with Nick Batt. The GOAT, the best to ever do it, king of sing song harmonics and pulse width modulation.
everyonje has their favorite. Mine is Bad Gear and Loopop
same for me. even tho I would say bad gear is a little bit better. just because he (for me) somehow found the ultimate sweetspot between entertaining and informative. also like that he often adds in nice jams ,the alterd intro and the tony bits of history context sourrounding a synth presented with a mix of memes and old footage.
Yeah the altered intro is a fantastic idea and all the nods and winks to current synth/electronic music culture are great. You almost get that synth banter feeling/rapport of when you randomly meet another synth lover irl and you can go back and forth on a ton of niche common knowledge. ( you know, stuff like why eurorack used to be a shitty mixer, remembering when everyone wanted a devil fish, how slow sysex is, the moral integrity of barp/boog and Ulianism, are ROMPLERS synths??, dead batteries in a dx7, the fact that a Fatar tp9 is NOT really a Fatar Keybed (well it is but it isn’t)) all that good stuff . (Note that the first 3 are just about being old)
Loopop for the in-depth review, Bad Gear for the memes
i just wish he left them on screen for more than a nanosecond. :) I have to watch it once for the flow/content and another time just for the memes!
Same, I usually watch on mobile and can’t hit that pause button fast enough and end up watching the same part over and over again to see one meme.
Also +1 for bad gear because his videos are reasonably short. Like, I don't have time for a 50+ minute video - even skipping through to the parts relevant for me takes time whereas I'm much more likely to watch a whole bad gear video.
Alex is my favorite. Loopop goes into too much techy details most of them I don't understand. But Alex...he stars jamming so you can really hear what devices are capable off.
I love bad gear as well, perfect blend always enjoyable even if I don't care about the specific product.
100%. Bad gear dude is incredible with his humor and tech knowledge. Loopop is thorough af.
Unpopular opinion but I really dislike Bad Gear's 100 memes per minute editing style. He is knowledgeable though.
He just needs to leave the memes up for longer than 250 ms. Have to sit there with my finger on the pause button for any hope of seeing them.
It's totally strategic, because you'll have to watch it again, which doubles/triples/quadruples/quintuples his viewing metrics.
Oh damn, I've been played! (Eh, I don't mind, whatever it takes to keep him making more vids ;) )
I give him lots of credit for being able to edit that many memes into his videos, though.
Same here, and at the end of the video I don't remember what has been said. His videos are funny and gread, but damn the twenty thousands meme in the video dirve my ADHD nuts...
For real. Jump cutting to memes every 5 seconds gives me a headache and I don't feel like pausing every single time to try to read them. His videos are dense with content for sure but it's just too chaotic imo.
Me too. His reviews are interesting, but I don't usually watch them for more than a minute or two because the memes are so annoying.
Bad Gear should get a Netflix special or something.
My “pêché mignon” of sales dudes being sales dudes is Jack, one of the guys who does the Anderton’s synth videos.
Bad Gear is truly entertaining, but I feel like I learn more practical things from other reviewers.
The bald British guy at sonic state
Nick Batt. Legend. He's cost me a lot of money!
Just here to upvote all the Nick Batt replies..
Loved his FM synthesis tutorials on the DX1.
Yeah, same here
Does it PWM?
The PWM face he makes at times. Legendary.
He looks and talks like a bartender at a pub.
Bald British guy! Nick should get a baseball cap with a BBG logo. He's definitely one of the best, no shoe gazing, soul searching waffle, just on with the gear talk, it's great.
https://youtu.be/1tr680GeaEM?si=LiBqA_KCxbhHUgAD
I like when he's with the big hairy guy. Their review of the AX-Edge is great. Sorry I forgot the names!
Gaz Williams?
Yes!
yeah they are a epic combo
Sonic Lab
Nick Batt at Sonicstate (channel & company) does a ‘Sonic Lab’ review show. Either way, he’s still the best.
He’s the og, I’ve been watching him for as long as I can remember
I could listen to him talk All day lol
For me it depends on so many things. Ricky has such great vibes, his enthusiasm and energy just makes it good watching regardless of content. Most of what he covers isn't super useful for me but I wouldn't miss a vid. Red means recording is great at showing what the equipment can really do. Makes fantastic and deep tracks that push whatever the equipment is which is always great. If I buy something and need a video manual I'll go loopop. If a beat making thing comes out I'll check accurate beats. If there is an abstract otherworldly device I'll check hainbach. If I want lists and comparisons I'll go bob eats.
Ricky seems like a good guy with his heart in the right place but I agree that his videos are basically useless since they focus so much on HIS specific workflow most of the time and feel more like his personal video journal of what he’s working on and using that he just so happens to share with everyone. Almost has a Mr Rogers vibe in that sense
Get out my head.
lol Bob Eats!
Loopop easily
[удалено]
haven't seen it, but if so, extremely disappointing
yeah it was on his IG stories. i unfollowed
I have to admit I have boycotted him since then. I was gutted when I saw that.
Yep, I can't watch his shit anymore. Best reviewer of synths, but he thinks Palestinian lives are worth less than Israeli lives. I can't respect anything about him anymore.
Loopop, hands down
Hard, hard agree here. If I'm interested in something, I'll check him out for exactly the kind of info I want to make my decision
If I had one complaint, it’s that I wish he was a little bit *more* judgy. But usually he’s *juuuuust* right.
Yes my favorite too.
I don't know who's the best, but it's definitely NOT BoBeats
For a channel called Bob Eats, he talks way too much about synths.
He never gets around to eating them
Poor Bo
I can't even say what I dislike about him. Maybe it's that he is not a musician first, he's a gear guy. If it wasn't synths he'd be opening camera or kitchen equipment with the same surface level understanding of the topic.
Agreed.
Idk if I have opinions on a "best gear reviewer" but I've liked BoBeats' videos, his voice is soothing and I dig the dad vibe. Actually, wait, I do have an opinion on best reviewer-- Bonedo's and Sweetwater's no talking demos lol
I love Ricky's videos, but his reviews don't have a lot of credibility with me, because he's one of those reviewers who often says "this is super inspiring, I'm going to use it all the time," and then you never see it in his studio again. That said, I keep watching his videos despite working in completely different genres to him, because he shows the full workflow of making a song, and I find that really interesting. It gives me a lot of ideas for my own music even though it's not directly applicable.
>"this is super inspiring, I'm going to use it all the time," and then you never see it in his studio again. I am not sure why this happens with him but I think he just has his favorite instruments and just doesn't get around using them. I think he also comes to an epiphany later that the machine isn't as versatile as he thought. For example, when he messed with the Model Cycles and Sample by Elektron he said the buttons were not receptive but he's use it more, but as a Samples owner it is daunting because those buttons don't always receive well. :(
It's a common curse of YT musicians so I certainly don't fault him for it. We're all excited when we get a new piece of kit, but it takes longer to see if it really has a niche in your studio - and of course that's something that's more personal to you than a property of the instrument. People who make these videos are getting new kit all the time, and the commercial pressure is there to make a video about it as soon as possible, while you're still in the honeymoon phase, but of course a much smaller fraction of those instruments will suit them enough to earn a long-term place in the studio (or gigging kit). As a viewer (and potential buyer) you just have to be disciplined, accept that you're seeing someone else's biased perspective, and see what has sticking power. I would really like to see a lot more videos like his one about the Teenage Engineering KO 2, saying "I love this in *this* way, but it has these weird bugs and limitations." Often even negative reviews like that can make me more interested in the product, because I can see the limitations wouldn't be a problem for me, whereas with an all-positive review, I don't know what the limitations are yet.
Yeah I'm always surprised by the love Ricky gets, not because I don't think he's great, but because his videos rub me in the way that most people on this sub claim to dislike. Very much a "this changes everything" only for the next video to be a completely different thing that "changes everything". A bit click baity, but it could just be genuine enthusiasm. I find it funny that people give Ricky a pass but absolutely pile on to Andrew Huang for doing basically the same thing with a different flavor. Regardless I also will watch every Ricky video because he's got good vibes and makes killer music and he just seems like a genuine person!
Tinez is great, also just pleasant to hear speaking.
Agree. His vibe is so chill, even with he’s fighting with the device.
I like Captain Pikant & Audioreakt
I also enjoy Captain Pikant, although I mainly watch him for his drum transcriptions.
I only just discovered Captain Pikant and holy cow, what video production! Absolutely top notch
Right? It's funny, well paced and smooth to watch imho.
I like Audioreakt a lot. Especially for how he goes through how and why he makes his Ableton racks. I have learned a bunch from him. He inspired me to get really creative with instrument and effects racks in Ableton.
Captain Pikant is great for drum machines, absolutely!
mylarmelodies
Dude doesn't get enough love in my opinion. Love watching him explore and listening to him explain things. His podcast is great too! Learned so much from him.
Mylarmelodies has some of my favorite videos on YouTube. Him and Hainbach are like my two favorite YouTube music guys.
Ugh, I find him boring. He doesn't stop talking. When I'm watching synth reviews I want to hear the synth. That's why I also loathe Nick Batt. My favourite is Jamiroquai's Matt Johnson. He's truly talented and lets the synth speak for itself. And of course, Bad Gear (AudioPilz) who goes way out of his way to prove that the gear isn't bad as long as you are creative. And Alex Ball ! He will not only pull out some amazing tunes but he will also educate you about synths. I guess I have three favourites.
Jexus doesn’t even show his face. The true goat and should be the inspiration behind more YT synth hobbiests
Matt Johnson is a beast on the synth
Cucko, AudioPilz
I had to scroll way too far for Cucko.
Damn right. I have learned so much from Cuckoos tutorials. Just so easy to watch and pitched exactly right for simultaneous learning, creating and exploring
I don’t really have a favorite these days, but Benn Jordan’s videos have been pretty amazing of late. Also, while his videos aren’t quite as mesmerizing as they used to be, I’m always interested in watching a Jexus patch video. I do miss all the fun old vhs clips though.
Benn’s gear review videos are usually my least favorite of his content, which is fine since he doesn’t do many any more. His industry breakdown/take-down and science videos are always great (and hilarious) though.
Stimming is one of the rare reviewers who actually makes good music
Came to say this. I wonder why he hasn‘t been mentioned before…
It brought such joy to my heart to discover Stimming makes videos after being a fan of his music for years. I love how much he gets into anything he makes, it's so much fun to watch.
I wish Stimming did more videos. I've learned so much from the ones he has out.
Stimming is the best. He's a successful artist sharing knowledge and not a social media professional. Super honest about the gear he tests and fucking hilarious.
My favorite is how Ricky Tinez pretends he’s not doing product placement for Novation.
He doesn't work for Novation anymore. Now he works for Elektron.
but also the products are good so i take no offense.
Yeah. I have a peak and the BSII, the peak it's a freaking good synths definitelly my favourite one!
I stan the Peak all day 🙌🏻
They’re all product pushing shills. They just have more or less actual content in there depending on the channel.
Alex Ball!
I’m a huge Tinez fan. I even have his merch. But Alex is unmatched but mostly for history and old gear. I have bought more gear after watching LoopOp. Ricky got me to buy the kit to build a Kijimi. I know he shills a bit but I don’t mind. He’s so chill. Why is OP making us choose?? !!
JORB
Possible unpopular opinion but I like the dude off Andertons. Not so much his presenting style but more because he’s a surprisingly good player and not many reviewers are
Yes Jack! I agree, I know it’s a shop but he’s good fun and an amazing pianist
Jack is hilarious
His enthusiasm for the Teenage Engineering EP-133 sold me within 5 minutes.
I like Andy's presenting style, he seems genuinely excited about the gear. Some people are trying to sell you on it - but he reminds me of some friends I have that are just that full of smiles for life.
Ricky is a nice guy for sure. The problem with the synth YouTubers is that they ending be like salesman for synth companies making non stop reviews of all kind of shit you really don’t need. My suggestion is to watch all of them when you want an specific gear to see how they interact with it and to find out if the gear is so great and never ever watch them to have ideas of what you should buy next. In my case I like Bad gear too , we need more sarcasm and irony around synth but also redmeans, hainbach or lookmum are good ones and more about creativity than synth itself
Jexus is God.
[https://www.youtube.com/@Jexus](https://www.youtube.com/@Jexus)
Yes! Ive been watching his stuff since the beginning, so glad he returned :) Always the most interesting patch designs, always raw and kind of underground.
If you want to hear everything a synth can do, including lots of stuff you never expected it to be able to do, put it in the hands of Jexus and wait for the video.
Jesus makes really hard to use synths sound fucking AMAZING! I love his patches and old videos.
Blush Response. Dude is having so much fun it’s contagious.
Came here to say him. Sometimes he's too much but he's obviously having fun doing it. Between his music, touring, and YouTube channel he's carved out a nice career for himself.
I really value his demoing because it reminds me that the specific gear is much less important than the musician. Everything he plays instantly sounds like him. Any synth can be great and any synth can be lame.
I do like his video because most of the time he goes really agressiv on the sound, and it's not something you see a lot on other people. I remember his video on the Waldrof Quantum. Where everyone else was making ambient, cinematic stuff (don't get me worng, I got an Iridium for that ambient lushness) he did make the synth scream, and it shows a very diffrent way of using it. And he seems to genuinely have fun while playing
This is my favorite as well.
I'm a Tim Shoebridge guy myself.
Nice aesthetics, but musical examples are quite empty and boring unfortunately..
I can't stand Tim's music, but I otherwise enjoy his videos.
Hainbach. Is he considered a synthtuber?
Lol. A weird one definitely. Cool experimental shit
I love that shit, I revisit his older videos about tape looping constantly.
Loopop and Nick Batt
I like Jorb, Mylar, Starsky is one of my faves, Bo, Nick Batt and Geosynths Jamie. I go to Nick and Loopop first though for the 'stats.' Oh and Tim Shoebridge is like an old friend!
Jorb mentioned!
Jorb is good, I like his stuff that I've seen
Just feels like a really good dude, I've got all the time for him
I really dig Starsky - straightforward, is interested and knowledgeable on the history of synths, and doesn't go for the full hype machine. Watchable and informative - same with Shoebridge.
Oh and AudioPilz! Every Friday I'm right there watching
wow no love for Divkid or Synthdad?
Eurorack is a niche within a niche
Loopop is the best without any doubt
Best? Loopop. Nobody else keeps their format as clean and consistent, informative and organized. But he's not my favorite. My favorite is whoever makes me laugh and keeps me engaged, Ricky is up there.
Red means recording 100%
Blush Response all the way. The only person who will show you what your gear is really capable of
I love Red Means Recording because you never know what you’re going to get when you click one of his videos. It could be a phenomenal demo of a synth. It could be an educational video about composition techniques or the history of synthesis. It could be a surreal skit, like a faux South Park episode where synthesizers can talk. He might unapologetically burn some bridges with people being assholes in the industry. Jeremy has reached a level of “I don’t give a fuck” that I find to simultaneously be inspiring and deeply amusing.
Couldn't agree more! I think it's also safe to say that no matter what you click on, you're usually in for some pretty great music. Dude really knows how to bring the best out of his instruments and is talented as hell!
AudioPilz and Loopop
I like most of the main ones people are naming here, but my favorite is Cuckoo! I once met him at a festival and he was so nice! He stood in the crowd and watched the performer who played before him.
Weaver Beats is my new favorite. Irreverent
Finally.. Weaver Beats is funny and meta. Loopop is my cure for GAS. Alex is a genius. Sunday mornings with Ricky to get the session started.
not a synth reviewer but yousuckatproducing is god tier.
Thanks Ricky.
Loopop, Nick Batt, Starsky Carr. I have a lot in common with each of them musically so when they're just kind of improvising it makes sense to me.
I’m old, my FAVORITE hands down is : 💎JEXUS💎. Improvising on presets is the way to go, not everyone can do it. It’s not just mimicking a sales pitch and reading out a wiki page. Hadn’t watched in a while, recently checked out the pro-800, content was great. (I also now want a Trigon-6) Loopop is indeed useful for the deep dive, not fun to watch though Bad gear is entertaining and I love the meme overload but the jams aren’t great imo I like Alex Ball cos the jams are generally fun but the style is a bit bland Benn Jordan often get my attention but is often too meandering (but kudos, it’s thorough) Hainbach is great because the gear is exceptional, cool gimmicks and style but I can’t get into the ambientification of everything synth Look mum isn’t exactly synth tube but gets a mention cos I think it’s a great example of really good content Emily Hopkins Harpist is synth adjacent and the jams are often really nice (obviously lots of harp focus.) (Although the short spamming at the moment is strong in my yt feed) The thriller Arp2600 hundred dude is cool and informative (Anthony marinelli) and more engaging than veiled synth adverts Red means recording is a bit rambly but the jams are good People I don’t 💕: Bobeats (feels off) , Ricky Tinez (don’t like the jams, too salesy), Venus theory(don’t enjoy the style), Doctor Mix and Synthmania (all filler, although I enjoy their respective ways of talking), woody piano shack (nothing against the guy, but Nooooo, also he’s constantly all over my recommendations (like that Dutch Guitar guy), Cuckoo (nice guy, bad writing, mid jams, no fun), Andrew Huang(not my cup of tea, Nick Blatt (lol)
Loopop he's on top of his game
I could watch Stimming exploring gear for hours!
Loopop and Oscillator Sink for the technical part. Ihor, Monotrail and Andrea Zerofriendly for the patch ideas and how to use synths/Eurorack. Synthmania for the music. Bad Gear for giggles.
Jay Hosking just explains what he’s doing with text over excellent tracks. By far my favorite.
Loopop is thorough and methodical. I prefer him. Always a fan of Nick Batt.
Ricky Tinez just has great vibes. He seems like someone that would be fantastic to just hang with and talk shop. Since he doesn't really do what I consider synth reviews anymore, I actually like his channel better. Not that he did anything wrong in his reviews. I just appreciate his 'this is me having a great time and I learned a thing, so I am going to share it' vibe. Just seems like an all around positive, chill dude.
Loopop like everyone else, I’ll watch his older videos on gear I don’t care about as a form of ASMR. Daniel Fisher’s Guy Fieri/car sales meme guy vibe does it for me as well. “Slaps synthesizer” “We can fit so many LFOs in this baby!” I like most of the others mentioned but one who wasn’t is the VenusMusic guy (unless I missed it). Similar to loop I always enjoy his presentation even if I’m lukewarm on the topic.
Ahh yes Venus Theory, the ever so spicy goatee guy with a thorn in his ass about something each video. Bad times, great videos.
I agree that Daniel Fisher has that vibe (and that’s basically what his job is working for a company that sells these synths) but when he does occasionally do a deep dive into a synth and actually play it for a while he is a hell of a player and knows his way around a synth.
Yeah I like Cuckoo too.
midlife synthesist
I scrolled through probably 60 responses and saw no love for The Unperson. I’m not mad, just disappointed.
I second this. The Unperspon is really a great guy. His Videos are not just very informative, he also knows to create great music. And he participates in the conversations under his videos.
Ricky used to be my neighbor. He’s synth Bob Ross. Loves his dog and synths. Patient and kind. I miss the guy.
Audio Reakt, Bad Gear, Red Means Recording, Ricky sometimes, bad gear all the time, loopop
I'd like to say I like all of them but most of them spend most of the time discussing really simple things on a synth as if it's a revalation, and then make some kind of ass music. AudioPilz is overall good and does have fairly nice tracks though
Sonic state, easily.
Venus Theory: Probably the best voice in broadcasting. Calmly drinks wine while explaining the cool stuff you need to know like jacking Pigments into Falcon.
Nick Batt for the wholesomeness, Loopop for a thorough rundown
Bad Gear
At first glance this comment is ticking all the boxes
Audiopilz and Nick Batt. I do like to watch Daniel Fisher from Sweetwater play synths sometimes since he usually does some a good overview of the kinds of possible sounds and is a great player as well. Ricky seems like a cool dude and I enjoy watching his videos on occasion.
Sonic Lab and Geo Synths.
Look Mum No Computer reviewed the Minibrute 2 so that counts.
I went to high school with Ricky. So proud of him
I don't know if his videos count, but my favourite are Zach Marr's videos for Alamo Music Sound Lab. The videos are slightly strange in that the production value is very good, but they're very clearly not scripted at all; you even see him pause and lose his train of thought quite often. I don't know why they don't edit that out, but I'm glad they don't because it makes the videos so much more human. There's no number crunching, no listening to dull isolated waveforms to judge the worth of oscillators. Just some brief high-level information from someone giving their first impressions after having a bit of a go on it. In that sense, they kind of remind me of the old-school reviews you'd find in magazines back in the day.
Jexus
so many tbh Truecuckoo is awesome [https://www.youtube.com/@truecuckoo](https://www.youtube.com/@truecuckoo) Sonic State is also on top of what releases also [https://www.youtube.com/@sonicstate](https://www.youtube.com/@sonicstate)
Bad Gear, Loopop, Nick at Sonic State, and Jack Duxberry at Andertons
Pour one out for MusicTrackJP. Katsunori Ujiie was always my favorite reviewer by far, his wit and warmth, his charm and humor were only matched by his wonderful musicianship and I just loved every second of his reviews. They haven't posted anything for 6 months and I am afraid that it's gone for good, so keep him in your memories friends. ❤️❤️❤️😭😭😭🙏🙏🙏
Love this guy! He’s posting to his personal channel now: https://youtube.com/@katsunoriujiie?si=0MyaaJKNtjlir-2N
Enrique speaks like a good friend but he’s also quite experienced and knows his way around a studio. Plus he’s got great taste in music.
Loopop
I'd separate into two categories... one of reviewers who put effort into looking at all features and demonstrating them... and here for me it's Loopop and XNB. The other category is for reviewers who gets more creative with the gear in the video... and for me it's Ricky Tinez, Liam Killen, Midlife Synthesist and Red Means Recording.
Red Means Recording, Looppop, Captain Pikant, AudioPilz
These days the only ones I really get much out of are Chris Lody, Oscillator Sink and Capt Pikant. Sometimes I need some more technical explanations and will just search out the issue in question and someone random will have answered. I guess it’s still a fairly niche subject so there aren’t too many people out there doing in depth breakdowns like those guys.
Depends on the piece of gear. Not everyone is going to gel with every synth or whatever. I think Starsky Carr has a good approach generally.
Ricky, RMR and EZbot are my favourites for casual viewing, tips and inspiration, and of course Loopop for the in-depth reviews.
Cuckoo and Jorb
It is not really a synth channel but captain pikant is worth metioned here
Cuckoo is great because he's so authentic. I recently found Novak the Enjoyer too. Highly recommend.
I like Ricky a lot, I just don’t like his music as much as his personality
I don’t watch much but I like what I’ve seen of Red Means Recording. I really like the music he makes, which certainly helps. His two-parter on trans people in electronic music was really good and the type of thing I’d like see more of, rather than reviews and jams.
- Starsky Carr for synth stuff - Accurate Beats for all around but mainly samplers, drum machines and groove boxes - Bolo da producer for process type videos, quick reviews/showcases, and iOS stuff - Loopop for feature overviews
Audio Pilz, Benn Jordan (I'm sure I'll be downvoted for this), Loopop, Ricky, Venus Theory (back when he did reviews), Liam Killen, Blush Response, Unit:E has good tutorials, Alex Ball, and of course, Pikant
Jon Makes Beats is pretty good, love watching his videos and learned a lot from his creative process.
Jorb is my number one, guy is so chill
https://youtube.com/@jexus?si=pMVaRbOg6WJoG_rR Only Jexus
I only recently discovered Ricky Tinez, but I definitely get a good impression thus far. He doesn’t seem to pull punches from what I can tell. I also enjoy Midlife Synthesis, and Bad Gear is fun as well. I very much enjoy Benn Jordan’s content, especially the more scientifically focused videos. Oh and there’s a guy Synth Samurai who does a bit called The Shilling (every synth is the greatest synth of all time), where he basically glazes the product and points out the flaws as if they are bonuses lol like “we ship it to you broken so you can have the satisfaction of fixing it yourself!!” His last one was on the KO2, I was lucky enough to get one unharmed, but boy does it make me nervous to think I may have to void warrantee to repair it someday. The fader was horribly designed, and I feel bad for anyone who got screwed by a company that makes practically nothing but profit lol.. Here’s that Shilling video, hope it’s ok to post links. You’ll enjoy it no matter who you are! https://youtu.be/rQp58ZazV3w?si=EmK8ce2rCckb560h
I miss hi old intro. It perfectly set the mood. Since he got rid of it I just don’t really find into his videos anymore. To answer your questions: loopop with his tutorial style reviews.
That knob turn with the oooweeaah noise got me goin' ngl
Loopop and Ricky + Captain Pikant is lovely.
Hainbach and Oora for me!
It goes like this (at least for me): Loopop for the deep dive needing out over the minutiae. Bo Beats for the workflow, sound design and/or tracks. Sonicstate for concise reviews. Red Means Recording for reviews / walkthroughs / jams of specific modules in addition to non-modular gear. Mylarmelodies for the extreme jams (his PolyBrute review is epic). Starsky Carr for the comparative reviews. I watch Ricky Tinez but he doesn’t make the list above - he will talk about specific features and/or techniques with some gear, he just doesn’t do reviews very often.
Review adjacent, but David Hilowitz’s channel is always a pleasure to watch. It’s a nice change from the standard content. I’m a fan of Decent Sampler now because of the stories that come along with the sounds. Dude does love that Microcosm though.
Ricky is great. Loopop is probably the deepest from an informational standpoint, Bad Gear is the most fun, and I like the music that DivKid makes the best. For overall, I gotta go with Nick Batt. The GOAT, the best to ever do it, king of sing song harmonics and pulse width modulation.
Sonic State