After playing synths for 25 years, and going through the Crumars, the Chromas, the Oberheims, the Roland Jupiters and Junos, the JD's, the DX's and the Moog's, using them ALL in one way or another in the studio ro owning, THIS IS THE FIRST to grab my attention so much as to keep me awake all night for days exploring it. It is thick, 16 voice REAL analog, and its performance features (including especially the ribbon) make it a true behemoth. I WAS held back on this purhase because of Alesis' reported bankruptcy and purchase by Numark...I don't know what's gonna happen to this synths' support, but its the BEST REAL analog synth there has EVER been...no kidding.

There is a ton of heart in this machine. I hope and pray that the engineering/design team for this board is very well taken care of and is still working together. The system is logical, well laid out and a true beauty of ergonomics. I have gotten reports of a buggy OS, but I personally have had no problems.

If I could take one synth to my desert island, this would be it...well over my Fantom, JP8, Motif, JD's, Triton's, Kurzweils, Moogs, Prophets and Oberheims. There is enough here for EVERYBODY.

LONG LIVE ALESIS! BRING BACK ALESIS!

Feature:
Its an analog synth with the programmability of the most flexible digital synths around (Waldorf Q, Virus, etc). Its like an Oberheim Xpander in that respect, but with VCOs rather than DCOs and more polyphony. Extremely flexible envelopes that can be very fast. 16 part poly-multi. Incredible flexibility. The analog distortion is nice, although the digital FX arent too good. Its almost a modular in a keyboard... This is the most powerful analog synth ever, full stop.

Quality:
Can't say Ive had problems yet, so Ill give it a 10.

Value:
Its worth the money. Enough said.

Desirability:
Beyond sexy. It redefines sexy. This thing gave me a case of Gear Acquisition Syndrome for three years!

Sound:
Real analog definetly sounds different to virtual analog. Now do not get me wrong, VA's can be great instruments in their own right, but they cannot replace real analog. I like VA's, I like the dark dirty assault of the Virus and the slicey-clean-metallicness of the Nord 3, but the Andromeda is simply a totally different beast. For one, the oscillators sound, on non-sawtooth waves, much more solid and thick. A6 PWM disembowels Virus PWM. The bass you can program with this thing absolutely shakes the room... I programmed a 1 oscillator PWM+triangle wave bass and added the sines of both oscs in post-filter (with one sine an octave down) and the bass shook the table violently. I compared it to a 2 octave PWM+ triangle sub-osc + EQ + analog boost on my virus, and even though the Virus sounded much more precise, the A6 had so much power it put the Virus to shame. The pads are lush, thick and rich, the leads can be very powerful, the filters sound really cool and although not as precise, defined and strong as the Virus filters, they have a very musical tone to them and a nice wetness.

Ease of Use:
Strangely enough for a synth of this power, the operation is easy and intuitive beyond belief. Its heavy and tuning takes time, but its worth it! The interface is easy, and although this is not a 'my first synth' its reasonably easy to tweak.

Support:
Never dealt with them. The best support is non-needed support.

Overall:
The only analog polysynth you will ever need.

Feature:
Various knobs and buttons can confuse the living hell out of you...but programming it is!

Quality:
Superior quality, feels like a tank...i first thought its made in Japan or Germany. Thumbs up to Alesis!!

Value:
Value is simply awesome. A Dave Smith Evolver keyboard with 2 analog and 2 digital oscillators and 4 note poly (thus limiting evolving pad chords) cost $2399.00. A-6 has much more multi-timbral capability: you can play 6 fingers on pad, and still have 10 other voices! sweet! Its like having 4 polyevolvers without the digital oscs...

Desirability:
Very awesome to look at!

Sound:
Real Analog with 16 voices...what more can you ask for? Awesome for atmospheric textures, leads, etc. The filters on this blow any VA away...I compared a Nord Lead III side by side with the Andromeda, the Nord's cold digital sounds don't even compare with the superior depth and sharpness of the real-analog sound! VAs are good for some trance and stuff, but it still can't hold up to a RA synth.

Support:
Haven't really dealt much with them

Overall:
Initially the OS was jumpy, but after Alesis updated it, its very stable, and you can enjoy 16 voices of pure analog heaven (not recording) at once! What more can I ask for?

I'm a novice with electronic gear, but this keyboard makes it so much easier than ever before. All the knobs corrolate with the display so it's a great learning tool. I can make raunchy sounds, beautiful warm pads, goofy stuff, and psychedelic too! It really invites you to play and touch - not at all like those keyboards that are more computer than instrument.

I've had my Andromeda for about 2 weeks now.
All I can say is that I am completely speechless.
The filters are incredibly close to their Moog
and Oberheim counterparts, the oscillators are
incredibly "fat", the interface is very easy
to catch on to, the build quality is excellent.