ARP Avatar
Encyclopedia
The ARP Avatar was a guitar
-controlled synthesizer
(guitar synthesizer), manufactured by ARP Instruments, Inc.
beginning in 1977. While innovative, being one of the first commercial guitar-controlled synthesizers, it was a commercial flop for ARP, and is widely credited with causing the financial collapse of the company.
Nearly $4 million was spent in the first year on production and R&D for the Avatar, and the $3000 machine sold only about $1 million worth of units over its lifespan. Guitarists were not quick to adopt the new technology, mostly due to the unit's price and technical eccentricities. The Avatar, however, did find a few advocates and paved the way for more successful guitar synthesizers. Because of its architecture - essentially an ARP Odyssey
with a 6-way "fuzzbox" distortion effect - it has regained a little stature among collectors as a standalone synthesizer.
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
-controlled synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
(guitar synthesizer), manufactured by ARP Instruments, Inc.
ARP Instruments, Inc.
ARP Instruments, Inc. was an American manufacturer of electronic musical instruments, founded by Alan Robert Pearlman in 1969. Best known for its line of synthesizers that emerged in the early 1970s, ARP closed its doors in 1981 due to financial difficulties...
beginning in 1977. While innovative, being one of the first commercial guitar-controlled synthesizers, it was a commercial flop for ARP, and is widely credited with causing the financial collapse of the company.
Nearly $4 million was spent in the first year on production and R&D for the Avatar, and the $3000 machine sold only about $1 million worth of units over its lifespan. Guitarists were not quick to adopt the new technology, mostly due to the unit's price and technical eccentricities. The Avatar, however, did find a few advocates and paved the way for more successful guitar synthesizers. Because of its architecture - essentially an ARP Odyssey
ARP Odyssey
The ARP Odyssey was an analog synthesizer introduced in 1972. Responding to pressure from Moog Music to create a portable, affordable "performance" synthesizer, ARP scaled down its popular 2600 synthesizer and created the Odyssey, which became the best-selling synthesizer they made.The Odyssey is...
with a 6-way "fuzzbox" distortion effect - it has regained a little stature among collectors as a standalone synthesizer.
External links
- ARP Avatar Entry on Sonicstate.
- The Rise and Fall of ARP Instruments (article from April 1983, Keyboard MagazineKeyboard MagazineKeyboard Magazine is a magazine that originally covered electronic keyboard instruments and keyboardists, though with the advent of computer based recording and audio technology, they have added digital music technology to their regular coverage, including those not strictly pertaining to the...
)