Library Instrument
EMS Synthi A
EMS's 1971 portable synthesizer, the VCS3 circuit repackaged into a briefcase — not the large-format Synthi 100.
Introduced in 1971, the Synthi A repackages the VCS3’s pin-matrix synthesis circuit into a self-contained briefcase, dropping the VCS3’s wooden cabinet and external speaker in favor of portability. It is the base model in EMS’s suitcase line — the Synthi AKS adds a built-in sequencer and touch keyboard — and is not to be confused with the unrelated-in-scale Synthi 100, EMS’s large multi-panel console synthesizer. Thomas Lehn has played a Synthi A in improvised performance since 1989.