Oberheim Electronics

Oberheim Electronics, is a manufacturer of audio synthesizers and a variety of other electronic musical instruments. Founded in 1969 by Tom Oberheim (a former designer and contract manufacturer for Maestro),.

History and Products

Oberheim Electronics

Originally a manufacturer of electronic effects devices (most notably the Maestro phase shifter), and briefly an ARP Instruments dealer, Oberheim went on to create several ground-breaking products in the early days of synthesizers and electronic music including the DS-2 (one of the first digital music sequencers) and the Synthesizer Expansion Module (SEM).

Oberheim polyphonic synthesizers

Oberheim's Two-voice TVS-1, Four-voice FVS-1 in 1975, and Eight-voice in 1977, (which was the four voice frame with an external 4 SEM module) were among the first commercially available polyphonic synthesizers. Configurations were based on the SEM. The Two-voice synthesizer included a two channel voltage controlled sequencer, and the Four-voice and Eight-voice machines included a rudimentary Programmer, capable of recalling sound settings.