There is a wealth of choices these days when it comes to hardware and software synths and effects, but the real issue (as always) comes down to budget…
How much of that hard earned moola do you want or even have, to spend to get THAT sound in your track? Well, it’s all very subjective but at the end of the day the only person you should be ultimately concerned about impressing is YOU! If you don’t like the sound of it, then what are the hopes of being proud enough to promote it or even show it off? None.
The Atari 2600 was my first (and most gamers who were alive in the 70’s and 80’s) video game console… but who would have thought that a few decades later it was still being used a musical instrument? Thanks to a clever bloke named Paul Slocum this is actually possible and easy to do with his custom made 2600 cartridge The Synthcart. He is also so extremely rad that he even provides a ROM image file to use with an Atari 2600 emulator like Stella on your PC or Raspberry Pi… Yep. Like I said. Rad.
Obviously there are other options for the modern electronic musician like VST plugins and synths that can create similar sounds to the Atari 2600 but a particular favourite and versatile choice for many producers has been Chipsounds by Plogue.
No matter which route you take, do yourself and your fans a favour and take it to the edge, make it your own, push it to the limits and let those sounds from yesteryear shine once more! Retro4life!