Moog Taurus - Design

Design

The Taurus I was housed in a rugged aluminum and wood casing and, although known primarily for its bass timbres, had a five-octave overall range. Three stock preset sounds were available along with one user-programmable Variable sound - the parameters of which were adjustable within a top, centrally located compartment. The three non-variable Presets were named Tuba (single oscillator), Bass, and the famous Taurus. The following parameters were foot switchable: Glide (on/off), Octave (+ 1 octave or Normal), Release (long release on/off), and the three stock Presets and one Variable Preset. Top mounted foot controlled sliders affecting volume (Loudness) and filter cutoff (Filter) were also provided. A unique feature of the Octave function allowed the player to change this footswitch setting while an unpressed note was sounding, with actual transposition only taking place immediately upon the next note press, allowing for smooth, predictable changes during performance and recording. The Taurus I's FET-based integrator oscillator and classic Moog 24dB/Oct Low Pass Filter produce a unique, edgy, penetrating timbre which is not exactly duplicated by any other instrument and is widely regarded for its extremely rich, "fat" sound, which is oftentimes more felt than heard when greatly amplified.