Moog Music has announced official specs and pricing for the new Taurus 3 Bass Pedals.

The Taurus 3 is a modern update of the original Taurus bass pedals, which were used by Pink Floyd, ELO, Rush, Styx, Led Zeppelin, Genesis and many others.

The pedals, described by Moog as “the fattest synth ever”, will sell for $1,995. Moog plans to sell only 1,000 Taurus 3 synths.

Here’s a demo of the Moog Taurus 3 prototype by Moog Senior Engineer Cyril Lance:

“Developing the Taurus 3 has been a labor of love for all of us at the factory” said Moog Music President, Mike Adams.  “We started with an in-depth analysis of the original Taurus I sound and circuitry, and then added modern amenities like MIDI and USB.  We didn’t stop until we had created a work of art. The response from the music community throughout the project has been incredible.”

Moog Taurus 3 Specifications:

Performance Interface

• 13-note velocity sensitive bass pedals
• 1 Volume Footwheel Controller
• 1 Programmable Footwheel Controller
• 9 Footswitches for selecting Bank and Presets, Transpose, Glide On/Off, Decay On/Off, and Octave Up/Down

Synthesizer Sound Engine

• 100% Analog Audio signal path based entirely on the highly acclaimed Taurus I synthesizer circuits
• 2 x VCOs (Voltage Controlled Oscillators) with sawtooth waveform outputs
• 1 x VCF (Voltage Controlled Filter) with 24dB/Octave Lowpass Filter with the classic Moog Ladder Filter topology. 20Hz-20KHz Frequency Response
• 1 x VCA (Voltage Controlled Amplifier)

Synthesizer Modifiers

• 2 x ASD (Attack-Sustain-Decay) Envelope Generators with adjustable Attack, Sustain and Decay Parameters; one each for VCF and VCA contours
• 1 x LFO (Low Frequency Oscillator) with Triangle, Square, Sawtooth, and Ramp waveforms with adjustable amounts to the VCOs and VCF. The LFO is syncable to MIDI Clock or Tap Tempo
• 1 x Arpeggiator with Latch Mode for generating recurring musical patterns from Bass Pedal Input. The Arpeggiator is syncable to MIDI Clock or Tap Tempo

Programming Interface

• 52 Presets total in non-volatile memory consisting of one bank of 4 factory presets, and 12 banks of 4 user-programmable presets
• Preset selection can be performed with the Value knob, or the combination of Bank footswitch, Bass Pedal, and Preset footswitch
• Factory Presets include the classic Taurus, Bass, and Tuba presets, plus the new “Taurus III” preset
• Two selectable levels of LED illuminated switches access the classic Taurus parameters or the Taurus 3 LFO and Arpeggiator parameters for editing with the Control Footwheel or the Value Knob
• 15-segment LED bargraph displays the value of the currently selected parameter

Classic Taurus Parameters in the OSCILLATOR section

• B.FREQ: Oscillator B Frequency coarse offset to Oscillator A
• BEAT: Oscillator B Frequency fine offset to Oscillator A
• GLIDE: Glide Rate
• OCTAVE: Low, Medium or High
• MIX: sets the loudness ratio between Oscillators A and B
• ATTACK: sets the Rise time for the VCA Envelope Generator when a note is played
• SUSTAIN: sets the maximum level for the VCA Envelope Generator when a note is held
• DECAY: sets the fall time for the VCA Envelope Generator when a note is released

Classic Taurus Parameters in the FILTER section

• CUTOFF: sets the lowpass filter cutoff frequency
• RESONANCE: sets the amount of signal fed from the output to the input of the lowpass filter. Can be set for filter self-oscillation
• ATTACK: sets the Rise time for the VCF Envelope Generator when a note is played
• DECAY: sets the fall time for the VCF Envelope Generator when a note is released
• AMOUNT: sets how much the VCF cutoff frequency is modified by the VCF Envelope Generator signal

Taurus 3 Parameters in the LFO Section

• SQUARE: “Radio button” type switch selects the LFO square waveform
• TRIANGLE: “Radio button” type switch selects the LFO triangle waveform
• RAMP: “Radio button” type switch selects the LFO ramp waveform
• SAW: “Radio button” type switch selects the LFO sawtooth waveform
• RATE: sets the LFO Rate
• LFO FILTER AMOUNT: sets the amount the LFO modulates the filter cutoff frequency
• LFO PITCH AMOUNT: sets the amount the LFO modulates the VCOs’ frequencies
• LFO SYNC: On/Off switch enables starting the LFO waveform cycle with each note played on the Bass Pedals

Taurus 3 Parameters in the ARPEGGIATOR Section

• PATTERN: sets the pattern of the arpeggiator
• ORDER: sets the order that the pattern of the arpeggiator is output
• OCTAVE: sets the number of octaves for the arpeggiator pattern
• ON/OFF: turns the arpeggiator on or off
• LATCH: turns the arpeggiator latch function on or off
• VALUE knob is used for selecting presets or editing parameters
• PRESET switch toggles between the current stored preset and its edited form
• MASTER switch selects a menu of Advanced Preset functions, Global settings, and System Utilities
• CURSOR switch navigates the screen of the LCD User Interface
• STORE switch initiates the storing of presets
• Field-upgradeable firmware using MIDI SysEx

MIDI Implementation

• Presets selectable by MIDI Program Change messages
• Taurus Sound engine can be played by MIDI Note messages
• Preset parameters controllable by MIDI Control Change (CC) messages
• Bass pedals transmit MIDI Note On/Note Off messages with user selectable velocity resolution
• Volume Footwheel transmits MIDI CC 7 (Volume) data
• Control Footwheel transmits MIDI CC corresponding to selected parameter
• Presets and Global Settings can be sent or received through MIDI SysEx

I/O panel

• HI-Z Output: ¼” output jack outputs the Taurus audio signal from the classic higher impedance Taurus output stage. For use with Bass Amplifier instrument inputs
• LO-Z Output: ¼” output jack outputs the Taurus audio signal from a low impedance output stage. For use with line-level inputs
• PITCH CV Input: ¼” TRS jack accepts expression pedal (such as Moog EP-2) or 0V to +5V Control Voltage inputs for modifying the VCOs’ frequencies
• FILTER CV Input: ¼” TRS jack accepts expression pedal (such as Moog EP-2) or 0V to +5V Control Voltage inputs for modifying the VCF cutoff frequency
• VOLUME CV Input: ¼” TRS jack accepts expression pedal (such as Moog EP-2) or 0V to +5V Control Voltage inputs for modifying the VCA gain
• GATE Input: ¼” input jack accepts +5V gate signal for triggering the Taurus EGs
• MIDI In: standard DIN MIDI input connector
• MIDI Out: standard DIN MIDI output connector
• USB: bi-directional USB MIDI port
• Power Inlet: IEC connector accepts 90-250V AC 50-60 Hz
• Power Switch: turns unit On or Off

Chassis Specifications

• Rugged metal enclosure with steel feet, front panel, structural panels and extruded aluminum back panel
• Weight: 45lbs
• Dimensions: 25″ wide X 24″ deep X 8 1/2″ high

Pricing and Availability

Moog expects to ship the $1,995.00 Taurus 3 by the end of the year.