Solina

A string synthesizer manufactured by Eminent in The Netherlands. The Solina, first offered in 1974, was a somewhat simplified version of the highly-regarded string synth that Eminent built into the model 310 organ. The Solina had six preset selectable sounds, and like most string synths, had little capability to modify the sound other than by mixing. However, the ensemble effect added a considerable amount of "life" to the sounds, and made the Solina a desirable string machine for many performers.

The Solina's sound generation was based on divide-down technology, which produced a fixed frequency for each note on the keyboard. Sets of fixed filters modified the basic waveform produced by the dividers, and the ensemble effect added a bit of tremolo and vibrato. Unlike the string synth in the 310 organ (which was fully polyphonic), the Solina was paraphonic, with a single VCA and envelope generator serving for the summed output. An expression pedal input allowed the performer to produce volume swells manually. A number of slightly different versions were produced, with the most significant changes being the addition of stereo audio outputs, and the addition of LED indicators for the preset and function select buttons on late-production units. An odd rumor about the Solina was caused by an early-production change to add a switch to turn the ensemble effect on and off; this led to a persistent rumor that the earliest units had no ensemble effect. They had it; they simply lacked the button to turn it off. (Performers seldom turned it off anyway, since the ensemble effect was a critical part of the synth's sound and reputation.)

ARP, under license, imported and sold a large number of Solinas, rebadged as the "ARP String Ensemble". The re-badging was accomplished by putting a sticker over the "Solina" emblem, which often subsequently peeled off; thus, this is often referred to as the "ARP Solina" even though ARP never sold them under that name. As an expedient for improving the timbral possibilities of the unit, and address the as-yet-unsatisfied market for polyphonic synths that existed in the 1970s, ARP sold a number of Solinas in a package with an Axxe, a monophonic synth produced by ARP. The idea was to connect the audio output of the Solina with the Axxe's external audio input, and connect the Solina's keyboard gate output to the Axxe's gate input. This allowed the Solina to be played through the Axxe's VCF and VCA, with envelope modulation triggered by the gate, producing a hybrid of the two synths' capabilities. However, ARP went this one better: They took the guts of a few Solinas, and packaged them in a redesigned case with an Explorer I synth, producing the "ARP String Synthesizer". Both the Solina and Explorer could be played in various layers and combinations from the keyboard.

It is not clear how many Solinas were sold; possibly over 5000 between ARP and Eminent's own sales, a pretty successful production run at the time. The hybrid ARP String Synthesizer was not successful, and most sources hold that ARP only built about 100 of them. The Solina remained in production by Eminent until 1982, when the organ market fell off and the then-existing version of Eminent went out of business.