Taurus I

Back in 1975, this pedal synth redefined bass lines with its thunderous low-end roar, powering iconic riffs from bands like Rush and Yes that still echo in prog rock lore.

At its core, it's a monophonic analog beast with two VCOs pumping out distorted sawtooth waves, blended and detuned for that massive Taurus preset punch—thanks to no phase cancellation issues. A 24dB/octave low-pass filter, straight from Moog's modular 904A playbook, delivers huge resonance and key tracking, paired with simple A/R envelopes for VCA and A/D for VCF, plus built-in bass boost down to 20Hz for pedal-shaking depth. Controls live under a hinged door for the user sound: osc balance, beat, cutoff, emphasis, contour, attack/decay, and sustain level, all tweakable on the fly. Foot-operated sliders handle volume and filter cutoff universally, while switches above the 13-note pedalboard select Bass, Tuba, Taurus presets or variable, plus glide, decay, and octave—housed in a hefty aluminum-and-wood frame that's road-tough but heavy.

Players love its live-ready simplicity and otherworldly girth, though those exposed pedal contacts demand regular cleaning to fend off grime. It's a collector's gem, outshining later models in raw vibe.