Okayyyy. Up for sale is my ESQ-1. I'm hoping if you are looking for one, you already know some of the magic, but here goes:

The ESQ-1 was Ensoniq's followup to the Mirage sampler in 1986. It's a hybrid synth, featuring 8 bit digital Single Cycle Waves and analog Curtis Filters. It's a decade ahead of its time, easily, in that it somehow supported multiple simultaneous patches like a workstation, invented the patch map that the ASM HydraSynth team later used, and had 3 LFOs and multiple complex envelopes, all in 1986.

The sound can be gritty, or swooshy for pads, and because it was competing with the DX7 and has bell samples built in, it can somehow also do that icy FM adjacent sound.

I love this thing and have had it for over a decade. Only selling because, I think it's time, and I'm doing a massive studio sell off to consolidate. It's in very good overall shape for an instrument that is now 40 years old. I have a lot of extras I'm happy to throw in, including a multi patch cartridge, a regular cartridge, and a replacement battery.

This guy is heavy so I'm starting with Local Pickup here in the New York metro area. I have a car so within reason I can bring it to you if that helps. For farther away folks, message me and we'll talk professional shipping. (I don't want to imagine the heartbreak of having a survivor like this keyboard get damaged in transit).

For those that know: this is the metal case model.