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A significant percentage of the audience for Andrew Huang, Loopop and similar channels regularly buy synths and studio gear, and are largely guided to those pur

A significant percentage of the audience for Andrew Huang, Loopop and similar channels regularly buy synths and studio gear, and are largely guided to those purchases by these YouTube reviews. That gear typically isn't inexpensive; the Syntakt is £850, yet a lot of people will be buying this device in the next few days after watching Andrew Huang et al review it. I would be amazed if synth influencers were unable to make a very decent living from reviewing gear, given the relative affluence of their subscribers.

biztos 4y ago
I’m a synth dilettante and I absolutely look at these channels for inspiration and validation on what to buy, and sometimes for tips on how to use it. Andrew Huang and True Cuckoo for the enthusiasm, sometimes also Ricky Tinez; Loopop and Sonicstate for thorough reviews; and Bad Gear to keep me grounded. So yeah, if you want my next thousand bucks your chances are pretty good if all these guys like your gear. Or appear to like it.
- motogpjimbo 4y ago
  Personally, I try to stay away from "lifestyle synthesists" like Andrew Huang, Bo Beats and (to a certain extent) Ricky Tinez. I don't like the feeling that I'm being marketed to by an influencer who is in it for the money rather than for the music itself. Loopop is great for reviews of new gear because he's clinical with his descriptions, but otherwise I try to focus more on channels like Alex Ball, Bad Gear and Matt Johnson, where the music-making process is at the forefront.
  - biztos 4y ago
    I feel like Andrew Huang is in another league of YouTuberdom with the high production values, it’s almost as if “YouTube” is his genre and he happens to be into synthesizers. Whereas Bad Gear is like what I would make if I knew anything and wasn’t lazy. Funny, I count 12 Syntakt videos just among my subscriptions and I’m not even a musician. Elektron must have sent out a lot of these.
    - b20000 4y ago
      yep, not just sent out, but paid $$$$ in marketing
      - biztos 4y ago
        Seems like a good investment, probably way more effective than buying Google or Facebook ads. However I do wonder sometimes -- how much love do the little indie shops get from these YouTubers? If you're a tiny shop and can't afford payola, can you still get on these channels? If not, that's a super opportunity for someone to make a new channel. Call it "Synth I Get" or something and review every single thing anyone sends you.
        rvense 4y ago
        These people certainly don't always get paid for reviews. Loopop is very transparent about whether he was given something for free or bought it himself (though I don't know if he does the latter as much anymore, his reviews are basically tutorials that are as interesting after you get the thing as when deciding what to get). Loopop has reviewed both Monome and Organelle products, which are open source and about as indie as it gets. Elektron is a major player and this is a very "big" product launch as far as synths go. (Though I think that says more about the market than it does about Elektron.)
  - b20000 4y ago
    loopop is a guy who has a tech company. i never understood why if you already are succesful with some web 2.0 company you also have to be an influencer.
    - smoldesu 4y ago
      I'd believe it if he said it was just passion for the instruments. The guy really puts a lot of work into each of his videos, it kinda blows my mind.
      - b20000 4y ago
        at that level and frequency it’s a business
    - biztos 4y ago
      I would really not call the loopop guy (whoever he is) an "influencer." I'd call him an educator, taking advantage of the medium to give super useful, very thorough reviews of products that are both expensive and notoriously hard to figure out. Plus I guess he loves synths enough to do all these deep-dives? I mean, if it were a job it would be a pretty grueling one, that stuff is complicated to learn and there are so many and the expectation is that his videos will cover pretty much everything. I assume he makes some money on it but I'm actually relieved to hear it's not his main gig. "YouTube is underrated."

biztos 4y ago

I’m a synth dilettante and I absolutely look at these channels for inspiration and validation on what to buy, and sometimes for tips on how to use it. Andrew Huang and True Cuckoo for the enthusiasm, sometimes also Ricky Tinez; Loopop and Sonicstate for thorough reviews; and Bad Gear to keep me grounded. So yeah, if you want my next thousand bucks your chances are pretty good if all these guys like your gear. Or appear to like it.

motogpjimbo 4y ago
Personally, I try to stay away from "lifestyle synthesists" like Andrew Huang, Bo Beats and (to a certain extent) Ricky Tinez. I don't like the feeling that I'm being marketed to by an influencer who is in it for the money rather than for the music itself. Loopop is great for reviews of new gear because he's clinical with his descriptions, but otherwise I try to focus more on channels like Alex Ball, Bad Gear and Matt Johnson, where the music-making process is at the forefront.
- biztos 4y ago
  I feel like Andrew Huang is in another league of YouTuberdom with the high production values, it’s almost as if “YouTube” is his genre and he happens to be into synthesizers. Whereas Bad Gear is like what I would make if I knew anything and wasn’t lazy. Funny, I count 12 Syntakt videos just among my subscriptions and I’m not even a musician. Elektron must have sent out a lot of these.
  - b20000 4y ago
    yep, not just sent out, but paid $$$$ in marketing
    - biztos 4y ago
      Seems like a good investment, probably way more effective than buying Google or Facebook ads. However I do wonder sometimes -- how much love do the little indie shops get from these YouTubers? If you're a tiny shop and can't afford payola, can you still get on these channels? If not, that's a super opportunity for someone to make a new channel. Call it "Synth I Get" or something and review every single thing anyone sends you.
      - rvense 4y ago
        These people certainly don't always get paid for reviews. Loopop is very transparent about whether he was given something for free or bought it himself (though I don't know if he does the latter as much anymore, his reviews are basically tutorials that are as interesting after you get the thing as when deciding what to get). Loopop has reviewed both Monome and Organelle products, which are open source and about as indie as it gets. Elektron is a major player and this is a very "big" product launch as far as synths go. (Though I think that says more about the market than it does about Elektron.)
- b20000 4y ago
  loopop is a guy who has a tech company. i never understood why if you already are succesful with some web 2.0 company you also have to be an influencer.
  - smoldesu 4y ago
    I'd believe it if he said it was just passion for the instruments. The guy really puts a lot of work into each of his videos, it kinda blows my mind.
    - b20000 4y ago
      at that level and frequency it’s a business
  - biztos 4y ago
    I would really not call the loopop guy (whoever he is) an "influencer." I'd call him an educator, taking advantage of the medium to give super useful, very thorough reviews of products that are both expensive and notoriously hard to figure out. Plus I guess he loves synths enough to do all these deep-dives? I mean, if it were a job it would be a pretty grueling one, that stuff is complicated to learn and there are so many and the expectation is that his videos will cover pretty much everything. I assume he makes some money on it but I'm actually relieved to hear it's not his main gig. "YouTube is underrated."