Editing Robert Moog (section)

=== Company decline ===
Though commentators have praised Moog's engineering abilities, some have also described him as a poor businessman.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> Moog had pursued the development of his synthesizer as a hobby, stressing that he was regarded as a businessman but had not known what a [[balance sheet]] was.<ref name=":232">{{Cite book|last1=Pinch|first1=Trevor|title=Analog Days: The Invention and Impact of the Moog Synthesizer|last2=Trocco|first2=Frank|publisher=[[Harvard University Press]]|year=2004|isbn=978-0-674-01617-0}}</ref> He likened the experience to a theme park ride: "You know you're not going to get hurt too badly because nobody would let you do that, but you're not quite in control."<ref name=":232" />

Moog only patented his [[Voltage-controlled filter|filter]] design; [[David Borden]], one of the first users of the Minimoog, felt that if Moog had patented his [[pitch wheel]] design, he would have become extremely wealthy.<ref name=":13" /> According to ''[[Sound on Sound]]'', if Moog had created a [[monopoly]] on other synthesizer ideas that he created, such as modularity, envelope generation and voltage control, "it's likely the synth industry as we know it today would never have happened."<ref name="SOSOct2003">{{cite web|last=Leon|first=Richard|title=Dr Robert & His Modular Moogs|url=https://www.soundonsound.com/people/dr-robert-his-modular-moogs|website=Sound On Sound|date=October 2003|access-date=1 April 2024}}</ref>

Beginning in 1971, Moog Music absorbed investors, merged with [[Norlin Musical Instruments]] and moved to "less than ideal" premises near [[Buffalo, New York]], amid a debilitating recession.<ref name=":1" /> Moog remained employed as a designer at the company until 1977.<ref name=":2" /> He said that he would have left earlier if his contract had not required him to remain employed there for four years to cash his stock.<ref name=":1" /> By the end of the decade, Moog Music was facing competition from cheaper, easier-to-use instruments by competitors including [[ARP Instruments|ARP]], Aries, [[Roland Corporation|Roland]], and [[E-mu Systems|E-mu]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/08/23/world/americas/obituary-robert-moog-71-creator-of-music-synthesizer.html|title=Obituary: Robert Moog, 71, creator of music synthesizer|last=Kozinn|first=Allan|work=The New York Times |date=August 23, 2005 |access-date=December 3, 2018|language=en}}</ref>