Arturia V Collection 7

The last time that we tested Arturia’s suite of virtual classic keyboards, we named it “Best Old Skool Soft Synth Collection” in The Technofile Awards. That was version 5, which included the ARP 2600 V, B3 V, CS-80V, Farfisa V, Jup-8V, Matrix-12 V, Mini V, Modular V, SEM V, Piano V, Prophet-V & Prophet VS, Solina V, Stage 73 V, Synclavier V, Vox Continental V, Wurli-V, and Analog Lab (which houses all 6000 plus patches from these synths/keyboards and enables you to quickly sort, filter & combine them). Much has happened since then. Let’s review…

V Collection 6.0 added Buchla Easel V, Clavinet V, CMI V, DX7 V; and upgraded Analog Lab and Piano V, the latter becoming Piano V2.

Buchla Easel V

Buchla Easel V

If you want 1970s West Coast weirdness, you need look no further than Arturia’s Buchla Easel V, which recreates Don Buchla’s legendary semi-modular synth. Easier to programme than one might imagine, it includes a wealth of presets that show it to be so much more than merely a weird noise generator, though it unquestionably excels at generating weird noises.

Clavinet V

Clavinet V

The Honer Clavinet is one of the funkiest keyboard instruments of all time and Arturia’s Clavinet V does a fine job of recreating it on the 0’s and 1’s. However, instead of merely modelling a Clavinet, Arturia includes a Fenderesque amp and a pedalboard’s worth of the sort of stomp boxes that would typically have been used with a Clav during the ’60s & ’70s. These include a compressor, chorus, flanger, phaser, analogue delay, wah, and most importantly auto-wah. Together this combo enables you to recreate a variety of era defining tones.

DX7 V

DX7 V

Love it or loath it, the Yamaha DX7 left an indelible mark, some would say stain, on the 1980s, with its perfect storm of obtuse interface, alien synthesis, and preset for every occasion (and indeed every function band). Instead of recreating the DX7 as was, Arturia has significantly expanded its feature set and combined it with a user friendly interface that serves to unlock the potential of FM synthesis and make the most of these new features.

Piano V2

Piano V2

Piano V is Arturia’s collection of modelled (mostly) grand and upright pianos. V2 adds three new piano models – a Japanese Grand, a Plucked Grand, and a Tack Upright; and offers enhanced mic positioning, improved EQ, and a new stereo delay and compressor. If pianos are your thing, Piano V 2 offers an excellent selection, all of which are customisable.

CMI V

CMI V

CMI V takes an accurately modelled Fairlight CMI as its starting point, then considerably enhances it functionality. Its library of approximately 300 presets includes both the Fairlight’s original library and new presets. However, unlike other virtual Fairlights we’ve seen, Arturia’s CMI V is not merely a ROMpler…it lets you import and edit your own samples…and change their bit depths and sample rates to give them that authentic Fairlight sound. The only restriction is that each sample cannot exceed 30 seconds, which means that if you want to cut up longer samples you’ll need to pre-edit them in another app. But that’s all just the tip of the iceberg, as CMI V adds an additive synth engine with resynthesis, and a spectral synth engine. Furthermore, it allows you to mix, layer, split and sequence up to ten sounds from any combination of these three engines, which, in conjunction with its user friendly interface (in Fairlight green of course) enables you to quickly come up with unique and powerful sounds that are exponential to what could be achieved with the original Fairlight.

V Collection 6.1 & 6.2

V Collection 6.1 introduced NKS compatibility and brought Analog Lab 3’s preset browser to everything in the suite, whilst V Collection 6.2 added resynthesis & playback of user samples to Arturia’s truly excellent Synclavier V…all of which brings us to V Collection 7.

Synclavier V

V Collection 7

V Collection 7 adds three new instruments – Mellotron V, Synthi V, and CZ V, updates B3 V to B-3 V2 and Analog Lab from 3 to 4 and adds over 800 new presets to the various instruments in the collection.

Mellotron V

Mellotron V

The Mellotron was, in essence, the progenitor of the ROMpler. However, unlike the Fairlight that it obviously inspired and all of the digital samplers than followed in its wake, the Mellotron was distinctly analogue. Every time you played a key it triggered a motor to play a tape containing a recording of an instrument at the corresponding pitch. There was a tape for every key and these tapes were held in a frame. In later models the frame could be changed to give different sounds, whereas early models had a fixed number of sounds. It was a beast of a machine that, like all the best analogues, was notoriously sensitive to voltage fluctuations and ambient conditions. Nevertheless, Mellotrons were far cheaper and more compact than an orchestra. Consequently they saw extensive studio use during the ’60s and ’70s by, amongst others, The Beatles, miscellaneous prog rockers, and even a certain Monsieur Jarre.

Arturia’s Mellotron V includes the best of the original Mellotron tape library, up to three sounds of which can be combined as layers/splits. The amplitude envelope of the result can be altered and flutter, tape saturation, and mechanical noise can be dialled in. The resultant patches sound superb, delivering the unique character of a Mellotron, with pristine clarity. Unexpectedly though, and presumably as a result of its developments with the Synclavier V and CMI V, you have the option to import your own samples. Oh Arturia, if you’re trying to seduce us, you’ve succeeded.

Synthi V

Synthi V

Uniquely British, the 3 oscillator semi-modular AKS Synthi and its sonically identical counterpart, the VCS3, are as unique, distinctive and eccentric as it gets. Still used to this day by Jean Michel Jarre and throughout its heyday by the BBC Radiophonic Workshop, there is even a VCS3 on permanent exhibition at the Science Museum in London, so Arturia’s Synthi V has much to live up to. Not only does it do so, it goes way beyond the ‘limitations’ of the original by including a modern step sequencer, dedicated beat-syncable LFO, additional effects and…wait for it…four voice polyphony! Naturally there’s a huge variety of eminently useable presets on offer that show off this synth to its full potential, but the real fun comes with creating patches that you never could or would think of making with anything else. If you make electronic music, the Synthi V is a synth you simply can’t afford to be without.

CZ V

CZ V

When you think of the ’80s, the diminutive Casio CZ-101 may not be the synth that immediately springs to mind. At the time, Casio’s answer to Yamaha’s DX7 was snobbishly seen by many as no more than a toy and the appearance of its big brother in an Episode of EastEnders featuring a rehearsal by ‘The Banned’ (don’t ask) did little to add to the credibility of the CZ line. However, the assumption that the CZs were little more than home keyboards was manifestly unfounded. In addition to offering DX like tones, their Phase Distortion (PD) synthesis could do surprisingly warm, almost, dare we say it, Junoesque pads. What’s more, unlike Yamaha’s FM, PD was incredibly easy to understand and program. Consequently the CZs were a bridge between analogue and digital synthesis, at a price almost everyone could afford. Notable ’80s users included Vince Clarke and Salt-N-Pepa, whilst during the ’90s, the CZ-101/1000 provided the de facto organ sound for a multiplicity of house music.

Arturia’s CZ V offers all of the CZ-101’s/1000’s original parameters and even supports importing of CZ SysEx data. However, like the other instruments in V Collection, CZ V goes much further than the original, as it includes additional envelopes, filters, LFOs, effects, and extensive beat-sync-to-host parameters, all of which are interconectable via a modulation matrix. What’s more, it quadruples the polyphony of the CZ-101/1000. Programming is a breeze thanks to its intuitive GUI and there’s a multitude of presets that run the gamut from warm and brassy to cold FM-like FX. How does the CZ V sound? Completely authentic, right down to its modelled DAC.

B-3 V2

B3 V2

Arturia have totally overhauled the B-3 V’s sound engine, making B-3 V2 better than ever, as its library of 50 presets, that run the gamut from gospel, jazz, and blues, to prog, aptly demonstrate.

Synthopedia

Synthopedia

Synthopedia is a library of over 800 brand new “modern sounds” created for V Collection’s various instruments and accessed via Analog Lab 4. Although these sounds are not fully editable, they can be tweaked, resaved and exported. Like everything else in V collection 7, they sound fantastic.

Conclusion

Arturia V Collection 7 is an absolute must have. It puts realistic recreations of some of the world’s most lusted after synths, samplers and keyboard instruments, at your finger tips, for a bargain price. With these latest additions and updates, the best just got even better.

5 bagels

More info: https://www.arturia.com/v-collection/details#en

© 2019, The Technofile. All rights reserved. Moral Rights Asserted.

Korg Collection

Although we loved Korg Gadget when we reviewed it, we thought that Korg had missed a trick by not offering users the full programmability of the classic Korg synths upon which some of its Gadgets are based. Enter ‘Korg Collection’ (stage right), which offers faithful recreations of 6 of Korg’s best loved analogue and digital synths, all classics in their own right.

If you think this sounds familiar, that’s because Korg Collection started life back in 2004 as ‘Korg Legacy Collection’ and went through various editions before being being updated to this modern 64 bit version, which is augmented with the Korg Arp Odyssey, and had dropped the ‘legacy’ from its name.

The 6 synths included in Korg Collection are the MS-20, Arp Odyssey, Mono/Poly, Polysix, M1 and Wavestation. Each uses Korg’s Component Modelling Technology (CMT) to, as you might surmise, model all of the circuit level components (and interactions between them) of the original hardware. However, rather than be constricted by the inherent limitations of that hardware, Korg has enhanced its features whilst keeping its sounds.

https://www.korg.com/us/products/software/korg_collection/cmt.php

The originally monophonic MS-20 is now polyphonic…and has no less than 32 voices! It also offers up to 16 voice unison and MIDI clock synchronisation. The only thing it lacks is the ability to switch between the much loved Korg 35 filter that appeared in early versions and the filter that subsequently replaced it.

The ARP Odyssey, on the other hand, being based upon Korg’s and original Odyssey designer, David Friend’s, acclaimed hardware reincarnation of said synth, provides a switch on the front panel that enables you to change between all three versions of the Odyssey’s filter.

It also has a bank of presets for each filter, which are labelled ‘MK1’, ‘MK2′ and…’Factory’ (why ‘Factory’ instead of ‘MK3’ is beyond us). When a preset from one of these banks is selected, the Odyssey is re-skinned to look like the corresponding version of the synth. However, there is no front panel switch or menu option that lets you re-skin the Odyssey at will, which is a bit of a shame.

Like the MS-20, the Odyssey has acquired polyphony. It has also acquired a very clever little arpeggiator and 6 effects, both of which have been designed to look and function like they were part of the original. With a little creative programming this arpeggiator can be made to function as a 1-16 step sequencer, not just for notes, but for three additional customisable synth parameters – think motion sequences. The only thing it lacks is the ability to switch of individual steps.

The six added effects are distortion, a phaser, a ‘chorus flanger ensemble’, EQ, Delay, and Reverb. Although they may look simplistic, they sound spot on and have clearly been designed to reflect the sorts of effects that were typically used with the ARP Odyssey in the ’70s & ’80s. No finer example of this can be found than in ‘Preset 003: Curried’, which combines some of these effects with arpeggiated sequencing of VCO1 FM Depth & VCO 2 Coarse Frequency, for instant Billy Currie style lead synth solos from Ultravox’s heyday.

The Korg Mono/Poly, offering as it does, a voice count of up to 128 (or 16 in unison mode), an 8 slot modulation matrix with 159 sources and 35 destinations, and two integrated multi-effects processors, appears to have spent the last 35 years necking ‘roids. Without these augmentations it sounds classic, with them it sounds next level and offers perhaps the widest range of sonic possibilities of the four analogues in Korg Collection.

Rounding out the analogues is the Korg Polysix, whose enhancements include up to 32-voice polyphony, up to 16-voice unison, two modulation slots each of which offers 8 external parameters (such as velocity, pressure, pitch bend & breath), MIDI clock synchronization of the modulation generator and arpeggiator.

On the digital side, the M1 includes all of the patches and PCM data from the original M1, the expanded M1EX, and the entire T-series of keyboards that followed in their wake, plus all 32 of the optional ROM cards for the M1/M1EX/T-series and an additional card’s worth of Legacy Collection patches. All in all that’s about 33,000 sounds! It also adds the one thing that the original M1 lacked…resonant filters – HALLELUJAH!

The Korg Wavestation similarly offers over 1500 presets and waveforms from all four versions of the Wavestation i.e. the original Wavestation, Wavestation EX, Wavestation A/D, and Wavestation SR, plus additional waveforms and wave sequences. The only thing it lacks is the Wavestation A/D’s ability to process external audio signals. This is a somewhat surprising omission considering that the Korg Collection includes two stand alone audio effects processors, one of which is the MS-20FX, which is literally an MS-20 dedicated to processing audio; and that the Wavestation A/D’s effects include a powerful vocoder. A Wavestation FX would be a nice addition.

The other effects unit in the Korg Collection is the MDE-X, which uses an algorithm derived from Korg’s Triton family. It offers 128 programs based upon 19 different types of effects that include a range of Reverbs, Delays, flangers, phasers, choruses, a talking modulator, wah wah, compressors, limiters, EQ, distortion, overdrive, and mastering effects.

So how does everything sounds? In a word, fantastic. In another word, authentic. Close your eyes and you’ll think you are playing the real things. As for the MS-20FX, try putting a drum loop through it and you’ll wonder how you ever managed to live without it.

But it doesn’t end there, because Korg collection has one more trick up its sleeve, in the form of ‘Legacy Cell’. This provides you with an additional instrument in which you can combine two MS-20s, or two Polysixes, or an MS-20 and a Polysix, assign dual MDE-Xs to each one, mix their outputs and then send them through a further dual MDE-X. Furthermore it adds 16 real-time performance controllers, laid out as 8 knobs and 8 sliders, and tempo sync. It’s an incredibly powerful tool that’s capable of generating some seriously impressive sounds. It would be even more powerful if one could add the other instruments from Korg Collection (and perhaps combine more than two of them). We hope this is something that Korg will add in a future version.

The only real complaint we have about Korg Collection is that none of the windows are resizeable. This isn’t a problem per se with the ARP Odyssey and Mono/Poly, as they have large, friendly, single window interfaces. Nor is it a major problem with the M1 & Wavestation, which are easier to program than the original hardware, though we think they would benefit from large single window interfaces instead of medium sized multi tabbed ones. But it has to be said that the MS-20’s/MS20-FX’s and Polysix’s GUIs leave something to be desired, particluarly the MS-20’s/MS-20FX’s, which requires programming to take place in an edit window into which not all of the MS-20’s controls fit, forcing you to scroll back and forth using the integral scroll bar, which does not respond to scrolling on an Apple Magic Mouse; and whilst the MDE-X is perfectly usable, it seems needlessly small. However, to be fair to Korg, they have told us that a GUI update is in the works.

Aside from improving the GUI, Korg Collection is pretty much perfect as is. However, as anyone suffering from GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome) will tell you, there’s always room for more synths in any collection, and as Korg has an embarrassment of riches upon which to draw, here’s our list of what else we’d love them to add.

Top of out list would be a Korg Mini 700s or 800DV (which, along with the 770, Micro Preset, and SB100, were a large part of the sound of Synth Britannia), followed by an MS50 (and SQ-10/SQ-1), then a Delta (as used by the Human League on ‘Dare’), then perennial favourite the MicroKorg, then an Oasys…and as we already have the effects from the Triton, it seems almost churlish not to include the rest of one…we could go on, but we’d end up just listing everything that Korg has ever made, so let’s conclude by simply saying that Korg Collection is one of the best virtual instrument collections we’ve heard and deserves to be a part of everyone’s sonic arsenal.

More info: https://www.korg.com/uk/products/software/korg_collection/

© 2019, The Technofile. All rights reserved. Moral Rights Asserted.

The 30 Best Things at NAMM 2018

1. Our friend Thomas Dolby, getting a lifetime achievement award from Roland (h/t KraftMusic):

2. Our friend Paul White getting all Men in Black with the Game Changer Audio Plasma Pedal – a stomp box that’s so bright you gotta wear shades (h/t Sound on Sound):

3. Waldorf Quantum. The most eagerly anticipated keyboard of 2017/18 is all but finished and perilously close to shipping (h/t Synth Anatomy & Bonedo Synthesizers):

4. Strymon Magneto Eurorack Tape Delay. A virtual 4 head tape delay, looper & spring reverb, in Eurorack format, with extensive CV i/o? What’s not to like?! In fact it gets our award for best Eurorack module at NAMM 2018. But shhh… don’t tell Marvel Comics (h/t Perfect Circuit Audio):

5. The Pioneer DJS-1000. We loved its forerunner – the Toriaz SP-16 and suspect that the DJS-1000 will be the new standard of DJ sampler (h/t Sonic State):

6. BOSS GT-1000. A multitude of amps & stomp boxes, including the algorithms from the fantastic DD/RV/MD-500 & MDP series, with 32-bit AD/DA and 32-bit/96 kHz internal processing? Yes please! (h/t Better Music):

7. Elektron Digitone. Proof that if you wait long enough, everything comes back into fashion…even FM…and here it is with knobs on, both figuratively & literally (h/t Synthtopia):

8. Korg Prologue. This Minilogue/Monologue influenced 8/16 voice hybrid polysynth features two analogue and one digital oscillators and looks as sleek as it sounds (h/t Sound on Sound & Loopop):

9. Rossum Electro Music Assimil8r – The final version of the long awaited 8 channel Eurorack sampler from Mr E-mu Emulator himself! (h/t Sonic State):

10. The Arturia MiniBrute 2 & MiniBrute 2S. Falling somewhere between a MiniBrute and a MatrixBrute, these Brutes feature dual oscillators and 48 point Eurorack compatible patch bay. We prefer the MiniBrute 2S, which swaps its keyboard for a BeatStep Pro style sequencer (h/t SourceDistributionTV):

11. Alesis Vortex Wireless 2 keytar controller. Simply the best Keytar we’ve ever seen (h/t Andertons):

12. SE Electronics RNT. A large-diaphragm tube condenser mic designed in collaboration with audio legend and thoroughly nice guy, Rupert Neve, that’s said to combine vintage quality with the benefits of modern advances (h/t Sound on Sound):

13. Antares Autotune Pro. Better, faster, stronger, but not harder and now with added auto tune 5 classic algorithm option. Believe (h/t Bedroom Producers Blog):

14. Behringer in original synth shocker. It’s called the Neutron and it’s redder than Lenin.

15. Roland TR-808 and TR-909 plug-ins for the Roland Cloud. Following on from the TR–08 and TR–09, Roland is bringing VST and AU versions of the venerable TR-808 & TR-909 to the Roland Cloud. Say Planet Rock, it’s the sure shot (h/t Bedroom Producers Blog):

16. Doepfer Polyphonic Eurorack Modules. They’re made by Doepfer. They’re polyphonic. As David Byrne once said “Any questions?” (Animato Audio):

17. Apple Logic Pro X 10.4. Offering far more than one would expect from a point update, Logic Pro X 10.4’s headline new features include ‘Smart Tempo’, which claims to use “advanced tempo detection technology” to enable all recorded tracks to stay in time with each other without the need for a metronome/click track; a new algorithmic reverb called ‘ChromaVerb’; a ‘Vintage EQ’ plug-in; Celemony Melodyne ARA 2 support; and, best of all, the return of two of our all time favourite plug-ins – Camel Audio’s CamelPhat and CamelSpace, in the form of ‘Phat FX’ and ‘Step FX’.

 

18. Realitone Hip Hop Creator. This grabbed our attention not only because our Publisher/Editor is the world’s greatest rapper, but also for the unintended comedic brilliance of 2:57-3:30 in this video (h/t Sonic State):

19. Teenage Engineering PO-33 K.O. One of three new Pocket Operators, the PO-33 K.O. is a sampler that looks like a lot of fun…with or without added Cuckoo…though undeniably more so with (h/t Cuckoo):

20. Sonnox VoxDoubler. This duo of plug-ins – ‘Widen’ and ‘Thicken’ aim to do what they suggest naturally, with Sonnox quality at a refreshingly economical price (h/t Sound on Sound):

21. Roland’s expanding headband. Whilst you’re waiting for Roland to re-release the Jupiter 8, why not buy a bunch of Roland SE-02s and poly chain them?. Here’s Scott Tibbs demonstrating how huge this sounds (h/t Sonic State):

22. Empress Effects Zoia. The modular pedal that’s anything you want it to be

23. Sim1 XT-1. A pedal that promises to transform your guitar into a classic Les Paul, Strat, Tele, 335, or acoustic…and what’s more it seems to work!

24. Blip Blox. A Fisher Price style synthesizer & beatbox for kids that’s guaranteed to be used almost exclusively by adults.

25. Yamaha CS-80. No, not a re-release, but an original, that was recently unearthed by Yamaha in a spot of office archaeology. What’s more, it’s in pristine condition..or, at least, it was before spending 4 days at NAMM… (h/t Synthtopia):

26. The Waldorf STVC. Contrary to rumours, this is not a case of Waldorf going all Behringer on the Roland VP-330, but an entirely different beast, based upon a re-voiced (and, in our opinion, better sounding) Streichfett. Now all Waldorf need to do is to remove the keyboard and the vocoder and stick it in a box (h/t Sonic State):

27. Keith McMillen K-Board Pro 4. Express yourself! (h/t Kraft Music):

28. Rainger FX Reverb X. Just when you think everything that can be done with reverb and overdrive in a stompbox has been done, Rainger FX’s Reverb X comes along and does something new (h/t Sonic State):

29. Yudo NEUMAN Multi-Touch Keyboard / Synthesizer Prototype. Is this the future? (h/t Synth Anatomy):

30. Ormsby DJENT2018. You can’t mention NAMM 2018 without mentioning this 18 string Tasmanian blackwood and stone (sic) 18 string guitar. It reminds us of the time that Homer Simpson designed a car… (h/t GAK):

© 2018, The Technofile. All rights reserved. Moral Rights Asserted.

IK Multimedia Syntronik

Syntronik

 

In The Technofile Awards 2016, we implied that there are two ways to recreate vintage synths in software – modelling and sampling. However, that was then but this is now and, as ABC asked, why make the past your sacred cow? IK Multimedia certainly hasn’t. Instead they’ve devised a third way, by hybridising the first two, to produce Syntronik.

 

In developing Syntronik, IK Multimedia took the view that step A was to use their sampling expertise to painstakingly multi sample single oscillators and oscillator combinations (including sync and FM sweeps) from ‘golden’ examples of their 38 favourite synths and string machines.

 

The list of machines they sampled is pretty comprehensive, including, as it does, the Alesis Andromeda, ARP 2600, ARP Solina, Elka Rhapsody 490, Hohner String Performer, Micromoog, Minimoog Model D, Modular Moog, Moog Opus 3, Moog Prodigy, Moog Rogue, Moog Taurus I, Moog Taurus II, Moog Taurus 3, Moog Voyager, Multimoog, Oberheim OB-X, Oberheim OB-Xa, Oberheim SEM, Polymoog, PPG Wave 2.3, Realistic Concertmate MG-1, Roland Juno-60, Roland Jupiter-4, Roland Jupiter-6, Roland Jupiter-8, Roland JX-10, Roland JX-3P, Roland JX-8P, Roland RS-09, Roland RS-505 Paraphonic, Roland TB-303, Sequential Circuits Prophet-10, Sequential Circuits Prophet-5, Yamaha CS-01II, Yamaha CS-80, Yamaha GX-1, and Yamaha SY99.

 

Step B saw IK Multimedia inventing and applying its brand new “DRIFT” technology to the resultant 50GB library of 70,00 samples, in order to vary the phase, timbre and pitch, temporally, as a means of emulating the way that analogue oscillators behave.

IK Multimedia Drift Technology

 

Step C involved IK Multimedia using its modelling expertise to create circuit-level models of the Moog transistor ladder (from the Minimoog and Modular Moog), Roland’s IR3109 chip (from the Jupiter-8 and Juno-60), the Curtis CEM3320 chip (from the Prophet-5 and Oberheim OB-Xa) and the Oberheim SEM state variable filter, through which these DRIFted samples are controllable.

 

And there you have it, easy as ABC; but not wanting to make the past their sacred cow, IK decided that instead of merely offering facsimiles of the 38 machines they sampled, they would instead mash things up a bit by distilling them into 17 machines, some of which (such as the ‘T-03’ & ‘Blau’) emulate one specific synth (the Roland TB-303 & PPG Wave 2.3 respectively), others of which (such as ‘Stringbox’) combine the characteristics and samples of several similar machines.

 

 

 

Each of these 17 virtual instruments, though visually representative of the instrument(s) it emulates, offers a common set of controls…including a filter section that sports all four of the aforementioned filter models, plus a phaser, a formant filter and the SampleTank filter. This means that you can essentially play a Jupiter 8’s DRIFTified oscillator samples through a modelled MiniMoog’s filter, and a Solina’s DRIFTizzled oscillator samples through a modelled PPG filter.

 

 

Notice we said ‘and’, not ‘or’, as Syntronik allows you to layer/split up to four machines, making for some complex sonic possibilities.

 

But it doesn’t end there, as Syntronik also includes 38 ‘lunchbox’ style effects, some of which are derived from IK Multimedia’s AmpliTube and T-RackS, others of which, such as ‘Ensemble Chorus’ are new and exclusive to Syntronik; and up to five of these can be applied to each machine.

 

There is also an (up to) 32 step note/chord arpeggiator with some fairly deep options.

 

As for how it sounds? Exquisite! The samples are pristine, the DRIFT is convincing, the filters are some of the best software modelled ones we’ve heard, and the effects are every bit as good as one would expect, given their provenance. We would have loved the ability to select initialised instruments, instead of being forced to choose from presets, but in mitigation the 2000 presets sound fantastic and are eminently editable.

Conclusion:

We think that Syntronik brings something genuinely new to the table by enabling the ‘DNA’ (as IK would have it) of 38 vintage instruments to be combined in new and novel ways. Programming is simple thanks to the common set of parameters, large friendly effects page, and easy to use layer/split/arpeggiator window; and the results sounds fantastic. It’s Driftification for D nation.

More info: http://www.ikmultimedia.com/products/syntronik/

© 2017, The Technofile. All rights reserved. Moral Rights Asserted.

Korg Gadget For Mac

Korg Gadget For Mac

Korg Gadget has a rep for being one of the best iOS apps for making music. Recently it was ported to macOS, as the perhaps unsurprisingly named ‘Korg Gadget for Mac’. So what is it and do you need it?

What is it?

Korg describe Gadget for Mac as a “second DAW.” When you open it, you’re greeted with a unified single screen environment that’s divided into four quarters, comprising, from top left to bottom right, a ‘scene’ editor (which is akin to a simplified version of Ableton Live’s Session View), a MIDI editor, a mixer, and the Gadget window. Undoubtedly the lead vocalist in this 4 piece combo, is the latter, which displays your gadget of choice. Think of gadgets as virtual Volcas that Korg hasn’t made as hardware (yet). There are currently 31, that offer a dizzying array of everything from virtual analogues to classic digitals (and, of course, you can use a different gadget on each track). Some of the highlights include:

Darwin

Darwin – a virtual version of 90s classic, the Korg M1… with… and we can’t quite get over this…the sounds from every memory card that Korg ever released…not just for the M1, but for the T1 too.

 

Lexington – an emulation of the Lexingtonsecond most important mono synth in the history of electronic music, the ARP Odyssey, that features filters from all three of its hardware incarnations. Korg, you had us at preset 003 ‘Curried’ (NB for anyone under 35, google Ultravox).

 

MilpitasMilpitas – a virtual Korg Wavestation that, like Darwin, includes the patches and waveforms from every memory card that Korg released for this wave sequencing and vector synthesis giant.

 

Recife – a retro-futuristic MPC style RecifeDrum Module, whose 30 kits encompass pretty much every dance sub genre you can think of. Drum ‘n’ Bass, Trap, Tropical House, Dubstep, Glitch Hop, Grime, UK Garage, Techno, House, Electro, HipHop, Chillout, Nu Disco and even Indie Dance are all represented and all represent.

 

Chicago – a self confessed acid Chicagohouse ‘Tube Bass Machine’ that’s part 303, part Volca Bass, and part Electribe MX. However, switch on its arpeggiator and engage one of its multi effects, or choose and tweak one of its more curve ball presets, and it quickly becomes something greater than its sliver livery might suggest.

Brussels – a ravetastic Brussels‘Monophonic Anthem Synthesizer’. If its hoovers don’t inspire you to find the whistle and pacifier that you hid in your parents loft in 1993, nothing will.

 

KingstonKingston – a ‘Polyphonic Chip Synthesizer’ that offers an array of 8-bit chip tune style tones, chords & noises; with “Run” (arpeggiator) & “Jump” buttons and 12 effects to take things to the next level.

 

 

Kamata – a wave table synthesizer that uses 4 bit samples to emulate the NAMCO CUSTOM30 sound generator found in a some of the most famous arcade games of the 80s. Programmed by the sound design team at Bandai Namco Studios, it offers deeper programmability than Kingston, which it compliments.

 

MiamiMiami – a ‘Monophonic Wobble Synthesizer’ whose “X-MOD” oscillator and “CRUSH” filter have been created with the express purpose of delivering dancefloor destroying Dubstep basses.

 

PhoenixPhoenix – a virtual analogue poly synth whose lush pads and Oberheimesque good looks evoke the sound of the late 70s and early 80s.

 

Abu DabiAbu Dhabi – a ‘Dynamic Loop Slicer’ that lets you import samples, automagically slice, dice, and then manipulate them.

 

 

Other gadgets include Montreal – a vintage Fender Rhodes style piano, Alexandria – a Hammond style organ, Firenze – a Honer style Clavinet, Salzburg – an acoustic piano, and Gladstone – an acoustic drum module. All of the synth/keyboard gadgets include the ability to play notes and chords in an impressive 35 different scales, including every western mode and assorted ethnic ones. There are also two gadgets for recording audio – Zurich a general purpose audio recorder with 26 onboard FX, and Rosario – a guitar FX processor that features 19 modelled amps, 12 modelled cabinets, and 24 stomp boxes.

How do the gadgets sound?

In a word, fantastic! Running the gamut from retro cool, to cutting edge dance Korg’s Gadgets offer enough diversity to satisfy everyone from accomplished keyboardists to DJs and producers. Full details of all 31, together with soundclips can be found here

Why do you need a Second DAW?

Korg Gadget for Mac

Although Gadget for Mac offers more than enough to put together whole productions, it’s really intended as a musical scratchpad, on which to try out ideas. At this it excels, thanks to its combination of a single screen environment, and a DAW that embodies the Swedish concept of ‘Lagom’ i.e. just enough (functionality). Consequently you can concentrate on making music, instead of using software.

This in itself would be great news were it the full story, but it gets better because this release offers the option to export your work as an Ableton Live project; and because AU/VST/AAX versions of all of the gadgets are included, when you open your exported project in Live, it is a seamless and exact duplicate of your Gadget project. Naturally this also means that you can access all of Korg’s gadgets directly from within your DAW as stand alone plug-ins.

What do we and don’t we like?

Our one complaint about the otherwise perfect Korg M1 was that it lacked a resonance parameter, so we love the fact that Darwin has a resonance knob…or at least, we did, until we realised that it doesn’t actually appear to do anything? Also, our awe at Darwin’s inclusion of every M1 ROM card ever released is tempered by its lack of a full set of M1 parameters. That said, for many, Darwin and the other gadgets on offer will strike the perfect balance between simplicity and programmability. However we can’t help but think that if Korg were to add an advanced mode to at least some of these gadgets they would further enhance the appeal of this software, without compromising its usability.

The decision to name the gadgets (mostly) after places is somewhat confusing, as it provides no clue about what they do. To be fair though, when previewing and selecting gadgets, there is a helpful paragraph of text that clarifies this.

Whilst we like the fact that all of the synth gadgets include mini keyboards, because the black keys and white keys are all the same length, the former read visually as being parallel to the latter, instead of on top of them.

Those very minor points aside, we love everything about Gadget for Mac.

Conclusion

Korg Gadget for Mac sounds fantastic, is great fun to use, and provides a simple and elegant environment in which one can be highly productive. It’s a great adjunct to any DAW and for those making electronic music with Ableton Live, it’s practically mandatory.

More info: http://www.korg.com/uk/products/software/korg_gadget/for_mac.php

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