Cre8Audio’s East Beast is a $250 semi-modular synth with a freaky side

Cre8Audio has made a name for itself by building dirt-cheap Eurorack gear, putting what has traditionally be an extraordinarily expensive endeavor — building modular synth — in the reach of mere mortals. Now it’s branching out to self-contained semi-modular synthesizers with the East Beast.

As the name implies, the East Beast is an east coast style synthesizer. In short it features a big sounding oscillator and a resonant filter for tone shaping. Those two particular components were built with help of the analog weirdos over at Pittsburgh Modular. The filter is a multi-mode design with high, low and bandpass options. The PGH filter is also lauded for its lack of “dead zones”. And the oscillator has sine, triangle, saw, and square waves, along with pitched noise, that can be combined. 

Of course and filter and oscillator alone do not a synth make. There’s also a VCA, an envelope generator, an LFO, a 32 step sequencer and a digital multi-mode tool that can be an extra envelope, LFO or a random generator. It also has an arpeggiator and even a playable (but rudimentary) keyboard. 

Of course, an analog synth with all those features isn’t that unheard of. What makes the East Beast exciting is that it includes all of that, and a 20 point patch bay, for just $250. Being able to get something that, at least on paper, seems like a shrunken Moog Mother 32 for less than half the price is stunning.

There are still a lot of unanswered questions. But, considering that you can also take the East Beast out of its case and slap it in a Eurorack system, means this one of the most affordable ways to get into modular synthesis. 

The Cre8Audio East Beast is available to pre-order now and should start shipping by the end of May.

Elektron’s Syntakt wants to be the only groovebox you’ll ever need

The Syntakt has been one of the worst kept secrets in the music world. But it wasn’t until today that the world finally got to see what Elektron’s latest groovebox is capable of. It combines the company’s legendary sequencer with four analog four analog synth tracks and 10 digital tracks. While the Syntakt is focused primarily on percussion, it’s capable of handling bass and melody as well. And, if you’re not happy with the internal synth sounds, you can control external gear by switching any of the 12 tracks to be MIDI. Those MIDI tracks by the way are four-note polyphonic

The Syntakt takes an everything and the kitchen sink approach, and borrows a bit of its sound design workflow from previous Elektron instruments like the Machinedrum and Model:Cycles. It starts by selecting a “machine,” of which there are 37 spread across the three different core types of synthesis. There are 10 digital synths, 15 analog drum, and 12 analog cymbal machines. Each one is designed to do a specific thing, just like on the Cycles, but the level of control offered here is far greater. 

Each engine also has a specific set of effects and parameters associated with it. The digital tracks each have a digital overdrive, a digital multimode filter and a digital base width filter, in addition to a pair of LFOs. While the analog tracks each have an analog overdrive, an analog multimode filter and a pair of LFOs. There’s also an FX track where you can automate an analog overdrive, an analog multimode filter, as well as digital reverb and delay. 

In addition to controlling external gear with the Syntakt’s MIDI channels, you can also feed external audio through its master effects, allowing you to treat it as both a master sequencer and a mixer — it can be the brains of an entire performance setup.

The entire thing lives inside the same chassis Elektron uses for its Digitakt and Digitone instruments, which means it’s small and portable(ish), but also quite rugged. It weighs just 3.6lbs, but is housed in steel casing.

Of course, all that power and roadworthiness doesn’t come cheap. The Syntakt is available now in limited quantities from Elektron and to preorder from select retailers for $999.

Cre8Audio’s NiftyKeys is a MIDI controller you can build a Eurorack synth in

Cre8Audio made a splash a few years ago when it launched the NiftyCase in 2019, a Eurorack case that featured a surprising amount of convenient features for a stunningly low price. Seriously, $200 for an 84hp Eurorack case with a power supply, MIDI to CV converter, MIDI over USB capabilities and audio connections is kind of bonkers. Now the company is going a little more upmarket, targeting a niche within a niche, with the NiftyKeys.

NiftyKeys is a full-sized 49-key MIDI keyboard with a 112hp Eurorack case mounted on top. Now, at $600 it’s a decent investment, especially considering you still have to fill it up with modules. But the only comparable product I can think of is the now discontinued Waldorf kb37 which retailed for $999 and was smaller and less feature packed than the NiftyKeys. Which means, it’s actually something of a bargain? 

There are four paired CV pitch and gate outs across the top which means you can patch up a four-voice polyphonic synth, or four separate monophonic patches playable split across different zones of the keyboard, or a pair of duophonic patches, or… you get the idea. There’s also CV outs for aftertouch, velocity, modwheel, expression or the clock-synced LFO. There’s an internal clock, but the whole rig can also be clocked externally, even over MIDI. There’s five-pin MIDI In and Out/Through, plus MIDI over USB. Plus the keyboard itself has an auto-chord feature, a multi-mode arpeggiator, glide and swing control. 

Moog’s Etherwave Theremin makes a classic design more convenient

There are few instruments that are as iconic or mysterious as the Theremin. Its sound immediately conjures recollections of ’50s Sci-Fi films and B horror movies. Yet when it debuted in the late 1920s, it toured the world alongside prominent orchestras, and by the late 30s it was in the hands of Clara Rockmore stunning audiences around the globe. 

The Theremin is also how Bob Moog got his start building instruments, and eventually selling kits for customers to make their own. Which makes it kind of a big deal when the company introduces a new model. The Etherwave Theremin is based on a 1996 design from Bob Moog himself, and replaces the Etherwave and Etherwave Plus.

Moog Etherwave Theremin
Moog

While the Etherwave is certainly something of an iterative update to those models, they’ve been hard to find outside of the used market recently. It sits firmly in the middle ground between the budget-minded and digital Theremini, and the statement piece that is the $1,500 Claravox Centennial. The $899 Etherwave is a traditional analog Theremin, so you can get all those classic sci-fi sounds. But it also has CV outputs so you can control other gear, including modular synth rigs, simply by waving your hands in the air. (Or, more accurately, by moving your fingers with extreme precision in the air.)

Most of the other improvements are focused on portability and convenience. The antenna connections and mic stand adapter have been simplified to speed up assembly and breakdown. Plus Moog has created a custom case for transporting the Etherwave. Lastly, there’s a mute control which is handy for not only silencing the Theremin when you don’t want to have to wait for it to power back up (and warm up), but also can be used to preview the pitch when you’re trying to calibrate or find your bearings during a performance. 

The Moog Etherwave Theremin is available now and shipping worldwide for $899.

Korg’s Volca FM 2 synth adds more voices, reverb and randomization

Korg arguably kickstarted something of a synth revolution when it launched the Volca line. And the Volca FM has been a consistent favorite in the series. (It was also the first “real” synth I ever got, so I have something of a soft spot for it.) Now, some six year later, the company is issuing an updated model, the Volca FM 2. Like the Volca Sample 2 it released in 2020, this is a mostly incremental improvement on the previous model, but it does address some pain points. 

Let’s start with what hasn’t changed — the core six operator, 32 algorithm synth engine. The Volca FM remains an unabashedly traditional take on the Yamaha DX7. The form factor is also unchanged, and you can still power it with six AA batteries. You also still get the same 16-step sequencer with “motion sequencing”.

Physically the changes are subtle. The display is now blue eight-segment LEDs instead of red. The five-pin MIDI DIN has been replaced with a TRS MIDI jack, but that has also made room for MIDI out, incase you want to control other gear with the Volca’s sequencer.

The big changes though, are under the hood. For one the the Volca FM 2 is a six voice synth, instead of a three voice one. That’s a huge change and allows you to play bigger, richer chords. And it now responds to velocity over MIDI, something you basically needed a hack to get before. There’s also a reverb effect built-in, in addition to the chorus. A little reverb goes a long way when you’re dealing with a synth, especially a digital one. So this is another very welcome upgrade.

Lastly Korg has added a randomization feature. This allows you to quickly create new and unique sounds, without having to master the arcane art of FM synthesis. 

The Volca FM 2 is available to preorder today for $170.