Novation's new A-Station seeks to combine the compact styling of their BassStation Rack synths with some of the spec of the prestigious Supernova and Nova - and all for £399! Is it an inspired bit of cross-breeding, or a misbegotten mongrel?
Continuing their tradition of themed rackmount modules, Emu have unleashed a 128-voice virtual orchestra in a box. A virtuoso endeavour or virtual insanity?
FM synthesis was the success story of the mid-'80s, and synth based on its principles, like Yamaha's DX7, sold by the bucketload — until affordable sample-based synths arrived at the end of the decade. Now, with their new FS1R, Yamaha have updated the technology for the late '90s.
Gordon Reid is bitten by the memory of a brilliant, but deeply flawed trio of Italian synthesizer designs that could have been the last word in affordable analogue.
The streamlined '90s exterior of Emu's Audity 2000 claims to hide a virtual modular hybrid, harking back to the company's own lost '70s analogue megasynth.
Apart from a few MIDI-supported commands, the Doepfer MS404 is completely analogue — so there are no patch memories, no SysEx, and no storable front-panel settings. Chris Carter explains why you'd nevertheless be mad to overlook it...
Long-term K2000 user Paul Ward gets to grips with the latest in Kurzweil's line of groundbreaking synths for just long enough to produce this hands-on preview...
It's not only the distinctive looks of the legendary Oberheim synth that the designers of OBMx have borrowed; they've also incorporated its legendary sound quality into a '90s MIDI synth made in the true analogue mould. Dave Crombie wonders if it's too good to be true...