It has no business being this good.

I’ve had this synth for a while now, and held off writing this because I wanted to ensure it would stick around and I used it before leaving some impressions. After owning it for a while and making a good amount of custom patches, I can say this synth is excellent and perfect for what I need in a mono synth… at least right now.

Where should I start? I guess I will start with this: Novation has made this the synth that keeps on giving. I love how unpretentious they are, and how committed they are to just enabling musicians everywhere to make more interesting music. They have invested in keeping the BSII updated since its introduction, and the updates are substantial. The fact that you can tune each of the oscillators, including the sub oscillator, is incredible. They added paraphonic mode so you can play more than a single note at a time.

As far as workflow, the panel is laid out so well. I like having the immediate control, and the preset indicator light is a genius bit of design that tells you where the patch settings initially were after you’ve been tweaking the sound. This is a huge help for those learning how to make certain sounds as well as those who may be wanting to just get a few settings back to where they were at the start of the patch.

I sometimes get tripped up by the switch to edit Osc 1 vs 2, etc but it’s never been a big enough issue to really cause problems. The DCOs on the synth definitely sound like DCOs but that’s not necessarily a bad thing in practice. Detuning slightly and using the LFO can add some nice movement to patches. A lot of the presets highlight how gnarly this synth can sound, but personally I have loved creating a lot of Boards of Canada inspired chord/drone patches that are quite soft and “woozy” sounding, for lack of a better term. Yes, you can make this sound super vicious, but it does subtle sounds well too.

Let’s talk about AFX mode… The fact that this isn’t talked about more across the music world blows my mind. The idea is so genius and impressive that they could have only enabled it on the Aphex Twin limited edition but they just… gave it to every BSII owner. I love that. Create independent patches PER KEY and then program a fun sequence, run it through some pedals or a looper, and you have something really special.

I also love how lightweight and sturdy the BSII is. Yes, it’s made of plastic, but… it’s well made. The knobs feel great, it doesn’t feel like it can’t stand up to abuse, and if you’re taking it to shows the weight is super easy to deal with. I use an Output Platform studio desk, and an added bonus of the BSII size is that it fits perfectly in one of the rack mount bays on the desk, so I can pull it out whenever I want to mess around with it and then just slide it away when I’m done. I love that.

This has been used by countless artists for a reason. In fact, I just watched a live Arcade Fire performance from their new album, WE, and they used a BSII for several tracks. It just rules, and it’s accessible due to the price point and way Novation cares about the average musician. If you’re wondering about getting one, you can find them used pretty easily for cheap. They’re great. Really great.

Preferred Settings + Usage:

It's a bomb!

For that price there is nothing better. Apart from it´s excellent sound, what I like most is it´s ability to generate your own presets and the simplicity of editing them.

From Gear Setup

Such a wonderful analog monosynth!

This is not my first synthesizer at all. I've probably had 10 total. This is my first digitally-controlled analog synth though. I wanted a true analog monosynth with patch memory, a small keyboard and a sub oscillator. It was between this, the Korg Monologue and the DSI Mopho. The Korg doesn't have a sub osc and sounds generic and metallic to me and the DSI is hard to program and much more expensive so I went with the Bass Station. The other main selling point was the sound. It does have a very creamy fat analog sound that reminds me of vintage Rolands. The Bass Station name is a throwback to Novation's original Bass Station from the early 90's but this synth is completely different, and while it excels at bass, it also handles leads wonderfully. The built in sequencer and arpeggiator are really nice too. It also sends midi notes from the arpeggiator which is pretty amazing. Pro tip- always add FX to your analog synths. They come out sounding dry otherwise. I typically add some reverb and chorus or delay and this thing will hang with any other synth with those basic FX added.

Muy Bueno!

While it's a mono-synth, you're given two oscillators and a sub oscillator that you can de-tune against each other and get some fat sounds. I'll typically have the sub an octave below the main oscillator, and the 2nd oscillator a 5th above the first, and it really kicks out some epic lead or bass lines. 32-step sequencer that you can save four of, and a totally usable arpeggiator? Done. Full-size keys and an all analog signal-path for $400? GTFOutta here, this thing slays. Run it through a delay/reverb and you're in business. Oh, and you can shape some wicked kick drums and snares with it.

Great Bass Station

Very cool synthesizer. Indispensable for lovers of retro-wave and electronic music in general. You can use factory sounds to create a tube sound as in 70-80. At the same time, you can create a modern dance sound.

Loads of fun!

I have used this monosynth a lot lately. I purchased it to replace my SH-101 as a live monosynth but it has ended up being additional! Exciting features have been added by Novation via the firmware updates lately, hopefully they continue this (though it’s already a 5-star beast!)

Future classic and a must have!

The best Bass Station so far. Don't get fooled by its size or price or name. This is one of the best analog monosynths for the moment and can do so much more than what it name would suggest.

Obviously some shortcuts were made to meet its price tag (plastic casing, only one set of ADSR sliders and a few other minor shortcomings) but fortunately non are audible ;-)

This is a future classic and a must have for every synthesist!

The Underdog Monosynth

This was the first synth I purchased when I got back into making music this year. It is a solid bread-and-butter monosynth that makes an excellent pairing with any polysynth. It is well worth the price of admission, especially if you don't have any other monosynths.

Outstanding entry-level mono

Excellent sound quality, extremely versatile, and a price that's hard to beat. Love everything about it, except that filters evidently cannot be controlled via MIDI. I might be wrong about that, though.

great range

There are so many great settings and there is also room to make your own. So easy to use and modify.