TonightsSpecialGuest

Let's face it, Elektron has always catered to a certain crowd. Their boxes's sequencers allowed you to bend the obvious purpose to color in the edges of a musical idea. For example, use one of the Analog 4's voices as a drum track via patch flipping per step, then use another voice to generate chords by detuning the sub oscillators to 5ths and such. The last two tracks can be used for bass and lead. Heaven forbid we use the Analog 4's 4 voices for, gasp, polyphony! That flexibility always made Elektron instruments fun to solve musical problems with, but made them difficult for the average musician to engage with. Enter the Syntakt, a digital plus analog groove box, with 8 digital assignable machines and 3 analog assignable machines , and a dedicated metallic analog machine. This box can do all drums, or a combination of drums, chords, tones, etc. Suddenly the super flexible sequencer is just fun, and it isn't needed as much to work around limitations. The analog synth machines are basic but punchy. They are VERY easy to dial in basic leads and basses with. The drum "machines" do everything from modern to vintage percs. Finally the "analog effects" allow for envelop controlled VCA ducking of assigned tracks. This lends itself to all sorts of madness but most obvious French Touch pumping effects of the track. This box is DEEP but the obvious flexibility will obscure most Elektron fanboys from discovering the hidden charms. Let them hate, while they poke around making their 8 voice / 4 channel FM synth do drums and chords, I can sit on my couch and blissfully come up with fun ideas to flesh out later in Ableton.