No Synth Leaks at the Super Bowl, Behringer Pedal Wars – Highlights of the Week!
And yet another sub-to-perpetual drama
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No Synth Leaks at the Super Bowl, Behringer Pedal Wars - Highlights of the Week! · Source: Behringer
The synth web was on fire after Super Bowl 2024, because an yet unknown synth from Moog was spotted in the halftime show. Som my expectations for the synth leaks for Super Bowl 2025 were high. Also this week, there was a new Behringer B-Tron controversy. And we had another lesson in software subscriptions. And, as always, new music!
Tops & Flops
No Synth Leaks at Super Bowl: Kendrick Lamar, Jon Batiste and a white NI Maschine
Don’t we all remember the buzz on synth forums after the 2024 Super Bowl? YouTuber Jexus had spotted a previously unknown Moog synthesizer in Usher’s halftime show. After Superbooth 2024, it turned out to be the Moog Muse. So naturally, people were eagerly awaiting new synth leaks for this year’s halftime show.
Unfortunately, not only did we not get any teasers for new synths. There were no instruments at all! Although Kendrick Lamar’s bombastic performance featured hundreds of dancers, a huge stage set and none other than Pulp Fiction legend Samuel L. Jackson as a host, there was no band. The Super Bowl live broadcast has had its fair share of sound problems in the past, and although the music was played entirely from tape, the mix with Kendrick’s voice was reportedly not always right.
But there was gear to be seen after all, albeit in a rather unexpected place. During the performance of the national anthem by Jon Batiste, Grammy-winning soul singer and former band leader of late night host Stephen Colbert‘s house band, there was a gear trifecta of gear on his white piano. On closer inspection, the three devices turned out to be a white NI Maschine* in the middle, a Novation LaunchControl (just a MIDI controller) on the right, and a desktop synth on the left.
My weak eyes tell me that it might be something in the direction of a Jupiter/Juno, judging by the red stripes, so no synth leaks. There was also a brief outcry on social media that the three devices were not even wired. But if you look closely at the very beginning of the video, you will see the white cables. So, what do you think, dear community, which synth was it on the very right? Let us know in the comments!
Once again from subscription to perpetual: This time, Lemur
My colleague Lasse already mentioned the news of the return of one of the most important controller apps to the iPad last Saturday, with the surprising decision from the makers to offer it under a subscription scheme. Haven’t they heard the news? Waves…Minimal Audio…Avid… Each company started with subscription plans, each one backpedaled after intense community feedback.
But the message from the community has always been clear: software subscriptions are just not going to happen in the music software industry. No matter how envious companies look to Adobe, Microsoft, and the likes, the music production community is still small and vocal enough to fight off subscription plans. However, there is a growing number of subscription-based music apps in the iOS music world.
So, Lemur’s makers thought, they’d try their hand at a subscription model. ‘We hear you’ – after intense (and predictable) community feedback, was MIDI Kinetics’ meek response. Even though the result is certainly not representative across the board, a recent survey from Benn Jordan’s very entertaining NAMM video on the subject of software subscriptions clearly shows how pronounced the rejection is. Manufacturers, please take note!
Behringer vs. Musitronics
Speaking of predictable: after the non-existent synth leaks at the Super Bowl and the Lemur subscription debacle, this week saw yet another little Behringer controversy, but not in the synth world for a change. Following the introduction of the B-Tron, Musitronics, Mu-Tron III inventor Mike Beigel’s company, issued a strongly worded statement on the matter.
I have to admit that I am torn on this one. To re-create music equipment so closely to the original, especially when the real thing is still available to be bought, is a not exactly the nicest way to release music gear. On the other hand, many of the synthesizers and pedals Behringer produces would otherwise be reserved for a tiny, wealthy minority at their original prices.
And more music makers having more access to music gear is something I can only welcome. Who knows, maybe we’ll even see a secret Behringer synth leak at the next Synth Super Bowl?
Live music and new releases
And for my personal highlight of the week: a concert. Because I won’t be able to make it to her concert in Berlin soon, I went to Glasgow for the opening concert of Cyndi Lauper’s farewell tour. And what a magical night that was (in such a sterile arena at that). My musical roots are much more in the realm of industrial and heavy music, but let me tell you: her absolutely magical aura, these giants of dramatic pop ballads from the eighties – this was a truly special night. So, if you get the chance, do see her tour!
Speaking of industrial, I’m going to see Nine Inch Nails twice this summer, in Cologne and Berlin. I was happy to get hold of tickets, but the ticket price shock was a big one. The things we do as fans…
As far as new releases go, I’m a big fan of the new albums by FKA Twigs (dark, intricate pop like Madonna’s Ray of Light) and the Lambrini Girls (gritty, hissing Brit punk). As far as more moody releases go, check out i Häxa from Pelagic Records, where I used to work. It’s warm, it’d dark, it’s dangerous – I keep coming back to it. What’s on your playlist right now? Let us know in the comments!
More on synth leaks
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6 responses to “No Synth Leaks at the Super Bowl, Behringer Pedal Wars – Highlights of the Week!”
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soundforce sfc 8
thats the 3rd Machine.
That is not a desktop synth, but a controller made by SoundForce (small boutique label) that is dedicated for juno-like vst.
It’s a soundforce sfc-8
that synth on the left of Jon Batiste is a Soundforce FSC-8 🙂
I believe that the device on the right is a Yaeltex custom controller if I’m not mistaken. Give me a job XD
Left from NI Maschine+ – it`s SoundForce SFC-8
https://sound-force.nl/?page_id=4789