Once I’d heard ‘Are Friends’ Electric?” by Tubeway Army, I knew synthesizers would be a huge part of my life. Despite drums becoming my main instrument for many years, I dabbled and lusted after countless pieces of gear and started using computers to help me make my own music with a Commodore 64 and a copy of Electrosound.
Over the years, I eventually progressed to more professional tools and began to truly indulge my love of electronic music making, slowly building a collection of gear that covered most synthesis methods, from sampling to physical modelling and beyond. However, my love of the gear that soundtracked my formative years was strong and I was fortunate enough to be asked to work with the inventor of the Fairlight CMI on their more recent projects. This then led to me restoring Fairlight CMI’s, something I still do to this day.
My home studio is now filled with classic vintage gear of the 80s and 90s, as well as modern classics. In recent years, I have been producing podcasts for Sound On Sound, as well as writing articles for them and I also present a weekly live stream for the Pro Synth Network. I still drum, albeit now on e-Drum kits, which are far easier to move around and a lot quieter when practising! You can often find me delivering seminars & lectures and at various synth shows around the world, talking about and demonstrating iconic synths.
NAMM
With NAMM 2025 behind us, I take a look at the synth-related high and low points of another momentous week in Anaheim and beyond!
NAMM had been and gone for another year. We get back to our sounds and presets with a selection of goodies covering lots of bases, including Chiptune!
Arturia's flagship soft synth returns for its latest iteration, Pigments 6, and introduces a new Modal engine, new filters, a vocoder effect and more!
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Expect compact size with big performance from the new DTX6 range flagship, the DTX6K5-M, with dual-layer Remo mesh heads!
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Ever since Behringer bought Tears For Fears' old Yamaha DX1, anticipation of a recreation has been rife. Today at NAMM 2025, the speculation ended. Introducing the Behringer BX1.
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CME have announced a new MIDI solution, the C2MIDI Pro cable, a revolutionary dual-purpose USB-C MIDI cable that's also a MIDI filter, mapper and router!
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Two new Roland Drumlink products deliver wireless connectivity for the cable-conscious V-Drummer
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The original Novation Bass Station sought to fill the shoes of the rare and expensive TB-303 at a time when squelchy bass was all the rage. Now it's back, bigger & better than ever.
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The Alesis Crimson III is the latest iteration of its very popular mid-range e-Drum kit, getting a much-needed module upgrade.
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KORG KRONOS returns, a collective sigh of relief is emitted from its fanbase and we have another killer workstation to enjoy!
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KORG announce the KORG miniKORG 700Sm, a mini version of the classic "mini" but with all the spec.
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One of their most successful digital synths, the KORG multi/poly module delivers it in a compact 19" rack mount/desktop unit.
This week, we have presets that work on both the hardware or software versions of two great synths. Everyone's a winner!
The EFNOTE 3 Style A delivers a minimally different alternative to the EFNOTE 3 Style B. Can you spot the difference?
Well here we are, ladies and gentlemen, it's 2025! I trust you all had a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year? Did you get any new synths? If not, why not spruce up your existing gear with some new ...
Roger Linn took time over the weekend to share his thoughts on recent LinnDrum recreations.
Sonicware's CyDrums is their third instrument in the "Giant Gameboy" style form factor, with this unit promising 4D drum sounds that react, transform and evolve, using 64 proprietary wavetables.
With 2024 delivering a bumper crop of software synths, it's been tough to pick the cream of the crop, but here are my choices for Best Software Synths of 2024, along with others worthy of a mention.
Like No.17 buses, you get nothing for a while; then three turn up at once. The Behringer PHARA-O MINI is the third in their Mini range, with a 700S-inspired filter.
Eight months after announcing their ambition to manufacture their MiniDexed synth in a box, the Dtronics DT-DX has launched on Kickstarter and has already beaten its target!
We all love a good Xmas song, but what are the best and worst Synthy Xmas tracks that we love to hear or are desperate to avoid?
Joyeux Noël et bonne année from those lovely folks in Grenoble! A rather lovely free instrument can be yours right now in the shape of Augmented Mallets Play, compliments of Arturia!
This week, I take a look back through my Sounds and Presets column to pick out the best presets that we featured in 2024
Arturia update their brilliant MiniFreak hybrid synthesizer to version 3.0 and give us regular and granular sampling in both the hardware and software versions.