Heart of Noise brings back the 80’s with GalaXynth
GalaXynth Keyboard mode · Source: screen shot
GalaXynth Explore mode · Source: screen shot
In one of the most dated promotional videos ever, Heart of Noise claim that GalaXynth is a synth of the future. It’s modelled after the human ear, what they are calling highly advanced “Auditory Synthesis” and is capable of producing almost any sound.
So, what’s it all about? Well you could go to the website but that tells you very little indeed. There are some sound examples and an opportunity to download the demo. The video (below) is awesome though and it’s great to see some love for the Orchestral Hit which, imho, is well overdue for a bit of a comeback.
GalaXynth
The basic concept is that your have a bunch of instrument sounds that you can arrange in space. These form sort of topological nodes which can be morphed between but moving the white ball. The sound morphs from one sound to another depending on the distance and spacing relative to each other. As you play and move the ball you can discover completely new combinations of sounds the likes of which you’ve never heard.
There are three ways to play with the sound. Firstly in Explore mode you move that white ball. In XY mode you move the same white ball in a restricted space (not sure of the point of that one). Keyboard mode is different where it maps the keyboard across the space meaning that different notes place the white ball in different places depending on pitch and velocity. The Keyboard mod is quite interesting in how the sound changes as you play. Otherwise I am feeling decidedly underwhelmed.
Knob free
The morphing and sound possibilities are interesting but the raw material of sound sources are just not that great (other than that Orchestral Hit). If you load up the orchestral voices they sound like the strings you’d find on a late 1980’s digital synth from Korg. Maybe that’s what they’re after. They have certainly taken on the digital synth notion that we really don’t want knobs or control. There’s a handful of global controls over tone and pitch and that’s about it. Heart of Noise say “you’re done fiddling with neverending rows of knobs” – I’m not so sure that we are. But the one big omission is modulation. Moving the white ball with your mouse is one thing but it’s unforgivable that there’s no LFO or inertia parameter that can automate its movement. Now that would have been interesting.
Personally I’d recommend getting hold of the Korg Legacy Collection if you want a fun time playing in the 80’s. However, if you hurry you can “get this epic masterpiece” for only $99.
More information available on the Heart of Noise website.
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