Synthesisers

Notes: Arcade-themed synth from Teenage Engineering's amazing Pocket Operator range. Tiny portable synth with quirky chiptune-style sounds, built-in sequencer effects. Super fun.

Supplier's notes:
Arcade synthesizer and sequencer, with parameter locks, chord control and punch-in effects.

All pocket operator models perfectly complement each other. From drum machine, bass and lead synthesisers to noise percussion, the six unique units allow you to start a pocket band. Use them separately or connect them together, the choice is yours.

Use the built-in speaker for instant sound, connect a pair of headphones for detailed personal listening, or hook up a speaker system and the club will go boom!

Pocket operators are designed on a single multiple-layer circuit board using high quality components. They all share a compact and durable form factor.

By placing all vital and sensitive components under the LCD display there's no need for an outer case. By saving this cost, high quality components could be used to guarantee the best possible sound and very low power consumption. The space under the display also doubles as a speaker box.

Optional extras:
Add the silicone pro case to protect your pocket operator and get anti-slip feet, neck strap, battery protection and pro feel buttons. Use the SP-10 display protection to protect the LCD screen, and start a jam sync session with your friends using the MC-3 mini cables.

Notes: Bass line synthesizer and sequencer with parameter locks, punch-in effects and play styles.

Pocket operators are cleverly designed on a single circuit board. By placing all vital and sensitive components under the LCD display there's no need for an outer case. By saving this cost, high quality components could be used to guarantee the best possible sound and very low power consumption. The space under the display also doubles as a speaker box.

Experience a fresh new way to create music using your thumbs. With its pocket size, its animated graphics, real synthesizer engines, sync, punch-in effects, built-in speaker, alarm clock and impossibly low price, making electronic music has never been this much fun!

Notes: Melody synthesizer and sequencer with parameter locks, punch-in effects, arpeggio and chord play styles.

Pocket operators are cleverly designed on a single circuit board. By placing all vital and sensitive components under the LCD display there's no need for an outer case. By saving this cost, high quality components could be used to guarantee the best possible sound and very low power consumption. The space under the display also doubles as a speaker box.

Experience a fresh new way to create music using your thumbs. With its pocket size, its animated graphics, real synthesizer engines, sync, punch-in effects, built-in speaker, alarm clock and impossibly low price, making electronic music has never been this much fun!

Notes: The Teenage Engineering PO-35 Speak is a mini vocal synthesizer, sampler and sequencer, ideal for all types of voice mangling and sampling on the go. Use the built in microphone to instantly record your own voice, and completely change its character. play with it, sequence it and add effects and drums on top.

Notes: Live synthesizer and sequencer, with parameter locks, glide control and punch-in effects.

All pocket operator models perfectly complement each other. From drum machine, bass and lead synthesisers to noise percussion, the six unique units allow you to start a pocket band. Use them separately or connect them together, the choice is yours.

Use the built-in speaker for instant sound, connect a pair of headphones for detailed personal listening, or hook up a speaker system and the club will go boom!

Pocket operators are designed on a single multiple-layer circuit board using high quality components. They all share a compact and durable form factor.

By placing all vital and sensitive components under the LCD display there's no need for an outer case. By saving this cost, high quality components could be used to guarantee the best possible sound and very low power consumption. The space under the display also doubles as a speaker box.

Optional extras:
Add the silicone pro case to protect your pocket operator and get anti-slip feet, neck strap, battery protection and pro feel buttons. Use the SP-10 display protection to protect the LCD screen, and start a jam sync session with your friends using the MC-3 mini cables.

Notes: Super affordable but fun analogue synth, the LORE does two-oscillator FM synthesis to create experimental tones, drones and textures. Power via USB-C, output over 3.5mm jack socket.

Supplier's notes:
Lore takes two of the lush all-analogue oscillators from OVUM, and adds frequency modulation to unlock a wild new range of sounds. It's designed for exploring tones, drones, and frequency modulated textures. Each voice is made of an independently controlled triangle-core oscillators, with separate control for volume, pitch, and can be crossfaded between a bright square wave and a crisp triangle wave.

Lore is frequency modulation. The left oscillator can be sent to the audio output, where it will create harmony or dissonance with the right oscillator, or it can be switched to modulate the frequency of the right oscillator. This is a simplified and analog version of the kind of FM synthesis you'll find in digital synthesizers like the DX7 and it's descendants. It's hand-built from 100% analog circuitry, with no digital components, screens, quantization, or key-combinations to memorize - everything is immediate and at your fingertips.

Lore is enclosed in a sturdy transparent-green petroleum-free bioplastic case. It has a USB-C port for power, and a single 3.5mm audio output jack for headphones or line-out to connect to an amplifier, audio interface, or effects.

To reduce waste, by default Lore comes with just the instrument and a USB to USB-C power cable. If you don't have a spare USB power supply, they can be added to your purchase at checkout. Lore is portable, but does not contain a battery. It can be powered by any USB powerbank.

Notes: Literally the size of a business card (if a little bit thicker), one of the smallest synths on the market. Simple design with a surprisingly punchy sound, plus CV and gate inputs for control.

Supplier's Notes:
The Business Card Synthesizer is a tiny synth that can be connected to a Business Card Sequencer, other synth gear, or played by itself.

Headphones can be connected directly to the output of the synth, and there are plenty of knobs to play with, so you can easily make noises anywhere. Great for learning about synthesizers!

S&H Button: Enables Sample & Hold, which disables the external CV IN jack and uses LFO1 and LFO2 to determine oscillator pitch. LFO1 sets the sample rate (SHAPE is ignored for this), and LFO2 is the wave that gets sampled.

GATE Button: Manually turns on the gate so sound comes out of the synth. This control is momentary, but you can latch it on by tapping the S&H button while holding the GATE button down.

COARSE TUNE: Adjusts the pitch of the oscillator up or down in large increments

FINE TUNE: Adjusts the pitch of the oscillator up or down in fine increments

SHAPE: Changes the shape of the wave produced by the main oscillator (VCO). Turning this control fully CW gives you a triangle wave. Start turning it CCW takes you through sawtooth/ramp, then at about the 12:00 position you get a square wave. Continue turning it CCW and you get several higher duty cycle square waves
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GLIDE: Adjusts the rate at which the pitch of the VCO takes to go between pitches (whether changed by the COARSE TUNE knob or CV IN). Fully CCW causes the pitch to react almost instantly, while fully CW makes it take its sweet time.

LFO 1 / LFO 2 SHAPE: Changes the shape of the waves produced by the low-frequency oscillators (LFOs). The shapes are similar to those of the VCO, except that the LFOs have sawtooth/ramp waves that go both up and down (since you can actually hear the difference at LFO rates).

LFO 1 / LFO 2 RATE: Controls how fast the LFOs go.

LFO -> VCO: Routes the two LFOs to control the pitch of the main oscillator. The 12:00 position is basically "off", and the LFOs have no effect on pitch. Start turning the control CCW and LFO1 starts changing the pitch of the VCO. Maximum effect is at about 10:00. Continuing to turn the control starts to bring in LFO2 as well. All the way CCW gives you full effect from both LFO1 and LFO2.

Turning the control CW from 12:00 does essentially the same thing, but brings in LFO2 first, then LFO1.

This might seem like kind of a weird control, but it gives you quite a bit of routing flexibility with one knob. You can have no pitch modulation, LFO1, LFO2, LFO1 with a little LFO2, or LFO2 with a little LFO1.

LFO -> VCA: Routes the two LFOs to control the amplitude of the oscillator. (See LFO -> VCO control description above for more information about how the control works.)

ATTACK: Controls how fast the audio amplitude fades in when the gate is triggered. CCW is fast and CW is slow.

DECAY: Controls how fast the audio amplitude fades out when the gate is released. CCW is fast and CW is slow.

VOLUME: Controls the overall volume of the signal coming from AUDIO OUT.

FILTER: Changes the cutoff frequency of an analog low-pass filter. Turn the knob fully CW and all frequencies (that you can hear) are let through. Start turning it CCW and the high frequencies start getting cut off, until the sound becomes muddy / muffled. Use in conjunction with the SHAPE control to get the tonal quality you are looking for.

Connections:
CV IN: Accepts a 1 volt/octave control voltage to control the pitch of the oscillator. It responds from about 0-5V, but voltages outside of this range won't cause damage. The CV input is quantized, so only valid (western scale) notes are played. This input is ignored when Sample & Hold is enabled.
GATE IN: A voltage greater than about 2.5V will turn on the gate and allow audio to come out the output of the synth.
AUDIO OUT: Connect to an amplifier or another synth. The jack has both the tip and ring connected, so you can even use stereo headphones and hear sound from both ears.
Power: Connect 7.5-15VDC to this 3.5mm TS jack to power the synthesizer. The tip is positive (don't worry, there's a protection diode in case you get it reversed). You can get power from a 9V battery, AC adapter, or you may even be able to find an output on your modular synthesizer that can provide enough current.

Specifications:
Power supply: 7-15VDC (reverse-polarity protected!)
Power connection: 3.5mm phone jack, center-positive
Current draw: 15ma
Dimensions: 3.5" x 2" (the same as a business card!)