Now to try to make my first post not look like a shill attempt.
First off, I'm new to Elektron - my Analog Four is arriving tomorrow, so I can't really speak about compatibility here, though I don't anticipate any problem.
Around a year ago I decided a poly was what I needed to 'complete' my setup (having repeatedly failed to learn that a setup is never complete). I didn't want to spend a lot of money on something like a Prophet 8 and I wasn't too concerned about it being analogue. I also decided I didn't need to go vintage for this - I just wanted a solid polysynth for polysynth duties, such as pads.
I did a lot of reading around and ended up buying an Ultranova, and a year on I'm happy with that decision.
I went for it mainly because it seemed like a good all-rounder. It can run on USB power, it acts as an audio interface, it runs Automap as a master controller - there's a lot of value added there, the usefulness of which will depend on your setup. For me it replaced a couple of other pieces of kit and improved a fair few areas (an aftertouch keyboard powered via USB was a great addition for me in itself).
Anyway, as a polysynth, the bads:
- It's monotimbral, which is understandably a major stumbling block for a lot of people. I wanted it mainly as support for my analogue monos, so it's not so bad for me.
- It only has one smooth knob (plus the mod wheel) - there are eight other assignable knobs, but they're detented and no fun to tweak with. If they were like the A4 knobs I'd be a lot happier, though in fairness the detents do make patch editing precise.
- It involves menu-diving, but so did every competitor in the price range. It's one of the most accessible implementations I've seen, though - it's clear how to get to everything, and you can get there fast. Nine knobs are a great help there.
- The presets are pretty grim - a hands-on demo might well have put me off.
- No FM.
And the goods:
- The touch encoder feature is fantastic - each of the knobs is touch-sensitive, and you can assign several parameters to each one. So a single touch can activate the effects, increase the LFO amount, detune an oscillator and retrigger an envelope, for example. You can do some amazing things with this system, and you can have eight knobs set up simultaneously. A simple arpeggio sequence can develop beyond recognition and fuel an entire session.
- Some great sync options - a fair few unusual LFOs (e.g. scale-based), envelopes with retrigger, a well-featured arpeggiator and a flexible, programmable gate effect can all come together really well.
- Lots of oscillator features and depth. You can pile on 'virtual oscillators' without a polyphony hit, you can have virtual or 'real' sync, wavetables, ring mod - apart from FM, just about everything you might want.
- Lots of modulation: six envelopes, three LFOs (and additional dedicated LFOs for vibrato, for example), an expansive mod matrix - I guess this is the advantage of its monotimbrality, you can throw a hell of a lot of resources at a patch.
- Similarly, a five-slot effects chain with some great options.
- Other bells and whistles like chord memory.
- Keyboard has aftertouch and a nice feel.
- It can sound great if you can restrain yourself a little with all these mod and effects options (which I don't think Novation can).
I'd come down to the Ultranova or the Blofeld, and much as I still wonder what I might be able to do with the Blofeld, I don't regret my choice. If you're not going to be using the DAW control features, or if you really need multitimbrality, then the case is probably weaker. But the performance features - especially the touch encoders - should be of interest to anyone who enjoys playing with a synth (as distinct from playing a synth).
I'm really looking forward to pairing the UN with my A4 and assigning a tweakin' hand to each, and I think it's worth considering. I do not work for Novation, though I do sometimes feel like a freelance unpaid intern.
