Arturia CZ V is a software recreation of iconic Casio CZ series

Arturia CZ V is a software recreation of iconic Casio CZ series

The new Arturia CZ V, introduced as part of their new V Collection 7, is now available as a standalone.

The Casio CZ series was hugely popular in the 80s. They were incredibly affordable, offering upcoming musicians a chance to create compelling sounds without having to rob a bank. The CZ series was originally introduced as a competitor to the hugely popular Yamaha DX-7 although much more affordable and offering some unique characteristics of their own. Much like the Yamaha DX-7, the Casio CZ synths were incredibly versatile, especially the CZ-101 and CZ-1000 – they can be heard in works by Vince Clarke to Van Halen.

The new Arturia CZ V is not a one-to-one recreation of any particular synth in the Casio CZ Series, it’s more of a new instrument inspired by what made the original Casio synths so versatile yet gave them that distinct character. Arturia have added a bunch of helpful features to enhance workflow and the capabilities of the synth itself. The original Casio CZ series was known to be a bit clunky when programming your own sounds, however Arturia has completely changed that. They’ve applied their years of experience in creating clear and concise GUIs.

Much more modulation than before…

The envelope section allows you to use envelopes modelled off the original Casio CZ series or swap them out in favour of some more user-friendly options such as a DADSR or step-sequencer style MSEG. The Arturia CZ V also has an advanced modulation matrix, making it much easier to create in-depth sounds. They’ve also added two new LFOs and a Sample & hold generator for creating random modulations, these all have various sync or free-running settings.

The Arturia CZ V also has four assignable macros, an integrated arpeggiator and various other features which make it much more than a Casio CZ series emulation. The new Arturia CZ V is set to retail at USD $199 (Around R2900), however they are offering an introductory promo offer at USD $99 (Around R1500).

Visit Arturia’s website for more details.

It’s also part of the latest update to Arturia’s V Collection, for more information check out the article we wrote on that here.