Top Five Compact Synthesizers for under R3500
Compact synthesizers are undoubtedly gaining popularity in the market, with various companies offering some great options for beginners and professionals alike.
It is a common misconception that synthesizers are expensive.
You do get some options that fetch a pretty penny, however there are some really great options at the affordable end too. A variety of companies even offer compact synthesizers that fit into smaller studio spaces and touring bags, some even as small as pocket-size.
Let’s have a look at some of our favourite compact synthesizers on the market.
IK Multimedia UNO
What is it:
The UNO is IK Multimedia’s first analog synthesizer, the UNO is compact and powerful, offering a huge array of features at a very competitive price.
Best feature(s):
The UNO features two VCOs, multimode filter, built-in effects, dual-stage overdrive, arpeggiator and a large variety of modulation settings.
Not so cool:
The parameters are banked, meaning it can be difficult for first time users to navigate the interface, however for the number of features that are in the UNO synthesizer, they had to cut down on size somehow.
Final Thoughts:
The IK Multimedia UNO Synthesizer is just about the most feature-packed synth in the price-range. It retails at USD $199 (Around R2950 excl. duties).
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Moog Werkstatt-01
What is it:
The Moog Werkstatt-01 is Moog’s smallest analog synthesizer yet, it features a semi-modular patchbay using small jumper leads and is built around a single oscillator and filter. It’s basic, however it sounds great.
Best feature(s):
It’s semi-modular and super compact.
Not so cool:
The Werkstatt-01 features no MIDI or CV/Gate inputs, meaning it doesn’t play very well with others, that being said it’s very well-priced for what you’re getting.
Final Thoughts:
The Werkstatt-01 is probably the cheapest semi-modular synthesizer on the market, out of all the synths on this list the raw tone comes out on top, however it’s lacking on some features compared to the others. It retails at USD $219 (Around R3250 excl. duties).
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Korg Volca Keys
What is it:
Korg Volca Keys is a three-voice polyphonic analog synth with a variety of interesting voice settings such as ring-mod and unison-detuning.
Best feature(s):
Built-in Sequencer, and true analog VCOs and VCF in a super-compact unit.
Not so cool:
The Korg Volca series have some seriously awesome sound, however I feel the unbalanced headphone output bottlenecks the quality somewhat, that being said they’re still incredibly fun synths to play with.
Final Thoughts:
The Korg Volca Keys is just about the cheapest polyphonic analog synth on the market, retailing at USD $225 (Around R3350 excl. duties).
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Korg Volca Kick
What is it:
The Volca Kick is Korg’s analog kick generator, however it’s not limited to just kick drum sounds. The Volca kick is capable of delivering powerful kick and deep bass sounds. The concept is a self-resonating filter (from the legendary MS-20) creating the tone, resulting in a much richer sound that using a simple sine wave.
Best feature(s):
The Volca Kick has a built-in sequencer allowing you to sequence notes and “motion” allowing you to record knob movements, giving you the ability of creating a kick and bass pattern with just one piece of gear.
Not so cool:
Same as above.
Final Thoughts:
The Korg Volca Series play very well with each other, the sync in and out allow you to synchronize multiple Volcas together, each also has MIDI In, so you can hook it up to a nicer keyboard than the one that’s built-in. The Volca Kick is retailing at USD $225 (Around R3350 excl. duties).
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Teenage Engineering Pocket Operator Series
What is it:
The Pocket Operator series from Teenage Engineering is a collection of ultra-portable music creation devices from drum machines and sub-synths to samplers and speech synthesizers. The devices are designed to fit in your pocket, hence the name, and offer a huge variety of sounds.
Best feature(s):
Unique visual approach to the sound design process, offering fun animations for each patch that help understand what the device is doing on the inside.
Not so cool:
The devices are built with no external housing, meaning the components are pretty susceptible to outside forces. That being said, you can purchase a silicone outer-case for your Pocket Operator – starting at USD $29 (Around R450 excl. duties)
Final Thoughts:
I’m yet to find a store in South Africa that stocks the Teenage Engineering stuff, however the size and weight should make the shipping rather inexpensive. The Pocket Operators themselves go for around USD $49 to $89 (R750 to R1350 excl. duties)
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What’s your preference?
Are you looking for an amazing raw tone to resample or use as a wavetable?
Then I would opt for the Moog Werkstatt-01.
Are you looking at setting up a live/jam rig?
I would opt for a Korg Volca or two.
Are you looking for a synth to have some fun with while on the bus or train?
Then the Pocket Operators may suit you best.
Either way, this list of compact synthesizers is a great starting point to try out some outboard gear.
