Behringer says it’s slashing the prices of its synths by up to 60%
The end of the semiconductor shortage could be good news for your bank balance
Synths
All the latest keyboard and synth news, reviews and tips on MusicRadar
Latest synths news
Suzuki is marking its 70th anniversary by releasing a new version of the Omnichord
Someone call Damon Albarn
Chace: "I spend way too much on gear, but it’s never enough. Right now, I’m craving my own Korg PS-3100"
Becoming the first Chinese DJ to play Tomorrowland at only 17, Chace is an EDM savant. We find out more about his beat-driven approach to production
Mattoverse Electronics releases the Solar Sound Desktop Saturator, a $79 device that uses solar power to distort guitar, bass, synth and more
Stick it on your desktop, put it in your studio, and like the Mattoverse overdrive it is descended from, it uses light source for power and offers up saturated or choked drive sounds
MIDI’s 40th anniversary is set to be celebrated at the 2023 NAMM Show, and MIDI 2.0 is also being previewed
Plus, Chuck D will be on hand to celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip-hop
How to sound like Depeche Mode using soft synths in your DAW
To celebrate the new Depeche Mode album, Memento Mori, we take a look back at some of the band’s classic sounds and sequences: from See You to, yes, The Last Of Us!
Turn your Roland MC-202 into a 21st century groovebox with the MC-2oh2 upgrade kit
The SH-101, TB-303 and MicroComposer mash-up gets even more features
Roland’s Zenology Pro plugin hits version 2.0: more sounds and a refined user interface
The Zen-Core-powered soft synth gets an update
A firmware update for the cut-price Yamaha DX9 synth makes it more like a DX7
40 years after its release, an alternative ROM removes some of the DX9's artificial limitations
Joyce Muniz: "I can't live without the Moog Sub 37 - it's the soul of all my productions"
The Brazilian producer's latest album is a sonic time capsule that captures formative years spent in Vienna, D’n’B-fuelled tours across India and a lockdown spent in Berlin. We find out more about how it was made
Latest synths tuition
How to recreate the sound of the Solina String Ensemble
We bolster our guide to 15 essential synth sounds with one of the most useful patches in any synthesist's arsenal: synth strings
How to make synth sweep FX for EDM drops
We’ve all heard white noise sweeps with their cutoff frequencies steadily climbing. In this tutorial, we look at a more original take
How to create a classic rave chord stab
A staple of dance music, these short, punchy bursts of sound can provide harmonic and percussive drive in one go
How to make an ambient pad like Jean-Michel Jarre's Oxygene
Create evolving sonic atmospheres using Logic's Alchemy soft synth
How to make a Minimoog-style bass patch
A classic analogue bass patch makes a great jumping-off point for pretty much any monosynth
How to synthesize an analogue-style kick from scratch
Making your own kick has many benefits, and is simpler than you’d think
How to make a classic house organ sound like Robin S.' Show Me Love
Next up in our guide to 15 synth patches every producer should know, we take on a defining sound in '90s house music
How to make a classic reese bass like Renegade's Terrorist
Next up in our guide to 15 essential synth sounds every producer should know, the mighty reese bass
How to make an acid bassline like Fatboy Slim's Everybody Needs A 303 (without using a 303)
First up in our guide to 15 essential synth sounds every producer should know: the most iconic bass sound in electronic music's history
Latest synths reviews
FabFilter Twin 3 review
- €129
Twin is one of the few softsynths to have reached ‘legendary’ status. After 14 years, it now reaches version 3, but was it worth the wait?
Donner B1 Analog Bass Sequencer review
- £185
Donner enters the analogue synth realm with a 303 clone that sounds the part – even if it doesn’t look it
Casper Bastl Softpop SPII review
- £445
Is the Softpop’s semi-modular box of tricks the portable delight it’s been (hard) sold as? We find out
Roland SH-4d review
- £549
- $650
Roland releases yet another groovebox that emulates the company’s heritage instruments. However, there’s a real reason to be excited here…
Roli Seaboard Rise 2 review
- £1099
Roli’s long-awaited sequel has finally arrived. We find out if it rises to the occasion
Klevgrand Tomofon review
- $129
The Swedish developer’s ‘real audio synth’ is the company’s biggest release yet. We see what it can do…
Arturia MiniLab 3 review
- €99
The popular mini keyboard controller is back with a refreshed new look. We run it through its paces
Elektron Syntakt review
- £849
Elektron’s latest groovebox borrows sounds and ideas from various places in the company’s product line. We ask if this is more than the sum of its parts
Cherry Audio GX-80 review
- $59
Cherry Audio’s latest behemoth-of-a-synth is a plugin for a utopian future, exclusively from the vintage past…
Roland Fantom-0 Series review
- £1250 upwards
The flyweight Fantom is here, but has shedding those few pounds come at a cost? We get the measure of it…
