It’s no secret that we’re big fans of Bristol-based synthesizer developer UDO Audio. The brand’s debut Super 6 scored a 5 star review when it landed in 2021, and UDO’s CS-80-referencing follow-up Super Gemini topped our 2023 gear-of-the-year list.
The company’s latest release is DMNO, a bi-timbral 8-voice poly that we described as “a brilliantly crafted synth for synth heads” in our recent review. Although DMNO is a cutting-edge synth, sporting FPGA digital oscillators, a binaural signal path and DSP effects engine, there’s still an analogue heft to its hybrid design that results in a sound and feel reminiscent of classic Oberheim’s classic 2-Voice synth.
Now UDO has released a desktop counterpart named DMNO ON, which sees the company leaning into that Oberheim comparison with a pair of optional expander modules that feel distinctly SEM-inspired in terms of their look – even if they're functionally something of a different beast.
The DMNO ON system will be available in three parts. The base DMNO ON is the same, full-feature synth as the original DMNO. Once again, it has eight hybrid synth voices structured as two independent four-voice engines. These can be used in a variety of different ways thanks to the synth’s innovative play modes, which allow the engines to be layered, split across the stereo field, cycled, played in serial and triggered at random.
Each synth engine makes use of a gorgeous-sounding dynamic multi-core stereo VCF with parallel, series and stereo modes. Each also features its own modulation tools and a mixer section that can be overdriven for additional grit and harmonics.
Where DMNO ON deviates most significantly from its bigger sibling is in its cutdown control interface. The full-sized DMNO has two independent synth sections that allow for full hands-on control of both synth engines simultaneously. DMNO ON cuts this down to just a single control panel shared between both engines.
It’s here that UDO’s new ONM-1 module comes in. Described as an ‘optional expander unit’, the ONM-1 offers an additional set of synth engine controls that can be used alongside those found on the DMNO ON, allowing for simultaneous control over both engines. The ONM-1 connects to the rear of the main synth using a screw-locking D-Sub cable. The control unit is plug-and-play with no need for an additional power supply.
While the ONM-1 is the only expansion available alongside the desktop unit at launch, UDO has also announced a forthcoming ONM-2 unit that gives hands-on access to DMNO’s digital effects section.
This gives users direct control over send and insert effect parameters as well as the 3-band EQ – all features hidden within menus on both the desktop and keyboard versions of DMNO. The ONM-2 also has an LED display for indicating parameter values.
There’s no information as yet on pricing and release dates for DMNO ON and its ONM expansions, but you can head to the UDO Audio site for more information.
