Roland Aira TB-3
Small synths with small price tags have been all over 2014, but the good news is that many of them deliver a mighty big sound. Whether you want to go analogue or digital (or even a mixture of both), there's been a new affordable synth for you: click through the gallery to discover (in no particular order) the very best of them, starting with Roland's TB-3.
Perhaps not quite the ultimate 303 clone some were expecting, but it’s more flexible than it first appears, and there’s simply nothing else on the market quite like this touchscreen bass synth.
4.5 out of 5
BUY: Roland Aira TB-3 currently available from:
UK: Andertons Music | Thomann | Gear4Music | DV247
US: Sweetwater | Full Compass
Future Music's Gear of the Year 2014 is brought to you in association with DV247
Waldorf Streichfett
A digital desktop synth that aims to replicate the naff string sounds of ’70s porn soundtracks may not be top of your ‘wish list’, but Streichfett is endless fun and packs great performance features.
4 out of 5
Read Waldorf Streichfett review
BUY: Waldorf Streichfett currently available from:
UK: Andertons Music | Thomann | Gear4Music | DV247
US: Sweetwater
Roland Aira System-1
For us at least, the jury is still out on Roland’s much-hyped ‘Plug Out’ technology but, even without it, the System-1 is a very powerful compact synth for the money.
4.5 out of 5
Read Roland Aira System-1 review
BUY: Roland Aira System-1 currently available from:
UK: Andertons Music | Thomann | Gear4Music | DV247
US: Sweetwater | Full Compass
MeeBlip Anode
MeeBlip’s schtick may be that it’s open source and hacker-friendly, but this is a great synth for the price even if you don’t want to get your hands dirty. The analogue filter is a beast!
4.5 out of 5
Soulsby Atmegatron
Bucking the trend for affordable analogue, the Atmegatron is a digital box of 8-bit filth. It’s dirty, noisy and masses of fun. It can be transformed into a different instrument at the click of a mouse too!
4 out of 5
Read Soulsby Atmegatron review
BUY: Soulsby Atmegatron currently available from:
UK: Thomann | DV247
Moog Werkstatt-Ø1
A completely hackable compact synth built around classic Moog circuits, all accompanied by an assortment of excellent online educational resources and how-to videos. What’s not to like?
BUY: Moog Werkstatt-Ø1 currently available from:
UK: Andertons Music | Gear4Music | DV247