Right, I’m aware. Indeed, using the single-cycle waveform directly as a synth isn’t the right way it seems, since eq:ing becomes impossible with them. So bouncing and then eq:ing using filters or the sample editor.
I just personally find that workflow to be too tedious for my taste. I guess I’ve become a bit spoiled with the Syntakt, MPC, Push/Ableton, etc. 
Maybe no surprise I’m a big fan of little FM synths.
Hits:
Softpop II
Ton of fun in a little box. Quenches any thirst I have for semi modular, and has a surprisingly great and performative sequencer. I like running other things through the input to process or use as triggers. I love how absolutely wild it can sound even normalized.
Blast Beats
I love having all those FM parameters right there up front. I’m enjoying it quite a lot even though I haven’t given it enough proper time yet. I’m less impressed by the drum sounds but they have their own quirks and interesting in their weird interaction. The sequencer has some tricks to it and the UI is strange at first, but pretty intuitive with time.
Crum Drum
This was a pleasant surprise. I wasn’t sure I’d be into the generative aspects of it, but I find it’s one of the quickest machines I go to for a musical fix. I love the FM drums on this thing and the way the parameters can be randomized different ways depending on which voice is getting it. Mine is a little finicky switching between step amounts, but I’m already looking forward to Crum 2.
Great Conjunction
This is another nice surprise! Its three sequencers kind of fight for control and conjugate the FM sounds as they overlap. Between this and the Syntakt getting Euclidean sequencing, I’m quite happy with how much experimental and generative sequencing I can do now.
Truly a happy accident machine. It mostly does what it wants but isn’t too hard to give a little direction and wind up somewhere lovely.
Middle:
Freaq FM
Another generative type of FM synth. Really quick to get some nice tones plus its LFOs, and I like how it has two sequencers playing together.
I don’t like the audio output on it though…
It’s loud as hell and only the left channel. If someone knows a fix please share. I like it, I want to like it more, but the only way I can use it without distortion is by running it through the Softpop and if I’m busting that out I’d rather play with it.
Miss:
Analog 4
I know, I know people love it. I gazed into its depths and saw how deep it can go. I just don’t feel like learning and managing all that along with my other synths. It also felt a lot less playful and immediate than my others.
Maybe if it was my first Elektron the outcome would be different, but the immediacy of the Model:Cycles-then-Syntakt have spoiled me.
MC-101
I’m done with Roland UI. I think it’s loaded with great sounds. I didn’t like using this thing at all. Sold. Colorful at least.
Microfreak
It’s neat! Mine had issues with the keyboard and touch strips in my setup which was a big selling point for me. I liked its mod matrix and vocoder a lot. I didn’t like that is was mono and effect-less. I ultimately realized if I’m going for something to pair with Syntakt or a poly I’m much happier with my Opsix. Another “if I had gotten it earlier” synth. Sold.
Reface DX
I got it again because at this point I’m kind of an FM perv and I also thought I’d like to use it for keys as a controller, but as a controller is all I found myself using it as and it felt redundant. Just sold again to save a little space physically and mentally.
Liven Mega Synthesis
I couldn’t remember if it was this year or last until checking now, so I’m adding this in post.
I liked it a lot! Kind of feel bad because I was really looking forward to it when it was announced, played the heck out of it when I first got it, but kind of hit a wall when I realized I didn’t enjoy it for a few reasons.
Sonicware is cool for making these things affordable, but the Livens definitely have a real plastic toyish feel.
I wish it was tweakable while playing, but unfortunately the FM editing can’t be done while the sequencer is running. I wish there was a way for them to make an FM synth that was as open to editing as say the Opsix or something.
It was sold to help afford some of the hits above.
Was the Push ultimately a hit or miss or is the jury still out? Does the Move factor in either way?
I excluded it because technically it was bought in November 2023. The jury is still out but the fact that it’s just collecting dust and I prefer to work in Ableton Live with the keyboard and trackpad speaks for itself I guess. The main issue I have with it is that it’s just too large, so it can’t have a permanent place on the desktop since my studio is also used by my wife as her work-from-home space.
Totally agree. The drive is so good on guitar that I emailed the company and asked if they would tell me about the circuit. Haha.
They just said it was a simple circuit, but man it does sound good.
Go watch that Yan Cook’s video. Taught me some nice design tricks. He’s also Ukranian so who knows, maybe a neighbor.
Wow, was it? This year really flew by 
thanks for the follow up. You’ve really given it a good go, though. Seems the MPC still has the edge. Or, in keeping with the thread, the MPC is still a bit more of an ongoing hit.
Yes, the MPC is a gift that keeps on giving to me. It’s my go-to groovebox these days. Less of a box of chocolate (not as many happy accidents happening on it compared to, say, the Syntakt), more of a dependable workhorse where I can sketch, arrange, produce and even (almost) mix entirely in standalone.
thanks, i haven’t seen that yet.
my main issue with using Syntakt more is not lack of inspiration or something like that, but rather the fact that last 1.5 years i’m focused on making music with just with my travel rig a.k.a. blackout rig (iPad + Circuit Tracks) due to uneasy times and things happening here.
the less some piece of gear is blackout-friendly — the less the priority.
I only bought two things this year. They were kind of a mixed bag. But I would say mostly positive.
Sonicware Liven Lofi 12 XT
There are a few features missing that annoy me. For example, this is one of three samplers that came out in the last few years that cant play a sample in reverse, which is especially weird on a sampler that also has two LFOs per track. The sampling process is kind of janky. I’m also not a big fan of the on board sequencer. It’s powerful, pretty comparable to the Elektron sequencer, but not as well implemented. Or at least, I can’t quite get used to it. It’s also pretty awkward trying to perform mutes while moving between patterns.
Luckily, I don’t have to. I’ve had some fun sequencing it from my Digitakt. And anyway, the main reason that I got it was for the sound of it, the fact that it has a proper slice mode and ca
play samples polyphonically. And on that, it really delivers.
Roland SP-404 mk2
Honestly, I probably wouldn’t have bought this if it weren’t for a combination of grief and the fact that I got a Christmas bonus that I wasn’t expecting. The whole resample workflow thing was never going to work for me. Same with destructive sample slicing. I’m also not a fan of the onboard sequencer. And compared to the Lofi 12, there’s a lot less to play around with via MIDI.
All that said, it’s a good sketch pad and the fx sound great. So I’ve been using it with my synths to play around with things while I’m trying and failing to make samples. I’ve also used it at the end of the chain to make everything sound big and full.
So yeah, it didn’t quite live up to the idea of it that I had in my head. I don’t see myself making complete beats with this thing. But it’s good for a lot of other things.
Overall, this has been a pretty bad year for me. Hopefully, I’ll have more nice things to say about these machines as I get back to myself and spend more time actually making music
So, do you think the Move is the closest to the dream groovebox you’ve been searching for?
Dream sketchpad, possibly. Dream groovebox, no, as I like to jam out a full sounding track on it in the end. Just four tracks is “ok”, but more importantly a limited effect chain with just one insert doesn’t sound like fun. Often the specific feel of a sound is what determines whether or not an idea is worth developing, the notes on the note sheet is not normally the primary starting point. But with all this said, I haven’t tried the Move personally.
Update
Hits:
Dirtywave M8 MK2: Immersed myself in this thing on a 16hr flight, holy hell this thing is incredible and so fast to use with the shortcuts. The possibilities with the sequencer feels limitless, haven’t even dove into tables yet. Only gripe are chords but I wouldn’t know how to improve it. For sure my deserted island synth.
Digitone II: Come on now they killed it! I remember returning my Syntakt on launch week because I felt limited with some of the sounds. It’s so fun to design sounds on this thing, I think I’m done buying gear for a while between these two.
I think the Move seems like a worthwhile addition for those that use Ableton. It looks like a like straightforward workflow, even if its features aren’t necessarily the most exciting. I’ve not been tempted to buy one as yet.
Can’t speak for the Digitone, but I can for the Move (and of course I am just one random internetter!) And yeah it’s true, it’s early days and this could all wear off. That said, I think Move is a somewhat easy device to review because if you’ve got any Ableton controller and Note on your phone, you already kinda know what it is, so it’s easier to make a snap judgement (though to be clear I did buy one!)
As a point of reference, Circuit Tracks alone (no sampling here) costs £289 in stores roughly and Move is £399. For that extra £110, you’re getting effectively a Circuit Tracks, Rhythm (and with polyphony, Novation!) and a Launchpad all in one box. To get the “Novation Move”, you’re looking at Push money to get the Tracks, Rhythm and LPP. Ableton have basically reduced that down to one device and you only need one cable to connect it to the computer. Clever stuff.
Imo this is a musicians box. It’s all there in the marketing for it, which says “Trust your instincts,” “make fast decisions,” and “Catch the first flashes of inspiration.” It’s trying to mimick the feel of a quick band jam - but for electronic music. If you like to get ideas down in a hurry and then work them up later, there’s a chance the Move workflow is also your workflow. Historically this would need one box for the ideas and one box for the DAW control but now it doesn’t. I think that’s the clincher as to why this is so popular. It’s almost surprising in hindsight how someone didn’t get there before them.
This is pretty well spot-on. Move is limited in very deliberate ways, which makes it extremely nice to use when it can do what you want it to do. However, unless they release some pretty major updates, I expect a lot of people will cool on it fairly quickly. Once GearTube gets hyped about the next big thing, people will be saying, “y’know, recording performances into Live isn’t really THAT bad… Is Ableton Cloud handover really worth $X when this new groove box can granulate samples and make toast?” (This isn’t a criticism of anyone or anything, PS. Move complements Push nicely while addressing enough of its inconveniences that I can’t see myself selling either unless I decide to fully overhaul my gear collection. But for someone less dug-in with Ableton AND/OR with more time to learn new workflows, Move’s streamlining likely won’t carry as much weight as time goes on.)
To your point about notes not necessarily guiding the creations, also spot-on. There have been multiple times where I’ve started on a blank Set and gotten nowhere, then moved to another blank Set and gotten something immediately because of the sound randomization. If three of the four sounds work, I’ll browse presets; if only one or two work, I’ll just scrap the Set. The upside is that I’ve been exploring Ableton stock sounds whereas before I would always drag an initialized synth onto a blank MIDI track and start from scratch. I’m finding sounds that I never would have made myself and it’s fun! The downside is that I’m scrolling presets instead of really solidifying my understanding of Drift.
Edit: i recently realized that the more I like something, the more I look for reasons why someone else might not like it. I’m not sure if it’s normal Canadian self-deprecation or maybe a defence mechanism to stop strangers on the internet from hurting my feelings, but I really really love the Move and I’m happy to see so many people clicking with it! My only point here is that i expect a number of people will naturally move on from it, just as I’ve moved from gear that I once quite liked.
I’ve just checked and I’m actually surprised how little gear I bought in 2024. I felt like it was more.
I sold as much as I bought: MC-707, Polyend Tracker, Reface CS
HIT
Donner B1
Bought on a whim because it was stupidly cheap (£69). I love it, it sounds great, it’s really fun and hands on and has a much upgraded performance sequencer compared to a real 303.
Polyend Tracker Mini
Bought to replace my OG. I love it, but lack of note input buttons is a pain. I’ve still made a load of tracks on it though.
One of the main reasons for getting it was access to the synths, but I don’t love them.
iPad with Drambo
Not sure if this really counts, but it’s my go to groovebox and as close to portable Bitwig that I’ve found. Again I’ve made a load of tracks with it.
On the Fence
Circuit Rhythm
Coulnd be brilliant, but hampered by arbitrary limitations that only exist to differentiate it from the Circuit Tracks like the lack of Side Chain, Delay and Reverb on the audio inputs and lack of scale mode on the keyboard. That being said it has the brilliant Novation workflow and I got it very cheap mostly to use the grid FX and master compressor and it does that very well.
My arguably vain reason for not fully buying into the idea of it is that it’s not a very youtube-friendly workflow to sketch something out only to move over to the daw to produce the full track. Specifically, there’s no automatic music video being produced from a proper performance like you can make on the Syntakt, MPC or equivalent. The Move doesn’t support recording a live jam and saving all automation in real time. And it would feel a bit disingenuous to do a performance with it as a controller for Ableton Live when people generally seem a bit dogmatic about gear, as in, they want to hear what can be made using its limitations, not a fully realized production that just happened to start on the Move. I imagine the comments would be that it’s “cheating”, even though that was exactly the point of the device as designed by Ableton.
This year, there has been Retrokits Rk008 and Strymon’s Deco V2. Both are definitely hits, albeit on the rather pricey side. Their form factor and versatility are stunning.
Miss:
Hits:
Medium:
Thats it for 2024.
Lets see what 2025 brings.