I’m not a keys player but I love sticking my keystep in a particular scale and then using the chord mode to come up with nice chord progressions. I’m looking for a battery powered synth that can do the same. Maybe the hydrasynth explorer can do this? Any suggestions?
KordBot – ISLA Instruments
comes up pretty cheap on the used market because it doesn’t have a great reputation, but it meets all of your criteria.
Kordbot is not a synth !
Yes the Explorer does this really really well, BUT it is internal only.
Roland’s J-6 or MC-101?
They’re both relatively tiny, but there’s a pretty big difference in use case for each.
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To be fair, none of the established criteria is accomplished via synthesis. If you’re more interested in the name of a tool then whether or not it does a job, then you are absolutely correct.
I stated I’m looking for a battery powered synth that has a scale and chord mode. Clearly the kordbot is not a synth.
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good luck with that then.
Erica Synths DB-01 has a scale mode, but being monophonic there’s obviously no chord mode to speak of.
Edit: …and not battery powered. Sorry.
J-6 seems perfect. Otherwise you can always use a powerbank and a PD adapter to make anything battery powered.
For example, Digitone has chord mode, and i exclusively use it with battery power right now.
Theres also “chord mode” in Novation Circuit, but it doesnt offer pre made chords, only scales where you pick notes that you like - per step (really fast and intuitive)
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The IK Multimedia – UNO Synth Pro Keyboard is a great sounding battery powered analog synth with three voices and a reasonable price, and it does have a scale mode and a chord mode.
( The batteries are internal. )
BUT as best as i can determine the newer addition of the “chord mode” is a set tuning of the three oscillators to a triad. I am assuming ( or am guessing ) then that this does not hold the chords to the key and scale, but would follow the key and scale, which are different things.
Anyone know otherwise on this ( about chord mode ) ?