I’d probably recommend the Syntakt unless you are specifically looking for a synth voice to play with keys and sequence external gear, or as a tool for sound design.
I see it as a good companion to an existing setup.
I started with the Digitone as my entry point for both Elektron boxes and FM synthesis, with the intent of using it as a groovebox. While I don’t regret it, that’s really diving in at the deep end.
FM synthesis is complex enough by itself, and trying to fit a song into four tracks while dealing with things like voice allocation can be frustrating/confusing if you’re new to this.
Part of where I have struggled with the Digitone is the interface.
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There are about 52 different parameters to define a sound on Digitone - split over five pages and five sub-pages (the exact number of parameters depends how you count it).
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With Syntakt, that number is 34 - with most of the controls on four main pages (eight parameters per page).
That’s a lot easier to learn and use - but does not mean that it’s limited.
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Compare either of those to a synth like the MEGAfm, which has 32 faders for the four oscillators alone - and plenty of knobs/buttons dedicated to everything else, like its LFOs. It’s much more direct and hands-on.
Now I’m not suggesting that you pick up a MEGAfm - especially not as an entry point into FM synthesis. It can’t do a fraction of what the Digitone does.
I’m only trying to express how complex and menu-divey the Digitone interface can be when designing sounds.
Maybe some people take to it better than I did, but as a result, I don’t find it a very inspiring machine to improvise on - unless I’m using it to play a sound that I already crafted.
It’s something that I have to set aside some time, sit down, and really focus on, when designing sounds.
None of this is to say that you shouldn’t buy a Digitone.
It’s a great synth which can produce sounds that I love - and there are a lot of amazing performances out there that use only the Digitone because it’s so powerful.
But it takes a lot of work to get there, if you’re wanting to do the sound design yourself rather than buying packs - which is perfectly valid too, if you’re wanting to make music with great sounds someone else put the time into designing.
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I moved to the Model: Cycles next, which was the complete opposite experience.
It gives you access to the full(?) Elektron sequencer, 90% of the controls have a dedicated knob or shift-function, and six tracks are a lot easier to work with than four - even if they’re monophonic.
This obviously brought some pretty big limitations.
But working within a limited set of parameters is what really helped me to learn the sequencer/workflow - and finding creative ways to work around those limitations can be part of the fun.
But ultimately, the M:C does have much more limited sound design potential - which is why I replaced it with a Syntakt.
(though I still have some lingering regret over selling the M:C rather than holding onto it - even if the ST can do everything the M:C does)
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The Syntakt is a great balance between those extremes, and a bit underrated as a synth.
I think the reason it has a reputation of “everything sounding the same” is because a lot of people use the basic chord machine playing minor chords for their synth voices, and have not explored that in-depth, modulated it, or tried out other machines for that task.
Sound design is not as complex as the Digitone, as each machine gives you a starting point and its own set of controls to experiment with.
But it has a lot more machines than the M:C, and gives you full control over the amp envelope, filters (with an envelope), two LFOs, and the analog FX block.
With those tools, you can turn many of the machines into a synth lead, bassline, pads, a growling drone, etc - even the analog tracks.
That starts to give you a wider sound palette, and gets you in the same territory as some of those classic FM sounds - while doing its own thing as well.
It’s a lot easier to build a song when you have twelve tracks at your disposal, rather than four.
They may be monophonic, but that may not be important for a lot of music.
And with some MIDI tricks or careful sequencing, it’s possible to play multiple tracks like a poly synth (you could even use three of the analog tracks).
No arpeggiator like the Digitone though.
