Is it somewhat of an ambika with a different case?
Not sure, never tried the Ambika. I had a Shruthi that I found too menu-divey for my taste. The Xeno doesnāt feel that way at all to me; also, the build quality is nice on the Xeno.
The Shruthi wasnāt fun for me, but the UI to the Xeno is very inviting, and the level of depth keeps me very entertained. Itās really enjoyable to program. Most importantly, Iām totally in love with the sound of the oscillators and filter; I love how wild this thing can get.
Iām really digging the FM on the Xeno. Iām not sure how they managed to implement it using DCOs; I always thought DCOs werenāt capable. It just adds so much more to this synth. The FM, along with the ring mods and feedback, can really add all types of interesting textures to your sounds. I love how the notch filter with the resonance cranked up sounds on this synth. It just has so much character and power.
Iāve been playing with this synth a bit lately, trying to talk myself into selling it now that I have the Gotharman Anamono X, but itās too interesting to let go. This thing has a really interesting step-square wave that lets you modulate PWM along with the size of the step at the same time; very neat.
This synth has a really unique sound that I like best when it sounds like itās breaking up. I like applying just enough FM to make the oscillator act a bit wonky, but not too much. Its overall character has a brightness to it that isnāt fatiguing to the ear; reminds me a lot of the Nord sound at times. Gain staging is ultra important with this synth Iām finding. Reminds me of how I handled levels on the A4. The Xenophone has a tendency to sound hot; like itās always overdriving the filter a bit.
Just wanted to share some more experiences with this interesting synth since there isnāt too much info out there.
And we thank you for sharing your perspective! Some really novel synths are getting in the flood of our newly ushered in eternal golde age of synthesizers nowadays.
Hereās a bit of mucking around with a patch I made on the Xenophone.
Just in case there is someone using the Xenophone among the Elektronauts, I prepared a tutorial on controlling the Filter (and other things) with NRPN:
https://www.elektronauts.com/t/nrpn-tutorial-how-to/46669?u=olaf_wolkenhauer
I think Iām going to have to get one of these again just because of how amazing it looks in white (and also because it has an incredible sound I miss dearly).
This is my second time owning this synth. I remember feeling great remorse when I decided to let this one go.
Iām so happy to have one again, and I love it way more in this color. It sounds way better than I remembered too. Iām doing all these different things I never tried the first time I had it though.
Besides the Anamono X, this has to be my favorite mono synth ever. The sounds Iām making donāt sound as slick as the ones in the demos though. I kind of like finding different ways of abusing it, and it sounds extraordinarily interesting to me.
Itās not an Ambika in a different case. (I have an Ambika, a Shruthi the Xenophone.) Itās really its own animal with its own unique character.
I email HyperSynth every 3 to 4 months asking them if they ever plan to make a poly synth. I would buy one of those in a heartbeat.
I just want to say this is my hands down, favorite analogue monosynth. Thereās nothing out there that sound quite like it. Sidenote, the 2.0 through 2.2 OS upgrade really cleared up a lot of bugs, simplified the UX and made it duophonic. the damn thing is a total dream boat.
Hey guys!
First of all, I am (Was) very happy with the synth Hypersynth Xenophone.
I bought it used a couple of months ago, and everything looked/ sounded fine.
But suddenly I began to hear this squeaky/ Rattling noise or high pitch tone. Donāt know what it is, but itās present every time I turn the Freq knob down to Lowpass the sound.
I would be more than glad if anyone could tell me what this is. Software or hardware failure?
I have attached a sound clip for you to hear the sound. It comes after the sound, almost like an offbeat note.
@Nowhere, Are the effects off? Sounds like a digital effects artifact.
If you reach out to Hypersynth via their facebook page, theyāll respond usually within 24 hours.
before you do that though, check which version of the firmware you are using,
in v2.2
Fixed DFX issue that created unwanted artifact when changing presets.
I hope that helps!
Keep rocking the Xenophone, its such an excellent synth!
@nilsec Thanks for your reply.
I have sent an email to Hypersynths support mail today, before posting here.
I just wanted to know if anyone in here had the same issue.
But yes. Newest Firmware, and I have tested everything disabling every efx and turning every knob to see if it made any difference. but noā¦ Hope itās not broken, then Iām stuck with a synth that sounds great but i canāt use it in my music.
Anyone still have one/using it? Howās it hold up in 2022?
I donāt have one, but I must admit Iām bummed I didnāt get one when they were readily available. Yes, yes, they had a nice long run, but stillā¦
I still haven, I dropped it and screwed up the power button. but I plan on getting it repaired. itās a great little synth.