Mine arrived yesterday, and my impression is that it’s exactly what you probably expect it to be, in both the good and bad ways.
It’s Dexed in a cute little box (Roland Aira compact sized), with an interface that is fairly logical but doesn’t magically change the reality that programming 6 operators through a little screen is a slog. Using the four encoders to control whatever is on the screen is vaguely Elektron-like, but the fact that it’s a 1x4 line of encoders controlling a 2x2 grid of parameters is a bit silly. On the other hand, the screen is huge and pretty legible by the usual standards of devices like this (i.e. small Roland and Behringer synths). Makes me wonder why Roland didn’t put useful screens on things like the P-6!
I was pleasantly surprised to find that it’s a USB audio interface, which I don’t think was listed in the official specs. So, like a Roland S-1, this would make for a nice pairing with an phone or tablet. I assume it could work as your mobile midi controller, sound source and (crappy) speaker simultaneously.
I have an issue where the 6x2 grid of buttons isn’t illuminated (until you select one) and they’re pretty hard to read as a result. The product shots show them all lit up. The context-sensitive illumination generally makes sense (e.g. you only see the operator selection labels when it’s relevant), but things like FX and EDIT should probably be illuminated all the time.
The build feels on par with other compact synths, and impressive for the price. Having said that, mine has already lost one of its little rubber feet, but to be fair I did let my five year old have his way with it (which was part of my rationale for getting it in the first place) so it’s already had a hard life. The ‘keys’ feel a little nicer than the ‘keys’ on my Roland S-1, but of course not as nice as, you know, keys. Very soft and rubbery. The speaker is nice to have on a toy synth, but it also sounds like you’d expect.
It sounds like a DX-7, obviously, with all the DX-7 sounds you’d expect, but with the added effects (including a filter, but there’s no envelope on the filter). The sequencer is very basic, but it’s there. I’m pleased to see the new firmware lets you skip a step, which is something I was baffled by last night. Hopefully I’ll soon find time to dump some DX7 patches to it.
For some reason I find this more compelling than Behringer’s mini synths, despite the fact that this is a free VST in a box while Behringer is making (partially?) analogue synths. I think it’s because this fully delivers on putting the DX-7 experience and sound in a little box, while things like Behringer’s mini-Minimoog that doesn’t even let you control each oscillator individually just wouldn’t satisfy me as a Minimoog clone. Roland’s S-1 is still the gold standard for me, but it’s also priced accordingly.
That was probably too many words for something that is fundamentally a novelty toy synth, but my impression is that if you wanted a simple FM sound module for a live setup it could do the job nicely.