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 During our chat with Heath of Distaudio, we also discussed gear other than electric and bass guitars and the three-string blue uke. A hands-on DIY man when it comes to working in a home studio environment, Heath has mentioned the “in-the-box” effects units like the Native Instruments Guitar Rig 3 and Amplitube 3 – which he both used for his recordings and which I’m going to cover a bit later – and suggested I check out the FUTURE RETRO XS SYNTHESISER. Being a relative n00b when it comes to the synthesiser empire of today, I got suitably curious, read up on the said hi-tech unit and watched a bunch of demo videos on YouTube – and it turned out to be a real eye-opener.
A universal machine that neatly bridges the sonic gap between the past and the future, the XS is a semi-modular analogue synthesiser that offers the user a mind-blowing range of sounds. It’s a “versatile design” instrument, which means it can be used either as a rackmount unit or a desktop instrument, while its compact size makes it perfect for carrying around.
When it is used in the most direct, no-frills fashion, the XS immediately stands out as an incredibly powerful monophonic synthesiser. Doffing its cap to the iconic Korg and ARP machines of the past, it counts a whopping 46 controls with internal signal routings – pre-wired to allow the unit to act similarly to old-school synths. The XS also has an additional seven inputs and 11 outputs that can be connected in a number of ways to override the pre-wired signal routings, interface the unit with other instruments in a modular fashion and process external audio.
That’s the ‘retro’ bit covered – let’s now look at the ‘future’ part of the XS. Being an ultra-modern creation, it can be controlled by both MIDI and CV/Gate signals – either simultaneously or in a variety of combinations. It can also act as a MIDI-to-CV/Gate converter with its outputs – which take care of the CV/Gate/Mod Wheel/Velocity signals for controlling other analogue instruments.
The XS can also function as a super-synth router. Not only can the player create basslines, melody parts, drones and various percussion effects, they can also connect multiple synths to the unit – cue limitless sonic possibilities.
Were Johnny Marr to write Oscillate Wildly today, he’d most probably be referring to the XS as it
includes two ultra-stable, wide range voltage-controlled oscillators – each capable of covering a range between 0.5 and 100 kHz. Oscillator A generates saw and square waves while Oscillator B generates sine, triangle, saw, pulse width/square waves and its own sub-oscillator wave (which can be set to 1/2, 1/4 or 1/8 the frequency of the main waveform). The pulse width shape of Oscillator B can be set manually or modulated with either internal or external control voltage, and Oscillator B can sync its frequency to Oscillator A. Each oscillator can be frequency-modulated independently by both internal and external signals to create even more complex waveforms. There are a white-noise source and a ring modulator that can be used on the internal oscillators or an external source.
RRP US$1,299. Check out www.future-retro.com for more info.
Future Retro XS Synthesiser Specifications
MIDI: Channel: 1-16
MIDI Messages Recognised: Pitch C2 to C7, Note On/Off, Pitch Bend +/- 2 semitones, Velocity, Mod Wheel, MIDI Clock
MIXER: Controls: level A, level B, level C (all capable of overdriving filter input)
FILTER: Types: (12 dB) lowpass, bandpass, highpass, notch-Filter Frequency Range: 5 Hz to 18 kHz - Resonance: 0 to self oscillation - Overdrive: clean to fully crunched
FILTER MODULATION: Key Follow: 0 to 100% - Velocity: amplitude sensitivity control for Envelope 1- Modulation Sources: external source, LFO, LFO controlled by Mod Wheel, Mod Wheel, Waveform B, Waveform B controlled by Mod Wheel, Waveform B controlled by Envelope 1, Waveform C-Envelope 1: negative and positive polarity covering 10 octaves
ACCENT: Sensitivity: 0 to +10 volts - Attack Time: 0.5 milliseconds to 4 seconds - Decay Time: 2 milliseconds to 10 seconds
ENVELOPE 1: Key Sync: on/off (envelope re-triggering) - Attack Time: 0.5 milliseconds to 4 seconds - Decay Time: 2 milliseconds to 10 seconds - Sustain Level: 0 to 100% (+10 volts max) - Release Time: 1 millisecond to 10 seconds
ENVELOPE 2: Attack Time: 1 millisecond to 4 seconds - Decay Time: 3 milliseconds to 7 seconds - Sustain Level: 100% - Release Time: 3 milliseconds to 7 seconds
AMPLIFIER: Velocity: 0 to 100% - Envelope Shapes for Control: attack/decay, attack/sustain/release, accented decay/sustain/release, accented decay/normal decay
POWER: Universal Power Supply: +15 and -15 volts DC, can be used with power main voltages ranging from 90-260 volts AC
DIMENSIONS: Rackmount: 19" standard rack width, 4 vertical rack spaces, 2.75" depth - Desktop: 17.5" width, 7.5" depth, 3" height
WEIGHT: 1.81kgs
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