special edition limited to 888 units in eye-catching orange
The ASM Hydrasynth ExplorerLimited Edition Orange at a glance
With the Hydrasynth Explorer, ASM (Ashun Sound Machines) presents an eight-voice digital keyboard synthesizer with WaveMorphing synthesis. The enormous variety of functions paired with the first-class sound testifies to the many years of experience of the development team. The specially developed "Polytouch Keybed" is a velocity-sensitive 37-key mini keyboard with polyphonic aftertouch. The main section and the module selection have been adopted 1:1 from the larger models, all other sections have been shrunk to a compact size so that a little menu work at Explorer leads to the desired result. If you want to exchange sounds between one of the large models and the Explorer, they are fully compatible with each other.
Thanks to the chord function and the very comprehensively programmable arpeggiator, you have two very powerful creative tools at your fingertips to work out your ideas on stage and in Studio. The Hydrasynth Explorer comes from the factory with two preset banks of 128 sounds each; a total of five banks with a total capacity of 640 sounds are available. A small highlight are the five analog outputs for CV, gate, Clock and two definable controllers, making this synthesizer the control center of a connected modular system!
Sound creation
Three fully-fledged oscillators draw their basic material from 219 waveforms. Oscillators 1 and 2 are capable of furthermore wave scanning, in which up to eight waveforms can be crossfaded and morphed respectively. The oscillators can be further shaped using four "mutants"; in addition to FM, three different types of pulse width modulation (PWM), Hard-Sync and Harmonic-Sweep, there is also wavestack. The latter allows you to create assertive unison/supersaw sounds with just one oscillator. The repertoire is rounded off with a noise generator and the ring modulator.
Filter
With two different filters that can be operated in parallel or in series, nothing stands in the way of detailed sound shaping on the Hydrasynth. The first filter covers eleven different filter models (including 12/24 dB lowpass, highpass and vocal). The second is a state-variable filter, operates with a slope of 12 dB and can be blended continuously from Lowpass via Bandpass to Highpass (similar to the SEM filter).
Effects
As the last link in the signal chain, there are four effect blocks to add the finishing touches to the sound. The first and last effect blocks each contain the same selection of Chorus, Flanger, Rotary, Phaser, Lo-Fi, Tremolo, EQ, and compressor (with sidechain). In between, Delay and Reverb (five and six variants respectively) can be activated.
Modulation & Controller
What would such an oscillator and filter kit be without modulation! Five loopable DAHDSR envelopes and five synchronizable LFOs with numerous waveforms and various trigger modes including a sixth vibrato LFO ensure plenty of movement in the sound. In addition to some fixed modulation connections, almost every parameter in Hydrasynth Explorer can be modulated via the modulation matrix, which comprises 32 slots
Hydrasynth Explorer Introduction
Hydrasynth Explorer Performance by Dominic Au
Exploring the ASM Hydrasynth | A Digital Hardware Monster
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