Today we take a look at the Synclavier Regen, the first synthesiser in over 30 years by the brand, Synclavier
The Regen is a digital FM synthesiser made for desktop use that contains the power of the much revered Synclavier II DSP plus a whole lot more for the modern synthesiser or sound designer enthusiast.
You may, or may not be familiar with the brand name however you have most certainly heard the sounds of this iconic synth.
They were hugely popular throughout the 1980’s with artists such as Frank Zappa, Michael Jackson, Paul Simon, Pete Townsend, Duran Duran, Depeche Mode, or closer to home, The Church who used the Synclavier for their iconic glitched-out bagpipes sound on the song
‘Under The Milky Way’.
Even Neil Young had his affair with the Synclavier. Using it heavily on his most uncharacteristic album ‘Trans’ in 1982.
The First Synclavier One was released in 1978 and was an early adopter of Frequency Modulation or, FM synthesis which they had licensed to them from Yamaha, who had patented its hardware use of the technology.
It wasn’t until 1980 when the Synclavier II gained the brand notoriety after a suggestion from music producer Denny Jaeger.
Jager proposed that the FM synthesis concept could, and most certainly should be extended to allow four simultaneous channels or voices of synthesis to be triggered with one key depression.
This allowed the final synthesised sound to have much more harmonic series activity. It was Jager’s suggestion that put Synclavier on the map and cemented its place in world class studios across the world.
The brand continued to operate under its umbrella company ‘New England Digital’ up until 1993 when according to Cameron Jones one of the original founders, its intellectual property was sold.
Jones eventually bought back the IP and in 2019 reintroduced the world to an iOS version of the Synclavier dubbed the ‘Synclavier Go!’ which used much of the same code base from the original hardware units.
Jones also worked with Arturia to bring us the Synclavier V software version of the instrument, which I have personally used quite a bit over the past few years and it’s what got me intrigued by Jones’ latest release – ‘The Regen.’
The Regen uses additive synthesis for full control of 24 harmonics as well as subtractive synthesis allowing the creation of super saws, PCM square waves, and noise generation or, you can use samples for your carrier waveform.
And what I really like about the Regen is that these different waveform generators can be mixed. You have up to 12 what they call partials to use in your overall sound with crossfades assignable to inputs such as velocity, pressure, mod wheel, and keyboard.
It’s also MPE compatible for those who like to get expressive with their keyboard performances.
Loaded with over 550 presets across 10 libraries and over 2000 royalty-free samples built-in, the Synclavier Regen looks to inspire it’s users straight out of the box.
Taking a look at the unit now on the back we’ve got a pair of balanced XLR outs with ground lift switches, stereo quarter-inch unbalanced outs, a USB host for using with your D.A.W of choice or audio interface, plus four USB ports that allow you to connect a midi controller or a QWERTY keyboard to rename patches.
MIDI in and THRU is supplied via a 5-pin DIN to 3.5MM TRS connection and these connectors are supplied with the unit – there is no MIDI OUT as there is no onboard sequencer or knobs to send controller messages.
Now what better way to discover the wonders of this things than to write a song with it. I’ve spent a couple of hours today trying to get to know this thing and really only scratched the surface of what it can do. (Check out the vid above)
Now, everything you’ll hear, the drums, percussion, bass, strings, sound effects – all came straight out of the Regen. So let’s dive in and see what I could come up with.
And there we have it. The Synclavier Regen. It’s certainly not one for the faint of heart, or a first-time synth purchase. There is an awful lot to get your head around, however, after spending a little bit of time with it, I’m slowly starting to understand the workflow and it feels rewarding and inspiring with each new discovery.
Retailing at around $4000AUD it’s a worthy investment for those truly passionate about sound design and much more cost effective than the originals that I believe were upwards up $200,000 – so consider it a steal!
For more info head over to their website.
