"The underlying sonic character of the samples is very impressive... the sounds themselves are excellent, and very definitely capture the weight and warmth that we often associate with classic analogue synthesis."

Reviewing Syntronik in the January 2018 issue of Sound on Sound, expert writer John Walden was impressed by the quality and number of the sounds, the effects and the ease of use. Here are some of his key comments:

"The sample-base for Syntronik's 'hybrid' sound engine is substantial. You can plump for the full package and this offers over 1200 preset sounds built from some 60GB of sample data."

"There is considerable potential here to build both big sounds and, using the Layer Panel's own preset system, to create some flexible live performance configurations."

"Even a quick look at the effects options shows that IKM's software emulation of classic analogue hardware hasn't stopped at the filter/LFO modelling within the synth engine, and there are plenty of the 38 effects types where the analogue hardware inspiration is very obvious."

"I have to say that there are some excellent impressions. Whether it's the Tube Screamer-inspired Overscream, the Pultec-based Vintage EO-1A or the very LA-2A-esque White 2A compressor this is an impressive toolkit of effects to explore."

"The Arpeggiator Panel is equally impressive. As well as the usual up, down, up/down, random, rate and number of octave settings, you also get a pattern sequencer with a variable step length of up to 32 steps."

"The bottom line here is that this is a heck of a lot of fun when applied to a single sound but, with different arpeggiator settings applied to any of the four available Parts, the creative options are multiplied."

"The underlying sonic character of the samples is very impressive... the sounds themselves are excellent, and very definitely capture the weight and warmth that we often associate with classic analogue synthesis."

John's final verdict is:

"If you are looking for a one-stop-shop that delivers a heck of a lot of classic analogue synth goodness in an easy-to-use package, then Syntronik is a very credible option. The presets cover a huge range of sounds and, with the options for sound editing, effects and layering, you can take the supplied sounds in an almost endless number of directions."

Key Plusses
+ Very convincing analogue sound
+ Huge range of sounds covered in the preset collection
+ Easy to use
+ Effects, sound layering and arpeggiator features all very good

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