Earlier this yr 1010music launched the Lemondrop and Fireball, two surprisingly full-featured synths in unbelievably tiny packages. The corporate’s Nanobox lineup covers a whole lot of floor between these two devices, however neither was significantly effectively suited to dealing with drums. So the corporate took the identical core {hardware}, put a percussion-focused FM engine in it, together with a sampler, gave the entire thing a playful pink paint job, and dubbed it the Razzmatazz.
The newest member of the 1010music household is a wealthy sounding drum machine with a easy 64-step sequencer. Whereas it could lack some trendy facilities you’d count on from a $399 instrument, it makes up for it with a strong set of sound design options. And sure, even 10 months later, the Nanoboxes are nonetheless shockingly small.
{Hardware}
Terrence O’Brien / Engadget
I gained’t spend an excessive amount of time rehashing the {hardware} since I’ve already lined it in my assessment of the Lemondrop and Fireball, however right here’s a fast recap. The entire thing is 3.75 inches broad, 3 inches tall, and 1.5 inches thick – sufficiently small to slot in even the tiniest of baggage or a big pocket. There’s a two-inch touchscreen on the entrance, plus 4 navigation buttons and a pair of encoders. Round again you get ⅛-inch MIDI in and outs, ⅛-inch audio ins and outs, a USB-C port for energy and a microSD slot (pre-populated with a 32GB card) for storing samples and presets.
The one notable exterior change from the earlier Nanobox entries is the colour. There’s no useful benefit to the Razzmatazz being scorching pink, however I adore it. As I discussed in my assessment of Cre8Audio’s East Beast and West Pest, synths ought to be enjoyable. I’ve nothing towards the Korgs, Elektrons and Moogs of the world. However their devices usually take themselves fairly significantly. And I, for one, suppose the synth world may use a splash of shade from time to time.
The Sound Engine
Terrence O’Brien / Engadget
On the core of the Razzmatazz is an eight-voice engine that mixes FM synthesis and pattern playback. Every pad could be both or each, which is pretty distinctive. I can’t consider one other inexpensive {hardware} drum machine that lets you mix FM tones and samples in fairly the identical manner. You may merely layer the 2, however you might additionally, for instance, use a pattern of an precise timpani for the assault, then let the synth fade in after.
It’s a extremely enjoyable impact and just like what you discover Roland’s late ‘80s Linear Arithmetic synthesizers just like the D-50. The one problem is that determining find out how to obtain it isn’t instantly apparent. Because the two envelopes listed below are easy maintain / decay affairs, you may’t simply soften the assault and be performed with it. As a substitute it’s a must to assign the envelope to manage the amount of the digital oscillators, however set the mod depth to destructive 100%, at which level the decay acts just like the assault.
One other key distinction is, the Razzmatazz can’t be performed chromatically. So you may’t craft a room shaking bassline to accompany your drum sample. You can also’t pull the trick of utilizing the modulation sequencer to manage pitch, like you might on the Lemondrop and Fireball. In truth, there is no such thing as a modulation sequencer, simply two LFOs and two envelopes. And pitch isn’t a modulation vacation spot. You may change the tuning of particular person pads and create one thing melodic that manner, however that’s it.
The sounds themselves are wonderful, although. The gathering of 120 preset kits have a tendency towards the glitchy and electro facet of issues. Since there’s a sampler, along with the FM engine, nonetheless, you may get convincing actual drum sounds too. A lot of the included samples don’t lean into the acoustic realm, however you may simply load or document your individual when you like. The one factor to notice is that there’s no method to chop up samples on the Razzmatazz. So if you wish to slice up a breakbeat, it’s essential to try this earlier than you import it as separate recordsdata. Similar for loops.