Champion synth manufacturers Novation have recently announced a new synthesizer called MiniNova that takes their UltraNova synth’s sound engine and packages it in a smaller unit, aimed at electronic music producers who are looking for depth in a compact form.
Novation Strikes Back
2012 has been quite a solid year for synthesizers. With companies such as Moog, Arturia, Casio, and Dave Smith Instruments releasing new synths this year, it’s been a great time for hardware enthusiasts. Not to be outdone by the competition, esteemed synth manufacturers Novation have stepped into the ring with a new piece of gear called MiniNova that takes the best elements of their UltraNova synth and packages them into a smaller package with some new features. The result is a product that has obviously taken some visual cues (such as mini keys, a vocoder mic and wood panels) from Korg’s incredibly popular MicroKorg line, but with a sound and feature set that is uniquely Novation. As much as the synth looks like the MicroKorg, remember that Novation is the company who brought us the ubiquitous Bass Station in 1993, a pint-sized VA synth that completely changed the game with its portable size and deep sounds.
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Novation MiniNova
The Novation MiniNova is a analog modeling synthesizer based on the sound engine found in the company’s flagship UltraNova synth. It features three oscillators, up to five effects, two filters, six envelopes, three LFOs, and 36 different wavetables. The instrument comes loaded with 256 factory patches and has room for an additional 128 user patches, all of which are found via the large “genre select” knob and a scroll wheel to cruise through the individual patches. A parameter matrix on the right side of the synth offers 24 variables for tweaking that can be accessed by four knobs and a switch at the far right. In the midst of this matrix is also a dedicated filter cutoff knob for instant access. The MiniNova has two quarter-inch outputs, stereo headphones output, MIDI in/out, and XLR and jack inputs for routing sounds through the vocoder and on-board effects. Power can be supplied via USB or a through the included 9V DC power supply.
Novation Vocaltune
One new feature that Novation has introduced with the MiniNova is Vocaltune, an effect that can tune your voice to the note being played on the synth in real-time. The synth also comes with an expressive new vocoder engine which can be fed by either the included gooseneck mic or the external input. Other performance features include a robust arpeggiator and the new Animate buttons which “let you apply up to eight deeply expressive modulations, with a hold button that latches any or all of the animations,” as Novation explain on their site. The Novation MiniNova drops in October 2012 with a suggested retail price of $629 and an expected $400 street price.
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