If I told you that a brand new analog synthesizer existed that costed about the price of a couple cases of beer and was small enough to fit in your coat pocket, I would probably be laughed out of this century. However, Korg seems to think differently, and just announced the Monotron, which is precisely this. Operating as an analog synthesizer the utilizes a ribbon touch surface for the keys, this thing borrows technology that was derived directly from their classic MS-20 synthesizer from the 1990s. The Monotron has nothing more than your basic, everyday controls. It utilizes a single oscillator, one filter, and one LFO which modulates the oscillator signal (essentially, for non-synth people, it uses a waveform to automate it’s volume over a span of time). It also includes an auxiliary input which you can hook anything from an iPod to a Kaoss Pad to even another synth to further mangle up the sound with, and the headphone jack doubles as the line out, allowing you to easily hook up to an amp or recording device.
Although there are other modular analog synth kits out there that are also about as cheap as the Monotron, this package is great for beginners or people looking to tweak sounds without having to fuss with cables or learning curves. More info on Korg’s website.
I am so getting one of those...
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