I do love Nick Batt reviews. I'm not even in the market for a new synth, but his vids are always worth watching.

Hyped! Always excited for a new, big synth review from Nick.

This thing is fantastic. It's definitely going on my short list of "if I win the lottery" synths. Would also love to see "poly full touch" on many more instruments, to make it available in smaller, cheaper devices.

@EannaButler

6 күн бұрын

They’d make a mint selling midi controller keyboards with that tech 🙏👍

@ToyKeeper

6 күн бұрын

@@EannaButler There are already some pretty great midi controllers with similar expressiveness, but a lot of it is lost when connected to regular synths. The synth engine needs to support it too, to get the full benefit.

@EannaButler

6 күн бұрын

@@ToyKeeper Are there? Yeah plenty of pad based Poly AT, but dedicated key based Poly AT midi controllers are still quite rare on the market AFAIK, even fewer with MPE. Happy to stand corrected.. Yeah the synth engine needs to support it, but support for these gestures is widespread nowadays in the domain of soft synths..

@lowcypher1538

6 күн бұрын

You got me with the "win the lottery" part...

One of the most capable synths ever created.

@supercompooper

6 күн бұрын

Is it?

@d3tuned378

6 күн бұрын

@@supercompooper Yes.

Nick you are the best! Thanks for your work!

Great review Nick!

Very nice review and sounds, Nick! 💙

Lovely review, Nick. It sounds gorgeous.

Hoping for a Friday Fun with this. Think we deserve it.

nick... we love you, dude!!

Its a great review Nick. So excited, I had this on order since my play at Superbooth. Skint yes....But years of happiness 100%.

This is the best review I have heard and seen of this synthesizer. Merci 🙏 ❤

Sounds fantastic, Nick!

Lovely review. Thankyou. Covered all the points I was wondering about. Fully agree about sostenuto, probably not something everyone is familiar with as it's a grand piano pedal feature but super super useful on an expressive polysynth like this.

@sonicstate

3 күн бұрын

Yeah I think to free up the left hand for the mod controls would be great

Wow! The possibilities with the full touch keyboard and the morph are absolutely bonkers

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

Can use a touché with any number of synths, tho’ …

@VacancyOfDisco

2 күн бұрын

@@kierenmoore3236 Touche is a global control for all voices tho... this is like having a touche per key

Thanks Nick 👍

God when you started playing the self resonating filters I melted. I could live in that sound forever.

@muffinman2.0

5 күн бұрын

Absolutely

Not a fan.............. which is, nice and quiet! 😄

@fredmanteghian5913

6 күн бұрын

I see 😂 what you did there 😂

@final_mile_music9713

5 күн бұрын

😂 Fan doesn’t bother me on my Moog One 😅

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

Yeah, I’m not a fan, either … 🤫 #shh #shhhh

the steiner-parker filter with the right noise color can do wonders.

Absolutely Phenomenal. Cannot fault Arturia and all things Frederic Brun. Only around since 1999 and blowing conventions to be re-written. Phenomenal. x

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

Everything sounds bright and hybrid, tho’. 😕

The goat is back 🫡🫡

Very impressive looking

Wow! Quite an amazing machine. I'm not keen on how it looks. But, no doubting it's an utter BEASTOID of a synth, beyond the reach of mere mortals such as myself. As far as high synths go I still have the most GAS for the UDO Super Gemini. Looks and sounds incredible. And the enthusiasm of the CEO makes me want to buy one. Amazing device. What amazing times we live in for synthesizers. So many amazing things out there these days,

This entire review is making me do filter mouth

@electro808kat

6 күн бұрын

(({{{[[[wW0Ww]]]}}})))

Mighty, mighty beast. Instant classic perhaps ?

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

I love how “instant classic” and “future classic” get thrown around, willy-nilly …

That's quite the synth, sounds gorgeous. Kind of has the smell of "a CS-80 for the new millenium".

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

The CS-80 has a classic, pleasing sound.

@nicohollomanbiz

2 күн бұрын

yesss that's the vibe I get too. Slightly less, instantly great sounding than the CS80, but once you find the sweet spots the arturia might be even more beautiful with it's spatial panning and refined vibe

@kierenmoore3236

2 күн бұрын

@@nicohollomanbiz Oh, no - I meant, the CS-80 had a classic and pleasing sound, by contrast to the Polybrute. Polybrute sounds like a hybrid synth, to me. It’s bright and lacking character, I feel. Check out a number of other comments here, too …

@nicohollomanbiz

2 күн бұрын

@@kierenmoore3236 I think the polybrute can sound plenty analog. I mean it IS analog. It does take some slight tweaking to get it away from it's stringy, bright, thin tone in its init state, but it's also easy to dial in a huge low end on the polybrute that sounds as warm as any polysynth. Yes it can sound hybrid I guess, and it can sound digital and it can sound classic analog. That versatility is a big part of the appeal.

Great review of an awesome ‘Sepia White?’ Synth Nick - iWant One ❤️✖️

I was promised to get a first batch unit in July. Looking forward to it.

An inspiring review , with some lovely sonics. I think the colour scheme ( late 70s fitted kitchen appliance beige? ) might be a nod to its sonic uniqueness / seriousness. Nonetheless, it sounds good, and 12 voices bitimbrally, cannot be sniffed at.

I really like the vibe of the controls. It reminds me of a Nord Rack in an "all these little knobs and buttons do cool things" way.

It is beautiful

20:35 … breaking out into No Surprises here would have been 👌🏼

Looks good in modulation and expensivity but the sound does nothing for me, just like the original. That is of course subjective, some people might love it.

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

Agree. It’s a(n at best) hybrid-sounding synth … with a fully-analog price tag … 🤯 Has some cool bells & whistles, but if the sound is m’eh, then who cares … 🤷🏻‍♂️

My goodness, if I were a rich man... Great review, as always!

What a monster, dream synth.

It sounds outstanding and I would get one but the….way it looks.. arrrghh will I be able to ever love it?

If you want more wonkyness than what analog accuracy can do, you can use the modulation matrix and use the voice source and assign it to each VCO pitch destination. You can also use the voice source to affect the envelopes parameters. This way you can have pretty drastic voices to voices pitch and envelopes timings variations.

Getting a mint (2nd hand) PB6, I´m always excited about how good the PB sounds. Ok, the PB12 is "a level above". But even the PB6 is highly recommended.

Nice one Nick N1N

I've never been excited about a keyboard before. This feels like a legit keyboard for the 100 people in the world who actually know how to play synths in performance-y ways. The Osmose is a cool idea about a technical feature, and the synth engine is just a thing that's trying to cover all the bases it can. But this feels like an analog synth which has special aftertouch features not as a gimmick but as a necessary extra axis of modulation to be able to appreciate the mod matrix. I want aftertouch to feel like I'm using an expression pedal on every key and I can set the start/end of every modulation on every key (or at least every key per octave). This isn't exactly that but it seems closer than anything else. I mean that unison part was pretty badass but TBH I'm baked and I'm wearing good headphones so anything is going to sound pretty epic. But I really appreciate how good Nick is at both exploring all the best technical details and also making some good noises.

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

Sounds like a hybrid, tho’ … at a fully-analog price …

19:31 Sweet mother of Christ

@underwatersunlight3795

6 күн бұрын

That sound is absolutely gorgeous!

Those teeth through the ladder filter, very nice

If I could afford this, I‘d have a difficult time to decide between this and the SuperGemini.

@HansiModular

6 күн бұрын

Both - and a larger room ... ;-)

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

Both sound like hybrids, so 🤷🏻‍♂️ … whichever takes your fancy, I guess …

@HansiModular

3 күн бұрын

@@kierenmoore3236 soundwise i prefer the Polybrute, so maybe a used Polybrute 6 for me ?

Is it weird that among the many, many things i love about this, i think the pronounced cooling vents are my favorite?

The original is still the centerpiece of my studio. An absolute modulation playground that you never get tired of exploring.

18:30 "I think what this one has is, ah... 19:40 ...whhhh" Great review ☺

The Moog One Destroyer

Hybrid sounds … at a fully-analog price … ✌🏼😎

Beautiful sound but the synth looks...Anyway all a matter of taste. Thanks for the review Nick!

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

Yep. A guy I worked with wore a business shirt this colour. The boys in the office christened it “jizzmop”. Fetching …

@ruudvincent6078

3 күн бұрын

@@kierenmoore3236 shirts are also a tatste ;-)

How does it work with external clock and gear? No one discusses this very important issue. 👽

How much this dang thing cost ? Surprise me please

Ooh baby 👶 😍

6:19 🥹

@fallprecauxionsmusic

6 күн бұрын

mmm... yeeeessss...!!

@Sonic-Boom

6 күн бұрын

Ann Annie feels there

Methinks he doth protest the loveliness of the colour, too much … 😊 Never loved the sound of the Polybrute, thankfully - as I think I’d be a bit annoyed if I’d bought the og 6-voice … Hopefully the more interesting features of the Polybrute end up on some better-sounding synths.

Very cool, super cool features. But in terms of sound... I am not sure really. You can tweak these out of a DAW. The sounds of an OB6, or any Sequential makes, you can't.

I’ve read the Polybrute 6 had questionable keybed quality. How is this one? Is it Fatar?

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

Proprietary keybed … so, not Fatar … they’ve never used Fatar / always cheap out on their keys …

@AnomalyB31

3 күн бұрын

@@kierenmoore3236 That’s really disappointing, especially at a $4000 price point

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

@@AnomalyB31 Yep … between the sound, the price, and shortcuts like that (oh, and the colour, lol), I’m definitely not interested.

Looking good Nick .... it's their flagship... sounds good ... (wayoff ? wonky m1 has retired today according to SynthSamurai)

@dankeplace

5 күн бұрын

Yeah and based on hearsay as Moog has announced nothing.

Good review. Just wanted to get your opinion on spending thousands on something like this or rather use midi keyboard with virtual synths? It’s all digital really

@NamelessSmile

6 күн бұрын

This isn't digital

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

@@NamelessSmile. It sounds more digital/hybrid, than analog, though … just with a fully-analog price-tag …

@NamelessSmile

3 күн бұрын

@@kierenmoore3236 it doesn't though. It's a fully analog synth besides the effects after. If this sounds digital to you, then it just means you can't tell the difference between the two anyway

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

@@NamelessSmile I didn’t say it wasn’t analog other than the effects … I just said it sounds bright like a hybrid/digital synth. I have plenty of warm analog synths; I know the difference. If you like a bright sounding synth, that’s fine. But you can get similar sounds from a hybrid.

@NamelessSmile

3 күн бұрын

@@kierenmoore3236 yes, I can see what you're saying, but it's nonsense. If something which is literally analog sounds 'digital' to you then you're clearly clueless about how each of those things sound. It just demonstrates that the technology used isn't that important and that your description is meaningless. May as well say it sounds 'pink' or 'horse' or 'bowl'

4:52 Magnolia. Just like your Nan's kitchen.

Three years since I got the original Polybrute and at last it's become the synth it should have been at launch. The good news is with the latest updates you get a bank of Poly12 patches which still sound wonderful on the original with only 6 voices.

Interesting synth. Ugly colour and why no hinge so you can angle the control area?

You got some nice sounds, but to my ears once you have complex modulations and reverb and delay added it doesn’t sound very analogue anymore. Also that cheap tiddly little screen looks impossible to see, the menus look nice and simple but that not great if you can’t see it.

It's great synth but there is not enough to make me upgrade from the original. The sounds are the same and it is already an expressive tactile pleasure to interact with. The good news for those looking for some polybrute action is there are a few popping up on eBay and other reseller sites

@RayyMusik

6 күн бұрын

For me the major advantage of the PB12 would be 6 voices in layer mode. But having enough others synths to layer with I‘ll also stick to my PB6. What slightly annoys me is the sheer weight of the PolyBrutes. The Prophet-6 and OB-6 also have six discrete voice cards like the PB6 and weigh just 9.5 kg. Why is the PB6 more than twice as heavy? Certainly not only due to the additional keyboard octave.

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

@@RayyMusik. That’s a lot of effort/haulage, for a synth that sounds like a hybrid (but is priced like a fully-analog). I guess the bells and whistles are distracting. 🤷🏻‍♂️

@RayyMusik

3 күн бұрын

@@kierenmoore3236 The PolyBrutes sound 100% analog. I have a hybrid (Prophet X) for comparison - difference like day and night.

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

@@RayyMusik Yeah, good hybrid synths sound less digital than a hybrid sample player, like the Prophet X. Alamo Music Centre compared the Polybrute with the Summit, because they sounded similar.

@RayyMusik

2 күн бұрын

@@kierenmoore3236 Thanks for posting that you don’t know the PX (which is a full-fledged synth as well). And yes, the Summit can sound excellent, i.e. very analog. Why this should mean that the PolyBrute does *not* sound analog will remain your secret.

When I saw the Osmose synth and its harsh digital sound engine I wish that it is analog. So Arturia did it as close you can get with analog and it sounds gorgeous. Hope the keyboard will come to the Polybrute 6.

@sonicstate

3 күн бұрын

I wonder if it will, I imagine it's a significant portion of the cost of the hardware.

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

Sounds hybrid … but with a fully-analog price-tag …

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

Yes - waiting on controller versions, or nice-sounding synth engines to be attached to them … 😐

Best synth ever made.

@nagchumpalot

6 күн бұрын

😂

I want the polybrute 12. is that so wrong?!?

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

Yes. It sounds like a hybrid … so just buy a hybrid, with probably even more voices/synth engines. You’ll have heaps left over for a touché and a ribbon controller, that you can use with any number of other synths/devices …

Nord Lead 4 has 7 impulse morphs via 3 buttons, yeah its not an analog synth but still that idea has been around for a long time. Arturia stuff is well made but I find their oscillators have a coldness to them, the filters also sound kinda meh. Would like to have seen a different combination of filters added for this beast so that it had a point of difference between it and the matrix and poly brute, Nick seems to make any synth sound good though.

It still looks a bit off. (think it's the caps on the knobs Arturia uses). It has so much modelation options and tricks up its sleeve. But sound wise it still a brute with more features. It does nothing for me and at 4k there're so many other great poly synths out there.

@fallprecauxionsmusic

6 күн бұрын

along with a friend of mine, who knows synths & synthesis more than anybody else that I know, we were able to play around with the polybrute 12 at the synth & pedal expo here in los angeles. I came off in love. he came off feeling like it sounded like a VST in a box. that led me to ask him what his thoughts are on another more recent synth that I'm also totally in love with... the hydrasynth. I figured, it being totally digital, he may feel the same about it as he does about the polybrute. he says he really loves the hydrasynth. so, his overall thought is not about analog vs digital, or anything like that. it's purely about the sonic character of the instrument. (I still love the polybrute, though. I think it sounds wonderful.)

@morlidor

6 күн бұрын

@@fallprecauxionsmusic I feel the opposite to your friend. Hydrasynth really sounds like a VST Good but digital as hell! While the Brute is way more analog sounding.

@fallprecauxionsmusic

6 күн бұрын

@@morlidor yeah... funny, huh? as unapologetically digital as the hydrasynth sounds, I suspected my friend would say something similar about it. but, I guess he has a different expectation from an analog poly.

@fallprecauxionsmusic

6 күн бұрын

&, OP, I think I get what you mean about the overall brute sound... it's rather metallic & edgy. I find the polybrute is really diverse, though. much more so than what I've heard from most of arturia's brute line.

@RayyMusik

6 күн бұрын

The PolyBrutes sound as analog as analog synths can do. Even the init patches already have some vintage oscillator detune (despite calibration!), which is a good thing. If you make use of Voice Component Modeling or at least the built-in ‘vintage‘ options, it doesn‘t sound like a “VST in a box“ at all!

Nick my brother are you trying to get me divorced my man i just put this in my cart at sweetwater

@sonicstate

6 күн бұрын

Oops. I can't take responsibility. 😁

@enochroot9438

6 күн бұрын

dude the MPC resale isn't going to bring in that much!...go for a used original Polybrute and save a fortune in divorce lawyer fees

@synthsamuraiproductions

6 күн бұрын

@@enochroot9438 😂 what about a haunted MPC? Is there a premium for that?

@synthsamuraiproductions

6 күн бұрын

@@sonicstateill blame Daniel Fisher, keep the heat off you 🔥 🤫

@eTERNIAN69

6 күн бұрын

Dreeeeeeeams can come true 🎵🎶🎛🎚🎹

I can't express it any different than this synth "lives".

Doesn't even have multi-spectral binaural panning I mean this is 2024? And it's not even delivered by flying car. 2024 is letting me down so much. If only the oscillators had multifactor authentication. 🤔🧐😋

waiting for the 4 voices, small and affordable version and waiting for the drumfreak

@The_Invisible_Man

4 күн бұрын

😂

It really is a beautiful beast with tremendous possibilities... But, there is something about the sound itself that just doesn't do it for me... I can't put my finger on it, but it's almost like it doesn't have a distinct character, or a voice of it's own. Strange. I really want to fall in love with this one, but the sound just isn't doing it for me...

@ChrisP3000x

6 күн бұрын

The core sound just isn't that good. It's dead/distant. And yes, the effects and UI make it very interesting, but still don't outweigh the sound.

@AnomalyB31

5 күн бұрын

Agreed. It seems…sterile.

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

Sounds (at best) like a Hybrid synth, but at a fully-analog price … Plus, they settled on “jizzmop magnolia”, as the colour of their flagship synth … 😕 Can’t bring out a Noir version, fast enough …

@ChrisP3000x

3 күн бұрын

@@kierenmoore3236 A massive 51 pound behemoth should make more than weak, subpar sounds.

@MyDeepGuide

2 сағат бұрын

@kierenmoore3236 Well, my Summit is a hybrid synth, and it out-sounds this one quite easily. I won't even compare it to the sound of the Andromeda, which simply obliterates it. After watching the video again, I understood that the PolyBrute 12 sound is not-memorable in any way shape or form, and I think that's what I reacted to the most. As soon as I am done with the video, I can't recall any specifics of the sound at all, and that to me is a big turn off, especially at that price.

Can’t bring out a Noir-coloured version, fast enough … 🤢

I always felt that the original Polybrute had been somehow dumbed down feature wise so that it can be sold at a price that is lower than the Prophet 6 or OB6. Despite that the Polybrute 6 has been successful enough that Arturia are now confident that they can come up with a true flagship synthesizer. At 4K unfortunately it’s out of reach for me but I’ll be able to enjoy my original Polybrute for years to come.

stop making me wanna blow 6.5K on another synth would ya? I'm a guitarist for gods sake....

@sonicstate

5 күн бұрын

6.5? What currency? 💲

@johngudgeon7454

5 күн бұрын

@@sonicstate Aussie dollars. I have seen someone here advertising it at $7400 though. I hope they don't start holding their breath....

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

We get royally screwed down here in Oz …

@johngudgeon7454

3 күн бұрын

@@kierenmoore3236 Definitely pays to do your due diligence. I know of somewhere I can buy a new DSI Prophet 12 and Prophet X (both keyboards) at old prices.... 1. I'm skint. 2. the guitarist bit. I have several synths but rarely turn them on. Must be mad. Yeah, I'll go with that...

At that price, I won’t even bother to watch the video.

Bland, no character, ZZz 😴

Is ti bugging anyone else that the entire demonstration is about 1/4 tone sharp?

@sonicstate

6 күн бұрын

Is it? I didnt check the master tuning setting....

@zmix

6 күн бұрын

@@sonicstate Thanks for the question.. I habitually noodle on my guitar along with these synth demos, I checked the tuning against several plug in instruments and HW.. I do wonder if KZread might have altered the sample rate during transcoding? Does the posted video play in tune there?

Who settled on this horrible shade of “jizzmop”, for their flagship synth … ?! 🤢

It’s so ugly.. 😂 But good synth

@kierenmoore3236

3 күн бұрын

Who settles on “jizzmop magnolia”, as the colour of their flagship synth … 😕

Awful colour scheme