
Arturia has introduced SQ80 V, a new virtual instrument for Mac & Windows that’s based on the Ensoniq SQ-80 from 1988.
The original Ensoniq SQ-80 is a hybrid synth, with three digital wavetable oscillators per voice paired with an analog 4-pole filter. It also is one of the few classic synths to offer polyphonic aftertouch, a feature that lets you expressively control the sound of individual notes, after the initial key press.
Here’s the official video overview:
With SQ80 V, Arturia has recreated the sound of the original using hardware modeling. But they’ve also expanded on the original’s design with a variety new features, including:
- The arpeggiator – including arp direction, sync, octave range, and hold.
- Unison – SQ80 V offers up to 16-voice polyphony – twice that of the original hardware instrument – plus ann 8-voice unison option for creating massive sounds.
- Dispersion – subtle variations and inconsistencies in the behavior of its emulated circuitry that mean no two notes will ever be exactly the same,.
- Envelopes expanded – Arturia included 2 additional envelope modes: DADSR and MSEG. The former adds a delay stage to the traditional ADSR for staggered strikes and interesting rhythmic patterns. The latter is a fully-customizable looping function generator.
- The Mod Mixer – Combine any 2 modulation sources, from envelopes to keyboard controls, to distort, mangle, and refract your patches in interesting and unexpected ways. With 6 different modes of modulation mixing, the combination possibilities are enormous.
- MPE compatibility – SQ80 V supports MPE-compatible controllers for advanced expression.
Features:
- 3 digital oscillators based on the original DOC chip
- Over 400 waveforms across 4 unique banks
- Amplitude Modulation and Hard Sync
- 4 analog DCAs; 1 for each oscillator, 1 master output
- Analog resonant low-pass filter based on the original CEM chip
- 4 polyphonic envelope generators with 3 modes; SQ80, DADSR, MSEG
- 3 LFOs with 6 waveforms
- 8 MIDI sources
- Modulation mixer for combining 2 modulation sources
- Built-in 7-mode arpeggiator
- Up to 16-voice polyphony with Unison mode
- 4 FX slots across 2 busses, configurable in series or parallel]
- 15 master effect types
- Advanced Brightness, Timbre, Time and Movement macro controls
- 200+ factory presets, including 40 from the original SQ-80 instrument
- MPE compatibility
Pricing and Availability
Arturia SQ80 V is available now with an intro price of $99 (normally $199).