Dave’s got a new keyboard, and the headline gives it all away: it’s a Mopho, but adding keys and more control, all for $800.

There’s a myth out there that the computer music user and hardware synth lover are two different people. Au contraire, mon ami. Thanks, indeed, to Dave Smith himself, the computer and the synth get along just fine. But if you’ve got scant few dollars, which synth is really unique enough, elegant enough in use to justify those dollars?

Dave Smith Instruments is on the top of the list. They’ve got personality, accessibility, and terrific sound. And the DSI instruments are even starting to look like they themselves recognize the invention of the computer, with the addition of USB MIDI and software editors. Oh, yeah, and Dave Smith’s creations are also uncommonly good values: analog synths the everyman can afford. The new Mopho keyboard is in late prototype phase, and it already looks to fill that mold.

The Mopho keyboard has all the analog sonic goodness of the mopho synth module, an overwhelming CDM reader favorite in 2008. Like the Mopho module, you get a rich monophonic analog synth on a budget. That voice is roughly the equivalent of a single voice from the Prophet ’08, but with the addition of sub-octave generators and audio input and feedback options. Because you can input audio signal, that makes the Mopho a doubly-interesting possibility alongside a computer, as basically a big modulation source. (The Moog Little Phatty has earned some fans for the same reason.)

The one thing I didn’t much like on the Mopho module was its minimalist controller section. The keyboard is different, as you can see in our rough video walk-through. There’s a clever set of controls that let you manipulate either oscillator 1, oscillator 2, or both simultaneously. The knobs themselves feel lovely, too, and you have a lot more onboard programmability. There’s MIDI-controlled feedback. And there are pots everywhere, without any menu diving – nearly everything is accessible via shift keys.

What I also love about the Mopho is its compact size; it’s easy to carry and lift.

As always, some of the biggest competition to Dave Smith’s synths are other Dave Smith synths. So you do have to weight the Mopho keyboard against the Mono and Poly Evolver keyboards. Those have deeper sound architectures (even on the Mono Evolver), and while they don’t have 100% analog signal path, you don’t (cough) really need that, necessarily.

There aren’t any specs up on the Dave Smith site, and even the final appearance may differ slightly. (I liked the little bit of yellow peeking out from beneath the more refined wood and front panel; I hope that makes it onto the finished model.) But you can expect the Mopho keyboard very soon, some time this spring, at MAP US$799. Stay tuned.

Dave Smith Instruments

(PS, I’m blanking on the name of the gentleman in the video and I neglected to photo your name badge as I should, so since my memory is worse than a preset-less early analog synth, please drop me a line.)

Quadruple quadruple your refreshment, quadruple quadruple your enjoyment… sorry, I started quoting old Doublemint Gum jingles. As expected, Dave Smith has released his Tetra (“Tetr4″ in the l33t speak on the case). The name says it all: the Tetra takes the popular Mopho synth and packs four of them into a single, compact case. The Mopho was featured in the CDM Winter Guide and was one of the favorite reader products of 2008. Its strength is that it’s a great-sounding synth in a small box with all the basic analog goodness. The Tetra simply takes that design and squeezes four of them into a box. That’s four voices, each with two oscillators (which in turn come with sub-octave generators), one Curtis low-pass filter, and feedback loop per voice. You also get the step sequencer and arpeggiator features.

The Tetra also shares a name with the badass pirate version of the Princess Zelda from recent Nintendo games.

Now, the Tetra, like the Mopho, still remains a terrific choice for people wanting some simple analog goodness. But as noted in the Winter Guide, Dave Smith still has some tough competition …from Dave Smith. The Evolver’s digital oscillators may not appeal to analog purists, but they allow Frequency Modulation and Ring Modulation effects. And the Evolver has a digital highpass filter. Of course, the Evolver now has to stand up to the Tetra’s additional voices, which enable routings that weren’t possible before. But I’m hoping increased Mopho and Tetra demand may lead to some cheap used Evolvers on the market; I badly want one. Even from Dave Smith direct, at US$599 on sale I think the Evolver is still worth a look, even if it loses on voice count and doesn’t have those cool, accessible front-panel controls.

The Tetra is priced at US$799 direct from Dave Smith, or at your local reseller. And Evolver comments aside, it’ll clearly be the synth to beat – it’s a pretty amazing investment in an analog synth for $800, and it’s small enough to toss in a backpack – no flight case needed. You can route audio input into it with feedback. And the design eschews the psychedelic looks of the Mopho for a more grown-up, handsome look. Correction: The Tetra seems to lose the audio in present on the Mopho – one reason the Evolver and Mopho are still strong alternatives. You do keep the feedback routing, but there’s no audio in. (Thanks, mcpepe in comments – so it’s not quite like having four Mopho’s in one case; they had to cut something!)

I think Dave Smith’s work has a reputation for being favored by analog snobs – you know who you are. But it’s clear that these make nice hardware synths for computer fans, too, especially thanks to its compact size. If you pick one up, readers, let us know how it goes and how you use it.

Dave Smith Tetra

…and the oldie but goodie: Dave Smith Evolver (now, could we have a Quadvolver, perhaps?)

Hot dog purveyor Gray’s Papaya in New York is beloved for its “Recession Special”: two dogs and a drink. Their champagne is made from coconuts. And you don’t just scarf these down in bear markets; you enjoy them any time.

Dave Smith’s monophonic Mopho synth is perhaps the greatest recession special in the history of synthesis. It’s got the soul of a single voice from the Prophet ’08 analog synth, but with sub-octave generators, distortion that they claim ranges to “extreme skronk,” and the ability to process audio input. Interestingly, that means its “skronkiness” and input processing address some of the complaints I’ve heard from people who didn’t immediately take to the new Prophet. The whole, 7.5×5″ package, with the 100% analog signal path mono synth, the Curtis analog low-pass filter, and a Mac/Windows editor, costs just US$400 street.

And then there’s that mysterious “Push It” button.

If you want some hands-on experience, our friend Chris Randall of Analog Industries (and Audio Damage) just got his:
Honky Mopho

I’m about the last person to mention the Mopho (I was out of town when it launched), so I went to the good peoples of Dave Smith to get a little more information. DSI’s Andrew McGowan responds.

And yes, we get to hear something about the ever-mysterious upcoming Dave Smith – Roger Linn LinnDrum II, which this is not.

Peter: Why a “Push It” button? Is it assignable when you’re designing your own patches?

Andrew: The Push It button is a manual trigger. It can act just like a key (push it plays, release it stops) or it can latch on with one push and off with another. Because Mopho has a gated sequencer, that means the Push It button can also play or latch a sequence. There is also a trigger mode where pressing the Push It button (or a key) can step through a sequence, so it’s actually possible to play a simple melodic line without a keyboard. And that’s all configurable per program.

Peter: The signal path is basically the same as one voice on the Prophet 08, correct? Aside from the sub-octave generators, are there any other differences — subtle or otherwise — or is it best to think of this as a single voice from the Prophet in a box?

Andrew: The voice architecture is the same. The additions are the sub-octave generators and the feedback loop. The feedback loop is made possible by the Audio In, which is not present on the Prophet. Both of those things can give it a pretty distinctly different character from the Prophet.

Peter: Is 14-bit control possible in the MIDI implementation?

Andrew: It responds to double-byte NRPNs, as some of the parameters (filter cutoff, for example) have a range of more than 128 values.

Peter: The audio input/filter capability — in which you can take any external audio input and run it through the Mopho — is unique to the Mopho? It’s not on the Prophet ’08?

Andrew: The Evolvers have audio inputs, but not the Prophet. It’s a little trickier on a polyphonic instrument. (The Poly Evolver skirts the issue somewhat because it’s essentially 4 Evolvers in a box.)

Peter: I see it’s made some trips out to some celebrity synth users. Anything to share from their experiences?

Andrew: From Felix Martin of Hot Chip: “We’re very proud to be the first official owners of the Mopho! It certainly is a powerful little box with a incredibly immediate, rich sound. The first time I got it hooked up and run through a big PA, I cranked up the Sub Oscillators and they sound absolutely amazing – gives Joe’s Voyager a run for its money! I have already programmed some sounds and sequences which I will be running for the first time tonight in Dallas, will send over a photo of it in my little machine world once it is fully integrated. I hope it’s a success and that it finally convinces people to stop paying hundreds of $s for bashed up tb303s.

“I really do like this little machine, it’s a great thing to have on the tour bus and on stage as well.”

Andrew Everding from the band Thursday also wrote to say he had already used it on their new album. As far as I know, he’s the first one into a studio with a Mopho.

Peter: Will we see any of the spirit of the Mopho in the upcoming LinnDrum II? Now that the Mopho is out the door, does that mean DSI’s attention turns to the LinnDrum while the rest of us (ahem) sit in eager anticipation?

Andrew: Well, the attention never really turns away from the LinnDrum II. Dave worked on both the Prophet ’08 Module and Mopho during those times when Roger was working on aspects that required less of Dave’s time. I’ve known Dave for nearly 30 years, and he’s not really one to remain idle for long. He’s always working on something. The LinnDrum II will have the analog voices and processing and will use the Curtis chips that we use in our other products. I’m not really at liberty to say much more than that right now. It’s gone through some pretty major changes and I think it’ll definitely be worth the wait. I’d like to get my hands on one, too!

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