Developers have released a free major update for the Woovebox – a micro music workstation that’s designed to fit the functions of an entire ’90s studio into a battery-powered handheld device.
The Woovebox features 16-part multi-timbral synthesis, sequencing and sampling, USB and wireless connectivity, 10 hours of battery life and more.
New in Woovebox firmware 2.0:
The sampler has received a massive upgrade with double the sampling time, revamped resampling (“skip back”) feature, and more.
Woovebox Expanded; you can now control your Woovebox from any MIDI controller, and turn a dumb controller – even a toy keyboard – into a powerful synthesizer/workstation.
(select devices only; rev. 15B2, 15B2SE, 15B2PRO markings on the back) The MIDI port can now be used as a physical MIDI IN port.
DJ FX; a completely new way of enhancing your song fragments was introduced to make your compositions sound even more rich and professional
HiFi upgrade; the fruits of relentless optimization were reinvested in sound quality improvements across the board
Sound design enhancements; the synthesizer engine was enhanced with some key new features such as two new filter types, a new LFO hold mode and more
Improved preset & patch management; 170+ presets, new preset selection mechanism, improved randomization and a brand new randomization mode
Workflow & UI enhancements; new workflow and UI enhancements make the Woovebox even faster to use, while simultaneously improving depth and capabilities
Sequencer; new off-grid live recording, quantization and dynamic swing/quantized playback feature
Wooveconnect 2.0; improved interface, support for uni-directional communication, freely selectable MIDI ports, more granular control over connection stability, and dynamic parameter help/docs display
Bug fixes, quality-of-life improvements and outstanding feature requests
Instruo & Modern Biology have introduced the Pocket SCÍON, a portable device that captures biofeedback data sourced from contact with living organisms.
This data is used by the onboard sound engine to generate evolving soundscapes and a range of MIDI messages.
It’s designed to be easy to use for anyone, but also supports more advanced synthesists, with MIDI and OSC output capabilities, so you can integrate Pocket SCÍON and biofeedback into projects.
“People are always asking me how they can create music with plants and mushrooms like I do,” says Tarun Nayar (aka Modern Biology). “I’m so excited to finally have the Pocket Scion to point them towards. It’s been a joy to work with Jason, Kian and the Instruo team to create this affordable and musically deep device.”
Ready-made templates for Ableton Live, Processing, TouchDesigner, and Jupyter Lab let you get started quickly, while power users can remix the raw data and collaborate with a growing citizen-science community to create audio and visual installations, live performances, science projects, and more.
Features:
Portable Biometric Synthesizer
Generates musical data via sensor clips or capacitive touch pad
MIDI output via TRS-MIDI (Type-A) and USB
Includes 4 custom instruments
Outputs 5-note polyphony and velocity over MIDI / USB
Included desktop app provides deeper parameter editing
Outputs OSC data over USB
Includes sensor cables
The Instruo Pocket SCÍON is available now to preorder for $149.
Error Instruments today has introduced the Solar Installation, an experimental synthesizer that they describe as ‘a bridge between art, sound, and technology.’
At its core lies a patch bay that opens up endless sonic possibilities. By experimenting with its connections, you can discover countless ‘sweet spots’ where unexpected textures and tones emerge.
An integrated effects processor lets you transform these tones even further, adding lo-fi echoes, delays, and atmospheric modulations.
Solar Installation features dual-mode oscillators. Each of the four oscillators can be controlled in two unique ways:
Precision Mode – using traditional potentiometers for accurate, tactile manipulation.
Light Interaction Mode – using highly sensitive light sensors that respond to movement and changes in illumination.
This makes the instrument behave like an interactive installation. By positioning it in different lighting environments or allowing natural shadows to play across its sensors, the sounds it generates evolve on its own, creating ever-changing, generative music.
An example of the Solar Installation in action:
Here’s an audio demo:
The Error Instruments Solar Installation is available now for € 475.
