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After teasing both synthesizers at NAMM earlier this year, Kurzweil has finally announced that the K2061 and K2088 – a modern update to the classic K2000 – are available to order.

Released in 1991, the Kurzweil K2000 was a 24-voice synth and sampler that, at the time, boasted some pretty powerful features, thanks to its V.A.S.T (Variable Architecture Synthesis Technology) synth engine. The K2061 and K2088 take the spirit of that instrument but use the latest tech to make them suitable for a contemporary audience.

They say, “We asked ourselves, what if we could rebuild the legendary K2000 V.A.S.T. synthesizer, but using today’s technology?”

Kurzweil’s V.A.S.T. engine has evolved significantly since its launch 30 years ago, and the new K2061 and K2088 are both modern powerhouse synths, with up to 32 layers per program and a huge 256 voices of polyphony on tap, all running from FlashPlay memory for instant load times.

The 2GB library of factory sounds spans more than 2,000 programs and over 500 multis, including a curated selection of sounds from classic Kurzweil instruments, plus another 2GB of user space for your own sounds and samples. K2061 and K2088 are compatible with standard WAV/AIFF formats and legacy Kurzweil sounds going back to the K2000.

Alongside the V.A.S.T. core you’ll find a six-operator FM engine that can load vintage SysEx patches, VA1-style virtual analogue oscillators and a KB3 organ mode with realistic drawbar control. There’s a varied arsenal of effects onboard, with over 32 effects units and 1000 preset chains, alongside a master section with EQ and compression for extra polish.

Both synths are 16-part multitimbral with 16 programmable MIDI zones, each with its own arpeggiator, step sequencer, and RIFF generator, backed by up to 40 assignable physical controls per zone, including knobs, sliders, buttons, wheels, and pedal inputs, along with a three-section ribbon controller.

The K2061 is built around a 61-note semi-weighted synth-action keybed from Fatar (TP/9) with channel aftertouch, designed for expressive synth playing. The K2088 steps up to a full 88-note, hammer-action weighted keybed (Fatar TP/40L), also with aftertouch.

Kurzweil K2061/ K2088 – Song Demos:

Kurzweil K2061 is priced at $2199/£1899, and K2088 is priced at $2999/£2175.

Find out more on Kurzweil website.

4Pockets has introduced Oscidia, a new AUv3 wavetable synthesizer for iOS.

Oscidia offers a wide range of features and oscillator types, allowing it to produce a vast variety of sounds. Oscidia has 3 oscillators per voice, and each oscillator can be a different wavetable.

Oscidia also supports 5 filter types, which support 12/24dB modes and morphable LP/BP/HP filter modes, which can be automated from the Mod Matrix or via the Sequencer.

The built-in sequencer allows up to 3 simultaneous ARPs to play at the same time. Each ARP can directly control the 3 oscillator levels independently per step, as well as the pitch, filter morph, cutoff frequency, probability, gate, note repeat and ties. This allows for some really complex rhythms to be created that are not tied to pitch.

Features:

• 3 Oscillators Per Voice.
• Support for Wavetable and Additive synthesis.
• WaveTable supports Morph and Warp (Phase Distortion) features.
• 4 LFOs Per Voice.
• 5 Filter types with 12/24-bit slopes and morphable LP/BP/HP.
• 4 ADSR (Attack, Decay, Sustain, Release ) or FEG (Fluid Envelope Generators).
• Wave Folding is available for basic waveforms such as SINE and TRIANGLE.
• OSC Sync.
• XMod & Ring Mod (on osc1 & osc2).
• Additive Synthesis for glass, metallic and bell like tones.
• Build in Sequencer (with 3 independent ARPs).
• Mod Matrix.
• MPE Mode.
• Internal Effects – reverb, delay, chorus, Haas, and Phaser effects.
• Drag and Drop for import and export presets and wavetables.
• Built-in Help Manual

Oscidia is available now for $14.99.

Alex Theakston of Mylar Melodies – in his latest video – takes an in-depth look SoundThread, a free, open-source audio-mangling tool for Linux, Mac and Windows.

SoundThread is a cross-platform user interface for The Composers Desktop Project (CDP) suite of sound manipulation tools. It allows for modular style routing of various CDP processes to quickly build up complex Threads that allow for extensive sound manipulation. CDP has been notably used by Aphex Twin, as noted in the video.

The goal of SoundThread is to make CDP as user friendly as possible and it is particularly well suited to those new to experimental sound processing.

In the video, Theakston explains what SoundThread can do and demonstrates how it works.

Video Summary:

“Prepare to meet SoundThread – capable of the most insane sound mangling imaginable – and it’s completely free.

You might know of Composer’s Desktop Project, used by our old pal Aphex Twin on Drukqs. CDP is one of the most powerful software sound design tools on Earth, and is free. It can do things you just can’t do elsewhere. Problem is, CDP has never been especially easy to use.

Enter SoundThread – a new, beginner friendly Mac/Windows/Linux “front end” for CDP. SoundThread gives you access to lots of CDP’s power, but in a simple drag-and-drop modular way. It makes it fun and quick to explore, even if you have very limited experience – that’s a big deal. CDP has never been this easy before. This video was made completely independently of SoundThread & CDP – if I find something cool, I just want to spread the word.”

Topics covered:

00:00 Why is this important?

01:35 How to apply processing in SoundThread

03:22 Add automation

03:45 Filterbank example, showing mixing

05:06 Extend Sounds: Envelope Bounce

05:51 Distort: Interpolate madness

07:15 Every sound gets saved (more examples)

08:17 What Aphex did with CDP

08:56 Drukqs effect spotting

09:51 Our own version, with automation

10:18 Processing Breaks in weird ways

11:03 Putting the sound in order of volume(!)

11:53 How to PVOC for more madness

13:19 PVOC Breakmangling

14:00 Final suggestion

If you’d like to learn more about SoundThread, check out this video playlist by Jonathan Higgins:

SoundThread is available as a free download from Github.