Elektron New Instrument Tonverk (Leaked)
It looks like something new is coming from Elektron.
This is not the first time this year, Elektron fans are getting all hot under the collar after photos of a new hardware instrument appeared to leak onto the internet. Images of a device labelled Tonverk, possible a sampler or synthesizer, first appeared on Elektron’s own Elektronauts forum, before being swiftly deleted and reappearing on Reddit.
Unlike the previous leak of Digitakt II, which was an update to an existing product line and seemed like something of a dead-cert, Tonverk – if real – looks to be something completely new for the Swedish brand.
Thus far, we have not seen any official announcement yet from Elektron on the Tonverk, but the company applied to trademark the name ‘Tonverk’ in the US in April
The Tonverk trademark application is for the following goods:
Musical synthesizers; Music synthesizers; Electronic synthesizers; Electronic drums; Robotic drums; Drums; percussion instruments; Drum machines; Electronic musical instruments; Mechanical, electric and electronic musical instruments; Computer controlled musical instruments; Electronic musical apparatus and instruments; Musical instruments controlled by microprocessor; Electronic musical keyboards
What is the Elektron Tonverk?
Even with clear photos of the Tonverk, it’s not clear from the photos what the Elektron Tonverk does, but we can draw some obvious conclusions from the interface pictured. Much of the labelled functionality appears to be lifted from existing Elektron devices. There’s a 16-button sequencer labelled with both audio and MIDI tracks. The keyboard-style button layout on the left is similar to that found on Analog Four, and indicates melodic capabilities, as do the buttons labelled Chord, Arp and Scale. The ‘Drum/Ptn Bank’ label also implies percussive capabilities.
The machine looks to be at least partially sample-based, due to the inclusion of a sample-edit button on the top left that looks similar to that found on Digitakt. There’s a bank of eight rotaries – again, classic Elektron fare – and one of the buttons underneath is labelled ‘Machines’, implying a variety of sound engine modes, possibly offering different modes of sample playback or a mix of sampling and synthesis.
Some Redditors are concluding that Tonverk is a likely successor to Elektron’s much-loved performance sampler Octatrack, although it seems unlikely to be pitched as such to us, due to the lack of some of that machine’s most popular features, such as its crossfader.
The leaked images also suggest some curious features that would fly in the face of Elektron convention. On the rear panel there’s no obvious power input, suggesting that power would be provided by one of the two USB-C inputs – and perhaps even an internal battery? An SD card slot suggests expandable storage, in a more convenient format than the CompactFlash cards used by the Octatrack. All of which would make Tonverk appear like a response to the DAW-in-a-box workflows offered by the likes of Ableton Push or Akai’s MPC Live.
The labelled controls also imply the existence of routable effects, a full mod matrix and bus tracks, all of which would add considerable flexibility compared to existing Elektron designs.
The fact that Elektron deleted the images from its forum appears to give the leak some credibility, although it could be that the company is working on something called Tonverk, and doesn’t want a fake circulating under that name.
Check out the photos, and share your thoughts on the Elektron Tonverk in the comments!
