Erica Synths Steampipe Physical Modeling Synthesizer Hands-On Review
Host Ziv Eliraz – in his latest loopop video – shares his in-depth review of the Erica Synths Steampipe, a new physical modeling synthesizer.
Steampipe is an 8-voice polyphonic synthesizer that uses physical modeling to mimic the sounds of wind and string instruments – with no conventional oscillators. Physical modeling synthesis is great for creating realistic acoustic type sounds and sounds that get into ‘uncanny valley’ territory, by modeling physical instruments that might not be practical to build.
Topics covered:
0:00 Intro
1:50 Overview
3:50 Connectivity
4:15 Build
5:15 Steam
6:00 Exciter LPF
6:30 Steam env
7:00 Pipe
7:20 Feedback
7:50 Polarity
8:10 Push
9:45 Tuning
10:10 Harmonics
11:15 Split
12:10 Saturation
13:15 HPF/LPF
14:10 Overblow
15:30 Reverb
16:40 LFOs
17:50 LFO as env
18:55 MIDI devices
20:10 MIDI mod
21:00 EXT audio
22:10 Misc
24:00 Pros & cons
27:50 Presets
Ziv Eliraz says that this is the most hands-on physical modeling synth that he’s ever used, which makes it easy to learn. He also praises the sonic possibilities of the Steampipe, and how it integrates with expressive controllers.
On the cons side, he says that he didn’t find any significant hardware flaws, but he notes some competitive hardware and software synths that you might want to also consider.
Check out the review, and share your thoughts on the Erica Synths Steampipe in the comments!
