New ASM HydraSynth 8 Voice Digital WaveMorphing Hardware Synthesizers - First Demos & Details

Update: Playlist added above. You can use the player controls to skip around.
Update2: New pics and product description added below.
Update3: Official press release with higher res pics starting with the desktop added below.

Playlist:

1. ASM Hydrasynth Keyboard Preset Sounds - Perfect Circuit - interview here
[Note Supporters of MATRIXSYNTH get %10 off at Perfect Circuit! See the support page for details. Thank you to all who support the site!]
2. ASM HydraSynth Overview Demo arp and Poly Touch Pads - Ken Flux Pierce Fluxwithit
3. HYDRASYNTH FIRST IMPRESSIONS – This is an INTENSE synthesizer - BoBeats (Patreon)
4. New Polysynth - HYDRASYNTH - From ASM - Sonic LAB First Look - sonicstate
5. Hydrasynth: Review, detailed tutorial // Keyboard vs Desktop // Polyphonic Aftertouch - leploop
6. Hydrasynth Review - BBoyTechReport.com
7. Welcome the ASM HydraSynth! Digital Wavemorphing Synthesizer - Ken Flux Pierce Fluxwithit
8. ASM HydraSynth Exploring Oscillators and Mutants - Ken Flux Pierce Fluxwithit
9. ASM Hydrasynth Sounds Demo 🎹 - Sweetwater
10. ASM Hydrasynth Synthesizer Deep Dive 🎹 - Sweetwater

ASM stands for Ashun Sound Machines, not to be mixed with the Elby Designs ASM2 & ASM STRAT 1.

Screen grab of the desktop version.

via Fluxwithit

"Over the past year or so I was fortunate enough to work on this project. Eventually it became one of the most interesting synthesizers I have seen hit the market in ages. What makes the ASM HydraSynth so special? let’s start with a run down of the bullet points first.

Hydrasynth is an 8 voice digital wavemorphing synthesizer.

8 voices3 oscillators: 219 waveforms, custom wavetables with wavelist/wavescan function, ring mod, 3 noise colors.4 custom “mutator” sections each with 7 effects FM-lin,wavestack,PWM,PWM squeeze, PWM-ASM,Sync,Harmonic sweep. oscillators can be stereo panned.

2 Simultaneous filters that can be arranged in parallel or series. Filter 1 has 11 filter models including traditional Moog style 12 and 24db ladder filters, q compensated 12 and 24db ladder filters ala MatrixBrute, 18db slope LP,BP,HP,filters based on the Threeler eurorack filter, MS20 style HP and LP filters,LPG filter and a Vowel filterOscillators can blend into filters at varying amounts, Filter 2 is a SEM style multimode filter with morph control LP-BP-HP.dedicated analog 270 degree pots for cutoff, resonance and Drive/Morph.

5 6-stage DAHDSR envelopes with BPM sync allowing you to sync the slope of each stage to the beat. Looping with definable number of repeats

5 LFO each with 10 waveforms + noise, delay, fade in/out, and phase. multiple trigger modes , step mode with pattern length.

32 point mod matrix with 28 sources and 188 destinations .

8 macros each with scribble strip and up to 8 destinations each. Macro buttons also allow for quick value changes.

24 polyphonic pressure after touch pads with multiple musical layouts and dedicated scale and Key configurations
arp with ratchet and chance

CV/ Gate interface with 2 mod inputs, pitch, gate, mod 1, mod2, and clock outputs.

USB and MIDI DIN I/O, thru.

sustain and expression pedal input.Stereo output,

desktop has recessed cable connections for a clean placement up against other gear.

Module select buttons reminiscent of the Ensoniq synths of the past give you immediate access to every section of the synth without menu diving.

LCD screen doubles as a O-scope

LCD screen between knobs always lets you know what parameters you are editing and the encoders have light indicators to represent values at a glance.

VST editor/Librarian for Mac and windows.

Home buttons always takes you back to the top level so that you never feel lost in the synth.

Random button allows you to quickly randomize any given parameter.

Pre and post FX sections with 8 FX each- Chorus, flanger, rotary, phaser, lo-fi, tremolo, EQ, and side chain able compressor.

Dedicated Delay and Reverb sections with 5 delay types and 4 reverb algorithms

Price is $1299 for the keyboard and $799 for the desktop!"

Update2: "Offering eight-voice polyphony, "Mutator" waveshaping, and a 32-slot modulation matrix, the ASM Hydrasynth is truly a next-generation virtual analog synthesizer for modern music producers. Rivaling the sonic capabilities of many popular software synthesizer plug-ins, each voice features three WaveScan oscillators offering 219 different waveforms, with four Mutators total for extensive waveshaping. There's a ton of potential for creating nuanced, non-linear sounds — the five ADSR envelope generators offer delay and hold, and can have either linear or exponential curves between stages, and the five LFOs offer a total of 11 waveshapes plus delay, fade in, and smoothing. Factor in the 49-note keybed, customizable PolyTouch response, expressive ribbon controller, and CV/Gate connectivity, and the ASM Hydrasynth could be the master controller your synthesizer rig is asking for.

Extensive modulation capabilities
With its 32-slot modulation matrix, Hydrasynth empowers you to create incredibly nuanced and expressive sounds. Synthesists at Sweetwater are particularly impressed with its envelope generators (five per voice), which offer delay and hold in addition to ADSR stages. Each stage of the envelope can sweep through exponential and logarithmic curves, which offers big creative potential for long, evolving modulations.

Like most of the functions on Hydrasynth, envelopes can be locked to BPM for tempo-synced modulations. Combined with the looping function, you can use the envelopes as LFOs with interesting waveshapes. And speaking of LFOs, Hydrasynth offers five LFOs per voice with 11 total waveshapes. That includes the eight-step LFO, which allows you to create your own custom waveshape.

Amazing performance potential with PolyTouch and ribbon controller
Whether you're performing or recording, Hydratouch delivers an incredibly expressive playing experience, especially when you dig into its PolyTouch capabilities. PolyTouch is a new method of polyphonic aftertouch sensing. You have full control over aftertouch curves, offsets, and release times, giving you big creative potential when using aftertouch to manipulate your sounds. A built-in ribbon controller expands your performance options further — it can control pitch bend or modulation amount, and a Theremin mode allows you to play melodies on the ribbon controller against whatever you're playing on the keyboard.

Deep synthesis with an intuitive interface
While the Hydrasynth engine is remarkably powerful, it's relatively simple to find and tweak the parameters you're looking for. On the front panel, you'll find a graphic representation of the audio path, with buttons to select each individual section (individual oscillators, mixer, effects, and so on). Selecting a section brings its associated parameters to the display, with eight encoders ready to tweak. In other words, every section of this synth can be accessed with a button press, no menu diving required.

Advanced real-time control via 8 macro controls
One of the most popular aspects of software synthesizers is the ability to control multiple parameters simultaneously via macro controls, and the ASM Hydrasynth gives you that creative power in hardware form. You can customize its eight macro controls to tweak up to eight destinations simultaneously. And with a total of 170 modulation destinations to explore, you can easily use the macro controls to warp between completely distinct sound variations on the fly.

Update3: The official press release and some higher res pics (click on them for full size):

Ashun Sound Machines (ASM) announce Hydrasynth wave morphing synthesizer with Polytouch™ polyphonic aftertouch

LOS ANGELES, CA, USA/HONG KONG: newly-formed music hardware company Ashun Sound Machines (ASM) is proud to announce (upcoming) availability of Hydrasynth — a wave morphing synthesizer representing its inaugural hardware product, produced as a keyboard version (featuring an ASM Polytouch™ 49-note polyphonic aftertouch keyboard and a user-assignable ribbon controller) and desktop version (with 24 velocity- and polyphonic aftertouch-sensitive pads, plus an included 19-inch rack-mount kit) — as of September 3…

Hydrasynth itself is an eight-voice, three-oscillator synthesizer anchored around a unique wave morphing synthesis engine. OSC 1, OSC 2, and OSC 3 can all make use of any one of the 219 single-cycle waveforms available, while Wave Scan mode (for OSC 1 and OSC 2 only) flexibly facilitates defining eight waveforms into a list and then morphing from one to the next using modulation sources.
Said synthesis engine also features four mutators, allowing for further tonal modification. MUTANT 1, MUTANT 2, MUTANT 3, and MUTANT 4 have an ability to perform complex FM (Frequency Modulation) synthesis; each include three different types of pulse width modifiers, hard sync, harmonic sweep, and a Wavestack™ function that generates five detuned copies of the incoming waves for super-dense sounds. Furthermore, flexible routings within the mutators make available (almost) unlimited options for tweaking, twisting, and turning sounds inside out.

On top of that, the synthesis engine also contains two filters that can be configured in parallel or series. FILTER 1 features 11 filter models spanning new and classic filter modes, while FILTER 2 is a continuously-variable multimode affair.

As modulation sources add much-needed movement into a synthesized sound, Hydrasynth far from disappoints in that regard with five envelope generators — ENV 1, ENV 2, ENV 3, ENV 4, and ENV 5 — capable of looping as well as tempo synchronisation and five LFOs (low frequency oscillators) — LFO 1, LFO 2, LFO 3, LFO 4, and LFO 5 — capable of acting as step sequencers or one-shots. The modulation matrix — MOD MATRIX — offers 32 modulation slots with which to route sources to destinations. Such sources and destinations can also be received or sent via MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) CC (continuous controller) messages or front panel-accessible CV (control voltage) INPUTS and OUTPUTS.

Of course, connectivity to the wider world is as far reaching as it comes, courtesy of that full-blown MIDI implementation (via the usual connection compliment of MIDI IN, MIDI OUT, and MIDI THRU on five-pin DIN as well as USB) alongside CV/GATE connections (for playing nicely with the likes of today’s ever-widening world of Eurorack modular gear, vintage synthesizers, and more).

Hydrasynth has brought back one of the most requested features in synthesizers and controllers — namely, polyphonic aftertouch. As such, its unique polyphonic aftertouch keyboard breathes life and dynamics into otherwise static sounds, so users can create expressive musical passages using a standard-sized traditional keyboard. It is not necessary to learn a new keyboard technique to be able to play and perform with the Polytouch™ keyboard.

Alternatively, a desktop version of Hydrasynth — dispensing with that Polytouch™ keyboard and the user-assignable ribbon controller in favour of 24 velocity- and polyphonic aftertouch-sensitive pads — is available to those not needing to add another keyboard to their studio or stage setups; saying that, all other performance attributes are still at hand, including an adaptable ARPEGGIATOR and dedicated FILTER CONTROLS, with crisp OLED (organic light-emitting diode) displays duly providing welcomed visual feedback across the easy-to-follow front panels of both versions of ASM’s inaugural hardware product... when it comes to working with a sensational synthesis engine, the choice is out there!


Expected to ship in November 2019, Hydrasynth will be available through ASM’s growing global network of authorized retailers at an MSRP of $1,599.00 USD ($1,299.00 USD MAP) for the keyboard version and at an MSRP of $999.00 USD ($799.00 USD MAP) for the desktop version.

For more in-depth information, please visit the ASM webpage here: http://www.ashunsoundmachines.com