- While firmly established in the synthesis world, Korg's contributions to the DJ universe are equally monumental. Their Kaoss Pad has become a staple in countless gig bags, the Kaossilator continues to made new inroads for performance-oriented jocks and Korg's Nano series of controllers is currently in use by DJs ranging from James Zabiela to, well, me. Naturally, the recent introduction of the Monotron has caused quite a stir in both the production and DJ communities, thanks to its unbeatable combination of real analog synthesis, minuscule size and a street price of about 70 euro. So much so that you'll be hard pressed to find one anywhere at the time of this writing, unless you're wiling to hop in the queue and wait for a backordered unit.
The Monotron strongly evokes a mid-twentieth century musical instrument called the Stylophone. Both feature a microscopic keyboard. Unlike the Stylophone, which requires a stylus for performing, though, the Monotron can also be played with a finger. That said, the most precise control comes via a stylus, like those that came with old-school PDAs such as the Palm Pilot;so it's a bit of a drag that Korg doesn't include one in the package.
Playing technique aside, the Monotron is a full-fledged analog synth that runs on two AAA batteries and is roughly the size of an iPod; which is an extraordinary design accomplishment. The front of the unit includes five tiny knobs for tweaking the sound in surprisingly useful ways, while the back of the unit features a volume control, headphone jack and an audio input for processing external signals through its filter section.
The voice is based on the classic analog signal path, consisting of an oscillator followed by a resonant lowpass filter into a simple VCA circuit. The oscillator is strictly a sawtooth affair, but that's fine as it's probably the most flexible waveform for a device like this, thanks to the quality of the filter. The pitch knob controls the overall tuning of the Monotron's oscillator and has a surprisingly wide range. At its lowest setting, the oscillator can reach into subsonic territory. You can even hear the clicking of the sawtooth waveform before it enters the audible frequency range. A bit higher and you've got bass with bollocks, which is something of a shock coming from a unit this small. At the upper frequencies, the oscillator is capable of truly screechy highs, which can be adjusted to taste with the filter.
The Monotron's coolest pedigree comes from its filter implementation. The VCF here is based on the legendary Korg MS-20, a highly sought after analog modular synth from the late '70s that is a staple in many producers' rigs. History lesson aside, it sounds incredible. If you're used to softsynths and haven't quite figured out what all the "real analog" fuss is about, one listen to this filter and you'll be converted. At moderate cutoff settings, the filter is silky and warm. Ratchet up the Peak parameter (also known as resonance or emphasis) and you'll be treated to wet, juicy resonance that evokes the Roland TB-303. All in all, this filter alone is worth the price of the unit.
The Monotron's LFO is an interesting beast, as it's not the usual triangle wave affair found on many basic synths. Instead, the LFO waveform is based on a sawtooth wave, which can modulate either pitch or filter cutoff (but not both). When applied to pitch, the LFO delivers "boo-boo-boo" effects. Switching to cutoff modulation results in a simple repeating envelope effect being applied to the filter. With low peak parameter values, this is great for pulsing synth rhythms. Increase the Peak amount and you get acid-drenched 303 goodness. But that's not all... Thanks to the Monotron's true analog foundation, the LFO rate reaches all the way into the audio range, resulting in rude FM synthesis effects that are harsh, dirty and ripe for use in techno and electro tracks. This is a wonderful and wholly unexpected bonus for hardcore tweakers.
In addition to being a flexible little synth, the Monotron includes a stereo eighth-inch jack on the back for routing external audio (in mono, according to Korg's documentation) through its filter section, allowing you to process other instruments or even CDJs, if you're feeling a little ambitious. This feature is a rather extraordinary inclusion as it's a peephole-sized portal into the world of modular synthesis, if you think about it. For example, if you have a Kaossilator—or one of the new Dubreq Stylophone reissues—you can plug that into the Monotron and use the two in conjunction to create an entirely new synth that's much more than the sum of its parts.
If you haven't guessed by now, I'm completely sold on Korg's latest must-have gadget. There's so much sonic mayhem crammed into this pocketable synth that even power users ought to add it to the top of their holiday wish list. Toss in the ability to process external audio through a legendary filter design and it's clear that the Monotron is going to be yet another monster hit for Korg.
Ratings /
COST: 4.5/5
VERSATILITY: 4/5
SOUND: 4/5
EASE OF USE: 4/5
TracklistAudio Path: VCO, VCF, LFO
Knobs: VCO Pitch; LFO Rate; LFO Intensity; VCF Cutoff; VCF Peak
LFO Switch: Assignable to Oscillator Pitch or Filter Cutoff
Controller: Ribbon Controller
Volume: Headphone Volume
Aux Input: 1/8" Stereo Jack
Headphone Output: 1/8" Stereo Jack
Speaker: Miniature internal; disabled when headphones are in use.
Power Supply: AAA Alkalines (x2)
Dimensions: (W x D x H) 4.72" x 2.83" x 1.10"
Weight: 3.35 oz. (without batteries)