Uno Synth Pro - first impressions

[IkUser09]

Just got a Pro these days. Interesting machine:

Great hardware. Chassis, keybed, buttons, knobs, and wheels all feel professional. Thanks a bunch.

Great architecture. Easy to understand and rather versatile.

Shaping oscillators. Great.

Dual filters. Love it. Especially the OTA is reminiscent of the Korg MS-20, and the 2nd is excellent as well.

FX section with 4 slots. Excellent.

Phantastic modulation matrix. E.g. I can use the mod wheel to both increase vibrato depth and LFO speed. Thanks a bunch.

Dirt. Essential to any sound design. Both oscillators and filters provide just the right amount IMO. This machine provides character.

Three oscillator paraphony allows to play chords. I was rather surprised by the string and brass sounds. Incredible.

Wish list:

Lead sounds. There are some, but few compared to the capabilities of the machine. Well, I was told decades ago that synths are designed to create own sounds .

No SysEx dumps of patches. Yes, that's old school. Yes, I'm an old fart. Yes, there will be an editor. Yes, it will be maintained so it is guaranteed to still work with macOS XX. Yes, it will also be available for Linux . Anyway, I believe SysEx dumps still are more reliable.

(Unipolar) OneShot Retrigger mode for the LFOs would allow for additional transients (pitch, filter, …) independent from the filter envelope.

Indication of the currently saved parameter value would ease the editing process. Some synths show the saved parameter value while turning a knob, others highlight the saved value by an asterisk or dot.

MIDI out off switch so I could use the excellent hardware to control other synths (like the Roland SE-02, which is another excellent synth BTW), maybe combined with Local Off.

Non-blinking octave (plus/minus) buttons. Other synths indicate the octave by different illumination intensities. Much less distracting IMO.

More to come while exploring the synth…

A very interesting machine. I hope that soon patches are shared via the community and 3rd party developers start selling additional patch sets.

Happy weekend,

ce

[SLiC]

I'm sure that there will be 3rd party patches once the editor/librarian is out (should be soon)

I love the synth, sounds amazing...lots of depth and a really big old school analogue sound. I have a few niggles....I can’t read the alt text under the buttons as there are a lot of alt commands (shift + button) to remember. I don't like micro-USB- never seems to sit on deep enough for my liking, easy to knock out- not good as a PSU on audio gear!

Not sure I like that the 'hold' button turns the synth off if you hold it too long...I know its a latch, but it would be nice if it could act as a 'sustain whilst hold' (alt- hold to lock) and maybe have to hold 2 different keys at once to turn off to avoid accidents...I guess this could be done with a software update?

I wonder if there will be a UNO DRUM PRO!

[maxtr0ne]

I own the Uno Synth & love it for pure analog bass & growls. Have either of you played with that & can you speak to the Pro's capabilities vs the original? I know the technical differences, just wondering if the oscillators & extra bells & whistles turn it into more of a sound design tool for more leads & pads vs what I see the original Uno Synth as a ridiculously good mono bass & analog stab machine.

[SLiC]

I have both- started with the original direct from IK when it was first launched...

There are obviously a lot of similarities, so it will feel familiar, and the UNO 'sound' is there in spades, but the UNO PRO adds a lot...

A lot more filter variation - 2 'simultaneous' analogue filters with routing options! (that's better than the PRO3 ) + analogue distortion- I always turn this up!

3 analogue Oscillators- 1 more may not seem a big deal but it works really well with 3 note chords! Lets face it, you need 3 notes for a chord and you can't do that with the original!

Really good fx, great reverb...stereo output- Balanced outputs for much better noise rejection...

Much better 64 note sequencer

Down side is really just the cost and the and that they didn't build in the rechargeable battery which was an oversight in my opinion. Its a bit of a pain having an 'umbilical' to a battery pack
and sort of kills the hand held vibe (I guess you could stick a battery to the bottom of the case!)

I am keeping both

Hope this helps!

[maxtr0ne]

Nice one, thanks! I have about $80 in Jam Points... really hard to not look at the desktop pro for $320 & consider selling the original for $150 or so... or keep both

[SLiC]

It's definitely worth it for $320 - its much, much more expensive in the UK and I didn't use points (I have 125!) as tax and shipping from the EU made it more expensive than buying from a shop in the UK even if I had used 80 jam points!

Another bit of good news is the editor will be out soon and there are rumours on YT of some nice updates to the mod matrix (being bale to mod fx etc) so it can only get better- to be fair to IK they improved the original a lot since launce and the 'pro' is there new flagship, so it will get some love I think...