WALDORF STVC £749

The much-anticipated STVC from Waldorf comes hot-on-the-heels of their groundbreaking Quantum flagship synthesiser. While the Quantum could be regarded as the synth of all synths, the STVC has a very different and more considered ambition, drawing on a vintage legacy that offers plenty for contemporary production.

STRINGS AND VOCODER

As if we were left in any doubt, the four letters that provide the business card for the STVC are not quite an acronym, but they do offer a distinct clue about its onboard modes of sound generation.

Back in the 70s, polysynths were expensive and limited in terms of polyphony, meaning that if you wanted to create a string pad wash, you’d have to track things up – an expensive option as it required a multi-track tape machine. The alternative was to consider using a string machine. In essence, string machines were designed to cost-effectively allow musicians and producers more polyphony for string pads, but at an efficient price point, hence there was a golden age of such machines, with products such as the Solina String Synthesiser being a particular favourite. String machines have now heavily infiltrated contemporary production,