Arturia MatrixBrute

K
nown fi rst for their
software recreations
of vintage classics,
Arturia went on to
launch the compact
MiniBrute in 2012
and the MicroBrute
in 2014, which featured all-analogue
signal paths, a Steiner-Parker fi lter
and the ‘Brute Factor’ control which
feeds the synth back into itself,
creating anything from subtle to
insane distortion/thickening and
harmonic driving/feedback. Of course,
us synth heads are hard to satisfy and
Axel Hartmann (he’s responsible for
the Andromeda, Voyager XL, Little
Phatty, Waldorf Wave, Pulse 2 and
many more). You can really see the
Minimoog/Voyager heritage with its
similar profi le in solid walnut, lovely
’70s-styled Tolex sides and a huge
fl ip-up steel control panel with
aluminium sides and sturdy metal
chassis with zero fl ex. There’s a
Voyager-style fl ip-up panel support
with a huge Arturia logo for holding
up the weighty panel but the MB can
also be used fl at and a metal clip
holds everything in place when
transporting (it weighs 19kg/44lbs so
it’s just about portable!).
Everything oozes class, from the
inset front panel Arturia logo to the
tactile MIDI controllable knobs (which
feel particularly solid) and switches
with slick horizontal white lights to
denote status. Unlike the plastic-
wheeled prototypes, the production
model features two aluminium wheels
on the left-hand controller panel (and
rejoice – a front mounted headphone
socket!). Finally, I have to sing the
praises of 4-octave velocity and
aftertouch enabled semi-weighted
we always want bigger and better.
Low and behold, Arturia have now
seemingly answered our prayers,
delivering the beastly-looking
MatrixBrute. Funnily enough, the
MicroBrute (with its basic semi-
modular patch panel) was a clue to
the future and consequently, the
MatrixBrute features a fl exible and
futuristic 16 x 16 matrix.
The hardware design/quality is
really impressive and the MB (as I’ll
call it from now on) is an imposing
and unique looking machine,
designed by industrial design guru
THE PROS & CONS
+
Built like a tank, no
menu diving, has
extensive MIDI and
CV/gate features, and
a great external
analogue processor
Sounds like nothing
else out there
currently; can deliver
smooth, warm, edgy
nasty – you name it!
An inspired design
making sequencing,
mod-routing, patch
selection a breeze
-
The E-Ink screen is
basic and only
displays the four
assignable matrix
mod routes
There’s no click for
the sequencer
Only a handful of the
controls display their
values onscreen
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Arturia MatrixBrute | Reviews
FMU315.rev_arturia.indd 79 26/01/2017 11:46