IK Multimedia UNO
W
ith products
ranging
from
mammoth
ROMplers
to analogue
effect
emulations, amp-sims, MIDI
controllers, a huge array of iOS apps
and accessories, and even a selfie
stick, Italian brand IK Multimedia
must be one of the most prolific
outfits in hi-tech music making.
Until now, their range has leant
toward the digital realm – but that
how lightweight and plasticky the
instrument feels. In all honesty, the
hardware feels a little cheap – no
‘luxury’ wood or metal, and the
control panel relies heavily on
basic-feeling push buttons with a
single row of plastic rotaries for
proper tactile control. It would be
easy to balk at this seeming lack of
quality – particularly compared to
similarly-priced synths like the
MicroBrute or Monologue – but in
the bigger picture, it’s not
necessarily an issue. There’s a lot
going on feature-wise, and clearly IK
opted to save money on the hardware
to keep the price down. I can live
with that, but if you plan on traveling
with UNO, consider a hard case.
Connection-wise, UNO has
mono-summed mini-jack in and out
ports on its rear. The lack of a
proper, full-sized output is a shame,
as there’s definitely space for one,
but this is clearly another cost-saving
issue. The audio input allows an
external signal to be mixed with the
synth and processed via the delay,
although there’s no level control.
Alongside the audio I/O, UNO has
changes with the arrival of UNO,
their first analogue instrument. Fear
not though, UNO doesn’t come
totally without heritage; Italian synth
brand Soundmachines and Alesis
Andromeda designer Erik Norlander
both had a hand in its creation.
The look of UNO may prove a bit
divisive. Its slanted profile and push
button control panel have a retro
charm, but it’s a design that brings
to mind the early days of home
computers more than any vintage
analogue synth. On unboxing UNO,
the first thing that struck me was
THE PROS & CONS
+
Versatile, weighty
analogue sound
Flexible arp,
sequencer and
scale mode
Plenty of great
sounding, highly
usable presets
-
Hardware feels
quite lightweight
and cheap
Several parameters
can’t be accessed via
the interface
Audible calibration
noise when the synth
engine is inactive
IK Multimedia UNO | Reviews
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FMU335.rev_IK.indd 77 08/08/2018 15:10