Novation Bass Station II Analogue Monosynth – includes 64 factory patches, pattern-based step sequencer and arpeggiator, two oscillators plus an additional sub oscillator

Product Information

Bass Station II includes fully analogue distortion and filter-modulation effects and a separate filter overdrive to add an aggressive, crunchy sound-quality. If you have an UltraNova, you can install MiniNova patches to it - and if you have a MiniNova, you can install UltraNova patches to it. Bass Station II’s pattern-based arpeggiator and step sequencer are a fun and immediate way to find new inspiration. The sequencer lets you record your own notes, ties, rests and rhythms in real time, then store them, recall them and use them with any patch you like. Easily and automatically sync them to your music software or hardware setup, or even add swing to get your groove going. Connect to Just About Anything

To the right, a Mixer section allows you to blend volumes of the Oscillators and the Sub, whilst a fourth dial here can be toggled between controlling external input volume, Ring Modulation, or a Noise Generator source. All of which would suggest a capable synth in its own right but the feature set is actually dramatically expanded by a series of Function buttons, which can be enabled/ deactivated by pressing Function and then pressing one of the keyboard's keys. Low Frequency Oscillation which can directly control the harmonic content of the sound by pulse width modulation or filter cut-off. The frequency triggered by each key press can be completely controlled, giving scales another dimension.So there’s already a lot more happening here than with our first face to face demo those few months ago. The sound designers have clearly put a lot of effort into what goes where and while there aren’t banks of specific sounds together – leads, subs and so on – this means you are constantly surprised and, in the main, impressed. Indeed there are only two presets that didn’t do it for me. The basses are rich, punchy, fat and varied and the leads tear through where they should. Plenty of the sounds have that added arpreggiation so you get rich melodic ideas almost instantly and you are constantly drawn to that big filter knob for even more instant frequency action. It almost becomes a performance pose: left hand playing riff, right hand dramatically nudging the filter knob. The Bass Station 2, like many other monosynths at the moment, only has a two-octave keyboard, but then so did the original. With a name like Bass Station 2, it's completely reasonable to expect a serious presence in the lower regions, and my subwoofer would not disagree. Extra assistance comes in the form of a sub-oscillator tied to the frequency of oscillator 1. Pitched at either one or two octaves down and with a choice of sine, square or pulse waveforms, this sub is even more versatile than that of a Roland SH101. Two Oscillators that have been carefully modelled to preserve the precise tonal character of the classic sawtooth and square waveforms of the original instruments.

The Bass Station 2 boasts an analogue signal path, leaving the modulation sources (LFOs and Envelopes) in the hands of very capable software. Like the original, its oscillators are DCOs rather than VCOs and anyone who takes this information as justification to flounce away like a wounded teenager could be missing out. For a start, the coarse and fine tuning controls have a higher resolution than many synths with patch memories. Perhaps due to the limitations of seven-bit MIDI CCs, subtle tuning and detuning is often neglected. Here, although you'll never hit Minimoog swirliness, the oscillators rub up against each other with more warmth than DCOs typically manage. Each oscillator's nominal range is 16' to 2', with sine and triangle joining the regular saw and pulse waves. Pulse width and pitch may be swept by an envelope or an LFO, and since there are two LFOs, you can indulge in the luxury of slow, spooky vibrato and fast PWM. LFO: Two LFOs each selectable between: ♣ Triangle ♣ Sawtooth ♣ Square ♣ Sample and hold ♣ Both LFOs independently adjustable between rate and delay time ♣ Key sync LFO 1 & 2 ♣ LFO slew on LFO 1& 2 (low pass filter on the LFO waveform) Classic analogue filter – switch between low-, high – and band-pass modes with 12 and 24dB/octave slopes – with an aggressive overdriveTo celebrate 25 years of Bass Station and thank you for your support, we're releasing the Bass Station II v2.5 firmware update and giving away a Bass Station II 25th Anniversary Edition May 2017 Novation announces Peak Polyphonic Synth and Circuit Mono Station Paraphonic Analogue Synth If you're an inveterate envelope tweaker, the concept of sharing will never feel totally comfortable. Here, you can at least set the basic shape of both envelopes simultaneously, before flipping a switch and controlling the mod envelope alone to make fine adjustments. Perhaps this just felt easier, to me, than former Bass Stations because the sliders are a big improvement over the original knobs. Equally at home on stage and in the studio, Bass Station II is a classic analogue synthesiser that can sound as warm and mellow or aggressive and hard as you want it to. Modulate the filter to make it sing, crank the distortion to toughen up that bass, and push the resonance to self-oscillation to get those lead lines screaming. The Pulse Width rotary comes into its own when either of the primary oscillators is set to square or pulse waves and controls the width of that cycle. Again this can be modulated by the Mod Envelope, manually or with the second LFO. Experimenting with this you can get some great edgy and very big sounds, with the Mod Envelope especially taking a dramatic role. Indeed, by exploring this section I found I’d created a pretty impressive hoover like sound from scratch. Press save and that’s preset number 70 in the clip!