Arturia

If you're interested in making electronic music, there's absolutely no shortage of different ways to go about it. Hardware, software, modular synthesizers, keyboards, and sequencers—these are only some of the tools you might want to have around. It's rare that one company can make all of these things, and especially make them well, but that's exactly what the folks at Arturia have achieved over the last 20+ years.

Merging Software + Hardware

Beginning as a modest software company in Grenoble, France, Arturia has since grown into one of the predominant makers of products for any and all types of electronic musicians. Their V Collection suite of plugin instruments continues to be one of the most well-regarded sources of authentic emulations of classic and legendary synthesizers. From vintage modular synthesizers and staple polysynths to quirky instruments from the early days of digital, V Collection has it all.

But through the seamless integration opportunities provided by their KeyLab series, the magic of tactile control over inspiring sounds can elevate your music to new levels. From the flagship KeyLab 88 MkII to the compact MiniLab 3, browsing and controlling sounds right from your controller gives the immediate gratification of using a hardware synthesizer, but the endless range of sounds available from software affords infinite possibilities. And, of course, the controllers themselves are built with incredible quality, with several models even offering the ability to interface with modular synthesizers.

Modern Takes on Retro Sounds + Workflows

Managing and controlling multiple hardware and software instruments at once can be a headache, but Arturia has a number of solutions available in their Step range. The humble KeyStep has become a ubiquitous Swiss army knife of a MIDI controller—plug it into your DAW to kay down some chords on our favorite VST, then connect with your modular synthesizer to sequence and arpeggiate melodies. Its bigger siblings, the KeyStep 37 and the mighty KeyStep Pro, offer even more capabilities. If step sequencers are your preference, then it's hard to match the utility of the BeatStep Pro—a common choice for musicians seeking rhythmic control of multi-voice modular drum synth setups.

The last piece of the equation for joining music hardware and software into one cohesive unit would be audio interfaces, and it should be no surprise that Arturia has you covered here. Not only attractive in aesthetics, the AudioFuse Studio offers a unique variety of I/O and configurability to facilitate all kinds of recording scenarios from re-amping to external preamp expansion via ADAT. And if you need something smaller for recording on the go, the MiniFuse 2 or any of its siblings won't let you down.

A Full Range of Hardware Synthesizers

It's one thing to make compelling software instruments, but hardware is another beast entirely. But through Arturia's extensive study of hardware for their plugins, it only made sense to eventually translate their efforts into their own circuits and designs. Whether you prefer analog or digital synthesis, Arturia has you covered.

Bold and, dare we say, brutish, the Brute line is unapologetically analog while boasting cutting-edge capabilities in sound, control, and modulation. This is exemplified in MiniBrute 2, a semi-modular monophonic synthesizer that is as flexible as it is performable. Arturia's signature Metalizer, Brute Factor feedback, and Steiner-Parker filter design are only some of the ways that you can create unique sounds. You might be content with these features alone, but 48 patch points open the door to internal re-routing of signals and integration of external Eurorack modular synthesizers.

If an exuberant polyphonic analog synthesizer like no other appeals to you, Polybrute takes everything about Minibrute 2 and raises it all up another level. The sophisticated routing matrix is one thing, but the ability to truly morph between parameter states puts unprecedented sound design opportunities at your disposal. Add in the dual filters, the luxurious Morphée and ribbon controllers, and numerous onboard effects, and it's hard to imagine how any other polysynth could surpass, let alone match, Polybrute's capabilities. The Matrixbrute takes a similar approach to a monophonic signal architecture, creating one of the most powerful analog monosynths of all time.

Do you feel more appealed by the capabilities of digital synthesizers? No worries at all—Arturia's line of Freak synths put new worlds of sound within your reach. Between its touch keyboard and the sonic melting pot of synthesis algorithms from Mutable Instruments, Noise Engineering, and Arturia's in-house designers, MicroFreak is a unique hybrid instrument unlike any other. Choose any sound with up to four notes of paraphony, route them through the juicy analog filter, and subject them to a wide variety of modulation options to craft a sound that's all your own. If true polyphony and a more traditional keyboard are your preference, many of these sounds and more are available in MiniFreak as well.

Arturia: the Sound Explorers

Not many brands can offer such a holistic product line as Arturia, yet their passion and dedication make it seem so easy. Crucially, their success can likely be attributed to an agnostic view of music production workflows. Lots of people make great music on hardware alone, while some exclusively use plugins, and a whole spectrum of artists exists in a hybrid space of both. But if there's a constant thread throughout all of Arturia's product lines, it's a dedication to packing incredible features, refined technology, and ease of use into everything they make.