BAD NEUENAHR, GERMANY: high-quality synthesizer developer Waldorf is proud to announce availability of its eagerly-awaited Pulse 2 Analog Synthesizer, a cutting-edge reincarnation of the company’s peerless Pulse series, as of Sept 20…
Waldorf’s Pulse 2 Analog Synthesizer is proof positive that good things can come to those that wait. For ever since this high-quality synthesizer developer discontinued its original rack-mountable Pulse and Pulse+ programmable analogue mono synths boasting ballsy bass tones and legendary leads beyond compare, those Nineties electronic music dominating sounds have been severely sought after by those in the know. Which was exactly what drove Waldorf into development overdrive to produce an all-new Pulse fit for the 21st Century. Meine Damen und Herren, thank you for being patient; please welcome… Pulse 2!
As an all-new, all-analogue synthesizer design, Pulse 2 flawlessly delivers exactly what synth connoisseurs around the world have been truly craving for quite some time — three analogue oscillators living in perfect harmony with a VCF (Voltage-Controlled Filter), yet Waldorf did not stop there: the fresh filter circuits in the Pulse 2 now offer 12dB Highpass and Bandpass modes in addition to 24dB/12dB Lowpass for strengthened sound-sculpting flexibility, while Waldorf has helpfully added analogue Filter FM, two Overdrive circuits, and Ring Modulation from OSC 3, together with Paraphonic and Unison modes allowing up to eight-voice chords — a fantastic feature found on Waldorf’s recently-released Rocket Synthesizer.
Like Waldorf’s well-received Blofeld before it, Pulse 2 is housed in a sturdy metal desktop casing. Alongside its generous 128×64-character backlit LCD, eight eye-catching stainless steel knobs are available to nimbly navigate through the parameter matrix logically laid out across the front panel for all to see at all times, set the master Volume, and easily edit display-accessible parameters.
Connectivity comes well catered for courtesy of USB, MIDI In, MIDI Out, Ext In (external analogue signal input), line OUT, and headphone output — not forgetting, of course, CV Out (supporting both the V/octave and Hz/V standards) and Gate Out (V-Trigger- and S-Trigger-compatible), allowing a myriad of suitably equipped older (or newer) synths to be connected to the Pulse 2 to mirror whatever MIDI ‘note’ information is being played by the Pulse 2, including the output of its powerful ARP (arpeggiator). And if that’s not enough to be getting on with, the CV Out can even be modulated in the eight-slot modulation Matrix, making for even more tantalizing tone colors and performance possibilities!
Alongside analogue must-haves like a noise generator, Pulsewidth modulation, and hard Sync, other notable features include an Alternating Pulsewidth Modulation mode new to the Pulse 2 (offering a dense PWM sound without affecting perceived loudness), and an XOR Osc mode (that is a binary XOR combination of two PWM oscillators with two distinct output levels — high and low only — capable of producing inharmonic spectra unlike anything associated with any analogue synthesizer other than Waldorf’s original Pulse) — all of which, of course, contribute to kick-starting those still sought after sounds right here, right now in the 21st Century. Speaking of which, 500 onboard sound programs should be more than enough to keep the most diehard synthesist smiling! What’s more, all are backwards compatible with the original Pulse series, so original Pulse owners can quickly transfer their favorite sounds to their new Pulse 2 via MIDI (dump).
Thanks, then, to the timely arrival of the Pulse 2 Analog Synthesizer, readily reincarnated ballsy bass tones and legendary leads beyond compare can all be yours with much more besides in a truly 21st Century compact and bijou performance package priced to go