The Arturia PolyBrute is a powerful 6-voice polyphonic analog synthesizer with powerful morphing capabilities and multi-axis performance controls for next-generation musical expression. The PolyBrute is designed for music producers, sound designers, performing musicians, or anyone looking to explore sound in perpetual motion.
The morph function allows a sound to exist in two states (A and B) within a single preset, with seamless morphing between them. In fact, you can copy any A or B component of a preset to what you are currently editing, making for fast and easy sonic transformations. Coupled with the Morphee three-dimensional performance touchpad, and you've got intricate morphing expression right at your fingertips. Manipulate any facet of PolyBrute's sound, from delicate morphing to extreme dynamic shifts, across the X, Y, and Z axis in an instant.
The PolyBrute's architecture starts with two Brute waveshaping oscillators capable of a wide pallet of timbral versatility. Both oscillators generate three basic waveforms (sawtooth, triangle, and square with pulse-width control), which can be mixed creating unusual and harmonically rich tones. Anything can be created from airy pads to snarling bass riffs. VCO2 also includes a sine wave sub-oscillator that runs an octave below the fundamental pitch. There are various FM capabilities as well as hard- and soft-sync options creating even more dynamically diverse tones. Additionally, a noise generator can be added to the mix and features a knob for dialing any color from red noise with its darker rumble to white noise with its crisp, multispectral character.
The filter section sports a continuously variable 12 dB Steiner Parker filter with low-pass, high-pass, and bandpass, and a classic 24 dB low-pass ladder filter with gain compensation, which prevents the reduction of lower frequencies that accompany higher resonance levels. Filter 1 includes the famous Arturia Brute Factor feedback filter for warming up the low end and producing monster growls, while the distortion circuit of Filter 2 controls the ladder filter's feed into the VCA.
There are three envelope generators including dedicated ADSRs with velocity for the VCF and VCA. The third envelope is freely assignable to any parameter in the matrix and includes a delay before the ADSR section. Additionally, there are three LFOs for adding modulation to any parameter. LFO 1 and 2 offer sine, triangle, square, down-sawtooth, up-sawtooth, sample-and hold, and slewed random waveforms. LFO 1 features a Phase control, which adjusts where the LFO wave cycle starts, while LFO 2 features Fade In, which offsets the start of LFO2 and fades it in gradually. LFO 3 offers a sweepable LFO waveshape from logarithmic to linear and finally exponential. If that weren't enough, each LFO can have its own sync division setting, allowing for independent binary, triplet, or dotted options.
The digital brain of the PolyBrute lies in the matrix section, which allows you to recall up to 768 presets instantly, program up to 32 destinations via the 96-point digital patchbay, or create dynamic polyphonic sequencers, arpeggios, and parameter motion recordings. There are three digital effects processors available including modulation effects such as chorus, flange, phaser, delays, and reverbs. Each effect can be modulated via the matrix section.
The rear panel offers stereo 1/4" outputs, two TRS 1/4" expression pedal inputs, a sustain pedal with a polarity switch, and 3.5mm sync in and sync out for connecting to analog drum machines and sequencers. Dedicated MIDI In, Out, and Thru are available via 5-pin DIN connectors, while the USB Type-B port connects to your computer and offers MIDI I/O as well as a connection to the PolyBrute Editor software, which provides bidirectional control over the entire synth engine. It even doubles as a VST instrument, allowing you to easily integrate the PolyBrute into your favorite DAW setup with automated control over all parameters. The PolyBrute ships with a power cord
Main Features
- Analog Morphing Synthesizer
- 6 voices of polyphony
- Mono, unison, poly voicing
- Single, Split, Layer modes
- 61-keys with velocity and aftertouch
- Pitch bend, mod wheel, ribbon controllers
- Morphée touch and pressure sensitive 3D controller
- Sound-morphing capability, part A and B for each preset
- Two analog VCO's
- Saw
- Triangle + Metalizer
- Square + Pulse Width
- Sub
- Linear FM
- Hard Sync
- Noise Generator
- Continuous tone from rumble noise to white noise
- Osc and Noise Mixer with Filter routing
- Mixer section can route oscillators and noise generator through one or both filters
- 12 dB/Oct Steiner Parker Filter
- Continuous LP > Notch > HP > BP morphing
- Cutoff, Resonance, Brute Factor
- 24 dB/Oct Ladder Filter with Distortion
- Three Envelopes
- Two ADSR
- One DADSR
- Looping capability
- Three LFOs
- LFO1 and LFO2 with waveform selection
- LFO3 with waveform shaping using shape and symmetry
- Rate control and tempo sync
- Various retrig options
- Three stereo digital effects
- Modulation FX: chorus, phaser, flanger, ring modulation, and more
- Delay: 9 algorithms including BBD, digital delay, and more
- Reverb: 9 algorithms including Hall, Plate, Spring, Shimmer, and more
- Effects can be used as insert or send effects, or bypassed for a pure analog signal path
- 768 preset slots
- 12x32 Modulation Matrix
- Two independent displays aid navigation and provide visual feedback
- Snapshot: Preserve up to 5 edits in progress, with instant recall
- 64 step polyphonic sequencer
- Notes, Accent, Slide per step
- 3 tracks of automation
- Arpeggiator and Matrix ArpeggiatorMotion recorder captures the movement of one control for one-shot or looped playback
- Portamento/glide with continuous and chromatic options
- Stereo audio output
- MIDI and USB I/O + analog clock I/O
- 2 expression and 1 sustain pedal inputs
Voice Engine
- Each voice has two oscillators, plus a sub-oscillator for VCO 2
- Powerful waveform sculpting features, such as variable oscillator sync, wavefolding (i.e. Metalizer)
- Two independent filters per voice
- Steiner: 12 dB per octave (continuous multimode), plus Arturia's famous Brute Factor for extra grit
- Ladder: 24 dB per octave with distortion
- Use them in series, parallel, or any blend of the two
- Master Cutoff control to sweep both filters at once
- Filter FM (VCO 2 > VCF 1, Noise > VCF 2)
- Continuous soft > hard oscillator sync (2 > 1)
- Morph: Every patch has two sounds (A+B); most parameters can morph between A and B settings
- Three syncable, multiwaveform LFOs per voice
- Three loopable envelopes: VCF/VCA (ADSR), Mod (DADSR)
- Multicolor noise generator
- Powerful, easy-to-use modulation matrix
- Morphée, a 3-D controller that can modulate parameters along the X, Y, and Z axes simultaneously
- Velocity and aftertouch (pressure sensitivity)
- Ribbon controller
- Pitch and modulation wheels
- Octave buttons can shift keyboard range +/-2 octaves from center
- One sustain pedal input and two expression pedal inputs (pedals optional)
- Polyphonic up to 6 notes
- Record and play back up to 3 modulation tracks
- Sequences can hold up to 64 steps; arpeggios can have up to 32 steps
- Swing, time division settings
- Multiple playback modes and directions
- Convert arpeggios to sequences
- Step record/editing
- Matrix arpeggiator mode for constructing complex arpeggios
- Tempo range 30-240 bpm
- Free, downloadable application for registered PolyBrute owners
- Two-way editing: turn a knob, the editor follows, and vice-versa
- Adjust internal settings quickly, such as envelope curves, timbrality settings, etc.
- Librarian features (organize, search by category, export, import, share with other users)
- Doubles as a VST plugin for DAW control of external PolyBrute parameters
- A potentially infinite number of patches can be imported/exported