Twisted Electrons MEGAfm

[coolshirtdotjpg]

Oh, i need this:

desktop synth: check
FM with sliders: check
raw-sound 4-op: check
based on sega hardware!: check
super clean, beautiful layout: check
less expensive than other desktop synths: check

Think I might have to sell some euro.

[onthebandwagon]

Does anyone know fin this responds to poly at?

[3hands]

They make some nice design choices at Twisted Elctrons.
I don't know why I should "care" about the sega thingy.
But if the price is right..
Does it sound nice or is it limited to chiptunes and bit-reduced sounds?

474 Euro excluding VAT their site says. That's more than a used Digitone was my first thought reading the number.

The specs and sound demo's are pretty tasty I have to say.
https://twisted-electrons.com/product/megafm/

I'm interested in a clear shot of the panel, if anyone can find one, please share.
So far only fuzzy screengrabs from their intro video:

I wish they'd mass produce this and ship it at a much, much lower price.

Who you gonna call?
Uli Behringer!

Is it completely horrible that talking to him was my first thought as well? If anyone can get this into the hands of thousands of people for 200 dollars, it’s him. I mean, you will have to sell your soul to do it....

[Voltcontrol]

Is it completely horrible that talking to him was my first thought as well? If anyone can get this into the hands of thousands of people for 200 dollars, it’s him. I mean, you will have to sell your soul to do it....

It is a horrible thought but also the reality we live in.
I don't really expect a Behringer facsimile of the Megafm though.

[3hands]

No I agree.

[Sir Ruff]

Is it completely horrible that talking to him was my first thought as well? If anyone can get this into the hands of thousands of people for 200 dollars, it’s him. I mean, you will have to sell your soul to do it....

yes, and can we PLEASE get out of this habit of dropping that line every time any new piece of gear comes out that someone can't afford?

This concept of "B can make it cheaper" is a really frustrating side effect of their clone onslaught and is brainwashing folks into thinking that only B have somehow achieved what no other company can when it comes to producing low-priced, innovative gear. But you can't have it both ways: B are leeches who don't have a single bit of innovation in their DNA (don't want to hear about the two really vanilla things they've made). It is going to still take small boutique companies to take chances on new, innovative gear (new old gear in this case) and it's going to cost money to do that.

The really sad thing is that we're not even talking about an expensive piece of gear here--if you truly can't afford this (as opposed to just being unable to actually save up money for it) synthesizers are a luxury that you probably shouldn't be buying in the first place.

[onthebandwagon]

I can’t say I have much money at this time but didn’t consider this to be that expensive especially considering the build quality.

[naos]

I can’t say I have much money at this time but didn’t consider this to be that expensive especially considering the build quality.

In terms of sound I'm not very convinced by anything yet - neither by 4 OP FM synths in general nor that "megadrive chip" in particular.
In terms of functionality it's going to be much better than a volca FM, so how much should it be? 2 times more expensive? 3 times? 4 times? 5 times?

[3hands]

Is it completely horrible that talking to him was my first thought as well? If anyone can get this into the hands of thousands of people for 200 dollars, it’s him. I mean, you will have to sell your soul to do it....

yes, and can we PLEASE get out of this habit of dropping that line every time any new piece of gear comes out that someone can't afford?

This concept of "B can make it cheaper" is a really frustrating side effect of their clone onslaught and is brainwashing folks into thinking that only B have somehow achieved what no other company can when it comes to producing low-priced, innovative gear. But you can't have it both ways: B are leeches who don't have a single bit of innovation in their DNA (don't want to hear about the two really vanilla things they've made). It is going to still take small boutique companies to take chances on new, innovative gear (new old gear in this case) and it's going to cost money to do that.

The really sad thing is that we're not even talking about an expensive piece of gear here--if you truly can't afford this (as opposed to just being unable to actually save up money for it) synthesizers are a luxury that you probably shouldn't be buying in the first place.

I honestly just thought it was funny. Apparently not.

[Sir Ruff]

I can’t say I have much money at this time but didn’t consider this to be that expensive especially considering the build quality.

In terms of sound I'm not very convinced by anything yet - neither by 4 OP FM synths in general nor that "megadrive chip" in particular.
In terms of functionality it's going to be much better than a volca FM, so how much should it be? 2 times more expensive? 3 times? 4 times? 5 times?

I think that’s it, you are paying for the functionality. If you don’t want that, there are plenty of other 4– and 6 OP FM synthesizers on the market at the moment. Preen FM comes to mind. I believe that is a little cheaper but obviously you have to use a much more limited interface.

The other thing is that I think It is important to consider is that whatever we lose by not having the extra two operators, we gain in terms of a usable interface. We all know how massive the DX7 controller is!

[naos]

let's agree it's quite sexier than this

[hairbow]

The Sega FM chip has a lot of nonlinear distortion that isn't really replicable in any VST or other hardware. I think the closest cousin is the DX11, but even then the Sega FM chip has grunge thats unique. Similar to the Twisted Electrons TherapSID its basically a Rolls Royce of chiptune synthesizers - full featured and reliable with original hardware circuitry.

If you're wanting cleaner FM the Digitone is probably the best modern 4op option

EDIT: If you want this type of sound the MegaFM will do it 100%

[vegeta897]

EDIT: If you want this type of sound the MegaFM will do it 100%

Hell yeah SOR3. Most people find that soundtrack too abrasive but I love it. This one is the standout track for me though:

► Show Spoiler

Anyway, I'm still waiting for some more hands on demos of the MegaFM before I'm ready to commit. I can hear what it's capable of, but I want to see what the workflow in creating sounds might be like.

It's hard for me to believe that some might call this thing expensive! The price is lower than I would have expected. It's part of why I'm so interested. Show me another 12 voice poly with this many controls for $500 new, digital or non.

[Technologear?]

Omg SoR3 sounds incredible!

Thanks for switching me on to that.

I agree, I just need to see a hands on demo of this unit and then I'll likely be ordering.

[onthebandwagon]

I can’t say I have much money at this time but didn’t consider this to be that expensive especially considering the build quality.

In terms of sound I'm not very convinced by anything yet - neither by 4 OP FM synths in general nor that "megadrive chip" in particular.
In terms of functionality it's going to be much better than a volca FM, so how much should it be? 2 times more expensive? 3 times? 4 times? 5 times?

I like what I heard so far. Can’t say I care about Volca comparisons as I cannot stand touching those devices.

[Voltcontrol]

Does anyone know fin this responds to poly at?

Alex from Twisted Electrons has stated that PolyAT was not on his list yet, but that he's open to suggestions and might include it if it's doable. Delivery of the MEGAfm is delayed because of dependency on Chinese parts (corona virus..) so that offers opportunity to get some additional features in.

if anyone has good tips on how to implement PolyAT please share, we might be able to help Alex get this included!

[onthebandwagon]

Does anyone know fin this responds to poly at?

Alex from Twisted Electrons has stated that PolyAT was not on his list yet, but that he's open to suggestions and might include it if it's doable. Delivery of the MEGAfm is delayed because of dependency on Chinses parts (corona virus..) so that offers opportunity to get some additional features in.

if anyone has good tips on how to implement PolyAT please share, we might be able to help Alex get this included!

Thanks, I actually just received that email...

[Voltcontrol]

Does anyone know fin this responds to poly at?

Alex from Twisted Electrons has stated that PolyAT was not on his list yet, but that he's open to suggestions and might include it if it's doable. Delivery of the MEGAfm is delayed because of dependency on Chinese parts (corona virus..) so that offers opportunity to get some additional features in.

if anyone has good tips on how to implement PolyAT please share, we might be able to help Alex get this included!

Thanks, I actually just received that email...

Haha, sounds like Alex took some time to work through his mailbox today. Very responsive fellow, hope the PolyAT feature makes sense for him and will happen.

[target_destroyed]

My fav track from SoR3. I would deliberately fail the mission to rescue the police chief so I could play the stage with this track.



The whole SoR series is by far the best music on the Mega Drive. Super hyped about MegaFM. For those complaining about the price, The ALM Akemie's Castle is actually more expensive, has much fewer controls, only one chip (a YMF262/OPL3, not quite the same as the YM2612 but very similar), is not polyphonic (5 of the voices are allocated to a chord mode).... and I still love it to death.

[odeland]

do not forget Ecco the dolphines' ganes soundtrack

[target_destroyed]

Good call, Ecco was awesome too!

[onthebandwagon]

Does anyone know fin this responds to poly at?

Alex from Twisted Electrons has stated that PolyAT was not on his list yet, but that he's open to suggestions and might include it if it's doable. Delivery of the MEGAfm is delayed because of dependency on Chinese parts (corona virus..) so that offers opportunity to get some additional features in.

if anyone has good tips on how to implement PolyAT please share, we might be able to help Alex get this included!

Thanks, I actually just received that email...

Haha, sounds like Alex took some time to work through his mailbox today. Very responsive fellow, hope the PolyAT feature makes sense for him and will happen.

Yes, it was a thoughtful email, I’m not astute enough to make any recommendations personally but good for him to ask for feedback.

[rowsbywoof]

Alex at Twisted Electrons is a standup guy. The thought of hoping his designs get stolen by the big B and made cheaper just makes me sad... He's definitely one of those guys that is really trying to make interesting little synths, mostly focused in the chip-tune world, and has incredible customer support. I also think his prices are damn reasonable for a small shop making high quality and unique instruments. There's a huge level of nostalgia heaped into the MEGAfm and if you grew up loving the soundtracks of the Genesis/Mega Drive like I did, then this one is special, way more so than other 4op FM machines. I'd much rather support builders and small business owners like him that are making things I care about.

[coolshirtdotjpg]

I don't think think the price is prohibitively expensive, especially for a poly, and especially with level of programmability. Unrelated but this SoR3 tracks are incredible.

[hairbow]

Music like the Street of Rage 3 OST are why this synth needs to be considered. The tone is such a unique sound of FM and it has a great balance between hifi and grit. That along with knob per function is just