Elektron has built a cult-like following over the years with its unique and, at times, esoteric take on electronic musical instruments. On paper, Tonverk is a seemingly over-powered sampler that continues that tradition. It’s the rare piece of hardware capable of creating multisampled instruments on its own. It turns a single sample track into a nesting doll of multiple samples. And it’s loaded with an absolutely absurd amount of routing and audio processing features. Tonverk is certainly capable of making traditional electronic music, but it definitely caters to those with a more experimental bent.

At its heart is an eight track polyphonic sampler, with three different “machines” to pick from: Single Player, Multi Player, and Subtracks. Single Player is a straightforward one-shot machine that plays back a single sample chromatically across the keyboard. Multi Player combines multiple samples of the same instrument for a more realistic recreation. What’s special here is that the Tonverk can automatically create its own multisampled instruments by sending MIDI notes out to external gear and recording the incoming audio. Unfortunately, it seems like there’s no way to edit those samples in the current firmware, which could be a bit of a drag if there’s any latency or if a recording cuts off early.

Then there are Subtracks, which take Elektron’s convoluted workflow to a whole new level. Here you load up kits of eight samples into a single track. This means that, unlike a traditional sampler where your kick drum and snare might need their own track (without some sort of work around), you can just put all your drums in a single place. The one downside is that you can’t change effects independently. Instead if you add reverb to one sample in a Subtrack, it affects all the samples in that Subtrack.

There are some other odd omissions, like the lack of a sample chopping mode, which can be found on its other instruments like the Digitakt. That makes it less than ideal if you’re a hip-hop producer that loves cutting up soul samples. Though, the company’s demo video says there are “initially three fresh machines,” which suggests more are in the works.

There are also 17 built-in effects, three effects sends, the ability to route audio through an external effects unit, more LFOs and modulation envelopes that you can keep track of. Of course, there’s also the famed Elektron sequencer with 256 steps, individual pattern length per-track, parameter locks for sequencing sound design features, and Trig conditions for introducing variety and randomness to your creations.

That’s all quite a lot, but Elektron isn’t just launching a new instrument with Tonverk, it’s launching a whole new hardware platform. The company isn’t saying anything about what will come next, only that Tonverk is “the first device and certainly not the last.” Unfortunately, for the budget conscious, this isn’t a new affordable platform for the company. Instead at $1,599 the Tonverk is decidedly upmarket. It also appears to already be sold out direct from Elektron, though you can still pre-order it from outlets like Perfect Circuit and B&H.

The Verge

Tonverk is Elektron’s new polyphonic sample mangler and groovebox

WANT YOUR STARTUP FEATURED ON THE TECH BUZZ?