Arturia - Synclavier V

Synclavier V

A legend
reborn

A technological marvel and status symbol, the Synclavier dwarfed literally every other synthesizer of the 1980s, in both power and price. Its unique approach to sound design is just as relevant today as it was all those decades ago.

The go-to inspiration station for Sting, Frank Zappa, Kate Bush, Michael Jackson, Chick Corea, and many others began life as an FM synth. It evolved into the first tapeless music production system long before DAWs, adding features like high-res sampling and resynthesis. Nothing got close to this Rolls-Royce of synthesizers, and with maxed-out systems fetching mid six figures, almost no one got close either. Co-created with original inventor Cameron Jones, Synclavier V changes all that.

Your Secret Weapon

No other instrument sounds like the Synclavier, even today. Synclavier V is a source of sounds and ideas as unique as your music.

Beyond the Original

We multiplied the sound-generation capabilities of the original three times over, building a hot-rod that was impossible in hardware.

Exclusive Club

Original Synclaviers are still in use even today because the pros love their sound. Join their ranks without the cost or headaches.

Sonic Chameleon

Combining additive, digital, and FM synthesis with unique sampling features, Synclavier V can truly produce any sound you may have in your mind’s ear.

An experiment
gone right

Born of a college team-up between musicians and engineers, the Synclavier started as a lab experiment and then became the most coveted synth in the music industry.

At prestigious Dartmouth College in the ’70s, students Cameron Jones and Sydney Alonso signed on to a research project with professors Jon Appleton (music) and Frederick Hooven (engineering). The goal: Make a computer behave like a musical instrument.

The prototype Dartmouth Digital Synthesizer became the Synclavier I. This used the FM technique pioneered by Dr. John Chowning of Stanford University, which would see widespread commercial success in the Yamaha® DX7.

Discover the history of Synclavier

Your Starship Bridge
Awaits

With all this control, it has never been easier or more immediate to perform the sonic miracles the Synclavier made possible.

Users loved the Synclavier’s interface, which involved a bevy of buttons to select parameters and one knob to rule them all. We say lots of knobs are better than one, making the experience even more intuitive.

01. Synthesis Without Limits

A single Preset can have up to 12 Partials. Each is a complete additive and FM synthesis chain.

02. Compelling Counterpoints

Every partial has its own volume and harmonic envelope. Timbres can weave around and through each other for ear-engaging sounds.

03. Sonic Surgery

Control every aspect of each partial here, including FM parameters and time-slice behavior. There is no more precise way to build sounds from the ground up.

04. Paint in Broad Strokes

Control settings that affect all Partials in common here, such as pan, transpose, and overall envelope offsets.

05. Space Station

Synclavier V provides very sophisticated control over a stand-alone vibrato and your sound’s movement in the stereo picture.

06. Get Animated

Bring your patches to life with our signature multi-pattern, tempo-syncable arpeggiator as well as polyphonic portamento.

Fantastic
Voyage

A computer screen option allowed precise editing on the original. Synclavier V injects you even deeper into the heart of the sound.

We kept the “green screen” look of the old-school VT100 terminal, then organized everything to enhance and empower your creative flow. Packed with functionality but intuitive, our advanced interface turns you into a sound design expert in record time.

Each Partial lets you use or design any waveform you want for both the carrier and modulator of the FM pair. Then, stack up as many as 12 of them!
Bring in samples as your sonic foundation, or re-synthesize them as the carrier, modulator, or both.
The same Partial can sound totally different at up to 50 snapshots in time. The progression syncs to tempo for sounds that move.
Mix, pan, tune, and transpose all the Partials in one place using the convenient Mixer tab.
Split, layer, and crossfade all 12 Partials across the keyboard, and make them respond to velocity and the modulation wheel.
With a 16 x 16 mod matrix for each Partial, you will never run out of expressive possibilities.
Three effect slots, microtunings, and control over exactly how vintage-digital Synclavier V sounds - it all adds up to a music-making system like no other.

Hear it
in action

The Synclavier was designed to cover any sonic territory and be the last synthesizer its users would ever need.

These audio demos demonstrate the power of Synclavier V in that same spirit, using it for nearly all of their sounds.