Arturia Intros MicroFreak 2.0, Free Update With A New Noise Oscillator, Chord Mode & More

January 17, 2020 Synth Anatomy Hardware, NAMM 2020 News, News, Synthesizers 0

At NAMM 2020, Arturia has introduced the MicroFreak 2.0, a new free upgrade for its excellent hybrid Synthesizer with a new noise oscillator, chord mode & more.

The third and last product for NAMM 2020 from Arturia is a major upgrade 2.0 for the MicroFreak with new features, functions, and improvements.

Highlight of the new firmware 2.0 is a new noise oscillator that can be played in a versatile way. Further, they added a new chord mode with which you can deseign your own chords.

New Features

New Noise oscillator: morph between particle noise, white noise, and a metallic noise that’s reminiscent of a synth cymbal. An exciting new voice that will open up powerful new drum and percussion possibilities in MicroFreak.
Chord Mode: by holding the Paraphony button and playing some notes, you program the chord, then replay the shape with a single key.
Scale quantization: In the Utility settings, you can activate scale quantization to your favorite scale. When activated, the “white notes” on the keyboard play whichever scale you have selected. No more wrong notes!
Sequencer streamlining: in 2.0 firmware update, you’re now able to easily copy
Pattern A to Pattern B in an instant.
Matrix initialize: before 2.0 firmware update, if you wanted to clear the Matrix of all routings, you’d have to manually do it. Now you can just hold the Shift and perform a long press on the encoder, and it will clear!
64 New Presets: Loads of exciting sounds to explore using the new oscillator and features.

Improvements

MicroFreak now displays visual feedback even when Local Control is off.
The synth’s Local Control now also translates USB to MIDI Out.
The release of currently playing presets are now cleared when switching to a new one.
The Record LED now blinks on each beat, instead of on 16ths