Imagine a compact analog monosynth that packs 16 different filter modes into a desktop module the size of a paperback—Michigan Synth Works took their MSW-810 homage to the Roland CMU-800 and cranked it up with modern twists for hands-on sound design.
Dual AS3340 VCOs deliver sawtooth and pulse waves across 7 octaves, with PWM from envelope, manual, or LFO sources, hard sync options, and reset modes for punchy leads and basses. The star is the AS3109-based VCF offering lowpass, highpass, bandpass, notch, allpass, and more in 12/18/24 dB slopes, sweepable from 10Hz to 20kHz with resonance to self-oscillation, plus CV tracking and audio-rate mod from OSC1 triangle. Two envelope generators shape amp and filter duties, joined by a digital LFO (0.1-22Hz) with 8 shapes like sine, random, and expo decay, plus sync, trigger reset, and fade delay; a digital noise source adds 8 flavors. Controls are densely packed on the slim front panel—master tune, osc mixers, filter mode selector, dedicated knobs for everything—while rear I/O includes 3.5mm audio in/out, USB-C/ TRS MIDI, V/Oct, gate, clock, trigger, filter CV, and LFO mod ins for Eurorack integration.
Early adopters on forums call it an instant classic for its fat analog tone and tweakability, replacing bigger rigs on pedalboards with zero regrets—though some wish for a built-in sequencer. At this price, it's a no-brainer entry to pure subtractive synthesis.
