ELZ_1 Play (All Black)

Imagine slipping this sleek all-black beauty into your backpack for an impromptu jam anywhere—it's the expanded take on Sonicware's original ELZ_1, now with a full keyboard and looper that turns travel sketches into full tracks.

At its heart are 18 distinctive synth engines—from gritty 8-bit oscillators and virtual analog to granular, FM, physical modeling, filtered noise, super oscillators, a drum machine, and fresh wavetable options drawing from classic Waldorf waves (with Serum import support via updates). Layer up to three oscillators for deeper polysynth sounds with up to 20-voice polyphony, shape them with multiple envelope types, nine digital filter modes, and 33 effects like shimmer reverb, granular textures, and compressor across insert and master slots. The 37 velocity-sensitive keys feel responsive for expressive play, backed by a multimode arpeggiator and 128-step sequencer; drop ideas into the intuitive 4-track stereo looper for overdubs, quantized recording, and undo/redo. Hands-on controls include dedicated track buttons, effect knobs, and a home screen for preset browsing, all in a battery-powered (6x AA) aluminum chassis with built-in stereo speakers, USB-C audio/MIDI interface (2x2 at 48kHz/16-bit), stereo ins/outs, headphone jack, SD card storage, and DIN MIDI—measuring just 15.7 x 5.2 x 2 inches and 2.5 lbs.

Players love how it sparks wild experimentation without overwhelming, praising the looper's immediacy for live layering and the engine variety for everything from lo-fi beats to ambient swells, though some note the mini keys demand practice for fast passages.