Aodyo Anyma Phi Synthesizer

Descrizione

The history of the synthesizer is a pretty colourful one. First, you had the analogue beasts of old, which have since evolved into the modern virtual analogue beasts we're now more familiar with. Then there was sample-based synthesis, which also brought wavetable synthesis in its wake - a method that got cheaper and cheaper as the capacity of computer hard drives grew towards the end of the '80s. Then there's FM synthesis: the infamous outlier that demands a lot from its users. That pretty much sums up the three main chapters, but then you have the lesser-used additive synthesis, which isn't unpopular because it doesn't sound good, but because it quickly gets too bulky to actually be usable. But there's also physical modelling, which was the '90s answer to the static-sounding samples that came loaded into keyboards and synths of the era and has since become a bit of synth-based niche. This kind of synthesis is basically used to make something sound like something else, so if you're say, a clarinettist with a wind controller, you can use one of these to make your instrument sound like an oboe or even... a synthesizer. Sticking to this niche, Aodyo presents the Anyma Phi: a desktop wonder that comes crammed with sound models plus all the tweaking tools in the box.

The Aodyo Anyma Phi

Since this machine comes in the form of a desktop module, all you need is some kind of MIDI source, like a keyboard, to control it, but as a neat perk, there's a spot just below the display screen that you can physically 'tap' to trigger the engine and create percussive sounds. Under the hood, various models have been pre-loaded in, including plucked strings, reed-based instruments and brass instruments. Articulations like overblowing are fully supported within the patches, but the real power of this unit really becomes clear when you start shaping your own custom sounds.

A Broader Horizon

By messing with the bank of assignable rotary knobs, you can tweak and warp the timbre, the 'Geometry', the drive and even the 'Material' of the selected patch - and that's just a few of the parameters you can tweak to create completely fresh sonic landscapes, all with some real acoustic, even human character. These features make the Anyma Phi a pretty epic and adventurous chunk of hardware, ripe for more experimental sound-designers and musicians.

Extra Features

A lot of the editing can happen in the unit itself, but for a wider overview, you can also use the free included software which is both Windows and Mac compatible. The Anyma Phi also fully supports the Sylphyo wind controller and, using the fitted inputs, extra equipment like external effects can be hooked up, or you can use an external signal to control the physical modelling. Besides acoustic instruments, the Anyma Phi also features virtual analogue sounds, like the CS80 and Kobol. FM and phase distortion have also been included, and that's next to the 52 oscillator types; the 35 different effects; and the 46 different modulators. In principle, this model is monophonic, but also supports three-voice polyphony. An arpeggiator also comes built-in and, for a more hands-off approach, there's also a random patch generator. The options on offer here are pretty special which, considering the price, makes this modeller a pretty solid and pretty unique investment.