There have been plenty of new releases this year to tempt synth enthusiasts to part with their cash, and as the year draws to a close, this trend looks set to continue. Both Phonicbloom and Zoom have announced that their new hardware releases are now available for pre-order. According to Phonicbloom, the Siluria drone synthesizer is expected to ship in one to three months, while the LiveTrak L6 by Zoom is a 10-track digital mixer/recorder shipping in October. Here's a quick rundown of what can be expected from both these devices. 


Siluria
By phonicbloom

Website: https://phonicbloom.com/siluria/

Price: €599

Siluria, a playable drone synthesizer by Phonicbloom with a built-in FM radio, is now available for pre-order. This polyphonic, multi-synth is fully controllable via MIDI and can even act as a MIDI controller thanks to its 12-tone capacitive keyboard. The keyboard dynamically reacts to the slightest touch, is velocity sensing, and has polyphonic aftertouch. Siluria features built-in sound engines but supports processing an external signal by effects or using it as a modulation source. Users can choose from FM radio, line-in, and WAV files (imported through the SD card) as input streams. 

A USB-C supply port on the back can be used for power and data transfer, downloading recorded WAV files, or installing firmware updates. When connected, the unit also appears as a mass storage disk on a PC. 

Siluria offers six 3.5mm Jack connectors for audio in & out, MIDI in & out, a separate output from the FM radio offering an unprocessed signal, and an external antenna connector. This enables users to add a longer antenna if the built-in half wavelength antenna is insufficient. 

To make it easier to navigate settings such as FM radio tuning, volume levels, or MIDI configuration, phonicbloom has included a small white OLED display. This is located in the side panel above the connectors. Inside Siluria, users will find a powerful dual-core RISC-V processor running at 1GHz, 512MB of memory, and a Hi-Fi audio codec running at a sampling rate of 48,000Hz. 

Siluria is available for pre-order from the Phonicbloom website, and shipping is expected in one to three months. When purchasing a Siluria, buyers will receive the synth, a MIDI adaptor, a reliable 32GB memory card, a printed manual, and some stickers. For more information on what you can do with Siluria or to pre-order the synth, visit the official website. 

 
LiveTrak L6
By Zoom

Website: https://zoomcorp.com/en/us/digital-mixer-multi-track-recorders/digital-mixer-recorder/livetrak-l6-final/

Price: $299.99

Zoom is releasing the LiveTrak L6 10-track digital mixer/recorder, describing it as the "centerpiece of your creative hub." Despite packing ten tracks of studio-quality audio, effects, MIDI, and sound pads, it is Zoom's most compact and portable digital mixer/recorder. According to Zoom, it's perfect for bands, synth players, live streaming, and more.

LiveTrak L6 might be compact, but it offers a full channel strip for each track, including aux sends, pan, effects, and a 3-band mid-sweepable EQ. It records ten discrete tracks plus the full stereo mix on microSD cards of up to 2TB in size, which can then be used to share the live mix or transfer stems to a DAW for editing and mixing. 

In terms of connectivity, the L6 has a 3.5mm MIDI/IO port for synths and keyboards and a USB port for connecting to a computer. Parameter controls such as volume, pan, and EQ can be mapped to outboard gear. In addition, it can be used as a 32-bit float 12-in / 4-out USB audio interface for a computer, iOS, or Android device and as a control surface for a DAW. It is portable enough to offer up to 3 hours of power using only four AA batteries or can be connected to a USB battery for extended use. For those who want to use it in the studio, it can be mounted in a standard Eurorack case using the optional ERL-6 rack ears and power supply. 

For more information on the specs and other details, visit the official website or watch the video embedded below. The L6 is available for pre-order, with shipping expected in October 2024.