Hydrasynth Deluxe 73 Key Synthesizer Sonic Lab Review

We take a look at the new Ashun Sound Machines Hydrasynth Deluxe. The new model, announced just before Superbooth 21, doubles the voice count - either 16 voices in single sound mode or two complete 8 voice Hydrasynth Engines for split or layer. Each layer has a dedicated stereo audio output pair, and the Polytouch polyphonic after touch keybed gets enlarged to 73 keys.
Its a whopper.
Available priced at 1499 UK and $1799
Https://ashunsoundmachines.com
We've posted some extra content on Patreon to go with this review:
Patreon.com/sonicstate
#soniclab
#hydrasynth #deluxe
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[@breslin44]

My George Foreman grill will fit perfectly with that additional shelf

[@Claidheambmor]

And your Mackie 1202. :D

[@dustincassidy]

Or your Show Time Rotisserie Oven. Set it and forgot it!

[@anonymoushuman8344]

My MacBook Pro would fit there, and it gets hot enough that you could grill food on it.

[@ianmorton1799]

I was thinking like an octatrack or something. I kinda like the idea...

[@hoagy_ytfc]

@@anonymoushuman8344 get an M1 Mac :)

[@maydaygoingdown5602]

Fantastic synthesizer, an enormous amount of hugley flexible sound design control. Stunning effects. And ofcoarse the beautiful Poly Aftertouch. Most interesting synth to come out for a long time.

[@NedBouhalassaVideos]

Thanks for the cool review video. I really feel the Hydra is one of the best synthesizers of this century!

[@Psychlist1972]

73 keys! Yay! I've missed that size of keyboard since the old Roland days. It's huge, but it's a perfect size for a master keyboard. With Poly aftertouch at this price ... wow. Love it.

[@6581punk]

The only downside is finding a suitable space to unpack it :)

[@tonyrapa-tonyrapa]

A great synth made even greater... nice work ASM!

[@janipashkvan797]

Awesome, now I am buying one. Really great review!

[@VincentPresley]

Just ordered one to replace my original Hydrasynth. Absolutely one of my all time favorite synths. I like it more than some synths I have that cost 5-10 times more.

[@fosferus]

super happy to see nick back at the helm presenting new(ish) tech.

[@cardoman3986]

I love you Nick, your Fun Fridays always make my day. Cheers

[@EverettDudgeon138]

I’d like to see ASM do a synth that combines physical modelling mixed with samples...their Polyphonic aftertouch keybeds would be perfect for it.

[@milk_bath]

Same. Excited to see what they do next after the Hydrasynth.

[@neilloughran4437]

Great idea... a lot of potential.

[@andrewsmall4865]

Korg is doing a new Wavestate SE...can't decide between whether will save for that, this, or something else.

[@MichaelRohaly]

@@andrewsmall4865 The keyboard of the Hydrasynth is the deal. It is great. The SE's keyboard won't match it, and you can always use the smaller SE as a module.

[@DjStanceZ]

Nah, leave that to Yamaha and Roland.

[@InnerVisions68]

I’m really looking forward to pairing this with my MODX7 on a 2-tier stand, as my main two digital synths with keyboards.

[@random007nadir]

Such a beautiful sounding synth x2.

[@therealskinflutes]

This is the Synth I've been waiting for.

[@SyntheticFuture]

A beautiful beast. It actually knocked the Summit and Polybrute from slot 1 right now... The controls look very simple to use, the sound seems instantly good and the range (knowing the Hydrasynth) is huge. Don't have the money but keeping my eye on this for sure. Might sell off some gear when the time comes 👀

[@woodyforrest313]

lol, nick is trolling herr kemper with his access logo shirt.

[@Claidheambmor]

Or is he hinting at something in the works? :D

[@gertumlauf5471]

Hmmm 16 voice... Against the old virus with how much... 80... Access still sell the virus, but do nothing in synth direction, a shame. I love the hydrasynth, the UI, the Keys... But the Sound doesn't meets my taste... So nö hydrasynth for me

[@woodyforrest313]

@@gertumlauf5471 kemper hat keinen grund, irgendwas "in synth direction" zu machen, weil der/das virus bis heute amtlich klingt. da gibbet nix zu verbessern imo.

[@amb13nt59]

Wow! What a beauty! Sold my Hydra Keys. Now I want the Deluxe.

[@leslie1526]

Brilliant review

[@ervinpoljak8332]

Thx mate! Nice presentation!

[@Subparanon]

ASM please give us longer power cables! 4 feet is not enough

[@silversulu]

I love the idea of putting the pads from ASM desktop on the shelf area - I'd pay for that.

[@loatoob]

Notation Launchpad would do the job nicely

[@jamesr6562]

I love the CS80 inspiration. Now to win the lottery.

[@sharg0]

As a workaround to reach "local-off split" for the keyboard can't you set the split point to an extreme level at either side (like only one key assigned to one of the sounds)?

[@Lainer1]

It's between this and the Arturia Polybrute. Love analog but the Hydrasynth is fascinating too.

[@dimitargadzhev3800]

Thank you very much for the nice and very interesting video!!!

[@ChrisCoombes]

5:02 loved that bit

[@denatra7144]

Oh. My. Goodness!!!! It's finally here!!!!!!!

[@alancummings5651]

Wow. Sounds awesome

[@kinnectar820]

I have an inkling that the next product from ASM might be a sequencer or drum machine to sit on that shelf.

[@pagarreton]

Nice Review. As a classic trained pianist I must says it is funny to see him use the fingers 4 and 5 in that way hehehe :)

[@troycarpenter4355]

The shelf idea taken from the Arturia Keylab 88. Its exactly the same. Great for Laptops.

[@davidkieltyka9]

Put a Deckard’s Dream on that rightside platform, hook up the Hydra to it as a controller and get your CS-80 on.

[@MatthewHarrold]

After a few years playing with an Ensoniq keyboard (early 90's) I was spoiled/indulged/impressed. I think there was some patent rubbish that took that cleverness away for a few decades. It's nice to see it come back in similar ways. The Roli rubber thing was interesting but not a substitute for Polyphonic Aftertouch (at-least for humans who like ebony/ivory over silicon mush). $0.02

[@Wagoo]

Always thought Roli missed a huge trick by not supplying multidimensional aftertouch ribbons to Fatar, using their gel

[@peterkadarmusic9728]

The Ensoniq comparison is interesting because the edit buttons on the lower right of the editing panel function like those on my SQ-80 but better.

[@DavidLee07]

@@peterkadarmusic9728 That's a fair point. Also good to hear from another person still using an SQ-80 :-) (although I only use mine a polyphonic aftertouch controller).

[@6581punk]

Not heard of the patent issues. I think the real issue is most synth makers never design a keybed, it is too costly and so they go to Fatar and if they don't offer a poly AT keybed then you don't get one. The only think worse than going to Fatar is not going to Fatar and going cheaper still, DSI did that with the Pro 2 and Prophet 12 and it's a very flimsy keybed that breaks in shipping. As for the Ensoniq keybed, it did poly AT by using metal plates and PCB traces shaped like coils. When you pressed down harder it moved the metal closer to the PCB. But that keybed design tends to get "klacky" over time when the foam pads on the plates deteriorates. Creative have the IP of Ensoniq and EMU and has no competing products in the market.

[@spookypen]

That shelf makes me wonder, are they cooking up something that'll sit there?🤔

[@annother3350]

Plant pots, I reckon

[@Novaheart1998]

This is a nice upgrade. Well done ASM.

[@thecylonsmusic]

On Moog one. Press all 3 synths on panel focus then you can use the transport to sync sequencer on all 3. Guessing this would be same here?

[@Dolores5000]

Great example of poly aftertouch in intro

[@scooby3030]

hi can you load deluxe sounds into the desktop or dose it not do that?

[@samiam9059]

Great exploratory synth... Already get criticized for disappearing for hours. This won't help... Still want 76 key but guess this is the pushed future now. Beautiful board...

[@Oceanwireaudio]

A very bloody nice synthesiser

[@ToyKeeper]

Yummy. I want one. Maybe someday I'll have the space required, the budget, and the skill. :D

[@margix1172]

I'd pay for the skill 100000 dollars/euro then any keyboards would be fine.

[@paul_bismuth]

Hi Nick how are you ! What about the keybed please ? is it the same that the small version? Some says that it's not a good one, with plastic feel, with hope that perhaps it's uprgraded with the 73 keys version.

[@decimal1815]

Poly aftertouch is soon going to be a lot more widely implemented. About time too..

[@petezadoe4677]

Link to the original Sonic State Hydrasynth review: kzbin.info/www/bejne/ip6WZp-Xn72Cmqc

[@ianchurch9969]

Imagine this with the new super 8 desk top

[@kafkaspen]

If they sold the keyboard as a controller (with poly after touch and the strip ) I think it could easily sell a lot of units

[@saladdays180s9]

Is perfect fit for my Schmidt as it supports poly AT. I have a Roli Seaboard Grand for that, but I prefer a conventional keyboard with AT

[@aqueous5099]

The new osmose keyboard and the draw touch are the perfect modern controllers for me. Hydra synth is the all in one beast obviously.

[@mjfentertainment6927]

I 100% agree, it has by far the best aftertouch response of any keyboard I’ve played and the touch strip is also great

[@Psychlist1972]

I get the design / cost decision on the shelf. I also get that it would have been cool to break out some controls, or add the pads. I've never liked that shelf/blank approach, but at least it's not quite as cramped as an Access Virus or something where they clearly needed to expand the controls and have more knob-per-function on the panel.

[@hiding_my_name]

Nick is wearing an Access shirt? Is there something new coming from them soon?

[@G6304]

Have not heard anything from them in a while !

[@QuantizStudioRecords]

Hi. But how can we save Single Patch....only overwriting factory presets?

[@HonorV2ultimate1tb]

great!.....may i know which brand of expression pedal works with the hydrasynth deluxe?....thks

[@MrPapacc]

Bellissimo! Vorrei chiedere se tramite USB fa anche funzione di interfaccia audio (oltre che interfaccia midi) oppure bisogna necessariamente usare le uscite audio analogiche per registrare? Grazie

[@outlier5844]

You what mate?

[@BarryWarne]

so glad they extended the keyboard ~ the original seemed a tad limiting

[@MIDERA]

This really sounds incredible. That piano and the strings (which sound just like something from Resident Evil) are really great. Didn't think this would interest me because the original didn't (apart from the poly AT).

[@pongthrob]

What is that odd little video screen indicating 'REC' and 'RMC' underneath the Hydrasynth? Is it MIDI/Audio related, or is it something for video/podcasting?

[@sonicstate]

iPad running Midi designer Pro that controls the video system

[@richardalldredge9129]

Companies who offer split settings should offer one that tracks your hands individually. And one hand no matter what key you play on the keyboard will be for one sound and whatever Do you play with the other hand plays the other sound.

[@grantlivesay5971]

This is a brilliant idea

[@vanessajazp6341]

I want one!

[@HonorV2ultimate1tb]

Great video....but when selecting a different sound in the Deluxe version...does the first sound stop abruptly or is there smooth transition to the next sound? Thanks

[@sonicstate]

No I dont think it does -

[@HonorV2ultimate1tb]

@@sonicstate thanks sir... but I found a way after receiving both the Hydra Deluxe and Summit .. I just went on multi mode and one of the layers will continue to ring it's preset while the other layer can flip to other presets without cutting out the first preset.....and then whilst playing we can switch it over now the right hand layer can hold the ringing while the left hand layer changes presets..... another way is to split the keyboard.. thks for yr great videos!! Also jus recieved my Hydrasynth Deluxe and the same way works on it as well.....

[@ciatangallaghe2485]

What's the thing or the right for? With the signature thingo

[@0tf850]

Ooooo a new JX 10!

[@Jorge.O85]

Hi, can anyone tell if the keys of this synth feel like the Moog 37, Rev 2 ? I don't like that plasticky feeling when playing. Thank$ ! This Synth looks sexy 🤩

[@RayyMusik]

So basically ASM did what Novation did with the Peak/Summit. Why not? The free space on the right makes much sense to me; I hate pads. I own the original HS Keyboard (49); anyone interested in buying it as soon as the DeLuxe is available (Germany)?

[@libertylizard_]

There are already hundreds of them for sale to the point the old version is undercutting to nigh worthless. Might be worth waiting a while.

[@embazle]

This compared to a Novation summit? Any thoughts, summit still a better sound palette?

[@ErraticFaith]

Mainly if you have an issue with the hydras sonic range and sound character. Summit is the more traditional spread and hits hard in the more usual sense. Deluxe is the equivalent of the old 8+8 setup in a full size board with more up to date QOL features. It’s certainly not a summit but vice versa the same.

[@JornLavoll]

wow!

[@KlemenKotar]

Just sold some of my stuff to fund either Hydrasynth or Hydrasynth Deluxe. Still a good buy in 2023? Osmose looks great as well but it's probably a bit much for me (technically, not financially, though, erm, that too).

[@l1fef0rm]

The empty space on the top right could use a cup holder or ashtray.

[@Th3rdFloor]

Got the original Hydrasynth,,but at £1500.00, I’ve just got to add this to the rack! Unique and authentic and so unlike any other ,,for me that certainly speaks volumes,it’s a must have!! ,,,Take my money!!!

[@ErraticFaith]

Considering the amount of original hydrasynths now up for sale on every platform (over 2000 of them on one site I saw lol) they have completely invalidated their own product in as little as a year. Not the best business model lol. Nonetheless more than worth the upgrade for you.

[@Th3rdFloor]

You make a very fair and valid point,,I’m going to now keep mine as I’ve just used the money that I set aside for the deluxe and have purchased a Fantom 8 (88 key model). So it’s a win win for me😊👍

[@ErraticFaith]

Well, very different platforms and power! But the Roland tech is great as you know. I have Kronos for WS duty which is a little old but my live rig is a Yamaha stack; so its more about what you need vs the cost and upgrade windows at the time. The Deluxe is much better obviously (basically the original keys + desktop with overflow or 8+8 built in and newer improvements on the bed) but the old one is fine as well - if its less of a primary. If I were not really getting much out of Hydra in musicality (which I am not either since I am using more of the bread/butter piano and rompler elsewhere) then it makes much more sense to measure your money better. Same can be said for the new Korg mini boards. Not exactly a mainstage fixture but easily a satellite/second tier module of some kind for a bigger board. Hydra for me is more of a luxury toy (not any negative on their build quality or anything else there) rather than an instrument I 'need'. So each to their own in that sense. Have fun with Fantom.

[@Th3rdFloor]

@@ErraticFaith ,,,thanks for your take in conversation,,it's good to get an impartial opinion rather than someone being biased towards or hating a product. ....thanx!

[@Judasz696]

I wanted fantom 7 but canceled my order due to the fact zencore is not so good in sound quality. Roland's acb tech was way better then zencore. roland is just overpriced. I would rather get myself analog for that price plus drum machine gear and you are set. Also read about rolands polyphony and voices...it's not so good as it seemed as voices are being cut constantly, there are some limitations. Plus all those zencore sounds I have on my computer.

[@EannaButler]

Hi, it's a pity the ribbon strip wasn't the full 73 key extent. One great thing about the 49 key was that the ribbon mirrored the keys notes below. Does the ribbon cover just the first 49 keys? Or is the ribbon scaled to the 73 keys? Or, is that behaviour selectable?

[@Fluxwithit]

You can adjust the scale as you see fit.

[@EannaButler]

@@Fluxwithit OK, thanks

[@ikarian3612]

Sweet synth. Will some IPA get rid of that hideous looking sticker thing?

[@etpslick100]

Hmm! That; with my prophet 10? NO other synth NEEDED! 🤨🎹👍🏾

[@lennytabtwoo9686]

I want one......😎

[@kimbanevile6421]

So, does that mean that you can use the keyboard for one timber and the touch strip for the other?

[@ninpomaniac]

I have the same question, that would be sweet!

[@markkeneson6806]

Hail Hydra!

[@gamma_noize]

I reeeeally want one, but my budget planning says "noooo!". :(

[@ChurchOfTheHolyMho]

11:00 So if its bi-timbral (as 2 Hydrasynths in 1) - the lower split drum beat has 8 voices reserved for it, and there are only 8 voices available for the upper split. Maybe not ideal, but makes absolute sense given the architecture chosen. Good to know.

[@sonicstate]

Yep its not a dynamic allocation, you have two 8 voice engines or one 16 voice.

[@Dolle_Man]

Great review Nick, thank you for this 💝 I'm a happy owner of the Hydra Keys, really tempted to get this XL version, because 49 just isn't enough. 13:20 I think if you thought this kinda money for a synth, I would rather pay 200€ extra for getting a full featured beast. It's nice this 2.0 version. Including Deskop pads, extra control, or extend the ribbon on the full length. for me it seems this deluxe version is bit rushed. Now what to do, sell my keys and buy this? Hard choice! the 49 -> 73 🎹 is something I need so much 😭

[@ErraticFaith]

The new keybed also has community driven improvements over the old/49 key varient. Also a great deal easier than using the 8+8 keys/dt combo, as it will all be in one unit with a more complete octave spread. For someone in your position its a no-brainer to change.

[@riksentenza]

😍 biggest synth

[@ZethKeeper]

Looking forward for Nick reviewing Take 5.

[@omarbonifacino3381]

Great and big sound . Hidra Is eccellet

[@stinkypete9070]

Wish theyd release the keyboard w/touch strip and mod wheels as a standalone controller. Sounds great but not a huge fan of it, but would love its keyboard for poly AT.

[@nobel11]

Finally! A synthesizer I can put my lunch on! I joke, of course, this beast looks and sounds like a real beauty.

[@Seekthetruth3000]

Is this synth better than a Novation Summit? Thanks.

[@maydaygoingdown5602]

I have both. They are very different synths. They sound very different to each other. It depends on what you want to do. The Summit is more hands on control without need for menu diving, and it's analog filters compared to full digital of the Deluxe. It's keys (Summits) are nicer to play too!! The Hydrasynth Delux is more of a sound designers synth where you need to give it your time, (a lot of time) and sit down with it and create and sculpt. If I could only keep 1, it would be the Hydrasynth Deluxe.

[@Cortez77fr]

This will be my next synth.

[@user-dp1le5fh1q]

Is it true that you can’t directly dial in a patch number? If so, why the hell not? Seems like a basic requirement from the simplest £50 Yamaha home Keyboard upward.

[@prympax]

But does it feature pulse wave modulation? 😁

[@Wagoo]

If you watch the original Hydrasynth Sonic Lab you'll see it offers many different types of PWM :P

[@D3cker1]

Wait I herd that sound somewhere else... My synth

[@TerekkiTerekki]

Are those graphics to the right of the synth for real?

[@6581punk]

In the manual they call that shelf a "laptop shelf".

[@johndjameson]

The strip doesn’t span the whole keyboard? Weiiird. I love my Hydrasynth and can’t imagine having more keys without the ribbon above them for bends and modulation

[@Daphoid]

This and the summit are my big "dream in the sky" synth combo. I've got drum machines and other smaller synths I can pair with the big ones, but I need the room first. That's what holds my GAS (that and the cost of both :))

[@joelspaulding5964]

Honestly the cost of this is actually an amazing bargain. Paid about the same in 1983 for a 49 key, single oscillator Sequential Six Trak- No velocity, no after-touch, no sample-based waveforms...😂

[@errorkit]

best keybed I've ever played 🔥

[@pcuimac]

Did you try the 'Kawai K5000 S' ? It has much longer keys than any keybed you can get these days. Esp. helpful for people with long fingers and complex chords.

[@errorkit]

@@pcuimac no - I'm a Piano Player and I love Yamaha Piano Keys - Most Synth Keys have minimal Travel or strange Noises while pushing - What I love about the PolyAT Keybed is the Accuracy of Velocity and Aftertouch - Roland Keybeds feel like Toys with no Soul - Sequential Rev2 Keybed has terrible Velocity - Arturia Keylab MKII Keytravel is minimal and the Aftertouch is too hard to touch - The Hydrasynth in my minimal Experience is a Dream of a Keybed - The Synth itself is not my cup of tea and the Knobs get very dirty on the textured Surface after 1 Week - but the Keybed is a Dream for every PianoPlayer who loves Yamaha Keys - If you like NORD Keys or Roland Keys - not sure if you will like'em

[@peterkadarmusic9728]

I have a K5000s and the OG Hydra. They are both great in different ways. I understand the HS Deluxe has a new keybed that is further refined from the original. The Kawai keybed is also used in the Roland A-70 controller, full size Virus synths and the Moog One.

[@errorkit]

@@peterkadarmusic9728 the Deluxe Keybed is even better? Nice! Could be a bit faster on the OG thats true - its not the best keybed for Superspeed Soloing 😂

[@ErraticFaith]

Yamaha lol. Now there is a dead brand in this area if ever there was one. The whole CP/YC debacle is a laughing stock. Good to see Dom and Glen getting good response on the larger board however. It and the explorer should easily outperform the now nigh-worthless 49 key size unit.

[@MeekPoitier]

Nice T-shirt Nick… is there something subliminal going on??

[@sonicstate]

not really... :-)

[@MeekPoitier]

@@sonicstate Hydrasynth is nice, I still feel they miss a few tricks and still playing catch up with Access Virus. Certainly there is a nod to Access Virus in design of the delux.

[@808Wood]

I would like one please

[@jamesbirch9614]

I thought the *original* was amazing. 😮 This has me drooling heavily. At first, I was like “ohh, *sigh* -they pulled a Digitone Keys maneuver,” (still love you, Elektron!), but the shelf is a *great* idea, especially with the rubber padding. Hey, don’t be sad Elektron - ! - I’ll park my Digitakt there! 😀👍

[@MrDjaremko1982]

This could me my next synth

[@anonymoushuman8344]

I wonder if Vangelis had a Hydrasynth in his last years.

[@thewideeye]

He did. He owned a Hydrasynth (standard ed), and other modern day synths he owned was a Polybrute and a Matrixbrute. Evidence: www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FWTXB3Gf.jpg&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fgearspace.com%2Fboard%2Felectronic-music-instruments-and-electronic-music-production%2F1367850-vangelis-last-setup.html&tbnid=K1lTmFDsNHIdXM&vet=1&docid=TVOGY0xtWkzcEM&w=1242&h=699&source=sh%2Fx%2Fim

[@powermix24]

He did

[@paultorbert6929]

I clicked like just on the opening notes !!!!!!!!!! Beauty. Bi-timbral .........? 🤪

[@EverettDudgeon138]

It seems this year is really more about companies looking at their back catalog or existing instruments and offering a different size rather than doing anything “new”. Deluxe HydraSynth, Desktop Super 6, and even the Take 5 to an extent.

[@loatoob]

The desktop Super 6 was released before the keyboard version.

[@joelspaulding5964]

This offers TREMENDOUS advantages over the prior models.

[@jumpingman8160]

ASM should have included a sequencer. Either way it's a magnificent synth.

[@chrisstaubyn774]

I have a Hydrasynth desktop. The 5 LFO's can each do a 64 step "step sequencer".

[@peterkadarmusic9728]

FWIW, the LFOs are easy to configure as a step sequencer. There’s a how-to video on their channel, but I agree that a synth this nice cries out for a dedicated sequencer.

[@modeswitching]

Sounds beautiful. But a small worry: Now that we’re almost done being obsessed with 70s/80s knobby vintage, I’m not sure I’m ready for the 90s workstation aesthetic to come back into fashion. And least there are lots of controls and no membrane keys…. (yet?)

[@Neurotypique]

It looks bad from outside but they really nailed ergonomics imo!

[@geofff6671]

If they bring back the membrane number pad and single data slider encoder I’m out of here.

[@untml]

don't worry. seems analog is here to stay i don't think this will change soon

[@von_Apa]

LIKE!

[@ogasi1798]

put an A4 or OT in the space - setup complete ;-)

[@Claidheambmor]

This is the way

[@loatoob]

@@Claidheambmor unfortunately they are both a little wide!

[@sharg0]

Oh PLEASE Nick, play more and get lost in it!