Tech to unleash your imaginative powers

Welcome to synth city

Grenoble-based audio firm Arturia has won fanatical devotees and multiple awards for its software emulations of pop music’s most celebrated keyboards and synths. Thanks to its crack team of audio engineers, anyone making music with a computer can explore more than 30 of these retro soundworlds, from the lush textures of the Yamaha CS-80 (think Blade Runner or Chariots of Fire) to the chunky, pulsating sound of the Minimoog (used by Gary Numan, Kraftwerk and countless others). Arturia’s is a quest for sonic authenticity – indeed, its reconstruction of the Moog Modular synth (used on “I Feel Love” by Donna Summer) was made in collaboration with synth pioneer Bob Moog himself.

The resulting accumulation of in-house knowledge and expertise has, latterly, been channelled into making physical keyboards, and the gorgeous PolyBrute 12 – released on Arturia’s 25th birthday – is its latest and most advanced: all the character of an analogue synth with precision digital control – or, more excitingly, instinct-driven performance (you know, using your hands!). Anyone who imagines synthesisers to be cold, unresponsive beasts will be astounded; unusually, it has polyphonic aftertouch, meaning that you can change the timbre of each note, individually, by exerting pressure on that specific key. It also has a “FullTouch” mode where even lightly touching the keys – not even pressing them down – can generate sounds and effects.

This extraordinary sensitivity, combined with the PolyBrute 12’s other controllers (including a swipeable strip above the keyboard and a wooden “Morphée” pad to its left that you can tap, stroke and press), makes for a performer’s dream unit – although, speaking as a keyboardist with a background in classical piano, it requires some adjustment to technique. But that relearning process is fun, creating sounds is absorbing and you soon find yourself closing your eyes and segueing into a soundtrack to an imaginary film playing in your head, featuring (naturally) Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer and a clutch of renegade replicants.

Fine print

My experience of 3D printers has not always been pleasurable: laborious set-ups, clogging nozzles and erratic bed adhesion have, in the past, caused me to utter unspeakable oaths. The Creality K1C, however, caused me no anguish at all; a few safety screws to remove, a couple of parts to attach, a quick calibration process and I was in business. The Creality Print software is a little clunky, but the results were exceptional; it can work with a range of filaments including carbon fibre, and for no errors to occur across the five prints I tried felt distinctly unusual. The fact that it’s enclosed in a box means quieter operation, and my test unit, which for some baffling reason was FC Bayern Munich-branded, looked terrific, too.

Top draw

OLED pen displays are beginning to edge out their LCD predecessors, bringing with them better colour accuracy and contrast ratios – which are, after all, what artists want. This 13.3in display (effectively an additional screen for your computer or mobile, connected via USB-C) is incredibly slim and light: 4mm at its thinnest point and a nudge over 400g. It performs like a heavyweight, thanks to a vivid matte screen (that never gets hot) and Wacom’s celebrated Pro Pen 3, which is bundled in the package. There’s no special glove needed and the screen distinguishes without fail between a pen stroke, a deliberate finger swipe and a resting drawing hand. Wacom’s Cintiq range may be its flagship, but the Movink is forging its own exciting path.

Copy that

Working with images, video or audio can require huge files to be moved between computers, and if that moment occurs while you’re in the creative zone, the slothful progress bar can be maddening. Wireless transfers are lethargic, USB thumb drives buckle under the strain and the cloud can be hobbled by slow uploads. These mini SSDs from Kingston are small (twice the size of a thumb drive but still eminently pocketable), capacious (500GB to 4TB, take your pick) and super speedy: in my own tests, files copied over at about 1GB per second. You’ll need to take a USB-C cable while on the move (unlike a thumb drive, it doesn’t have a USB plug) but that’s a minor inconvenience for a hugely improved workflow.

Your shot

Fans of Leica’s line of compact cameras have been waiting more than five years for a follow-up to the D-Lux 7 – and here it is, with a Summilux zoom lens (equivalent to a 24-75mm focal range), a 4/3in sensor, 17 effective megapixels and an emphasis on simplicity. It combines a classic film camera layout with a nod to modern use (for example, it’s easily switchable to Instagram-friendly aspect ratios) and its portraits have that slightly 3D “Leica look”. Weighing in at under 400g, it’s easy to tote about and a delight to use; perfect for anyone (like myself) who enjoys decoupling themselves, albeit briefly, from their overbearing smartphone. Newbies will appreciate the hour of in-store training that’s offered with the unit.

@rhodri