Mask1
|
Designed & Assembled in France
The MASK1 is a powerful and expressive synthesizer based on Kodamo's new Bitmask synthesis. It uses high quality oversampled oscillators and digital filters to makes a rich and warm sound. It is 12-voice polyphonic, 5-part multitimbral and offers built-in effects, a looper and arpeggiator. It is equipped with Fatar's weighted TP9 keyboard with velocity and aftertouch. The Mask1 focuses on two major innovations:
- Play modes : Allow to vary articulation and sound behavior depending on how you press the keys. The Mask1 detects if you're playing legato, staccato, the number of notes you are playing, the distance between them and more, to alter the sound behavior.
- Bitmask synthesis : a unique kind of digital synthesis which turns simple sine wave into complex waveforms. The sound depend on a single number you enter, and allows to create a wild range of tones from analog-like to bleepy PPG-esque waves that are not possible on any other synthesizer.
Package includes:
- Mask1 synthesizer
- Printed user manual
- 12V power pack
- IEC cable with matched plug for your country
Sound demos
Tutorials
Explore and create new sounds
The MASK1, with its minimalistic interface, invites you into a zen and relaxed sound exploration. Press a button, turn the knob and listen how the sound evolves. The MASK1's engine works with very few parameters, but very well selected ones, to maximize the sound design possibilities while making sound creation quick and satisfying. The front panel is designed to allow to switch and edit parameters with a single hand. Sounds are fully editable and can be stored in one of the 600 internal memory slots. They can be backed up or loaded from your computer and shared with other people.
How does Bitmask synthesis work?
A sine wave is split into different sections that are repeated, scaled, inverted or silenced, to build a new waveform. All of this by inputting a single number. Here are 5 examples showing examples of waveforms you can get with Bitmask Synthesis. The Mask1 let you choose from a pool of 512 different masks.
Only In-House developed algorithms
Any digital synthesizer's secret sauce come down to the algorithms it uses. Some might be tempted to just copy any algorithm used elsewhere but here for the Mask1 we developed everything from scratch, fine-tuning each details by ear until it sounds right. That includes all the reverb effects, delays, choruses, the oscillator section, filter, the way the envelope and LFOs interacts on the sound... This is what makes the sound unique.
For live and studio players
With its compact size and light weight, the MASK1 will easily fit in your studio and is easy to carry around for gigs.
It remembers settings between sessions and offers a built-in looper that allows sequences (up to 10000 notes) to be recorded and played back while you are improvising.
With its quality Fatar keyboard and MIDI capabilities, it will also be a great controller for your other gear. All the sound parameters are CC-mapped and react in real-time.
Specifications
| Synthesis type | Bitmask, Subtractive |
| Polyphony | 12 voices with optimized allocation |
| Play modes | Polyphonic, monophonic, slurred, mono portamento on legato, paraphonic, hybrid poly-mono on legato, slurred paraphonic, mono retrigger, poly retrigger |
| Multitimbrality | 4 parts (5 in layered/split mode) |
| Oscillators | 24 digital bitmask oscillators (two per voice) with 16x oversampling, 512 masks each |
| Noise | 12 generators with programmable sample-and-hold frequency |
| Filter | 24 (two per voice), 12dB/oct or 24dB/oct, resonant with pitch tracking and 4 modes (low, high, band pass, notch). |
| Envelopes | 4 loopable ADSR per voice (osc1, osc2, noise, filter), 3 delta-decay (osc1 mask, osc2 mask, pitch) |
| LFO | 2 per part with 7 waveforms and noise, delay, decay and 16 destinations |
| Arpeggiator | 26 patterns with adaptive or fixed chords, latchable, retrig or pitch change modes. Arp do send note events to MIDI out. |
| Looper | Up to 10000 events, unlimited duration, single track. Records notes, pitch bend, mod wheel, aftertouch and sustain pedal. |
| Effects | Two stereo effects in series. First effect: chorus, phaser, distortion, bitcrusher, tremolo and ring mod (64 types). Second effect: delay, comb filter, reverb, room simulations and distortion (48 types) |
| Modulations | Velocity (6 destinations), modulation wheel (16 destinations), aftertouch (16 destinations), LFO1 and LFO2 (16 destinations each) |
| Split | Configurable split point, balance between voices, transpose, panning and tuning |
| Layer | Configurable balance between voices, transpose, panning and tuning |
| Misc | Voice pan spread, polyphonic portamento, keyboard envelope rate scaling |
| Memory | 120 factory presets, internal storage for 600 user voices. EEPROM-based (no battery required) |
| Audio outputs | 2 balanced 1/4" TRS jack, pro audio level with +/-12V internal power supply, 1/4" jack headphones |
| MIDI | 2 DIN (in, out), class-compliant USB type B, SysEx voice transmit/receive, CC-mapped voice parameters |
| Keyboard | 61 full-size keys, weighted Fatar action with 6 velocity curves and 6 aftertouch curves |
| Controls | 23 buttons, 2 rotary encoders, pitch bend wheel, modulation wheel |
| Display | 4-digit red display |
| Pedal input | Sustain, 1/4" TS jack, adaptive polarity |
| Tuning | 400-470Hz. 6 temperaments including arabic tuning. |
| Size | 89 x 26 x 8cm including knobs and feet. |
| Weight | 7.5kg |
| Power | External 12V DC adapter, AC 100-240V in |
| Chassis | Powder-coated, screenprinted steel. Light grey (RAL 9002) color |
| Sides | Black ABS |
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