Novation X Station 61

[Jomega Gibson]

ibought one off ebay last year for 185 quid. it was described as tested, in full working order and in excellent condition.

i got it out the box and noticed that the filter knob was missing, then 2 slider caps. after playing it for awhile i noticed that the modulation knob looked like it had been snacked on by a rodent and the acid filter was blown.

couldn't believe they thought they'd have a successful transaction.

so before i packed it up to send back, i found a cotton thread bobbin to replace the missing filter knob for the seller. it looked really classy. lol

imo the best synth of the 3 monos i've had (bs2, monologue, neutron) i really liked it

You can sequence stuff via a modulation sequencer too and it can even independently sequence another synth With cv+ gate. The mod sequencer allows really quick and easy gating through the modulation matrix, and you can smooth the steps if you want too.

Thanks @klownshed I didn't realize the Mono Station had patch flip. They're like 'sound locks' on the recent Elektrons?

I only saw the old loopop video where he p-locks to turn Mono Station into a drum machine.

@Sequencer1 said:

Thanks @klownshed I didn't realize the Mono Station had patch flip. They're like 'sound locks' on the recent Elektrons?

I only saw the old loopop video where he p-locks to turn Mono Station into a drum machine.

I recall novation had a VST of the original Bass Station or something that could do nicely as an AUv3 same with the now 'discontinued' LaunchKey app which had a complete synthesis engine built-in (based on MiniNova) with limited editing options.

The Osc 1 sequence plays the synth as a whole, pitching the dual oscillators, gating the VCA and triggering the envelope; in other words business as usual for the Bass Station or any typical monosynth. But the Mono Station can use the Osc 2 sequencer to control the pitch of the second oscillator independently of the first. (MIDI channels 1 and 2 can also be used to play the Mono Station). So you have two semi-independent oscillators, with a single voice path through the VCA and filter: not truly polyphonic, but paraphonic.

As a synth the Mono Station is just as straightforward and usable as the Bass Station; more so in fact. The Circuit had a great innovation that proves even more valuable here. Every pot and slider has an LED which indicates its current value with brightness. This is a godsend on an analogue synth with patch memory and project recall, giving you a good visual clue of the current settings even when the physical controls are out of sync with reality. On top of this you can choose whether the pots act instantly or pick up from new values after a patch change. Where the Bass Station II mixer section shares a pot for three of its sources, here all six have their own clear mini pots which light up progressively to show the levels. As well as selecting sequences, the Osc 1 and 2 buttons toggle shared synth controls between the two, using colour-coding on the relevant LEDs and backlit pads.

Components is also the vehicle for firmware updates: by the time you read this the Mono Station should be at v1.1, which already improves on my test version with fixes and useful features such as a much-needed shortcut to reset Mod Depth values to zero. The original Circuit has now reached 1.5, with each dot release adding significant functionality. Nearly everything on my personal wishlist from my original review has been delivered, including drum sample and synth patch auditioning, Session back-up, a software synth editor and per-step sample swapping. Other features that have also made it into the Mono Station are instant Pattern switching and the ability to record into the sequences from external MIDI sources.

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I had a K station and sold it. sysex dumped my presets. I'm using the V station but I'm not sure if it sounds as good as the K station did. Is there much of a different in sound between the V and the K? If not then I won't need to proceed to my next question. If there is a difference:

I had SuperNova 2 and now I have X-Station. Lets just say, that I'm not sighing to get SuperNova 2 back. X-Stations build quality sucks and knobs get jumpy, but its keys are bloody fantastic and I'm never going to live long without X-Y pad. SN2 is slightly better synth engine wise, but X-Station also gets its job done and it sounds pretty good...if not even better. I miss SN2's another filter though. I'm sure X-Station and K-Station are similar enough, if not just the same.

I currently use a K station. At one time I bought an x-station because I thought the idea of an all-in-one midi controller and synth would be convenient. In addition, based on what I had researched, it supposedly had the same synth engine but with extra features like more filter options, more polyphony, multibrility, more arpeggiator options, and drum patches. My understanding was that all the novation KS series synths could share patches and the x-station was really just a repackaged KS with an audio interface and controller functions. Only problem is that I never actually had a chance to try it all out. It arrived heavily damaged, so I exchanged it for something else. I can't say that build quality was a particular strength. Even if it hadn't been ruined by negligent shipping, I still would have sent it back. It just didn't feel solid. I absolutely love my K station but I've been turned off by this new generation of uber-plastic novation synths.

I have loaded many K and A station sounds into my X-station. They are completely compatible if not identical engines. Some of my best found sounds were from the K and A station patches I got off the web. The X-station is one of the first real synthesizers that I bought, and I love the sounds and the features. I got the X-station 25 for portable use with a DAW and as an audio interface. Still having fun with it 8 years later...

I can load K. A and X Station patches into my Novation Xio. Same sounds except for the X-gator. Right on about the build quality. I feel any minute the knobs could break. They are also so small and close together.

V-station (With Remote SL) user here. I wasn't too impressed with the K-station sound when it came out but I really like the V for some reason even though it's supposed to be basically the same thing.

The K and A-stations and the KS4 seem more solidly built than the X-station and Xiosynth. My SL MK1 is pretty plasticky and cheap though it works. I kind of want one of the hardware synths, I don't even care which one.

The X-station knobs are small, but it's supposed to be portable. However they don't feel like they would take a lot of abuse, but that's not a problems for me. I played with a Buchla 200e at NAMM last year and for the price those knobs felt way more sketchy than my X-station. The unit itself is pretty solid. I found out the hard way when friend dropped it once. Fearing the worst I opened the unit and found it to be very well constructed on the inside. Other than the knobs or the case, very little could break unless you really wanted it to. The only thing that happened was the small corner that hit the asphalt was chipped. Lucky me. The unit has never has a performance problem.

Any similiar keyboard at similiar price which might have stronger piano sounds? Band is indie pop /rock (rem / arcade fire ). Other key sounds (for playing live) would be organ, xylophone, elec. piano.

Not with that load of sliders and knobs on it. If you don't need them but just the sounds, a Yamaha MM6 might do the job - if that's too expensive, you'll have to see if you can get lucky with a Casio WK or Yamaha PSR.

That's not as much as the DWGS/PCM waves on the R3/Radias, but it's better than nothing. There's no acoustic piano, only electric pianos, and nothing multisampled of course. Regardless, it gives greater depth to the engine to have these sampled waves, unlike some other VA synths like the Ion/Micron.

thanks all - particularly to xml dude. Pity on the acoustic piano sound front - it seems like a strange omition (to this noob)? so I guess back to the original Q - is there something similiar to the Novation X-1 (i.e price c. $500, midi controller / synth) with a nice acoustic piano sound??

The x-station is a great general purpose controller and audio interface with a pretty decent synth as a bonus; I'm quite happy with mine. You could easily add a piano module to it if you need a little piano. If piano is your dominant instrument, though, you'd likely be better off looking for a stage piano with midi out; the touch will be more piano-like and it should have a decent piano sound. 61 keys is pretty marginal for piano playing.

I haven't been able (nor have I tryed) to do a realistic piano sound, but my EP sounds are pretty good, and if they'd been intelligent and added an "organ speaker sim" in the already big effects section, this thing could have done organ very well, too (Maybe if you add a Leslie sim stompbox...)

I have an X Station 49 and it has some really excellent electric piano sounds. I recently did a recording session at my studio with new age music pioneer Steven Halpern who was famous for his Fender Rhodes sounds back in the 80's, and he was very impressed with the electric piano sounds on the Novation.

Novation Digital Music Systems Ltd. is a British musical equipment manufacturer, founded in 1992 by Ian Jannaway and Mark Thompson as Novation Electronic Music Systems. Today the company specializes in MIDI controllers with and without keyboards, both analog and virtual analog performance synthesizers, grid-based performance controllers, and audio interfaces. At present, Novation products are primarily manufactured in China.

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