Novation ‘Peak’ Is Another Hardware Gem from Superbooth 2017

Novation is well-known throughout the industry for quality music equipment at an affordable price. Their MIDI controllers, synthesizers, apps, and gadgets can be found in professional music studio arsenals around the world.

At Superbooth this year, Novation revealed Peak, a digital/analog 8-voice polyphonic synthesizer that is to lead the brand’s new line of synth products. The first Superbooth took place March 31st through April 1st last year. It was the first trade fair for electronic musical instruments to take place in Berlin. In that short time, Superbooth established itself as a leading force in the exploration and education of electronic instruments.

This synth is capable of a lot of functions and does so impressively well. We’ve been super satisfied by the number of new synths and updated reissues of old ones recently. Clearly the public’s demand for quality physical instruments is rising again. What’s even more exciting is that the faces behind famous instruments of the past are working on the synths of modernity. Peak was developed by people like Chris Huggett, the man behind the incredibly famous Bass Station and Supernova synths. We are incredibly excited to test drive the Peak for ourselves, but fortunately YouTube is full of quality demos already.

Engineer Nick Bookman demos the Peak synthesizer at Superbooth 2017 (cred: Sonicstate)

Peak boasts an impressive quantity of oscillators for each voice, for a grand total of three. It also has a resonant multi-mode analog filter for each voice, which sounds really smooth and distinctive. There are three onboard effects and distortion modes, an arpeggiator, a CV port, and MIDI via USB or a typical MIDI cable.

As much as we can talk about how great Peak is on paper, we think that hearing it is the best way to decide how you feel about it. In this video, the characteristic-as-always Cuckoo excellently explains and demos the Peak. The lush sound capable from this instrument really reminds us of another popular digital synth, the Access Virus. We’re sure the Peak will become another pervasive force in the arsenals of musicians worldwide.

Peak is available NOW from Novation/Focusrite for $1299!

Some aren’t convinced this synth is deserving of all the hype. Specifically we’ve heard many criticize the oscillators for sounding too thin. What do you think after hearing it for yourself? Let us know in the comments!