Ahead of Superbooth 25, Clank unveiled Uranograph, a new highly expressive microtonal additive, phase morphing Synthesizer and looper.
Anders Schneider will reopen the gates to Superbooth 25 in Berlin in just under a month. Dozens of developers and visitors from all over the world are expected. One company is particularly keen this year and has already spilled the beans.
The Italian company Clank, known in the Eurorack world, has unveiled Uranograph, a new highly expressive, microtonal Synthesizer that could be the counterpart to the Soma Terra.
Contenido
Clank Uranograph
Uranograph doesn’t follow the traditional keyboard, knob, and slider pattern. The Italian developers have decided on a radically different approach, as seen in the unique design. Clank Uranograph is reminiscent of an ancient Greek Lyra or Kithara, but one that has traveled through time and arrived in a distant galaxy.
Knobs and buttons are scattered throughout the interface. Particularly striking, however, are the capacitive touch plates/keys made of stainless steel with which you can play and interact with the instrument. Clank describes them as a dual-keyboard layout that is the expressive heart of the instrument.
Uranograph’s touch plates are highly responsive to touch, velocity, and aftertouch pressure. Each press translates into a continuous, organic sound variation, making it possible to shape phrases naturally, much like on a stringed or wind instrument.
Moreover, you can route any parameter of the polyphonic synth engine to the touch plates’ pressure. A dedicated knob on the hardware sets the amount. Uranograph is not a drone synth; you can also delve deep into expressive melodic content.
Clank’s custom keyboard design offers complete design and tuning flexibility. In addition to its 50+ built-in keyboard layouts (Western turning, experimental microtonal divisions, etc.), it enables you to create your keyboard layouts from scratch. So, you can assign any key to any pitch or pure frequency.
More Expressivity
The developers didn’t stop at just touchplates. They also implemented the mod wheel in a new dedicated control keyboard section, unlocking expressive, gestural modulation of parameters. It is divided into three functional sections: articulation, octave shift, and modkeys.
Three dedicated articulation plates provide instant access to advanced phrasing techniques and canonic musical articulations like glissando, trillo, and staccato. Then, you can find two octave shift plates, providing instant transposition of octave ranges in momentary or latcheting modes.
Next to this are the four modkeys that serve as fully assignable, pressure-sensitive controllers for precise and fluid real-time modulation of multiple synthesis parameters.
Digital Synthesis Power
Now, we come to the serious things for synth lovers: the engine. Here, too, the developers go their own way.
Clank Uranograph uses a digital synth engine built on additive and phase morphing synthesis. The main oscillator is a classic sine wave that transforms through multiple synthesis techniques, generating a spectrum of timbres from warm, organic tones to sharp, digital textures.
It will feature multiple methods to modify the primary sine wave, including phase warping/spectral expansion, Casio CZ-inspired asymmetric amp distortion, and west-coast-like wave folding.
The engine also offers a harmonizer for the primary oscillator that splits and harmonizes it into three voices. That’s not all; a sub-oscillator also serves as a fifth voice or modulation source. Plus, you get a filter amp section that functions as a VCA or lowpass gate/VCA hybrid.
Uranograph also features unique modulation capabilities that perfectly harmonize with the tactile control and expressive interaction. For example, it features a multi-functional modulation engine called VariMode or automatic cycling modulator designed for continuous dynamic shaping.
It has six slots on the front panel to assign various modulators. Powerful is having distinct slot mappings per patch that are switchable on the fly using the rotary selector.
The available modulators range from classic modulations with LFOs and envelope to audio manipulations like overdrive, vibrato, and tremolo. The developer’s website has a complete list.
Effects & Looper
Clank also added built-in effects in its digital synth engine. First, there is a flexible stereo delay with advanced features and two distinct behaviors: a resonator effect in the lower range or, in higher, it’s a more classic delay with a BPM-synced grid with precise rhythmic subdivisions.
To add more complexities to the delay, it also has a regen knob aka feedback intensity for infinite regeneration without system overload and a delay shift for polyrhythmic textures and expanded stereo imaging.
Further, it also comes with a diffusion knob that turns your delay into a rich reverb effect with just one-knob. Its range gives you medium rooms up to cloud-like ehtereal textures.
The Clank Uranograph’s built-in Frippertronics-style, double-reel tape looper is the cherry on the cake, rounding off the instrument’s performance concept.
According to the developers, the looper captures the post-effects mix and sends it in parallel to two independent tape reels, which continuously record. Both reels share the same time-division settings, selectable in clock counts: 1, 2, 4, 8, 12, or 16 beats.
It also has two dedicated activator buttons to determine which reel is actively recording, allowing for independent recording, simultaneous recording on both reels, or switching between them.
Other Features
Uranograph features a dual-CPU that handles the 24-bit audio processing part and the real-time control.
On the connection side, it has a socket for a 12-15V DC power adapter, dual balanced line-level TRS outputs (L/R), high-quality XLR input preamp, and a stereo output via a 3.5mm jack with dedicated level control and a MAX4410 driver.
Plus, you can find 3.5mm sockets for TRS MIDI in and out and clock sync input and out.
Clank Uranograph First Impression
The Superbooth 25 coverage or the trade fair hasn’t even started, and we already have a real highlight of this edition. It is a fascinating, innovative Synthesizer with a unique concept.
I initially meant that it’s a competitor of Soma Terra. In my opinion, the Uranograph goes even further. That’s in the synthesis, but also the playability and flexibility. The looper is the crowning glory. I’m very excited to see the instrument in its final version.
Clank Uranograph is available now for pre-order in limited quantities for the first batch for an introductory price of 1552€ instead of 1940€. The developers plan to ship the first batch by the end of the summer of 2025.
Alternatively, you can order one from the second batch for 1746€ instead of 1940€. This batch will start shipping by the end of 2025. The first ready-to-explore and play prototypes will be at Superbooth 25 in May.
More information here: CLANK
