Christmas is coming and you’ve got a musician to buy a gift for. It can be difficult, but we’re here to help you make a decision. We’ve put together a few ideas for you at different price points, something for every budget…
Under £10
Kraftwerk: Future Music from Germany
A fascinating book looking at the history of Kraftwerk, how they started in Germany and took electronic music into a new direction, shaping the music we hear today.
Mars by 1980: The Story of Electronic Music
An interesting, fascinating and informative look at the history of electronic music from it’s infancy in the 20th Century through the Radiophonic Workshop and on to the electronic music underground today. Essential reading.
Under £30
Stylophone: The Original Pocket Electronic Organ
Originally marketed in the 1960’s as an electronic toy, and made famous by David Bowie, used famously on Space Oddity. It’s a lo-fi classic, and now available to buy again.
Under £50
Behringer HPX6000 Professional DJ Headphones
These are a bargain if you want a pair of studio headphones on a budget. You can buy an excellent pair of Beyerdynamic headphones for 4 times the price, but these will do the job without breaking the bank.
Korg MONOTRON-DELAY Analog Ribbon Synth
Korgs Monotron is a fun device that makes a great sound, it’s ribbon controller creating sounds that can then be delayed and processed using its Space Delay controls. There’s an audio input so you can plug other sound sources in to be processed.
Teenage Engineering PO-20 Pocket Operator Arcade Synthesizer
Teenage Engineering have produced a range of synthesisers, drum machines and samplers that you can literally fit in your pock and take anywhere. They’re feature packed and great value for money. We’ve selected the Arcade Synthesizer but there’s a whole range available in the Teenage Engineering store.
Between £50-£100
Stylophone GEN X-1 Portable Analogue Synth
We included the original Stylophone earlier on in this feature, but here’s the GEN X-1, the upgraded powerhouse Stylophone. This one has all the envelope, LFO, delay and filter controls that you’d find on a traditional synthesiser to create a sound thats a world apart from the original Stylophone.
Behringer TD-3-BB Analog Bass Line Synthesizer
Back in 1995 Fatboy Slim proclaimed that Everybody Needs a 303. It’s still true, and luckily Behringer have created the TD-3, a fully analog replica to enable you to create those fat, squelchy basslines that we all know and love.
Between £100-£150
Korg Volca Beats Drum Machine Synth
The Volca Beats is part of the Volca range that includes a range of synthesisers, drum machines and samplers, so can be used as part of a Volca studio. This model has analogue drum sounds that can be tweaked to your sound, and features an Electribe style sequencer to program your own beats.
Arturia KeyStep – MIDI Controller Keyboard & Sequencer
It looks tiny, but the KeyStep is a powerful controller that can be used as a clock source to allow you to control analogue synthesisers by CV control. It has a sequencer and arpeggiator built in to allow it be used as the heart of your hardware setup.