Neuzeit Instruments drops Drop, a snapshot-based MIDI and CV controller that's designed for... drops

It’s almost that time again. Next month, synth-heads of all stripes will head to Berlin to visit Superbooth, the gear expo that’s become the place to show off what’s new (and old) in the world of synths, drum machines, sequencers and controllers.

And given the show’s reputation for hosting small, innovative companies, being the first place to try the most new and unusual (read: obscure) gear around, it’s not hard to see why we’ll once again be in attendance, bringing you all the latest live from the show. Watch this space…

As we approach this year's show, the gear announcements are slowly beginning to roll in, and this one's perhaps the most exciting yet. Drop is a new, "snapshot-based" MIDI controller, being the first non-modular product from the well-regarded Eurorack brand. Building on their smaller and synth-ier Orbit and Warp modules, their aim was to produce a single controller for every possible need without dwarfing the rest of your gear and becoming too much to handle, or too expensive to afford in the process.

As such Drop effortlessly merges both MIDI and CV control, giving you 32 rotary encoders, eight mute buttons and eight faders to play with. And should that not be enough controls, a quick flick between complete, discrete A and B sets effectively gives you double that.

The aim here is to deliver the kind of convenient digital recall that analogue set-ups are often forced to forgo in favour of tweakable fun. As such Drop can store 20 controller snapshots per bank with 20 banks being available in total. Create a perfect setup for a song, or a section of a song, and conveniently switch through snapshots while mapping macros to up to eight MIDI targets with individual curves for each destination.

And that name – Drop – comes from the Drop’s ‘Drop mode’. Thanks to the controller's integrated master clock, snapshot changes can be timed and sequenced in advance, allowing you to program builds and drops with all of your gear jumping to new settings for a new sound at the perfect time. Chain together your Drops to create songs.

Alternatively (and excitingly) use the built-in circular bar counter to fire in your choice of snapshot live at just the right moment, placing you in complete control of the performance and what your gear does next.

Drop will merge incoming sequencer and keyboard MIDI with its own internal MIDI before sending it out once more, and it supports all MIDI messages, including 14-bit CCs (NRPN), program change, bank select, aftertouch, pitchbend along with standard notes and CCs. And, feeding back into the digital side of your set-up, you can even use it as an Ableton Live clip launcher.

On board you’ll find two USB-C ports with automatic host detection for quick DAW-based MIDI control, four MIDI in and four MIDI outs (delivered via TRS type A or B sockets) and two CV in and two CV outs for clocks and 0-5V control signals. Power comes via that USB-C connection or the (included) external power supply.

Drop will drop in late summer 2025, at a price that’s as yet TBC. Find out more on Neuzeit Instruments' website.