Following numerous teases, Polyend has finally taken the wraps off Tracker. This, unsurprisingly, is a hardware tracker, though not, as Polyend says, “the first hardware tracker in the music world”.
What Tracker does appear to be, though, is a refreshingly different kind of standalone, portable music-making device. It offers a sampler and wavetable/granular synthesis (plus an FM radio to grab sounds from), a step sequencer and song arranger so that you can put together complete tracks, and a performance mode that enables you to take your Tracker productions to the stage.
Tracker doesn’t have to work in isolation, though; bi-directional MIDI means that you can use it with the other software and hardware in your studio, too, while a large screen, mechanical keyboard and big knob control are designed to make operation and navigation fast and easy.
The vertical sequencer timeline will be familiar to anyone who’s ever used a software tracker before, but Polyend suggests that even those who aren’t familiar with this way of working should be able to get their head around Tracker after a few minutes. You can import samples or record directly into the hardware via mic and line inputs, and once you have your sounds inside, there are a variety of slicing, editing and tweaking options.
Find out more on the Polyend website. Tracker can be pre-ordered now for the price of €499.
