Superbooth 2019: Novation has unveiled a new flagship polysynth featuring a two-part, 16-voice synth engine based on that found in the company’s desktop synth Peak.
Summit is essentially two Peaks in one box, which can be used either as a single synth engine or split to create two patches that can be blended, layered or split across the synth’s 61-note keyboard.
As with Peak, Summit combines digital and analogue technology, using Novation's New Oxford Oscillators to provide a high-resolution digital sound source that is then processed through a stereo analogue signal path.
Here that signal path incorporates dual multimode filters and an analogue VCA per-voice. There are also three stages of analogue distortion – pre- and post-filter, and post-VCA.
The oscillators themselves, meanwhile, make use of Field Programmable Gate Array chips. There are three oscillators available per-voice, capable of analogue emulation along with wavetable and FM synthesis.
On the modulation front, Summit has one amp and two modulation envelope generators, all of which are of a loopable ADSR design, plus four LFOs. Alongside the multiple modes of distortion, Summit adds chorus, delay and reverb processors, all of which can be modulated.
Control-wise, Summit uses the same semi-weighted 61-note keyboard as Novation’s recent SL MkIII controllers, which impressed us a lot when we reviewed them last year. As with that controller, the keyboard here is aftertouch-equipped.
There’s an onboard arpeggiator, too, with a selection of preset rhythms and controls for rate and gate length. The front panel, meanwhile, builds on the design of Peak with the addition of extra hands-on control for modulation and effects.
Around the back, Summit has two stereo outputs, a headphone out and a stereo input, which allows external signals to be processed via the onboard effects using one of the synth’s two multitimbral parts. There’s a signal CV modulation input, too.
We've no word on price and availability just yet, but hope to have more on that soon. In the meantime, check out the Novation website for more info.
