The idea of ​​an acoustic synthesizer may seem like an oxymoron, but these are exactly the kind of unexpected concepts that Korg Berlin created for persecution. This R&D-focused independent division was founded in 2020 by Maximilian Rest and Tatsuya Takahashi, creator of Volcas, Minilogue and a host of other contemporary classics. But since its inception, it has remained fairly quiet. That changed this week at Superbooth, where the team showed off their first Acoustic Synthesis_phase5 prototype.

Unlike a traditional synthesizer that uses oscillators, the Phase5 uses tuned metal forks. These forks are specially designed to reproduce certain fundamental notes and overtones. And since the core of sound generation here is an acoustic resonator, it has certain qualities that a conventional synthesizer does not have. For example, it will give feedback like a guitar when held near an amp, and ring when struck from the side. Takahashi told Fess Grandiose about Reverb, “We’re trying to kind of capture that rawness of the instruments, but at the same time, it’s controlled like a synth.”

So that’s the “acoustic” part: metal teeth that ring and resonate and decay, almost like a Fender Rhodes. The synth part comes from the magnets inside the phase5, which allow you to support only the root note, or the root note and overtones, or just overtones. The overtones can also be modulated with the LFO, creating a sound that can only be described as a seasick bell.

Overall, the sound it generates in the short demo video above is quite unique. It does have a ringing, vaguely Rhodes-like quality to it. But it also sounds like what you’d expect from a singing bowl patch on a synth based on ’90s samples.

For now, Phase 5 is just a prototype, and will most likely stay that way. Right now, Korg Berlin is just assessing the interest in this technology. And if it seems that there is a market for such a strange hybrid acoustic synthesizer, then the company will look for ways to further develop it into a finished product.

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