Waldorf Pulse 2

Great synth in a small package!

Being an owner of other Waldorf instruments, the Pulse 2 was another nice addition to my studio. I like the compact desk-top construction, which is also built like a tank, the Pulse 2 brought a unique analog flavor to my rig. The three oscillators are superb and I've made some great little bass sounds that stand out amongst many other synths I own. Definitely recommended.

Good synth but lacks major sounds

For such high quality type of synth I expected a generous sound bank, not just bass and acid, but also the more traditional and orchestral instruments, none of which being present. Sure I could program all these by myself, and after half a year start playing, but I buy a synth not just for the hardware but especially for the sounds. And the matrix type of menu is for me somewhat cumbersome for live play, sure others may like it.

Despite that i had to firmware update it to get it work and startup, it sounds very nice. The oscillators are honest and quite raw. It doesnt sound like the classic waldorfs which are quite metallic but its quite warm. The basses are very good and the paraphonic mode serves well polyphonic situations. The quality made is good and sturdy. Quite heavy for its size.

Affordable Analog Synth

For what you get, the price of this unit is really good. It is built like a tank, and I really like the format. Small and practical! Using the USB, the computer recognises it immediately (I use it with Ableton Live and that works like a charm).

A drawback of the format is of course that every knob has several functions. This is made very easy with the matrix on the front panel. However, I feel this could have been further improved by developing the display a bit further. The display is really big, but sadly most of the time it is only used to display the preset number. I think it would have been better if it gave a bit more visual feedback on the functions (for example, a graph with the ADSR). I think this is a feature on the Blofeld so it clearly can be done... As I said, this is my first synth and for a beginner the layout maybe isn't the best.

It does sound really good! Definitely for leads and basses it's great. Although it is a monophonic synth it can do some polyphonic sounds (!?) but it is clear that the volume reduces when more than two notes are played at the same time.

So all in all, a very affordable, good sounding synth, with a few small but ignorable drawbacks.

Very versatile synth

Like said in the manual, the modulation matrix is the heart of Pulse 2. This takes the synth from basic subtractive synthesis into the world of modular synthesis. The mod matrix is also one of the few things that actually makes use of the fairly large lcd screen - all 8 modulation routes are displayed at once. Hopefully a future firmware update will make more use of the screen elsewhere, eg. visual ADSR envelope or the ability to see all the parameters at once as a list, etc.

At the time of writing (summer 2014), there is still no news about the upcoming FX board, but I have high hopes for it. The drive circuitry is quite nice.

Very adjustable CV and GATE OUT's are definitely a nice bonus if you have other analog gear.

bought for the filter and it came with a nice synth attached

i had been looking out for a waldorf miniworks multifilter for a project i'm working on but they don't come up very often. i was on holiday a couple of weeks ago and thus a bit distracted and unfortunately missed the end of an auction for the first one i'd seen on ebay in a while and so in my frustration decided to buy something new instead, not something i do that often. I ended up pulling the trigger on a Pulse 2 due to it's external input and the Waldorf reputation.

The machine is very nicely put together. i don't really need to comment on the quality of the engineering except to say that they've manged to keep the price very reasonable for something so solid that's also been built in the EU. I like to know that the people making my equipment have been paid and treated ok.

i'm a bit bored of analog synths to be honest but am pleasantly surprised with what i've been able to get out of the Pulse 2 so far. It's hard as nails, modern and has plenty of modulation options. the poly capabilities make it much more than just another mono. It's not knob per function but the matrix is still an intuitive pleasure to use and the generous LCD gives you all the parameter info you need.

The presets are excellent by the way and show well what you can pull off with the tricky modulation and huge oscillators. my only criticism is the very slightly noticeable stepping of the filter but rumour has it that Waldorf will increase the midi resolution to 14bit on the next upgrade which should solve this problem.

I can also recommend the Pulse 2 software editor by SynnyS. I've been using the max4live version and it works well. It has a randomize/mutate function, makes it easy to setup modulation tracks in Live, gives a good patch overview as well as making it possible to map whatever controllers you're using in live so you can twist the envelopes at the same time as the filter, not possible with the Waldorf matrix dials alone.

All in all, i'm very happy with my purchase.