I'm a mainly a bassist by trade, synth studio dweller by night. Bought mainly for a do-it-all keybass and a main desk synth / midi-controller
Having caught the hydra-bug when the original models released, and after steadily studying the manual thereafter, considering making the (rather sizeable) purchase , I jumped at the offer of the exact same engine, but in a smaller, more desk-friendly formfactor, AND with a smaller price-tag.
Despite the rather large amount of expectations I had grown during the wait, the Explorer dissapointed in no regard. I'll go by the list of initial concerns, and how they were met:
1. Keybed
Playability is paramount to me, so this requirement had to be met. The intstrument has mini-keys, as they had to be considering the width available. Despite this they don't feel like a significant compromise, and the feel is by far the best I've felt. No rattling, no plasticy of flimsy feel, a suprisingly sturdy response and fast, tactile action. I also didn't expect the poly-aftertouch to feel so natural, despite the small travel space. You really have to dig into the keybed to hit 127, way more headroom than I would ever need for my playing. 3 octaves is enough for expressing harmonic ideas on two hands, and besides I can always turn to my 88 master keyboard If i need more (though I lack the polytouch on mine. (hint hint, ASM...))
2. The lack of space
Definitely not a big problem. once I got used to the button layout, I patching mods as fast as I could think of them. I'd say I have 90% of the speed I have programming my knob-per-function prologue. Having every control really close by is great for performance and one hand playability. (Also the filter knob and volume being by the mod-strips is a great touch, as I am always riding on those when performing)
3. Overall quality
Solid, good weight, STURDY knobs. I try to wiggle one and the whole table shakes, I think that says enough. Doesn't feel like a corner-cut downsize unlike some other mini-synths.
Overall pros and cons:
Pros:
- Giggable, fits in my backpack.
- Well built.
- Way more features than I could need, but without feeling overwhelming - by virtue of the excellent ux. Feels like you can't hit a limit or creative roadblock when patching.
- Polytouch + touchstrips + bucketloads of mods + random button= Most expressive piece of gear I own, in terms of sound-design AND playing.
- Also sounds excellent, which is most important.
- 600 eurobucks. You can't beat that.
Cons:
- "No" step sequenser. Though the arp and lfos(!) allow the possibility of stepped, chromatic sequensing, and I don't know where they could even fit a fully featured one. If they tried to cram more power into a space this small I think it would cause a supernova.
If you're on the edge, I'd say just buy it. Support great synth-design.