1010music nanobox lemondrop

I was a bit skeptical at first about the thing, but it turned out more than ok. Yes, it's small and a bit menu divey at first but the interface is actually very intuitive an easy to work with once you get the hang of it (it's actually fun to play with and you can get nice sounds easily out of it) The file management system is one of the most straightforward I've ever seen, no hassle there. And now for the main thing - The Sound - it's quite amazing, I kinda get it why it costs so much. The internal processing at 32bit 48k along with the quality DACs really make it sound rich, lush, high end, pro, however you want to call it. The onboard effects are more than decent and usable - they're obviously not strymon or empress, but they're good enough so that it won't justify buying a separate pedal for it. If I had to complain about something, it'd be about some of the things that the 1010 team already confirmed that they're working to implement in a future firmware update. (Currently it doesn't receive program change via MIDI and it doesn't have a grain envelope (it only has regular ADSRs for AMP and MOD/Filter), nor the reverse grain or the separate oscillators in separate filters options) Overall I do think it's worth the price, and with future firmware updates that'll address some of the missing stuff, it will be an absolute gem.

A great tool for timbrical experimentation. Lots of interesting textures out of the box, plus all the samples you might want to add. The ability to granulate live audio allows for some nifty tricks, such as making a mono audio signal both polyphonic and stereo. The small form factor may be a put-off for some people and a bonus for others. In my case it was meant to be part of a portable setup, so it's OK. The small box means audio and MIDI ins and outs are 3'5'' jacks, which is workable yet not that ideal. Having said that, the tiny screen it is very responsive and makes the most of the synth (and I have big clumsy fingers), which is totally usable standalone and in a live situation. Of course most parameters are midi-controllable anyway. Given the fatness of the sound, 4 voices of polyphony are enough. Easy to learn and control, and tons of inspirational sounds.

The good: great sound, amazing possibilities, line in granulation, can be used as an effects processor for line in signal, portable, small footprint, cute

The bad: interface navigation is clumsy, switching presets requires 3 steps (4 if you want to get to the sequencer to trigger a note and hear the preset you selected), preset switching is not smooth, there is a glaring half second gap and the previous sound is interrupted abruptly, no usb midi, no bluetooth midi.

For the price, I would have expected usb midi and a smoother preset switching.
Hopefully the interface navigation can be improved in future firmware updates and usb midi added.

Conclusion: I love it, I’m keeping it, I use it everyday and it brings a smile to my face, but I don’t know if I can justify buying it again if it were stolen. Maybe if it were 80 to 100 euros cheaper?

Very compact but powerful. Intuitive workflow. You can turn any sound into a deep synth. Very ambiant, but with the right samples it can do almost anything. The editing is a bit limited but it does make the machine very easy to use, and by being creative you can still produce an infinity of sound if you use the internal recorder correctly. Minus one star, because the connectivity is a bit limited with the mini jacks.