Arturia is one of few vendors that can maintain both music hardware and software – with the added benefit of comparative youth. Where Roland and (to a lesser extent) Korg remain shackled by their past, rolling out anxious re-fabrications of the Jupiter 8 et al. the French are in parallel with their new offerings. The MiniFreak/MiniFreak is current in both realms, their V collection can be performed on the new AstroLab keyboard or your laptop – and here comes a virtual Brute – once the code for their analogue hardware – but as a Lab – the software. BruteLab?
There’s been a steady growth in the Brute hardware, from the original Mini, the Mini 2, Micro, Maxi and Poly. This is the original MiniBrute but with 8 voice polyphony. Not the PolyBrute – which has two oscillators expanded to offer morphing and (my bete noire) an extra traditional ladder filter. You do get the recent effects section.
The hardware PolyBrute is lovely I’m sure – but the cost is hardly fleacore. I’m sure they have already engineered a complete PolyBrute V in software but Marketing would be unimpressed if that got out. No matter – the MiniBrute V creates a grand variety of noise with great flair. Not all virtual analogues are interesting. The good ones have grump or grouch or in this case a certain enunciation which I think is the Steiner filter – plus the effects which put a gleam over the sound.
There’s nothing profound here. No wavetables (go to Pigments for that – or Vital just as much) and no digital malarkey. It’s just a really nice analogue style poly, which really should be your choice before any more vintage Rolands.