Hammond blends a monosynth with a piano, organ and ensemble in the SK Pro
The legendary organ maker has unveiled a new instrument during the Believe In Music Week.
In lieu of a NAMM Show this year, manufacturers are releasing new products on the Believe In Music platform instead. In the run-up to the event, Hammond, the maker of the coveted B-3 organ, has announced the SK Pro, an electric organ, piano, ensemble and monosynth hybrid that builds on the SK-1.
Earlier in January, a demonstration of the SK Pro playing some wild FM tones was circulating around online synth communities, though very little was let on about the instrument. Now, the brand has revealed that the SK Pro is built with a Modelled Tonewheel 1 Engine based on the Hammond XK-5 and a physical-modelled analogue-style monosynth. Hear it in action in the video below.
Hammond has said the complex but easy-to-use SK Pro will be available in 61 and 73 note designs. A close-up of the monosynth section can be seen below, featuring an oscillator with some interesting waveforms: Duo, Unison, pulse, sync. FM and noise. A low-pass filter can be controlled with cutoff, resonance and drive parameters, with modulation via an ADSR envelope which can also affect pitch.
You’ll get five iconic organ types from the SK Pro: Hammond, Farfisa, VOX, pipe organ and Acetone, with drawbars to alter the amplitude of the multiple tones. A piano section will give you acoustic and electric piano sounds, plus calvinet, harpsichord and chromatic percussion, plus an Other section for more instruments, such as guitars. An ensemble section features wind instruments, choirs, synth pads, bass tones and Other.
A screen in the centre of the instrument provides information and visual feedback on patches and parameters. Four white buttons just below will let you activate or deactivate the organ, piano, ensemble and monosynth, which can all be activated simultaneously. Sections can be split across the keyboard, too. Get a deeper look in Jim Alfredson’s overview video below.
A reverb dial is housed just next to the synth, which alters the depth of the selected reverb. You can set each a reverb for each section, so you can have a spring reverb for your piano and a hall on your monosynth, for example.
Presets, or Combinations as Hammond is calling them, can be accessed and loaded via the menu, and can feature all four sections. 100 slots are available to save your own Combinations, too.
All in all, the SK Pro seems like an intricate, powerful and versatile instrument that might make a fine addition to keyboard players and synth enthusiasts alike. No word on price yet, but we expect more information to be revealed throughout the Believe In Music Week.
For more on Hammond, head to hammondorganco.com
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