Waldorf built the Q for people who wanted German engineering with an attitude problem. This is a virtual-analog synth that hits like a hardware monster: fat, precise oscillators, that famously aggressive multimode filter, and enough modulation routing to get lost in for a weekend. Multitimbral, deep, and unmistakably blue and yellow, it covers everything from skull-rattling basses to glassy pads without ever sounding polite. There are even PPG-style wavetables hiding in the oscillators when you want to get strange. Not your background synth; the one that wants the spotlight.

FEATURES & PROS:

• 3 Oscillators per Voice: classic analog waveforms plus PPG-style wavetables for stranger territory.
• Twin Multimode Filters: self-resonant low-pass, high-pass, band-pass, notch and comb, rich and precise.
• Huge Mod Matrix: sixteen slots, three LFOs and four envelopes for modulation you can drown in.
• Up to 32 Voices: expandable polyphony and 16-part multitimbrality for whole arrangements in one box.
• Knob-Per-Function Panel: a wall of hands-on controls, the antidote to menu-diving.
• Onboard Effects: two effects busses of chorus, delay, reverb and more to finish patches in the box.
• Bass to Glass: skull-rattling lows, screaming leads and shimmering pads, never once polite.

GENRE / USE

A go-to for trance, techno, industrial and film work. The Q excels at huge basses, screaming leads and shimmering wavetable pads, and its multitimbral engine and onboard effects let it carry whole arrangements. A favourite where a sound needs to be big, bright and cut straight through a dense mix.

THE WORD: Sound on Sound's Gordon Reid stuck with the Q through its rocky software youth and ended up calling it a hugely powerful synth that deserves attention and respect. Read the review.

SPECIFICATIONS

• Year: 1999 to early 2000s
• Type: Virtual-analog synthesizer (rackmount)
• Polyphony: up to 32 voices, 16-part multitimbral
• Oscillators: 3 oscillators plus 2 sub per voice, with PPG-style wavetables
• Filters: 2 multimode filters (low-pass, high-pass, band-pass, notch, up to 24dB)
• Modulation: deep mod matrix, 2 LFOs, 4 envelopes
• Effects: 2 effects busses (chorus, delay, reverb and more)
• Inputs / Outputs: stereo plus multiple individual outs, MIDI in/out/thru
• Mounting: rackmount
• Power: mains
• Manual: Waldorf Q manual (ManualsLib)