Dreadbox Nymphes: best new analogue synth of 2021
As we celebrate the best of 2021 and look forward to 2022, the Dreadbox Nymphes takes the award for best new analogue synth.
Dreadbox had a strong year in 2021, impressing us with some excellent effects pedals designed to work nicely with synths. But it’s the brand’s Nymphes synth which takes our award for the best new analogue synth this year. We’re suckers for a bit of Greek mythology embedded in the circuitry of our analogue synths, so the Athenian brand’s reference to the eponymous nature deities was surely always going to be a winner. Inspired by nymphs and nature, the synth has a lush, organic character.
It’s got a sound of its own, but an obvious reference point is the legendary Roland Juno-106, another six-voice synth with a gigantic sweet spot. Like the Juno, Nymphes encourages you to explore the sonic options but has a knack of always serving up good sounds no matter which direction you push it in. The single VCOs have waveforming options which allow you to blend between triangle, square and sawtooth signals, while the combination of resonant 24dB/oct low-pass filter and non-resonant 6dB/oct high-pass gives you plenty of scope to shape the tone.
Dreadbox have taken a smart approach with keeping the hardware spect of the Nymphes simple and compact. That’s not a challenge that’s easy to take on. So many synth modules leave you frustrated by menu diving and shared controls, but the Nymphes avoids that frustration with dedicated controls for the most important parameters and a clean, logical menu system. Each of the 14 parameter sliders has a secondary function accessed by engaging the shift button, giving you immediate control of 28 parameters. It’s an impressively effective approach.
The upshot of the simple hardware spec is that the price is kept sensible for a true analogue polysynth from a boutique manufacturer. At £425, the Nymphes is very competitively priced, but you don’t get the sense that corners have been cut to keep it cheap; there’s preset memory, digital reverb, good modulation options including mod wheel, velocity and aftertouch, plus a range of polyphony modes.
The Nymphes is our outright favourite new analogue synth of 2021, but an honourable mention must also go to Make Noise’s outstanding Strega here, a synth which got under our skin with its unique approach to synthesis and processing, making it our favourite mono synth. You can read our thoughts on the Strega here.
Check out our list of the best analogue synths here. The Dreadbox Nymphes is in stock now, priced at £425.