Liven 8bit Synth An Affordable, Portable & Powerful 8-bit Synthesizer

At the 2020 NAMM Show, Sonicware introduced their Liven 8-bit synthesizer – an affordable synth (about $165) that features an 8-bit waveform memory synthesizer with step sequencer, 32-bit effects and lots of hands-on control.

It’s portable, can run on battery power and has analog sync for working with devices like Korg Volcas.

We talked with Sonicware product specialist Kyle Kilpatrick, who gave us a demo of the Liven’s synth engines, sequencing capabilities and more.

Features:

  • MIDI IN & OUT
  • SYNC IN & OUT
  • Built-in Speaker
  • Stereo line output
  • Stereo line input
  • Headphone output
  • 9V DC, 6 AA batteries
  • Four 8bit wave memory synth engines ( WARP, ATTACK, MORPH, FM )
  • Powerful voice mode( POLY, MONO, LEGATO, UNISON and ARPEGGIATORS )
  • ADSR EG
  • LPF, HPF, BPF
  • Chorus, Flanger, Delay, Hall and Plate Effects
  • 1xLFO ( for Pitch & Filter Freq)
  • 128-patch memory
  • 128-waveform memory
  • 64-step Sequencer, 128 patterns, Real-time and step recording, Pattern chain, Metronome
  • Octave shift
  • Pitch bend
  • Swing control
  • Looper
  • Parameter automation

Pricing and Availability

The LIVEN 8bit Warps synthesizer is being funded via a Kickstarter project and is available to backers starting at about $165 USD.

19 thoughts on “Liven 8bit Synth An Affordable, Portable & Powerful 8-bit Synthesizer

  1. I put in on it – looking forward to pairing with the electribe e2 and volcas since you can run them all via simple sync and the electribe comes with a bunch of chip/lofi sounds making it a pretty cool portable pairing

    1. It would be nicer if Behringer designed their own products. People’s obsession with this massive Chinese factory copying everyone else’s work is bizarre.

      1. It’s just a lame attempt at trolling. They think that they are edgy and original, but they are neither. They just keep beating the dead horse, because they don’t have any ideas. Let alone own ones.

  2. They have a Kickstarter reward option that gives you an ELZ-1 and a Liven for $549 plus shipping. ( I think it came to $569 for me in the US.) So you get both for less than what an ElZ-1 goes for ($599). Not a bad deal!

  3. This Liven is easily the best “chiptune” hardware since the “elektron Sidstation (1998)” utilizing the Commodore 64 “MOS658” chip from the year 1981!

    And that says something!

    Chiptune to the future!

  4. That’s an incredible amount of machine as compared to a similarly priced Volca. I’m not really a fan of the sounds but dayyyum—impressed anyway.

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