Analog Pads, Basses & Leads – From A DSI Tempest Drum Machine

Dave Smith Instruments Tempest drum machine

Here’s a series of videos that demonstrate that the Dave Smith Instruments Tempest drum machine is more than meets the eye.

Each of the Tempest’s six analog voices has two analog oscillators, plus two digital oscillators (with a large bank of included samples). They also feature a classic Curtis analog lowpass filter with audio-rate modulation, an additional highpass filter, analog VCA with feedback, five envelopes, two LFOs, a variety of analog modulation routings.

Smith notes, “Although optimized for drum sounds, it excels at tuned sounds as well, and even doubles as a six-voice analog keyboard synth.”

Check out the video, via dreamprobe, that show the Tempest being used for pads, basses and leads, and let us know what you think!

9 thoughts on “Analog Pads, Basses & Leads – From A DSI Tempest Drum Machine

  1. For people on the fence – I preordered one of these over the summer. It came in November, and for most of the first three months I had buyer’s remorse. It’s hard. I didn’t have any analog drum synthesis experience, and it’s a lot of instrument to learn from scratch.

    But I stuck with it and this is now my absolute favorite piece of synth hardware (disclaimer: I’ve never owned a 909). The synth architecture is great once you get to know it, and the sequencer is the best I’ve ever seen on an instrument (I have indeed sequenced a 909, and am a regular Elektron user). On top of that, Chris Pym, the guy who programs the OS, has been an absolute machine updating features. I don’t rock the beta versions on the DSI forum, but it’s already on the third iteration since release.

    As always try before you buy (it’s DSI gear, and as such fairly modern-sounding), but the EM reviewer’s assertion that the Tempest is destined to become a classic feels right to me.

  2. The Tempest is awesome and can produce a much wider variety of sounds than what is in the video. No offense Dreamprobe’s programming, but many of those patches are very similar. The Tempest can do much cooler stuff.

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