At Superbooth 2025, being held May 8-10 at the FEZ-Berlin, Erica Synths, in collaboration with Hexinverter, has introduced HexDrums, a hybrid analog/digital drum machine.
The HexDrum has 10 sound sources, mostly based on the Hexinverter Mutant series of percussion modules: two kick drums for different (or combined) flavors – the BD9 and Bass drum, an optimized Mutant Machine, Snare drum, Clap, Rimshot and HiHats. To complete the setup, Erica Synths Cymbals are added, featuring 10 sets of crash and ride cymbal samples.
All drums have individual outputs. For the master section, they are panned in the stereo field before being sent into the Compressor and Master Drive, derived from the Mutant Glue. A special feature is the kick drum-controlled sidechain that can be used to animate drum patterns on the beat.
A hands-on sequencer lets you create patterns up to 64-steps, with per-track accent, per-step microtiming, ratchets, rolls, per-step probability and a memory of 16 banks with 16 patterns each.
“Our plan was always to use the Mutant Drum DNA to create a next-level desktop drum machine. We began early work on one before the Pandemic,” explains Hexinverter’s Stacy Gaudreau. “I’m so glad that the Erica Synths crew was able to carry out the vision and finish the dream!”
Availability:
HexDrums will be available for purchase later this year. Details are to come at the Erica Synths site.
To the editor: You accidentally put a picture of an sh-4d in the article.
I am just not feeling what’s unique about this drum machine compared to others. The build quality must be nice though.
There are very few analog knob-per-function drum machines with integrated sequencers on the market: Pulsar-23, which follows an entirely different paradigm; DrumBrute; and a few Behringer drum machines. Everything else uses parameter matrixes, menus, or is digital. But the bigger question is, why does there have to be anything unique about it for it to be good? The classic x0x formula is still in high demand, as the prices of the original machines reflect.
quite so! however, this drum machines has several knobs per voice. so that’s kind of cool. i just like to use an SQ64 with a modular rig, and a ROMpler for percussion.
There’s also the Erica Synths Perkons and the Neutral Labs Scrooge (which is pretty unusual in its design).
What’s unique about the same old guitars and keyboards that get churned out every year?
The idea of bringing together modules into a tidy box makes total sense. Anyone buying these modules is using em to create a drum machine anyway. Looks awesome. Love the compressor at the end. I’d buy it.