The original Circuit was fun, powerful and great value. Si Truss asks if this follow-up can top it

CONTACT WHO: Novation WEB: novation.comKEY FEATURES Hardware groovebox featuring two digital polysynths, a four-track sampled drum machine, two standalone MIDI sequencers

THE PROS & CONS

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The new MIDI tracks are an excellent addition

Hardware is now lighter, more portable and better-equipped

MicroSD card makes it far easier to swap out sounds

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4hr battery life is fairly short

Finding and recalling patches without a screen can be tricky

Back in 2015 when Novation released the original Circuit, we were immediately impressed. For a battery-powered instrument priced at just £250, this digital groovebox was remarkably well-equipped, boasting two independent polysynths, a four-track sampled drum machine, send effects and a nifty step-sequencing workflow. It’s a credit to Novation that, even given this strong starting point, Circui has only improved since through a steady stream of firmware updates.

What reservations we had at launch mostly focussed on areas where Circuit felt a little shallow; synth design was limited to adjusting unlabelled macro knobs, and there was no user sample upload. Both of these issues were rectified with the roll-out of Novation’s browser-based Components app, which includes a full editor for the synth and sample libraries. Circuit itself has been fleshed out with a multitude of new features too, including sequencer micro-steps, polyphonic velocity and a host of new patches. In short, if you were an early adopter of the original Circuit, it’s likely you’ll feel you’ve got good value for your £250.

Now Novation have released Circuit Tracks, which despite the new name – which is intended to differentiate it from the underrated Circuit Mono Station and forthcoming Circuit Rhythm – is a straight sequel to that original groovebox. While the launch price is higher this time around, there’s even more functionality and, if anything, Tracks now looks like an even better value proposition than its predecessor.