Novation announces AFX Station - Limited edition of the modern classic Bass Station II monosynth, designed in collaboration with Aphex Twin.

Designed in collaboration with electronic music legend Richard D James aka Aphex Twin, AFX Station is an all-new limited edition of the Novation Bass Station II. A sound designer’s dream, AFX Station has the same powerful feature set as Bass Station II, with the addition of AFX Mode pre-installed, which revolutionises the way the monosynth can be played and programmed. Perfect for sequencing and arpeggiation, every key on the instrument can become a new patch, making it a powerful analogue drum module, a flexible sound design tool, or a killer bass or lead machine. With striking purple reveals and the famous ‘A’ insignia, and a custom giftbox designed by long-time Aphex Twin collaborator Weirdcore, it’s an instant collector’s item.

Novation AFX Station is the perfect combination of digital control with incredible analogue synthesis inside an already phenomenal, classic modern monosynth: Bass Station II. AFX Station packs all the same features and Bass Station II, including two oscillators, a multimode filter, amp and filter modulation, step sequencing and an arpeggiator. It also comes pre-installed with firmware v4.14, which adds new functionality including fixed-duration envelopes, extended sub oscillator controls, oscillator glide diverge, and the much-acclaimed AFX Mode. 

AFX Mode

AFX Mode was conceived by Aphex Twin himself, to turn Bass Station II into a sound designer’s dream. When in AFX Mode, every key becomes a new patch, revolutionising the way Bass Station II can be played. With a completely different sound on every key, the instrument transforms into a hugely powerful analogue drum module, a sound design beast, or a killer bass or lead machine. Whether playing, sequencing or using the arpeggiator, AFX Mode brings a huge sense of creative character to users’ musical creations. Labels for AFX Mode functions indicate how to unleash the potential of the new features. 

New, Aphex Twin-approved look

The stark new design with striking purple reveals and the famous ‘A’ insignia makes AFX Station not just an amazing synth, but an instant collector’s item. Labels provide easy access to AFX Mode functions, making it easy to activate the new features. The limited-edition giftbox was designed by long-time Aphex Twin collaborator Weirdcore, and features custom artwork on the inside and outside with a matte finish and high-quality gloss highlights. 

Brand new artist patches

AFX Station ships with 128 new synth patches and seven new overlay banks from Noyze Lab, Perplex On, Richard Devine, r beny and Lightbath, which channel the creative vision of Aphex Twin. The new Overlay editor in Novation Components allows full control over managing the behaviour of AFX Station in AFX Mode. 

A sound designer’s dream

Alongside the powerful features of Bass Station II, AFX Station revolutionises the way the monosynth can be played and programmed. Perfect for sequencing and arpeggiation, every key on the instrument can become a new patch, making it a powerful analogue drum module, a flexible sound design tool, or a killer bass or lead machine. With striking purple reveals and the famous ‘A’ insignia, it’ll also take pride of place in any synth lover’s studio. 

In addition to all standard functions of Bass Station II — the powerful two-oscillator analogue monosynth with dual-mode filters, modulation, effects, step sequencing and more — AFX Station also features: 

New, Aphex Twin-approved look

Stark new design with striking purple reveals and the famous ‘A’ insignia — not just an amazing synth but an instant collector’s item. Interface labels provide easy access to AFX Mode functions. 

Limited edition giftbox 

Designed by long-time Aphex Twin collaborator Weirdcore, the giftbox features custom artwork on the inside and outside with a matte finish and high-quality gloss highlights. 

Brand new artist patches

128 new synth patches and seven new overlay banks from Noyze Lab, Perplex On, Richard Devine, r beny and Lightbath channel the creative vision of Aphex Twin.

Overlay Editor in Novation Components

New editor in Novation Components allows full control over managing overlays. 

Key Features of v4.14 firmware, pre-installed on AFX Station:

Fixed-duration Envelopes & Retrigger counts

Envelopes can be set to a fixed length, so the decay stage is taken out of play, and the decay slider instead sets the duration of the sustain stage. The number of times the envelopes retrigger can be adjusted, to bring more control for drum synthesis. 

Extended Sub Oscillator controls

The sub-oscillator follows the pitch of oscillator 1, and can be detuned using the coarse and fine controls, so the sub can be tuned to any non-octave-tracking interval you like, for subtle or dramatic creative effect. 

Oscillator Glide Diverge

Oscillator Glide Diverge allows the glide time of oscillator 2 to be slowed down relative to oscillator 1 by a variable amount, causing the two to diverge for interesting portamento effects, for adding thickness and character to basslines, pads and leads.

Microtuning editing

The frequency triggered by each key press can be completely controlled, giving scales another dimension.

Paraphonic mode

The pitches of each of the two oscillators can be controlled separately in its single-voice architecture. Two notes can be played at a time rather than just one, and users can get interesting interactions through the Ring and Filter Mod.