In 1975, a new synth strolled into town. The Cat as it was called was an analog, duophonic, three octave synthesizer that was very similar to the ARP Odyssey. Its keyboard would produce two control voltages that were routed into its two VCOs. An ultra-affordable and even more feature-packed homage to that iconic synthesizer comes in the form of the Behringer CAT. Conjure up the virtually any sound imaginable with incredible finesse and ease. The pure analog signal path is based on authentic VCO, VCF and VCA designs in conjunction with 4 variable and simultaneous oscillator shapes and Duophonic/Paraphonic capabilities. Owning a CAT is like having your own personal time machine, enabling you to freely embrace the past – or shape the future. And the best of all, it doesn’t scratch.
Great care has been taken in engineering the CAT, including the true to the original analog circuitry, legendary VCO, VCF and VCA designs that come together to recreate classic tones that are evocative of classic electronic music. This highly-focused attention to detail is what gives the CAT its ultra-flexible sound shaping capability. It gives you the ability to cover a lot of amazing tones from super-fat bass, tasty leads – and all the way to full on dreamy ambience from the far reaches of your imagination.
The synthesizer tracks laid down in the 1970s and 80s in progressive rock, wave and synth-pop have become classics and have inspired many other artists. The CAT lets you recreate all that magic – or design some incredible and original sounds that will make you a legend in your own right! The CAT has the ability to accept any keyboard controller via MIDI. The signals generated can be tweaked via the Pitch Bend slider which can bend a note up or down one octave. Bump this up to two octaves by flipping the Octave Shift switch up or down. Use the Glide slider to change how fast a note transitions to another; up is faster, down is slower. Combine that with the LFO Freq slider to control the LFO and ADSR repeat tempo and you can create some amazing pulsating portamentos.
The very heart of the CAT’s sound is its two VCOs. The Duophonic/Paraphonic nature of the CAT allows both oscillators to be controlled independently. Use the Fine and Coarse Frequency controls to tune VCO1 to VCO2. Keyboard control on the CAT can be set to either Mono or Poly. Poly mode lets VCO1 generate the highest note played on the keyboard while VCO2 handles the lowest allowing two notes to be played simultaneously. Setting the switch to Mono mode makes VCO1 generate the lowest note depressed on the keyboard.
Waveform switches on both VCOs allow different waveforms to be patched in from the LFO. Choose between Sine, Square, Sample and Hold and even pitch modulation through each VCO. Turning the Modulation Depth knobs in either direction controls the intensity of the effect. VCO2 also comes with a Sync switch that locks VCO1 with it and has them act as one huge oscillator to produce more complex waveforms and dramatic results. Mix VCO1 into VCO2 or vice versa and the CAT can produce some really tasty tones that make themselves at home in your next synth jam.
Features
- Analog synthesizer with dual VCO design for insanely fat sounds
- Authentic reproduction of original “CAT SRM II” circuitry with matched transistors and JFETs
- Pure analog signal path based on authentic VCO, VCF and VCA designs
- 4 variable and simultaneous oscillator shapes (Saw, Tri, mod Pulse and Sub-Octave Square)
- Duophonic/Paraphonic mode allows both oscillators to be independently controlled
- Oscillators can be modulated from 6 different sources
- Classic filter design (low pass with peak/resonance)
- Filter has self-resonance capability
- Filter can be modulated from 6 different sources with 2 modulation depth attenuators
- Dedicated and fully analog sine/square wave LFO
- 2 analog Envelope Generators for modulation of VCF and VCA
- White noise generator dramatically expands waveform generation
- 16-voice Poly Chain allows combining multiple synthesizers
- Complete Eurorack solution can be transferred to a standard Eurorack case
- 47 controls give you direct and real-time access to all important parameters
- Audio input for processing external sound sources for enhanced creativity
- External control inputs and outputs (High Note CV, Low Note CV, Gate, Filter etc.)
- Comprehensive USB/MIDI implementation with MIDI channel and Voice Priority selection
- Designed and engineered in the U.K.