Dave Smith Tempest Analog Drum Machine

Dave Smith Tempest

The Dave Smith Tempest is a 6-voice, hybrid analog/digital drum machine. It has 16 lit touch and pressure sensitive pads arranged in a 8×2 formation, as well as 2 pressure and position sensitive touch sliders. Each of its 6 voices has 2 analog and 2 digital oscillators. The digital oscillators provide access to over 450 samples and waveforms, while the analog oscillators can produce sawtooth, triangle, saw/triangle, and variable pulse square waves. To further sculpt your drum sounds, each voice also has a sub-octave generator, 5 envelope generators, 2 LFOs, and high and low-pass filters.

You can also apply a range of effects to your sounds via the onboard stereo analog compressor and distortion. Additionally, the Tempest has a beat-synced delay and stutter effect. Each of its 6 voices can be routed out to its own 1/4″ output in addition to the master stereo 1/4″ outs. The Tempest has 5-pin DIN MIDI input and output as well as USB MIDI control.

• 16 pressure- and velocity-sensitive backlit drum trigger pads in an 8 x 2 matrix
• 6 analog voices, each with 2 analog oscillators and 2 digital oscillators, loaded with a large bank of included samples
• Modulation path includes Dave Smith’s classic analog lowpass filter with audio-rate modulation, highpass filter, analog VCA with feedback, 5 envelopes, 2 LFOs, and an extraordinary variety of analog modulation routing options
• Doubles as a 6-voice analog synth
• 6 direct voice outputs plus stereo mix outputs, headphones outputs,
• 2 inputs for foot switches or expression pedals
• MIDI in/out
• USB
• 90 panel controls
• Bright 256 x 64 OLED display
• real-time and step recording
• ROLL button permits creating drum rolls or repeated groove patterns by varying pad pressure as
• the beat records
• ROLL button doubles as a momemtary “stutter” effect when the pads are assigned to play beats. Sustain button holds the note of tuned parts (like a keyboard’s Sustain pedal) or to choke drum sounds or drumbeats when the pad is released
• 2 pressure- and position-sensitive Note FX slide controllers permit real-time recording of note or beat-wide sound parameter changes into the drumbeat as you play
• A variety of unique effects:
• Stereo analog compressor and distortion circuits affect the stereo output mix
• Beat-synced delay is achieved by generating additional delayed note events within the sequencer
• A beat-synced “stutter” effect is created entirely within the sequencer by looping short portions of the drumbeat on demand
• Adjustable swing timing with real-time control