My Highlights of 2025 – The Big Winners of My Year
2025 was a busy year, but when looking back, it seemed to be a fairly quiet year when it came to big, new releases. This could be down to the fact that, post-COVID, there was a glut of releases in 2024, so this year may well have been some sort of rebalancing.
That’s not to say there wasn’t some cool stuff going on and being released, so I decided to look back over the last 12 months and pick out some things that stuck in my mind and my ears. Naturally, this is a purely subjective list, so why not let me know your 2025 synthy highlights in the comments!
My Highlights of 2025
Superbooth 2025
If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a hundred times, but one of the biggest and most enjoyable things about the synth community is the people themselves. And one of the best places to bring both things together is Superbooth.
Once again, Herr Schneider and his amazing team put on the very best gathering of electronic music manufacturers and consumers that there is in the world. It truly has become the world’s leading synth event, bar none, and it attracts people from all over to spend three days in a Berlin park with the cream of the industry.
We were blessed with amazing weather again, which makes me wonder if Herr Schneider sacrifices a Eurorack module to the synth gods for a week of solid sunshine! This is sometimes the only time I get to hang with certain friends from around the world, like Michelle Moog-Koussa, Anthony Marinelli, Dave Spiers, Nick Batt, Manny Fernandez, Lisa Bella Donna and many more.
And then there’s the gear. So. Much. GEAR! Some of the highlights have made it into this list, so I will save my thoughts for later, but the sheer number of manufacturers, developers and performers was bigger than ever before.
I spent a brilliant morning at the famous Synthesizer Museum before making my way to the airport on Sunday, which was a perfect way to end a perfect week in one of the most amazing, welcoming and vibrant cities on the planet. Roll on Superbooth 2026!
Frap Tools Magnolia
The one synth I made a beeline for at Superbooth 2025 was the utterly brilliant Magnolia from Frap Tools. Now, you might think that being Italian, I would naturally have some sort of bias towards these fellow countrymen, but honestly, the Magnolia was super impressive, regardless of its country of origin.
Using oscillators and filters drawn from their already extensive collection of Eurorack modules, they assembled a polyphonic analogue beast that is due to launch in 2026. The prototype they brought to Superbooth was pretty far down the line already, and when I got my hands on it, it sounded as beautiful as it looked.
What struck me the most was the enthusiasm and willingness to take on board suggestions from potential end-users. This kind of attention to detail is definitely great to see, and they’re not alone, but it was obvious that they were super proud of Magnolia and keen to make it as good as possible.
I can’t wait for Magnolia to hit the shops, and I’ll be hoping to invest in one myself. Watch out for a full review of the finished article, right here at Gearnews.com!
Moog Messenger
When the news broke that inMusic had successfully acquired Moog Music, opinion was split between those who saw it as a legendary company saved and those who feared a cheapening of this iconic brand. In 2025, they launched the first true product of this new era (Muse was already done when the takeover occurred).
Messenger had a lot of weight to carry on its small shoulders, and Moog chose Superbooth 25 to debut their new baby to the world. Brilliantly recreating the vibe of Messenger’s cute marketing campaign within a room at FEZ, their room was my first port of call on Day 1.
I’d already booked one of the first appointments with my dear friend, Erik Norlander, who proceeded to give me a wonderful interview and demo of this new mono synth. And it didn’t take long for me to surmise that this was going to be a huge success.
Moog needed to build a synth for the masses, something that would sell in large numbers and steady the boat. Where the Moog of old may have insisted on premium quality materials throughout, new Moog made sensible choices, did not cut corners but managed to keep the price at a point where way more people could jump on board.
One of those people was me. I bought one straight away and am blown away that I finally have that Moog sound in my sonic arsenal. And it really does have that Moog character. That has not gone away, and Messenger, I feel, will be the first in a long line of great Moog synths in the coming years.
KORG miniKORG 700Sm
I’ve often waxed lyrical about my deep love and affection for the KORG miniKORG 700, based on the fact it was the first synth I ever laid hands on and spent time with. I wrote about that experience earlier this year, spurred on by my acquisition of the new miniKORG 700Sm.
Following in the footsteps of the new 700FS, this shrunken version retains everything that is in the FS, just in a smaller form factor. And it is one of the most beautiful-looking and sounding things in my studio. In these financially challenging times, it is great that we can get the 700 experience for not a lot of cash!
Replicating the original 700S entirely, and adding some modern extras like MIDI, patch storage and stability, the 700Sm will satisfy original users like me, and surprise anyone that hasn’t played one before. There is something so rich and beautiful about its tone and utterly distinctive.
Of course, this isn’t the first time that KORG have given us compact editions of classic recreations. They’ve already done it with the ARP Odyssey and ARP 2600, so who else is hoping that the trend continues with the PS-3300? I’m already saving for that!
Omnisphere 3
Often referred to as the only software synth you need, Omnisphere is one of those instruments that does everything and does it well. The brainchild of the legend that is Eric Persing, it belongs to a small number of products that are so good, so well designed, and so perfect in its execution that it never needs to be discounted. Ever.
It also doesn’t need to be updated and tinkered with on an annual basis. Updates come and deliver new content and functionality, with no fluff or nonsense required. It simply sits there and does exactly what it sets out to do. And it is everywhere.
So when Eric broke cover and announced Omnisphere 3, it caused ripples throughout the industry. At first glance, one might think it was simply a larger library with a few tweaks under the hood. But no, it was way more than that. It embraced MPE, delivered amazing new sound manipulation tools and delivered an effects section that could now be used independently as a plugin.
The list of improvements is many, and you’re best off reading the review we did of it earlier this year, but it is at this point that, despite all the hype I wrote a few paragraphs above, I have never owned Omnisphere. That is, until now. I finally took the plunge and haven’t regretted it for a single moment.
It is a dangerous instrument that will have you falling deep down a rabbit hole of inspiration and wonder. Sure, it is a massive preset jungle, but the presets are of such quality and in such great numbers that you will always be finding sounds you have never heard before, even if you have!
Those Who Also Served
I hate leaving things out, so here’s a list of some other highlights of 2025…
- The return of Absynth!
- The brilliantly powerful and cute AstroLab 37!
- Cherry Audio’s magnificent Mercury-8!
- 1010music’s bento!
- Waldorf’s Protein!
- Bad Dog Design’s OSPRAY-8!
- A reborn PPG 1002!
I could go on!
Wrapping It Up
It’s been another good year in our little corner of the musical world. I think 2026 will be even better with some amazing new instruments launching in the coming weeks and months. As always, you can rely on full, accurate, objective and authentic coverage, right here on Gearnews.
One thing is for sure: as soon as I publish this article, I’ll be thinking of more great moments of the year! If you’re going to Superbooth 2026, or Synth East in Norwich, Synth South West in March or Bristronica, do make sure you come and say hi and lets make this coming year bigger and better than 2025! See you all soon!
*This post contains affiliate links and/or widgets. When you buy a product via our affiliate partner, we receive a small commission that helps support what we do. Don’t worry, you pay the same price. Thanks for your support!
This might also interest you
