by Julian Schmauch | 4,4 / 5,0 | Approximate reading time: 6 Minutes | Our Rating: 4,0 / 5,0
Review: Pittsburgh Modular Taiga, semi-modular synthesizer

Review: Pittsburgh Modular Taiga, semi-modular synthesizer  ·  Source: Marcus Schmahl

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Pittsburgh Modular’s recent semi-modular synth Taiga ticks a lot of interesting boxes. It’s a lightweight desktop box with a heavy-weight sound. And if your desktop is too crowded, you can always make it part of your Eurorack setup, if you have the space. New sounds from new combinations – that’s the little sound designer’s motto. Here’s what we thought. 

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Originally published on Gearnews.de by Marcus Schmahl.

Pittsburgh Modular Taiga – Highlights

  • semi-modular synthesizer
  • Can be put into a Eurorack system
  • 42 rotaries, 11 buttons, and 60 minijack i/o’s
  • FM synthesis and Waveshaper per oscillator
  • integrated BBD Delay
  • Preamp
  • resonating filter and resonating Lowpass-Gate
  • Arpeggiator/Sequencer
  • MIDI In/Out

How does the Taiga sound? And how does it into my Eurorack sound design workflow in my studio? I was able to test and answer both questions in my music room. Thanks to Sonic Sales and Pittsburgh Modular for providing a review unit!

What a beauty: the Pittsburgh Modular Taiga

What a beauty: the Pittsburgh Modular Taiga

Unboxing the synth

Unboxing the Taiga is a rather bland affair. There is the device itself, an external power supply, ten Nazca Noodles patch cables, a TRS-to-DIN MIDI adapter, and a quick start guide. But the synth just looks inspiring right from the start. A variety of differently sized and colored rotaries and countless silver patch points that just want to be noodled with. Plus, Pittsburgh Modular is known for making some of the best-sounding synths in the game. Here we go!

First Steps with the Taiga

As a die-hard gearhead, I quickly found my way around the device and was soon able to create a couple of interesting sounds, even without using a single patch cable. Every patch point has been routed internally, which frees from the headache of endlessly patching right from the start. With the Pittsburgh Modular Taiga, noobs and synth beginners will be able to dial in pro-sounding patches rather quickly.

Let’s look at the Taiga. On the left side, you’ll find the oscillator section, with a variety of parameters like Pitch, FM, and Shape. Right next to that you can adapt the clock’s behavior and set up the Arpeggiator. In the middle of it all sits the mixer section. Here you’ll find four dedicated mix knobs for each of the three oscillators and the noise generators. Right underneath that comes the built-in preamp.

A dial to set the LFO’s speed sets here as well. The biggest knob is the bright-blue Cutoff dial, with a smaller dial for setting the resonance right next to it. The filter offers three modes: low pass, band pass, and high pass. Two dedicated envelope generators sit at the very right of the synth. one for controlling the VCA, and one for the filter cutoff.

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All the knobs!

All the knobs!

Outputs and effects of the Pittsburgh Modular Taiga

Next comes the VCA section. Or Low Pass Gate, if you so desire. While in this mode, you can create some lovely overtones while pushing the “Dynamics” dial. Also in Low Pass Gate mode, you get an additional resonance point to control. This second resonance dial almost works like a one-knob envelope generator which makes it really handy for percussive sounds.

At the very right side of Pittsburgh Modular Taiga, you’ll get the BBD delay with the three dials Regen, Time, and Dry/Wet-Mix. The grey dials underneath each section control the intensity of their respective CV inputs. With these dials, you can control the LFO’s Shape CV for all three oscillators. Two other grey dials you use to determine the frequency of the LFO or the envelope in the filter section at CV1 and CV2. With the three remaining three grey dials, you can set the amount of the Response CV, the Dyn CV for envelope 2 and time CV. I’ve made a whole techno track the Pittsburgh Modular Taiga, as you can see in this video.

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Sound design at home, sound addition on stage

The most exciting part about this synthesizer is its countless possibilities for sound generation. You can work with the built-in patch point and create infinite paths toward finding the perfect sound. The Pittsburgh Modular Taiga just demands experimentation. With that, it’s close to a small Eurorack system.

I was especially keen on the three Shape CV dials as a way to mix the shapes of the three oscillators in combination with the noise generators to create new sonic worlds. If this is the only synth you own, however, you’re going to need some time to find the perfect sound. Because the Pittsburgh Modular Taiga’s sweet spot is quite narrow and equally hard to find. It can take hours of endlessly tweaking Shape, FM, Tuning, and more to find their perfect setting.

Colors and black back plate

Colors and black back plate

But it seems that being a lead synth isn’t what the Taiga was meant to be anyway. It becomes an absolute modulation monster if you use it in your Eurorack system in combination with some other modules. It modulates like crazy and it’s equally satisfying to modulate it with external modules. I’m a little wary of its live capabilities, I must admit, due to its rather compact size. The dials just move too easily when you accidentally brush by them. And that can suddenly destroy your sound!

Conclusion about the Pittsburgh Modular Taiga

Pittsburgh Modular Taiga adds its good looks to my studio setup. And its lovely sounds as well. From simple arpeggios, and pumping bass lines to experimental drones to whole percussion sections, everything is possible. The Taiga is equally enjoyable for pros and beginners.

I just could not help but be a bit frustrated by the easily moving dials. My big hands just weren’t meant for such delicate synthesizing! And finding a sound’s sweet spot through the three Shape dials is tough. If you’re off just a little too much with any one of them, the whole sound falls apart rather quickly. I would have loved a broader range for each knob to dial in the sound. Nonetheless, you can make sounds for just about any genre with the Taiga.

This little synth at this price is both a welcome extension for sound designers and an easy-to-grasp entry into the world of modular synths. The Taiga does not have to shy away from other synths in this price range.

Pittsburgh Modular Taiga

Pittsburgh Modular Taiga

Pros and Cons

Pros

  • Plenty of routing possibilities through the semi-modular system (60 patch points)
  • Waveshaper and FM per oscillator
  • A lot of fun for beginners
  • Interesting sound design possibilities
  • Arpeggitor/Sequencer
  • Effects

Cons

  • dials very loose and close together, too easily movable
  • narrow sweet spot for sounds
  • no USB jack
The Taiga's back

The Taiga’s back

Price and specifications for the Pittsburgh Modular Taige

The Pittsburgh Modular Taiga is available at Thomann* (Affiliate) for €799,00.

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Pittsburgh Modular Taiga
Pittsburgh Modular Taiga
Customer rating:
(6)

More on the Pittsburgh Modular Taiga

  • Website for the Pittsburgh Modular Taiga
  • More about Pittsburgh Modular

Videos about the synth

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You are currently viewing a placeholder content from Youtube. To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.

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You are currently viewing a placeholder content from Youtube. To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.

More Information

You are currently viewing a placeholder content from Youtube. To access the actual content, click the button below. Please note that doing so will share data with third-party providers.

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* 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!

Image Sources:
  • What a beauty: the Pittsburgh Modular Taiga: Marcus Schmahl
  • All the knobs!: Marcus Schmahl
  • Colors and black back plate: Marcus Schmahl
  • Pittsburgh Modular Taiga: Marcus Schmahl
  • The Taiga's back: Marcus Schmahl
Review: Pittsburgh Modular Taiga, semi-modular synthesizer

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One response to “Review: Pittsburgh Modular Taiga, semi-modular synthesizer”

    Paul Boos says:
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    One other thing I confirmed with Pittsburgh Modular (I think it was Richard who responded to a Q on YouTube); this format is identical to Moog Studio series, meaning it can go into one of the Moog racks. It will feel like your taking your Moog ecosystem into West Coast territory! I’m excited about that personally…

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