Overview
The SuperNova II is a VA synthesizer (an upgrade of the SuperNova) released by Novation Music Systems in 2000 in the midst of an intense battle of VA synthesizers that would soon decide a clear victor. Among these were the Access Virus B, JP-8080, Nord Lead 2, and AN1x. The SuperNova II was a beast; it represented the pinnacle of what Novation has ever offered and was one of the most powerful synths of all time. Out of all of those synths, in the number of sheer features it was really only comparable to the Virus. Pitting it against the Virus; what the SuperNova II lacks in modulation options (a small but useful mod matrix with 5 possible sources modulating 5 possible destinations), it made up by a number of quirky and unique features that are unique to it, and make the SuperNova II a very unique synth.
Unfortunately though, the beast that was the SuperNova II did not survive the maelstrom. The evolution of the market, and the eventual loss of the “VA beast” position to the Virus, actually favored the downgrade of the SuperNova, the Nova, which evolved into what is offered by Novation today, which is a far cry from the SuperNova II.
Novation SuperNova II (2000)
Oscillators
SuperNova II OscillatorsLike the SuperNova, the SuperNova II has three oscillators with square or saw waves available, plus a white noise source. Strangely, there is a “hardness” setting for each oscillator, which essentially removes successive partials until you are left with just the sine wave fundamental. It can be used as an extra filter (infinite pole), and is one of the ways to obtain a sine wave or triangle-sounding wave. There is also the well-known feature that all the oscillators have a sync sub-osc that can drive them into oscillator sync without the use of an additional oscillator.
However less well known are the two bizarre options make their appearance in the oscillator bank; the “sync skew” and “formant width” parameters, that may make an assortment of digital and aggressive sounds. To put it simply, they both alter the waveforms at the cycle level. However, sync skew squishes the wave “horizontally”, while formant width squishes the wave vertically at the end of each cycle. Both of these parameters can be used simultaneously. Sync skew will only affect a synced wave, and can go to both positive and negative 63, with 0 being default sync.
Using sync skew often, in my experience, sounds like frequency modulation. This makes sense given the manual’s description of skew; “swashing the waveform at the end of its cycle with positive modulation and swashing it at the beginning of its cycle.” This is basically some sort of cyclic modulation that is occurring with the wave, hence, frequency modulation. Formant width, to my ears, seems to remove the fundamental. Demos of these are below;
Normal Sync (111KB)
In the oscillator bank, there are also 3 audio modulators, all of which can be toggled between FM and ring;
Osc 1 modulates Osc 3
Osc 2 modulates Osc 3
Noise modulates Osc 1
These are heard independently of the oscillators (but not the noise source) and can be mixed in the mixer section, so you are able to mix 6 sources of audio together.
The FM options are new to the SuperNova II, already making it a 3-op FM synthesizer. However, the SuperNova II’s LFOs have a huge frequency range well into the audio frequencies. On the “high” speed settings, you are able to use the LFOs to achieve full FM, so two more FM modulators can actually be applied to any OSC using the LFO. These features make the SuperNova II possibly one of the most powerful FM synths in recent existence. Given that you can use any of the given wave forms, not just sine waves, this clearly already rivals all but the most powerful FM giants of yesteryear.
The Double Saw, etc.
While the SuperNova II already has a Unison feature with settings 2 to 8, making it already quite “fat”, double Saw is included (for both SuperNova II and I) as in OS update.
The Double Saw is essentially what PWM is for square waves. The Double Saw wave allows you to modulate the phase of the saw (under the “width” parameter) using an LFO to produce a sort of “PWM” that sounds like 2 detuned saws, or something else entirely, as with a variable width square.
The Filter and Layering
The filter is somewhat akin to that of the Virus. On the SuperNova I, there is only a 12/18/24 pole band/high/low pass and band reject filter. However on the SuperNova II, there are “special filters”; 3 “hyper-resonant” filters (HP, BP and LP) and a series of dual normal filters in parallel. The hyper resonant filters are unique to the SuperNova II and go into self oscillation at quite low resonance values compared to most synths. You are also able to “Q norm” the volume of the resonance. High pass and low pass filters are the only ones not combined into a dual filter, presumably because this would have been too redundant to a BP filter. Strangely, Novation does not say what slope these special filters are, but I have guessed that they are all 4 pole.
The filter section also has a filter width knob, which you can use to alter the “width” of the dual filters, as well as assign two different cutoff frequencies for the hyper resonant filters. The SuperNova II thus excels in making vocal sounds.
Like the Virus there is an “Overdrive” on the filter, but has only an “Overdrive Curve” parameter to alter it. It sounds quite nice, though more digital in tone than the Virus’s
Overall, the SuperNova II has a very “rubbery” filter. Very liquid. It reminds me a lot of the JP-80x0’s filter, in that it is very close to replicating analog self-oscillation effects, and other filter behaviors at high resonance values. I must say though that the SuperNova II’s filter holds its own and has its own sound that is distinct from other VA’s and real analogs.
The SuperNova II also excels in multi-timbral layering, like the Virus. Using the Performance feature, you can call up to 8 programs and layer them into one performance. It is extremely easy to edit each program within the performance, set polyphonies, etc. Making an entire song just on the SuperNova II is a breeze, and combined with the Double Saw and Unison, you can create absurdly fat sounds.
Effects
Then of course, are the famous effects of the SuperNova I and II. Novation says that the effects of the SuperNova II are improved from the SuperNova I, but they are essentially the same. There is; delay, distortion, chorus/phaser/flanger, reverb, pan/tremolo, and EQ/comb filter. All of these can be used simultaneously for each program. Yes, this means that you could possibly have a performance with 56 effects going on simultaneously.
Most people rant and rave that it is a quality vs. quaintly issue, but to my ears the effects are quite good. The reverb is complained about the most, but what do you expect? Lexicon quality reverb? The reverb is definitely usable in a song; it has a plastic sound as apposed to a natural ambient sound…sort of a dense 80’s like coloring that is quite useful for a lot of things that don’t need to sound really natural. The chorus/phaser/flanger sound just like you would expect, and the distortion is somewhere between a digital and analog distortion effect.
The chain of the effects can be altered be an esoteric option deep in one of the menus, if need be.
Here is an entire song I made with the SuperNova II (except for the vocoder like sounds, although the SuperNova II does have a vocoder). It showcases the SuperNova II’s FM and effect capabilities, as well as the vocal filter types.
Thoughts
The failure of the SuperNova II at the market probably come about as a result of several factors; the rise of the “bedroom producer” market of synths, the success of the competing Virus, and also important to be mentioned, software synthesizers.
I say software synthesizers because in my view, the SuperNova II is the archetypical VA synthesizer, and the precedent of some modern softsynths. The SuperNova piles on the FM, Ring, the bizarre waveform modifying parameters, the effects, the weird filter types and options, everything that isn’t really expected in a classic analog. Does it sound “analog”? Sometimes, especially the filter. Can it sound un-analog? In spades. When the SuperNova II sounds “thick” it does not by the quality of the oscillators/unison, but by assaulting you with sheer quantity of sound (6 mixable outputs in osc bank plus double saw, plus unison, plus layering mode, plus effects). When it is interesting, it is not because of inherent analog instability, but a multitude of creative parameters. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, just the yin to analog’s yang.
Where did people eventually turn to where they needed decidedly un-analog “quantity over quality” sounds with tons of bizarre options and tons of effects? Software. This leaves the people looking for a strictly analog sound working with hardware, and who really didn’t know what to make of all these weird parameters and things that didn’t have to do with making a Minimoog PWM lead, hence the fall of the SuperNova II.
The SuperNova II is still worth getting though, because in my opinion it still sounds better than software, while having a better layout (everything is on the face) and less hassle than software. Find one, if you can, because these are getting very rare second hand.
Deep Synthesis: Home11. 17. 2007