GR-2 Granular Synthesizer

Description

 

See It. Touch It. Transform It.

At the heart of the GR-2 lies a simple philosophy:

 

Samples deserve more than just playback. They deserve interaction.

 

Long field recordings. Percussive transients. Vocals. Synths. Acoustic instruments. The GR-2 thrives on all of them…

Every sound can be stretched, scattered, frozen, folded, reconstructed, and reshaped in real time. Visual feedback is always present. Every action is immediate. There are no complicated setups- or hidden workflows standing between you and your ideas.
Load a sample, record live audio, touch the screen, turn a knob… and watch your sound evolve instantly. Preserve their character, or completely reinvent them.

 

Samples are no longer just a recording. With the GR-2, samples become the instrument.

 

Touch Meets Hardware

The GR-2 combines the best aspects of dedicated hardware instruments with the flexibility of modern digital synthesis. A responsive touchscreen works alongside precision encoders, allowing you to interact directly with sound while maintaining tactile control over critical parameters. The result is an interface that feels immediate, expressive, and deeply musical. Most functions are accessible through dedicated Quick Access pages. Important parameters are never buried behind layers of menus, and you’re never more than a single level away from advanced functionality.

 

Four Powerful Sound Engines

The GR-2 features four dedicated synthesis and processing engines, each offering its own approach:

• Granular: Break audio into thousands of microscopic grains and rebuild it into lush clouds, evolving textures, cinematic atmospheres, or rhythmic fragments.
• Sampling: Capture, play, and manipulate sounds with precision and immediacy.
• Tape: Stretch, scrub, reverse, and reshape audio with a tactile, tape-inspired workflow.
• Spectral: Deconstructing sound into its frequency components and create shimmering, organic, and otherworldly transformations

 

Multitimbrality

Need even more power? Layer presets across up to four independent multitimbral layers, combining engines, effects, and modulation into deeply expressive results.

 

Polyphony

Play rich chords, evolving pads, granular orchestras, and dense harmonic clouds with ease. Because the GR-2 is built for harmonic exploration:

• 16-voice polyphony
• Up to 128 grains per voice
• Up to 4,000 simultaneous grains
• Four-layer multitimbral architecture

Connect your favorite USB or DIN MIDI controller and experience the GR-2 as a fully expressive performance instrument.

 

Real-Time Audio Transformation

The GR-2 isn’t limited to prerecorded material. Using its high-quality audio inputs, you can capture and process incoming audio in real time. Transform vocals, instruments, field recordings, drum machines, or entire mixes into evolving textures, cinematic washes, rhythmic fragments, and completely new sonic reconstructions. Stay close to the source- or push it beyond recognition.

 

Compact Form. Flagship Power.

The GR-2 is our most compact instrument yet, measuring just 25 × 19 × 7 cm, while delivering processing power approaching that of the GR-MEGA. Its streamlined design combines tactile hardware control with a modern touch-first workflow. Large controls, clear visual feedback, and intuitive layouts ensure that the most important parameters are always within reach.

Designed for Immediate Control

• 7″ high-resolution capacitive touchscreen
• 1024 × 600 true-color display
• High-contrast graphical interface
• Dimmable screen for studio and stage use
• Precision endless encoders

 

Advanced Modulation

Virtually every parameter of the instrument can be animated and controlled to create subtle movement- or highly complex evolving performances. The GR-2 offers one of the deepest modulation systems available in our hardware synthesizers:

24 Modulation Sources for 120+ Destinations

• 4 LFOs
• 2 CV inputs
• 4 Random generators
• Auxiliary envelope
• Envelope follower
• Key tracking
• Position tracking
• MIDI modulation
• MPE expression across five dimensions
• Touch X/Y gestures

Additional features include:

• Bipolar and unipolar modulation
• Adjustable modulation curves
• Polyphonic modulation
• Macro controls
• Recordable X/Y gestures
• Gesture playback and automation

 

Built for Expression

Record your gestures, replay them, and transform them into modulation sources for endlessly evolving sounds. Its touch surface supports expressive gestural control, allowing you to perform chords, melodies, and modulation simultaneously. The GR-2 is:

• Polyphonic
• Multitimbral
• Multi-engine
• MPE-compatible

 

Studio-Quality Effects

Each layer can become a complete sound-design environment in its own right. Shape and enhance your sounds using a comprehensive suite of integrated effects:

• Chorus
• Compressor
• Delay
• Ping-Pong Delay
• Cubic Distortion
• Tanh Saturation
• Flanger
• 5-Band Parametric EQ
• Bit Reduction
• Reverb
• Large Reverb
• Resonator
• Ring Modulator
• Vibrato

 

Connectivity

Whether operating standalone, alongside hardware instruments, or connected to your computer, the GR-2 is always ready to become the center of your creative workflow. Integrate effortlessly into modern studios and performance setups. Features include:

• High-quality stereo audio inputs
• DIN MIDI In and Out
• USB-C MIDI connectivity
• Direct DAW integration
• USB storage support
• Fast internal sample storage

 

A New Way to Experience Samples

Long field recordings. Percussive transients. Vocals. Synths. Acoustic instruments. The GR-2 thrives on all of them. Preserve their character, reveal hidden details, or completely reinvent them. Scatter them into granular clouds. Freeze them in time. Stretch them into infinity. Transform them into something entirely new.

 

The sample is no longer just a recording. With the GR-2, it becomes an instrument.

 

 

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The full GR-2 specification sheet:

Feature	Spec	Remark
General
Multitimbrality	4 layers
Polyphony per layer	16 voices
Total number of grains	4.000	all layers combined, about 3 times as much as the gr-1
Engines	Sampler	(including loop, start end)
	Granular
	Tape mode
	Spectral
Preset system
Number of presets	128	per project
Multitimbral combinations	128	per project
Number of projects	50
Sampling and samples
Audio input	2 channels (stereo)
Max sample length	60 minutes	5m50s minutes max in granular, because of polyphony
Sample rate	48 kHz
Mix resolution	32 floating point
Sample channels	mono or stereo
Granular engine
Max chord size	12
Max grains per voice	128
Rate modes	Free, Sync-size, Scan & rate	Free means independent rate and grain size, other modes have synchronized rate and size options
Loop modes	Bounce, wrap, kill
Arp modes	Up, down, random, shuffle, play order, and more
Spawn modes	Direct, gradual, recycle
Phase vocoder
Max polyphony	3
FFT size	256..8192
Chord mode	up to 12 notes per voice
Mod matrix
Number of LFOs	4 per layer
Number of modulation sources	20
Number of modulation destinations	120
Filters
Filters per voice	LPF and HPF
Slope	12 dB per octave	Other slopes possible in future firmware
Envelopes
Destinations	Pitch
	Filter
	Amplitude
	Aux	Freely assignable
Length	0.1 ms .. 45 s per stage
Stages	ADSR
Shape	Curved: from log to linear to exponential
FX
Number of simultaneous fx	4
Effects	Delays	Plain, and ping pong
	Reverbs	Hall and large (algorithmic)
	Distortion	Overdrive, and reducer
	Dynamics (compressor)
	More effects possible in future firmware
Connectivity
Analog audio output	Stereo TRS 1/4 ” balanced
Analog audio input	Stereo TRS 1/4 ” balanced
Headphone	1/8 “
MIDI	DIN (in out thru), USB C (in and out)
Eurorack interface	1x gate out, 2x CV in (-5V..+5V)
Disk / USB sticks	USB A 3.0
Computer keyboard	USB A 2.0
Storage
Included USB stick
Internal storage
Dimensions		mm WxDxH, including side panels
Weight