The LIVEN Ambient Ø from Sonicware is a digital synthesizer for ambient and drone sounds with a sequencer. The wavetable-based sound generation is based on six oscillator combinations with a fixed structure, which are ultimately used to create the sound. The fourth track, respectively Layer, is designed for noisy sounds and is the only layer that can sample itself and integrate the audio material into the musical creation process. Each of the four layers/tracks is equipped withits own envelope, multimode filter and two LFOs. Finally, there are two surprisingly good-sounding effect blocks. The sonic focus is clearly on layered, meandering sounds, which are particularly well suited to slow, atmospheric music and offer a high degree of musical usability in this context. Heavy staccato and baller basslines, on the other hand, are not the strength of this compact groovebox. The built-in loudspeaker and alternative battery operation (6x AA batteries) are ideal for anyone who wants to make music wherever they are. There are MIDI inputs and outputs as well as analogue Sync In & Out for connecting to other equipment and synchronizing the Groovebox with Korg Volca or Teenage Pocket Operators.

Sequencer

The four-track sequencer can be programmed live or step-by-step in the TR grid and has a memory capacity of 64 patterns, each of which can be up to 64 steps long. Recording parameter locks brings life and variety to the patterns. The synthesized sounds can be played chromatically via the 27 mini keys, which is a great musical gain. With the step randomizer, the programmed notes in the pattern are jumped to randomly instead of sequentially. As an option to the sequencer, an arpeggiator with various playback patterns can be included in the live performance at any time.