Hampshire Electronics has introduced Apollo and Janus, two Eurorack modules that pack a polyphonic, multi-engine synth voice into a small footprint. Neither is described as an MPE instrument, but they land in a part of the market where expressive players increasingly work: modular rigs fed by a controller through a MIDI-to-CV interface. Here is what we know, and what to verify before you buy.
Two modules, one engine
According to Synth Anatomy's coverage, both modules share the same internal engines and differ mainly in size and connectivity.
Apollo is 19HP and has a main encoder, five knobs, a larger display, MIDI in and out, four 1V/oct and gate inputs, four CV inputs, two modulation outputs and a stereo output. Janus is a 10HP version with a single 1V/oct and gate input, two CV inputs, two modulation outputs and stereo out. Janus has no MIDI.
Each of the two engine layers runs eight voices, so both modules are eight-voice polyphonic. The engine list is wide: V-Analogue, six-operator FM, Modal, String (Karplus-Strong), Drums, a nine-drawbar Tonewheel organ, Wavetable, Phase Distortion, Additive, Formant, Waves and Noise. Engine one can cross-modulate engine two with FM or AM, each engine has a multimode filter, and there is a granular engine, LFOs and envelopes, a 16-slot mod matrix and a set of stereo effects. A polyphonic arpeggiator and Program Change preset recall round it out.
Pricing and availability
Both modules are open for pre-order at introductory prices of £329 for Apollo and £219 for Janus. Later prices are listed as £349 and £239. Check the Hampshire Electronics site for the latest details and shipping.
The MPE question
Nothing in the announcement mentions MPE, per-note pitch bend, pressure or slide. The only MIDI reference is Apollo's MIDI in and out. That does not mean the modules cannot respond to expressive playing, but it does mean you should not assume it. For MPE players the questions worth asking the manufacturer are:
- Does Apollo accept MPE-style input, with each note on its own channel and per-channel pitch bend, or does it treat everything as one channel?
- Can per-note pressure and slide reach the modulation matrix? If channel pressure only arrives globally, the 16-slot matrix is less useful for expressive control.
- How many gate and pitch inputs are independent? Apollo's four 1V/oct and gate inputs suggest several parallel note sources, which could pair with a multi-output MIDI-to-CV interface.
Playing it from an expressive controller
If Apollo turns out to be a plain MIDI-channel instrument, you still have options. A controller such as the Expressive E Osmose or the LinnStrument can usually be switched out of MPE mode and sent on a single channel. You then lose per-note pitch bend, but you can map pressure or slide to a MIDI CC that the module understands and use it as a global modulation source.
The other route is to convert the controller's MPE data to voltage first. A MPE-capable MIDI-to-CV interface can output pitch, gate and pressure per voice, and Apollo's multiple CV and 1V/oct inputs look like a natural destination. Janus, with only one pitch and gate input, will build chords and arpeggios from a single source, so it is the less obvious partner for per-note expression.
Our take
Apollo and Janus are interesting because they offer a lot of sonic range in a compact format, and eight voices per engine is generous for Eurorack. They are not MPE news in themselves. If you are an expressive player, treat them as promising voices that need confirmation of how they handle channel and per-note data. Ask before you pre-order, and if you do buy one, test it with your controller in both MPE and single-channel modes before building a patch around it.
The wider point is that polyphonic Eurorack voices are getting more capable, and that makes the MIDI and CV interface in front of them more important than ever. We will cover any follow-up from Hampshire Electronics if MPE or per-note control gets clarified.
Sources: Synth Anatomy, Hampshire Electronics.