Eurorack and MPE have been circling each other for years. Controllers send per-note pitch bend, pressure and slide on separate MIDI channels, while modular systems want clean control voltages. The bridge between the two is the MIDI-to-CV interface, and a new one has just landed: Squarp Instruments Core.

What Core actually is

Core is an expandable MIDI-to-CV/gate interface designed to act as the "brain" of a modular rig. It has a display, TRS mini MIDI in and out, plus USB host and USB device ports. On its own it has no CV outputs; instead it pairs with XP32 expanders, each of which adds 32 CV outputs (eight groups of four). Two expanders bring the total to 64 outputs.

Beyond straightforward conversion of pitch, gate, velocity, aftertouch and CC, Core includes generative engines: LFOs, Euclidean generators, ADSR envelopes and melodic loops. It stores eight global presets for routing configurations and is only 25 mm deep, so it fits skiff-style cases. Pricing is €190 for Core, or €590 for a bundle with one XP32 expander, and it is available now.

The MPE question

The launch information we have seen describes standard MIDI-to-CV duties and does not spell out MPE handling. That is not a criticism. Plenty of excellent interfaces were designed for conventional keyboards, and Squarp has a track record of taking expressive playing seriously in its sequencers. But for MPE players, the details matter, so it is worth confirming a few things with the manufacturer before you commit.

Per-channel voice allocation. MPE assigns each held note its own MIDI channel. An interface that treats incoming data as one channel will collapse your expression into a single, shared set of values. Look for explicit support for a lower or upper MPE zone and a defined number of voices.

Pitch bend range. MPE defaults to a ±48 semitone per-note bend range, while many CV tools assume ±2. If the range cannot be set to match your controller, glides will sound wrong, either tiny or wildly exaggerated.

Pressure and slide routing. Channel pressure and CC74 (slide) are the other two main dimensions. Check whether each voice's pressure and slide can be sent to its own CV output, and whether outputs are labeled by voice or merely by function.

Output count versus voices. Each voice of a polyphonic setup may need pitch, gate, pressure and slide. Four voices already means sixteen outputs. This is where the XP32 expansion model could be genuinely attractive, since 32 or 64 outputs give room for expressive polyphony.

Why this matters for the wider MPE scene

Hardware-centric MPE is growing. Recent demonstrations of multi-touch surfaces driving analog oscillators show real appetite for expression that never touches a computer. Interfaces like Core sit at the heart of that approach, so the more explicit manufacturers are about MPE behavior, the easier it is for players to build confident, dawless rigs.

If you want to understand the signal path before shopping, our guide on building a dawless MPE rig walks through the controller-to-hardware chain step by step.

Bottom line

Core looks like a flexible, compact and fairly priced brain for a modular system, with generative tools that can add movement around your playing. For MPE use, treat it as a promising candidate that deserves a quick email to Squarp or a look at the manual before purchase. Ask about MPE zones, per-voice outputs and bend range, and you will know within minutes whether it fits your rig.

Sources: Synth Anatomy coverage of Squarp Core, Squarp Instruments.