Broken Mini

Name: Broken Mini
Author: Full Bucket Music

by Full Bucket Music · Synth · Deliberately broken synth

Not rated yet

Broken Mini is a free novelty instrument that simulates "an unknown and obscure synthesizer from the past" which is broken by design.

The developer calls it useless and warns that some knobs and keys may be missing; it has MIDI Learn and a resizable UI, and is free.

Best for: Keys & Synths, Sound Design. Genres: Electronic & EDM, Lo-Fi.

Keywords: free, dirty, sound design, broadcast, classic, hardware emulation, oversampling, resizable UI, analog, experimental, inspired by, 70s, lo-fi, subtractive, surgical, textures, vintage.

What it does

Broken Mini is a tongue-in-cheek release: a Minimoog-style synth that malfunctions on purpose. The developer calls it a simulation of an "unknown and obscure synthesizer from the past" and says it is useless "even on 'top-notch' systems".

Voice: per the press coverage, three multi-wave oscillators, a noise generator, a ladder filter and two envelope generators, in a classic Minimoog-style layout with a power switch.
Missing parts: the C3 key is gone from the keyboard and the sustain control is missing from the ADSR.
Radio noise: the noise generator sometimes plays radio-like signals instead of plain noise.
Oversampling: a switch that only goes down, to 0.25 times the sample rate, for a deliberately dirty sound.
Unfinished on purpose: the page warns it is not beta tested and that some knobs and keys may be missing.
Control: MIDI Learn for every parameter and a resizable UI; an English manual and a Japanese translation are offered.

The current version is 0.8.15 (1 Nov 2024). It is a free download; the developer accepts donations.

Source: Full Bucket Music product page

When to use it

Broken Mini is the pick when you want a Minimoog-flavoured toy whose faults are the feature: the dirty sound of the 0.25x oversampling switch, stray radio noise and missing controls. Compared with Diva, which models analog circuits carefully, it trades accuracy for surprises and costs nothing. Unlike Mono/Fury or other serious Full Bucket emulations, it is not meant to stand in for the hardware. Next to Vital it offers almost no flexibility, so treat it as an extra colour for sound design rather than a main synth.

Best for: dirty, aliased mono sounds, glitchy textures and experimental sound design.
Genres: experimental electronic, lo-fi and noise.
Look elsewhere if: you want a dependable Minimoog-style synth for real parts; Diva or a dedicated Minimoog emulation will serve you better.

What producers say

The press took the joke in good spirit and found the result charming rather than useless.

Gearnews called it "full of bugs, yet full of charm" and a fresh take on classic synth plugins.
MusicTech described the faults as deliberate design choices, noting the 0.25x oversampling gives a deliberately "dirty" sound.

Where to buy

Full Bucket Music: Free

Tutorials and reviews

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