The Z2040 is our redesign of the most famous analog filter from the poly synths of the 80’s and features Tiptop Audio’s signature lush, big and creamy sound. Its frequency sweeps make thick bass lines and leads with great dynamics. When modulated with audio frequencies through its various inputs, the Z2040 gets quite colorful and is capable of creating so many new sounds and textures as the forces of the incoming waves and their harmonics all blend through the filter’s non linear circuit. When set with Resonance feedback fully up, the Z2040 transforms into a pure sine-core VC-Oscillator, great for making snappy percussive elements and whistling sounds.
A look under the hood will find that the heart of the Z2040 is a discrete design 4-Pole Low Pass filter with a similar core to that of the SSM2040 Filter chip used in the 80’s Prophet 5 Rev 2 synthesizer, and its brother the SSM2044 used in the famous early EMU samplers and PPG synthesizers of the 80’s. Both filters are considered by many as “the best sounding filter ever.”
The Z2040’s four modulation inputs are built to handle CV and audio signals, enabling deep modulation of the filter core and passing signals. A VC resonance input is provided to modulate and even clip the sine wave produced by the filter feedback loop. A Frequency Modulation input (FM) provides dynamic filter sweeps and the unique VC-FM index allows modulation of the incoming FM signals. On top of that, the Z2040 comes with an audio VCA that can be configured to act upon the input or the output of the filter.
