Elektron Digitakt sampler
A synth manufacturer based in Sweden. Elektron specializes in digital and digital/analog hybrid synths, samplers and drum machines. Most of their synths are packaged in tabletop style; some are convertible to rackmount format.
Elektron's first product, introduced in 1998, was the Sidstation, a synth built around the Commodore SID synth-on-a-chip. The SID was an integrated circuit that had been designed for use in video games, but the Sidstation made all of its capabilities directly available to the performer. The SID's quirks made the Sidstation a unique product. But at the time the Sidstation was introduced, the SID was already out of production, and Elektron relied on being able to buy NOS SIDs in the spot market to build Sidstations with. In a few years, this supply dried up. (Elektron did a few times manage to find additional lots of SIDs to build a few more batches of Sidstations with.)
In 2001 Elektron introduced the product that would set the pattern for most of their future products, the Machinedrum, a multi synthesis drum machine and sequencer. The general panel layout of the Machinedrum, with a display screen at the center, soft knobs to the right, and a row of buttons across the bottom that serves for both function selection and a crude keyboard for patch auditioning (who wrote this? it is a step sequencer!), has been used across most of Elektron's product line. The Monomachine, introduced in 2003, was a virtual analog synth that was produced in several versions, including an odd-looking one that had a keyboard fastened to the right side of the tabletop package.
After these, Elektron went for almost ten years before introducing further products. Current and recent products include the Octarack and Digitakt samplers, and the Analog Four analog synth with digital control circuits. Recent products include USB ports and an optional software package called Overbridge, which integrates the units with DAW environments.
Elektron Web site (English)