REVIEW – There’s been a running prank war in my extended family for years where we like to give other nieces and nephews loud and obnoxious kids toys (like drum sets, karaoke machines, etc.). At first glance, I thought I would be inflicting a prank upon my own household by volunteering to review the Blipblox SK2 synthesizer. However, I was pleasantly surprised from the first time we turned it on that it’s A. not too loud, and B. somewhat entertaining and melodic rather than just another noisy kids toy. Our ~2-year-old helped me with this review, and even though his attention span is pretty limited most of the time, he liked the lights and buttons and sounds so that alone is a win for us.
What is it?
The Blipblox SK2 synthesizer is a kid-friendly synthesizer, which applies effects to either built-in music sequences or to sound coming from connected musical instruments or other music-producing gadgets. If you’ve enjoyed listening (or been subjected without your consent) to any electronic music/EDM/etc. you have experienced the sounds of synthesizers. Ever since the early days (1950’s) when humans discovered that electronics could change the pitch/tone/modulation of musical notes, people have been exploring electronic music.
What’s included?
- Blipblox SK2 synthesizer
- USB-A to DC power cord
- 3x AA batteries
- Quick start guide
- Owner’s manual
Tech specs
Click to expand
- Size: 14.68 x 12.28 x 3.82 inches
- Weight: 3.12 lbs
- Power: USB-A to DC cord (provided) or 3x AA batteries
- Built-in sequences/melodies: >400
- Built in drum samples: >100
- Sound input: 5-Pin MIDI
- Sound output: 1/4″ audio output jack
- Safety certified for ages 3+
- International certifications: FCC, CE, ASTM, CPSC 16, EN62115, REACH, RohS and CA Prop 65 for toys.
Design and features
The Blipblox SK2 synthesizer is an all plastic unit with a main speaker located in the center, and a bevy of buttons, dials, and levers surrounding it. At first glance it seems pretty haphazard, but the handy arrows leading from one button or dial to the next can help new electronic musicians understand the relationships between different effects and the resulting sounds.
I’m planning on printing out the above guide from Blipblox’s website and attaching it to the back of the device once our little one is a bit older and can read and learn about these concepts.
The shape and size of the Blipblox SK2 synthesizer is perfect for younger kids to interact with on the floor or on a table or lap. There’s not any rubber on the back though, so it does tend to slide around as kids play with it.
On the back are the input and output options, as well as an on/off switch. From left to right, there’s an Audio Out option (which is great to connect to a better speaker, you’ll get much better sound than the built in speaker), a MIDI input option (with this you can pipe in sound from a musical instrument, keyboard, DAW software, etc. which the Blipblox SK2 can then manipulate live), and the On/Off switch. Even though our ~2 year old is under the recommended age group, he easily mastered the on/off switch and can interact and play with all the buttons (and even seems to enjoy it).
Colorful LED lights are scattered all over the device, and serve both as entertaining light shows synced to the music, but also are used as indicators when changing settings.
A close up of some of the dials and buttons. The Randomize button is great to explore different sounds, it applies a completely random set of effects to your current sample (or MIDI input).
The “SEQ” button on the left is another important button, as it randomly selects another melody and drum sequence each time it’s pressed. I do wish they’d made this a bit more prominent though, it’s fairly small and our kid gravitates to the levers and dials more than the buttons which can result in monotonous repeats of the same melodies for quite a while (though he changes the tempo and effects enough that it gives at least a bit of variety in sound).
The speaker could be better, but is adequate for kids. You can clearly hear drums and musical notes, but the bass is particularly lacking. When I connected it to our large portable speaker, I was surprised at how much of the sound you’re missing out on by just using the built in speaker. Again though, for kids it’s fine, and it’s not nearly as loud as most of the other children’s toys containing speakers on the market.
Battery access is on the back and protected by a screw, and you’ll notice that there’s no rubber coating or feet to provide slip resistance, so on smooth surfaces and tables it will move around pretty easily. I’ll bet Blipblox avoided small rubber feet as choking hazards, but some kind of nonslip undercoating would have been nice.
Performance
Our little one immediately took to the Blipblox SK2 synthesizer, and enjoys playing with the different dials and levers. He even seems to understand that individual dials are actively changing the sound, going back to favorite dials over time even with different sequences. Here’s a short video of him playing with it:
I think it’s a blast to play with him as well, and I’ve started to play with more of the advanced features (like applying different filters through shift keys). The owner’s manual does a great job explaining how these work, so be sure to read that if you’re actively trying to learn how synthesizers work.
What I like about Blipblox SK2 synthesizer
- Very easy for toddlers and adults alike to discover how music synthesizers work
- Powerful and advanced synthesizer features disguised as a kid-friendly toy
- Lots of sequences means lots of varieties of sounds and music, even before applying effects.
What needs to be improved?
- Would have loved the advanced functions to be printed on the back, I’m going to tape the quick start guide there.
- Built in speaker has very little bass
- Smooth plastic bottom does slide around, especially on smooth hard surfaces.
Final thoughts
While I was wrapping up testing on the Blipblox SK2 synthesizer for my review, Blipblox also sent over a press kit about their latest Kickstarter that’s just launched: the Blipblox myTRACKS groovebox. This would be the perfect complement to the Blipblox SK2 by providing a ton of hip-hop-inspired pre-loaded sounds, as well as built-in microphones for sampling. With this tool kit you could actively create fun sequences of your own, and then feed those into the SK2 to apply synthesizer effects to them. I hope to get my hands on it to review to continue the music making learning journey with my junior Gadgeteer! The Blipblox SK2 synthesizer is a great addition to my growing musical library that I enjoy playing with (and that I hope will also spark curiosity and music learning for our kid).
Price: $199.99
Where to buy: Blipblox and Amazon
Source: The sample of this product was provided for free by Blipblox. Blipblox did not have a final say on the review and did not preview the review before it was published.
