Ensoniq SQ-1 (1990–1992)

The Ensoniq SQ-1 was the budget version of the VFX. It came out in 1990 as the first in the SQ series. It's a 61-key, velocity-sensitive synthesizer built around a 21-voice digital wavetable engine with 8-part multitimbrality. The list price was $995. For that you got dual programmable effects (chorus, delay, reverb), an 8-track sequencer, and a 5-voice drum section layered on top of the 16 synth voices.

The SQ-1 was followed by the SQ-2, which added a 76-key keyboard and more memory, and the rackmount SQ-R. Audio-Collection (April 1991, p.67) covered the SQ-1 among its keyboard releases of the period. The model stayed in Ensoniq's affordable workstation line into the mid-90s - an Audio-Collection advertisement from August 1993 (p.47) still listed the "61-key SQ-1 PLUS 32 Voice" next to the newer KS-32.

Documentation on the SQ-1 is thinner than on Ensoniq's flagship models. No audio specifications, dimensions, or patch memory details have surfaced in the sources we've found. The record also disagrees on sequencer capacity: one listing says 32,000 notes, another says 20,000. The SQ-1 was praised for its powerful sequencer and strong synth engine at the price. Used prices today typically land between $300 and $500.

Sound engine: 21-voice digital wavetable synthesis
Polyphony: 21 voices (16 synth + 5 drum)
Multitimbral: 8 parts
Effects: dual programmable processors (chorus, delay, reverb)
Keyboard: 61-key, velocity-sensitive
Sequencer: 8-track
I/O: MIDI in/out/thru, audio L/R outputs, headphone jack