On October 23, 2026, Isla Electronics made ASYX available: a Windows and macOS plugin recreation of the Alesis Andromeda A6, the sprawling 16-voice analog polysynth that has long been a favorite of sound designers. The launch was covered by Synthtopia and Noizefield. For MPE players the interesting question is simple: how expressive can it be? The honest answer is that it depends on a detail the announcement does not cover.

What ASYX offers

According to the coverage, ASYX models two oscillators per voice, dual filters, three LFOs and three envelopes, plus a 16-step sequencer, an arpeggiator and 29 effects. It ships with more than 1,200 programs and can import original Andromeda SysEx programs and banks, as well as exchange patches with compatible hardware. The street price is roughly $136 USD.

It also runs 16-part multitimbral, and lists MIDI and performance controllers as modulation sources. That last point matters. A synth with a flexible modulation matrix is a good candidate for expressive playing, because the sounds can be shaped by whatever your hands send.

The MPE question

MPE support is not mentioned in the launch coverage. We have not seen an official statement that ASYX handles per-note pitch bend, pressure and slide on separate channels. Until that is confirmed, treat it as a standard multitimbral instrument.

That is not a dealbreaker. Many excellent synths are not MPE-aware, and the hardware it recreates was never designed for per-note expression either. But it changes how you should set up your rig.

How to play ASYX from an MPE controller today

If you own a controller such as an Osmose, a LinnStrument or a Seaboard, you have three practical options.

Run it in single-channel mode. Most controllers can fall back to one MIDI channel. You lose per-note pitch bend, but pressure and slide can often be sent as channel-wide values, which still gives you a useful performance surface.

Use a note-expression translator. Our guide on playing non-MPE synths from an MPE controller covers tools that convert MPE streams into formats a regular synth can use.

Split the keyboard across multitimbral parts. Because ASYX is 16-part multitimbral, you can send different zones to different parts. See our article on splitting one MPE controller across multitimbral synth parts for the approach.

What to ask the developer

If you are considering a purchase, it is worth contacting Isla Electronics through the product page and asking three things: whether per-note pitch bend is planned, whether MPE zone configuration will be supported, and whether pressure and slide can be assigned as modulation sources. Developers respond to this kind of feedback, and MPE has become a common request for new emulations.

Why it still matters for the MPE ecosystem

Emulations like ASYX show where the market is heading. Classic instruments are being rebuilt in software at accessible prices, and the audience that buys them increasingly owns expressive controllers. Over the past year we have seen several vintage-style recreations add MPE after launch, so a later update is plausible, though nothing has been announced.

For now, ASYX is a fascinating sound source for patch-based, layered work. If your priority is per-note expression, check the MPE in your DAW basics, confirm support before buying, and consider it a candidate for a future update rather than an MPE instrument today.

Key takeaways: ASYX is available now at about $136, imports original Andromeda SysEx data, and is 16-part multitimbral. MPE support is not announced, so verify before you buy if per-note expression is essential.