We are excited to introduce the Stylophone Mini Keychain – a playful, pocket-sized expression of the iconic Stylophone synthesizer.
Inspired by the original Stylophone first introduced in 1968, the Stylophone Mini is more than just a collectible keychain. Small in size but big in character, the Mini is a playable piece of synth history in your pocket, letting you play real melodies with its signature stylus and classic sound.
Whether you’re a Stylophone fan, a synth enthusiast, or simply appreciate the iconic design, the Mini puts a little piece of the Stylophone universe right in your pocket.
We’ve packed a surprising amount into its miniature design. The Stylophone Mini features a metal keyboard, functional stylus, and built-in speaker, so it’s ready to play whenever inspiration strikes. It’s battery-powered and even comes equipped with a mini LED flashlight – because you never know when you might need to make some music (or find your keys) in the dark.
Compact enough to attach your keys, landyard, or backpack, the Stylophone Mini is made to go everywhere you do.
The Stylophone Mini is available worldwide today, October 8th 2026, through our website and our global network of distributors and retailers.
A little piece of Stylophone history, now small enough to take anywhere.
“Genius of Love” on Stylophone: Recreating an Iconic Groove
Posted on 14 Sep 2026
Released in the early 1980s, “Genius of Love” by Tom Tom Club is one of those tracks whose influence has travelled far beyond its original release.
Blending new wave, funk, post-punk and Caribbean-inspired dance music, its playful sound and infectious groove remain instantly recognisable more than four decades later.
For our Stylophone cover, we recreated the different layers of the track using instruments from across the Stylophone range, from its famous bassline and bright synth lead to the drums, guitar and vocals.
The Story Behind “Genius of Love”
Tom Tom Club was formed by Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz, the rhythm section of Talking Heads, during a break from the band.
The project gave the pair an opportunity to explore something of their own, bringing together influences from funk, reggae, hip-hop, disco and Afrobeat, as well as New York’s emerging downtown art and dance scene.
“Genius of Love” came together at Compass Point Studios in the Bahamas. Surrounded by Island Records artists and a mixture of Caribbean and global rhythms, the band created the distinctive bounce that would become central to the song’s identity.
At the heart of the track is Weymouth’s unmistakable bassline, accompanied by Frantz’s drumming, Adrian Belew’s guitar textures and Steven Stanley’s production. Prophet-5 synth leads, early digital effects and hand percussion complete its bright, colourful sound.
Recreating The Track With Stylophone
The original recording is packed with distinctive musical layers, making it a perfect track to recreate using several different Stylophone instruments.
Here’s what you can hear throughout our cover:
The Bass Groove
The cover opens with the Stylophone BEAT in ROK Bass mode, recreating Tina Weymouth’s instantly recognisable electric bass groove.
The Synth Lead
The Pink Stylophone S-1 takes over to perform the bright, Prophet-5-style synth melody.
The Guitar Line
Next, the Stylophone GEN X-2 recreates the flanged guitar line, using its sound-shaping controls to capture the texture of the original part.
The Drums
The rhythm is built using the Stylophone BEAT, combining the HIP kit for the kick and snare with the TEC kit for the hi-hats.
The Vocal Melody
The Black Stylophone S-1 performs the female vocal part, turning one of the track’s most memorable melodies into an instrumental lead.
The Returning Bassline
The BEAT’s ROK Bass sound returns for another pass at the song’s electric bass groove.
The Synth Reprise
Finally, the GEN X-2 closes the cover by recreating the Prophet-5-style synth lead reprise.
A Groove That Changed Popular Music
The legacy of “Genius of Love” is enormous. Its bassline and groove have been sampled and reworked by artists including Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Public Enemy, Redman and Latto.
Its most famous appearance is in Mariah Carey’s “Fantasy”, which helped introduce the sound to another generation and became a major hit in its own right.
The song’s influence isn’t limited to music. Its animated video has also become an important part of its identity. The DIY, cartoon-like visuals combine surreal hand-drawn animation, cut-out shapes and looping visual jokes that perfectly match the track’s colourful, bouncing rhythm.
More than four decades after its release, “Genius of Love” continues to be sampled, referenced and rediscovered. Its instantly recognisable groove has moved between genres and generations and sounds just as infectious played on a collection of Stylophones.
The Stylophone Father’s Day Gift Guide
Posted on 03 Jun 2026
Looking for a Father’s Day gift that’s fun, affordable and a little different? The Stylophone range offers something for every type of dad, from complete beginners to experienced musicians. Whether your dad is a music fan, gadget enthusiast, aspiring producer or lifelong Bowie admirer, there’s a Stylophone gift to suit every dad this Father’s Day.
Here’s a run down of the line up:
The Original Stylophone
The iconic pocket synthesizer that started it all, popularised by the likes of David Bowie, Blondie and Kraftwerk to name but a few. It’s small enough to fit in a pocket and easy to play, the Stylophone Original delivers classic analog electronic sounds in seconds.
Part synth, part cassette player throwback, the Stylosette combines retro styling with modern electronic sounds and built-in effects.
Perfect for: Dads who love STEM Learning, 80s design, music and vintage tech.
Best Gift for Beat Makers: Stylophone BEAT
The Stylophone BEAT is a portable drum machine packed with lo-fi rhythms, punchy sounds and hands-on controls. It’s designed for creating beats anywhere, making it a great little Groovebox.
Perfect for: Dads who love beats and basslines, electronic music and making their own grooves.
A powerful analog synth packed with filters, effects and connectivity options. Small enough for a desk, powerful enough for a studio. It still has the familiar Stylophone DNA, but adds filters, modulation, delay effects, expression controls and extensive connectivity for keyboards, DAWs and modular synth setups. People love its versatility while remaining affordable.
Perfect for: Musicians, producers and dads who already own music gear.
Drone music has long been about immersion, experimentation and deep, evolving soundscapes. International Drone Day — originally dreamed up by MCLF of Weird Canada and brought to life by drone heads and synth communities around the world — celebrates exactly that spirit of exploration through sound.
At Stylophone, we’ve proudly celebrated International Drone Day ever since the launch of our portable analogue drone synth, the DS-2. This year, we’ve gone one step further by creating four new videos from our expanded Patchbook, designed to help you start droning with our gear.
Whether you want to create rich ambient textures with the Gen X-2, explore modulation on the DS-2, experiment with resonant feedback on the DF-8, or combine the DS-2 and DF-8 Multi-Filter for huge evolving soundscapes, these tutorials will guide you through a range of creative drone techniques.
On the Stylophone Gen X-2, we can set up a drone mode by holding a note on the keyboard with the stylus, then plugging Gate Out back into Gate In.
Once that’s connected, we can still play it on the keyboard. Every time we release the stylus, it will return back to that held B note.
Of course, we can also bring in the LFO and the X-Mod, use the octave switches, the octave switch on the back, and add some delay. With all of these controls combined, we can get some pretty cool drones going on this synth.
The envelope is essentially disabled because it’s not being re-triggered, so these two controls won’t do anything. However, the pitch control then acts more like a fine tune control, enabling you to tune the synth without having to flip it over.
This patch works by moving Drone 1’s cutoff around at audio rate.
Start by turning down Drone 1 so we can just hear Drone 2. Pitch Link is switched on, and the pitch is set to the middle. This means any changes to the pitch in Drone 1 will also be matched in Drone 2.
The output is set to a saw wave, and we’ve got the LFO linked to pitch, with the LFO depth turned up just slightly. This means the pitch will drift around a little bit.
Resonance is turned down and the cutoff is all the way open. This means we just get the raw output from Drone 2. Turn its volume all the way up, but plug in a patch cable — we’ll need this later.
Over on Drone 1, the pitch is set to 9 o’clock. We also have a saw wave selected, but the routing switch for the LFO is set to X-Wave. This stops it from affecting the pitch.
We’ve got the cutoff set to 12 o’clock and the resonance at 3, giving us quite a big resonant peak.
Now, when we plug the output of Drone 2 into the cutoff of Drone 1, the filter is going to get moved around at audio rate.
For a more extreme sound, try turning up the pitch LFO on Drone 2. Also, let’s try adding a bit of reverb.
In this video, we’re going to explore one method of using the CPM DF-8 to make drones.
Normally on the DF-8, noise and resonance are the only internal audio sources. However, there are a few methods we can use to get tones out of the DF-8.
First, set both filter VCAs to bypass to make them audible. Select a high-pass filter for Filter 1, turn its resonance all the way up, and set its cutoff to about 10 o’clock.
By plugging a splitter cable into the output of Filter 1, we can copy its output. One of those outputs will then be fed back into the cutoff. Because of the filter type we’ve chosen and the high resonance setting, this effectively turns Filter 1 into an oscillator.
The modulation source for the cutoff is set to Sample & Hold. This slightly moves the cutoff around, giving a little bit of drift to the pitch.
By plugging the other output from the splitter cable into Filter 2’s audio input, we can process the sound further. By setting Envelope 2 to loop, we can slowly move the cutoff of Filter 2 around, creating a nice shifting drone sound.
We can also add some delay to help fill out the drone even more.
In this video, we’re going to combine the output of the DS-2 with the filters of the DF-8 to create a highly resonant drone.
By using the oscillators, filters and LFO in the DS-2, combined with the envelopes and additional filters in the DF-8, we can add lots and lots of movement to our sound.
First off, let’s look at the output of the DS-2. Both drone sections are set up the same. Pitch Link is used and Drone 2’s pitch is set to the centre. This means the output of both oscillators is the same.
The LFO is set to subtly move the waveform and the cutoff, but in different directions. By patching in looping envelopes from the DF-8, we can add even more movement to the cutoff of our filters.
Once we patch the drone outputs from the DS-2 over to the filter inputs on the DF-8, the DS-2 will fall silent. Now let’s listen to the output of the DF-8.
Our filter types are set to notch, which is a really subtle filter type, but we have a high resonance, adding a big peak into our filters. The looping envelopes from the DF-8 are moving the cutoff around too.
The output is set to stereo, meaning the two filters are panned left and right, creating a big stereo field.
By turning up the delay, we can reinforce the centre of this stereo image too.
We’re excited to be heading to SUPERBOOTH this spring — the world’s largest trade fair and festival dedicated to electronic musical instruments.
Taking place 7–9 May 2026 at FEZ-Berlin, the event has become a cornerstone of the global synth calendar. It brings together instrument makers, artists, producers and electronic music fans from around the world — all united by a shared love of sound and the machines that make it. This year’s edition is particularly special, marking ten years of SUPERBOOTH as an independent festival and trade fair.
You’ll find us at our tent in the ZW Zone [Booth Z143], where visitors can explore the Stylophone lineup — from the iconic pocket analog synths made world famous by the likes of David Bowie and Kraftwerk to our eurorack-compatible compact portable modular range to showcasing our newer creations like the VOICE sampler and OTF performance sequencer – which will be released later in the year.
Over the years, SUPERBOOTH has grown into one of the most important meeting points for the electronic music community — a place where new instruments make their debut, ideas get exchanged, and people can spend hours getting hands-on with the latest gear.
The momentum keeps building. Reflecting on SUPERBOOTH25, organisers reported their most successful edition yet, welcoming more than 8,800 attendees and 301 exhibitors from 31 countries. For three days, the lakeside venue becomes a playground for electronic instruments and the people who love them.
SUPERBOOTH has always been about more than just gear. It’s about the community around electronic instruments — the curiosity, the creativity, and the simple joy of making sound. With its lakeside setting, packed programme of performances and workshops, and a global crowd of synth enthusiasts, it remains one of the most inspiring events in the electronic music world.
We’re looking forward to joining thousands of artists, builders and music lovers in Berlin for the anniversary edition.
See you at SUPERBOOTH26.
What to see at the Stylophone booth (Z143) Visitors to the Stylophone tent in the ZW Zone will be able to try:
Stylophone VOICE sampler
Stylophone OTF performance sequencer
Stylophone CPM range – the DS-2 Analog Drone Synth and DF-8 Multi-filter
Stylophone POCKET analog synthesizers
Stylophone BEAT – Make beats and basslines with the electronic drum machine
Stylophone THEREMIN – experiment making sci-fi sounds with the Theremin
New Gear Spotlight: The Stylophone VOICE
Posted on 23 Feb 2026
Unveiled to huge excitement at NAMM 2026, the Stylophone VOICE is the latest evolution of Stylophones’ iconic pocket synth — and it’s ready to put expressive, vocal-inspired sound design straight into your hands. Building on the unmistakable playability that made the original pocket synth a global favourite, VOICE introduces a brand-new vocal synthesis engine designed to create everything from robotic talkbox tones to soaring synthetic choirs, all controlled with the classic metal stylus.
At the heart of Stylophone VOICE is a powerful new oscillator with dynamic vowel morphing, expressive vibrato and smooth glide, letting you shape animated, speech-like textures with effortless precision and sample anything. A built-in sub oscillator adds depth and weight, while onboard delay enhances atmosphere and movement. Play it through the integrated speaker for that signature gritty Stylophone character, or connect via line out for studio sessions, live rigs or pedal experimentation. As it’s battery-operated, it keeps things portable.
Compact, characterful and instantly playable, Stylophone VOICE captures the spirit of hands-on synthesis while opening up bold new sonic territory. Whether you’re producing electronic tracks, experimenting with sound design or performing live, this is the Stylophone like you’ve never heard it before — expressive, portable and unmistakably unique.
https://youtu.be/mIRzBdwJWJY?si=z3GpvKS7vGHDMbo7
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