The Toadstep Acid Test

This new Toadstep device from Toadstool Tech & mmalex is a sequencer built on the Plinky 12 platform - referred to as a family of expressive polyphonic synthesizers. The three instruments (Blocks, Chords and Toadstep) are all built around a new synth engine, with an expressive touch-first musical language, and full of Plinky character - nice and squelchy! 

The Plinky 12 will be sold pre-assembled, with additional panels available separately. Full documentation and info are coming in Summer 2026 or try it in person at Superbooth in Berlin, May 2026.
 

Blocks - Grid Controller & Synth
Blocks is an open panel built for experimentation, with monome-grid compatibility, Plinky style touch synthesis, and a browser-based coding environment arriving alongside the hardware release. If you can imagine it, you can make it!

Choose this if: you want distraction free plinking, custom grid controllers or a path toward making your own panel ideas real.
Blocks is designed by mmalex

Chords - A harmonic inspiration machine
Chords lets you improvise melodies and chords, with expressive control over voicings, progressions, and immediate musical play. It is the panel for finding beautiful harmonic movement quickly.

Choose this if: you want harmony, songwriting momentum, and a playful way into rich chords and melodies.

Chords is designed by Making Sound Machines

Toadstep - Interactive Step Sequencing
Toadstep is a 4-track step sequencer built for super funky riffs, experimental self-generative melodies, and good ol' Acid. It's fun, immediate and easy to jam with!

Choose this if: you want fast, direct sequencing optimized for live performance and improvisation, or if you want to use plinky 12 like a groovebox. Toadstep is designed by Toadstool Tech

Shared DNA
Each panel has its own musical personality, but they all share the same core Plinky feel: touch-first interaction, and an all-new polyphonic synth engine that can turn samples from simple sounds to frozen wavetables.

Since synth presets, system settings and certain control styles like LFOs and envelopes are shared across panels, once you learn one panel, the others already start to make sense. Preset banks will be edited on this website, and you will be able to design and audition your sounds even without a plinky device. The Bank Editor will be released alongside the Plinky hardware. 
Open Bank Editor

Panels are available separately and can be swapped with just a screwdriver and a little care. Plinky 12 detects the connected panel automatically and switches software without reflashing anything.

More on the platform: https://plinky12.com/

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