Outbox 8 can add multiple audio and CV outputs to your favourite Elektron groovebox – or any other class-compliant hardware

Elektron has launched Outbox 8, a new eight-channel audio/CV breakout box designed to be a complement to the company’s range of hardware grooveboxes. The hardware unit, which we first spotted at Superbooth back in May, features eight fully assignable outputs designed to transmit both audio and control voltage signals.

Outbox 8 is not restricted to working exclusively with Elektron gear, but its most obvious use case is as a way to expand the limited number of physical output found on devices such as Digitone II and Digitakt II – each of which features 16 potential synth or sample voices but just one stereo analogue output.

Although most current gen Elektron instruments can already output individual audio tracks via USB, doing so relies on the use of Elektron’s Overbridge plugin or connection to a USB host in order for the instrument to function as an audio interface. With Outbox 8, users can achieve the same functionality without the need to use a computer as an intermediary.

According to Elektron, “Outbox 8 enables you to route individual tracks, stems, or submixes for external processing, mixing, or performance – creating a flexible bridge between your Elektron workflow and the wider world of sound and control.”