I did quite a bit of research in looking for a little Synth to have when I wasn't playing my Nord Electro. This turned out to be the perfect diversion and more then I was expecting from a monophonic synth. I've also owned a Korg Minilogue, Akai Timbre Wolf, Yamaha CS & MX49 and Roland Gaia but this so far has been one of the most enjoyable synth's. I never thought a Mono could be so fun:)Pro's :Beautiful sound! This baby has so much power and in particular the low-end and high harmonic possibilities. I often find myself turning my Mackie monitors down because its pretty intense. The range of sounds is immense and little tweaks can really effect/modify the sound waves. Being analog, there is zero lag in the time is takes for the sound to respond to the adjustments. I've had other synths with virtual analog engines and the adjustments sometimes would take a moment to register. Not with analog though ;-)Easy to understand panel and also user manual. Having used synth's before it was pretty straight forward but I did need to read up on the patch bay. Which is a nice addition and can create some crazy effects. Pretty much zero confusion with the way Arturia has laid things out. I highly recommend reading the manual for a further understanding of synthesis (I also recommend the Korg Minilogue manual)The sequencer is quite fun and rather absorbing once you get into it. The rest button can help create interesting patterns and with 8 individual saveable patterns, its more then enough to create hours of experimenting.The knobs and sliders all feel solid for a $200 synth and the red makes seeing settings/labels much easier. Sometimes black face plates with dull white lettering is difficult to read especially when you aren't under bright lights. I also like the fact the knobs and sliders are white.The casing and base plate also feels well-built for being plastic/metal. The translucent plastic adds a nice touch to see internals. I kind of get bored with black cased synth's and keyboards.The accessibility on the back panel is deep! I don't see myself using the CV input/output's but the audio input will come in handy. I already ran my Nord through the filters and it was an interesting effect. I can also see running both of my Strymon effect pedals through it to create even crazier effects with the filter. The midi is always a nice touch to use a larger keyboard for a controller.Con's :The keyboard is super small. However, for me I didn't buy it for the keyboard size, it was to use it with a larger keyboard and also using the sequencer. If I do have a smaller synth, I would rather have one that doesn't draw me in to play it like a full-size. Thats what the midi is for ;-)The build quality is good, don't get me wrong. The base plate though seems to be a cheaper metal and I recommend keeping it wiped clean. Also avoid getting it scratched because with a cheaper metal long-term it could rust.But really, there aren't many con's to this synth! So enjoyable, highly useable and the size makes it so portable. I could see taking this on a trip to have a music outlet. I do recommend purchasing a effects pedals for it. Reverb and delay are very versatile effects that can add an enormous sound to a synth. I was taken back by the soundscapes you could make with the effects activated and it adds another layer of playability.Update :I just returned mine and ordered the Minibrute. Opting for a little bit bigger keyboard that could potentially allow you to play it with a piano sound. Since a lot of playing consists of middle C3 & C4 section. At least my playing anyway ;) No serious playing of course but just the option. Also, I've been using it with my Electro Harmonix 22500 looper that allows you have pretty infinite possibilities of recording overdubs. I highly recommend that and you could go a cheap route like the TC Alter Ego v2 with delay/looper for $169! It really does open up some crazy options to create a song with nothing bu the synth making the basslines, drones and melodies.Also the Minibrute has a few more tweaking possibilities and accessibility on the back-panel. Especially with plugging another instrument into it and using the filter/amplifier.I think more then any other synth I've had, the Arturia feels like an instrument. Playing with a 3 or 4 piece band you have so many options to fit in wherever needed:)