Eurorack Test After Minor Change

video upload by John L Rice

Post Rearrangement Modular Synth Test

video upload by John L Rice

"Seems like I can never commit for very long on what modules I have in this case. Currently it’s mostly modules from Synthrotek, Division6, and George Mattson. #modularsynth #eurorackmodular #eurorackmodular"

Quick Test After Korg MS2000R MIDI Switching Modification

video upload by John L Rice

"In this custom case of eurorack modules and a Korg MS2000R I have a custom interface module that brings all of the MS2000R’s inputs and outputs to the front. Last year I added a switch to the panel to select MIDI from either the panel’s input jack or what ever is plugged into the Synthrotek MIDI To Cv module. Today I added a behind the panel connection from the Division6 / Mattson SQ816 sequencer to the custom panels’s MIDI input so I can dispense with using an external cable. #eurorackmodular #modularsynth #korg"

Storytime with Gordon Raphael

video upload by Patchwerks

"In this video esteemed record producer and musician Gordon Raphael shares stories from his music career, his love for synthesizers, and his new book: The World Is Going To Love This: Up From The Basement With The Strokes. Filmed live at Patchwerks in Seattle, WA.

Gordon Raphael is an American record producer and musician from Seattle, Washington, and New York, currently living in Hebden Bridge, after a few years in Berlin. Raphael is most widely known for his work with The Strokes, whom he met while attending an early show at Luna Lounge on Ludlow Street, New York -Wikipedia

https://patchwerks.com/
Video by: Matthew Piecora ( EZBOT), Steven Ly (Project 32)
https://www.ezbot.live"

Update: and an impage of Red Martian's (Stephen Jones) Mattson Mini Modular system:

Bubbly Sounds with R*S TKB

video by NOISEBUG

"Random*Source TKB sequencing the Elby Designs ASM-1."

Mattson Mini Modular to the right.

https://www.noisebug.net/

Divison 6 Mattson SQ816

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this auction

Division 6 CEM3340 VCO & Business Card Sequencer

Published on May 17, 2020 matrixsynth

Update: crazy little noodle added above. Description: "I don’t know what this is, but it sure is fun. Division 6 CEM3349 VCO oscillator sweep, Malekko Richter Oscillator II sequenced by Division 6 Dual Mini Sequencer and Tiptop BD808 and SD808 triggered by Z8000 Matrix Sequencer/Programmer. Noisering modding the Oscillator II for a little added grit. All through Mattson Mini Modular JP VCF and finally TC Electronic M300. Peeeeew!!! Kidding aside, listen to how low it goes with decent speakers. The CEM3340 was used in the Moog Memorymoog, Oberheim OB-Xa, Octave Voyetra Eight, Roland SH-101, MC-202, Jupiter-6, MKS-80, Sequential Circuits Prophet-5 10 & T8, Pro-One, Prophet-600, Banana Poly Synth, Crumar Spirit, Synton Syrinx, and more. See for yourself here. The Curtis CEM3340 was re-issued in 2016."

A few pics of a surprise package in the mail the other day. :) A Division 6 CEM3340 VCO & V2 update chips for my Business Card Sequencer. Pics of them in the rack below. Looking forward to giving them a run through.

See the Division 6 website for additional details on each.

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Synth Rorschach #64: Moon Rocks

Where does NASA keep the Moon Rocks? - Smarter Every Day 220 Published on Jul 9, 2019 SmarterEveryDay

The source of Formant knobs. Moon rocks!

OK, this one is a bit of stretch, but when I saw the small thumbnail for this video on YouTube, my first thought was, "did SmarterEveryDay do a video on modular synths?!". For a split second I thought that was a Formant modular in the background. In the larger still above it now reminds me of square Mattson Mini Modular panels with Formant knobs.

Division6 SQ816 Analog Step Sequencer

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this auction

"Manufacturer Description

The sequencer for the Mattson Mini Modular is available in the Eurorack format. One 52HP panel includes all the functions of the main sequencer and the expansion module. Here are some of the sequencer’s basic features:

2 rows of 8 steps, or daisy-chain them for a 16-step sequence.

A user tap-tempo mode that overrides the internal VC or external Clocks providing both timing and gate-length.

Global and Individual stage 0/+1 octave shift.

Three user-selectable gate length outputs: Short, follow (the clock duty cycle) and long.

Row 1 and/or row 3 quantized/linear output selection (1V/O format)

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Synth Wizards Episode 7: Syntars, Keytars & Orphicas

Published on Jun 1, 2019 Syntaur

"Keyboardists have wanted to go portable for way longer than you might have thought! Come along with Syntaur’s Sam Mims as he chases the fascinating history of the keytar, or strap-on synthesizer, and talks to some of the people who made these inventions happen. And watch the Syntaur crew bring a smashed Roland keytar back to life!"

Synth Wizards 7 Behind the Scenes: Strawberry Fields on Tubon/Mellotron

Published on Jun 1, 2019 Syntaur

"Sam and Eddie show you how the Strawberry Fields Forever audio for Synth Wizards Episode 7 was created."

---
Note the Moog Liberation contains the guts of the Realistic MG-1 made by Moog for Radio Shack.

George Mattson Announces His Retirement and the Division 6 SWAN II Eurorack System

This one is in via George Mattson of Mattson Mini Modular. Back on September 15, 2007, I posted a little teaser that would eventually launch Mattson back into the synth manufacturing world. He is the man behind the Syntar - the original keytar synthesizer, and the SWAN (Syntar Without A Neck) was the follow-up non-keytar version. It's fitting and an honor that George Mattson is announcing his retirement and a new SWAN here on MATRIXSYNTH.

"Hello to all of my dear synth friends, customers, and associates.

After 45 years of involvement in the synthesizer community, it is time for me to retire.

The community is on the right track with some extremely talented, enthusiastic people that can carry on the vision while I step back and focus on actually learning to play the gear I have acquired throughout the years. What a concept…

I thank all of you for the support and friendship that you have provided to me throughout the years. It has been very humbling and I bow to all of you.

I am currently working on my last system design along with my little brother Scott Rise of Division 6. He will be the “manufacturer” and sales point for the S.W.A.N. II.

It’s basically a 60HP 3U complete system. It has 3 VCOs and two separate voice chains. It contains a sequencer, arpeggiator, and the VCOs can be split to upper/lower priority for duophonic operations.

The main 60HP unit has Basic I/O.

For patching ability, there will be a 24HP expander that provides access to more I/O. It will also have sequencer program save/recall functions and the ability to set MIDI channels via the control panel. The two VCF notch outputs will also be accessible.

The main system VCOs will have continuously variable waveform mixing between triangle, square, and saw outputs similar to the EML 101 style of mixing. Both VCFs will also have continuously variable mode mixing between LP, BP, and HP, also like the EML 101.

There will be a 20HP expander panel that will allow for VC control of the VCO waveform mixing and the VCF mode mixing, along with a couple of cascaded buffered multiples and a couple of cascaded clock dividers/square wave sub generators.

That’s it in a nutshell. I’ve been working on this since May of last year and have been trying to balance my time between this design and getting ready to retire.

Price point? Not enough info yet to determine. Probably under $1K for the main unit.
Release date? June/July? As soon as we can. We may crowdfund manufacturing, but we need to accumulate more data first.

Once I have retired, I will still be doing custom system builds. I can’t totally pull away from this art.

Again, thank all of you for your support, and I’ll see you at Knobcon.

George Mattson"

Modular On The Spot - "Rain Dance" At Seward Park

Published on Oct 11, 2017 John L Rice

"This is my set from the MOTS event at Seward Park in Seattle WA USA October 7th 2017. *(also very short clips of the other performers at the end as a bonus)

Again I used my little Canon M5 mirror-less camera but this time with an 8mm fish-eye lens. Audio is a direct recording from the mixing desk. (thanks Bradley!)"

Division 6 Mattson SQ816 Sequencer on top.

Update:

"Gear used in order of appearance:

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Morpheum VCA / Ring Modulator Demo

Published on Mar 17, 2017 Division6Labs

"George Mattson demonstrates the Morpheum VCA / Ring Modulator Eurorack Module from Division 6. He talks about how amplitude and ring modulation work, and even a bit about what they have to do with radio.

More about the module here: http://division-6.com/products/morphe...

Video by John L. Rice"

http://division-6.com

New Images of the Performance Music Systems S.W.A.N.

A few new images of the one and only Performance Music Systems S.W.A.N., aka Syntar Without A Neck! If you are not familiar with this synth, see here. You can find additional posts on Performance Music Systems here, including an interview with the creator of the S.W.A.N, George Mattson. Mattson of course, is the man behind Mattson Mini Modular and the M in Synthrotek's MST line of eurorack modules. The S.W.A.N was his second synth, after the Syntar, the world's first stand-alone synthesizer keytar.

Note this is the one and only S.W.A.N. in existence.

The bottom image further below was taken in celebration of the Syntar's 38th birthday on October 4th of last year!

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MST VCO - DIY Eurorack Module - Midiverse - TV

Published on Dec 14, 2016 MIDI-VERSE TV

"What's up everybody? Welcome to Midiverse - TV. Today we're going to be checking out the MST VCO. This is a DIY Eurorack Synthesizer module that we recently finished building. So here's a quick overview and a few patch examples.

Available at - http://www.synthrotek.com"

Buchla Format Mattson Filter Demo

Published on Dec 13, 2016 legionhwp

"Buchla format 4-Pole, 24dB/Octave State Variable Filter jointly designed by Synth DIY guru Jim Patchell and George Mattson.

The filter design is based off the now-obsolete SSM 2040 filter and has simultaneous Low pass, Band pass and High pass outputs.


PS: Yes I know Buchla uses Banana cables for CV only and Tinijax for audio. That's what I meant :)"

Skyclops

Published on Jun 22, 2016 John L Rice

"I missed the Solstice 'Strawberry' Moon because we had a thunderstorm but the following night's Moon was still pretty good.

'The ancient and massive Skyclops was once a peaceful being, drifting through the night, observing all below with the Moon as it's single great eye. But demons embedded themselves in Skyclops to control its power for their own malevolent dreams of spreading terror and grief to those who slumber. Look closely and you may see other creatures roaming it surface or damage from vain attempts to destroy it . . . or even an alien craft lurking the depths of its eye.'"

In the Mattson Dungeon with the Monster Mattson EML System

Doug Lynner, Stephen Golovnin & George Mattson in the sonic dungeon of Mattson Mini Modular studios.

The massive system they are playing is the mighty Mattson EML modular. It consists of vintage EML components and new designs from George Mattson. You can find a ton of pics and info on the Mattson EML channel label here.

George Mattson of course is the man behind Mattson Mini Modular as well as being responsible for the "M" in the Synthrotek MST line.

http://www.synthrotek.com
http://mattsonminimodular.com

Doug Lynner is a Serge maestro and has been featured here on MATRIXSYNTH numerous times with his Mystery Serge.

Stephen Golovnin aka Vsyevolod used to work at Serge back in the early days when they were based out of Los Angeles (above the wig shop here). He performs live with his massive eight panel Serge system and has been present at a number of synth meets.

Moogfest 2016: Mattson Mini Modular & Synthrotek

Published on Jun 6, 2016 sonicstate

"George Mattson of Mattson Mini Modular shows us the new kits he has designed which will be built and supplied by Synthrotek - report by Katie Kilobyte"

Moogfest 2016: Synthrotek

Published on Jun 6, 2016 sonicstate

"Steve from kit and module specialists Synthrotek gives us the lowdown on his range of kits and modules from the Modular Market Place. - report by Katie Kilobyte"

http://www.synthrotek.com/
http://mattsonminimodular.com

Mattson Mini Modular System for Sale

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this auction

"For sale are two panels of Mattson Mini Modular, made by the man himself, George Mattson. Included are:
Two Oscillators
Two filters
The sq816 sequencer and expander
Two envelope generators
Two 4x mixers
One quad vca
One quad asr
One noise source
One vc mixer
One VCA
One sample and hold
One dual vc LFO
One utility one
One four channel buffer
One midi in voltage and gate out
One power/midi set module.
All contained in a beautiful hardwood easy to carry case. The MMM has never left the home studio, and was never exposed to smoke. It's in perfect functioning condition and cosmetic shape. What's great about this system is that it interacts with eurorack seamlessly."

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