MATRIXSYNTH: Monowave


Showing posts with label Monowave. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Monowave. Show all posts

Wednesday, June 16, 2021

Novation Spotlight: Purity, integrity and Synthesizers with Paula Maddox



Paula Maddox brought us the Monowave (essentially a mono PPG Wave), Vacoloco DIY projects, Modal Electronics, and Dove Audio.

You can find the full Interview with Novation here.

"Unbridled passion drives Paula Maddox as she finds her sound through synth creations.

Captivated by the perplexing synth sounds of the 1980s and driven to recreate the beloved melodies of her favourite songs, Paula Maddox has had a fruitful career in music tech. As a synth afficionado turned designer, Paula has been at the helm of many groundbreaking synth creations, and has also founded her own synthesizer company, Dove Audio. We spoke with Paula to learn more about her career as a trans woman in music tech, and how she infuses purity, integrity and love into her work."

Check out additional Novation Spotlight posts here.

Sunday, February 17, 2019

ELBY-DESIGNS MONOWAVE X WAVE TABLE 2-OSCILLATOR SYNTHESIZER PPG STYLE RACK

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


via this auction

"The Monowave is a wavetable synthesiser with 256 waves available for each of the two oscillators. Each oscillator also has a sub-oscillator. The filter is a copy of the Moog filter, there are separate envelope generators for the filter and amplifier, and a simple LFO. The panel is very 'retro' and 'traditional' with knobs for every function and a simple display. Internally, the circuitry is all analogue (except for the digital circuitry used in the oscillators)... no wimpy DSP thank you very much - this is a 'real' synth!!"

Wednesday, March 21, 2018

Elby Designs + Paula Maddox MonoWave

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


via this auction

Paula of course is the woman behind Modal Electronics, and previously, vacoloco.

"Old Nik says: "The MonoWave(X) is a early GEM from Paula Maddox... The unknown (to many) ancestor of the Modal Electronics 001/002! It's super! Think PPG Wave and Moog Model D had a baby, and that is the MonoWave(X)..."

Manufacturer Description:
The Monowave was the brainchild of UK electronics designer, Paula Maddox. Paula has been designing and building synths for many years as well as releasing her own unique music realized on her impressive modular creations.

Paula wanted to build a synth the roots of which lay in the PPG. Originally intended as a monophonic bass synth, the Monowave has uses beyond that.

The Monowave is a wavetable synthesiser with 256 waves available for each of the two oscillators. Each oscillator also has a sub-oscillator. The filter is a copy of the Moog filter, there are separate envelope generators for the filter and amplifier, and a simple LFO. The panel is very 'retro' and 'traditional' with knobs for every function and a simple display. Internally, the circuitry is all analogue (except for the digital circuitry used in the oscillators)... no wimpy DSP thank you very much - this is a 'real' synth!!

Paula has now released the MonoWave as GPL and has given me permission to release the PCB and a Component Kit for those that unfortunately missed the first, limited run.

The new MonoWave (X) is a rebuild of Paula's popular MonoWave I and is being re-released with her permission. The new design reduces the original multi-pcb design down to 2 pcbs.

In addition, the front panel design incorporates a 2x16 LCD Module (the original MonoWave only had a 1x16 Module) allowing software developers to extend the user-interface.

Technical Information:

Saturday, February 11, 2017

Monowave Synthesizer


Published on Jul 2, 2015 Strat-1

I believe The Monowave was the first synth by Paul Maddox. It was basically a monophonic PPG. Paul Maddox of course is the man behind Vaco Loco and Modal Electronics.

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Zombie Nation - Left Rack (studio session)


Published on May 24, 2016 Zombie Nation official

"having fun with some classic gear from my studio. - unreleased

Ursa Major Space Station SST-282 / Delay
SND FB-14 Stereo / Filterbank
Vertigo VSC-2 / Quad Discrete VCA Compressor
Doepfer MS-404 / synth
Modulus Monowave / synth"

The Monowave was a Paul Maddox creation before Vaco Loco & Modal Electronics. It was a monophonic rack synthesizer featuring PPG waveforms (not full wavetables) and a Moog style filter. See this post (note there was an all digital Monowave II) followed by the Monowave label for more.

Monday, June 29, 2015

Rare Monowave Wavetable Synthesizer for Sale

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


via this auction

The Monowave was a Paul Maddox design which featured PPG wavetables. It was essentially a monophonic PPG Wave. Paul Maddox is the man behind the current Modal Electronics.

via the seller: "It's bulit with the board from Elby Designs. I didn't like the vcf's response from the board so I replaced it with one more appropriate to the original ladder filter."

via wikipedia: "This synth was first shown in 2001 by its inventor Paul Maddox on a PPG user/fan meeting. Because its attraction to some synthesizer players at the event, the project was started with 5 beta-test units to test the software and hardware. By spring 2002. the serial production of a 25-piece limited run started. About a year later, all units were sold.

Late in 2005, after many attempts at designing new products, Paul decided to close Modulus Electronics and its website (modulus-music.com). In order that people could still enjoy the Monowave, he worked with Elby Designs to create a kit version of the monowave offering the same features. The software was released at the same time under the GPL license, in the hope that others would continue to develop its features.

It features two digital oscillators with 256 different waveshapes selectable individually. There is also a unique de-res, a function to lower the digital waveshapes' sample resolution, to give a sound very much like the famous German PPG wave synthesizers from the eighties. The signal of these oscillators and their suboctave signals are mixed together and then feed in the pure analog part of the synth:a 24 db lowpass filter a la Moog synthesizer. and a VCA. Both of them controlled by their own ADSR envelopes. Depending on the EEPROM software, it may either have an arpeggiator or a midi velocity to wavenumber function.

The MonoWave has no patch memory. It can be played by ingoing MIDI signals from software, sequencers or MIDI keyboards."

Thursday, June 26, 2014

New Hardware Keyboard Synthesizer Coming from Modulus



Teaser pic via modulusmusic.me where you'll find a couple of audio demos. Just look at it. Reminds me of a John Bowen Solaris, meets Synton Syrinx with a touch of Oberheim OB-12. Modulus is from Paul Maddox who brought us the Monowave. See the Modulus and Monowave channels for previous posts. We knew something was coming. This is the first glimpse. Some things you can clearly see from the pic: 5 octave keyboard, tons of knobs and sliders including two rows of knobs on the lower right that can be indicative of an onboard sequencer, and a display with what looks to be a larger data knob to the lower right.  Unless the PWM demo has been multi-tracked, this will be polyphonic.

Modulus will be at this year's SDIY UK event.

Update: I forgot to mention, Paul Maddox is also the man behind VacoLoco.  It looks like vacoloco.net now redirects to the new modulus website, but you can get in the back door here, and of course a bit of VacoLoco synth history is archived here on MATRIXSYNTH.  See the VacoLoco channel below.

Monday, March 10, 2014

Modulus Music - Rebirth of a Classic Synth Company by Paul Maddox



via Greg Cole on The MATRIXSYNTH Lounge

"Hey guys, show some support to Paul Maddox for the rebirth of his synth company Modulus Music. Paul's the man behind the Monowave wavetable synth and the awesome little VacoLoco boxes. Excited to see what he's working on!"

The Modulus name was in use by Paul Maddox with the Monowave as seen back in 2007 in this post.

Paul initially announced the new company on March 7th in The MATRIXSYNTH Lounge as well.

"Something big is coming, Follow us for updates, pictures, sounds and videos as they happen.
https://www.facebook.com/ModulusMusic"

I was going to hold off for a post until products where announced, but decided to put something up now.  I can't wait to see what Paul comes up with next.  You can see the vacoloco channel below for his latest up to now.

Tuesday, October 08, 2013

New MONOWAVE(X) PPG STYLE WAVETABLE SYNTHESIZER SOUND MODULE

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


via this auction

"Imagine a monophonic, MIDI controllable, 19" rack mountable PPG blue wavetable synthesizer minus the wavetable scanning, plus a user selectable De-Rez, with a classic MoogÂȘ filterladder and real analogue knobs.... well just image, explore it with the Monowave(X).

The Monowave was the brainchild of UK electronics designer, Paul Maddox [Vaco Loco] who wanted to build a synth the roots of which lay in the PPG.

Originally intended as a monophonic bass synth, the Monowave has uses beyond that.

The Monowave is a wavetable synthesizer with 256 waves available for each of the two oscillators. Each oscillator also has a sub-oscillator. The filter is a copy of the Moog filter, there are separate envelope generators for the filter and amplifier, and a simple LFO. The panel is very 'retro' and 'traditional' with knobs for every function and a simple display.

Internally, the circuitry is all analogue (except for the digital circuitry used in the oscillators)... no wimpy DSP thank you very much - this is a 'real' synth!!

Specifications:

· ROM waves 8-bit depth
· 256 samples per cycle
· DE-REZ reduces cycle to 64 samples
· ADSR timing range Attack: 6 - 820 milliseconds
· Decay: 16 - 6000 milliseconds
· Release: 16 - 6000 milliseconds
· Dynamic range About 90dB
· MIDI Note Range C#-2 to C6
· MIDI note offs Recognises real Note Offs as well as velocity Note Offs
· Audio out Headphone socket: best if used with 32 ohms impedance
· Monophonic 6.3 mm (1/4") socket
· Display 2 x 16 backlit LCD
· Power Input: 110V - 240V ac 50/60 Hz, auto sensing power supply
· Maximum power consumption: 30 W
· Size 2U 19” rack unit"

Thursday, August 01, 2013

3 Monowaves - Prototype, Beta (1 of 5) and Production (1 of only 25 made)


via Vaco Loco

"Here’s something you don’t see everyday, 3 x Monowave altogether. What also makes this special is that there is the original Prototype (bottom), a beta unit (1 of 5) and a production (1 of 25) unit al together."

The Monowave had two oscillators with 256 waveforms each. 127 of them were from the classic PPG wave synthesizers. It had two additional sub-oscillators and a Moog ladder filter clone. You can find more info on here and of course the Monowave label below.

Update via Qwave in the comments: "And here is another triple MonoWave rack: http://till-kopper.de/monowave-rack.jpg
That's mine. I love the sound of it."

Friday, June 10, 2011

Loved by Ghosts - Sonic Hysteria - Mass DIY


YouTube Uploaded by lovedbyghosts on Jun 7, 2011

"Crazy animation made by the band in an attic with almost no money."

via Loved by Ghosts

SoundCloud
YouTube
Facebook

"We are a new band called "Loved by Ghosts" which uses almost entirely DIY synthesizers that we built ourselves.

In "Sonic Hysteria", you would certainly recognize the midibox SID while the bass is Monomachine.

In “Girl Go” the bass line is Avr-X Synthesizer, various FX is midibox FM and the lead Oberheim OB-12.

In the other songs - that we will be posting soon - we use: ASM-2, Mutable Instruments Shruthi-1, Pixie (Wasp clone), Monowave(X), MFOS Soundlab, SUB-COMMANDER Guitar Synth, Weird Sound Generator, Drone Lab V2, AVR synth, Gorf Sequencer.
For guitar and voice we use various filters from the web (wasp filter clone, steiner, lm13700 filter, ssm2044, polivoks), fx's built with boards from JĂŒrgen Haible (Frequency Shifter FS-1A, Triple Chorus, Krautrock Phaser and 20-pole Phaser), many vintage Russian fx units, and many electro-Harmonix stompboxes.
All of them are sequenced from an Elektron Monomachine (we love it !!!) and an Electribe sampler is used for drums, created with the same synths.
You will recognize some of them in the pictures. More to come on our Facebook page.

We want to thank you… Thorsten Klose, Laurie Biddulph, Paul Maddox, Ray Wilson, JĂŒrgen Haible, Johan Severinsson and Jonas Karlsson, Olivier Gillet, Peter Edwards, Jarek Ziembicki and to MATRIXSYNTH. Without your projects,our music would be empty.
And special thanks to our pet Speakjet, Wof, Wof.
If you enjoyed our music, follow us on Facebook, YouTube and SoundCloud, there's a lot more to come."

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Vaco Loco MonoWave II

"The MonoWave II is a complete change for me in that it's a 100% DSP based synth. My reason for this is that it allows me to experiment with features and the sound of the synth without having to rebuild circuits from scratch.

The MonoWave II is a free download for anyone who uses the Sound Art Chameleon. It was designed with the same goals in mind as the original Monowave, a unique sounding monosynth with unique sonic abilities.

I'm new to DSP and this is my first project, so I've decided to make it a freebie. You can get the latest version, along with a patch dump, in the downloads section. You can also find the source code, including DSP assembly language, here. Please feel free to use it, but I would request that you keep a link to the modulus webpage and also SoundArt webpages in the files."

Samples here

You can find more info on the original MonoWave here. In short it was a mono synth with Moog style filters and the PPG waveshapes for the Oscillators.

As always see the labels below for what's gone up in the past.

Update via Qwave in the comments:
"I can clear up a thing, because I own three MonoWaves: it does not produce wavetables. But it contains all the waveshapes the PPG waves used to make up the wavetables by interpolation. So it does sound like a PPG from the oscillator side. But the filter is a pure and legal (written permission by Bob Moog!) Moog filter.
http://www.till-kopper.de/monowave.html
Scroll down for the english (sort of) version.
Here is my MonoWave rack:
http://www.till-kopper.de/monowave-rack-small.jpg

keep on turning these knobs"

Till"

Update via Lord Avon in the comments:
"It's worth noting that you can control the wavenumbers via MIDI CC, so if you sequence it you can get psuedo wavetable effects, like this demo from Paul Nagle ;-
http://www.vacoloco.net/synths/monowave/sounds/MonoWaving_Seq.mp3"

Sunday, July 13, 2008

SDIY UK 2008 via Vocano Ramblings aka Paul Maddox


post and images here

 Paul Maddox is the man behind the MonoWave.

Thursday, May 01, 2008

Hermann Seibs Hauptseite

click here for Herman Seibs Huptseite Synthesizer sub-site. You will find the following listed along with images and information on each:

Emax
Emulator III
Fairlight CMI IIx
Wavestation
PS-3100 [pictured here]
PPG System
Microwave
Microwave XTk
Waldorf Wave
SH-101
MonoWave
Verweise

Can't read German? Here it is in Googlish.

Tuesday, January 08, 2008

Monowave


images via this auction

"This is a TRULY UNIQUE synth in keyboard history... perhaps THE only rackmounted version of the famous PPG Wave 2.2, only 50 of these were made by Paul Maddox, one of the leading experts on PPG in the UK. Feel free to read more here. This synth was a limited custom (built to order) and only 50 were ever made, this is #16."
Update: you can find more info on the monowave on the Elby-Designs Monowave page as well as via the Monowave label below.

Wednesday, May 16, 2007

Vaco Loco


Click here for Paul Maddox's Vaco Loco. You'll find tons of synth content including info on the Defender, Monowave, Monowave II, Phoenix, PolyDAC and Midi2SDS, some of which have been featured here before (btw, the Search box up top and to the right are your friend).

Friday, May 04, 2007

Modulus Electronics Monowave


via this auction

Via the official MonoWave site:

"The Monowave was the brainchild of UK electronics designer, Paul Maddox. Paul has been designing and building synths for years as well as releasing his own unique music realised on his impressive modular creations. Paul wanted to build a synth the roots of which lay in the PPG. Originally intended as a monophonic bass synth, the Monowave has uses beyond that. The Monowave is a wavetable synthesiser with 256 waves available for each of the two oscillators. Each oscillator also has a sub-oscillator. The filter is a copy of the Moog filter, there are separate envelope generators for the filter and amplifier, and a simple LFO. The panel is very 'retro' and 'traditional' with knobs for every function and a simple display. Internally, the circuitry is all analogue (except for the digital circuitry used in the oscillators)... no wimpy DSP thank you very much - this is a 'real' synth!!

Paul has now released the MonoWave as GPL and has given me permission to release the PCB and a Component Kit for those that unfortunately missed the first, limited run. I have decided to upgrade the main microcontroller to the newer ATMEGA32 which will allow developers to further extend the capabilitites of the design should they wish."

You can also find a write up on Vaco Loco.

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