Synth Tracks on the Amiga by Peahix

Published on Feb 22, 2017 peahix

Two playlists, one featuring the Amiga Aegis Sonix synth above, and one featuring the Amiga Deluxe Music Construction Set below. Don't miss the first track and it's description below. It's pretty funny - some musique concrete for you. Many of you might recognize the name Peahix from one, his Optigan.com endeavors, and two some of his many videos and covers posted here on MATRIXSYNTH.

1. Amiga - Aegis Sonix - CARS - Gary Numan

"Here's a rendition of CARS by Gary Numan that I made on my Amiga around about 1987 or so."

2. Amiga - Aegis Sonix - BREAKER

"I don't know who created this track for Sonix on the Amiga, but I always liked it as a teenager, so I figured I'd share it here for posterity."

3. Amiga - Aegis Sonix - Little

"I don't know who created this track for Sonix on the Amiga, but I always liked it as a teenager, so I figured I'd share it here for posterity."



Published on Feb 22, 2017 peahix

1. 1987 Amiga Deluxe Music Construction Set - Music for Bloom County Contest

"Here's something I dug up today that I haven't thought of in years and figured was loooong gone. In 1987, Bloom County had a contest where you could submit your own original song for Billy & The Boingers, the band in the comic strip. Well, this is what I came up with on my Amiga. A couple of the sounds had gone missing, so I had to replace them with other sounds, but, well, I don't think that matters very much. Needless to say, I didn't win the contest."

2. Amiga Deluxe Music Construction Set - Fugue in D Minor

"This is an original fugue in D minor more or less in the style of JS Bach that I wrote on my Amiga when I was a teenager, around 1987. I wrote this before I'd had any formal music theory training, so I'm sure the counterpoint and voice leading is all wrong wrong wrong, but oh well, it sounded authentic enough to me back then."

Depeche Mode - NEW LIFE - Played on Realistic Moog MG-1 Synth

Published on Jan 10, 2019 peahix

Peahix is one of my synth heroes. His creations never cease to amaze me. He also runs optigan.com.

"I resurrected an old Cubase file I created originally to record a version of this track for my Yamaha CS01II synth, in order to test out this Moog MG-1 I picked up for $100 at a garage sale. All the sounds (drums too) were generated by the MG-1. I didn't spend alot of time dialing in the patches or the mix for this one, just sort of got it ball-parky. I did a bit of a better job overall w/ the CS01II version, which you can hear and read about here: [below]

Anyway, the Moog was MIDI'd up to Cubase via a Kenton Pro-Solo, and it seemed to work nicely with that. Neat little synth!"

Yamaha CS01II plays NEW LIFE by Depeche Mode

Published on May 9, 2011 peahix

"Download this with better sound quality here: http://snd.sc/iD5jmD

The Yamaha CS01II is the first real synthesizer I ever owned. I got it when I was about 14 years old, back in 1985 or so. I noticed that I could get reasonable approximations of most of the sounds from Depeche Mode's "Speak & Spell" album with it, but at the time I didn't have the means to make decent multi-track cover versions, even after I got a 4-track.

Recently I was studying the Depeche Mode 5.1 surround mixes, and realized that I could clearly hear all the distinct parts of alot of the songs, including "New Life." I also realized that most of the sounds in "New Life," which heavily featured the ARP 2600, were fairly simple. So I decided to throw together a version of it using just my trusty old Yamaha CS01II as the sole sound source (including the drums), just to see how close I could get to the original.

This version has no vocals at all, but otherwise it comes pretty close to the original. The actual musical arrangement is 100% accurate. The sounds themselves are of course only approximations, and most of them don't have the same level of timbral detail as the ARP originals. I sequenced the whole thing in Cubase via a Kenton Pro Solo going into the custom CV/Gate inputs on my CS01II, recording each monophonic line in one at a time (20 tracks in all). Cubase provided the reverb and EQ, otherwise it's all CS01II."

Depeche Mode - NOTHING TO FEAR - Transcription / Re-Creation by Peahix

Published on Nov 25, 2015 peahix

Another great cover by peahix of http://optigan.com. Details on the synth parts below.

"Here's the latest in my periodic series of Depeche Mode song re-creations. I don't really call these "covers," because I'm not doing any sort of creative interpretation. The goal is to get as close as possible to the original recording by not using ANY samples or sound material from the original recording itself. So really, this is a technical exercise more than anything. As usual, I used the original album mix and the surround mix as reference points, and I also was able to hear a few details in DM's live recording. There are differences between these versions, so where I found conflicting parts or mix issues, I deferred to the original album mix. It's a pretty accurate transcription (probably the only one you'll find that gets the bassline right!), though there are some details that are buried in the mix of all the different versions, so I had to make some educated guesses for a few things, or I just fudged them. I sequenced this in Cubase with just two different soft synths- Retrologue and a PPG Wave freeware emulation I found online (http://www.hermannseib.com/english/sy...). Drums are Simmons SDSV samples I found online . Many of the effects on this track come from the PPG synth, so I did my best to get some sounds from the soft synth version that got in the ballpark. I didn't slave over every last patch, so some of them are closer to the mark than others. Probably could have worked on the drum sounds and the mix a bit more, but oh well, life's too short. Enjoy."

retrologue:
-bass
-lead
-sequencey riffs
-noise sweeps
-noise perc

ppg wave:
-choir
-keyboard riff (near beginning and end)
-bell-like sound
-glitchy wavetable sounds
-chord riff in bridge

all drums are simmons samples except for the hi-hat, which is 808 high-hat samples.

Yamaha CS01-II Synthesizer Demo

YouTube via peahix.

peahix on MySpace

"All the sounds (drums too) are from my old monophonic Yamaha CS01-II, which I had retrofitted with CV/Gate jacks and plugged into a Kenton Pro Solo midi/cv box. I bounced each part from midi to audio one by one in Cubase, mixed with some effects. Maybe I'll develop this into a complete song someday, for now it was just a quick experiment to see what a full arrangement using the CS01-II would sound like.

You can download a Kontakt program of a bass sound I made with this synth here: http://www.twango.com/media/peahix.pu..."

Electro-Harmonix Mini-Synthesizer Analog Synth

YouTube via peahix.

peahix on MySpace

"i haven't seen any demos of the eh mini synth on youtube, so i thought it high time to put one up here. this thing is kind of like the edp wasp, though not quite as versatile. obviously i'm just noodling around, but this will give you a basic idea of some of the sounds this thing makes. pretty limited, but what it does do, it does quite well. also, you can get an idea of how the velocity sensitivity works on this thing.

as a bonus, you can download a very detailed kontakt program of a big bass patch that i made with this synth by going here: http://www.twango.com/media/peahix.pu...

for those interested, the controls are:

top row sliders l-r:
-pitch bend
-sub octave
-phase rate
-sweep start freq
-sweep stop freq
-sweep rate
-master volume

bottom row switches:
-octave
-tune (recessed trim pot)
-phase
-sens.
-2x filt.
-q
-power

btw, the "phase rate" slider acts as a pwm lfo rate when the "phase" switch is in the up position, and acts as a continuously variable pulse waveform when the "phase" switch is in the down position."

Yazoo - DON'T GO - Re-created w/ Sequential Circuits Pro-One Synth

Published on Jul 23, 2014 peahix

Another one from Pea Hicks. Don't miss the Yazoo Only You cover, and his Yamaha CS-01 Depeche Mode covers. Click here for all posts featuring peahix.

"By special request, here's another Yaz track re-created w/ the Sequential Circuits Pro-One synth. The original actually has a fair amount of ARP 2600 in it, which means that the sounds in my version are a bit hit-and-miss, but I was able to get reasonably close with most of the sounds. My starting point for this was four patches posted at http://www.unease.se/proone.htm which I modified to get closer to the original sounds. The kick is the same patch from the Vince Clarke magazine article that I used on "Only You." All the other sounds I programmed from scratch. Everything was sequenced in Cubase, and the Pro-One sounds were recorded one at a time via a Kenton Pro Solo MIDI/CV interface.

Note that, as with 'Only You,' the original recording is actually pitched a bit sharp. I've decided to record my versions at concert pitch (A440) for the sake of keeping things standard.

The snare, clap (heavy reverb), and hi-hat (heavy flanging) are all 808. The kick and toms are Pro-One.

For the record, I don't view these re-creations as "covers" or creative projects. They're more like jigsaw puzzles to me. A way to challenge my ear, a way to find out the limits of my limited gear, and a way to try to get into the head of musicians/producers I admire. Otherwise, they're relatively pointless and aren't meant to be creative statements in and of themselves.

Here you can download my midi file and patch sheets if you want to have a go and make your own version. Just let me know and give me a mention if you post your version anywhere. https://www.dropbox.com/s/s5342gtfi6o...

Thanks again to frankperri.com for the blank patch sheets!"

New 2010 Optigan Disc - SURF ROCK!

YouTube via peahix — June 01, 2010 —

"Now available for pre-order at http://www.optigan.com/shoptigan/inde... is our brand new Optigan disc: SURF ROCK! When we've reached 15 pre-orders, we'll go to press with the limited run of 25 discs.

Surf's up! It's time to wax the board and catch a wave! Optigan.com is proud to present Surf Rock , featuring the vintage sounds of the 1960's surf scene. For this music program disc, we've gone into the recording studio with a couple of SoCal's best surf rockers.

Reverb enthusiast Matt Quilter is one-half of the guitar assault from the award-winning Reventlos http://www.reventlos.com/ whose quirky instro albums alternately intrigue and horrify surf music purists. In addition to his duties on guitar, he co-produced the documentary feature Pounding Surf! http://www.surfdrums.com/surfdrums.html an insider's look at the SoCal surf music scene from 1961 to the present day. For the Optigan session, he chose from his arsenal a Fender Stratocaster played through a blond Fender Tremolux and Reverb unit, both from 1963.

Lee "Kix" rarely strays from playing Death-Surf / Afro-Billy music with the Reventlos. However in days past he has recorded with world famous instrumental guitar gods, The Ventures. As a veteran of many Linn Drum sessions, Kix is no stranger to having his drums sampled for posterity. The Optigan session was recorded with vintage 1960's Oaklawn Camco drums, 20x14 bass drum and 14x5.5 metal snare. T he 12x8 and 14x10 toms used in the session were obtained when Kix was a Los Angeles Camco endorsee in the mid-70's.

Guitar and Bass played by Matt Quilter.
Drums played by William Lee "Kix".
Music arranged by Matt Quilter and William Lee "Kix".
Music produced, edited, and mastered by Pea Hicks.
Engineered and Mixed by Jon O'Brien. Recorded at The Music Box Studios, Garden Grove CA http://themusicboxstudios.com/
Disc creation software, disc production cover artwork and jacket layout by Robert Becker .
Cover artwork by Mark Crafford.

RHYTHMS: 4/4
LEFT HAND: Bass, guitar, and drums.
RIGHT HAND: Tremolo electric guitar.
SPECIAL EFFECTS SWITCHES: 1. Guitar Gliss, 2. Drums, 3. Tom-
Toms, 4. Snare Fill, 5. Guitar C Chord.

Be sure to check our other videos for a mini-documentary of the Surf Rock recording session!"

Making of the Optigan SURF ROCK Disc

"peahix — June 01, 2010 —

Here's a mini-documentary of the recording session for the Optigan SURF ROCK disc, shot and narrated by Pat Quilter, co-founder of QSC Audio Products http://www.qsc.com

Featured are Matt Quilter (Pat's brother) on bass/guitar and Lee Kix on drums. Matt and Lee are both members of The Reventlos http://www.reventlos.com. Also appearing are Pea Hicks (optigan guru), Robert Becker (new optigan disc guru) and Jon O'Brien (sound engineer).

Please see our other videos for a demo of the Optigan disc that resulted from these sessions, and visit http://www.optigan.com/shoptigan/inde... to order a copy of the disc."

Roland Mc-8 Microcomposer And Mc-8 Interface w/ Extras

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

via this auction

You can find an unboxing video by peahix for another unit in the listing and previously posted here. Note the seller is not peahix.


"The MicroComposer can accurately adjust various production elements and sound effects of a synthesizer, such as VCO, VCF and other voltage controlled components, which is almost impossible to perform manually by an interpreter. The MC-8 was designed to work with large complex modular synthesizers such as System 700 and System-100M. It could also be used during a live performance to control the lighting using preprogrammed and timed pulses and programmed and preprogrammed voltage levels.

Perfect for those who currently work and compose with analog synthesizers from the 70s.

While only 200 units were sold worldwide, the MC-8 was a revolutionary product. It provided storage for analog sound production variables, synchronization capability for multichannel recording (the time code could be recorded on a spare track), sufficient capacity to record complete compositions, editing capabilities and fast access time. The MC-8 provided eight control voltage outputs and eight gate outputs, as well as a six-bit multiplex output with a seventh special bit reserved for portamento control."

Pics of the schematic below.

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NAMM Randomness 2011

YouTube via peahix | January 17, 2011 |

"random scenes from NAMM 2011."

Some light synth spotting. Ends with the Fairlight. Video by peahix of http://www.optigan.com/.

Yamaha CS01 II

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

via this auction

The listing has a demo video by peahix. Peahix also made some incredible Depeche Mode covers using only the Yamaha CS01 II. You can check them out here.

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MC-8 Roland Microcomposer demo VHS tape 1978

Published on Nov 21, 2018 AnalogSynthMuseum

"MC-8 Roland Microcomposer demo VHS tape 1978"

Update via peahix:

"This isn't a demo VHS tape from 1978. It's stolen from my own MC8 demo video, the original of which you can see here [embed below]

The music on my original video was replaced with a piece of music by Ralph Dyck taken from my MC8 blog"

Roland MC-8 Factory Demo Program - Bach Invention #1

Published on Feb 1, 2010 peahix

"This is another of the demo programs provided in the Roland MC-8 manual. This time it's a Bach Invention, played back on a Roland SH-101 synth (not seen in the video). The first part of the video is specifically designed to bore you with stunning footage of me entering the channel 1 CV data for the first 3 pages of the 10-page score. Be thankful that I didn't decide to include the entire CV/Step/Gate data entry process for the entire score. In the 2nd part of the video, you hear the entire mixed piece, played back in sync with the MC-8 displaying the CV data for channel 1.

After posting this video, I was informed that Yellow Magic Orchestra featured this very same demo at the very end of the show during their 1980 world tour. You can hear their version here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1qocP...

For more info about the MC-8, and to see high-res scans of the score & program data sheets for this piece, please visit http://www.rolandmc8.wordpress.com"

1972 Moog Sonic Six Analog Synthesizer Demo

YouTube via peahix.

images via this auction. http://www.myspace.com/peahix

"1972 Moog Sonic Six. This synth is currently listed on eBay: item #130238825211. This is a quick demo showing some of its features, definitely not a comprehensive demo. Also I cover the two main problems this unit currently has:

1) There is a problem with the lower portion of the keyboard, where the pitch sort of does a "bump and glide" down to those notes after playing higher notes. It's a bit unpredictable and hard to describe- just watch the video. Not sure what the source of this problem is.

2) The modulation input for the ring mod is currently not working. In the video I demonstrate that the signal input works (Osc B), but the mod input switch does nothing. Again, not sure of the source of this problem.

Apart from these issues (which should be fix-able by a qualified tech), and a few missing knobs, slider caps and screws (replacements should be available), the synth works quite nicely.

The oscillators have been calibrated, and once warmed up, they hold their tuning well. All the key contacts seem to be in good shape and the keyboard has a nice, playable feel to it.

This unit features the earlier non-Moog filter.

The audio was recorded direct. There's also and onboard speaker which works well and sounds nice."

King Beat 7 Analog Drum Machine Beatbox Demo

Published on May 26, 2015 peahix

"Quick run-thru of the different beats this machine puts out!"

Follow-up to this post on one currently for sale. Peahix saw the post and shared the video. Awesome! Thank you Pea!

Yamaha CS01II Plays BIG MUFF by Depeche Mode by Pea Hicks Cubase Capture

Yamaha CS01II Plays BIG MUFF by Depeche Mode - Cubase Screen Capture

Published on Dec 4, 2012 by peahix

"I've had several skeptics weigh in on my various Depeche Mode covers done all on my Yamaha CS01II synth, so I thought I'd make a screen-cap video showing the Cubase session for my rendition of "Big Muff." Here's the mastered version I posted previously: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5IiZlvr7fXs [posted here]

In this version, you can see all my parts, and I solo all the different bits throughout so you can hear how it all comes together. Note that for several sounds there are actually two different tracks that play together to form a composite sound. The CS01II is a pretty limited synth, and in order to more accurately achieve certain sounds, I had to split things into their component parts. The channels that remain muted throughout are just the MIDI parts, which aren't outputting to anything here, since each MIDI track was recorded one at a time via the CS01II to an audio track. Anyway, hopefully this is useful or interesting to someone!!"

Click here for a search on "Peahix Depeche Mode" that will bring up more covers featuring only the Yamaha CS01 mkII.

Depeche Mode - PHOTOGRAPHIC - Re-created w/ Arturia Arp 2600V

Published on Aug 19, 2014 peahix

"For the latest in my series of Speak & Spell era Depeche Mode re-creations, I decided to do 'Photographic' as an excuse to learn a bit about the ARP 2600 via Arturia's software emulation, the 2600V. The original track was done mostly, if not entirely with an ARP 2600, so I wanted to see how close I could get to the original sounds. The answer? Not very. I'm sure much of this is due to my lack of programming skills on the 2600, which I'm just learning. But I also suspect alot of it has to do with the shortcomings of the 2600V. Either that, or Daniel Miller & EC Radcliffe compressed the hell out of those sounds (or something)! The basic issue is that I couldn't get the 2600V's envelopes to sound anywhere near as snappy and punchy as the sounds on the DM track. I could get the patches in the ballpark, but mine all just sounded too mushy and wimpy. The kick drum in particular gave me trouble- I couldn't figure out how to get anywhere near Mr. Miller's famous 2600 kick. If anyone knows how to get it on the 2600V, please enlighten me!

Anyway, the one thing I am really proud of here is my reverse-engineering of the little randomized sequence heard throughout the track. Since the 2600V also has an emulation of the ARP 3601 sequencer (which was used extensively on the original track), I delved into the old user manual for the 3601 and worked out how this sequence was put together. The still image in my "video" shows the patch for this sequence. I was actually going to transcribe the entire part from the original (which would have been twice the job, since there's two passes of this sequence in stereo), but despite being able to hear it clearly much of the time, it was drowned too much in the mix at other times, so I said screw it. I decided instead it was actually more interesting to work out the 3601 sequencer settings for this part, even though inevitably the random notes that my sequence played are different from the original track. The note series is the same, though, which is the same note series as the little riff that plays under "I take pictures," making the random sequence a variation on that sequence. The gate switches are set such that half of them don't re-trigger the envelope, so you get note changes in the decay tails. I transcribed enough of the original part to verify that every other note in the sequence is switched differently. Plus, I got the actual 2600V patch reasonably close for this sound. The squelchy little hi-hat type sound runs on the same sequence just with a different patch.

OK, that's all I feel like typing about this one. Kinda lukewarm on it, given that in theory I should have been able to get alot closer with the 2600 sounds. But oh well. Let me know if you'd like my patches- maybe you can improve upon them!"

More by peahix

Peahix Vintage 1980s YAMAHA DX100 SN 42407

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

via this auction

Peahix is the man behind optigan.com and he brought us a number of great synth vids. Note this DX100 does have problems so this one is likely for the DIY or circuit bending crowd:

"Currently powers up, but enters a glitchy state where the display flashes random characters, and sometimes it makes garbled/glitchy sounds, either on its own, or sometimes responding to the keyboard and/or MIDI. Most likely there's just a loose chip or some other connection inside. I have not attempted to repair it or trace the source of the problem myself. Could probably be fixed pretty easily by someone qualified to work on this type of electronics, otherwise this would make a great circuit-bending candidate. The data slider cap is missing, and there's some minor scuffs & grime, but otherwise it's in good shape cosmetically. Please see pics for further details."

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Found 8mm Film - Halloween

Published on Oct 31, 2014 peahix

"music by me."

peahix is the man behind optigan.com and has been featured here on MATRIXSYNTH numerous times with some amazing one synth covers. If you follow his YouTube channel, you'll notice a number of videos he's posted of long lost Super 8 mm films he's found at various garage sales. They are a fascinating look back in time.

Remember to keep an eye on the HALLOWEEN channel for more Halloween posts. I added a link in the site links above.

Stylophone Trio

YouTube Uploaded by peahix on Mar 28, 2012

"Hear a fancy recording of this piece here: http://soundcloud.com/peahix/stylophone-trio [embed below]

This is a live performance of a trio I wrote for stylophones. The stylophonists are myself, Scott Paulson and Christian Hertzog. This was performed at the UCLA library as part of an all-stylophone concert organized by Scott Paulson. There are a few mistakes here and there, and the mix isn't great, but you get the idea!"


"I was commissioned to write a piece for Stylophone by Scott Paulson of UCSD to be performed as part of the Stylophone Festival he put on at the library there. I decided to write a Stylophone trio, and exploit all the various features of the instrument. The performance wasn't perfect (see video link), but I put together this recording that gets the piece across pretty clearly. The only thing I had to cheat on was the palm mutes, because I wanted to record direct instead of sticking a mic on the speaker. So I used a low pass filter in Cubase instead."

Sequential Circuits MULTI-TRAK & MAX Flexi-Disc Demos by John Bowen

Published on Dec 22, 2017 peahix

"Found this in my old box of 45s and figured I'd stick it up here since it doesn't seem to exist on YouTube as of this date."

Sequential Circuits MAX Flexi-Disc Demo by John Bowen

Published on Dec 22, 2017 peahix

Not sure that's John's voice in this one. If it is, he sounds different! :) That is his voice in the Multi-Trak demo above. According to the flexi-disc, the music on this one, though, is his.

"Found this in my old box of 45s and figured I'd stick it up here since it doesn't seem to exist on YouTube as of this date."

1970s CONN PRELUDE & CAPRICE 432 Organ Demo Records

Published on Dec 22, 2017 peahix

"Found this in my old box of 45s and figured I'd stick it up here since it doesn't seem to exist on YouTube as of this date."

1970s CONN CAPRICE 432 Organ Demo Record

Published on Dec 22, 2017 peahix

"Found this in my old box of 45s and figured I'd stick it up here since it doesn't seem to exist on YouTube as of this date."