craque's modular

YouTube via dtauvdiodr
"(probably) the final components all together for a modular sound machine i'm building. you're seeing/hearing just one of the combinations possible out of (from left-to-right in the pic):

--- a single-input state variable filter with separate outs for HP, BP and LP

--- passive mixer with 3 inputs and a single buffered output

--- 2 variable speed oscillators, each with CV input and separate triangle and square wave outputs

--- buffered amplifier with gain and volume control

--- 10-step sequencer with both clock and gate inputs and a single output

the only thing really missing in the breadboard layout is a dedicated variable voltage power control for the oscillator chip to get nice glitchy effects.

i believe in this configuration i have the VCA driving the triangle output of VCO1 and leading into the filter, which here has HP and LP being mixed together. the triangle signal is being modulated by the output of the sequencer, which itself is being controlled by VCO2... at the same time, the pulse (square) wave output of VCO1 is acting as a gate/reset for the sequencer, providing even more interesting modulation effects."

Driving a new distortion

"My first synth module (with blue lights) is a simple pair of 555 square-wave oscillators with very simple sallen-key low pass filters on top of each, with dials on top for pitch and cut-off frequency for each VCO. There are switches which can be used as momentary toggles or turned on for drones and rhythmic phrasing.

The other device I'm playing is brand new, but has been designed in my head for quite a while now: a 3-stage distortion unit (jfet buffer and hex inverters), with tone control on each of the first two stages and a switchable EQ on the third (basically it's just "brighter" / "darker"), also with amplitude control. The gray metal box behind the breadboard is the chassis; the three knobs, two switches, 1/4" in/out, battery and PCB all fit nice and snugly."