Triadex Muse Vintage Music Synth MIT Digital Instrument

via this auction

"The Triadex Muse is a sequencer based synthesizer. It was first produced in 1972. It was a deterministic event generator that used early digital integrated circuits to generate an audio output that could sound very musical. In this auction you will receive both the Triadex muse and the accompanying amplifier. They both have the original boxes. Even though they were ahead of their time and somewhat of a technical marvel, very few were produced. The cosmetic condition of the units are in excellent condition as seen in the pictures. The original instruction manual and tags are included with the Muse. We don't have the patch cords that go from the Muse to the amplifier to test the operation of the amplifier. So the amplifier was not tested and is being sold along with the Muse in “as is” condition. This is a rare opportunity to own both the Muse and the amplifier. The Muse was designed by MIT graduates Edward Fredkin and Marvin Minsky in the late 1960’s. Minsky was on the set of “2001 A Space Odyssey”, and taught Stanley Kubrick about Artificial Intelligence as he created Hal. Years later, Edward Fredkin created the Fredkin Prize, which awarded the creator or creators of the first computer to compete and win the World Chess Championship. The Muse is a music composer machine or digital synthesizer and melody composer, involving early logic modules in a unique circuit that allows the possibility of 14 trillion musical note combinations It's an algorithmic music generator that uses digital logic circuits to produce a sequence of notes based on the settings of various parameters. The four small sliders in the lower-left control Volume, Tempo, Pitch, and Fine Pitch. The switches to either side are used to start and stop the sequence, or to step through it note-by-note. Of the eight larger sliders on the right, four control the musical intervals used (labeled A, B, C, and D), and four control the theme (labeled W, X, Y, and Z). A rest can be substituted for the lowest note by flipping a toggle switch. The exact logic behind the composition engine is rather technical, and not exactly intuitive. The tempo clock can be slaved to that of another Muse, allowing for multi-part compositions. The Muse is the subject of U. S. Patent 3610801, and their patent abstract of this electronic music composer reads as follows: In the apparatus disclosed herein, a note generator is controlled by a long term, quasi-periodic function which is in turn generated by applying digital feedback in preselected combinations around a digital register. The register comprises means for holding a plurality of bits of digital information in a given order, e.g. a shift register or counter, the held information being changeable according to a predetermined pattern in response to input signals applied thereto. Digital feedback is provided by applying to the register at least one input signal which is obtained according to a preselectable or adjustable code from bits of information obtained from various points in the register itself. The apparatus thus, in effect, composes music as distinguished from merely synthesizing sound. It is not known exactly how many Muses were made, [cyberlegend has it that only 280 to 300 were made] but they are very rare, and were never available in stores. The Muse originally had an even rarer accessory, the “Light Show”, which flashed colored lights in time to the music. It was a very simple circuit and was constructed of, believe it or not, G.E. colored Christmas lights.

The specs are as follows:
Model – Muse
Serial no. 00729-113
AC 115-125v 60CPS 40w
ok50Hz
Amplifier model no. AS-1
Serial no. 00072-108 "