Synthstrom Online Festival #1

Published on May 16, 2020 Synthstrom Audible

"A 3-hour streaming festival with community live chat, showcasing brand new, previously unseen, live performances on the Deluge.

All artists have contributed their time for free and it is hoped you can spare a moment to make a donation to NZ Women's Refuge in return. Please follow this link: https://womensrefuge.org.nz/make-a-do...

An A-Z of the artists appearing (not order they appear on stream) is below, with a link to check out further of their work.

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Source Audio SA262 Ventris Dual Reverb

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Note this is not a synth, but it is from a supporting member of the site.

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Chimera Synthesis BC16

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"The Chimera BC16 audio synthesizer is powered by three internal 9V batteries and has a built-in headphone amplifier for private patching. The unit has a MIDI input and cab be run from a CV source such as an analog sequencer or controller with CV output.

The Unit is a complete patchable analog monophonic synthesizer with a VCO, LFO, envelope generator with noise and ring modulation in a circular small sized plastic case.

Comes with rechargeable batteries, charger and a bunch of mini banana, banana, audio and midi cables (see photos)"

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Classic Moog Opus 3 in Immaculate Condition

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"Here we have some vintage Moog analog glory.

Meticulously serviced last year by Mr Andy Jury AKA The Synth Professor.

It has that brilliant Moog sound that you can’t quite explain but just know is Moog. It is in immaculate condition apart from a couple of small marks along the top at the back which I’ve tried my best to photograph. The Telecaster is not for sale it’s just so you can see the size of the synth."

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Technosaurus Microdon, Microcon II, & Cyclodon

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TMC - 2159
TMII - 2082
TCD - 20100

"Beautifully made in Switzerland. Like new... All analog. The 2 modules can be controlled by the sequencer (16 steps) which is also midi controllable. Microcon 2 accept external input to go through the VCF filter and midi. Possibilities are endless. Very powerful system and sounds huge, especially when using the sub-mix-vco, octave -2."

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RARE Vintage Computone Incorporated Analog Wind Synthesizer Driver w/ manual

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You can find close-up pics of the interface in previous posts here.

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Korg Arp Odyssey FS Mk1 Demo

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated. Korg Arp Odyssey FS Mk1 Demo: A synth I loved, treated well and am going to miss.

Published on May 16, 2020 Surface Noises

"This is my Korg Arp FSQ Mk1, which I'm selling on Reverb. The video is very lofi: I'm clutching a camera and microphone in one hand whilst trying to twiddle knobs.

But I hope it shows that I look after the synths I own. I've been running a record-selling gig on Discogs under the same name for years with 100% feedback."

via this auction

"The Odyssey is in close to perfect condition, with no obvious problems I have spotted. There may be very slight signs of use, but I haven't spotted them. It looks really beautiful. This version is definitely the best-looking Odyssey you can get. It's Mk1 and looks like the Whiteface models which were the first to come to market (and had the best sounding filter, in my opinion)

The sliders all feel good and I don't have any problems to report with any other aspect of the synth. It came with a sequencer - a version of the widely available Korg SQ1, which I sold because I thought it was rubbish. The Odyssey comes with original box and power supply, as well as the aforementioned dust cover."

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John Bowen Solaris Has Arrived

A few pics of my newly arrived John Bowen Solaris in the studio. I've wanted one of these since they were announced, but could never afford one until a couple of years ago. I talked myself out of one in the beginning, as I already had a Waldorf Q rack and an XTk keyboard, along with plenty of other virtual analog and real analog gear. In the back of my mind though, I knew I might one day own one. A few years ago I reached the breaking point with the synth collection I picked up over the years. I found myself going into the studio and spending time with synths I wasn't sure about keeping to see if I indeed wanted to keep them. I'd decide yes, this synth is great, I should keep it, only to walk out of the studio neglecting other synths that I honestly wanted to play more. I did this for years. The breaking point for me was when a few of the older analogs started exhibiting problems and I realized I didn't have a solid tech in the area. The only way to fix them would be to ship them off incurring the shipping costs to and back over the cost of the repairs. I also began to realize how redundant my synths were. Seriously. They are all either subtractive analog, wavetable, FM, additive, or PCM/sample based in the end. They are all just different flavors of the same thing. I mean how many different brands of vanilla ice cream do you really need? For me synths are about getting lost in the sound - about exploring sound. So yes, the more brands the better, but... just like there's only so much space in my belly for ice cream, I only have so much time in the studio. I realized it was time to let some go and in doing so I could use the money on other gear I'd been GASing on, like the Sequential OB-6, Elektron Digitakt, a Jupiter-XM to replace some vintage Rolands I gave up, and of course the Solaris. The Solaris was actually the first on the list. As I said, I wanted one since the start. I also know John Bowen, and no I did not get a deal on my Solaris. The Solaris is a labor of love and John pretty much runs the show on his own. He does work with others on building them of course, but this is a small enterprise. You can't find these in shops. They are exclusively sold on John Bowen's website: https://johnbowen.com, and there is a wait time. When I reached out to John about finally getting one he let me know this might be the last run. It was run number 7 and I asked him if I could get the last one. He said yes so I went for it. A couple of years later it arrived. (P.S. I heard there might be another run and John is still working on the OS, an expander, and possibly a desktop version, see the update in red below).

Do I have any regrets? I can emphatically say no. This is an amazing synth. What sets it apart is it has four, not three fully blown oscillators that can be morphed with a joystick for vector synthesis of wavetable and virtual analog synthesis. No other synth that I am aware of can do this. It is also fully modular. If you look at each display panel section, each knob, you can essentially load anything into them and route them however you want. Things aren't locked in place like other synths. The Solaris also runs at a super high resolution - 96kHz to be exact. People say it sounds analog and this is not an overstatement. It sounds amazing. I hate to say it, but it leaves my Q in the dust. It just sounds so much more bold and present. It is hands down the best sounding VA and Wavetable synth I own. I've owned a lot of synths over the years including some of the most sought after - Jupiter-8, OB-Xa, Matrix-12, Prophet-5, Rhodes Chroma, Alesis Andromeda A6, Yamaha CS-60, original Minimoog Model D, ARP Odyssey with CMS mods, and more. The Solaris is right up there with them if not surpassing them. It is that good. It feels different too. It feels like a powerhouse design tool. A synth of synths, so to speak. Note it also has the Prophet VS waveforms. I have a Prophet VS rack (you can see it in the top right), and I can say the Solaris sonically matches it - it has that transparent, bold presence missing in many digital synths. An unintended added bonus is the Solaris joystick actually works with the Prophet VS! :)

That said, if you do plan on picking up a Solaris or a Solaris expander, reach out to John first. This isn't an order now and get it next week sort of synth. It's more of a long term investment. How long? For me it was two years as I wanted the last of the final run. It was worth the wait.

Update: I should note my Solaris has a unique serial number out of the standard sequence. It's 10041. I'm curious if anyone will recognize the reference. :) So, although this might not be the last Solaris keyboard, it will have an interestingly unique SN. :) I also updated the above with the following: "Note it also has the Prophet VS waveforms. I have a Prophet VS rack and the Solaris sonically matches it - it has that transparent, bold, presence missing in many digital synths."

As for a new Solaris, there is work on a Solaris expander and possibly a desktop version. See this post for some desktop pics including an OS update (also in my studio), and see here for the expander sitting on top of two 1U mixers in the top right. You can find a demo from Sonicstate at NAMM 2020 posted here.

Automation

Published on May 16, 2020 George Benton

"Starts light, heats up in the middle and toward the end, then cools off. Ahh..."

Moog Subharmonicon Synthesizer for Relaxing meditative music.

Published on May 16, 2020 Sound Provider

"I feel the Beautifuf Moog Subharmonicon will be my main Meditative Synth for relaxation :)

I used it here without anything else except long Delay and Reverb.

Sorry for the autoFocus, I switch it off but it still works...I must have missed something."

Historic Machines - in Memory of Kraftwerks earlier style

Published on May 16, 2020 Andreas Remshagen

"i made this video in gratitude for the electronic-Band Kraftwerk that has
influenced me since i was a little child.

This song is based to the style of Kraftwerks earlier years. At this time The Members were Ralf Hütter, Florian Schneider, Wolfgang Flür and Karl Bartos.

All Synthesizers and the drums i used are analog, the Delay and the Vocoder are Digital

The Machines in the Video you can find at Dansk Motor & Maskinsamling https://motorsamlingen.dk/
The Bedini Machine i had built for experimenting. Bedini was influenced by Nikola Tesla-so i would see this as historic"

DSI Prophet 6 & TC Electronic Hall Of Fame 2

Published on May 16, 2020 3rdStoreyChemist

Radikal Technologies Accelerator ambient pad demo

Published on May 16, 2020 MIDERA

"Ok, so I'm looking at all these videos of the DSI OB6 and found one where I thought, maybe I can make something similar to that sound, just for fun. This was the original clip, although I know it's not the same - it gives you a reference for my reference point ([posted here]). No external FX were used. Only the ones within the Accelerator (here I used distortion, delay, phaser, chorus). I listened to what the original person said they did to create the sound, but just ended up somewhere with my own sound."

Waldorf Quantum -Sound Design Improv

Published on May 16, 2020 PaulLawlerMusic

"Playing a new cinematic pad I created on the Waldorf Quantum."

BeatPPL Podcast 70 - Rossum-Electro's Dave Rossum & Marco Alpert

Published on May 16, 2020 BBoy Tech Report

"Dave Rossum & Marco Alpert of Emu Systems & Rossum-Electro joins the podcast for a conversation about the EMU legacy, SP1200, and their current eurorack projects. Livestream scheduled for May 16th, 2020 at Noon pacific.

About Dave...
Starting with his co-founding of E-mu Systems, Dave provided the technological leadership that resulted in what many consider the premier professional modular synthesizer system. The E-mu Modular System combined superlative analog design, innovative use of digital technology, and unparalleled physical construction and reliability.

In the following years, Dave and E-mu turned their attention to affordable professional digital sampling with the Emulator keyboards and racks. The Emulator II in particular established sampling as the leading music technology of its time, becoming a standard fixture in professional studios worldwide and appearing on innumerable hit records and film soundtracks. SP-1200It was followed by the Emax samplers, the legendary SP-12 and SP-1200 sampling drum machines, the Proteus sound modules and the Morpheus Z-Plane Synthesizer.

In addition, Dave also developed and licensed technology that enabled the creation of many iconic synthesizers, including the Oberheim 4-Voice, the Sequential Circuits Prophet 5 and, via his design of many of the SSM music ICs, instruments from Korg, Kawai, and many more."

Subharmonicon Second (with PO-32)

Published on May 16, 2020 verstaerker

"a testdrive to sync the Po-32 to the Subharmonicon. Actually the Seq1/2 clock-outs have some offset with the PO32.
The trigger-out works better."

Yamaha Portasound PSS-80 keyboard demo

Published on May 16, 2020 Alfonse

"Yamaha Portasound PSS-80 keyboard (1989)

The PSS-80 is a classic simple digital squarewave keyboard with a "voice variator" that allows the envelope and timbre of the preset sounds to be modified. It has no auxilliary or headphone output, so I recorded it with a dynamic mic to try to reduce the sounds of my fingers hammering the keys, with limited success.

All sounds you hear in the track were made using the PSS-80. All parts were recorded to a DAW, where compression, EQ, delay and reverb were added as required - the clarinet part was pitch-shifted down an octave to provide bass notes that aren't on the keyboard itself. Individual drum hits were sampled and processed to allow fresh beats to be built, rather than using the rhythms found on the PSS-80 itself.

Music (C) Copyright 2020 Alfonse
A hidden bonus track on: https://alfonse.bandcamp.com/album/f

ALFONSE
Store: http://alfonse.bandcamp.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/alfonsemusic
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/alfonsemusic
Soundcloud: http://www.soundcloud.com/alfonsemusic"

Buchla Cosmic Drone - Session 18 - Modular Drone Music Performance

Published on May 16, 2020 The Galaxy Electric

"Thanks for listening! Come on a musical voyage with us where we'll send you a new song every day, a cosmic story, and a chance to earn space treasure: https://thegalaxyelectric.lpages.co/5...

Relax and tune into our live weekly improvised Drone Sessions. This eighteenth session involves a drone featuring two independent Buchla style complex and modulation oscillators starting in tune a couple octaves apart. As the oscillator frequencies drift apart by way of manual control, beating ensues. Listening to droning oscillators can serve as mindfulness sounds as there is no sudden changes in sound. Just smooth drifts in pitch and the resulting beat frequencies. Drones can also serve as an ambient track to have on while doing tasks that require intense focus. Drones are also great for a Sci-fi film soundtrack. The slow yet progressive nature of a drone performance can help one focus on tasks without distraction. The fact that we are manipulating these oscillators live and in collaboration helps the drone meander ever so smoothly in an evolving fashion as we are always reacting to one another's subtle movements. These movements are improvised so there is an unrehearsed and reactive ebb and flow to the tones generated. Engage in the practice deep listening with us.

The electronic music instruments used in this performance of modular drone music are the Buchla Music Easel, and a small system involving a Buchla clone model 259 Programmable Complex Waveform Generator, Buchla 292h Dual Lowpass Gate, and 281h Dual Function Generator in the Buchla LEM Powered 3 Boat.

The Galaxy Electric - https://www.thegalaxyelectric.com"

Dub Techno Live #1 / novation circuit , eurorack modular synth

Published on May 16, 2020 HAGIWO modular synthesizer channel

dub techno music live jam

triger : synthroteck m/div
samplar : erica synths sample drum
filter : tiptop audio planets
reverb : mutable instruments clouds

voice sample by 小池百合子 東京都知事

Electronic Music Laboratories ElectroComp EML-200 & EMW-300 Controller Sequencer

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"EML 200 and an EMW voltage controller/sequencer."

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Jomox SunSyn SN 0096

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Spectral Audio ProTone Analogue Synth

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Vintage 1985 Seiko DS-250 61-Key Digital Additive Synthesizer SN 25000418

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"Comes with original expression pedal, original switch pedal, custom case, original manuals, power supply, music stand attachment, sales brochure, user friendly guide, and DS310 programmers guide."

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Korg SQ-10 Sequencer

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Novation V Station - VST synthesizer - factory presets demo

Published on May 15, 2020 MUZOTON

"The V-Station is a polyphonic soft-synth for Mac and PC. It has the same real 3-oscillator flexibility as the award winning K-Station, with powerful filters, 8-voice polyphony, simultaneous Novation FX."

Erica Synths SYNTRX: Overview of functions, raw sound demos and patch ideas

Published on May 16, 2020 HAINBACH

"In which I give the much requested overview of the @Erica Synths SYNTRX, demonstrate it pure sound and functionality and give some patch ideas. I kept this on purpose very raw and 'let's listen to oscillators for a few minutes' for the headz. For more musical examples, watch this playlist:"

Prophet 5 - A quick tune and a look inside

Published on May 16, 2020 Mindburner

"The classic Sequential Prophets 5 rev 3.3
tuning and a look inside the instrument.

I'm no synth tech, so info here is for personal use only.
Always consult a qualified tech,especially with such an expensive instrument

headphone users, warning sound can be loud"

Prophet 5 - A rough mess round after the tune up

Digitone Keys + OTO BIM (midi CC automation)

Published on May 16, 2020 studio snippets

#4MSENOSC Ensemble Oscillator #modbap Jam 2

Published on May 16, 2020 BBoy Tech Report

"The Ensemble Oscillator is a unified polyphonic voice of sixteen complex oscillators combining additive, FM, phase-distortion and wave folding synthesis techniques in new unorthodox ways. By quantizing the oscillators to scales or series of harmonics, the Ensemble Oscillator allows you to explore the sonic boundary between musical chords and rich evolving textures. Easily create a wide variety of sounds ranging from aggregates of pure sine waves to pulsar synthesis or pristine harmonic tones and lush wide chords to rich dirty drones and rumbling glitches. Custom scales can quickly be “learned” and saved using a CV keyboard or by manually entering notes with the controls.

The Ensemble Oscillator is designed by Matthias Puech and 4ms Company.


Cheers
Bboytech"

Korg Volca Drum Editor and Soundbank - VST and Standalone

Published on May 16, 2020 mller30161

"You can buy it on my homepage:
https://korg-volca-drum-editor.jimdof...
Price: 5,90€ / $6.90
Here is my Midi Editor with Sound Bank for the Korg Volca Drum Synthesizer, the „ Volca Drum Editor“.

With the Volca Drum Editor you have direct access to all parameters and can save them as a Sound Data File and load them back into the Volca Drum at any time.
In the PlugIn VST Version you can record the controller movements and how to integrate the Volca Drum Synth into your DAW Project.

Editor Features:
- Complex sound changes
- Direct access to the sound parameters
- All controllers can be automated.
- X-Y modulation of all parameters
- The Editor settings can be stored in a Sound Bank and loaded again.
- With the „Random“ function new sounds can be generated quickly for each drum part.
Which you can save and load into any drum part.
- Drum Kits can be put together and saved.
- A Sound Bank with 50 Sounds and 3 Drum Kits is included.

The editor is available for PC as VST / Standalone 32/64 bit and for MAC as VST / AU / Standalone 64 bit."

AMBIENT Polyend MEDUSA - The Touch of Medusa

Published on May 16, 2020 Alba Ecstasy

"Synth patches 👉 https://www.albaecstasy.ro
This #ambient track would be the first, quite simple (but expressive - thanks to the grid's sensitivity!) tune I made on my first day, on the #Polyend - Dreadbox #Medusa.

If you find the solo play a little bit out of tune it’s because of two reasons: I’m still getting use to play on the pads, but more important is that I set to the X axis the pitch bend so I can play vibrato. Since I not always pressing exactly in the middle of the pad, this is the result. For the moment!
Because, man! I love this grid! X,Y, Z sensitive, wow! I’m not even detailing about those 6 oscillators, 5 LFO and 5 envelopes and all the goodies!
This box is made for ambient, no doubt!

Delay - Waves H-Delay
Reverb - Eventide Blackhole.

Hope you'll enjoy this one!
ae"

Moog Subharmonicon + Mother 32 + Arturia Key Step Pro - Interstellar Theme Jam

Published on May 16, 2020 Rishabh Rajan

"This is obviously not the exact theme from Hans Zimmer's score. I just discovered the pattern playing around with the Subharmonicon's sequencer and decided to put together this jam. That Arturia Key Step Pro is sequencing Wavetable from Ableton Live. That is the only true polyphonic voice. The other voices are coming from the Subharmonicon & the Mother 32."

ZENOLOGY is an Incredible Software Synthesizer at an Astonishing Price

Published on May 16, 2020 Woody Piano Shack

"Demo, tutorial and review of the brand-new ROLAND ZENOLOGY SOFTWARE SYNTHESIZER featuring the ZEN CORE sound engine technology and thousands of the presets found in the ROLAND FANTOM, JUPITER X, JUPITER Xm, MC 707, MC 101, RD 88 and more. This is the latest release in the newly revamped Roland Cloud.

We'll do a walkthrough of the UI checking out the features and of course playing the piano, pad and acoustic sounds."

More Random Studio Chaos...with Analogue Synths and Sequencers

Published on May 15, 2020 rezfilter

"Here's some more live random studio chaos. It's more analogue sequencer jamming, where all synths and sequencers are being fed high octane CV.

Nothing is mixed in a DAW or processed, but is simply recorded via a summing mixer.

Scattered Analogue Solutions' Impulse Command, Vostok 2020, Fusebox, Nyborgs 12 and 24, and another Telemark snare this time around...

Generator and Oberkorns are running the sequencing duties per usual."