Rare Sound Design: Italian Alpha Syntauri Clone & Jen Musipack Restoration

video upload by Riccardo Pietroni

"In this video, we explore a fascinating piece of Italian musical heritage: a rare hardware clone of the Alpha Syntauri, likely part of the Jen Musipack project.

This specific setup features the (probably) cloned Mountain Computer cards. It’s a rare look at how this technology was adapted and distributed in Italy during the early 80s.

The Hardware Challenge:
I actually own the original Musipack keyboard, but due to its age, several keys are currently non-functional. To make this demonstration possible and play the system properly, I’ve paired the Italian hardware with an original Alpha Syntauri keyboard unit. It’s a perfect example of 80s cross-compatibility!

Same issue with the original Musipack Software which is no working correctly with the keyboard.

The Creative Process:

Sound Engine: Original Alphaplus software (Additive Synthesis).

Hardware: Music System digital oscillator cards (Jen Musipack clone of the original Mountain Computer).

Control: Original Alpha Syntauri Keyboard.

Recording & Sequencing: All sounds were captured and sequenced using the 1010music Blackbox (Bento).

The result is a unique blend of 8-bit grit and modern sequencing. The Alphaplus software allows for deep manipulation of harmonics, creating textures that range from cold, clinical digital tones to surprisingly lush, haunting pads."

Alphaplus made its first and only prior appearance on the site back in 2011 in a post fearturing Audio Damage's Phosphor.

According to Google AI: "AlphaPlus was a pioneering software package for the Apple II-based alphaSyntauri synthesizer system, enabling additive synthesis in the early 1980s. It allowed for polyphonic sound creation by stacking sine waves (harmonics), featuring 10 instruments, and providing deep manipulation of partials to produce distinct,, digital, or, lush, textures, as discussed on MATRIXSYNTH."