4ms Employee Interviews: Payne Gibson

video upload by 4ms Company

"Meet Payne Gibson! Payne works on synth and kit building as well as product testing and packaging at 4ms. They are also a visual artist with a background in metal smithing. Their current favorite medium is fiber art and rug tufting.
We hope you're enjoying meeting more of our small team!"

Patching @ 3am - Featuring Marc Laidlaw

video upload by justin3am

"In this episode we will be talking to musician @Marc_Laidlaw and he'll be performing for us.

You can find Marc's music on Bandcamp and lots of other places.
https://marclaidlaw.bandcamp.com/music
http://linktr.ee/marclaidlaw"

Designing a Eurorack Module interface | Instruō - ceithir

video upload by Instruō

"Hello!
Welcome to a video I’ve been wanting to make for a long time.

Instruō actually began as a video project. Specifically a time-lapse of me designing the original troika module. Ten years later, I’ve returned to that idea with ceithir, a winter holiday project I designed with video documentation in mind.

This video explores the initial design stages: sketching, layout, and concept development. There are vlog sections and time-lapse sequences with new voiceover commentary.
If you’ve ever wondered how an Instruō module design begins, this video captures that process in full.

CLICK FOR MORE »

4ms Employee Interviews: Thomas Fang

video upload by 4ms Company

"If you’ve visited our table at a trade show, you’ve probably met Thomas Fang! Ross sat down with Thomas to talk about circuit bent furbies, noise music and his work with Synth Library Portland.
Are you curious about who actually works at 4ms Company? Over the next month we will be sharing interviews with our small team of employees, so stay tuned!"

You can find additional posts featuring Thomas Fang here.

DMNO UDO's Raw & Chaotic Binaural Multitimbral Polysynth // Machina Bristronica DivKid Discussions

video upload by DivKid

"Here we have the UDO session on the DivKid Discussions stage from Machina Bristronica 2025. Cuckoo had spend some time with UDO and joined George and I for the chat discussing the new DMNO. DMNO is a binaural, multitimbral, polyphonic synthesiser that's far more raw and chaotic with lots of studio utility compared to the other UDO instruments. It's always a pleasure to chat to George and see hm play his instruments so enjoy the conversation! Talking points are in the chapter marks below."

*TIMING INDEX // CHAPTERS*
00:00 Introductions & hellos
00:25 The Hearn Morley VCO chip
02:04 Initial experiences in building electronics & synths
05:01 A new synth! DMNO
06:23 Initial DMNO sounds
07:23 The concept of DMNO
09:11 Phosphor VFD
11:24 DMNO as a raw palette cleanser post Gemini & Supers
15:06 DMNO feature run down (more concept than feature list)
16:48 The beauty of play-led creation
21:40 Building a simple sound from scratch
22:47 Cuckoo on the DMNO
27:04 Tumbling interaction & probability
32:20 The struggles of driving voice allocation & dual voices
34:13 Musical ‘accents’ from two voices
35:45 DMNO isn’t as easy to play!
37:02 DMNO development, release & price
38:34 It’s good to not always know what you’re doing!

Marco Bernardi Interview — Machina Bristronica 2025

video upload by Stromkult

"At this year’s Machina Bristronica, we caught up with Marco Bernardi — a longtime figure in the UK electronic music scene and the driving force behind both Elevator Sound and Machina Bristronica. Our conversation touched on the journey that led him into these roles, the influence of Superbooth in inspiring a uniquely UK counterpart, and how such a massive gathering of the synth community can be pulled off by such a small but dedicated team. Together with James and Ben, Marco has turned Machina Bristronica into one of the UK’s most exciting electronic music and Synth showcases.

For anyone interested in attending next years event you can subscribe to the newsletter here: https://machinabristronica.uk/

If you want to support this event grab some beautifully designed Merch here."

CLICK FOR MORE »

Iconic British OSCar Synth is Reborn

video upload by Starsky Carr

Guestimate price (just after 6:50) of £2.5k GBP which comes to $3371 USD.

"The legendary OSCar synthesizer is back! In this video, I'm joined by Paul from PWM Instruments, who recently acquired the rights to the Oxford Synth Company. In this he talks us through their new synth - a modern recreation of the iconic OSCar - a secret weapon for artists like Jean-Michel Jarre, Ultravox, Stevie Wonder, Orbital, and Underworld - and explains how the new OSCar stays true to the original’s gritty charm while adding modern upgrades for today’s producers.

Its currently at prototype stage - but the proof of concept has been demonstrated, so the next stage is to mould it into a commercial product.

Whether you’re a synth enthusiast, a producer hunting for that British synth grit, or just curious about iconic electronic instruments, this deep-dive demo will show you why the OSCar still inspires decades later.

Hear a short demo of the unmistakable OSCar growl, discover its quirks, and see why this rebirth matters for synth lovers everywhere."

Interviews with Dan Green: Metamodule

video upload by 4ms Company

Part 7/7
Dan Green, founder of 4ms Company, talks about the creation of MetaModule."

All 7 parts:

Inner City/Big Fun (Circuit Rhythm Instrumental)

video upload by Guinan

"Written in 1987 and released in 1988 Inner City’s ‘Big Fun’ was one of the first big crossover hits for House music internationally. Composed with minimal equipment and featuring Paris Grey’s iconic vocal, it set the template for many imitators and subsequent hits.

In the interview below Kevin Saunderson states that all he wanted to create was a track that could be played at the Paradise Garage, the birthplace of House. Nearly 40 years later it can still fill a dancefloor.

Much of the essence of the track comes down to the sampled sounds used. I’ve tried as far as possible to use the original sound sources for my samples and have recreated a version that fits the track into the Circuit Rhythm. What you hear (on both the instrumental and vocal versions) is recreated entirely on the Rhythm and recorded direct from the audio outs. See below for more details."

How Kevin Saunderson Made Big Fun

video upload by Mixmag

Cameron Jones: Synclavier and beyond, a life in music

video upload by CatSynth TV

"Cameron Jones: Synclavier, singing, and a life in music (Interview)

We sit down for an in-depth conversation with Cameron Jones, co-inventor and principal software architect of the legendary Synclavier synthesizers. We talk about his early interests, his time with New England Digital and the Synclavier, and his life in and love of music.

The interview was recorded at Knobcon 2025, where Jones was a featured speaker.

To find out more about Cameron Jones and the past, present, and future of Synclavier, please visit the official website: https://synclavier.com

00:00 Introduction
00:29 Cameron Jones introduces himself
01:11 Being in the right place at the right time
05:25 Additive synthesis, FM synthesis, and sampling
11:45 Synclavier
15:05 The symbiosis of musicians and music technology
19:09 Composing in this era of music technology
22:59 The individuality of musicians and their instruments
27:00 Cameron Jones journey in music (orchestras, singing, theater)
41:20 Conclusion

Please consider supporting this channel to help us bring you more synthesizer tutorials and other content.

Merch: https://shop.catsynth.com
Patreon: / catsynth
Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/catsynth"

Synth History: Ela Minus

video upload by Synth History

"The first episode of Synth History on musician and producer, ‪@ElaMinus‬! Synth History's web docuseries brings the Synth History interviews to life.

A Synth History production in association with Video Horse Films.

All music by Ela Minus.

Director: ‪@danz_cm‬
Producer: Danz CM & Matthew James Reilly.
Cinematographer: Max Flick.
Production Designer: Ambar Navarro.
Gaffer: Danner Gardner.
Grip: Rashad Stribling.
First Assistant Camera 16mm: Todd Kappelt.
Film Editor: Johann Flash.
Production Sound Mixer: Paul Cornett.
Makeup Artist: Alexa Cantarini.
Production Assistant: Doug Delacruz.
Sound Design: Carlotta McKittrick.
Mini DV Camera Operators: Max Flick & Ambar Navarro.
Visual Effects: Ariyan Hashemi.
Colorist: Hal Bowman.

Special Thanks: John Kopec, Willie Nedrow, Michael Stein, Pushkar Ojha, Domino, Gil & Roy, The Last Bookstore, Vidiots, CypherBlu, Moog."

Design Philosophy of Every Oberheim Synthesizer with Legend Marcus Ryle

video upload by Anthony Marinelli Music

"Marcus Ryle is one of the great heroes of synthesizer history. At Oberheim in the early ’80s, he worked side-by-side designing with Tom Oberheim on legendary instruments like the DSX Digital Sequencer, the OB-Xa and OB-8, the DMX drum machine, and the groundbreaking Xpander and Matrix-12 synthesizers. These innovations revolutionized electronic music and still define the sound of a generation.

In this video, Marcus shares the inside story of Oberheim’s design culture—why certain features appeared on some synths and not others—and how those choices shaped the future of music.

Beyond Oberheim, Marcus co-founded Alesis, where he helped create the groundbreaking ADAT digital recorder, Quadraverb and HR16 drum machine... and later Line 6, where he pioneered digital modeling amps and effects, including the legendary POD. He also played a pivotal role in helping Tom Oberheim reclaim the Oberheim name, and he continues to be actively involved in the design of today’s newest Oberheim instruments—ensuring the spirit of innovation carries forward.

Few designers have influenced so many eras of music technology—Oberheim, Alesis, Line 6, Sequential, Focusrite and now the reborn Sequential/Oberheim. Marcus Ryle’s story is a masterclass in how his innovation changed music forever."

https://anthonymarinellimusic.com/pages/about

Interviews with Dan Green: Dual Looping Delay

video upload by 4ms Company

"Dan Green, founder of 4ms Company, talks about the development of the Dual Looping Delay.

Part 6 in our 4ms Origins series of interviews."

King Gizzard's Modular Synth Era

video upload by Bootleg Gila

"King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard talk about their modular synth era after Flight b741 and Phantom Island.

Footage by Heaps Keen @heapskeenfilms

Full interview by PBS: https://www.pbsfm.org.au/program/the-..."

King Gizzard's synth centric album Butterfly 3000:

A Hybrid Eurorack Performance System with ALX-106 from WMD // Machina Bristronica DivKid Discussions

video upload by DivKid

"Here Alex from WMD ‘ALX-106’ joins me on the DivKid Discussions stage at Machina Bristronica, back in 2023 this one, to chat WMD Clutch (their hi hat module) and to demonstrate the WMD Metron’s ability to sequence and perform alongside other WMD (and non WMD) modules in Alex’s hybrid Eurorack performance rig. The combo of laptop, controller & Eurorack is a house music performance machine! Impressive."

WMD's William Mathewson Chats Skorpion – Exclusive Interview

video upload by Metamyther

"In this in-depth interview, we sit down with William Mathewson of WMD to discuss the Skorpion Eurorack module—likely the most extreme wavefolder ever made and a groundbreaking sound design tool for modular synthesizer enthusiasts. William shares the story of WMD’s evolution, the challenges of designing complex Eurorack modules, and how the Skorpion took 5 years to get completed. This conversation gives you insights into one of the year's most anticipated modules."

The Secretive History of Pop Music's Favorite Vocoder | Sennheiser VSM201

video upload by HAINBACH

"Kraftwerk, Jean-Michelle Jarre and Daft Punk are among the artists that used the rare Sennheiser VSM201 Vocoder from 1977. It is one of the very best examples of its kind, as its 16 bands allow both for high voice intelligibility and experimental tomfoolery. Yet there is also a history behind it that is still so secret, Sennheiser are still not allowed to talk in detail about it. Thanks to Sennheiser for allowing me access to their archives and the prototype.

Get the Vocoder Decent Sampler Instrument and Music from this video: / hainbach"

Interviews with Dan Green: Life in Austin

video upload by 4ms Company

Dan Green, founder of 4ms Company, talks about life in Austin, Texas
Part 4 in the 4ms Origins series

The story of INVENTING Eurorack: DIETER DOEPFER // Why We Bleep 55

video upload by mylarmelodies

"A podcast about creating Eurorack modular synths in the 90s, collaborations with Kraftwerk, the 'red stripe' controversy (if you know you know). We meet from Dieter Doepfer & new Doepfer managing director Holger Zapf, in an interview at Machina Bristronica 2024, on how Eurorack Modular format went from "Nobody wants that sh*t" to a blossoming and diverse industry 30 years later. 👉 / mylarmelodies 🙌

This was filmed at the mighty https://machinabristronica.uk/" Chapters:
00:00 - In this episode of Why We Bleep...
01:30 - A word from Why We Bleep's Sponsors
04:38 - Introduction to Dieter Doepfer and Holger Zapf
06:14 - Early life, education, introduction to music & technology
16:47 - First encounters with synths - analogue vs the era of digital
21:49 - MAQ16/3 - a little collaboration with Kraftwerk
25:31 - The early developement of Eurorack ("Nobody wants that sh!t!")
31:16 - Holger's involvement, perspectives on Eurorack and favourite modules
36:53 - Doepfer's development and design process
41:55 - Eurorack's evolution - parallels and adopters of the format
45:55 - The 'Red Stripe' controversy and voltage standards
51:49 - How it feels to have started the Eurorack Industry
53:07 - What is the future of Doepfer, and of Music Technology?
58:14 - A question from the audience - Eurorack's Birthday?
59:07 - Thank you Doepfer! Final thoughts

If you enjoyed the episode, please share it and consider contributing on Patreon!

DOEPFER ONLINE:
▶︎ https://www.doepfer.de/home.htm

THANKS TO SPONSORS:
▶︎ SIGNAL SOUNDS http://signalsounds.com
▶︎ POINT BLANK MUSIC SCHOOL: https://bit.ly/pbopenday25

SUPPORT THIS CHANNEL:
▶︎ Patreon: / mylarmelodies (Help fund more podcast episodes, videos, join a community of music makers and ask me questions directly!)"

Roger Linn: The King of Drum Machines

video upload by Jack Pearson

"This is the story of Roger Linn, a guitarist from Los Angeles whose innovative sample based drum machines changed the sound of music forever.

Special thanks to Roger himself for featuring my video in the September Linnstrument newsletter (https://myemail.constantcontact.com/L...) and on his website (https://www.rogerlinndesign.com).

I first learned about Roger a few years ago while making a film called “The History of Sampling in Music” [below]. While I didn’t know anything about Roger at the time, I was astounded to learn that he had created both the LinnDrum and the MPC, which shaped the punchy robotic drums of 80s pop music and the grungy experimental grooves of 90s hip-hop respectively. I did a quick bit of research about him for my video, but didn’t really dig much deeper than that… However, a few months ago I decided to rewatch my old project, which reignited my interest in Roger’s story and gave me the idea for this video.

Like my previous project, I’d initially planned to write a script and do a voice-over, but after discovering the assortment of recorded interviews that Roger has already appeared in, I realised that I could just chop them up and have Roger tell his own story. I thought 'hey that sounds pretty cool, how hard could it be?'

Well, let’s just say I’m probably never going to do something like this again. I did enjoy making this and I am proud of it, but if I had just done a voice-over not only would it have been easier to make, but I also could’ve included a lot information without it feeling incredibly clunky. The initial cut was about 26 minutes, but I cut out loads of stuff for the sake of pacing and trying to stick to narrative beats. Roger is a fascinating guy with a lot of great anecdotes though, so if you enjoyed this video then I highly recommend you seek out some of the podcasts/interviews he’s done over the years.

I planned on making all the music for this film myself, but decided it would be better to use music that relates to Roger in some way (for example, he co-wrote 'Promises' by Eric Clapton and 'Quittin’ Time' by Mary Chapin Carpenter, and first used the LM-1 Drum Computer on the Leon Russell album 'Life & Love' which featured the track 'One More Love Song'.) I salvaged one of these demo tracks for the credits, but you can listen it and a few more scrapped tracks here:

Jack Pearson · RL:TKODM (Credits Music + Demos)

Since you’ve read this far, here’s a few bonus Roger facts that got cut out of the video:

The LM-1 was featured on the best selling album of all time - 'Thriller' by Micheal Jackson, as well as other early 80s hits like 'Maneater' by Hall & Oates, 'Valerie' by Steve Winwood, and for some reason - the original 1983 Thomas the Tank Engine theme song.

Roger hired his friend, a professional session drummer called Art Wood, to record most of the sounds on the LM-1. They set up the kit in Roger’s closet, recording each of the drums one at a time… then called it a day. Given the popularity of the songs featuring these recordings - Art Wood is technically one of most prominently featured drummers of all time.

And here's two bonus facts about this video:

The title 'The King of Drum Machines' is a quote from the father of MIDI - Dave Smith, when he spoke about Roger and the Tempest drum machine (which they built together) on a Sweetwater panel in 2015. [below]

This video was released on Roger’s 70th birthday.

I hope you enjoy it!" The History of Sampling in Music (2022)

video upload by Jack Pearson

The Inventors of Synth (Roger Linn, Dave Smith & Tom Oberheim) - Sweetwater Gearfest 2015

video upload by Sweetwater

"Join Mitch Gallagher as he moderates 'The Inventors of Synth' panel discussion at Gearfest '15. Featuring industry icons Dave Smith, Tom Oberheim, and Roger Linn discussing their thoughts on the past, present, and future of analog synthesizers and controllers.

Legendary synth designer and Grammy-winner Dave Smith was the founder of Sequential Circuits in the mid-'70s. His Prophet-5, the world's first fully programmable polyphonic synth, was the first musical instrument with an embedded microprocessor. Dave is also known as the driving force behind the development of the MIDI specification. He has continued to innovate, and recently unveiled his latest synth creation, the Sequential Prophet-6.

A pioneer of the synth and MIDI world, Tom Oberheim co-designed the Synthesizer Expansion Module (SEM), a device that allowed musicians to simultaneously combine live playing and sequenced playback - a concept that pre-dated the MIDI revolution. In 1981, he, along with Roland's Ikutaro Kakehashi and Sequential's Dave Smith, developed the MIDI spec, which changed the course of modern music. Tom recently re-released his famed Two Voice synth.

Technical Grammy award-winner Roger Linn invented the LM-1 Drum Computer (the first sample-based drum machine) in 1979. He later designed the Akai MPC60, which combined a sampling drum machine with a real-time MIDI sequencer. His guitar effects unit, AdrenaLinn, has been used on hit recordings by John Mayer and Red Hot Chili Peppers. In 2014 he released the LinnStrument, an expressive MIDI performance controller."