This Is A Test - The Wizard's Hand prototype - ambient energy to cv translator

video upload by Mountainking Electronics

"The Wizard's Hand is part of a group of designs called bio-intergration interface devices. These devices have come about as a result of my ongoing search for not only new ways of using our physical bodies to control and effect electronic musical instruments but also finding ways to tap into and use the ambient energy fields that surround our bodies to influence these instruments.

The Wizard's Hand works by sensing the effects our bodies have on the surrounding electrical and electro-magnetic energy fields and translating those effects into a varying control voltage. It is an organic device who's sensitivity and effects can change from day today, place to place, person to person, etc, etc. The user needs to learn to "feel" the energy fields surrounding the Wizard's Hand through the use of intuition to "lock in" on these subtle energies and gain better manipulative powers over them.

In the video the Wizard's Hand is plugged into the pitch cv input on a VCO. There is a toggle switch that switches the signal at the OUTPUT jack from the Wizard's Hand circuit to the EXT IN jack. With nothing plugged into the EXT IN jack moving the switch to the EXT position allows you to instantly disconnect the Wizard's Hand from whatever you have it interfaced to. This is demonstrated in the very beginning of the video. The Wizard's Hand has two knobs, one called SLEW, this adjust a "glide" or "portamento" type circuit which the control voltage that comes from the Wizard's Hand is sent through. There is also an OUTPUT knob, this allows you to attenuate the CV signal that is available at the OUTPUT jack when the accompanying toggle switch is in the W.H. position. There is also a toggle switch that allows you to limit the maximum cv level to 5v dc. Lastly, there is aì toggle switch that allows you to switch between the Wizard's Hand putting out a varying control voltage or an on/off gate signal.

The Wizard's Hand is an experimental device and as such will require more testing before the circuit is finalized.

If you would like to purchase the Wizard's Hand or have any questions please email me:

alan@mountainkingelectronics.com

Thank you,
Alan"

This Is A Test- Mixtur IV eurorack module prototype - passive intermodulation mixer

video upload by Mountainking Electronics

"This is the Mixtur IV eurorack module prototype. This is the fourth design in my Mixtur series. The modules in this series all share commons traits, mainly that they all allow the music engineer to take various audio and cv signals and combine them through intermodulation (with various characteristics of each signal altering various characteristics of the other signals in ways that are often difficult to predict) and that they are all (so far) passive designs.

The name of this series, as well as some of inspiration for it's designs, come from Karlheinz Stockhausen's music and musical ideology, but the main vision for these modules is to allow the music engineer to create new sounds from old sounds and complex motion by combining simple, even static, signals.

The circuit designs come from visual thoughts, images, that are then translated into electronic components and then arranged using symmetry, taking two mirror images and combining them. These circuits are then prototyped without any breadboard experimentation and so their outcome/functionality is always, to some degree, unpredictable, allowing the designer to experience some of the "unknown-ness" of the modules that the users of the modules experience.

If you are interested in purchasing a Mixtur IV module or any other module from the Mixtur series, or if you have any questions please let me know:

alan@mountainkingelectronics.com

Thank you,
Alan"

This Is A Test: Bio-feedbacker prototype - eurorack bio-intergration interface device

video upload by Mountainking Electronics

"My interest in biofeedback therapy and technology and electronic music has led me to design a variety of bio-intergration interface devices. These are devices that allow you to use your body to control and influence audio and cv signals within a modular synthesizer system but whereas we normally use our bodies to mechanically manipulate controls (ie using our hands to turn knobs, push buttons and flick switches) these B.I.D.s allow us to use things like galvanic skin response, eeg, physical proximity, body capacitance, etc to use our bodies AND minds to control and influence the signals within a modular synthesizer system in ways that we normally don't even consider. I believe that through experimentation and practice these devices can help us tap into a relatively unexplored universe of interaction with our musical instruments.

On to the Bio-feedbacker. The Bio-feedbacker is what I call a "touch box". A touch box is simply a box that houses touch plates that are connected to jacks. The Bio-feedbacker contains two signal touch plates and one ground touch plate but what makes it different than the other touch boxes I have designed is that it also contains a switchable, adjustable attenuator which can be used the way we normally use an attenuator in a modular synthesizer system or it can be used to create a feedback loop for use with signal processor modules. To accommodate this feedback looper feature there are two sets of normalled jacks on the input and output of the attenuator. These jacks also allow the Bio-feedbacker to be used as a multiple module.

Video clips:

1. In this clip a fixed control voltage from a voltage processor module is sent into the Biofeedback and out to the pitch cv input of a VCO. The clips shows the control voltage going through and being manipulated by hands as well as going through the attenuator and hands.

2. In this clip a fixed control voltage from a voltage processor module is sent into the Biofeedback and then into the cv input for the cutoff frequency of a VCF. The clips shows the control voltage going through and being manipulated by hands as well as going through the attenuator and hands.

3. In this clip a audio square is sent into a VCF and the Bio-feedbacker is used to create a feedback loop. First the loop is created by hands and the it created by the attenuator as well as hands. What is interesting about this patch is that because the VCF inverts the signal, mixing it with the noninverted and unfiltered signal that passes through via the feedback loop path you get phase cancelation creating an effect similar to that of an allpass filter or phaser.

4. . In this clip a fixed control voltage from a voltage processor module is sent into the Biofeedback and then into the trigger input of a drum module. Touching the two plates at the same time sends a short burst of voltage acting like a trigger or gate. The strength of the signal can be varied by the amount of contact your hands/body has on the signal touch plates as well as the pressure you apply on the touch plates and because the input of the drum module is sensitive to the amplitude of trigger/gate signal you can create the type of effect achieved by striking an actual drum harder or softer. In the second part of the clip a clock/low frequency square wave is sent into the Bio-feedbacker and then into the trigger/gate input of the drum module and this signal is manipulated by hands and then used inconjuction with the attenuator.

As with all of my B.I.D.s designs, the Bio-feedbacker's design is still being experimented with but if you would like to order one I would be happy to build you one so please email me for details:

alan@mountainkingelectronics.com

Thank you,
Alan"

This Is A Test: Dope Box prototype - crazy beat synthesizer thing

video upload by Mountainking Electronics

"This is the prototype for the Dope Box. It is designed around an obsolete ic that contains 15 different lo fi drum beats samples. The Dope Box contains a preamp that can be driven into distortion and a active LPF. It has rate controls to allow you to slow it down til all you hear is strange, stretched out digital bits or speed it up til it sounds like a skipping compact disc. In the right hands it has limitless creative possibilities.

I hope, at some point, to officially release the Dope Box but if and when I do it will be ultra limited edition as I only have 7 of the ics that the Dope Box is designed around. I am selling this prototype if anyone is interested. Please email me if you are interested in purchasing this prototype. [ at https://www.mountainkingelectronics.com]

Thank you,
Alan"

Happy New Year From MATRIXSYNTH! - A Look Back at 2014

Happy New Year everyone!

I want to start by thanking everyone that comes to MATRIXSYNTH and helps make it what it is - the readers, the supporters, and of course all the sponsors on the right.

THANK YOU and have a GREAT 2015!!!

This site is a labor of love and a ton of work. This site is ultimately meant to be an testament to everything synth in the making. We have over nine years of daily synth history captured here, 119,983 published posts. I can't wait to see what the future brings us in 2015!

That said, here are a few interesting bits from 2014 in the longest post of the year. ;)

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Mountainking Electronics P.M. DUAL Prototype VCA VCF FRAC Passive Synth Module

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this auction

"This is a prototype of a synthesizer module designed by Alan from Mountainking Electronics.

It is two independent passive modulators each with two different switchable modes, VCA (voltage controlled attenuator) and VCF (voltage controlled filter). "Passive" means that it does not require a power connector. VCA mode is for "tremolo," "ring modulator,"and other amplitude modulation effects. VCF mode is very similar to the VCA mode but it you'll notice a passive lowpass filtering effect when fed with an LFO or envelope generator and a subtle timbrel effect when an audio frequency signal/cv is used for the modulating signal. The two modulators can be cascaded for more complex modulation effects.

CONTROLS:
LIMIT: This limits/attenuates the input signal. This can be useful to help the module works with various signal levels.

DEPTH: This controls the "depth" of the modulating signal by attenuating the signal/cv. Modulating signal/cv can be an LFO, audio frequency oscillator, envelope generator, etc.

IN: Input for the signal to be modulated.

OUT: Output for the signal to be modulated.

MOD IN: Input for modulating/cv signal.

The module is built into a FRAC rack sized, hand cut and drilled, panel. PLEASE NOTE: The panels height and width (double width/3" size) are about a 1/16" taller and wider then the standard FRAC rack size. This should not cause any problem with most racks/systems but please keep it in mind. The panel is approximately 1/8" thick. Also, the mounting hole are abit rough around the edges, again nothing you should sweat about, but I just want you to know what to expect.

Alan from Mountainking has designed quite a few synthesizer modules but most of them will not be available for some time."

I created a new Mountainking label for these. There has been only one previous post featuring Mountainking back in 2012 here.

Mountainking Channel Cheif Dual Oscillator Synthesizer

Published on Oct 10, 2012 by DiPintoGuitar

via this auction

"Handmade by my friend Alan of Mountainking Electronics in Philadelphia. The Channel Chief is a dual Oscillating synth that was built into an old 50's or 60's TV antennae amplifier box. This is a one-off piece and will never be made like this again. It has two frequency control knobs, a filter knob, a volume knob and a switch for on-off, dual and modulation settings. There is also a switch on that back that switches the filter mode. The unit also has an "Osc.1 CV in", "Ocs 2 CV in", and a "Filter CV in" for running other instruments through it. The unit is fat sounding and pretty wild on its own. Of course, pedals, including delay and reverb, can only make this monster even better. This is that perfect piece you've been looking for to FREQ people out!"

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