Some unfortunate news sent my way vis Swissdoc. Apparently someone has stolen an EMS Synthi from the Swiss synth museum Synthorama. You might recall the video walkthrough just posted here yesterday.
I finally managed to register on the forum. I'm the owner of the Synthorama and, due to a current event, I'd like to give you a brief update on the museum.
The Synthorama has been around for 25 years and serves to introduce synthesizers to a musically interested public. Almost all instruments can be played and tested here.
But you all already know that ;-)
Unfortunately, there are also people who misuse the museum. Since its inception, there have been four thefts, the fourth on August 2, 2025.
The first was about 15 years ago, when someone stole around 10 modules from one of my Moog modular systems while it was unattended and then filled the "holes" with other modules or even front panels. I didn't notice this for a long time because it wasn't that obvious.
"Control your eurorack system with just a touch. Generate control voltages and gates from the capacitive touch pads and route them to play your system.
Some things just can’t be sequenced……
The module has two touchpads, one to generate CV outputs and the other for gates. There are separate outputs for the pressure CV, velocity CV and Gate.
The pressure touchpad has been designed to be expressive. The pressure CV is proportional to how hard you press the panel, contact surface area and position.
The increasing separation of lines in the pressure touchpad result in an inverse relationship to its response so that depending upon where you touch you will get a sensitivity.
The top of the touchpad is more sensitive. The sensitivity decreases going down the panel.
Using just the tip of your finger the output CV can be controlled by slide it up and down the panel.
The RGB LED in the top left displays the level of each output.
Green = Pressure Blue = Velocity Red = Gate The pressure CV output ranges from 0-6V
The module has been fitted with an offset null trimmer which can be adjusted when the module is mounted in your rack to set the Pressure CV back to exactly 0V.
The offset null can be adjusted through the panel with a small flat head screw driver.
"A tutorial on the basics of sound design, featuring the Sonicware Liven Evoke, focusing on LFOs, filters, and amplitude envelopes, and providing an overview of attack, release, cutoff, resonance, and LFO assignment, shape, rate, depth, trigger, and delay settings. This is part 3 of a series I'm doing on the Evoke (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list..., but it can be watched independently of the other parts and doesn't require that you have an Evoke to get something out of it, I think/hope.
This video is meant to be as beginner-friendly as possible, so at the beginning of sections, I go over basics that may "go without saying" for more experienced people. This is intentional. I remember back when I was just getting started with synths, all the videos I watched seemed to assume too much was "obvious" or already known, and I've consciously tried to avoid that here and make the sort of video I wish I had back then."
"Welcome to Bad Gear, the show about the world’s most-hated audio tools. The analog tones of Roland’s SH-101 have been a staple in electronic music production since the 80s.
However, those who didn’t buy the dip in the 90s will have to make do with oversized fridge magnets, Uli’s homage to plastic, blasphemous plugins or - in this case - Donner’s brand-new L1 which has no reason to be that expensive while feeling so cheap.
Chapters: 00:00 Intro tune 00:48 Overview Donner L1 01:29 Oscillator Section 01:59 Filter Section 02:14 Envelopes, Drone, Gate 02:44 LFO, Analog FM 02:59 Sequencer 03:20 Menus, Screen 03:35 Digital Bleed from the Screen 03:56 The Detachable Keyboard and its Limitations 04:07 Connectivity (or lack thereof) 04:17 Midi, Arpeggiator 04:42 What else? (Many weird Flaws,...) 05:12 H*te Screen 05:40 Jam 1 ( Techno ) 06:26 Jam 2 ( Elektro ) 07:31 Finale ( Techno - All Sounds including Drums ) 08:00 Verdict"
"Feeling a yearning for a bit of LinnDrum action I loaded up a bunch of samples and it occurred to me to try this song - a bit of a musical 'guilty pleasure' as it has such a distinctive rhythm. I put the song on, donned my legwarmers and had a bit of a 'spin' around the room to the track in my best 'Flashdance' impression. Straight away it became apparent it shouldn't be possible to do it on the Tracks as it has too many tracks. Bass, electric piano chords, arpeggio, melody...and a distinctive 80's guitar solo! Not to be deterred I shrank it down as much as I could and used the layering and extra voices hacks I've talked about elsewhere * and what you hear is the end result.
It was a fun challenge and I hope you enjoy the end result. All you hear was programmed into a single Circuit Tracks and played 'live' just recording the audio outs.
More details for synth nerds
The excellent @CaptainPikant had a great video breaking down how the rhythm track was constructed so I largely followed this guide.
• MANIAC - The most INSANE drum pattern of t... [below]
BPM 155bpm
Synth 1 - mono bass synth
Synth 2 - 'piano'ish patch playing chords, arepeggio and melody lines (at different velocities/ranges)
Drum 1- LM1 bass drum
Drum 2 - LM1 snare and sidestick
Drum 3 - LM1 hihats and combined HH and fake guitar (see below)
Drum 4 - LM1 cowbell and clap
The 'guitar' is faked I'm sorry. My lead guitar skills are not up to this (I did try!) and my friendly local 'shredder' was busy. I used instead the Native Instruments Electric Sunburst plug in instrument to fake a short solo and drenched it in guitar effects. I recorded to 4 bar loops with the hihat pattern duplicated along with them and then triggered the samples at the right moment on the hihat track."
MANIAC - The most INSANE drum pattern of the '80s | Drum Patterns Explained
"The drum pattern of Michael Sembello's 'Maniac' is positively insane. It's what you'd get if you made a Synthwave drum track, decided it wasn't complex enough, glitched it up with a tiny dash of Aphex Twin and then put a second drum track on top of that with over a dozen Tom fills for good measure. Pure '80s maximalism with two of the most iconic drum sounds of that era."
"Explore LoFi Strings, the latest free addition to the Vaults collection from The Crow Hill Company. We ran lush orchestral string recordings through a vintage cassette deck to capture authentic tape compression, saturation, wow & flutter, hiss, and drop-outs - bringing nostalgic warmth to the orchestral world."
Press release follows:
The Crow Hill Company lets loose …LO-FI STRINGS as latest VAULTS… virtual instrument release, free for all to download with no strings attached
EDINBURGH, UK: readily representing a quite literal realisation of company co-founder and composer Christian Henson’s heartfelt dream of encouraging people to make music and help them on their journey, regardless of whatever point they were at and wherever their journey began, as the latest addition to the free-for-all-to-download-and-make-music-with-for-the-rest-of-their-lives-styled collection curated with the same care and attention to detail as the Make Music, Your Music motto-abiding Edinburgh-based enterprise’s paid-for releases, The Crow Hill Company is proud to announce availability of its VAULTS - LO-FI STRINGS virtual instrument — introduced with no strings attached, albeit actually, in this case, there are, but only of the lo-fi musical kind that are central to the tool in question seriously satisfying those who like the sound of their recorded strings to be unrefined by being fully adulterated through a knackered cassette tape with just a pinch of wobble in the process of doing what it easily does so well — as of August 14…
"This ORIGINAL 1979 New Old Stock / NOS Yamaha CS-40M Data / Demonstration Cassette Tape.
Offered for the first time in the history of the internet, so most likely a once in a lifetime opportunity.
And even better; sinds it's NOS. It is UNPLAYED. Be the first to hear in 45 years whats on it! Sinds its a unplayed NOS item, I can't guarantee the quality of the content and I have no clue whats on it, so sold AS IS. I think its the factory patches + some demonstration/introduction, but can only guess.
Comes in the generic protection box as shown on the picture, to extra protect the tape during shipping.
A true collectors gem and adding great value to your beloved mighty CS-40M. Be the very happy new owner."
1. Roland S-1 | Synth Sound Design Basics Tutorial | Master the S-1: Ep. 1
This is the first video in my series on mastering the Roland S-1. In this episode, I cover the essential sound design features of this powerful little synth. Future videos will dive into advanced sound design, creative jamming techniques, sequencer tricks, and anything else you’d like to see.
2. Roland S-1 | Advanced Sound Design Tutorial | Master the S-1: Ep. 2
The S-1 has a hidden super power: Custom Waveforms. Using the oscillator draw function you can input your own custom waveforms to create new sounds you wouldn't expect from a mini-SH-101 clone. I have a few that I use all the time and I wanted to share them with you. I hope you enjoy!
3. Roland S-1 | Sequencing Tutorial | Master the S-1: Ep. 3
The Roland S-1 sequencer isn't the most advanced, but it offers a surprising amount of utility for its small size. For me, the S-1's sequencer is a quick and effective way to capture ideas and jam, in ways that even more advanced synths and grooveboxes don't always inspire. I get a lot of enjoyment from punching in patterns on the S-1 and using the tips and tricks I show in this video to create tracks and explore new ideas through jamming.
If you'd like to support me and receive extra patches, patch reference sheets, and more, please visit patreon.com/Mark_Young
4. Roland S-1 | Voice Modes Tutorial (Poly, Chord, Unison, Mono) | Master the S-1: Ep. 4
The Roland S-1 has four voice modes which can be used for different sound design purposes. I received a lot of requests to make a video on the chord mode functionality, so I figured I would expand it out and cover all of the different S-1 Voice Modes. I'll dive into each one mode and give some ideas for how to use them, with emphasis on chord mode. Let me know if you have any questions!
"The Frap Tools BRENSO is more than just a dual oscillator—it's a modern homage to the west coast synthesis tradition pioneered by Don Buchla in the 1970s. As a complex oscillator, BRENSO offers a dense web of internal modulation, wave shaping, and signal routing options that invite experimentation, creativity, and highly expressive sound design.
Let’s break down what makes BRENSO special—and why it’s a standout tool for modular synthesists and the perfect place to start Happy Mag's Synth Month 2025 journey!
🧠 What Is a Complex Oscillator?
In synthesis terms, “complex” usually refers to waveforms that go beyond simple shapes like sine, triangle, square, or sawtooth. These richer, more dynamic tones are achieved through audio-rate modulation—one oscillator affecting another at high speed to produce new, harmonically rich content.
To that end, BRENSO includes two triangle-core analog oscillators, each with four outputs. These oscillators are designed to interact, cross-modulate, and shape each other in ways that transform simple waveforms into entirely new sonic terrain.
🎨 We Love the Colour-Coded Interface!
One of BRENSO’s most elegant features is its colour-coded layout. This isn’t just for show—it reflects functional sections of the module, making navigation and patching intuitive:
🟢 Green Section – Frequency control for oscillator one 🟡 Yellow Section – Frequency control for oscillator two ⚪ White Section – Timbre shaping (via wavefolders and shapers) 🔴 Red Section – Amplitude control (via a four-quadrant multiplier for AM/RM)
These sections are organised spatially and visually, so once you understand the color scheme, you're halfway to mastering the module.
🔄 Modulation Without the Patch Cables
BRENSO encourages semi-normalled patching. Many modulation paths are internally routed by default using dashed lines on the panel. For example, the green sine wave is often pre-routed as a modulator for the yellow oscillator—no cable required.
This internal routing makes it easy to get rich interactions going quickly, but BRENSO never limits you: patching a cable into a jack overrides the normalization, giving you complete flexibility.
This is why eurorack exists to me. I would never come to these sorts of results through any other workflow or gear, would never stumble on these harmonies or gently cascading notes, would never feel out the song progression on a computer or even with a more traditional hardware setup. There are many things eurorack doesn't do as well, but moments like this make me realize why it's so special.
Please go give the album a spin.
Three voices: Forge TME Vhikk X, 4ms Ensemble, 4ms SMR
Control surface: Elta TSC 12
Effects: Intellijel FX 1U, Strymon Magneto, Noise Engineering Versio, Happy Nerding FX Aid XL
Modulation: ALM Pamela's Pro Workout
Mixing: Intellijel Mixer 1U, Befaco STMix
"The Plasma Voice module loves being modulated, But how about just playing it as a standard synth voice? Here I twiddle at length with just one of the 49 core sounds. This is bass sound number 2, but it happily scales up and down the octaves. One thing I like about the Plasma is that you don't need to tune it. As much as I liked all my old analog Eurorack oscillators, I absolutely hated tuning them. Often I wouldn't bother, then I'd come up with something good and realize it wasn't going to fit with anything else until I stopped everything, broke the spell, and went back and tuned them :/
Playing a Plasma voice with no modulation isn't what you'd probably often do. It's setup for easy and crazy amounts of realtime change. OTOH it's interesting as a synth voice to play with a range of unfamiliar parameters. Since there's no ADSRs or other standard controls you tend to go in different directions.
Ten minutes of this might be overkill, but as my daughter always says (with a laugh): "Your channel is so niche", so I'm unfazed. It actually felt quite brief to me although the Nightverb was essential to smooth things out.
And watch your ears at the 4 minute mark. There's no compression, limiting or other volume modifications on the audio and the sound gets rather piercing.
0:00 Dry sound
0:54 With reverb
3:32 Jackhammer
4:02 O Lord My Ears
4:45 So low
5:30 Smoothie
6:05 Prod
6:57 Sustainers
8:15 Octaves
9:56 Wet
10:49 Square
"A TR-808 beat so raw it stopped gangsters in their tracks."
"Check the debut of The Rhythm Creators series, featuring @ThEgyptianLover's first meeting with the drum machine that changed everything. Animated by Vaughn Taormina."
Press release follows:
Los Angeles, CA, August 7, 2025 — Roland Corporation celebrates the 45th anniversary of its iconic TR-808 Rhythm Composer today. Since its debut in 1980, the TR-808, commonly known as “the 808,” has shaped the creation of musical genres from hip-hop to techno, trap, and beyond. Its unmistakable sound has powered decades of iconic tracks, from smash hits like Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance with Somebody” and Beyoncé’s “Drunk in Love” to a sea of underground techno, electro, and hip-hop anthems. TR drum machines have laid the musical pulse for generations, fueling global rhythm culture through the hands of producers, DJs, and creative visionaries who continue to push its legacy in new directions.
To celebrate this 808 Day, Roland will unveil a series of special releases—including a
limited-edition sneaker collaboration with New Balance—and global events that pay tribute to the 808’s enduring legacy and cultural impact.
Rhythm Creators
As part of the celebration, Roland is launching The Rhythm Creators, an eight-part animated video series highlighting untold stories from artists shaped by the legacy of its most iconic rhythm machines—the TR-808 and its influential successor, the TR-909. Each episode blends humor, reverence, and nostalgia, and features stylized animation by Detroit artist Vaughn Taormina and narration from the artists themselves.
Episode one premieres today with Egyptian Lover, with new installments featuring Prince Paul, Fatboy Slim, Soul II Soul’s Jazzie B, and other trailblazing artists dropping throughout August and into September.
New Balance Collaboration
Roland and iconic footwear brand New Balance have relaunched the special edition Tiago Lemos NM808 x Roland sneaker. This collaboration exemplifies the 808’s impact on music and culture, showcasing the unique intersection of skateboarding, hip-hop, and fashion.
To further celebrate this collaboration, Roland and New Balance are hosting Atlanta’s creative community for an exclusive industry mixer dedicated to the 808’s legacy in the birthplace of trap music.
The mixer will be hosted at SESSIONS Atlanta, the iconic studio run by legendary producer Tricky Stewart. Highlights will include private Roland product demonstrations, live performances by Sonny Digital and Mix Master David, as well as an appearance by the popular BackTrack podcast host Don Cannon. Guests will also check out the Tiago Lemos NM808 x Roland sneakers in person.
The Tiago Lemos NM808 x Roland sneakers will be available starting on August 8 at 10:00 a.m. EDT for $114.99 on newbalance.com.
Roland Retail Celebrations: Tokyo and London
In Tokyo, Roland is teaming up with iconic streetwear brand XLARGE for a special 808 Day launch celebration at the Roland and XLARGE stores in the fashionable Harajuku District. The event will include live techno sets from REMO-CON, Yebisu303, and Ken Plus Ichiro, as well as an exclusive first look at the limited-edition XLARGE x 808 capsule collection, available for purchase in-store. The collection includes graphic t-shirts, hoodies, and accessories that fuse
XLARGE’s signature streetwear aesthetic with Roland’s iconic 808 design language. Guests will also have the rare opportunity to see the original TR-808 machine on display as part of the evening’s festivities.
Roland Store London is also hosting an in-store celebration today, presenting further opportunities for guests to purchase the XLARGE x 808 capsule collection in-person and online from around the world. In addition, the event includes live sets by DJ Complexion to keep guests moving for an upbeat, energized celebration.
Roland Cloud
A founding member of the Los Angeles rap scene, hip-hop legend Arabian Prince, best known for tracks like “Panic Zone” and “Situation Hot,” is coming to Roland Cloud users worldwide. The TR-808 Arabian Prince sound pack allows users to utilize his classic patterns and sequences like never before via a Roland Cloud Pro or Ultimate membership or Lifetime Key purchase.
Also, until 9/09 (September 9th), the TR-808 Software Rhythm Composer is available for only
$49—an authentic option for easily accessing the classic 808 sound within DAWs."
"Sound recorded directly from the back of the synth (No added effects / eq / reverb etc)."
"POLYGENE II is an all analog polyphonic synthesizer with two halves. One half is all-transistor class A from signal source through audio path two output, the other half is identical except it uses analog chips to generate dynamic customisable waveforms.
Inspired by the earliest polysynths of the 1970s, it is fully polyphonic (all 24 notes can be played at the same time), can be tuned to any scale or tuning, is multi-timbral and completely touch sensitive.
Touching any part of the synthesizer bridges connections in the circuitry and creates a unique sound.
"On Wednesday, 30th July 2025, we welcomed synth wizard and long-time friend of the store Chris ‘-CALC-’ Calcutt to our showroom for a masterclass on all things Sequential and Oberheim.
He provided insight into the culture and history of both companies, as well as what makes their instruments a feature in so many studios and live rigs worldwide. These iconic brands - founded by Dave Smith and Tom Oberheim, respectively - have been at the forefront of analogue synthesiser design for half a century, and they’re currently both going stronger than ever, with new desktop versions of the affordable Oberheim TEO-5 and Sequential Take 5 polysynths hitting the market. Chris spoke about both instruments’ illustrious heritage and explained just what makes each one sound so unique."
1st Sonic Six: "The Moog Sonic Six is a rare, portable analog synthesizer with classic Moog tone and ladder filter, featuring dual VCOs, sample-and-hold, ring modulation, and a built-in speaker—all housed in a rugged suitcase-style design perfect for studio or stage. Its unique sound-shaping capabilities including X/Y modulation, and vintage character make it a prized collector’s piece and a powerful tool for experimental or classic analog synthesis. While this synthesizer is often offered by sellers at a "high on crack" price, I am pleased to offer this one for less than half of what some delusional synth dealers are trying to get for it.
The synthesizer is in good condition, but the original "Moog" logo sticker on the outside was peeled off. The power switch does not illuminate when the synthesizer is powered on. The synthesizer uses a standard IEC power cord, and one will be included. Please see photos.
This Moog Sonic Six has been serviced by Synthchaser in August 2025. Work done included:
Cleaned switches, pots and sliders
Refurbished keybed - new bushings, cleaned bus bars & contacts
Tuned & Calibrated Synthesizer"
2nd Sonic Six:
"This vintage Moog Sonic Six Suitcase Analog Synthesizer powers on and makes sound, but is being offered as-is at a discount due to cosmetic and functional issues. The A, X, and Y oscillators and the Moog Ladder filter appear to be working. This can be a great opportunity for someone willing to put a little work in to get this rare synthesizer below market. The synth is being sold as-is for parts or repair, with no returns.
Please see this video showing the functional status of the synthesizer. : [video above]
Issues I noticed (you may find other issues, but the synthesizer is still being sold as-is with no returns):
Cosmetic: A power cord has been hardwired to this unit in place of the power inlet. The exterior of the case is in rough looking condition and some screws are missing and things feel loose. The synthesizer is missing all knobs and switch caps. Some of the keys are stained. 2 rubber feet are missing, so the case needs something behind it to stay open when in use.
Functional: Oscillator B appears to be dead. The ring modulator appears to not be working (perhaps due to oscillator B not working, ring mod was not tested with external input). Key contacts are dirty and not working well, bushings need to be replaced. The contour generator appears to be broken. The Contour/Pitch Control pot for the filter was replaced with a pot that doesn't extend fully through the panel, so you can't use it. Pots, sliders and switches need cleaning. Calibration needed."
"Primarily this is a discussion about the various merits and abilities of each delay and how they compare."
"Although this video runs almost half an hour it feels like I was still skating on the surface. I avoided what I thought were completely obvious things or multiple sound comparisons of particular details. Even so a few areas I never got to include winding the delays all the way down and looking at various flanging and chorus effects, and maybe this deserves its own video? Likewise the Echolocator never got to its dirty mode or the alternate filter placement (although I do have no-talk videos which cover these). Nor did I play with the time parameters, long fripperish things, or drums. Ah well, so many wondrous sounds are waiting in the ether eager to be released. I'm trying.
And of course I never get to any conclusion about which delay is 'best' but surely you didn't think that was ever going to happen? Instead we only get to that forum advice favorite of 'use both'.
0:00 Basic specs
0:38 Alternative delays
1:57 Strymon Timeline
2:58 Ergonomics
4:30 More specs
4:58 Delay time
5:49 MIDI
7:05 - Audio begins! --
9:04 Both playing
9:44 Zen as a crunchy filter
12:00 Echolocator basic twiddle
13:10 Echolocator modulation
15:24 Echolocator pitch shift
17:04 Echolocator freeze
18:45 Noise tones test
22:00 Pure tone test
27:25 Cats or dogs?
"Scope trace showing output sound waveform.
Plasma fluctuations can have a range of bizarre waveforms, such as alternating long/short periods and repeating but irregular patterns. Here the drive is varied with each note, and you can see different types of waveform interact with different input tones.
This clip also shows some first testing of an auto-tuning system.
In this, the machine first listens to the tube output to learn how to drive it to be in tune with applied input tones. Plasma does not have a linear response to drive conditions, so the system doesn't always produce exactly the same result."
"Modular synths are more than tools, they're reality itself. This video explores why digital music can never truly be real, and why analog gear remains the only way to feel sound at the source.
The world is in transit, like it or not. Music evolved from the stage into the box, from real media to streams, and now from streams into learning models, weights, and rewards. We can endlessly debate whether AI is OK or not, but we can’t put the demons back into their bottles.
It’s a non-religious blessing to patch a real machine with real voltage. Every sound I make is Karma: cause and effect, wrapped in a false sense of choice and control. I love it. It’s a sanctuary.
And the VHIKK? Everything I say about it will only give you GAS. It’s one of the finest modules Eurorack has to offer, and currently my #1 module. So maybe don’t watch this video if you’re on a tight budget. Or… maybe watch it very carefully. Because you might just build the ultimate tiny case with it.
All you need is VHIKK and Pam Pro. Don’t forget power, but you won’t even need an output module. VHIKK X can run on USB power. Build a tiny wooden case. Maybe I will too.
We modular people are still a niche. A tiny community moving upstream and uphill — while the world flows downward. And it’s an honor to be part of it."
I did not use any external FX in the demo, no layers, no loopers, etc. All the delays and reverbs are part of the Microkorg-2 engine. My presets are single-timbre so you don’t lose your 8-voice polyphony. The presets come as computer files in “mk2prog” format. Just load them into the Microkorg-2 by using its flash drive feature (boot your Microkorg-2 in “disk mode”, and when it appears as a new disk drive you can just open / explore it and copy + paste the files). You will have the freedom to import my presets into Bank CLASSIC or MODERN or FUTURE or USER on your Microkorg 2."
"This is a demo of one of my vintage modules that I just radically updated. First, a bit of history. Circa 1988, I was browsing the Hosfelt Electronics catalog, and saw a bunch of little circuit boards there that made different 'emergency' siren sounds. Of course, I couldn't resist buying all eight of them that they had, and designed a synth module around them that allowed me to switch (manually or via external signals) the audio output from any of them into the left or right channels on a common stereo mix. In addition to a linear mix, I also combined them via a chain of exclusive ORs (the VCOs on these units produced square waves), again selected by the same gates - this produced kind of a ring modulation sound (Exclusive OR's can be thought of as 1-bit multipliers). On the front panel, I also provided outputs from each oscillator independently, as well as the ability to inject independent voltage control into each oscillator.
Despite my attempts to leverage this module into different patches, it retained a distinct identity - e.g., the sound of a major urban emergency - that limited its usefulness. You can hear a short demo excerpt I recorded on it circa 26 years ago here- http://Paradiso.media.mit.edu/Outgoin... - I'm switching outputs from the alarm circuits randomly to left and right channels throughout - the first half features the linear mix and the latter half the XOR mix. You can clearly hear that this module makes a very strong statement -as such, it didn't appear much in my pieces over the years.
But I still saw big potential in it. 8 oscillators aren't much by today's digital standards, but as I can switch them into different paths dynamically, it's got promise. The main thing I had to do was to be able to turn off the LFO control of each oscillator that made the siren sounds and think about coordinated ways to control this bank.
So a month or two back, I embarked on this journey, enabling the LFOs to be switched out of the audio oscillator voltage control paths (but giving independent access to them all, providing LFO outputs on the front panel and in most cases voltage control of LFO frequencies), plus providing adjustable voltage control of each oscillator as well as different kinds of ensemble voltage control (e.g., controlling all 8, controlling the top vs bottom 4, controlling even vs odd channels), as well as being able to adjust the base frequency of the ensemble and the base for each independent oscillator. Witness the massive augmentation of the front panel, as well as the wild nest of wiring below to do this hack in the midst of this video.
But low-and-behold it's done. This isn't a voiced device - the oscillators are linear, hence don't hold tune collectively as you shift frequencies. This, for me, justified the hack - I've got plenty of oscillators that I can already voice and track harmonically - this unit is now about nudging frequencies collectively and independently to go through different kinds of dissonances and occasionally sweet spots in a deep ensemble fashion. Plus, if I want to, I can switch channels back into siren mode, or use their LFOs in more flexible ways (each of the LFOs sports a different kind of waveform).
OK, IMO it grew into the monster that I hoped it would become, as you can hear in this live recording. Here I routed both the linear and XOR outputs through different complex reverb units, fading them up in different ways and at different times, and switching the oscillator outputs dynamically into different channels using digital gates coming from other modules in my system (occasionally I would hold some or all of the gates to just let the thing drone). I also injected different kinds of ensemble control (all, even/odd, top/bottom) at different times to bend the frequencies a bit, driven by triggered envelope generators. All sounds come from this revamped 'Beeps' unit - one voice was routed through an octave divider to bring it lower, and some effects were used, plus the reverbs nicely put this beast into a dense dreamy space. Despite the complexity, it's one of the simplest patches I've made - you can see it in the little bit of pan-around video I put into the middle of the clip.
My usual disclaimer - heck, only 8 oscillators with simple control paths could be done trivially in software now (one of my hero-pieces, Dave Wessel's 'Antony', an inspiration here, used hundreds on IRCAM's 4x (or 3x back then?) circa 30-40 years ago), and there are probably Eurorack modules around like this now too, including some that I may already have. But this connects to something I made in my relative youth, turning it into the sonic tool that it wanted to be. I hope you enjoy this demo!"
