Funicular transforms Playdate into a portable real-time audio effects processor.
Connect an external audio source using a standard CTIA headset splitter, then build a chain of three DSP effects to create everything from tape wobble and vinyl coloration to delay, fuzz, filters and bit crushing.
The DSP engine is written entirely in C and processes live audio with low latency. Effects can be freely reordered, presets can be saved and recalled, and the crank provides an intuitive way to adjust parameters.
"A quick patch and noodle on my main system for fun and stress relief! ๐
Synth modules from the following companies used:
Synthesis Technology (VCOs)
Moon Modular (VCFs, sequencer, switching, MIDI to CV)
Oakley Sound/Krisp1 (VCAs)
Club Of The Knobs (poly EG, master clock)
Other gear used:
Mellotron M4000D Rack
Yamaha FS1R
Samson S-Patch Plus patchbays
Mark Of The Unicorn Midi Timepiece AV
Allen & Heath MixWizard 3 20S
Roland RSP-550 effects and A-88 keyboard
Strymon BigSky and timeline pedals
Tascam SD-20M flash recorder
Canon C100 MKII camera and CN-E 20mm lens
ATOMOS Ninja Flame video recorder
Blackmagic Design DaVinci Resolve editing software
"'Connect' is an atmospheric ambient session bringing three distinctive electronic instruments into a continuous dialogue: #woas , #chromagene and #polygene.
Floating synthesizer textures, subtle modulation and evolving tones create a spacious, organic soundscape that constantly shifts between delicate harmonics and abstract electronic textures. The Chromagene and Polygene form the sonic core, generating an ever-changing interplay of tone, movement and resonance.
Adding an organic pulse to the piece is the WOAS drum machine, featuring unusual percussion sounds with distinctive Tabla-like characteristics. These earthy, almost acoustic-sounding rhythms merge with the synthetic textures, creating a hypnotic flow between organic percussion and experimental electronic sound.
Rather than following a conventional song structure, “Connect” is an improvised sonic journey — a meeting point between ambient, electronic experimentation and organic rhythm.
"@VenusTheory is one of the lucky people to have their hands on the @genkiinstruments Genki Instruments Katla, the Icelandic volcanic synthesizer priced around $6,000 (yes you did read that right).
As well as parts hewn out of the Icelandic Katla volcano, hence the name - it has five voices with a paraphonic architecture, individual level, waveform and octave controls for each oscillator.
The resonant filter has low pass and band pass modes, self-oscillation and a wave folder. Modulation has some unusual routings, with a 'volcano' (of course) LFO shape and a Skrida control that randomizes envelopes and levels per note.
As well as user presets it has a system which recalls patches per section, effects include reverb, analog drive and tape-style detuning, and recent firmware adds MPE.
We explore it together - and if you want to get a sense of what it can do - we have a set of Custom Decent Samples from Venus Theory for our own Decent Sampler UI available for YouTube Members and Patreon Supporters
"We are thrilled to announce our latest expansions for Native Instruments Massive X. The 'Way Finder', and 'Massive In Psy'.
These expansions elevate the standard “Noisetables” section typically reserved for simple sound effects into a comprehensive, dual-layer melodic sampler. By cleverly embedding large, tuned and continuously looped samples directly into the preset files, we’ve transformed these basic noise modules into highly expressive, tuned oscillators. The result delivers 2 extra layers of deep, complex textures to your Massive X workflow!
The 'Way Finder expansion' takes this concept into deep cinematic and ambient territory with over 100 presets, while the 'Massive In Psy' focuses on trance and psychedelic sounds. Both these expansions can be acquired for 14.99€ each, intro offer until 21 August.
Featuring: .2 Sound banks: Way Finder (103 Presets), Massive In Psy (90 Presets) .Over 80 seamlessly looped and tuned samples .NKS support: including audio preview when hosted in Maschine or Komplete Kontrol. .Bank and presets organized with tags .Expressive sound design: Full Aftertouch and Modwheel support"
"Welcome to Bad Gear, the show about the world’s most-hated audio tools. In a time like ours when material needs no longer exist in music production the accumulation of things seems to have become more important than ever.
Today we are going to talk about Novation Drumstation. While today’s synth clones are mostly used for home studio decoration this 1996 drum machine and shameless Roland TR-808 and 909 ripoff was more or less the only affordable way to actually tweak the iconic drum sounds. Simpler times."
Chapters: 00:00 I found the Lost Episode on an old Hard Disk 00:13 Intro tune 01:06 Overview Novation Drum Station V1 01:47 Limitations 02:02 Midi Control 02:24 Analog or Digital??? 03:05 Workflow 03:32 Features 04:00 NoIsE iSsUeS 04:29 Audition/Auto-trigger 04:40 What else??? (More Features, Pricing, V2, D-Station ,...) 05:06 H*te Screen 05:35 Jam 1 ( Old School Techhouse ) 06:25 Jam 2 ( Old School Trance ) 07:28 Finale ( Old School Footwork/Juke ) 08:02 VERDICT
"More explorations of the soft side of the OP-XY in tandem with the Evil Pet (go download Julia's presets on their site). Stacking step components is the ticket."
Tresse 1.2.0 for iOS, VST3, AUv3 and Standalone video upload by Vรฅld Labs
"Now TRESSE is a 39-engine, dual-layer polysynth built around 24 Mutable
Instruments Plaits engines plus 15 custom engines. It has two
independent 8-voice synth layers, three LFOs, two generative
modulation lanes, a dual-playhead arpeggiator, delay and shimmer
reverb, and a deterministic generative sequencer derived from VEKTE.
Each layer has its own synthesis engine, filter, envelopes and voice
mode, so you can combine completely different synthesis methods in one
patch and modulate the balance between them. It runs standalone or as
an AUv3 in AUM, Drambo, GarageBand, Audiobus and other iOS hosts.
VEKTE is the other side of the idea: a 16-channel generative MIDI
sequencer built around 36 deterministic algorithms, ranging from
Euclidean rhythms, Fibonacci and random walks to cellular automata,
logistic maps, harmonic systems, Tonnetz movement and more.
Each VEKTE channel contains a NOTE lane plus four independent MOD
lanes. Those modulation lanes can control MIDI CCs, rhythm, harmony,
probability, density, playback direction, algorithm parameters and
even other generators, so patterns can evolve structurally rather than
simply playing back notes.
A big part of both instruments is that their generative systems are
deterministic. The same algorithm and parameters always reproduce the
same result, so you can explore without losing something interesting
you discover.
They also share a compact patch-sharing system.
With TRESSE, the entire patch, including both synth layers, all three
LFOs, delay and reverb, the complete sequencer and both generative MOD
lanes, can be encoded into a single TRS2 key of roughly 155
characters. TRESSE can turn that key into a QR code, export it as a
1080 × 1350 social card, or scan a patch directly from another screen
or printed QR using the iPad/iPhone camera.
VEKTE uses the same idea for generative MIDI. A complete channel can
be represented by a compact VKT2 Base62 key, typically around 43 to 130
characters. Because the patterns are deterministic, VEKTE doesn’t need
to store every generated MIDI event in the key. It stores the recipe
and reconstructs the exact pattern when it is loaded.
VEKTE can display those keys as QR codes, scan them directly with the
iPad camera, and share individual channels or an entire 16-slot rig.
It can also create 1080px Share Pattern cards containing the QR, key
and caption, ready for the iOS Share Sheet, so patches and generative
patterns can be exchanged through Messages, social media, forums or
even from a screenshot.
That sharing system is something I’m particularly interested in
developing further: instead of presets being files hidden inside an
app, a sound or generative pattern becomes something you can post,
photograph, print, send to somebody, and reconstruct exactly on
another device.
The philosophy behind both instruments is the same: the art of shaping
chaos. I’m interested in generative systems that can surprise you
without taking control away from you. What you discover can be
reproduced, edited, saved, performed and shared rather than
disappearing into randomness.
They’re designed to complement each other as well: VEKTE can generate
and evolve the musical structure while TRESSE turns that structure
into sound, although both are complete instruments in their own right."
TECH SPECS & QUALITY • Format: 24-bit / 48kHz • Headroom: Raw analog signal (-6 dB to -7 dB True Peak) • 100% RAW: Zero plugins, EQ, or compression — pure hardware voice • Signal Path: PreSonus XMAX Preamps & high-end Sommer Cable The Spirit LLX Silent II • Editing: Zero-Crossing cuts (preserved transients for one-shots; natural loop boundaries with smooth fade-outs/ins)
LICENSE 100% Royalty-Free for commercial and non-commercial music productions, tracks, remixes, and live performances. (No reselling/redistribution as standalone samples or AI model training).
"The M8 Tracker is one of my favorite machines for chilling a programming tunes. It's so gamified that it's instantly addictive to make music. Today we work on a Dub Techno track, maybe we can even finish it."
As one’s life winds its way through the corridors of infinite time and space, I find myself relocated and reset, so to speak, in a place many miles and many moons from the West Country—my former domain—in one of the shires just north of our splendid capital
And I find myself once again following my musical instincts down yet more labyrinthine sonic rabbit holes and through yet more labyrinthine electronic circuit boards
On this outing I decided to try my hand at live sound-on-sound improvisational looping, a method of composition I find particularly rewarding when using relatively unwieldy modular synthesiser systems. The act of looping provides a convenient way of setting down short compositions in real time, allowing simple melodic studies to be created, riddles, if you will, to be solved whilst sitting at the instrument’s console and engaging with the various dials and switches
The core device used on this recording is what I call the Concrete Box - an assortment of Eurorack modules I put together consisting of four loopers, two delays, two digital reverbs, two compressors and various mixers and utility units. Using this box of tricks I was able to run sounds around upon themselves, creating the pieces you hear on this album
Not all tracks were made this way, some took a more conventional path, namely those which made use of polyphonic keyboard synthesisers (the Ensoniq Fizmo, the Crumar DS2) where I simply recorded a few layers of sound one upon the other
And on one track I made use of a rather special device called the Tempera, alongside a regular acoustic piano. The device is able to take stereo recordings and resynthesise them using granular synthesis. You are then able to layer them and manipulate the sound in a great variety of ways. Practical applications of granular synthesis have been around since the mid 1990s, but it is only now, it seems, that dedicated hardware units are beginning to appear on the market, and they seem to be taking hold as an extremely interesting synthesis path
And so it is that these riddles I have been working on have been neatly packaged up for you in this second volume, itself a kind of evolution of the idea presented in the first of the series last year. And who knows where I will find myself in another year’s time - hopefully still diving down sonic rabbit holes and exploring labyrinthine electronic circuits
Synthesisers and recording equipment used on this album:
ARP 2500
Buchla 100
Buchla 200 (cloned)
Roland System 100
Crumar DS2
Ensoniq Fizmo
Tempera Granular System
Yamaha G1 Piano
Eurorack ‘Concrete Box’
Dynacord VRS23 Vertical Reverberation System
The various track titles depict the main instrument used on each track
Released August 7th 2026
Written, recorded and mixed by Benge (B.D.Edwards) at Memetune Studios, England
Design and video work by Benge, made at the Memetune Video Lab
(c)+(p) 2026 Memetune Recordings (Memesongs) all rights reserved"
This is a series of live noiz and video noiz performances. A continuation of improvisational noiz sessions during the persistence of The Human Plague and now war.
"This is the highly sought-after Patch Panel CV version (not the MIDI version, although midi connection is easily obtained through any cv to midi converter), making it ideal for Eurorack, modular, and vintage CV/Gate systems while retaining the unmistakable Oberheim SEM sound."
"The elusive Oberheim OB-1. One of the RAREST synthesizers in existence. According to my research, ONLY 250-500 units were ever made!
I am sure if you are looking at this ad you know what it is. This is an extremely rare opportunity to get your hands on one, especially one in this condition! It is a museum grade, and in exceptional condition. It comes in its vintage carrying chest (we will box the chest, to protect it)."
