Showing posts sorted by date for query M Me. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by date for query M Me. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Thursday, July 30, 2026
Supercritical Redshift 6 | Cinematic performance
video upload by Jay Hosking
"Please support my work on Patreon: / jayhosking
A live synthesizer jam performed with the Redshift 6 at the centre. Percussion added afterward in the box.
Fair warning: both Supercritical and MAS Distribution sent along their respective gear (the Redshift 6, and the Solarfaze/Polyphrase, respectively) for free. Take that as you will. Neither of them explicitly asked me to make a video with the gear, although I'm sure that was the point, right? But in both cases, the gear they sent along was a joy to play, which is why they're here.
I ended up really enjoying the Redshift 6. It's ostensibly analog where it counts—6 DCOs and VCFs—but it's also really clean and precise sounding, giving it a digital sheen. That's somewhat less my thing. However, it has a few things to really give it personality: multi-timbrality, up to a different timbre for each of the six voices; a Character parameter which vastly can change the sound of a voice, its filter and mixing and more; a great built-in effects suite (can only run one at a time); three pairs of stereo outputs to run your timbres separately (as here); easy-to-setup macro knobs for live performing using multiple timbres, all from one page; and a built-in sequencer for getting basic ideas onto the table without outside help. In many respects, it feels like an iteration on some of the ideas from the Elektron Analog Four, another synth I really love, only with enough voices to create a pad, arp, and drone at the same time.
Here, I run one timbre, a constant note, into the Vongon Solarfaze, which adds chorus and then drive/saturation. The second timbre, a single-note sequence, runs to the Vongon Polyphrase, adding delay. Both of these pedals impressed me way more than I had expected; there is something extremely performable about the Polyphrase that makes me want to get it on the table again straight away. And then for the third timbre, the pad, I run it direct out from the Redshift 6, using the synth's built-in reverb. I'm pretty picky on reverb these days and I think it sounds awesome.
With the macro knob opening all filters at once (to varying degrees), this live performance got huge. I had originally intended it to be only the synth, but once I heard the final performance, and how much it reminded me of a soundtrack cue, I knew I had to add orchestral percussion. I built the percussion out of modified samples from the Reason Studios loop library.
Altogether, it created an extremely cinematic performance and I'm very happy with the musical results. I was having such a good time with it that I'm excited to get back to the studio today and explore a little more. Thanks for listening.
https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"
Unlocking the Sound Design Potential of Chromatic Samplers | Featuring Chase Bliss Chompi
video upload by Sonic Cartography
"This video shows you 10+ ways to push a chromatic sampler and take the sound design of your samples to the next level. It uses the Chase Bliss Chompi sampler for demonstration purposes, but the sound design techniques can be applied to just about any other chromatic sampler or DAW. Table of contents and notes below. You can support me on Patreon, where you’ll also find a bonus video that complements this one and shows you 5 more tricks (link in pinned comment).
Table of Contents:
1:35 - horizontal layering
1:50 - intervalic
2:09 - octave + 5th
2:52 - upgrade
3:20 - the deluxe
4:17 - variations
4:44 - other intervals
5:57 - multitimbral
6:05 - smooth
7:34 - chaotic
8:44 - multidirectional
Wednesday, July 29, 2026
Tempera Quirks and Foibles by Benge
video upload by Memetune Studio
"I’ve been exploring granular synthesis since around 1997, when Native Instruments brought out Reaktor, because it was the first system I knew of that had a granular synthesis engine built into it
But even before that I was experimenting with certain samplers that could do a sort of proto-granular thing where you could control the loop start and end end points of a sample independently, and use sliders to scroll through the sample by hand (for example on the Fairlight CMI 2X and also the Akai S612)
But nowadays we have it so easy, as there are a whole slew of desktop granular devices coming out, often based on ARM chips, such as the Tasty Chips GR units, the recent Waldorf synths, the Torso S4, Endorphines Evil Pet, not to mention the Mutable Instruments Clouds and its many derivatives
And then there's this little monster, The Beetlecrab Tempera - a strange and tiny box which takes granular synthesis and does something completely unique with it
It’s got 8 stereo granular samplers at its heart, but the way you interact with them is using the 8x8 touch-points. They are called emitters, and you play them either over midi or using some of the touch-points. You can change and trigger emitters in x - y directions, and it's all extremely complex, and things can get really wild very quickly, so as this is my first patch on it, I decided to keep it simple by using just 2 of the 8 grain samplers
I captured the samples myself using the built in mic (sample 1 is just tapping the box with my fingers, and sample 2 is me humming
It also has comprehensive mixing and FX processors, so here is a little ambient sketch done in real time, using just the Tempera
I’m going to have fun exploring this thing - especially when I integrate it into some of my modular systems, once I have got my head round its many quirks and foibles"
Sunday, July 26, 2026
Oberheim SEM 1977 via 360 System Spectre
Note: links to listings are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.
via this Reverb listing
Pics of the inside below.
"These used to be a somewhat well kept secret, obviously no more. But if you're not familiar with the 360 Systems Spectre, it was a pretty terrible GUITAR synth (slow & choppy tracking) that 360 Systems produced with Oberheim SEMs as the heart of these units.
Sometimes you'll see these listed as being "Converted to full-functioning SEM" but often there's a thing or two that were missed. You have to reconfigure a few jumpers, add a missing coupling capacitor to each envelope generator, add the missing Decay and Sustain controls to the EG on the Amp VCA, replace the input gain resistor for the external input, add shielded wire for the output, change the output impedance resistor and so on. Everything was done to this unit to make it true full-functioning SEM. An original SEM/CPS-1 power supply (recapped) was also installed inside.
I'm also including a 1977 CPS-1 chassis (complete with recapped PSU) with it so if you do find a faceplate, you'll have a complete SEM. My plan was to find or have someone make me an SEM faceplate in the rare black finish. I thought the gray knobs would look killer on the black panel. But tbh, I really liked the portability of the 360 case. Oh well, someone else can enjoy it now. I've used this in my studio for the last 5-6 years. I will miss it but I'm not doing much synth-based music.
-Synth was fully restored 5 years ago with some basic maintenance in the last 2 years
-All electrolytic and tantalum capacitors have been changed
-VCOs & VCF tuned/calibrated
-AC cord was removed from the front and an IEC was added to the rear of the case
-pots and switches were recently cleaned
-Sub OSC ckt. was added (non-invasive, made by Pete's Gear Garage in Sweden, uses 'Guitar' knob in mixer section)
-Each Jack on the bottom row has a function such as Hi & Low outputs, CV & Gate in, Ext. Input, LFO retrig, VCF in and out (for use with modular) and VCF CV.
-I still have the 360 Systems Control board. It was robbed of a few parts but the PSU and the Transpose rotary switch are still on it. If you want it, send me a msg and I'll include it with the sale."
via this Reverb listing
Pics of the inside below.
"These used to be a somewhat well kept secret, obviously no more. But if you're not familiar with the 360 Systems Spectre, it was a pretty terrible GUITAR synth (slow & choppy tracking) that 360 Systems produced with Oberheim SEMs as the heart of these units.Sometimes you'll see these listed as being "Converted to full-functioning SEM" but often there's a thing or two that were missed. You have to reconfigure a few jumpers, add a missing coupling capacitor to each envelope generator, add the missing Decay and Sustain controls to the EG on the Amp VCA, replace the input gain resistor for the external input, add shielded wire for the output, change the output impedance resistor and so on. Everything was done to this unit to make it true full-functioning SEM. An original SEM/CPS-1 power supply (recapped) was also installed inside.
I'm also including a 1977 CPS-1 chassis (complete with recapped PSU) with it so if you do find a faceplate, you'll have a complete SEM. My plan was to find or have someone make me an SEM faceplate in the rare black finish. I thought the gray knobs would look killer on the black panel. But tbh, I really liked the portability of the 360 case. Oh well, someone else can enjoy it now. I've used this in my studio for the last 5-6 years. I will miss it but I'm not doing much synth-based music.
-Synth was fully restored 5 years ago with some basic maintenance in the last 2 years
-All electrolytic and tantalum capacitors have been changed
-VCOs & VCF tuned/calibrated
-AC cord was removed from the front and an IEC was added to the rear of the case
-pots and switches were recently cleaned
-Sub OSC ckt. was added (non-invasive, made by Pete's Gear Garage in Sweden, uses 'Guitar' knob in mixer section)
-Each Jack on the bottom row has a function such as Hi & Low outputs, CV & Gate in, Ext. Input, LFO retrig, VCF in and out (for use with modular) and VCF CV.
-I still have the 360 Systems Control board. It was robbed of a few parts but the PSU and the Transpose rotary switch are still on it. If you want it, send me a msg and I'll include it with the sale."
See dealers on the right for pricing and availability on gear.
LABELS/MORE: 360 Sys, Auctions, Oberheim, Reverb, synth guts
LABELS/MORE: 360 Sys, Auctions, Oberheim, Reverb, synth guts
Saturday, July 25, 2026
Oberheim OB-6 Band-Pass Pad + Strymon BigSky Cloud
video upload by Chris Richardson
"The OB-6 keeps surprising me. This patch uses the band-pass filter to create an airy, orchestral-style pad with a very unique character
To finish it off, I'm running the OB-6 through a Strymon BigSky using the Cloud algorithm, adding depth."
See dealers on the right for pricing and availability on gear.
LABELS/MORE: Oberheim, Sequential, strymon
LABELS/MORE: Oberheim, Sequential, strymon
XpandrLink, a native Mac/Windows editor and DAW plugin for Xpander/Matrix-12 (beta)
This one came in on the xpantastic Oberheim Matrix-12 and Xpander list. Details from the creator follow:
"I'm Jake, a Matrix-12 & Xpander owner and synth repair tech. For the past few months I've been building something that has gotten a lot of use in my studio: XpandrLink, a from-scratch C++/JUCE editor for these synths built using XplorerEditor's protocol and design as reference, with standalone, AU, and VST3 builds for both macOS and Windows. I've been really enjoying having this tool for my own purposes and wanted to share it with the community if anyone else might also find it useful.
First, the part that matters most to me. Like many of you, I've used XplorerEditor for years. It's a big reason these synths are still practical to own and play, and this project only exists because of the groundwork it laid. I started down this road after reading a note more than a year ago in the XplorerEditor README: the developer had no time to add new features but welcomed forks and PRs, and recommended a long-term JUCE port for a more modern cross-platform foundation.
See dealers on the right for pricing and availability on gear.
LABELS/MORE: New Editors, News, Oberheim
LABELS/MORE: New Editors, News, Oberheim
Stylophone DS-2 // Misuse is the best use!
video upload by Dexba
"A drone synthesizer, so what? I made a kick drum with it! And used the LFO as a pitch sequencer too!
The truth is, I simply love to challenge the name and intended purpose of an instrument: if they tell me it's for ambient, I'm going techno; if it's the ultimate experimental machine, I'm going to make cheesy pop chords, and so on.
It's liberating, and like a puzzle to solve, that greatly expands my knowledge of the machine in the process: before you can (properly) misuse something, you have to understand its workings really well!
BUT you can only do this if the quality of the instrument provides you with enough latitude, and the DS-2 does that. The oscillators sound good, the filters sound good, the delay sounds great, the reverb is MORE than "more than" enough.
So... the instrument is ready to take you wherever you want to go!
I hope you'll enjoy this video, full demo & review coming next week π§‘"
Friday, July 24, 2026
nonlinear circuits spectrum shaper
video upload by cirtcele
"I'm still learning how to use this thing but here are some excerpts from a patch with Tinkle and FM OP via Product wavefolder both fed into the Spectrum Shaper."
via nonlinear circuits

"36 channel voltage controlled comb filter aka string filter.This module has some history. In 2018, I was part of a team putting on a show with CellF at the Todays Art festival in Den Haag. I popped down to Rotterdam to visit Dennis (aka Mono-Poly) and his studio of vintage lab gear. Dennis had an incredible patch going centred around a Bruel & Kjaer 36 channel Spectrum Shaper. Listen to his album Testlab to hear how it sounds. I just knew I had to make something like it one day. This type of filter is often called a ‘String filter’, used to emulate stringed instruments tho don’t feel limited by that.
Fast forward to 2026, I read an AES paper by R. Burhans describing his 36 channel comb filter. It reminded me there were some designs in Electronotes, so I looked them up and discovered they were both inspired by and heavily influenced by Burhans, particularly in terms of the comb filter frequencies and spacing. One was a 40 channel version by Ian Fritz using transistor based filters. He had an interesting mod, originally suggested by Lester Ludwig, where each set of 6 filters had a feedback pot. Some screenshots from these articles are at the end of this build guide. The relevant Electronotes issues 107, 115 and 116 can be found online.
The Bernie Hutchins design used 39 regular op amp based filters, along with Ian’s feedback per 6 filters mod and added an inverter so the feedback could be positive or negative (so, centre off). Negative feedback ‘flattens’ the peaks somewhat and smears the sound, positive feedback makes the peaks narrower and higher (if tuned for it, you can make them self-oscillate, see notes). Bernie also added a noise gate on the output, summing 39 channels is always going to be noisy.
See dealers on the right for pricing and availability on gear.
LABELS/MORE: eurorack, New Modules, News, nonlinearcircuits
LABELS/MORE: eurorack, New Modules, News, nonlinearcircuits
Thursday, July 23, 2026
Top 14 Famous Michael Jackson - synthesizer intros and songs
video upload by jami.m
"Synths used in these videos: Yamaha DX7, Yamaha Montage, Yamaha MODX, Prophet 6, Roland JV-80, Roland Jupiter-X
Daw: Cubase 14 pro
Audio interface: Apollo Twin X
00:00 Wanna Be Startin'
Something
00:16 Thriller
00:38 Beat It
00:56 P.Y.T.
01:14 Human Nature
01:59 Bad
02:56 Billie Jean
03:41 Remember the Time
04:02 Thriller version 2
04:59 Another Part of Me
05:28 Smooth Criminal
05:46 Will You Be There
06:16 Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough
06:56 Thriller (Zombie dance live loop)"
Physical control surface for MIDISID : demonstration
video upload by MIDI IN
"When I pitched this recently for pre-orders, I talked about the controls but didn't really demonstrate it, so here I'll use it to dial in some interesting sounds and make a tune.
Control Surface product page:
https://lectronz.com/products/midisid..."
Follow-up to this post.
Some pics and additional details via the Control Surface product page.
"I've long wanted to have the controls for the 3 voices of the SID laid out like this, MiniMoog style.
MIDISID can do many things, but you're working with a screen and four buttons/knobs. As people have told me, "no-one likes menu diving".I'm calling this the physical control surface. It gives accessible physical controls for most if not all of the things that you can do using MIDISID.
Note:
This doens't contain the SIDs or drive them directly. It doesn't include the MIDISID It is a separate control panel.
There's nothing here that you can't do on the MIDISID already but it makes it so much easier to design sounds when you have knobs and swithes in easy reach.
There's nothing here that you can't do already with a configurable MIDI controller of your choice. MIDISID has long had a list of CC numbers.
Communication is one-way. So this won't necessarily reflect changes that you make on the MIDISID itself
With all of that said, it gives you easy access to the filter, waveforms, envelope, pulse width modulation and advanced features like ring modulation, waveform sync, portamento, arpeggiation. Designing sounds has never been easier."
See dealers on the right for pricing and availability on gear.
LABELS/MORE: MATRIXSYNTH Members, MIDI IN, SID
LABELS/MORE: MATRIXSYNTH Members, MIDI IN, SID
Monday, July 20, 2026
MATRIXSYNTH Turns 21
Yes, MATRIXSYNTH is now old enough to legally have a drink in the US!
Joking aside, MATRIXSYNTH in its current form started on July 20, 2005 with this post. Since then there has been only a single day without a post, which occured back on that dreadful day of August 6, 2005. I can't link to it because there isn't a post to link to. :) Sorry for the bad humor. That said, since then, I haven't missed a single day posting on the site including holidays, vacations, and two bouts of eye surgery due to a retinal tear and detachement in 2025. It was painless, but scary, and now all is good.
For those of you not in the know, MATRIXSYNTH is a one-man operation, run by your host, me, matrix. Every single post has gone up by hand - there is no automation and definitely no AI. Including this post, there have been at least 260,897 posts to date. There have actually been been more but some have been taken down due to either videos or audio dissapearing over the years, which brings me to a point: please don't remove your videos and audio demos off the web. You might think they are no longer relevant or you might even be embarrased by them as you think things have progressed and they no longer meet your standards, but they are relevant. They are part of history and will always be worth a look-back in context. Who you are today isn't defined by what you put up years ago. Trust me, I am often embarrased when I look back at some of my older posts. I'll likely be embarrased by this one. That said, please keep your old content up! It's a bit of synth history, and it's a look back at what you felt worth sharing back when you posted it. It doesn't define you today. It's like throwing away old family photographs because you are now older. That and there is always something interesting to find in older videos. A timbre from a given synth, an experience relevant in time.
That brings me to something I wanted to clarify for those that may be wondering: in general I prefer to keep myself out of posts for fear of influencing or even ruining the experience for others. I feel it is my job to present content w/o bias, and I prefer to post things as they are presented by the person or entity that created the content to begin with. Not influencing how others might or might not experience what goes up is a conscious decision. I realized over time it's akin to talking through music.
What I love about running MATRIXSYNTH is getting to share what's new to me on a daily basis. I have a policy of only posting specific content once. That means out of 260,897+ posts to date, nearly every single one is unique. It's also great to realize that there have been multiple things to actually feature every single day of the year, shared on the day itself, over the past 21 years!!! That's saying something, not about me or the site, but about the community.
The original MATRIXSYNTH actually started back in 1997. Click to see the monstrocity. That site will be 29 this year! The site was my personal portal into the world of synths. On the left were a list of sites I visited back then that would open in the right window frame when clicked on. Unfortunately that functionality is no longer supported in modern browsers; however you can right-click any link and open it in a new window. It's worth a look back at what synth sites were around back in 1997. Remember, YouTube didn't come out until December of 2005. MATRIXSYNTH in its current format, the blog, came out before YouTube. Think about that for a bit. This site has tracked the personal world of synthesis since before YouTube came out! Also, you might notice the old site came out well before The Matrix movies. The alias matrix, and hence MATRIXSYNTH, comes from my first synthesizer, the Oberheim MATRIX-6 which I purchased new in 1986 and still own to this day.
OK, this post is long enough. I want to end it by thanking the supporters of the site, the banner sponsors of the site, and most importantly, you, my readers. This might surprise some people, but I sometimes feel irrelevant, like why am I even doing this? I then remind myself I do it for the sake of doing it. I want to capture a bit of what's out there on a daily basis. I want the site to be a log (a weblog - blog) of synth history. I started back in 2005, and ever since that day I've had something to post, except for that solemn day on August 6, 2005. (P.S. I went on vacation that day and didn't think there would be internet access, let alone that I would be posting every single day after that - imagine not being able to say "I never missed a single day!" for the rest of your life because of one single day! "If it wasn't for that day!..") I think I will be doing this until the day I'm no longer here, and although I know I would be doing this regardless of whether I had an audience or not, knowing I do have an audience makes a world of difference. And thank you to all of you out there sharing your synth content. You are creating SYNTH HISTORY!!!
P.S. I want to give a special shout out to Amanda of CATSYNTH who not only is a supporting member of the site, but was kind enough to remember my anniversary and reach out to me today. Thank you!
P.P.S. It was CATSYNTH's 20th Anniversary yesterday. Happy Anniversary CATSYNTH! :)
See dealers on the right for pricing and availability on gear.
LABELS/MORE: Anniversary, Matrixsynth
LABELS/MORE: Anniversary, Matrixsynth
Midsome - Live Buchla 200 Performance
video upload by Memetune Studio
"Here's a live performance on the (cloned) Buchla 200 system, alongside my trust 'Concrete Box' (basically some euro rack units that allow me to record and process live performances)
Oh, and the Teenage Engineering TX6 which I'm using as a final recorder
Hope you like it!"
See dealers on the right for pricing and availability on gear.
LABELS/MORE: Buchla, eurorack, Teenage Engineering
LABELS/MORE: Buchla, eurorack, Teenage Engineering
Wednesday, July 15, 2026
Introducing the Synido TempoKEY K32 Play!
video upload by Musical Miscellany & More
"The folks at @synidotech asked me to help launch their latest MIDI controller, the TempoKey K32. It's unique in that it's not just a MIDI controller but also includes a synth engine. In this video, I take a look at a pre-release model."
DISCOUNT CODE (Europe): SYNIDOK32 | Expires:August 30, 2026
Purchase link (Europe): https://www.synido.com/s/k32
Intro - 0:00
Unboxing & Overview - 1:26
Internal Synth Engine - 3:31
Using the Editor - 5:24
Direct Audio - 6:47
Using with Soft Synth - 8:15
Using the Arpeggiator - 10:08
Additional Features - 11:30
Using with Hardware Synth - 12:45
Final Thoughts - 14:24
And one from 2-Minute Warning:
The Key - 4-Minute Jam (TempoKEY K32 Play + Taiga + DFAM)
video upload by 2-Minute Warning
"This video is a little different for two reasons!
First, it's the first time I'm featuring an instrument kindly provided by a manufacturer. Synido sent me the TempoKEY K32 Play to explore in my own workflow and share my honest impressions.
They didn't ask for a scripted review, so I simply approached it the same way I approach every other instrument on this channel: by making music with it.
Secondly... this is exceptionally a 4-minute jam!
Think of it as two consecutive 2-minute performances before I take a short summer break. π
Rather than trying to showcase every feature of the K32 as a MIDI controller (Bluetooth MIDI, battery power, USB/MIDI connectivity, pads, knobs, etc.), I wanted to focus on what intrigued me the most: its built-in General MIDI sound engine.
For this performance, the Hapax sequences the entire setup. The Taiga handles the bass, the DFAM takes care of the analog drums (synchronized by the Hapax), while the K32 Play provides everything else: guitars, strings, bells, plucks, additional drum sounds… and occasionally runs through the Eventide H90 for a bit of extra space and texture.
As always, the musical performance itself was recorded in a single take. Mixing/mastering was done afterwards in Ableton Live, but the performance you hear is exactly as it happened.
A sincere thank you to Synido. Without their message, this musical experiment probably wouldn't have happened."
✅ PLAY THE MOMENT INSPIRATION HITS
Most MIDI keyboards need a computer and software to make a sound. K32 doesn't. Built-in sounds and speakers let you play instantly--couch,classroom, anywhere.✅ 32 KEYS, MORE ROOM
25 keys feel cramped for chords and melody together. The K32's 32-key layout gives your hands space to play naturally.
✅ WIRELESS, GO ANYWHERE
BLE MIDI + Battery. Create from the couch, backstage, in class, or on a plane.
✅ GROWS WITH YOU
Connect another MIDI controller and use the K32 as a standalone sound module. Compact setup, maximum flexibility.
✅ INSTANT SOUND SWITCHING
Save favorite instruments to the KEY Sound buttons. Jump from piano to synth to bass with one press. No menu-diving.
✅ HANDS-ON CONTROL
8 assignable knobs, 8 drum pads, and a clear OLED display. Adjust, beat, and perform in real time—no mouse needed.
✅ FOR EVERY STAGE OF YOUR JOURNEY
From first beat to live performance, K32 adapts to your workflow. Start simple. Grow into it. Create without limits.
✅ FAST WIRELESS PAIRING
See dealers on the right for pricing and availability on gear.
LABELS/MORE: MOOG, New Controllers, News, Pittsburgh Modular Confluence, Synido
LABELS/MORE: MOOG, New Controllers, News, Pittsburgh Modular Confluence, Synido
Tuesday, July 14, 2026
First Look at the Stargazer (Now in Stereo) from Hungry Robot
video upload by Duskmos
"In this special Launch Day episode of Signal Colors, I'm taking a first look at the new STEREO version of the Stargazer from Hungry Robot - a spacey, etherial reverb with a unique dual control layout. Hang out with me while I try it out with the OP-1 Field and Digitakt II and let me know what you think in the comments."
See dealers on the right for pricing and availability on gear.
LABELS/MORE: Elektron, Hungry Robot, New Synth Effects, News, Teenage Engineering
LABELS/MORE: Elektron, Hungry Robot, New Synth Effects, News, Teenage Engineering
Sunday, July 12, 2026
VIVALDI - Autumn Part 1 on SIX (5) ARP Odysseys
video upload by Richard Payne
"Been having a pop at Autumn Part 1 these last few days and this take I recorded (take 111!) has come out slightly 'dystopian' sounding and synthy. Have pushed the filters a bit more. There’s a bit of overdrive in places and some wobbly 'pitchy' stuff happening. But lots going on and lots of things to remember to do. Or not to do. This take here was only the 4th time I’d made it to the end, and the first and only without completely ballsing it up.
Odyssey #3 was briefly back in the fold last week and was ably handling the sub bass part all on it’s own, but it started going wrong again and has been taken back to the repair shop. So to cover that part here, I’m bringing in and out oscillator 2 on Odyssey #6, which is set to a square wave an octave down. I’d say a good 80 of those earlier takes that I mucked up were ruined by me forgetting to do this, or doing it badly, or at completely the wrong time. There’s a 'high jeopardy' patch change happening on Odyssey #1 too which I liked to get wrong, transitioning from a short filtery harmony part at the beginning to a long square wave lead line for the slow bit towards the end.
As before, I got the Midi parts online and processed them in Ableton Live. I combined and reduced them down from the 24 orchestral parts to the 5 here. Fixed up a few dodgy notes. Probably added a few of my own. Then I tempo matched to an orchestral performance of the piece, which is probably the fiddliest and most time consuming bit. There were a few more evenings messing with note lengths and refining the tempos further. So, I’ve been using Korg’s Odyssey plugins up to this point in the process, slouching on the sofa on my laptop, but the next step is to move into my little music room and to practice on the actual ones. Spent a couple more evenings working things out there and then a couple of days trying to film a good run through.
It’s certainly tricky trying to adjust each part as dynamically as I’d like when they’re all coming at me in one big terrifying lump. I’m not mixing or even EQ’ing afterwards so I’m battling to keep a good audible balance between the synths as I go. If I get too involved or too “two-handy” on a synth for too long, I’m neglecting the other four and I’ve missed 5 other things I wanted to do. So I’m relying quite a lot on the Decay slider in the envelope section, as it seems to offer a one-stop dynamic shop that I can adjust on two synths at the same time. I’ve modded all of the Odysseys to have a free-running LFOs also, so I can introduce a slow LFO to the filters to keep them shifting about on their own whilst I adjust something else elsewhere.
I have started re-recording these pieces 'properly', one Odyssey at a time, with view to putting them up somewhere for streaming or perhaps even pressing them onto vinyl. Would sound good on record I reckon. You reckon? And I have a whole shelf full of peculiar synthesizer albums from the 60’s and 70’s that it would be an honour to mingle with.
But hey, thank you so much, everyone who showed up and watched the last video. For all the views and subscriptions and above all, the kind and encouraging comments. That was nuts. I didn’t know you lot were coming! Absoutely amazing and thank you sincerely again.
Oh, to wrap up, here the Odysseys are going balanced out into a Behringer ADA-8200 Interface, which is optically connected into the Adat In of my UAD Apollo. They get their 5 channels of Midi note on, note off information down USB from Ableton Live which is in turn recording the audio coming back. I added some Hall Reverb from Arturia’s LX-24 but nothing has been EQ’d. It’s all how it comes out of the lovely boxes. I did however have a Limiter on the main channel, to put a bit of a lid on some of the more feisty bits.
Toodles!"
Tuesday, July 07, 2026
Mettalicum - XOR Logic Percussion Synth
video upload by Sid Rockett
"π Exploring the Mettalicum: a new XOR-based percussion synthesizer built for harsh metallic hits, industrial rhythms, and unpredictable noise. Unlike traditional drum machines, the Mettalicum relies on logic gates to generate complex, inharmonic square-wave clusters that cut right through a mix. In this hardware demo, we run through the raw oscillators, tweak the parameters, and patch it into an experimental setup to hear what it can really do.
⚙️ Sponsored by PCBWay
Huge thanks to PCBWay for sponsoring this video! Whether you are prototyping a chaotic new noise box, building a custom MIDI controller, or ordering high-quality circuit boards for a full production run, PCBWay has you covered. They offer incredibly fast turnaround times on custom PCBs, 3D printing, and CNC machining. Bring your DIY audio projects to life: https://pcbway.com/g/1AhZrq
Ⓜ️ What makes the Mettalicum different?
Traditional subtractive synthesis uses standard waveforms and filters to create drum sounds. The Mettalicum takes a different approach by running multiple square waves through XOR (Exclusive OR) logic chips. When these frequencies interact, they create dense, metallic, and grinding textures perfect for noise music, industrial beats, and lo-fi soundscapes.
⏱️ Chapters:
00:00 - Intro
00:20 - The Raw Sound of the Mettalicum
00:32 - PCBWay Sponsor Message
00:44 - Demo with Ampero Mini
02:42 - Hardware Jam: Mettalicum + Experimental Setup
π Gear Used in this Video:
Mettalicum XOR Synthesizer
Tempest Kick Synthesizer
Korg Monotron Delay
Bastl Instruments Bestie
Hotone Ampero Mini
MyVolts CandyCords
✌️ I’m Sid Rockett, a designer and explorer of experimental synthesizers and custom noise-machines.
From boutique pocket synths to DIY Eurorack builds, this channel is dedicated to pushing the boundaries of compact hardware. Join me as we navigate through industrial soundscapes, deep cinematic reverbs, and the infinite feedback of outer-space delays.
π️ Shop here:
https://sidrockett.bandcamp.com
https://www.tindie.com/stores/sid_roc..."
See dealers on the right for pricing and availability on gear.
LABELS/MORE: DIY, New DIY, News, Sid Rockett
LABELS/MORE: DIY, New DIY, News, Sid Rockett
Arena Digitalis
video upload by Sid Rockett
"π Learn how to build the Arena Digitalis, a high-performance Arduino granular audio processor for real-time glitch, shimmer, and ambient textures.
In this deep dive, we explore the Arena Digitalis—an open-source Arduino audio project designed for experimental musicians and sound designers.
Granular synthesis is often gatekept by expensive hardware like the Mutable Instruments Clouds or Chase Bliss Mood.
The Arena Digitalis brings those "micro-looping" capabilities to the Arduino Nano/Uno platform using the new R4 processor.
⏱️ Chapters:
0:00 – Intro
0:30 – PCBWay Ad
0:45 – Controls
3:20 – Sound demo with Kastle ARP
Thanks to @PCBWay for sponsoring this video! Check out all their services under the following link and get 5$ new user credit.
https://pcbway.com/g/1AhZrq
π Resources & Links:
Get the Code/Schematics: [https://github.com/SidRockett/Arena_D...]
Key Features of Arena Digitalis:
Real-time Granular Processing: Low-latency audio manipulation.
Arduino-Based: Highly customizable and open-source.
Tactile Control: Manual knobs for grain size, spray, and pitch.
Compact Design: Perfect for pedalboards or tabletop synth rigs.
✌️ I’m Sid Rockett, a designer and explorer of experimental synthesizers and custom noise-machines.
From boutique pocket synths to DIY Eurorack builds, this channel is dedicated to pushing the boundaries of compact hardware. Join me as we navigate through industrial soundscapes, deep cinematic reverbs, and the infinite feedback of outer-space delays.
π️ You can buy my synths here:
https://sidrockett.bandcamp.com
https://www.tindie.com/stores/sid_roc..."
See dealers on the right for pricing and availability on gear.
LABELS/MORE: DIY, New DIY, News, Sid Rockett
LABELS/MORE: DIY, New DIY, News, Sid Rockett
Klik - Pushbutton Matrix for the Bastl Kastle Synthesizers
video upload by Sid Rockett
"π‘Discover the Klik module. Add a playable 4x4 button matrix to your Kastle or Volca synth for ultimate hands-on control and experimental patching.
⏱️ Chapters:
0:08 – Intro
0:20 – Controls
0:40– Sound demo with Kastle 2 Wave Bard
π️ How does it work?
There are 8 patch points connected to 4 rows (ABCD) and 4 columns (1234) of buttons. Pressing button A1 connects point A to point 1. A2 connects A to 2. B2 connects B to 2 and so on.
It is best used by dedicating rows to outputs and columns to inputs. In this configuration every possible combination of buttons will connect outputs to inputs and cause a change in the behaviour of the synthesizer.
Based on the Synapsis by Bastl Instruments ! (...hope the guys are ok with it).
✌️ I’m Sid Rockett, a designer and explorer of experimental synthesizers and custom noise-machines.
From boutique pocket synths to DIY Eurorack builds, this channel is dedicated to pushing the boundaries of compact hardware. Join me as we navigate through industrial soundscapes, deep cinematic reverbs, and the infinite feedback of outer-space delays.
π️ You can buy my synths here:
https://sidrockett.bandcamp.com
https://www.tindie.com/stores/sid_roc..."
See dealers on the right for pricing and availability on gear.
LABELS/MORE: New Makers, New Tools, News, Sid Rockett
LABELS/MORE: New Makers, New Tools, News, Sid Rockett
Sunday, July 05, 2026
Solton Programmer 24 - Sound exploration and composition of 80' Italo-disco tracks after repair
video upload by Davide Micheli
"In the video, I'm playing the newly repaired electronic instrument.
The Solton Programmer 24 was built by Solton-Ketron Lab around 1985 and it was the first completley and easy programmable music arranger in the history. Due to its structure, for someone is considered the father of Italo-Disco.
This Italian company built at that time this inspiring music electronic machine before any other big company in the word with electronic components available in the market, no dedicated or custom chip as later. In particular, in only 10 minutes I easily composed 3 music tracks in the '80 dance style living the machine inspires me.
The 3 tracks are titled:
1) DRAP; (it could be the base for a rap)
2) Happy track;
3) Past is past;
Hope you enjoy it
Davide"
Tuesday, June 30, 2026
Doboz DVNA Synth Custom Patches (No Talking)
video upload by Demover
"Hey everyone!
I thought I'd share some of the patches I created with the DVNA.
I didn't have any specific goal or sound in mind while making them. I just followed my ears and went with whatever felt right.
What do you think about the DVNA? What kind of sounds would you create with it, and how would you use it in your music?
Let me know in the comments! I'm really curious to hear your thoughts!"
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MATRIXSYNTH - EVERYTHING SYNTH
© Matrixsynth - All posts are presented here for informative, historical and educative purposes as applicable within fair use.
MATRIXSYNTH is supported by affiliate links that use cookies to track clickthroughs and sales. See the privacy policy for details.
MATRIXSYNTH - EVERYTHING SYNTH






























