MATRIXSYNTH

ARP 2500 Power Module 1002/230V

via this auction

"This is a an extremely rare 230 volt power module used for the ARP model 2500 synthesizer system. Very few of these modules were made for the 230 volt european market."

Roland VP-330 Plus MK-II vocoder

via this auction

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"The M-Audio® Axiom® 61 controller combines all the production power and performance you need to get the most from your music software and MIDI gear. More than just a “data entry” controller, the Axiom 61 features piano-style, semi-weighted keys for a musically satisfying playing experience. Large dynamic trigger pads make it easy to program beats and trigger one-shot samples—while the encoder knobs, faders, and buttons deliver complete real-time control over your software. DirectLink mode provides easy, automatic access to common DAW functions* including transport, mixer, track pan, and virtual instrument parameters—no complicated setup required. Axiom 61 even features a sleek, angled top panel for easy viewing in any environment."

"The M-Audio® Axiom® Pro 61 keyboard controller builds on the acclaimed Axiom 61 with premium TruTouch™ action, proprietary HyperControl™ MIDI mapping technology and other cutting-edge enhancements. HyperControl automatically maps the keyboard’s 65 controls to commonly accessed parameters in digital audio workstations including Pro Tools®, Cubase, Logic and Reason*, as well as software instruments. The constant two-way link with your host DAW means the keyboard’s controls are always in sync with your software’s active parameters. The intuitive graphic LCD constantly updates the current values, which ensures seamless editing and prevents parameter jumps—even when plug-ins are closed. Toggle instantly between Mixer and Instrument control modes. Map buttons to send QWERTY key commands right from the Axiom Pro 61. Save settings to 50 memory locations—each with four profiles of quick recall via the intuitive graphic LCD. Now you can control your entire session right from your Axiom Pro 61."

Click the pics for the supersized shots.

Links:
* Axiom 25
* Axiom 49
* Axiom 61
* Axiom Pro 25
* Axiom Pro 49
* Axiom Pro 61

Roland D-50 charm :)

flickr by TheSynthFreq

Oxford Synthesiser Company OSCar

YouTube via jbfairlight | July 13, 2010

"Synthétiseur monophonique produit par Oxford Synthesiser Company entre 1983 - 1986."

Sherman Filterbank 2 Experiments

YouTube via zibbybone | July 13, 2010

"A couple of months ago, a buddy of mine asked me to pick up this Filterbank he found on the Dallas Craigslist. When he came to town to pick it up, we whipped up this quick video of it. First we run an unfiltered saw wave from a Roland SH-101. The gate out from the 101 is running into the FB's ADSR trigger in and the 101's CV out is running into the FB's FM input. Later, we run a Roland TR-606 through it, using the trigger out from the 606's low tom to trigger the FB's ADSR. Let the mayhem begin!"

Reason Micro Tutorial - Kong's Synth Drums

YouTube via PropellerheadSW | July 11, 2010
Double Rainbow ref in this one.
"Has music just not sounded the same to you since Miami Vice went off the air? Then you're in luck! The synth drums in Kong bring analog drum sounds back to your music. Most analog sounds these days are sampled, meaning the sound you load is the sound you've got. In this micro tutorial you'll see how easy it is to make wonderfully tweakable analog synth drums and assign them to your pads."

Turning a Matrix M1000 into a Monster Xpander

via Artesia on this Midibox thread

"Heres a little project for you,
its been sat at the back of my mind for a while, that it should be entirely possible to make a oberhiem matrix xpander / m12 type synth from the venerable m1000 rack units, by realising the full potential of what should be possible with the humble little cem3396 chips they are based on.

It seems abit of a shame that the chips are capable of fast, realtime control changes; yet the m1000 processor is so slow ..it just cant cope & the filter cascade should also be hijackable in the manner seen in the matrix 12 / xpander synths (for massive filter choices)... however they also lacked some niceitys, like -proper- resonance control, continuiously variable stereo pan for voices (preset pan positions) ...and having much faster envelopes would bring the chips to life for percissive sounds.

this project intends to allow the user to get the best out of the humble chips, and allow them to realise their full potential - and with a little luck, the project should be a considerable improvement on the xpander synths too ;)"

JRS Mystery Modular?

This one in via Jeff of The Tangeant Project. Anyone know what it is?

Some bits from Jeff:
"I have a collection of odd old modular things that a friend had salvaged from the UMASS music department dumpster. He gave them to me a couple years ago and I have no idea what they are or what they do. I've attached a pic of one of them [i have 3 of this module and another different thing - a VCA bank if I recall]. I searched high and low and nobody can identify them - the closest anyone came was some sort of custom made 'daisy' modular, but that was not even a solid bit of info. They are not in good condition - all the barrier strips for powering them are missing and some chip sockets are empty, but the internal wiring seems to be intact and most of the boards are fully populated. They are just collecting dust in my basement."

Followed with the second image:
"The only identification i have found is an etching with the letters 'JRS' on all of them, and this module seems to be a "PWG-2" ['pulse wave generator'?].

So it's some sort of JRS modular system that is a mystery to everyone - a friend even contacted some people in academia that worked at UMASS and one of them said they recalled seeing it but never used it or knew what it did.

I've just been so afraid to do ANTHING with these, as i can't even tell what they need voltage/current-wise. i suppose somebody with more electronics chops than i could look at some of the volatage ratings on components[caps, resistors] and make a decent guess and not blow it up, but that person is not me. Of the 3 of this particular box, a couple have hand-written labels on them that say 'clock bad' and that would seem to be a major function, but who knows..."