Yamaha CS01II plays BIG MUFF by Depeche Mode

YouTube Uploaded by peahix on May 19, 2011

"Download this track at: http://snd.sc/iyLd2s

The Yamaha CS01II is the first real synthesizer I ever owned. I got it when I was about 14 years old, back in 1985 or so. I noticed that I could get reasonable approximations of most of the sounds from Depeche Mode's "Speak & Spell" album with it, but at the time I didn't have the means to make decent multi-track cover versions, even after I got a 4-track.

Recently I was studying the Depeche Mode 5.1 surround mixes, and realized that I could clearly hear all the distinct parts of alot of the songs, so I decided to throw together some renditions using just my trusty old Yamaha CS01II as the sole sound source (including the drums), just to see how close I could get to the originals using very limited means.

The actual musical arrangement is about 100% accurate. The sounds themselves are of course only approximations, and most of them don't have the same level of timbral detail as the ARP originals. I sequenced the whole thing in Cubase via a Kenton Pro Solo going into the custom CV/Gate inputs on my CS01II, recording each monophonic line in one at a time. Cubase provided the reverb and EQ, otherwise it's all CS01II. I've deliberately been quite pure about this process- other than the reverb/delay/EQ, there's no manipulation of the sounds going on here. This is, for me, mostly a technical exercise, so it wouldn't make much sense to process the sounds very much, as that would only take it further away from the native sound of the CS01II.

I don't really consider these to be "covers" as such- if I were covering these tunes, I'd do something creative with them as opposed to just mimicing them as closely as possible. I don't have any desire to "cover" these songs in that sense. At any rate, this project has been a good exercise in close listening and mixing for me, so I see that as the main reward for my efforts."

Also see:
Yamaha CS01II plays ICE MACHINE by Depeche Mode
Yamaha CS01II plays NEW LIFE by Depeche Mode
Yamaha CS01II plays JUST CAN'T GET ENOUGH by Depeche Mode

Pea runs Optigan.com

Buchla259 Morph and Pan Audio

Added to this post.

M__Krusher & timeFrog on virus @ IC

M__Krusher from Undead Instruments on Vimeo.

"XG synth sysex control by the timeFrog."

timeFrog on virus @ IC 2011/05/17 from Undead Instruments on Vimeo.

"timeFrog on Access Virus. short session demonstrating asynchroneous use of 4 step sequencer & note automation into the synth. Mik Mak & primateElectriq"

See the Undead Instruments label below for more.

Minimoog Aquatarkus tuning

YouTube Uploaded by Kurtsamps on May 19, 2011

"Minimoog Oscillator Tuning for Aquatarkus"

Roland Jupiter 8 Vintage Synth (JP-8)

via this auction

Synare Tympani Vintage Drum Pad Synthesizer

via this auction

"Used frequently throughout many genres of music, the Synare Tympani provides the look and feel of a real drum, with the fully customizable sounds that simply can't be had with a plain old MIDI-control pad."

CLICK FOR MORE »

ARP OMNI 2 MODEL 2473 SYNTHESIZER

via this auction

"Serial # 24730829"

One more shot of the inside below.

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casio CTK-500 - reverse bend

YouTube Uploaded by cv11223344 on May 19, 2011

"found a bend that reverses any sound the keyboard plays. cool!"

Casio CTK-500s on eBay

Commodore 64 KX-64R Custom Modified C64! SID Chip Synth

via this auction

"designed especially to run the prophet64 / MSSIAH TB-303 emulator, monosynth, Drum machine & sequencer...

+ 5" LCD screen + External sound
+ internally mounted and powered SD2IEC drive - load & save better than a 1541!
+ 4 analogue controllers with on/off switch for each port
+ Contains 1 x 8580 SID chip
(modular upgradable to Stereo SID2SID, if you have an assembled SID2SID with SIL headers)
+ Audio out by 1 x 1/4" mono jack - using this jack port disables the external sound!
+ Self contained - you can run this with no peripherals!
+ Also has standard A/V out - for use with a normal C64 DIN A/V cable.
+ Custom screen and underside labels (Serial # 001)
+ days of work put into it!"

CLICK FOR MORE »

Capturing the Ionosphere: Ground Station Calliope - DIY Satellite

A project by Sandy Antunes on Kickstarter. See the link for additional details and to pledge. If you pledge enough you can get your name engraved in the Calliope! It does burn up on re-entry though. :)

"The short version: buy mission patches and flight pins and you are supporting a home-built orbiting satellite for converting the ionosphere to music for you and everyone to listen to!...

Ever wonder how active space is? Soon, you'll be able to hear it. In 2011, one of the most novel musical instruments will be launched into space: Project Calliope. 'Capturing the Ionosphere' is the effort to capture and record what Calliope 'hears' for its brief 6-12 week life, and bring that to musicians. Called sonification, it lets you hear the activity of the ionosphere, that layer of space where low-earth satellites fly and where the auroras occur."

Some addition info from http://projectcalliope.com/ for the archives:
"Project Calliope is a home-built satellite, launcing in 2011 to convert the ionosphere (where auroras occur) into sound so we can hear on Earth just how active space is. The data will be sent down as MIDI data via amateur ham radio for anyone to hear, and we'll make it available to musicians as royalty-free MIDI tracks to use, reuse and remix into cool music. I like the idea of flying something in space whose purpose is to make music until it dies-- music from science."