MATRIXSYNTH

The Foundation Of Synthesis 104: Control Voltage

Note the following are only three teaser videos from the full series.
You'll find the description and links to the rest further below.

The Foundation Of Synthesis 104: Control Voltage - 1. Control Voltage Introduction

Published on Oct 2, 2012 by macProVideoDotCom

The Foundation Of Synthesis 104: Control Voltage - 12. The CS-50 Modulation Matrix

Published on Oct 2, 2012 by macProVideoDotCom

The Foundation Of Synthesis 104: Control Voltage - 6. The LFO Applied to Filter - Part 1

Published on Oct 2, 2012 by macProVideoDotCom

"Additional videos for this title: http://j.mp/SZauJ3
The Foundation Of Synthesis 104: Control Voltage by The Bob Moog Foundation

Marc Dotylead educator for The Bob Moog Foundationis back with a series of tutorials in this course on Voltage Control.

But what is Voltage Control and how do you use it in the world of hardware synths? Well, here's the story: In the early days of sound synthesis, if you wanted your sounds to change or evolve in any way whatsoever, you had to do it manually. Need the pitch to go up? Grab the the oscillator knob and turn it! Want the volume to change? Again, grab the volume knob! What about sequencing a series of notes? Well, before voltage control, you had to record every pitch onto magnetic tape and cut them all together in the order and rhythm that you wanted. It was hard work to create electronic music way back when!

Voltage control forever changed all that! And in this course Marc Doty shows how different hardware synth designers harness the power of VCs to transform and supercharge electronic music composition. Taken one step further you'll see how Voltage Control was the mother of MIDI... and we all know how powerful MIDI is!

Bob Moog was an early pioneer and inventor of voltage-controlled analog synthesizers. He revolutionized the music industry and his ideas, inventions and musical instruments have dominated the sound of music for more than 30 years. Aside from being an innovator, Dr. Bob was an outspoken advocate of education. The Bob Moog Foundation, created by his daughter, Michelle Moog-Kousa, continues his legacy with Dr. Bob's SoundSchool, the preservation of his inventions and the development of the Moogseumthe only museum of its kind dedicated to the advancement of sonic education. We hope you will help support the BMF's efforts by watching these courses with the knowledge that a large portion of the proceeds go to support their awesome efforts!

So sit back, hit the play button, and proceed on your journey into the Foundation of Synthesis with Marc Doty, and the Bob Moog Foundation. Be sure to watch all 6 of the BMF's courses on filters, modulation, oscillators, sound design and more!
More info on this title: http://j.mp/SZauJ3"

Follow-up to this post.

Modded Kawai SX-240 with Reverse Bass Keys

flickr set By kb_cheapmods
(click for more)

"This is the Kawai SX-240, an 8-voice, 2DCO hybrid analog synthesizer from the early-mid-1980's. The layout and color scheme are very attractive, but the sound is even better. The only limitations I can see for this synth are: 1. DCO2 is square wave only; 2. there is only an alpha dial for altering sounds (not so bad); 3. the MIDI spec is very limited.

Because they are rare and there are no pics of the internals on Flickr, I wanted to photographically document it. I wish I had a better camera, though!

I got this off ebay for relatively cheap. Was stuck on one sound, had a tweaked bender, and missing the large rotary knob. It was pretty dirty when it arrived, so I cleaned it up. The electrical problem was due to two open traces on the digital board from slight battery corrosion. I removed the old NiCd battery, thoroughly cleaned off the PCB, and jumpered the open traces. I replaced the battery with an Li-ion CR2032 (first installing a diode to disallow charging when plugged in). I then restored the presets and voila - back to life!

Other mods I made were to replace the dedicated power cord with a 3-prong IEC socket. I also used a very nice big aluminum rotary knob to replace the missing plastic alpha-type knob.

Update: I recently made some changes to the SX-240. First, those wood end cheeks are really lame: plastic laminated particle board - horrible for such a great sounding synth, so I bought some nice walnut and had them cut to fit. Second, the SX-240 can have a keyboard split at a fixed point on the keys, and since the split marking is a bit subtle (for me anyhow), I decided to make the lower 2 octaves reverse keys. Finally, a lot of the panel tact switches were dodgy, so I went in and replaced them all. I think it looks nicer and certainly more unique!"

VS1103b MIDI Synthesizer v3

Published on Oct 8, 2012 by HarryMatic
Channel moved to Harry Axten

"The last version of my VS1103b MIDI synthesizer. I have designed nice front and back panels which are made of laser-cut plastic. I have also gotten rid of the noisy volume control and the MIDI thru, instead adding separate left and right audio outputs. Schematics, stripboard layout, more photos and a full writeup can be found at : http://www.instructables.com/id/E82VEK1GXUZ7YJA/"

Follow-up to this post.

"The VS1103b, manufactured by VSLI Technology, is a single-chip MIDI/ADPCM/WAV audio decoder and ADPCM encoder that can handle upto three simultaneous audio streams. It can also act as a MIDI synthesizer.

It is this MIDI synthesizer capability that we are interested in. Make no mistake - the quality of the MIDI voices isn't stunning, but it has a charm to it that reminds me of the FM synthesis found on old Soundblaster cards of yesteryear. The VS1103b MIDI synthesizer mode conforms to the General MIDI standard - 15 melodic channels and 1 percussion channel.

The only problem with this chip however is that it is a very small 48 pin surface-mount package. Fortunately, SparkFun make a break-out board for this chip that has a 20 pin DIP package - much more suitable for DIY electronics."

FL Studio Mobile | Android Development October 2012

Published on Oct 8, 2012 by imageline
October 2012 FL Studio Mobile Android Update

"Ported:

Keyboard
Drum pads
Track editor
Step editor
Playback & Recording
Instrument screen (categories to do)
Project screen (.flm files from the iOS version can be loaded)
Effects
Loading screen

To do:

CLICK FOR MORE »

Sequential Circuits Six-Trak SN 001149

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ARP Omni-2 Synthesizer

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Roland TR-808 Drum Machine Vintage

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"Absolutely Immaculate and in Perfect Working Order. Includes the original plastic/acetate protective face plate, as well as the 2 original Manuals with plastic holder (as pictured)..."