via Flickr
Check out the keys on this Korg MicrKorg. Very cool. : )
Friday, August 26, 2005
Theremin Farewell to Bob - New Flickr Shot
Caption reads,
"Theremin...rest in peace Bob Moog...we'll miss you greatly."
Rob Papen's Blue Synth
Rob Papen has made some amazing sound sets for various synthesizers. He is as good as it gets. It will be interesting to see how this new synth of his pans out. The demos on site sound fantastic.Direct link to specs.
Little Blue Demons
Retrothing has an interesting post on why he hates blue LEDs. I love the picture of the blue LEDs in a row.
My vote for best statement on a blog:
"Right now I have two of the little demons glowing at me in the gloom. I swear I'm wasting half my time glancing at them." : )
MOTM/synthtech.com going down for the weekend
Update from Paul of synthtech:
"There is 1 point of confusion: when it comes back up, the shipping cart
will not be there at first. I expect to go on-line by Sept. 10th
when I have the new MOTM-995 .com to MOTM power connector boards ready
($29ea, cheap!)."
Via AH:
I'm upgrading my 'level of service' at my ISP over
the weekend. So the MOTM site will go down
(and hopefully, back up) over the weekend.
This is Phase 1 of a complete site overhaul. I'm
adding a shopping cart and links to PayPal for
making CEM chip buying easier (I can load the
inventory into MySQL and not have to root around
the storage closet every month).
Paul Schreiber
www.synthtech.com
"There is 1 point of confusion: when it comes back up, the shipping cart
will not be there at first. I expect to go on-line by Sept. 10th
when I have the new MOTM-995 .com to MOTM power connector boards ready
($29ea, cheap!)."
Via AH:
I'm upgrading my 'level of service' at my ISP over
the weekend. So the MOTM site will go down
(and hopefully, back up) over the weekend.
This is Phase 1 of a complete site overhaul. I'm
adding a shopping cart and links to PayPal for
making CEM chip buying easier (I can load the
inventory into MySQL and not have to root around
the storage closet every month).
Paul Schreiber
www.synthtech.com
Peavy Paradox - The Synth that Was Not
Update: see this post for additional pics.
Bahn Sage
Here's a beauty. I remember when this started making its rounds. People were going nuts over it. Slowly more and more info came out only to find it was the biggest hoax in synth history. If you know of a bigger one please share. Thank you Elhardt for an amazing time and congrats on a master prank well done. You have made it into synth history. : ) BTW, this hoax had such an impact on the synth community that when the first pics of the Cwejman S1 appeared people were reluctant to believe it was real, thinking it was yet another one of Elhardt's pranks. A few people were admitedly a little surprised to find the Cwejman was real, including myself.
Alesis Aurora
The one thing I love about the synth world is that its just as much about the old as it is the new. Take for example the Alesis Aurora. Krhen took it upon himself to convert his Alesis Andromeda into this beauty of a synth alluding to the old analogs of yore. It has wood side panels and a full tilted front panel. Not sure about the ribbon controller, but the knobs definitely look more accessible. Click here for more pics and the story behind the Alesis Aurora.
Alesis Ion Prototype
Check out this Alesis Ion Prototype with yellow/green side panels and logo. These were the first shots of the Ion when introduced. Later they updated it with the red side panels that stuck with production. I wondered if there would be an option, but unfortunately there wasn't. Would have been cool if they came with a set of colored side panels you could swap out like skins for the synth. : ) No title link as this comes from my private collection of pics - not sure if there is a site out there with more on this. If you know of one, please feel free to share.
Thursday, August 25, 2005
Bob Moog Obit on The Gaurdian
http://www.guardian.co.uk/arts/news/obituary/0,12723,1555746,00.html
Wow, this was an interesting and good one. Bob's take on synthesizers and musicians:
"I was never worried that synthesisers would replace musicians," he told journalist Jason Gross in 1997. "First of all, you have to be a musician in order to make music with a synthesiser. And second, I never thought that analogue synthesiser sounds would ever be mistaken for traditional musical instruments. To me, the synthesiser was always a source of new sounds."
This reminds me of when I purchased my first synthesizer, the Matrix-6 in 1986. I was blown away by the capability of creating and playing previously unheard musical instruments. The focus wasn't on trying to recreate the sound of an existing instrument but rather on creating subleties in sound never heard before. That is what a synth was and still is to me. To synthesize sound and new musical instruments.
Wow, this was an interesting and good one. Bob's take on synthesizers and musicians:
"I was never worried that synthesisers would replace musicians," he told journalist Jason Gross in 1997. "First of all, you have to be a musician in order to make music with a synthesiser. And second, I never thought that analogue synthesiser sounds would ever be mistaken for traditional musical instruments. To me, the synthesiser was always a source of new sounds."
This reminds me of when I purchased my first synthesizer, the Matrix-6 in 1986. I was blown away by the capability of creating and playing previously unheard musical instruments. The focus wasn't on trying to recreate the sound of an existing instrument but rather on creating subleties in sound never heard before. That is what a synth was and still is to me. To synthesize sound and new musical instruments.
Oscillator Goodnes on GetLoFi
Check out GetLoFi for some good oscillator DIY posts including:
Practical Oscillator Circuits
Function Generator/Oscillator VCO
Sound Generator Chip list
CEM - Center for Electronic Music
Founded in 1957 (on the remains of a psycho-acoustic research laboratory of Philips), the CEM has become a modern, fully equipped recording-studio, where composers, musicians and researchers can work in an informal, non-commercial atmosphere. "
Synthesizers:
ARP 2500 synthesizer inc. sequencer
ARP 2600
Serge modular synthesizer
EMS VCS3
EMS Synthi A
EMS Synthi AKS
PPG 1002 + PPG 313/314 modular sequencer/ switch
Analogue Solutions AS8899 modular drumsynthesizer
Akai AX73
Yamaha TX81Z
kawai k4 (x2)
Samplers:
Akai S2000
Dynacord AKS
Sonic State bids Farewell to Bob Moog
Can't believe I missed this one. My RSS reader has been acting up, and I've been mainly just hitting the-gas-station lately. This one is heart felt from the great guys at Sonic State. Man, I love those guys.
Moogerfooger MF-104Z Video via Sonic State
Sonic State has a video of the new Moogerfooger MF-104Z Delay pedal up. It's a good one, check it out.
The Moog Unit - 1Mg
Now this is interesting. Someone proposed formalizing the 1 volt per octave standard Bob Moog invented as the Moog Unit, represented by the symbol Mg. John Mahoney put it on Wikipedia. It was taken down but then put back up by Mike Kent. Click through to see if it is still there. Why not? This came through on AH and people seem to like it. John Mahoney sent the email on the Wikipedia link, but only said *someone* came up with it. I'm trying to find out who as this would be a pretty cool and significant bit of synth history don't you think? Even if it doesn't go through. It will be interesting to see how this pans out.
Wednesday, August 24, 2005
ARP Omni Power Supply Mod
"Many Omni 1 and Omni 2 keyboards you see for sale are toasted in some way.Apparently this is due to a badly designed power supply which generates transient voltages when you turn the synth on and off. Over time, these power spikes fry the synth's chips and capacitors. ARP later figured this out and sent service bulletins to all their technicians instructing them to perform a mod on any Omnis they repaired."
Click here for copies of the mods and more info.
Another nice one from Heath Finnie
http://www.heathfinnie.com/media/song51.mp3
From Heath:
"This song uses the following. Weird noises throughout are a Alesis
Andromeda, the bass is a Minimoog and the main lead is an ARP 2600.
Some of the more mellower sounding leads are from the minimoog. Let me
know what you think! Hopefully we will have some shows coming up soon."
From Heath:
"This song uses the following. Weird noises throughout are a Alesis
Andromeda, the bass is a Minimoog and the main lead is an ARP 2600.
Some of the more mellower sounding leads are from the minimoog. Let me
know what you think! Hopefully we will have some shows coming up soon."
Yamaha VL1 Sample from Colin
http://www.members.optushome.com.au/blitzforce/Temp/CCJ_VL1_BreathBow.mp3
I just got done listening to it. Wow. Check it out.
Notes form Colin.
"man there is a big difference between the standard factory bank patches of
the VL1-M and the full control bank ones!
The former sounded really flat and bad! Then when I loaded the full control
one, this BreathBow patch just had me playing emotive lines even with no
breath control, just usining the mod wheel 2 instead.
Sorta stringed, blown instrument. Instant flm score stuff.
You can play with so much feeling and sensitivity. I admit I even shed a
tear while playing it : ) nice VL1 reverb too!"
I just got done listening to it. Wow. Check it out.
Notes form Colin.
"man there is a big difference between the standard factory bank patches of
the VL1-M and the full control bank ones!
The former sounded really flat and bad! Then when I loaded the full control
one, this BreathBow patch just had me playing emotive lines even with no
breath control, just usining the mod wheel 2 instead.
Sorta stringed, blown instrument. Instant flm score stuff.
You can play with so much feeling and sensitivity. I admit I even shed a
tear while playing it : ) nice VL1 reverb too!"
Electronic Composer Luc Ferrari Passes Away
Via Create Digital Music. Click through title for more.
"Paris-born composer Luc Ferrari was a pioneer both of electronic and instrumental avant-garde music. He was the founding director of the Groupe de Musique Concrète in 1958 and was, along with Pierre Schaeffer, one of its leading practitioners. As a documentary producer, he profiled composers from Varèse to Cecil Taylor. He continued as an active composer, teacher/lecturer, and "sound hunter" throughout his life."
"Paris-born composer Luc Ferrari was a pioneer both of electronic and instrumental avant-garde music. He was the founding director of the Groupe de Musique Concrète in 1958 and was, along with Pierre Schaeffer, one of its leading practitioners. As a documentary producer, he profiled composers from Varèse to Cecil Taylor. He continued as an active composer, teacher/lecturer, and "sound hunter" throughout his life."
NPR - Bob Moog on Fresh Air
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4811694
A third from NPR. If you missed the other two, just search for NPR on the right there).
A third from NPR. If you missed the other two, just search for NPR on the right there).
Vintage Synth Docs: Manuals, Schematics, etc.
Wow. You never know what you'll find out there. This site has scanned docs of the following. Very cool. I love when people share this stuff instead of trying to make a buck.
- Oberheim OBXa Service Manual 1st Edition Text
- Oberheim OBXa Service Manual 1st Edition Schematics
- Oberheim OBXa Service Manual 3rd Edition
- Oberheim OBXa Factory Patches
- Oberheim DSX Owners Manual
- MOOG Sonic 6 Service Manual part1
- MOOG Sonic 6 Service Manual part 2
- MOOG Sonic 6 Operations Manual
- MOOG MICROMOOG/MULTIMOOG Service Manual
- ARP SOLUS Operations Manual
- ARP QUADRA USER Manual
- ARP QUADRA SERVICE Manual - TEXT
- ARP QUADRA SERVICE Manual - SCHEMATICS
- Sequential Circuits Prophet5 Service Manual,Rev 3.3
- DR CLICK Operation Manual
- KORG MS10 Service Manual
- Music Percussion Computer (MPC) User Manual
- EML 101 OWNER’S MANUAL
- EML 101 SERVICE MANUAL:- TEXT
- EML 101 SERVICE MANUAL - SCHEMATICS
- DIGISOUND ADSR, VCO, VCA Build Notes - (schematics, calibration)
- SSM Datasheets 2030 VCO, 2020 VCA, 2040 VCF, 2050 VCTG
- DIGISOUND PRICELIST Jan 1980
- DIGISOUND PROJECT 80 CATALOGUE ~1984
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
ARP Quadra Retrofit
A common problem with the ARP Quadra is that the membrane switches can go bad. These guys replaced the membrane switches with buttons. They also got a mention in this Sound on Sound article on the Quadra (look for Frankenstein in the More Reliabilities blue box).
Before
After
The Tannerin and Theremin Like Devices
It is a common misconception that the instrument used in the Beach Boys "Good Vibrations" was a theremin. It instead was an electro-theremin, a theremin like device with a keyboard. It was built by Paul Tanner in the late 1950s.
Paul playing the final version of the electro-theremin.
The Tannerin is a similar device recently built by Tom Polk for the Brian Wilson Tour.
Via Francois Dion on AH:
"That's definitely a very very crude martenot keyboard. Looks like one of the 1926 early revisions of the Martenot keyboard. Missing all the tonal and expression parts as found in the "drawer" on the later martenot. Missing also the floating keyboard (for the vibrato), and the references for the slider.
It is interesting to note that by 1931, there were at least 4 commercial instruments with heterodyne oscillators:
1- the theremin
2- the Ondes Martenot
3- Clavier a Lampe (Armand Givelet)
##### Update: The 4- Trautonium (Franz Trauntwein) did not use a heterodyne Oscillator. See comments link below. Also neither did the Tannerin according to another thread.
(The Audion Piano was never available commercially)."
The Ondes Martenot (it had a ring device on a string that scaled the entire range of the keyboard).
The Trautonium:
I couldn't find a picture of the Clavier a Lampe and we all know what a theremin looks like right? : )
Also check out the Theremax. Some good sound samples there as well.
For a controller similar to the Ondes Martenot, check out Analog Systems The French Conncection:
Via Francois Dion on AH:
"That's definitely a very very crude martenot keyboard. Looks like one of the 1926 early revisions of the Martenot keyboard. Missing all the tonal and expression parts as found in the "drawer" on the later martenot. Missing also the floating keyboard (for the vibrato), and the references for the slider.It is interesting to note that by 1931, there were at least 4 commercial instruments with heterodyne oscillators:
1- the theremin
2- the Ondes Martenot
3- Clavier a Lampe (Armand Givelet)
##### Update: The 4- Trautonium (Franz Trauntwein) did not use a heterodyne Oscillator. See comments link below. Also neither did the Tannerin according to another thread.
(The Audion Piano was never available commercially)."
The Ondes Martenot (it had a ring device on a string that scaled the entire range of the keyboard).
The Trautonium:
I couldn't find a picture of the Clavier a Lampe and we all know what a theremin looks like right? : )
Also check out the Theremax. Some good sound samples there as well.
For a controller similar to the Ondes Martenot, check out Analog Systems The French Conncection:
Synth Polyphony Broken Down
http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/jan01/articles/synthsec.asp
Carbon111 sent this to me. It's a great article from Sound on Sound that covers how digital technology was used to overcome the high expense of analog polysynths. It covers the Crumar Trilogy's cut-down paraphonic approach which I refered to in this post. The SOS article is a long and semi-technical read, but well worth it if you've ever wondered about how the different approaches to polyphony works on an analog synth. In pure laymen's terms you can essentially have a bunch of mono synths hooked up in a box to make a polyphonic synth or you can cust costs and increase stablity by having polyphony shared accross boards, this is the paraphonic approach. You start with one board for one note, say C, that covers all octaves of C. When you play more than one C, that same board is triggered. The obvious problem is the Envelope stage as well as other components are shared. So if you want a short attack while sustaining a C on a lower octave, it won't quite work as they are not independent. But you could have some interesting triggering effects which Gordon Reid notes in the article regarding the Crumar Trilogy. Note that most poly analog synths have separate components for each voice, so you esentially have x number of mono synths digitally controlled to keep them sounding similar. The great polysynths including the Prophet 5, Jupiter 8, Memorymoog and Andromeda A6 for example did this.
Carbon111 sent this to me. It's a great article from Sound on Sound that covers how digital technology was used to overcome the high expense of analog polysynths. It covers the Crumar Trilogy's cut-down paraphonic approach which I refered to in this post. The SOS article is a long and semi-technical read, but well worth it if you've ever wondered about how the different approaches to polyphony works on an analog synth. In pure laymen's terms you can essentially have a bunch of mono synths hooked up in a box to make a polyphonic synth or you can cust costs and increase stablity by having polyphony shared accross boards, this is the paraphonic approach. You start with one board for one note, say C, that covers all octaves of C. When you play more than one C, that same board is triggered. The obvious problem is the Envelope stage as well as other components are shared. So if you want a short attack while sustaining a C on a lower octave, it won't quite work as they are not independent. But you could have some interesting triggering effects which Gordon Reid notes in the article regarding the Crumar Trilogy. Note that most poly analog synths have separate components for each voice, so you esentially have x number of mono synths digitally controlled to keep them sounding similar. The great polysynths including the Prophet 5, Jupiter 8, Memorymoog and Andromeda A6 for example did this.
Twilight Electric - Tribute to Bob Moog
Patrick of Twilight Electric has taken down his website for a bit and put up a little tribute page fro Bob Moog. There are two tracks for download that he did in Bob's honor. They are done with softsynth moog modulars. Check it out! : )
LA Times on Moog
Another good obit', this one from the LA Times.
"His improved synthesizer, with the addition of a keyboard, did for the instrument what Les Paul and Leo Fender did for the electric guitar, said Trevor Pinch, coauthor of "Analog Days: The Invention and Impact of the Moog Synthesizer."
"The synthesizer "freaked people out," Moog recalled earlier this year. "One of the many things you could do was imitate vocal sounds — make it go 'Weeoooooww.' That really upset. The reaction was a bit like that of primitive cultures believing cameras could catch your soul."
"The Moog synth transcends technology, ergonomics and pop culture. It wasn't some novelty sound or gadget," Gavriluk said. "It was a continuously new sound that shook the entire music industry several times, in every decade, in every genre."
"His improved synthesizer, with the addition of a keyboard, did for the instrument what Les Paul and Leo Fender did for the electric guitar, said Trevor Pinch, coauthor of "Analog Days: The Invention and Impact of the Moog Synthesizer."
"The synthesizer "freaked people out," Moog recalled earlier this year. "One of the many things you could do was imitate vocal sounds — make it go 'Weeoooooww.' That really upset. The reaction was a bit like that of primitive cultures believing cameras could catch your soul."
"The Moog synth transcends technology, ergonomics and pop culture. It wasn't some novelty sound or gadget," Gavriluk said. "It was a continuously new sound that shook the entire music industry several times, in every decade, in every genre."
Moog - New Flickr Shot
via Flickr
Update: Via the comments, this is "the guy" from Toto.
I've seen this before, but I don't remember where or who that is. If you know, please share in the comments.
Update: Alan got it in the comments.
That's "totolly" the guy here:
http://musicthing.blogspot.com/2004/11/other-peoples-studios-4.html
The dude from toto.
I knew I saw that before. I track Music Thing all the time. Thanks Alan!
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© 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
