analog synth

flickr by photo_throw

full size

Gakken SX-150 on a guitar

Roland CMU800R midi by Deftaudio.ru

YouTube via DeftAudio. "Great CMU-800R with midiboard inside."
Note there's a CMU-800R up for auction here, with the Apple interface card, software and manual.

Librations of the Moon

"Librations of the Moon is a collaboration between three musicians seeking to explore the boundaries of their own craft. Drifting between ambient acoustic melodies, analog sound, looping and electro-industrial verberations, librations of the moon chafes the edges of musical scapes, bringing the performers and the audience out of familiar territory and into new and wonderful nuances of sound through the melding of three extremely disparate profiles.

Darren (Sonicbrat) on broken piano + sampling + audio processing
Randolf on guitar + looper + voice
Zul on DIY analogue synthesis + audio processing

You can find more info including show dates and images of the DIY gear here.

Tangerine Dream plays Edgar Froese Part 1

YouTube via tomabeman Not the greatest audio but I love how TD display their soft synths like modulars racks behind him. Pretty cool.
"The Concert in Eindhoven NL Track: Stuntman"

JH Scanner Chorus/Vibrato & Interpolating Scanner part kits available

via Tobias on AH posted with with permission.

"Hi fellow DIY-Freaks,

I am offering part kits for the SCANNER CHORUS/VIBRATO and INTERPOLATING SCANNER projects from now on.
For detailed information on these projects please see the corresponding electro-music.com thread or Jürgens web site.

http://www.electro-music.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=19217

http://www.jhaible.de/interpolating_scanner_and_scanvib/jh_interpolating_scanner_and_scanvib.html

The kit contains all pcb mount parts. Panel mount parts (pots, jacks etc) are not included.

There are 2 versions available.

SCANNER CHORUS/VIBRATO:

All board mount components as per Jürgens bill of materials

This kit goes for 130 /195us$


INTERPOLATING SCANNER:

All board mount components as per Jürgens bill of materials.

This kit goes for 105 /160us$

PLEASE READ THIS FIRST BEFORE ORDERING:

In these projects a lot of SSM2210 are needed. Those parts are not readily available in large quantities from the usual suppliers. That means I have to order those from the manufacturer directly. For the quantities needed the lead time is around 3 weeks.
So here is what I thought of:
If you are interested in purchasing a kit, please do so in the next 10 DAYS.
Then I have a more or less fixed number of SSM2210 I need to order.
I will ship all other parts immediately after I receive payment, and will ship the SSM2210 as soon as they arrive.
This way you can start building your Scanner and do not have to wait too long to finish it.
I know that this is not ideal, but this way the waiting time is somehow minimized to a minimum. And, honestly, I can not afford to buy 1000 SSMs and then need just 300.
Or if I buy just 300 and need 1000, some of you have to wait even longer.
The kits will be still available after this time, but then the lead time might be longer.
Only order a kit if that is ok for you.


Shipping: small parcel via DHL
in Germany: 5 / 8 US$, insured 8 / 13 US$
Europe: 8 / 13 US$
Rest of the world: 14 / 22 US$

______________________________


Please send your order to:

ts-parts (a t) web . de

(you know how this goes: name@ etc...)

Please include the quantity and type of kit in the about line

(like this: Order for 2 Scanner Chorus Kits)

Please include in the mail:

-your name
-full adress
-how you like to pay (bank transfer or paypal - if paypal: please include your paypal billing adress)
-from which list/forum you come

I will send you an email with all details about payment and other information. If you are paying via paypal you will also receive a paypal invoice.

I am looking forward to hear from you.

Best wishes,

Tobias"

CV Ribbon Controller with CS-40M

SonicstateTV via 12T0NE
"One of my CV ribbon controllers with a Yamaha CS-40M. This was an earlier version ribbon with small 6" surface"

Trentemøller - ENGLISH! Interview

YouTube via ellyodd. via Waveformless

kleeseqfrontA

flickr by sduck409

full size

"This is my Klee sequencer, designed by Scott Stites. I built it during May-August 2008, from a pcb/parts kit obtained from electro-music.com."

Korg MS2000

flickr by ds23pallas

full size

KORG Kaossilator 4-Bar Loop Hack

via the O'Reilly Digital Media Blog where you'll find a short video:

"What loosened my credit card was a secret hack Korg revealed during fact-check: If you power up the Kaossilator while holding down the Tap and Loop Rec buttons, the loop memory doubles from two bars to four. That may not sound like much, but it gives you time to set up tension and release; I find four-bar loops just breathe better."

via CDM

GT Theremin

You might remember the GT Theremin from this video. Well, here is the official website.

"The GT Theremin was built over the course of a few months in fulfillment of the capstone project requirement for my B.S.E.E. The design and construction was mostly carried out by myself and my friend James Lewis. I developed the circuitry, and James conceived most of the physical design for the enclosure. We had additional project support from fellow students Ryan Adams and Yuri Yelizarov, lab coordinators Edgar Jones and James Steinberg, as well as professors W. Marshall Leach and Whit Smith. The result came out nearly exactly how we first envisioned it, and I think it is best introduced with a few photos."

::vtol:: SunsYnTh and more

SunsYnTh from VTOL on Vimeo.
via ::vtol:: where you will find a ton more DIY, Circuit Bending and Synth content.

MAM Warp 9 wasp filter with midi

via these auctions

Note the seller has a ton of effects up.

ARP 2600, Oberheim OB-1, Sequential Circuits Prophet-5

Three more via marcel.

Theremin Demonstration#1

YouTube via neonwind
"Giving some of the details to my Doepfer Theremin + some of my playing techniques."

x0b0x w/ x0xi0 mod #006

YouTube via bcastromusic "x0xb0x with x0xi0 I/O & Overdrive Mod"
Update: this is up for auction here.

Korg DS 10 Demonstration

YouTube via Dogboy73
"Video demonstration showing all of the features in the Korg DS-10 synthesizer for the Nintendo DS."

ACID ACCESS

YouTube via drumfish78
"korg access futureretro some good old aciiiiid let me know if you like"

Circuit bent mechanical Furby sequencer linked to Korg SQ-10

YouTube via thenervoussquirrel.

Up for auction here.

"One of a new batch of four Furby Gurdies. This model allows you to program your own rhythms by rearranging screws inserted into the four wheels.

There is also a 'trigger out' socket, which has been used in the last section of the video to operate an old sequencer and synthesiser.

More details here"

via nervoussquirrel on the forum.
"Sometime prior to the 11th century A.D. a strange hand-cranked instrument called the hurdy gurdy appeared on the scene in Western Europe, drifting in and out of fashion but remaining in production to this day. In 1998 Tiger Electronics produced a scary children's toy called the Furby, and sold over 40 million of them in three years.

This auction is for the strange and terrible result of combining both of these phenomena - this is a rare chance to own your own Furby Gurdy!

This instrument involves four modified Furby toys that can be made to produce sound in a sequence by winding a handle. Each Furby has been 'circuit bent', which is a process that involves adding connections to the original electronic circuit board to create interesting new sounds.

When the handwheel is turned, four wheels operate four switches in a sequence. The sequence pattern is created by adding or removing screws from the 12 holes around the circumference of the wheels. Each of the four switches operated by turning the handwheel correspond to a Furby, causing it to make a sound as the screwheads pass.

Each Furby has six controls on the panel underneath it:

(1) Mute - turns off an individual Furby's sound
(2) Loop hold - captures a short loop of audio while a Furby is speaking
(3) Loop momentarily - useful for searching for a good sound before using 'Loop hold' to keep the sound
(4) Microswitch mode select - Switches between audio being produced by either the screwheads on the wheels or the gaps between the screwheads
(5) Crash - creates a stream of glitches and garbled Furby speech, random bleeps, crunches and hisses
(6) Reset - used to restore good health after the crash function

There is a main audio output socket on the front (1/4 inch jack), as well as four individual outputs on the rear of the unit.

There is also a socket on the rear of the unit that allows the switch under the fourth wheel to be used by an external device. Plugging a jack lead into this socket disconnects the fourth Furby and allows other devices to be triggered in time to the winding of the handwheel. In the video I have connected this socket to the step input of a Korg SQ-10 sequencer, so that the sequencer advances by one note every time a screwhead passes the switch.

There were four of these Furby Gurdies made - this auction is for one of the last two, serial number 00075.

High-quality switches and components have been used throughout, and build quality/soldering etc. is all very good. The casing is made of folded aluminium sheet and painted MDF, and the handwheel is solid machined aluminium. The rotating shaft has been mounted on bearings to ensure many years of lasting Gurdy goodness."

BBoT

YouTube via EA78751
"TR808 clone drums + original synths and sequencer. apologies for sound quality of this recording. visit the link to hear better examples.
http://ericarcher.net/devices/big-box...
thx: douglas ferguson for video help."

Electric Gongs - an experimental music installation

YouTube via EA78751. via Harry
"Three bronze gongs are activated with electromagnetic drivers. A touchscreen interface shows all available notes and guides users to consonant pitch relationships with a network of white lines.

At Austin Childrens Museum (Austin, TX) until September 2008.

more information and recordings:
http://ericarcher.net/devices/electri..."

DFW Synth Diy

flickr set by robstave

via the comments of this post

Dallas Fort Worth Synth DIY

Okkam-01 Demonstration

Okkam-01 Demonstration from yoctopus on Vimeo.
"An electronic musical instrument utilising Native Instruments Reaktor software and MIDIBox hardware.

Conceived, designed, programmed and constructed by Justin Shave for the purpose of creating music both in the studio and through live improvised performance.

for more explanation and tunes:

myspace.com/shaveosphere
info ... yoctopus.com"

Modular Synth: Chimera BC16 Inverter Card

Modular Synth: Chimera BC16 Inverter Card from Tom Whitwell on Vimeo.
"Cute little inverter card which reverses phase of control signals. 5v in = 0v out. 4v in = 1v out..."
That would be Tom of Music Thing.

Circuit bent box containing Musini, sampler and ELC piano

YouTube via thenervoussquirrel
"This box basically consists of three sections:

A modified Musini, which is a baby toy originally intended to get toddlers dancing around the living room. A sensor detects floor vibrations and matches the tempo accordingly, or as the manufacturer puts it:

"Musini's patented MusicSensor detects their every move and translates it into a totally unique musical response, teaching cause and effect."

New knobs and switches have been added to create strange new sounds that would probably frighten the previous small owner of the toy.

The second section is a simple lo-fi sampler that can record up to 20 seconds of audio, either as one long sound or four shorter ones. The sounds can then be looped and the pitch altered.

The third section is a modified Early Learning Centre 'animal piano', which can be used to create blips, crunches and bleeps which contrast nicely with the mellow sweeping sounds of the Musini. This section could also be useful for communicating with a pet dog, cat or bird.

The box was commissioned by Norman Fairbanks (www.normanfairbanks.com), after a few e-mails discussing the types of sounds he was looking for. There should be some higher-quality audio samples on my website at some point, and Norman is planning on creating some new music with the box, which is exciting."

Cats

flickr by Mouldfish

full size

MIDIBridge for AudioCubes Preset System Update

"The MIDIBridge software got an update today fixing a few minor bugs and adding support for all setup parameters to be stored and recalled using the preset system. You can read more about the update and download it here: http://forum.percussa.com/viewtopic.php?t=40.

The updated Max/MSP patches for MIDIBridge will be available in the next software release package for AudioCubes. As you probably already know, all host software for AudioCubes is freely available and open source, and built in Cycling 74’s Max/MSP software. So you can customize it easily to your own needs. Do you need OSC or some other protocol instead of MIDI communication? If it’s available in Max/MSP you can easily use it with AudioCubes and the freely available Max/MSP patches."
via the Percussa Audio Cubes blog

soundbite

YouTube via sduck409
"watch over my shoulder as I tweak some settings on this large modular synth patch. 3 different voices, using a motm 510 wavewarper as twisted mixer. Mostly synthtech MOTM modules, and a Blacet Binary Zone, Wogglebug, and a MusicFromOuterSpace sequencer. Sorry about the low audio quality, this was just a quickie job, otherwise it might never get done."

studio joo joo

That would definitely be some joo joo.

via mono-poly's public channel

I'm sure I missed some labels. Let me know what and I'll updated them.

Enter Shikari - Mothership performed on KORG DS-10

YouTube via Remon0347. This one shows you the triggering interface for different stored sequences.
"Enter Shikari - Mothership performed with KORG DS-10 on my Nintendo DS Lite. The sound or video is a little bit out of sync."

Buchla 249e double action

YouTube via blindoldfreak. "short random clip."
I'm not getting any audio on this one so this one is for the light show.

The Vermona Action Filter II Plus...

YouTube via bigcitymusic

"is a great sounding filter! It has Low, High, Band, and Notch filter capabilities and a very handy trigger switch for engaging or disengaging the filter momentarily. The sequence ran into the Action Filter is a combination of Elektron Machinedrum and the Cwejman S1 MkII.

http://www.bigcitymusic.com
http://www.myspace.com/bigcitymusicdo...
http://www.bigcitymusicblog.blogspot.com"

Sidbox v2 CV

YouTube via bluelantern320
"I connected the SIDBOX MATRIX TO a MOOG VCF CLONE and 3 VCO's. All were then controlled by the sidbox."

SX-150 Trill Machine!

YouTube via btpro
"Modify Gakken SX-150 Synthesizer. I made Trill control machine with Lego mindstorm."

Casio SK-1

images via this auction


with box

Roland MKS-80 with MPG-80

images via this auction
"The Roland MKS-80 Super Jupiter has become infamous as the Roland synth to own. It's often referred to as a rackmount Jupiter 8, although its voice card design is shared with the Jupiter 6. The MKS-80 has several advantages over the keyboard Jupiters, the least of which being size and weight, although the velocity response, RAM cart storage, and sysex implementation isn't anything to sneeze at either.

The MKS-80 features a similar voice architecture to the others in the Jupiter line: two oscillators, noise source, LFO, two invertable envelopes, resonant low pass filter, high pass filter, and chorus. The oscillators feature cross modulation in addition to several waveforms and pulse width modulation. The MKS-80 responds to velocity which can modulate envelope times and levels, and the envelopes feature more modulation destinations than the other Jupiters. The unit retains sixty-four tones in memory, which can be layered or split with tuning offsets and key ranges and stored in one of the sixty-four patch locations. An additional 128 patches and tones can be stored on an MC-64 RAM cartridge. One feature not found on the other synths in the MKS lineup is an auto-tune button - and you will need to hit this button often, as the MKS-80 features true analog oscillators. The MKS-80 has four voice modes: Poly 1, Poly 2, Unison 1, and Unison 2. Poly 2 is unique in that each voice board (four voices) operates in unison until more than two keys are pressed, and which time it reverts to normal poly mode. This is great for leads, retaining the mono unison sound but permitting overlapping notes and a chord here and there.

The MPG-80 is the dedicated programmer interface for the MKS-80. The connection from the programmer to the synth is unique to the Roland PG series. The MPG-80 features a MIDI in and thru like the PG-300 and PG-1000, but communicates with and is powered by the MKS-80 via a 6 pin DIN cable. The MKS-80 must be set via a rear panel switch to enable the programmer port, and the MIDI in and thru of the MKS-80 cannot be used in this mode. The PG-800 provides knobs and switches for all tone parameters such as VCO, VCA, VCF, envelopes, and LFO. Patch parameters are not well represented on the MPG-80, although poly and unison modes can be selected via a four position rotary switch.

Note: There are two revisions of the MKS-80. The rev 4 (serial numbers up to and including 511799) features CEM3340 oscillators, Roland IR3109 filters, and CEM3360 VCAs. The rev 5 (serial number 511800 and later) featured Roland IR3R03 oscillators and IR3R05 combination filter/VCAs."

Bend Matrix circuit bending detailed demo

YouTube via 4mspedals. follow-up to this post.
"Detailed Bend Matrix demonstrating circuit bending use. Connected to points on a kid's thrift store keyboard."

MIDI-NES demo

YouTube via modular77
"simple 8-note arpeggiator pattern. this is a demonstration of the MIDI NES cartridges video display effects that respond to incoming MIDI note data.. a better video demo is on the way.. stay tuned.. "

Acidlab Miami

via MaD:
"guess what Acilab plans to clone next? ;-) (to call this just a plan is understated as the prototype, the first one of the first batch of ten pieces, is already built up)

Best regards
MaD"

Roland CR-8000 Modded

via this auction

"Classic Roland drum machine from 1980 with 13 analogue drums including: kick, snare, lo/hi toms, open/closed hi-hats, cymbal, cowbell & lo/mid/hi congas. It sounds a little like a cross between a CR-78 and a TR-808. This unit has the full set of Analogue Solutions modifications - MIDI, tonal controls, individual outputs - at a cost of £300. (That was several years ago & I think Tom Carpenter has raised his prices since then!)...

The unit has also had the following mods fitted by Tom Carpenter of Analogue Solutions here in the UK:

- MIDI: note on/off of all drums except the 3 congas. Accent is available via velocity - high value on/low value off, amount set by the Accent pot. Accent is only available on the voices designed to respond to it in the original spec - not clap, cowbell, or clave. The mod does not support MIDI Clock or Time Code.

- Tonal: BD Tune 1/2, SD Tune/Decay/Snappy, Clap Snap/Filter, HH/CY Filter, HH Decay, CB Tune 1/2 & Decay, LT Tune, HT Tune. BD Tune 2 does nothing - a design flaw on Analogue Solutions behalf rather than a fault apparently.

- Individual Outs: 6 outputs on 3.5mm jacks corresponding to the 6 level pots with drums grouped together according to original design. The level pots do not affect the volume at the individual outs.

This unit has been in storage for 2 years and on testing, I have found the following problems with the mods:

- MIDI: accent via velocity is only audible over the Main output.

- Tonal: the Filter & Snap on the Clap voice do not function correctly - the noise component (the Snap) of the voice is louder than it should be and the Filter pot does not reduce the noise as it should. The pitch of LT & HT Tune mods can be unstable and can interact with each other.

- Individual Outs: at very high Tune or Filter settings there is some high frequency noise in the voice channels, particularly in the cowbell."

The War of Synthesis

via marcel

And more generic wall papers below.

CLICK FOR MORE »

RIP Isaak Hayes

Isaac Hayes - Shaft

YouTube via lastangelman.

As you know, posts have to be about the synth, well.. spot the synths in the beginning of this video.

"Isaac Lee Hayes, Jr. (August 20, 1942 -- August 10, 2008)[1] was an American soul and funk singer-songwriter, musician, record producer, arranger, composer and actor. Hayes was one of the main creative forces behind southern soul music label Stax Records, where he served as both an in-house songwriter and producer with partner David Porter during the mid-1960s. In the late 1960s, Hayes became a recording artist, and recorded successful soul albums such as Hot Buttered Soul (1969) and Black Moses (1971) as the Stax label's premier artist.

Alongside his work in popular music, Hayes was a film score composer for motion pictures. His best known work, for the 1971 blaxploitation film Shaft, earned Hayes an Academy Award for Best Original Song (the first Academy Award received by an African-American in a non-acting category) and two Grammy Awards. He received a third Grammy for the album Black Moses.

In 1992, in recognition of his humanitarian work, he was crowned an honorary king of Ghana's Ada district. From 1997 to 2006, he provided the voice for the character "Chef" on the Comedy Central animated TV series South Park.

Hayes was found dead in his Memphis home on August 10, 2008 as reported by the Shelby County sheriff's department. His death came 10 days before his 66th birthday.[1]
[2]Here is a complete slo-mo video clip of Isaac Hayes conducting the Theme from Shaft, which won an Oscar for best song."

Black Sunday Patch

via mono-poly's public channel

Synth.nl AtmoSphere Studio 1 (2008)

YouTube via Synthnl. synthnl.blogspot.com
"Here you see an overview of my current 'AtmoSphere' Studio. In the background you here some music coming from this setup that will on on my new 'AtmoSphere' album to be released in October 2008"

iZotope iDrum for the iPhone

"making beats is fun. for everyone!

iDrum© is the addictive app that lets you create your own beats, even if you have no musical experience! Start with iDrum’s selection of amazing kits and patterns, then customize them to make them your own. Build beats layer by layer by tapping the touch screen or create music with simple shapes and color combinations that let you visualize the rhythm.

making beats is fun. for everyone!

iDrum© is the addictive app that lets you create your own beats, even if you have no musical experience! Start with iDrum’s selection of amazing kits and patterns, then customize them to make them your own. Build beats layer by layer by tapping the touch screen or create music with simple shapes and color combinations that let you visualize the rhythm.

what is it?
- the fun and simple way to make music on your iPhone or iPod touch
- customize patterns to create your own unique beats
- includes extensive library of amazing sounds
- take control of the rhythm of every drum sound and sample
- tap the touch screen to play and record your own musical patterns
- Easily turn your beats into ringtones for your iPhone!*

*Note: requires free iDrum Ringtone Sync application for your Mac or PC. iDrum Ringtone Sync links iDrum to your iTunes Ringtones library to make the process simple."


You can get iDrum Hip Hop Edition here:

You can get iDrum Club Edition here:

Logic Switch

YouTube via dkimcg
"Model 26 is used with the Model 14 to create the logic to turn on and off the Model 28 Programmable Tap Clock. I got inspired while watching James Cigler's Model 28 video and thought I'd give it a try on a patch that's setup now. Kinda neat, not super useful w/o a lot of modules, but it was nice to see analog logic working in my modular."

Trance 001

YouTube via VintSynth. Spot the synths.
"The first trance track from the VintSynth Studio"

EMU Emax HD

images via this auction

inside an Emax HD

KORG Delta

images via this auction
"Korg's fully polyphonic Delta is a pretty unique synth. The synth section allows you to combine oscillator footages and has its own ADSR, while the string section has an EQ and a simple AD envelope generator. The two can be combined so you can have a percussive synth sound followed by swelling strings. Both sections go through a gorgeous sounding filter that switches between low pass and band pass. The filter can be swept from the joystick, which can also modulate both the filter and oscillator with the LFO or, oddly, the noise source. Overall a nice surprise and sonically unique compared to Korg's Poly-Ensemble, Lambda, or Sigma."

Some samples at the auction while it's up.

KORG Polysix

images via this auction