DSI Prophet '08 Samples via Seth

Update:
"Two more samples. These aren't full tunes, they're more like examples of what you can do with the Prophet '08.

http://www.boxoftextures.com/prophet08/music/

The two snippets are called Heavy Sequence and Light Arpeggios. Heavy Sequence is rude and impolite and is done in a single patch. It's also, uh, a little rough around the edges as well. The sequencer is running on one layer and the lead is on the other. I did cheat a bit because I couldn't do two stereo channels at once into my Mac, but it more or less could have been done in one pass with only two hands (if you ignore the pitch bending, that is).

Light Arpeggios is much more polite and gentle. Both arpeggios are again done in a single patch and were recorded in a single pass live.
I then put in a lead-ish type patch on top of that to make it a little bit more interesting.


Seth"

........

"http://www.boxoftextures.com/files/choppersoverhead.mp3

Four tracks, recorded in Live:
1 - Arturia Minimoog V - arpeggios
2 - G-Force Mtron - texture chords
3 - Prophet '08 - fretless bass
4 - Prophet '08 - lead

Notes:
1 - no effects in Live, but the Minimoog V's internal chorus and echo were used as part of the sound
2 - dry
3 - a lot of reverb while it's playing alone for the first few bars at the beginning, then just a little reverb
4 - a bit of reverb

So these were my first two sounds I programmed on the Prophet '08. If you're wondering why the glide in the tune above sounds so different then what you might be used to, it's because each oscillator has its own glide knob (!) so you can set each one for a slightly different glide speed (or a greatly different speed, for that matter). This makes them reach the target note at slightly (or greatly) different times, and the sweep through the intervening frequencies happens differently for each one. Also, four LFOs is fabulous. I used one for vibrato, one for each of the oscillator's pulse width modulation, and I still had one spare.

While programming the bass sound, I held three notes and then latched the arpeggiator down. I then proceeded to spend about half an hour playing with all the controls. Man, that was fun! I wish I had recorded that on video for YouTube. I haven't touched the sequencer yet, but it looks like it'll be just as much fun. Plus, I think you get four sequences as modulation sources and can send then anywhere you want, not just for notes. How about one sequence for notes and then another for pan position? You could have each note happen in a different position in the stereo field and with a different pulse width and cutoff frequency. Add some slapback echo in your outboard gear and you're in for some real fun. You can have the thing chugging along sending notes flying all over the room. Uh, I'm patenting that one, so don't go using the idea, OK?

Oh, and just by the way, all four LFOs can be set to sync with the sequencer. Not only can you put different notes in different places in the stereo field, but you can move them once they're there.
Madness!

The knobs are - different. Not bad by any means, but I'm still getting used to them. The most fabulous thing in the world is that you can touch a knob and turn it, and when you do, the sound changes the way you expect it to. There's no jump, no turning it back and forth until you pass the stored value, they just work. On the other hand, you can't just look at a knob to see what the value is. This feels really odd when choosing waveforms, for example. Again, it's not a bad thing, but it definitely feels different than what I'm used to. On a "normal" synthesizer (i.e., a Minimoog) you look at the knob to see the values. On the Prophet you first find the knob, then you have to find the display to see what's up. It'll take a little getting used to.

Same thing with the envelopes. I've always wanted DADSR envelopes, and now that I got 'em I have to get used to them. I always pictured a steady volume for the initial delay, then the normal envelope.
Problem is, there isn't any steady volume before the ADSR portion, it's just a delay. Totally useful, but definitely not what I'm used to. There's a VCA level control, so you can have the VCA always open a little and have the envelope work the way I expected it to work, but then the VCA is always open even when you don't expect it to be.
Again, none of this is a problem with the Prophet, it's more a problem with me. I can see an incredible amount of things you can do with these, and I can also see using up the four modulation routings in seconds on a lot of patches, and I can see it may take me a little while to wrap my head around it.

In re-reading this I can see that I've said "I have to get used to it" about five times. Hmmm. I guess I'll come back to this post in a week or two to see how I feel then. I've only been knob twiddling for about three hours last night. Six months from now everything I'm noting as different will probably feel completely natural.

So, in my few hours of sound programming I ended up being surprised by what the thing could do so many times that I just can't believe it. Is this why people rave unconditionally about the Evolvers? I've always wondered why. If so, I may just have to pick one up. So much thought went into the Prophet '08. Little things like individual glide controls. Such a simple idea, but a completely unique sound.
Imagine something like oscillator sync, except that now you can apply glide to only -one- of the oscillators. Four LFOs, three envelope generators, four sequencers. Heck, you can even modulate the modulation amounts as all four modulation amounts are also modulation destinations!

The thing is brilliant. That's all I can say.
Seth"

via AH.

Blip Festival 2012 NYC with Hand-Ons Events

Blip Festival NYC 2012
"NEW YORK, NY - Thrift-store electronics collide with dancefloor sensibilities as Blip Festival makes its long-awaited return to New York City. Produced by 8bitpeoples in association with The Tank and Live Nation, the Blip Festival 2012 finds Manhattan once again at the center of the chipmusic universe. From May 25-27, musicians and visualists from all corners of the globe assemble at the Gramercy Theatre to perform astonishing music & motion graphics, produced on & inspired by early-generation home computers and gaming consoles.

The Blip Festival Blog launches with artist interviews and the debut of a short documentary film by 2PLAYERPRODUCTIONS. The 10 minute piece documents the 2011 edition of Blip that took place at the Eyebeam Art & Technology Center last May. The past few years have seen 2PLAYERPRODUCTIONS move on from their humble origins documenting the first Blip Festival in their feature length debut Reformat the Planet, to leading high profile Kickstarter campaigns for documentaries about game industry heavyweights Mojang and Doublefine.

WATCH BLIP FESTIVAL 2011 // FIVE YEARS by 2PLAYERPRODUCTIONS

READ Blip On: Danimal Cannon

READ Blip On: Monodeer

DAYTIME EVENTS:

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New Elka Synthex 2 Digital Desktop Synth From Mario Maggi in the Works

This one is in via swissdoc and indirectly via Florian Anwander on the AH email list. This is not the new analog Elka Synthex clone from the new Finnish Generalmusic. This is however from the creator of the original Elka Synthex, Mario Maggi, and it is all digital. An interesting side note mentioned below is that Mario Maggi owns the Synthex name. Not sure what impact if any this might have on the upcoming Generalmusic Elka Synthex remake.


An Update: via swissdoc. It appears a filing for the name SYNTHEX was made on April 29, just three days ago. The filing is under category 15 which covers: "Electronic musical instruments; Electronic synthesizers; Electronic musical apparatus and instruments; Electric and electronic musical instruments; Mechanical, electric and electronic musical instruments; Electronic apparatus for synthesising music [musical instrument]."

"Hello to everyone,

my name is Enrico Cosimi, I'm the author of the text on ACM concerning the Synthex 2. I have been in touch, here in Rome/Italy, with Mario from the late Eigthies and, from the mid Nineties, I'm working with Mario on his "version two"; as you can imagine, Mario is a very very very busy kind of genius, who conceived and realized a lot of third party non-musical items (especially for telecommunications and health). I am not allowed to reveal all the data concerning the new Synthex 2 (b.t.w., it will be a digital equipment: would you dare to conceive an analog instrument with 128 LFOs and 64 EGs in the same box?), but - trust me - when it will be done, it will be a GREAT machine.

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Opposite Earth by Jeff Snyder, electronic version

Published on Oct 25, 2017 Jeff Snyder

"Opposite Earth by Jeff Snyder [of Snyderphonics]

This is an animated notation piece for an open instrumentation. It was written for PLOrk in 2016 and is intended to be performed by a combination of acoustic and electronic musicians, but this is a version that just uses electronic sounds. The graphic score is realized in javascript and the synthesis is all created using WebAudio.
The conductor changes the image components live to guide the course of the piece. For instance, the conductor can add and remove rings (performers), planets (pitches), and ticks (percussive sounds) at will. The color of the lines conveys which of five scales is used. Moons are played by the same performers that are handling the planet they orbit around.

Thanks to Drew Wallace for additional javascript magic!

//
If you want to try out controlling the piece yourself, visit https://spiricom.github.io/sunspots/p...

It's controlled with the computer keyboard and the mouse position.
` (the top left key below escape) selects all rings.
numbers 1 through 8 select individual rings.
9 makes rings visible or invisible.
0 adds or removes moons.
- adds or removes ticks.
p adds or removes planets
the arrow keys add or remove the "play" lines.
s, d, f, g, and h set the color of the next line you add (and therefore the scale)
z through / set the division of the ticks.
mouse X position is the size of planets - maps to decay time of notes.
mouse Y position is the blue/red color at the upper left hand corner of the screen. It maps to timbre, dark to bright.

//
For an interesting collection of information about animated notation works, check out Ryan Ross Smith's animated notation website. http://www.animatednotation.com/"

MATRIXSYNTH Review and Overview of the Novation UltraNova

Hi everyone, you might remember, back in July I posted some pics of my newly acquired UltraNova, and mentioned that review posts would eventually follow. Well, I’m happy to tell you the first post is here. The UltraNova is one powerful synth, so to make the overall review a bit more consumable, it will be broken up over time. This first section includes an Overview, the Oscillators, and the Mixer sections. When new sections go up, I will be sure to let you know via a new post.

As with most of my reviews, I will say this one goes pretty deep into the synth engine and all editable parameters. If you are the type of person that likes to dissect and explore all of the available parameters on a synth, then this post is for you. I will touch on what each parameter does and will call out any interesting features and limitations as I do so. There are some pretty special parameters on the UltraNova that give you control beyond most other synths. Hopefully this review will give you some insight into what makes the UltraNova special.

Overview & Quick Comparison to Previous Nova Synths

The Novation UltraNova, released back in 2010, is a 20 voice virtual analog & wavetable synth with three oscillators, two ring modulators and one noise source per voice. The UltraNova also features two audio ins that can be assigned to the oscillator section and/or a 12-band vocoder. It’s worth noting that the Novation Nova from 1999 featured a 40-band vocoder, while the Supernova II from 2000 featured a 42-band vocoder. The UltraNova is a monotimbral synth while the 12 voice Nova was six part multitimbral and the Supernova II (24, 36, or 48 voice) was eight part multitimbral. The UltraNova supports up to 5 simultaneous effects per patch. The Nova supported 42 simultaneous effects, while the Supernova II supported up to 56. The Supernova II also supported FM synthesis while the Nova and UltraNova omit it.

The UltraNova, however, is the first Nova synth to feature wavetable synthesis. An interesting side note is that all of the oscillators on the UltraNova are actually stored as wavetables, including the standard waveforms. According to Novation, “The wavetables in the Supernova series are all calculated. The wavetables in the UltraNova, even the standard analogue waves are wavetable oscillators. This change in oscillator generation was first used on the A-Station and K-Station and subsequently in the KS series, X-Station and Xio.” This allows the UltraNova to have some advanced tricks when it comes to the oscillator section, which will be covered in detail below.

I asked Novation about the lack of FM synthesis and they told me, “FM would have been a lovely addition to the UltraNova, but it would have been asking too much of the DSP to be able to run everything the UltraNova can do and also add in FM. The wavetables were a really good way to introduce a new (to Novation) type of synthesis that is able to cater for some of the synth sounds that FM is known for and also to be able to create lush evolving pads.”

The UltraNova features two routable filters per voice with a total of 14 filter types to chose from including 6dB (no resonance), 12dB, 18dB, and 24dB with Lowpass, Bandpass and Hi-pass modes. The Nova and Supernova II lacked a 6dB mode.

As for hardware, although the UltraNova may have fewer knobs per function than its predecessors, it is extremely well laid out and super intuitive to use. Along with both keyboard velocity and aftertouch, the UltraNova has touch sensitive knobs. They literally respond to touch and can be assigned to various parameters. Worth noting, velocity is configurable, however, aftertouch is not. I found the aftertouch to be good, but it does require a little extra force than I prefer; it’s good for not accidentally triggering it, but not so good for subtle, natural performance.

Please note the above comparisons with the Nova and Supernova II were only for quick reference. The UltraNova of course is its own synth with a few tricks up its sleeves that are lacking in the original Nova line, including a level of control over the synth engine often only found in the modular realm. It sounds incredible, and for the price, currently only $599 new, it is an extremely flexible and powerful synth. You get the current top-of-the-line Novation Nova synth engine with new wavetables and more. The UltraNova is both a performance oriented synth as well as a synth programmers dream. It can be configured for easy access to specific parameters for a live situation, or you can dig as deep as you want with a clearly well thought out interface.

That said, let’s dig in.

The following review and overview will essentially go over the signal flow of the UltraNova followed by performance controls including the arpeggiator and the hardware interface. I’ll go into a little detail on what each feature can and cannot do in an attempt to give you a detailed idea of what the synth is capable of. Because my reviews tend to be a bit on the longer side, I will be posting the sections in chunks over time to make it easier on you to consume and for me to compose.

First we start with…

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Roland's AIRA Officially Unveiled - Massive Pic Gallery, Details, Videos

AIRA — Artists make first contact with AIRA

Published on Feb 13, 2014 RolandChannel·835 videos

"Groundbreaking artists talk about their experiences with Roland instruments and make first contact with the AIRA gear. Artists appearing are: Arthur Baker, Ricardo Villalobos, A Guy Called Gerald, Rain Man, Netsky, Oscar Burnside, Boys Noize, Dr Meaker, Hardfloor, John Heckle, Hisashi Saito, and Akkord."

This post might take a bit to load. :)

Update3: You can find a write-up on Novamusik here.

Update2: You can find comments and discussion on this post on The MATRIXSYNTH Lounge here. I also added a page break for this post on the main site so it doesn't slow the site down for new posts. Click the "Click for more" link to get to the full post.

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Casio VL-1 Processed to Modular Patch

Published on Apr 20, 2019 Fahmi M.

"Improv session / live jam used custom sound of VL-1 with VCV Rack.

Info:
The VL-1 was the first instrument of Casio's VL-Tone product line, and is sometimes referred to as the VL-Tone. It combined a calculator, a monophonic synthesizer, and sequencer. Released in June 1979, it was the first commercial digital synthesizer.

It has 29 calculator-button keys (G to B), a three-position octave switch, one programmable and five preset sounds, ten built-in rhythm patterns, an eight-character LCD, a 100-note sequencer, and a multi-function calculator mode. The VL-1 is notable for its kitsch value among electronic musicians due to its cheap construction and its unrealistic, uniquely low-fidelity sounds.

Its sounds were mostly composed of filtered squarewaves with varied pulse-widths. Its piano, violin, flute and guitar timbres were nearly unrecognizable abstractions of real instruments. It also featured a "fantasy" voice, and a programmable synthesizer which provided for choice of both oscillator waveform and ADSR envelope. It had a range of two and a half octaves. (Wikipedia)

VCV Rack now lets you run an entire simulated Eurorack on your computer – or interface with hardware modular. And you can get started without spending a cent, with add-on modules available by the day for free or inexpensively. Ted Pallas has been working with VCV since the beginning, and gives us a complete hands-on guide.

There’s always a reason people fall in love with modular music set-ups. For some, it’s having a consistent, tactile interface. For others, it’s about the way open-ended architectures let the user, rather than a manufacturer, determine the system’s limits. For me, the main attraction to modulars is access to tools that can run free from a rigid musical timeline, but still play a sequence. It means they let me dial in interesting poly-rhythmic parts without stress. (CDM)

More sounds:
ideologikal.bandcamp.com"

Vintage Maas-Rowe G-123 Grand Symphonic Carillon Electronic Keyboard

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this auction

"This extremely rare Maas-Rowe Symphonic Carillon is in excellent functional (manual playing only) and cosmetic condition. This electromechanical rarity plays up to 123 chimes of four different kinds using a keyboard interface. It can either play Flemish Bells, Westminster Bells, or the Symphonic Carillon bells, the latter of which is comprised of both minor-third-tuned bells ("Minor Bells") or major-third-tuned bells ("Major Bells"). For the Symphonic Carillon bells, it uses relay that allows the player to choose the key in which he will be playing by pressing the corresponding button for that key, which in turn selects an appropriate set of minor-third-tuned bells and a set of major-third-tuned bells. Being able to select which bells are tuned minor or major allows for much greater melodic and harmonic possibilities.

This carillon was purchased from Otero Junior College, Colorado. This particular symphonic carillon cost the college $28,000 when it was installed new in the college by Maas-Rowe in the early 1960s, which equates to over $200,000 in today's dollars. Receipts and other documentation will be provided to the buyer.

An external speaker that can be used in conjunction with its current monitor speaker. If you plan to mount this in a church and amplifiy it through a bell tower, 4 large tower speakers/horns can be provided to a buyer at an additional cost of $250/each, plus shipping. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to own one of the most extensive (and expensive!!!) carillon systems that Maas-Rowe ever built.

Chime bell types include:
37 Major bells (which, when combined with minor bells, comprises the Symphonic Carillon)
49 Minor bells (which, when combined with major bells, comprises the Symphonic Carillon)
37 Flemish bells
11 Westminster chimes

One of the two large wood-paneled cabinets is the amplification section, which includes five power amplifiers. One of these power amplifiers is for powering a monitor speaker, and four of them are for powering tower speaker horns in a church belfry, facing in four separate directions. The Hammond speaker shown on the right is not original to this carillon. The other of the two large wood-paneled cabinets houses Maas-Rowe Chronobell system, which is the timing and roll-playing system. The Westminster chimes have their own cabinet. The Flemish chimes have their own cabinet as well. The minor bells and major bells are all housed in the carillon console itself.

If you want this instrument for recording studio use rather than for church use, the footprint of this instrument can be reduced by 75% for more compact use, so that it takes up only the same amount of space as a Hammond organ. If you put a preamplifier/amplifier at the bottom of the keyboard console, you wouldn't need the electronics in the two tall cabinets, and you wouldn't need the Westminster chimes, as they are controlled by the clock cabinet only. Also, if DI the instrument-level signal directly from the keyboard console's Symphonic Carillon bells and from the Flemish Bells cabinet to an external preamplifier, you wouldn't need the Hammond speaker. Then, if you stick the flemish cabinet behind the console, the amount of floor and wall space that this would take up would be the same as that of a Hammond C3 organ.

Also included are 15 mylar player rolls. Please note that we have bypassed it (it was working before we bypassed it) several years ago, so we do not guarantee the functionality of the automatic player system...only the manual-playing system is guaranteed to be fully functional. There are about 8-12 songs on each roll, thereby providing 120-180 songs total. This also comes with three copies of the on-off switch key for the carillon console, as well as four copies of the key needed to open and close the two cabinet doors.

Due to the size of this carillon, it will need to be shipped freight, for which the rate varies depending on the buyer's location. Please contact me get a specific shipping quote to your location. The $500 is just an estimate; the buyer will be responsible for the actual shipping cost."

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iPad iPhone Music App: CrazySpace Gravity Synth

Published on Aug 13, 2013

Please subscribe!
Read the review and info here: http://synthuniverse.com/crazyspace-g...

iTunes:
CrazySpace - Gravity Synth - Mordapps

"CrazySpace is the App Stores very first gravity modulated subtractive synthesizer. Using our unique multitouch control system, musicians and non-musicians will be able to start shredding in no time at all.

Featuring a powerful synthesis engine with a total of fifteen high quality oscillators, delivering five voice polyphony at 16 Bit 44,100Hz and a high quality resonant low pass filter. This synthesizer is suitable for jamming on a train or performing huge synth lines on stage.

The easy to use programmable scale system allows the user to access twenty well known scales in any key they desire. Ranging from major and minor scales all the way to the beautiful sounding dorian scale, the possibilities are endless.

Gravity modulation is controlled via the displayed objects orbiting a central point. Each object represents an oscillator in the synthesizer engine. The size of the each object correlates to the oscillators volume. Using gravity to modulate individual oscillator volume creates a movement to the sound which is not present in traditional subtractive synthesis.

CrazySpace is a universal application for iOS 5 or above, compatible on iPhone 4S/5, iPad 2 or above and iPod Touch 5th Generation.

Visit us at www.mordapps.co.uk or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/mordapps."

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Happy New Year From MATRIXSYNTH! - A Look Back at 2014

Happy New Year everyone!

I want to start by thanking everyone that comes to MATRIXSYNTH and helps make it what it is - the readers, the supporters, and of course all the sponsors on the right.

THANK YOU and have a GREAT 2015!!!

This site is a labor of love and a ton of work. This site is ultimately meant to be an testament to everything synth in the making. We have over nine years of daily synth history captured here, 119,983 published posts. I can't wait to see what the future brings us in 2015!

That said, here are a few interesting bits from 2014 in the longest post of the year. ;)

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KORG MINI-KP KAOSS PAD

via this auction


"Groove on the move with this DJ effects processor! Since it first appeared, the KAOSS Pad series effects processor has been enormously popular with artists around the world for its intuitive touch-pad interface and its revolutionary effect programs. Now, the series is joined by its smallest member, the Korg DJ effects processor called the miniKP.

While providing the same interface in which multiple parameters of the effect program are controlled by a single fingertip, the miniKP effects processor brings the advantages of battery operation and mobility, making it an ideal choice for DJ club performances, home studio applications, as well as outdoor live events or for use with a portable audio player. Wherever you are, the mini-KP brings new possibilities to any music scene.

The miniKP is a lightweight effects processor, yet offers tons of features like auto-BPM and Tap Tempo functionality, FX hold, FX depth selection, FX Release and more - all derived from its big brother, the KP3.

Meant To Be Touched
The miniKP's size and power make it a perfect multi-task effects processor. Keep it near your studio and patch it into the effects loop of a guitar amplifier, directly between a synth and mixer or some other creative position. No matter what you connect it to, from a mixer to an MP3 player or directly to your television set, the Korg miniKP provides the effects you need to get the job done - or simply have some fun!

Programs:
100

Effects:
LPF (Low Pass Filter), HPF (High Pass Filter), BPF+ (Band Pass Filter+), 72dB/oct LPF, LPF & Delay, HPF & Delay, BPF+ & Delay, LPF & Reverb, HPF & Reverb, BPF+ & Reverb, Morphing Filter, Radio Filter, Radio Isolator, Isolator, Isolator & Distortion, Isolator & Delay, Jet (Manual Flanger), Manual Phaser, Talk Filter, Digi Talk, Ring Mod & HPF, Pitch Shifter & HPF, Mid Pitch Shifter, Pitch Shifter & Delay, Broken Modulation, Fuzz Distortion, Decimator, Decimator & HPF, LFO LPF, LFO HPF, LFO BPF+, LFO HPF+ & Delay, Infinite LFO HPF+, Random LFO LPF, Random LFO HPF+, Flanger, Deep Flanger, Mid Flanger, Flanger & LPF, Flanger & Delay, Infinite LFO Flanger, Phaser, Mid Phaser, Phaser & Delay, Step Phaser, Auto Pan, Mid Auto Pan, Slicer, Mid Slicer, Slicer & LPF, Slicer & HPF, Delay, Smooth Delay, Low Cut Delay, Ping Pong Delay, LCR Delay, 3 band Delay, Multi Tap Delay, BPF Time Slide, Reverse Delay & HPF, Reverse Delay Mix, Gate Reverb & Delay, Delay & Reverb, Tape Echo, Dub Echo, Feedback Echo, Reverb, Reverb 2, Spring Reverb, Gate Reverb, Reverse Gate Reverb, 3 band Gate Reverb, Grain Shifter, Mid Grain Shifter, Mid Grain Shifter+, Grain & HPF, Grain & HPF+, Looper Forward/Reverse, Vinyl Looper, Rewind Spin Looper, Looper & LPF, Looper & HPF, Looper & Flanger, Looper & Pitch Shifter, Looper & Decimator, Looper Isolator & HPF, Looper & Isolator+, Bass Looper, Looper & Oscillator, Looper & Noise, Unison Saw Bass, Unison Squ Bass, Unison Saw Synth, Unison Squ Synth, Metalic Synth, Siren, LFO Sin, LFO Squ, Noise, Synth & Looper

Connectors:
LINE IN jacks (RCA phono jacks), LINE OUT jacks (RCA phono jacks), HEADPHONES jack (stereo mini jack)

Sampling Frequency:
48kHz

AD/DA:
24-bit linear

Power Supply:
four alkaline AA (LR6) batteries (6 V)

Battery Life:
approx. five hours (with alkaline batteries)

Dimensions:
4.17 (W) x 5.08 (D) x 1.14 (H) inches/
106 (W) x 129 (D) x 29 (H) mm

Weight:
154 g / 5.43 oz. (without batteries)

Included Item:
Four AA batteries

Optional Accessories:
AC adapter model – 405012500/KA193 (Sold separately)
4.5V 500ma Center Pin (+)"

Serge ASR/Quantizer

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this auction

"VCTimeGen Clock (TGC)

The VC TimeGen Clock has the left cell "blue" out being an asymmetrical tri wave & "red"out being a 50% duty cycle square wave output which stays constant through the manual "freq' POT range in combination with the "both" position selected w/ external CV -- BUT with the ability to modify the duty cycle (pulsewidth) of the output(s) using external CV source from either the front or the back ofthe pulse by selecting "rise" or "fall" on the CV source select switch. That way you can create syncopation in the rhythm patches & pulse width mod in the audio range use.

The right cell has DTG functionality, just like the CV TimeGen OSC.

÷N Comparator (NCOM)

The ÷ N COMPARATOR (NCOM) consists of two sections: a comparator and a voltage-controlled pulse divider. The divider section outputs a pulse once every "N" comparator pulse, where "N" is a number from 1 to 31, settable with a control voltageat the divider's VC input (or manually via the divider's control knob). Additionally, the Divider outputs a staircase wave with "N" steps.This will produce whole-tone steps when plugged into the 1 V/Oct input of aVCO.

This module has two distinct areas of use (in addition to the normal functions of the comparator):

For audio frequencies, the divider can be set to output sub-divided frequencies with digital precision. Output frequency depends on "N". If "N"= 2, 3, 4, etc., the output frequencies will be an octave, an octave and a fifth. or two octaves below the input, respectively. Because "N"is voltage controllable, arpeggios and various melodies can easily be programmed. The nature of this type of division (integer division), results in frequencies that fall along the sub-harmonic series, a series that has great tonal charm.
For sub-audio frequencies, the divider acts like a counter, outputting a pulse only after "N" number of input pulses. Input pulses can be fairly random, or regular. This capability is especially powerful for determining tempos and rhythmic patterns when using several sequencers (especially if the "N" vc input is taken from one of a sequencers rows of controls). In a more random situation, using a microphone preamp/detector as input. the divider might be set to count how many times a sound of a certain loudness will have occurred, and be set to trigger an event upon reaching the count. Since the count can be made variable (from 1 to 31), fairly complex and subtle inter-actions can be generated.
Wizardry: With feedback, this can be patch-programmed to oscillate.You can vary the frequency by turning the divider control knob. Using this module to divide clock pulses is an obvious application; it is also useful for dividing high-frequency audio.

DualAnalog Shift Register w/ input attenuator pot (2ASR)

The ANALOG SHIFT REGISTER (ASR) is a sequential sample and hold module for producing arabesque-like forms in musicalspace (see diagram). Whenever pulsed, the previously held voltage is sent down the line to three consecutive outputs to produce the electrical equivalent of a canonical musical structure. A pulse output permits linking two or more Analog Shift Registers together to form longer patterns.

Quantizer(QUAN)
The QUANTIZER (QUAN) provides a simple means to turn any control voltage into voltage steps corresponding to well tuned (equal - tempered) tones of the musical scale. It is scaled to 1volt per octave. Thus, a zero to +5 volt envelope at the Quantizer's input produces a staircase of voltages corresponding to a chromatic scale spanningfive octaves.

If patched to the 1 volt per octave input of an oscillator tuned to "E", a gradual slope of 1 volt applied to the input of the Quantizer will produce the following steps of the musical scales:
E - F - F# - G - G# - A - A# - B - C - C# - D - D# - E. (normal chromaticscale)

If the 1/6 Scale Select is HIGH, then the scale produced will be:
E - F# - G# - A# - C - D - E. (whole - tone scale)

If the 1/3 Scale select is HIGH, then the scale produced will be:
E - G# - C - E. (scale of major third steps)

If both the 1/6 and 1/3 inputs are high, the scale will be:
E - F - G# - A - C - C# - E. (alternating half - step/minor third step)

Since the Scale Select inputs can be activated very quickly, the Quantizer can produce a very wide variety of tonal effects, quickly moving between four different types of musical scales(chromatic, whole - tone, the augmented triad, and a six - step major - minor scale often heard in certain oriental musics).

The Quantizer features six channels, as a "stand - alone" module, and takes up two inches of panel space. Accuracy of the Quantizer is 3 cents maximum deviation from the ideal equal -tempered semi - tone over a five octave range (i.e. just about the limits ofpitch sensitivity of the human ear). Response time for all channels is about 8 milliseconds."

RA Sessions: Legowelt

Published on Sep 11, 2017 Resident Advisor

"The Dutch artist performs a freaky extended live session.

This whole lo-fi, straight-to-tape, DIY aesthetic that’s so popular these days? Danny Wolfers invented it. OK, that’s an exaggeration. But it’s true that the Dutch artist has embodied these characteristics for longer than some of this style’s recent adopters have been alive. Wolfers gets additional respect for never wavering from these core tenets of his artistry. He’s popular, to be sure. He plays live all over the world, and he releases records on big labels like Clone and L.I.E.S. But he still clearly values unfiltered creativity above anything else.

Head over to his website. There’s a section for the Ableton plug-ins he makes and gives away. There’s a bit for his zine, Shadow Wolf Cyberzine. He writes reviews of old synthesizers, and has a section called Obseuriosa where you can download his weird, sample-based experiments. Then see his Discogs page. He has over 30 aliases, and he’s released two albums already this year. He called the first, A Vampire Goes West, “amateur space jazz meets professional ambient.” He described the second, Unfolding The Future With Amateur Space Jazz, as “a lo-fi minimal [wave-ish] version of cosmic space jazz and anything closely related to it... from spiritual soul, G-funk, Ethiopian jazz to ambient and everything in between.” (He wrote and illustrated a 24-page graphic novel for that one.) To summarise all of this in a few words, Wolfers is the real deal.

His RA Session is longest we’ve released so far, which was probably to be expected. He turned up to our London office last month with a trunk full of gear and, roughly speaking, performed five tracks. The first two are versions of forthcoming material, and from around 16 minutes onwards we get Wolfers in full-blown improv mode.

Visit the RA feature page: https://www.residentadvisor.net/features/3064

Director - Sophie Misrahi
Producer/editor - Guy Clarke
Camera - Sophie Misrahi, Guy Clarke, Patrick Nation
Sound Engineer - Jesal Chohan-Padia (Sound Services)"

korg prophecy virtual analog synthesizer

Published on Feb 7, 2015 bulishearth

KORG Prophecy's on eBay

The video description comes from Sound on Sound

"It's not a new synth -- it's seven! Korg's amazing new Prophecy offers analogue and FM synthesis, and physical modelling, and still costs under £1000. Unsurprisingly, SOS staff have been dying to review one ever since it was unveiled at this year's Frankfurt Musik Messe. Lucky man GORDON REID won the toss...

This is the story as it was told to me... In 1987, the former Sequential Circuits design team (responsible for classics such as the Prophet 5 and Prophet VS) began working for Korg. The company immediately bundled them out of sight, locked them in a room full of computers and said "design something for us". Locks were locked, bolts were bolted, and most people forgot that they had ever existed.

Years passed. Every day somebody from Korg would shove some food and water through a hole in the door. Then, one day, there was a timorous knock from inside. Locks were unlocked and bolts were drawn. When the door was opened, a pasty-faced individual peeked out, blinked in the light, and said, "We've designed something. It's called a Wavestation". "What does it do?" asked the guys from Korg. "Well, it's sort of a wavetable synthesizer, with vector synthesis, and wave sequencing". "Not bad" said the guys from Korg. "Now get back inside and design something else".

Years passed. Every day somebody from Korg would shove some food and water through a hole in the door. Then, one day, there was another timorous knock from inside. The door was opened, and an even pastier-faced individual peeked out, blinked in the light, and said "We've designed something else". "What does it do this time?" asked the guys from Korg. "Well, it does analogue synthesis" said the pasty-faced one. "And FM. Oh yes... and physical modelling of plucked strings. And brass. And reeds. And it can be programmed to handle any new synthesis techniques that may come along in the future... and it does them all simultaneously. We've called it the Open Architecture Synthesis System, or OASYS for short."

The executives at Korg were delighted, and instead of shoving the team back into their room, bought them dinner at an expensive Japanese restaurant. But there was a problem. At £10,000, the OASYS was expensive. Very expensive. So Korg turned to the developers and said, "Sorry guys, we've got to put you back in your room. We need something cheaper, something that will appeal to the average musician. Something, to be blunt, that we can sell in the mass markets."

Months passed. Every day somebody from Korg would shove some food and water through the hole in the door. Then, quite recently, there was a knock from inside. An extremely pasty-faced individual peeked out and said, "We've done what you asked". "What does it do?" asked the guys from Korg. "Well, it does analogue synthesis" said the pasty-faced one. "And FM. Oh yes... and physical modelling of plucked strings. And brass. And reeds. And, before you shove us back in the room... it does all that for less than £1,000." Thus did the Prophecy, as they say, come to pass.

OUTSIDE AND IN

Externally, the Korg Prophecy is a light but robust 37-note monosynth with a velocity- and aftertouch-sensitive keyboard. The styling is, to my eyes, new and refreshing, although a few people have commented on its similarities to the Yamaha VL1... A 2 x 40-character backlit LCD dominates the control panel, and is surrounded by buttons to the left and right, and knobs underneath. Conventional modulation and pitch-bend wheels, plus the 'log' (a combined mod-wheel and pressure-sensitive ribbon controller), round off the package. Most people will either love it or hate it. I love it...

Round the back, you'll find the inevitable MIDI In, Out and Thru, alongside inputs for an expression pedal, an on/off (sustain) foot-switch, and a socket for an EC5 MIDI controller. This can be used for patch selection when your hands are otherwise occupied. There's also a socket for a RAM card that will store arpeggiator patterns as well as patches. And, finally, there are the stereo audio outputs.

Internally, the Prophecy is just a computer, although it boasts no fewer than five processors. Three of these are the Texas Instruments TMS57002 DSPs used in the Korg G-series effects. The other two are for housekeeping: an NEC V55 looks after the user interface, key-scanning, and display, and a Toshiba H8 (which I've never heard of) looks after the three DSPs."

Vote for x0xb0x Creator Limor Fried as Entrepreneur of 2012

In glorious hot pink hair, the maker who brought us the orginal x0xb0x, Limor Fried, aka ladyada of Adafruit Industries.

Vote for her for Entrepeneur of 2012 here. Go ladyada! Worth noting is she directly employs 25 people according to the contest, but she also indirectly contributes to all the x0xb0x makers out there.

via Boing Boing

Maker Camp Week Five video below featuring ladyada. Below that you'll find a great interview from 2009 previously posted here.

You can see the x0xb0x featured in her portfolio for 2005 here (dated 2004-2005). And of course see the x0xb0x label here for 490 x0xb0x posts to date!


YouTube Published on Aug 10, 2012 by makemagazine

"Join Maker Camp on Google+ http://g.co/makercamp"

New Doepfer Eurorack Modules

"Module A-150-8 contains eight manually/voltage controlled switches. Each of the eight switches has a manual control button (Man.), a control voltage input (CV), a common Out / Input (O/I), and two In / Outputs (I/O1, I/O2). The switches are bi-directional, i.e. they can work in both directions, so can connect one input to either of two outputs, or either of two inputs to one output. Two LEDs show which in / output is active (i.e. which is connected to the common out / input). In addition the LEDs are used for the programming of the module:

For each unit the operating mode can be selected: Toggle or Level controlled. In Toggle mode the rising edge of the CV input or operating the manual control button changes the state of the switch. In Level mode the switch state is defined by the voltage applied to the CV input (low voltage = I/O1, high voltage = I/O2) or by the state of the manual control button (not pressed = I/O1, pressed = I/O2). The modes are programmed very easily: Operating the Toggle/Level button of the program section displays the current state of each switch with the LEDs: left LED on = Toggle mode, right LED on = Level mode. Operating the manual control button of the switch in question changes the toggle/level mode while the Toggle/Level button of the program section is operated. During the programming possibly patched CV signals have to be removed as the CV signals would interfere with the manual operating buttons during the programming process.

In addition it's possible to define master/slave groups. In such a group the upper unit (= master) controls also the state of the following switches provided that they are defined as slaves. Master/slave programming is also very simple: Operating the Master/Slave button of the program section displays the current state of each switch with the LEDs: left LED on = Master, right LED on = Slave. Operating the manual control button of the switch in question changes the master/slave mode while the Master/Slave button of the program section is operated. During the programming possibly patched CV signals have to be removed as the CV signals would interfere with the manual operating buttons during the programming process.
When all 8 units are defined as master all switches are independent from each other. If for example the sequence is MSSSMSMS the control unit of the first switch also controls the switches 2, 3 and 4. The control unit of switch 5 also controls the switch 6, and the control unit of switch 7 also controls the switch 8. The current states of the slave switches are overwritten by the state of the master switch.

Technical note: To protect the electronic switches in case of an unsuitable patch (e.g. connection of two outputs) a 1k protection resistor is inserted into the O/I line of each switch. If control voltages used for VCOs are switched this may cause a small voltage drop and lead to undesired audible detuning. For this application we recommend to insert a CV buffer between A-150-8 and the VCO(s), e.g. the Buffered Multiple A-180-3 or the Precision Adder A-185-2. Integrating the buffers into the module A-150-8 was not possible because this would ruin the bidirectionality of the switches."

CLICK FOR MORE »

Reon Driftboxes SE, J, and W

REON drift boxパフォーマンス Published on Mar 9, 2016

Note the video above is from March in 2016, so these are not technically new. Reon gear tends to be promoted via Japanese channels. As you can see their website is primarily in Japanese only.  They also do a bit of one off and customized gear. Check out the pink one!

Previously featured Reon driftboxes included the driftbox S, S ver II, R, Q, V, E, C, T, and G announced here, back in 2013. There were also modular versions and a Roland branded DriftBox R model announced in 2015. You can find demos and pics via the Reon label here.

BTW, the different spellings and capitalizations I'm using for Driftbox is on purpose. Roland branded it DriftBox with a capital D and B, and Reon interchanges between driftbox, all lowercase, and Driftbox with the capital D. I have also seen it as Drift Box.

That said, not featured here on MATRIXSYNTH before now, are the driftbox SE, J, and W. The following are some details Google translated from Reon.

driftbox SE 4 Voice-8 Paraphonic Synthesizer

CLICK FOR MORE »

BX-13-VX Super Compact 24-pin to 13-pin Guitar and Bass Synthesizer Bus Converter

via this auction
"Combines Features of Roland BC-13 with Expanded Foot Switch Controls and More! Works with Roland G-202, 303, 505, 707, 808, Ibanez IMG2010 and Roland GI-10, GI-20, GR-1, GR-9, GR-30, GR-33, VG-88, VG-99, VB-99 and More!

Features of the BX-13-VX:
* Precision Control for Synth Volume Calibration
* Precision Control for Guitar Volume Calibration
* Synth Mute Input for Optional Foot Switch Control
* Guitar Mute Input for Optional Foot Switch Control
* Adapts Vintage Roland Guitar and Bass Synth Controllers to Control Modern Guitar Synthesizers
* Vintage GK Mode Switch Automatically Converts to Modern GK Switch
* New More Affordable Design
* Rugged Stomp-Box Enclosure Design
* Backed by Five-Year Parts and Labor Warranty
* Elegant Design

more details at the auction and joness.com.

Novation AFX Station • Lightbath Patches + Overlays Demo

Lightbath

"I'm honored to be one of five sound designers selected by Novation and Richard D. James to create Patches + Overlays for the new AFX Station synth. I'm in good company with the others being Richard Devine, Noyzelab, Perplex On and ol' pal, r beny.

The AFX Station is a Bass Station II with a facelift that makes it easier to use the AFX Mode Overlays that are part of the new firmware. Plus, the thing looks great, now. More pro, less toy imo. It's a powerful synth that reminds me a lot of my Roland SH-101, but with patch-saving capabilities and some gnarly distortion and drive.

My patches parody a few choice sounds like BoC's Roygbiv and One Very Important Thought and some of the dirty sounds used by Tobacco and Black Moth Super Rainbow as well as a bunch of 'classic' Lightbath sounds and even a few jokes.

Lightbath Patches

082 - Audubon
083 - B3 Marimba
084 - Bass Racer
085 - Dandy Gum
086 - Formantable
087 - Gravity Error
088 - ImportantThought
089 - Mosquitohead
090 - Pluckbath
091 - Roy G. Biv
092 - SH-Gregorian
093 - The Fourth Below
094 - Threefold
095 - Tobacco Blessing
096 - Warm Chillbath

Lightbath Overlays

o5 - Gyil
o6 - Glitch
o7 - Flute"

Novation → https://novationmusic.com/en/synths/a..."

You can find additional Novation AFX Station posts here.

Roland GR-500, GS-500 and PC-50

Click here for shots via this auction.

Details:
"Roland GR-500 and GS-500 Guitarset including controllers and cables. very rare because you won't find this combination anywhere! only a few where made in the past. As used by Mike Rutherford of Genesis and Alex Lifeson of Rush.

Here is a description:
''This is THE first guitar synth ever made & it came out in 1977! It came with an Ibanez made Les Paul type guitar with tons of knobs to control various parameters of the 3 separate synth's that were built in to the module. The synthesizer module included Bass, Solo Synth, and String sounds based on previous Orchestral and analog mono-synths from Roland. There are plenty of sliders to adjust the VCO, VCF, VCA, and LFO sections. The guitar utilizes a special pickup system that is connected to the synth module via Roland's own 24-pin interface and controlled it using CV/GATE signals generated by the guitar's pickup system while playing the guitar. In addition to the modified pickup, there were magnets under the face of the guitar that could increase its sustain''


This is the complete set including the guitar, the PC-50 Preset Controller footswitch, 24-way cable and the synthesizer unit (GR500). The guitar has a very nice honeyburst finish.

The playability is very good, with a nice comfortable neck and low string action.

The sound is very very very versatile as you may expect. You can create anything with this one, Because of the Les Paul style body this guitar sustains for days and has a nice warm tone. I'm sure the guitarsynth experts know what i'm talking about.

The condition is good. Just light playwear. Some scratches here and there, but nothing serious. A hardcase is included for the guitar.

Here is another description for the high tech guitarplayers among us:

The GS500 was a heavily modified Ibanez guitar, with a single humbucker plus a hexaphonic pickup for driving the GR500, individual on/off switches for each of the four synthesis sections, switches to select the sound of the guitar itself, the synthesizer, or both simultaneously, plus EQ. All this appeared as a beautifully crafted, but very heavy instrument whose body contained magnets that fed the audio output back to the strings, thus creating an 'infinite sustain' system. The GS500 really was far more than just a guitar plugged into a sound generator!

If the GS500 had a limitation, it was that you could only connect it to the outside world using a heavy, multi-core cable unique to the GS/GR500 combination (shown in the above picture). Without this, you owned nothing more than a large, heavy paperweight. Given that there are now no spares left, you cannot even build a new one, and the similar-looking cable used for future Roland guitar synths was wired differently and does not work correctly. While players were to find this very frustrating, it had a huge benefit for Kakehashi and Roland when the prototype was stolen — and then returned as 'unusable' — just hours before its world launch in Australia.

The synthesizer module (shown below) was amazing, with five sound generation sections — G, P, B, M and S — that you could play individually or in any combination. These were the straight-through Guitar, Poly-ensemble, Bass, Melody, and an 'external synthesizer' section designed to interface with and control an SH5, System 100 or System 700. The Poly-ensemble, which treated the independent outputs from the 'hex' pickup, was interesting, and produced what would later become Roland's signature 'bowed guitar' sound, but it was the Melody section that captured players' imagination because it was here that the real synthesis took place.

Sounds were generated by a conventional VCO/VCF/VCA architecture reminiscent of the earliest SH-series synths, but with a number of very important bonuses. For example, the VCA was 'touch sensitive', and the output from the Poly-ensemble was an input in the solo synth's mixer, so you could inject the polyphonic sound into the VCF/VCA signal path. Another superb innovation was the output buss system that allowed you to direct the sounds generated by each of the sections to any one of three outputs as well as a global 'Mix' output.

In addition, the PC50 Preset Controller was a floor unit that allowed you to set up three mixes for the P, B, M and S sections and select between them using stomp switches. A fourth switch returned control to the guitar. I have never seen mention of the PC50 in any of Roland's documentation"

via Johan