- patching for life - MODEL 408S CONTROL EXPANDER

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"MODEL 408S CONTROL EXPANDER

FLPG（Passive LPG with tone control fader"

via P4L (patching for life)

"This expander can extend the functionality of the 208 module by adding a number of inputs and outputs.

Many CV inputs have already been added to the 208C, but using them as secondary inputs makes the behaviour more complex.
This expander was fully tested on Buchla Clone 208p.
And will works on many Buchla 208 and clone machines, but not on 208r Rev.1.
( Depending on your module you may need to change the resistance value. )

Built by hand in Japan."

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Buchla 208r music easel (black panel)

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"208 Roman v3 board, black panel, UA726 ICs. Just repaired & calibrated to 1.2 v/oct. Comes with the SAMODULAR 4U case & power supply. The bottom of both wood sides of the case were previously broken during shipping, and have since been repaired (barely noticeable, but look at last picture)."

Pic of the inside boards below.

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Black Panel Buchla Music Easel

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Some pics of the inside below.

"The 208 is a 208r V1 with NOS vactrols and NOS tropical fish capacitors and Sprauge capacitors for accurate tone. All high quality parts that you won't find in another Easel unless you have the components and build it yourself of course. Comes with Buchla style silver panel if you prefer. Black panel is a little cloudy in spots but hardly noticeable. You can mount this 208r in a shallow boat in your Buchla case, unlike every other version of the 208."

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Buchla Easel 208r black panel

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"208 Roman v3 board, black panel, UA726 ICs. Has Papz reverb mod, so reverb doesn’t overdrive, so it is smooth all the way through to 100% wet."

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Black Panel Buchla Music Easel

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"Beautiful Music Easel that I’m only parting with due to the pandemic situation. This Easel is a professionally built Roman clone consisting of a 208r and 218r in very limited black PCBs and an era-appropriate (70s) Halliburton “almost zero” style case in powder coated matte black. The knobs, sliders, and jacks all follow a greyscale color scheme that looks very cool and is (in my opinion) just as easy to navigate as the stock color system.

This Easel has had several upgrades from the original Roman specifications including an infinite sustain mod, boops new card 12 which improves the spring reverb and headphone output, and rewiring the second output directly to the Complex Oscillator for a separate dry out. It is calibrated and tracks over 5 octaves.

Sale includes the Easel, power supply, gooseneck lamp, one blank program card, 10 shorting bars, and several banana cables.

Keep in mind this is a handmade unit and, while in excellent condition, is not cosmetically pristine. The case is nearly 50 years old and has a couple of minor dents, although the powder coating is relatively fresh. It is functionally perfect and one of the best sounding Easels I’ve ever heard. I wish I could hold onto this one, because it really is something special. I’m simply breaking even at this price, so it is relatively firm. Don’t hesitate to reach out with any questions. Thanks for looking!"

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First Buchla 208r improv

Published on Apr 5, 2020 jamescigler

"First improvised performance with the Buchla 208r.
Pressure Points off-camera controls pitch changes. OTO BIM delay and BAM + Eventide Space reverbs."

Buchla 208r Voice Module

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"Roman Filipov-designed clone of the Buchla 208r, the voice module of the Buchla Music Easel. One of the very last built by respected maker Adam 'Djangosfire' Scramstad before he retired from building modules."

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Buchla 208r (Easel voice) + 248r (MARF) + Portabellabz / EMS VCS3 Oscillator (synced)

Published on Feb 4, 2020 isvisible isinvisible

Bass Organ Sound - 208 Modulation Oscillator
Brassy Sound - 208 Complex Oscillator
Space Sounds - VCS3 Oscillator (licenced from EMS)

The VCS3 oscillator is being synced by the 208's modulation oscillator. With added cv from the 208's Pulser and one of it's random sources mixed together in the Portebellabz 208 Toolbox.

There's a dash of delay on the output courtesy of a Bugbrand PT Delay.

Buchla 208 & 248 with Eurorack Drums

Published on Oct 25, 2019 isvisible isinvisible

"The Buchla 208r being sequenced by itself and a 248r.

The 208r is generating two voices, one a steady bass note using the Modulator Oscillator, the other a more varied one using the audio from the Complex Oscillator being manipulated by the Pulser and EG mixed in the Portabellabz 208 Toolbox.

The Eurorack drums are all being driven by the 208 Toolbox all pulses out, then being multiplied using a Doepfer A-160-5 (clock multiplier), then into a Doepfer A-160-2 (clock divider) to generate different timings into switches for variations for the bass drum, snare and noise. Then the drums are all fed into a Modcan Dual Delay."

Buchla 208r (rev.2) - A Couple of Droney Patches

Published on Oct 7, 2019 isvisible isinvisible

"The first patch has the Complex Oscillator being cv'd by the MARF and the Modulation Oscillator by the 208r's sequencer.
There's a touch of Bugbrand PT Delay added.

The second patch is a 208r self contained patch, with no additional effects etc."

Custom Buchla Electric Music Box / Music Easel

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"Expertly constructed portable Buchla modular system housed in a black metal Halliburton briefcase with tons of extras. Fully tested and fully functional.

-------------

System is composed of the following modules:

Buchla 208r rev2 - STORED PROGRAM SOUND SOURCE. Built with uA726s.

Buchla 258c - DUAL OSCILLATOR MODEL. Built with uA726s.

Eardrill ModuleModule Chassis containing Eardrill VCA, Eardrill ADSR, and Jason Butcher VCBF 291 style Buchla filter, modded with a white noise generator output.

Jason Butcher 2U touch plate controller / Buchla 216 style.

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System is powered by one standard 120VAC US plug and has 2 additional 12V DC output ports to power accessories such as a mini mixer (included), etc., and a banana out grounding port for connecting things such as a Kenton Pro Solo MIDI/CV connector.

Also included are banana patch cables, dual banana patch plugs, miniplug cables, miniplug to 1/4" cables, banana to 1/8" adapters, copy of the original music easel manual, and 1 resistor socket prototyping 208 preset card, 1 breakout 208 preset card with enveloper auto looper circuit, and 3 blank 208 preset cards.

Asking $5575 OBO Philadelphia area. Free shipping to US only."

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Buchla 208r Easel Clone Analog Modular Synthesizer

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"For Sale is a 208r Rev 1 (essentially the top portion of an easel). It was built by Roman [Filippov of Black Corporation] and functions perfectly. It only includes the module. No boat or power supply. It has been fully tested. Everything on it works. Spring Reverb tank sounds nice and dark. Will include 5 shortening bars. It is listed as 'very good' because of the screw rack rash. There are no other scratches. Has been kept covered in a case."

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Buchla clone 208r version 1

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Buchla Music Easel 218R 208R rev1 in Haliburton Case

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"Buchla Easel Clone rev 1. It is powered and housed in a Zero Halliburton case. It was repurposed from a former photographer and you can see some notes on the inside of the top case. The wiring for the case has not been finished or started. It is a larger case with the idea that you could put 1-200 module next to the 218r (again not finished). The Easel itself (218r 208r) is powered. The IEC power cable comes out the back. The Synth sounds fantastic and is very much alive. The bass is insane! Reverb is dark... I like the "swampy" sound of the rev 1. This was supposedly built by Roman but I can't prove that. FULL DISCLOSURE --- Other things to note, all of the sequencer notes light up but the step it is on lights up brighter. Tracking over 3 octaves can sometimes go out of tune (probably would benefit a calibration but it is not necessary). Sometimes the pulsar does not trigger when you self trigger it (this is a known issue with some REV 1). Includes Pomona Cables and Banana short plugs. Everything you need to get started."

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Pantribal Sodality

Published on Apr 29, 2019 zack dagoba

"I have finally finished my 200 cabinet (for now - I think I want to add a few more modules at some point but this is enough to be getting on with)

Modules: 208r Stored Program Sound Source, 218r Touch Keyboard Controller, 281r Quad Function Generator, 261e Complex Waveform Generator, 248r Multiple Arbitrary Function Generator + Expander, 124b Patchboard / Power Switch, 277r Signal Delay Unit, 257r Dual Voltage Processor

See https://myblogitsfullofstars.blogspot..."

Buchla 208r Module Version 1

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Pics of the inside below.

"The 208r Clone is the top half of the Buchla Music Easel as a standalone module built by a very reliable and well-known third party manufacturer. By 'standalone', I mean it still needs a standard Buchla case to receive the correct power, etc., but it is independent of the 218 pressure keyboard that usually comes bundled with it as a complete Music Easel set-up.

It is in excellent condition and lightly used in my home studio since December of 2014 (I am the original owner). It is a version 1 unit, so the Programming Card slot on the top left of the unit IS NON-FUNCTIONAL. This is not because of any misuse from my end; it is the way that it was built and was a known issue when I purchased it. Otherwise everything else is functions perfectly and build quality is fantastic. As I hope the accompanying photos indicate, there's not a scratch on it and it's beautiful to behold."

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Portabellabz Synthi Card for Buchla 208

Published on Feb 4, 2019 Todd Barton

"The new EMS Synthi (licensed) Card by http://www.portabellabz.be
be sure to checkout these audio files for best sound http://www.portabellabz.be/SYNTHI_Car...
Great to have this onboard.! Wonderful sounds and timbres. I will be making more videos -- hope you enjoy this teaser."

And via Brian Comnes, spotted on Muffs:

"I'm happy to announce the release of a new Portbellabz card for Music Easel and 208 under EMS Cornwall license.

This card expands the Music Easel or 208 with original EMS Synthi A and VCS3 circuits : an oscillator that produces simultaneous square and triangle waveshapes with wide range and features useful modifications (synchronization, shape CV, hi/lo range) and a noise generator with variable colour, together with my acclaimed Random Voltage Generator modification module that expands many original EMS Synthi A, AKS and VCS3, unlike the 208's one, it's true random.
The inputs and outputs voltages are adapted to match the ones used in the 208.


It will be available in late February / early March, pre-built (€460 + shipping, Rogans and rear edge connector in option) or as a DIY PCB set (€130 shipped) like the 208 ToolBox.

The prices include a commission for Robin Wood at EMS, that is the same for each pre-built unit or PCB set sold.

It works with 208p, 208r (not rev1) and BEMI / Buchla USA Easels. The tracking can be set to 1V/oct, 1.2V/oct or 2V/oct (or other, but who wants that ? :lol: ).

A very few privileged persons were lucky enough to already test a prototype and enjoyed it. Thanks to them for keeping the secret.

Hopefully a demo video of the great Todd Barton should pop up soon, thanks in advance Todd.

In the meantime, here are some (very basic) demo of the card with my own 208.
All sounds are coming from the card except the CO modulation track (208's CO modulated by the card). A 218r was used to demonstrate tracking. It's a bit high in the lowest notes but this is fixed.

http://www.portabellabz.be/SYNTHI_Card_demos_mp3.zip

[b]Oscillator[/b]
- 100% analogue discrete components
- square and triangle outputs, blue bananas are full range outputs for modulation, red knobs are outputs to the mixer
- wide range from very slow LFO to ultrasonic, switchable hi/lo range with fine tuning
- tracking good on about 5 octaves via the 208's keyboard CV in
- variable frequency CV input with attenuverter via black banana
- variable shape CV input with attenuator via black banana
- variable sync input with attenuator via black banana

[b]Noise[/b]
- 100% analogue discrete components
- white banana is full range output for modulation
- red knob is output to the mixer
- variable colour

[b]Mixer[/b]
- tinijax out to feed the 208's preamp
- banana out for mixed modulation

[b]Random voltage generator[/b]
- available on the white banana - a mini slide switch behind the panel selects noise or random, this affects the white banana only, the noise is still available in the mixer when random is used
- clock input via the 208's inverter "to card" socket
- noise colour changes the random voltage

Bill Sequeira kindly did this nice overview. Thank you Bill.
The pictured card is a prototype, the production one will look very similar.

[img]http://www.portabellabz.be/images/PortabellabzSynthiCard.jpeg[/img]

Thanks for your interest and more soon."

New ELKA Synthex Coming from Black Corporation - Meet the Xerxes 8 Voice Synthesizer

Just the image for now. Click on it to check out the front panel in more detail. It clearly takes after the ELKA Synthex.

Black corporation of course brought us Deckards Dream, based on the Yamaha CS80, and Kijimi, a poly based on the RSF Kobol.

Black Corporation is run by Roman Filippov, the man behind the original 208r Buchla Music Easel clone. Some consider it closer to the original than the BEMI re-issue.

Xerxes is a suitable name considering the Elka Synthex is considered a king among synths. via Wikipedia:

"Xerxes I (/ˈzɜːrksiːz/; Old Persian: 𐎧𐏁𐎹𐎠𐎼𐏁𐎠 Xšayaṛša (About this sound Khshāyarsha (help·info)) [4] "ruling over heroes",[5] Greek Ξέρξης Xérxēs [ksérksɛːs]; 519–465 BC), called Xerxes the Great, was the fourth king of kings of the Achaemenid dynasty of Persia. Like his predecessor Darius I, he ruled the empire at its territorial apex. He ruled from 486 BC until his assassination in 465 BC at the hands of Artabanus, the commander of the royal bodyguard."


Update: added an image of the original Elka Synthex from this post, where you can find more pics.

Arturia Buchla Easel V Comparison with Buchla 208P

Published on Jun 4, 2018 Tritone Guitars

"Heath Aldrich and Dave Anderson compare and discuss the Arturia Buchla Easel V with Heath's physical Buchla 208P. Video production by Jesse Bader"

I'm familiar with Roman Filippov's 208r clone, but not the 208p. I did a quick search and found the following: (Update: turns out the 208p is essentially a clone of the clone. Some info added further below)

Buchla 208p Music Easel First Sketches

Published on Mar 19, 2018 Heath Aldrich

Update regarding the 208p: "Papz put his version out earlier this year, and it has all the fixes implemented from Roman's 208. http://www.portabellabz.be/208pcb.html. I recommend this version of you want to build one."
You can find a few posts featuring Portabellabz in the archives here.

Playlist:

1. Buchla 208p Music Easel First Sketch

This is DIY Buchla 208 Music Easel that I built. It took me over 50 hours, and it still isn't perfect, but it is perfect for me. This synth has such a rich sound, and is so easy to change the voice of the patch, that it is hard to not be inspired by playing with it. I have always wanted one, and am so happy I had the chance to build one.

This is a idea that I have been working with since I started calibrating this beast. It is far from complete, but I like where it is going. All sounds were recorded direct from the 208p, no external processing, no external effects. Just a boy and his toy.

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Buchla 208r V2 Stored Program Sound Source Module

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"Buchla 208r V2 Stored Program Sound Source Module in excellent condition. Please study the detailed photos, there are a few minor things like marks on the boat which were there from new but the 208r is in excellent condition and in perfect working order. This 208r was built to the highest standards using the Roman Filippov V2 PCBs. I did many hours, if not days or weeks of research before commissioning this build and chose a very highly respected European tech to build it for me, he has built many of these for many a happy customer and knows these machines inside out. It sounds amazing and is less than a year old.

The 208r is an exact clone of the 208 from the original 1970s Buchla Music Easel. The only difference I know of is it has a replacement circuit for the uA726 which gives it both better and wider tracking than the original. It is also calibrated to the 1V/OCT standard.

The 208r comes in a powered boat. It has two 1/4" jack outputs, one is a standard large jack output of the main signal out and the other is a dedicated Channel A output which is tapped before the mixer but after the Gate so its possible to do send and return effects processing. It also has a 1/4" jack input for a passive foot-pedal or switch which enables an internal gate signal to be sent to the envelope."

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