S2400 Firmware Update March 2023

video upload by Isla Instruments

"Go Get it:
https://forum.islainstruments.com/t/s..."

S2400 Round Robin Slice playback demo


"A new feature in the latest (March 2023) S2400 FW update is Round Robin mode.
Take a watch...
In this video Rory has loaded the Amen break, and cycles through some of the Round Robin modes as it plays back.....
HOWWWZAAAAAA"

Alex Ball videos here

The Glorious ARP Quadra from 1978!

video upload by Alex Ball

"A look at the famous ARP Quadra from 1978.

Huge thank you to Andrew "The Quadra" Ward for the loan!
https://www.instagram.com/arpquadra

Download the song (all proceeds to the Alan R Pearlman Foundation):
https://alexball.bandcamp.com/track/a...

https://alanrpearlmanfoundation.org/

ARP Quadra Playlist:

• ARP QUADRA SONGS

0:00 Intro Jam
1:17 Talk: The Quadra
1:37 Demo 1: Skeleton Dance
2:47 The Four Sections
4:40 Talk: It's Very Simple
5:49 Demo 2: Legit Carpentry
6:51 Talk: Memory?
8:08 Demo 3: Band Member
9:05 Talk: That Keyboard
10:51 Demo 4: Fresh Lineup
12:05 Summary
14:06 Feature Track: Make It Happen"

Roland Introduces the SH-4d Desktop Synthesizer

Update: two more user videos (Alex Bell's & Starsky Carr's) added to the user playlist below.

video uploads by RolandChannel

"Lose yourself in a world of sound with the Roland SH-4d Synthesizer, a powerful desktop instrument featuring hands-on workflow and deep synthesis tools for in-the-moment magic. Watch as Detroit techno legend Carl Craig takes the SH-4d for a spin, bringing you on a sonic odyssey and diving headfirst into the unit’s array of sonic capabilities.

What’s inside the SH-4d? Command eleven OSC Models for a diverse range of sound-design possibilities, from vintage analog synths and PCM-based sounds to cutting-edge digital tones. Create custom kits with the rhythm part’s rich tone-shaping capabilities containing 26 unique drum instruments that can each be designed from scratch.

Spur spontaneous musical moments with the multitimbral sequencer, extensive effects, and plenty of polyphony. And with the loaded front panel, dynamic controls, motion recording, and more, you can transform ideas into short loops or complete songs as quickly as your ideas come."

User videos (ordered by shortest videos first - use the player controls to skip around):



Playlist:
Roland SH-4d : First jam - Freaky Tweaky
The Roland SH-4d In a Nutshell - Alex Ball
Roland SH-4d：基本機能・VISUAL ARPEGGIO・D-MOTIONの説明 - Freaky Tweaky
Roland SH-4D 1st Look - Sonic LAB - sonicstate
Roland SH-4d Demo & Review - musictrackjp
ROLAND SH-4d REVIEW // Rolands best synthesizer groovebox yet?! - BoBeats
Roland Synthesizer SH-4d Review // A Synth Groovebox with Vintage Vibes - Starsky Carr
Roland SH-4d Review: The multi-engine synth battle heats up! // Full SH4d tutorial - loopop
Roland SH-4d Mega Tutorial - True Cuckoo

And the press release:

Future Retro Desktop Synth with 11 OSC Models, Pro Sound Design Tools, Hands-On Workflow, and Multitimbral Pattern Sequencer

Los Angeles, CA, February 23, 2023 — Roland announces the SH-4d Synthesizer, a powerful new desktop instrument focused on synthesis and sound design. With 11 OSC Models and a hands-on panel filled with knobs, buttons and sliders, the SH-4d fuels on-the-spot creation and endless sonic discoveries. It also features a multitimbral sequencer with four synth parts and a customizable rhythm part, allowing users to compose intricate patterns with motion recording, extensive effects and more. Equally suited for studio, stage and traveling, the SH-4d is a fun and versatile instrument that will appeal to both modern electronic music creators and synth collectors everywhere.

Fifty years ago, Roland launched its first synthesizer, the groundbreaking SH-1000. The SH name has represented the company’s core synthesizer instruments ever since, merging innovative new technologies with tactile interfaces for quickly designing sounds in the moment. The SH-4d opens the next chapter in the long-running series, offering Roland’s latest analog modeling advancements and a deep-yet-inviting panel that catalyzes creativity and rewards exploration at every turn.

Detroit techno legend Carl Craig was so impressed with the SH-4d that he agreed to be the face of the launch video, delivering a spirited performance featuring new music composed solely on the unit. "That machine is a little monster,” he said after spending just a short time with the SH-4d. “So many options to not only shape sound but to shape the musical composition too."

Eleven OSC Models offer diverse sound-crafting possibilities, from vintage analog tones with SH-4d, SH-3D, Chord, Ring and Sync Models to cutting-edge digital textures with Cross FM, Wavetable and Drawing Models. Influential voices from Roland’s historic past include SH-101 and JUNO-106 Models and a PCM Model with a large selection of sample-based sounds. The SH-4d also features a flexible drum synthesizer with rich tone-shaping capabilities for creating custom kits from scratch.

The SH-4d puts everything creators need for pro sound design at their fingertips, with 32 knobs, four sliders and a massive array of multi-function buttons. The LCD, sliders and buttons automatically reconfigure their functions to follow the selected mode, eliminating menu-dive roadblocks that slow the creative flow. Dedicated Filter, Amp and LFO sections are always ready to shape any tone or pattern. And with the powerful Matrix section, users can create an even wider range of sounds by routing the output of the LFO or envelope generator to parameters in a Model.

Among its many tricks, the SH-4d features built-in motion sensors that allow the user to pick up the synth and adjust sounds with physical movements. D-Motion mode provides X/Y control for two parameters, while the unique Visual Arpeggio shapes note patterns via fun interactive displays.

The SH-4d sequencer is always a button press away, ready to transform sound ideas into compact loops or extended compositions. Up to 60 notes of total polyphony provide ample resources to develop complete musical ideas in the box. There’s also a versatile selection of renowned Roland effects to frost, finesse, rough up or mangle tones and patterns.

The SH-4d runs on a standard USB-C phone charger or AA batteries for up to four hours. There’s a two-plus octave button keyboard for self-contained composition, plus MIDI I/O for use as a sound module and controller in an expanded hardware setup. The SH-4d also functions as a USB-C audio/MIDI interface with 12 discrete audio channels for computer music production.

CLICK FOR MORE »

MUTRONICS MUTATOR: THAT 90s FILTER

video upload by Alex Ball

"A look at the Mutronics Mutator released in 1996.

As discussed in the video, this unit was used by many famous artists, producers and engineers in the late 90s and early 00s across a broad range of styles.

The Mutator is a stereo pair of analogue, resonant low pass filters (SSM 2045s) and voltage controlled amplifiers that are contoured by envelope followers and/or LFOs. In a nutshell, that allows for all sorts of stereo filtering, sweeping and tremolo FX on an open-ended number of audio sources. There is further functionality such as additional attack and release times, external inputs for creating alternate envelopes, external CV ins, LFO linking/inverting, MIDI control and MIDI LFO reset etc. Most (but not all) of this was used at some point in the video.

0:00 Intro Jam
0:59 The Mutronics Mutator
2:04 Demo 1: Borrowed Filters
2:46 Radiohead and More
4:01 Demo 2: Crutator
5:06 Envelope Followers
6:03 Demo 3: Beat Guitar
6:45 Across a mix
7:01 Demo 4: Daft Filtering
8:14 What happened to the Mutator?
9:04 Demo 5: Does It Funk Though?
9:55 How do we get the sound now?
11:10 Summary"

FERRIS BUELLER'S SYNTHESIZER

video upload by Alex Ball

"A look at the E-mu Systems Emulator II from 1984, famously used by a certain Mr Bueller.

0:00 Day Off
0:40 The Emulator
1:30 Interlude 1: Some Sounds
1:59 The Emulator II
2:27 Interlude 2: 80s TV Score
3:03 Sampling Explanation
4:34 Sampling Demonstration
7:48 Multi-track Sequencing
9:34 What could you use it for now?
11:45 Computer Interface & Famous Users
13:53 Feature Track (mixed by Jakob at Sonic Peak)"

OBERHEIM'S FIRST SYNTH!

video upload by Alex Ball

"A look at the Oberheim Synthesizer Expander Module (1974) and Two Voice (1975), which were Oberheim's first two synthesizer products respectively.

0:00 Intro Jam
1:00 The Synthesizer Expander Module
2:04 Demo 1: State Sync
2:49 E-mu Systems
3:32 Demo 2: Two Voice
4:38 Dennis P Colin
5:49 Demo 3: Pull Seq Wonk
6:56 Jim Cooper
7:46 Demo 4: Transistor Bass Workout
9:04 Tom Oberheim
10:09 Demo 5: August Nineteen Seventy-Five
11:16 The Life Aquatic, Stranger Things and Drokk
13:50 Outro Jam"

A GOLDEN JUPITER & OTHER STORIES

video upload by Alex Ball

"As we come to the end of Roland's 50th anniversary year, I thought it would be fun to look at their anniversary golden Jupiter-X [posted here], the 'Inspire The Music' book and to also tell you some stories of my own.

I'd love to hear your stories in the comments section.

https://www.roland.com/uk/roland-50th...
https://bjooks.com/

0:00 Intro Jam
1:00 Roland Turn 50
1:56 Interlude Juno-6
2:36 Story 1: The Kitchen Synth
4:38 Interlude System 100m 1
5:48 Story 2: Window Shopping
7:48 Interlude System 100m 2
8:49 Story 3: Lost Prototype
12:10 Interlude TB-303
13:05 Story 4: Cereal box of 303
15:09 Outro Jam"

The Oberheim OB-X8 in a nutshell

video upload by Alex Ball

"Oberheim are back with a very serious synthesizer indeed; the OB-X8.

In this video we take a quick look at what it does and what it sounds like.

Huge thanks and congratulations to Oberheim and Sequential.

https://oberheim.com/
https://www.sequential.com/

0:00 INTRO JAM
0:58 THE OB-X8
1:15 DEMO 1
2:13 THE HEADLINES
2:38 DEMO 2
3:35 SPLITS AND DOUBLES
3:51 DEMO 3
4:42 DEMO 2
5:13 PAGE 2
7:03 DEMO 4
8:22 SUMMARY
9:09 OUTRO JAM"

Alan R. Pearlman Foundation Odyssey 50th Anniversary Celebration with Alex Ball !

video upload by Alan R. Pearlman Foundation

"As a kick-off for the November 5th celebration of the 50th anniversary of the ARP Odyssey, Alex Ball returns to YouTube to extoll everything ARP Odyssey, a little demo, a little music, a little tech-talk and as always, LOADS of FUN!

Join us for the 2022: A Fifty-Year ARP Odyssey Synthposium and Fundraiser. Go to bit.ly/2022-Odyssey to purchase tickets for the online event. All proceeds to The Alan R Pearlman Foundation's ARPs for ALL project.

Go to bit.ly/2022-Odyssey for tickets!"

2022: A Fifty-Year ARP Odyssey Odyssey Synthposium

video upload by Alan R. Pearlman Foundation

"November 5 we'll be having our annual Synthposium! Check out bit.ly/2022-Odyssey to learn more. Get your tickets now!

Music by Alex Ball
Video by Mary Lock
Artwork by Sharon Wasko (with art from original ARP artist Margaret Shepherd)"

ABOUT THE 2022: A 50 YEAR ARP ODYSSEY SYNTHPOSIUM

Location: Online, streaming from David Friend Recital Hall, Boston, MA

Date: November 5th, 2022 10:00am – 2:00pm (East Coast USA time)

*Please adjust your time zones accordingly*

Hosted by: The Berklee College of Music's Electronic Production and Design Department

CLICK FOR MORE »

URSA MAJOR VINTAGE FX

video upload by Alex Ball

"A look at the Space Station SST-282 and Stargate 323 units designed by Ursa Major, a company founded by Christopher Moore that operated from 1977 until 1985.

0:00 Intro
0:23 Demo 1: Space Repeats
1:16 Talk 1: Who were Ursa Major?
1:54 Demo 2: Delay Clusters
2:34 Talk 2: What is the Space Station?
3:29 Demo 3: Combs
4:24: Talk 3: The Trick
5:02 Demo 4: Reverb
6:01 Talk 4: Stargate 323/626
6:59 Demo 5: 323
7:35 Demo 6: Stargate
8:07 Demo 7: Spaces
9:11 Talk 5: Summary
9:53 Talk 6: What became of Ursa Major?
11:30 Contextual Demo: Found in the Sound

The Space Station and Stargate were used on almost every part on the final song, hopefully demonstrating how they work in a fuller musical context.

Thank you to the owners of these two wonderful units, you know who you are!"

The Oberheim Xpander from 1984

video upload by Alex Ball

"A look at the Oberheim Xpander from 1984.

This hybrid synthesizer was designed by Marcus Ryle and Michel Doidic with input from Doug Curtis and it boasts some surprising features for the time. In this video we take a closer look.

The information for this video was garnered from the following interviews:

GForce Bright Sparks: [below]

Ken Flux Pierce Interview: [below]

GEOSynths Interview: [below]

0:00 Intro Jam
0:58 Talk 1
1:31 Demo 1: Beach Comb
2:16 Talk 2
3:09 Demo 2: Faux Seq
3:52 Talk 3
4:30 Demo 3: Eff Em
5:04 Talk 4
5:59 Demo 4: Wobble 5
6:23 Talk 5
6:51 Demo 5: Judder
7:16 Talk 6
8:34 Demo 6: ALX
9:09 Talk 7
10:34 Multi Demo 1: Zone Call
11:55 Multi Demo 2 : Fond
13:54 Talk 8
15:56 Outro Jam"

Bright Sparks - Tom Oberheim

video upload by GForce Software

"After the 2015 release of our Bright Sparks Documentary & Album collaboration with I Monster, while we were elated at the critical acclaim the project received, we always felt it would have been enriched by the inclusion of one person in particular, Tom Oberheim."

See this previous post for the full description.

The SynthSummitShow ep 31 Marcus Ryle (line 6, Oberheim, Alesis)

video upload by Ken Flux Pierce Fluxwithit

Not seeing the date on this one, but clearly before Marcus joined the new Oberheim.

"Live Stream interview with Marcus Ryle co founder of Line 6 , who has worked with a wide assortment of legendary companies starting with Oberheim synthesizers, Alesis, and more."

GEOSynths Synth Show - Ep157 - Special Guest - Marcus Ryle

video upload by

"Having originally worked for Oberheim in the early 80’s and being Instrumental in the design and development of some classic Oberheim Synths, Marcus Ryle is no stranger to the world of Synthesizers and Electronic Music Equipment. He later went on to co-found “Fast-Forward Designs” who were responsible for some really ground-breaking technology with Alexis, such as ADAT Multi-Track Recorder, Quadra Synth and Effects. Marcus also co-founded Line 6, which developed a whole range of DSP Products for Guitarists, especially the POD range, which were extremely successful and graced many Stages and Studies alike.

Of course, Marcus is very accomplished Synth Player, Sound Designer and Session Musician with a Studio complete with some of the very best Classic Oberheim Synthesizers. Now, we have the honor of chatting to him about the latest Oberheim Product, taking the very best of the OB range into the fantastic OB-X8. We’ll be finding out about his history with Oberheim and others, his Music and of course the OB-X8 Project and beyond…"

2022: ARP ODYSSEY SYNTHPOSIUM Coming November 5th

via The Alan R Pearlman Foundation

"COME HELP US CELEBRATE 50 YEARS OF THE ARP ODYSSEY!

Join us on November 5th at 10:00am (EST) for an in-person/online event and fundraiser celebrating 50 years of the ARP Odyssey, one of the most popular synthesizers of all time- played by everyone from Herbie Hancock, Deep Purple (John Lord), The Fixx, P-Funk, UltraVox, Billy Preston, George Duke and many many more. Hosted by the Berklee College of Music's Electronic Production & Design Department, the day will feature live performances, panel discussions, special guests, and more! The in-person performances of the SYNTHPOSIUM and fundraiser will take place at David Friend Recital Hall at The Berklee College of Music in Boston. The event will be streamed live via several different sources.

Our concert highlights include:
Streaming interview with Herbie Hancock
Live in-person concert with Lisa Bella Donna (fully streamed for all virtual attendees)
Our confirmed artists, panelists, content creators and guests include: Herbie Hancock, Lisa Bella Donna, Rupert Greenall (The Fixx), David Friend, Mark Vail, DJ Cherish the Luv, Danz (Synth History), Drew Schlesinger, Ian Staer, Jamie Billings, Mike Metlay, Alex Ball, David Frederick, Tom Piggot, Alison Cassidy, Bill T. Miller, the Berklee Synthesizer Ensemble, Greg Phillinganes, the Jennifer Hruska group, BØLT and many more!

Tickets and Information
Tickets are available to purchase. Please visit our Eventbrite page for more information. Limited seating available for in-person attendees.

Visit our Facebook & Eventbrite page regularly for updates.

This Synthposium would not be possible without the generous support of the Berklee College of Music Electronic Production and Design Department, who is graciously hosting this event.

Anyone who is able to join us at the David Friend Recital Hall in person can attend the event for free, with donations encouraged for preferred seating.

We have some truly amazing performances, panels, and artist interviews that we can't wait to share with you all. We look forward to seeing you on November 5th!

NOTE: For those joining us from time zones that are not practical for live-streaming, playback will be available for the entire weekend.

Our concert highlights include:
Streaming interview with Herbie Hancock
Live in-person concert with Lisa Bella Donna (fully streamed for all virtual attendees)
Our confirmed artists, panelists, content creators and guests include: Herbie Hancock, Lisa Bella Donna, Rupert Greenall (The Fixx), David Friend, Mark Vail, DJ Cherish the Luv, Danz (Synth History), Drew Schlesinger, Ian Staer, Jamie Billings, Mike Metlay, Alex Ball, David Frederick, Tom Piggot, Alison Cassidy, Bill T. Miller, the Berklee Synthesizer Ensemble, Greg Phillinganes, the Jennifer Hruska group, BØLT and many more!

Tickets and Information
Tickets for the streaming event are available our Eventbrite page for more information. Limited seating available for in-person attendees.

To make a donation for VIP seating, please visit the Event Page on the website.

All proceeds will benefit the Alan R. Pearlman Foundation. & our ARP's for all program. The Foundation's mission is to celebrate the legacy of inventor, musician, entrepreneur and engineer Alan R. Pearlman by making his innovative inventions publicly accessible, and inspiring future generations to imagine and create."

THE ARP ODYSSEY...

"The Odyssey was ARP's primary lead/solo synthesizer. It was designed for musicians who wanted more control than the preset-oriented Soloist could provide, but didn't want the large size and patch cables of the 2600. Over its 8-year lifespan, the Odyssey went through three versions. The changes between them were sonic, cosmetic, and functional – to the point where musicians of today often consider the Odyssey to have existed as three distinct instruments."

To learn more about the ARP Odyssey, please visit our Music Makers & Machines page on Google Arts & Culture. Story by Mike Metlay with editorial contributions from Rich Formidoni, Mary Lock, & Dina Pearlman.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE ARP ODYSSEY SYNTHPOSIUM
VISIT: alanrpearlmanfoundation.org

Asking the difficult question at Synthfest.

video upload by mylarmelodies

"Being a meandering selection of moments and chats from Synthfest in 2022, in which we explore the question(s) on everyone's lips. Featuring conversations with Nick Batt, Scanner, Gaz Williams, Alex Ball, Tom Carpenter, 'M185'-inventing RYK himself, Nina Richards, and many more. http://www.patreon.com/mylarmelodies"

P.S. Smart MIDI Patchbay, & Ivo Beatrix Lorelei Persephone added to the sonicstate playlist posted here. See the SynthFest UK label for all posts on the event.

Traveler: A Korg Retrospective

video upload by Alex Ball

Alex Ball Retrospective

"In 1963 two young men stepped into a factory next to the Keio railway line in Shinjuku, Japan. Their ambition was to make a new autorhythm machine, but over the next six decades their company would become one of the biggest players in music technology and would help define the sound of music around the world.

A huge thank you to all at Korg and to all the people who gave up their time and expertise to make this film film happen. A full list of credits is at the end of the film.

0:00 INTRO
1:34 FORMATION
6:19 SEVENTIES
19:34 EIGHTIES
32:38 NINETIES
40:21 NOUGHTIES
47:12 TENS
51:09 SO TO NOW
52:25 OUTRO / CREDITS"

THE KORG VC-10 VOCODER FROM 1978

video upload by Alex Ball

"A look at the Korg VC-10 from 1978, their first ever vocoder. It was part of the MS range and was used by Buggles, Tomita, Keith Emerson, Apollo 440, Klaus Schulze and many others.

0:00 Intro
1:43 Basic Vocoding
3:51 Shenanigans 1: Vocello
5:07 Shenanigans 2: Drum Chord
6:56 Shenanigans 3: Ext Pitch
8:04 Shenanigans 4: MS-01 Footsie
8:52 Outro

Nerdy details as promised:
The VC-10 is a 20 band vocoder with an onboard microphone (modulator) and internal tone generators (carriers)

Controls:
Pitch wheel, tuning and an octave switch
Keyboard to noise balance
External signal (carrier) in with level
Internal and external Mic level (modulator)
Balance of vocoder signal and audio through
External pitch control of the internal tone generators
An LFO (vibrato) with speed and depth
Accent bend (a kind of envelope mod on attack to emulate the human voice changing pitch)
Ensemble Effect (same as the PS-3100)

I also used the MS-01 foot pedal and MS-02 interface from the same range as well as the Roland System 100m and Boss RPS-10 and CE-300 FX."

Korg 770 Analog Synthesizer w/ Silver Korg Badge on Back

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

via this auction

Note the silver KORG badge on back compared to previous listings. Curious if it came from the factory that way.

"The best sounding monosynthesizer Korg ever build (imho). Check out the new video from Alex Ball [posted here] for reference. The Korg 770 is looking good and has a mod for CV/Gate and controlling the filter. Very handy."

CLICK FOR MORE »

Loading Sounds, Rearranging Sounds & Saving Kits - Isla Instruments S2400 Video User Manual 2.0

video upload by Isla Instruments

"Over the coming days and weeks, the complete multi-part series will be uploaded to this channel to complement the written user manual.

Here's the 2nd installment of the course, prepared by @Alex Ball"

A Visit the Italian Synth Museum

video upload by Alex Ball

You can find additional posts featuring the museum here.

"Whilst taking a holiday in Italy we stopped off at Museo del Synth Marchigiano for a couple of days and this is the account of what I experienced there.

Enormous thanks to everyone at the museum, particularly Riccardo and Paolo.

https://www.museodelsynth.org/

0:00 Intro
1:19 Synket
4:40 EKO Computerhythm
8:01 Chilton Talentmaker
12:07 Crumar Compac Synth
13:41 Crumar DP-50
15:07 Elkatwin 61
16:29 Elka Synthex
19:38 CRB Oberon
21:29 CRB Voco Strings
22:53 CRB Uranus 2.0
24:34 Farfisa Polychrome
25:24 Logan Piano Strings Synthesizer
27:10 Welson Syntex
28:28 Keytek CTS-2000
29:47 Baleani Solista"

ARP 2500 MELODIC PERFORMANCE FEAT. VINCE PUPILLO JR.

video upload by EMEAPP

"This video features EMEAPP's associate director (and chief knob twiddler) Vince Pupillo Jr. taking our beautiful, fully-equipped ARP 2500 system for a melodic and rhythmic ride (along with a vintage ARP 1613 Sequencer). This performance was originally recorded for Alex Ball's amazing film "Electromotive-The Story of ARP Instruments" which chronicles the timeline of Alan R. Pearlman and the company and instruments which resulted, with the crown jewel being the 2500. Enjoy the blippy bloopies!"