April 30th 2025 Patch Variation #2

video upload by John L Rice

"Just exploring the patch as one tends to do. Here I’m using a second Moon Modular 569 sequencer to control the first one instead of the sequential switch I used in the previous video [posted here]. The result was simpler but still interesting to me. I also changed up the synth voice a bit, using a MegaOhm LPG instead of the SSL tube VCA and processing its output with an Oakley/Krisp1 Flanger."

MOTM / Synthesis Technology's Paul Schreiber Has Passed Away

Paul Schreiber at CONTROL in 2018


It has come to my attention that Paul Schreiber has passed away.

Pictured: Paul Schreiber at the 2006 NAMM show. Top from this previous post (pic by fr1zz), and bottom from this post (pic by Synthtopia) - this is the first image of Paul on the site. There is one comment in that post: "He's a good guy." Indeed.

Readers of the site should be familiar with his work. He was the man behind MOTM and Synthesis Technology.

To say Paul was one of the greats to influence the synth community would be an understatement. He was pivital to the rebirth of modular synthesizers. He started when modular as we know it today was in its infancy, as one of a very small group of large format DIY modular manufacturers along with Blacet, Modcan, Cynthia, Wiard, Oakley, STG, Catgirl/CGS, Tellun/Lower West Side Studio YuSynth, Jurgen Haible, and of course DIY staples like Thomas Henry/ MFOS, Ray Wilson and PAiA (see this post for some modular formats back in 2007). I focused mainly on those offering DIY. There were other manufacturers including Synthesizers.com, Club of the Knobs, MOS-LAB, Moon Modular, MacBeth, CMS, and more. Feel free to mention others in the comments. This post is about Paul, but I think it's important to reflect on some of the large format modular manufactures he was amongst at the time.

Paul created the MOTM format of 5U modules in 1998. MOTM stood for Module of the Month offering monthly DIY kits. From Wikipedia: "MOTM was created by Paul Schreiber in 1998. The system was created in part due to the renewed interest in large-format analog modular systems that occurred in the late 1990s. Between 1998 and 2021, over 8000 modules were sold. The company, Synthesis Technology, also offered a limited number of modules in Eurorack[2] and Frac[3] format."

He was also helped design the Moog/Realistic MG-1. From Wikipedia: "In 1980, Moog Music was seeking to contract manufacture a mass-marketable synthesizer which could be sold via a large retailer. Moog representatives secured an appointment at the Radio Shack corporate offices for a 5-minute demonstration. Radio Shack approved the concept, and Paul Schreiber (then employed by Tandy Systems Development) worked together with Moog on the synthesizer's design to achieve Radio Shack's price requirements.[2][3]"

He later joined the eurorack scene with Synthesis Technology branded modules. FYI, his site for MOTM was always http://www.synthtech.com/, short for Synthesis Technology. The first post to mention Paul and MOTM was posted just under twenty years ago here on MATRIXSYNTH back on August 26, 2005. If you click through you will see it was a post announcing the MOTM/synthtech.com site was going down for the weekend. He announced he was retiring from the synthesizer business in August of 2023.

I beleive the first synthtech eurorack module was the MOTM E340 Cloud Generator. The first demos were posted on July 14, 2009, followed by a mockup of the front panel on July 20. The first post to mention Synthesis Technology was an Epic Son track by John L Rice in August of 2011. Since then there has been approximately 845 posts to feature MOTM, and at least 398 Synthtech.

You can find a number of interviews with Paul in previous posts here.

It's worth repeating, Paul Schreiber was one of the key figures that brought modular back to the masses. He was both respected and loved by the synth community. It's impossible to overstate his influence. He will be missed.

The following are the first the last video interviews with Paul to be featured on the site:

The SynthSummitShow Episode 2: Paul Schreiber (Synthesis Technology) and A.Dapt (music producer) ...

Streamed live on Oct 2, 2015 Flux302 of Fluxwithit.com. Details previously posted here.

SysEx Dumpster - Episode 44 - a conversation with Paul Schreiber
video upload by Sysex Dumpster on Jul 30, 2023. Details previously posted here.

The first videos to feature Paul presenting a module was back on January 3, 2010, and the first interview on SoundCloud in 2013, and he was of course featured in the modular documentary film I Dream of Wires.

Switchback Descent

video upload by davidryle

"The great Vector Sequencer from Five12. I am using it for a pair of simple 16 step sequences to the 5U modular by way of CV and Gate.

The clock is derived from the Moon Modular 553 Midi to Clock module. I used the 1/96th division and a start gate to tap the sync24 feature in the Vector. I do have an STG bus but the sync bus cable wouldn't reach out of the cabinet to the Vector. The other clock pulses are from the STG Time Divider.

The first patch is run to a pair of Q206 VCO's and the Q150 filter and then on to the Echo Fix tape delay. Stereo panning was from the Q158 VCA++ and a Mega Ohm LFO. The Ian Fritz Hypster by Synthetic Sound Labs is a modulation source for the decay stage of the STG Envelop Generator.

The bass line patch is a pair of STG Oscillators to a pair of Mega Ohm MA20's in low and high pass series. The SSL Tube VCA is used to add some drive. The Frequency Central Stasis Leak stereo chorus finishes the patch chain.

The third patch is a drone pad line from the Dove D900 sequencer to the WTF Oscillator and the Oakley SVF in Notch mode. The slow center frequency modulation from a second Mega Ohm LFO does a nice job of combing through the upper mids of the complex waveforms out of the WTF. The last part of the patch is through the Empress Reverb in green ghost mode.

The Vector is the first edition mk1 but still has quite the feature set. I was using a modulation lane for transpose to the pair of pitch sequences. This same transpose sequence was replicated on the Q960 with a second Q960 as a divider. The pitch voltages for the WTF were combined in the unity mixer of the STG Active Multiples module. I did use the Q171 Quantixer Bank for precision stepping from the Q960.

All sounds captured at once in a single take to Cubase 12. Video edited in Final Cut Pro.

Special thanks to Ron Sunsinger for the loan of the Vector and Adam Fritsche for the Stasis Leak module."

Busy Bezaleel

video upload by davidryle

"5U modular synthesizer song. Using the LinnStrument 128 and synthesizers.com Q174 MIDI Interface to play into the modular. The main voice was a pair of Synthetic Sound Labs TZ-VC Oscillators and a Yusynth ARP 4072 Filter. Bass line was the Q960 step sequencer to DOve D100 and D110 VCO's on to the Drove G294A filter. A kick drum is from the SSL Woven Spirits.The FX fluttering sound is the Dove D900 sequencer to a pair of STG Oscillators. The noise chuff sounds are the WCRS module into a MOTM 440 filter and delay.

The mid-section is the LinnStrument in arpeggiator mode for the bass line (a pair of Q106's through the Q107 filter) and for the upper arpeggiation (the TZ-VC osc pair through an Oakley SVF. The offbeat sequence is the Dove D900 through the STG oscillators and the Dove D502 filter. The pad sound is generated by the STG Voltage Mini Store to a pair of Q206 vco's and the Q150 filter to a Canyon Delay pedal."

The Meat - Firechild

video upload by MrFirechild

"The Meat (March 2025) by Mr Firechild.
The following synthesizers were used:
¤ Minimoog
¤ Moog Model-15 (Reissue)
¤ ARP Solina
¤ Behringer System 55
¤ TTSH
¤ Various Euro rack modules, Oakley 5U
¤ xils lab THE EIGHTY software synth
¤ Behringer VC340

Composed and produced by www.firechild.se"

Sequencer Art

video upload by John L Rice

"I quickly recorded this sequence as a test and didn't like the quality of the video so I slapped a bunch of video effects on it.

Modules used are from:
Moon Modular
Oakley Sound
Synthetic Sound Labs
Modcan
Synthesizers.com"

Meandering On The Eve - A Berlin School Meditation

video upload by John L Rice

"An unplanned and unedited real-time performance on Christmas Eve 2024.

Modules Used:
Moon Modular - sequencer, switch, quantizer, VCFs
Synthesis Technology - VCOs, LFO
Club Of the Knobs - clock, poly ADSR
Oakley Sound - VCAs

Keyboard Synth:
Expressive E - Osmose
Mellotron - M4000D

Effects:
Strymon - BigSky and Timeline pedals
Lexicon - MX400

As always, thank you for watching! 🥳 If you found the content of this video helpful, interesting, or entertaining, please consider showing your support so I can stay stocked up on coffee and cookies. 😋 https://buymeacoffee.com/johnlrice"

Searching For The Guiding Light

video upload by John L Rice

"Another of my typical random sequence patches with a side of noodling that I turned into something more.

Modules Used:
Moon Modular - sequencer and VCFs
Synthesis Technology - VCOs, MIDI control, quad ASR
Club Of the Knobs - clock, poly ADSR
Oakley Sound - VCAs
Krisp1 - LFO

Keyboard Synth:
Expressive E - Osmose
Mellotron - M4000D

Effects:
Strymon - BigSky and Timeline pedals
Lexicon - MX400

Percussion Instruments:
Yudin Workshop - Pulsar
Musser - bells
Ludwig - chimes
Zildjian - crotales
Alan Abel - triangle

Percussion Recording Chain:
Neumann - KM183 mic
Martech - MSS10 mic pre
Focusrite - Red 2 EQ
Audioscape - V-Comp compressor
Lavry - Blue A/D converters

Artwork clips generated at https://www.imagine.art/

As always, thank you for watching, rating, following, subscribing, and commenting! 🥳 If you found the content of this video helpful, interesting, or entertaining, please consider showing your support so I can stay stocked up on coffee and cookies. 😋 https://buymeacoffee.com/johnlrice"

Tau Hydrae, Azure Dragon, Mega MPS, & FloriVoxTron DIY Synths by Amongst Projects

video upload by Amongst Projects

"My subtractive mono synth project based on Thomas Henry's Synthesizer for the 21st Century.

Read more about the construction etc - https://amongstprojects.blogspot.com/...

00:00 Introduction
00:25 LFO
03:17 Sample And Hold
06:24 Sub Oscillator
08:11 VCOs
13:15 Noise
14:59 Mixer
16:15 VCF
18:48 VCA
19:03 Envelopes
21:37 Keyboard and Control Panel

The music of myself, Amongst Myselves, www.amongstmyselves.com"

---

Azure Dragon - Effects Rack

video upload by Amongst Projects

"The Azure Dragon is a collection of patchable effects modules. The designs come from various sources including Oakley Sound Systems and Jürgen Haible.

Read more and the Azure Dragon here which includes links to the various modules - https://amongstprojects.blogspot.com/...

00:00 Introduction
02:59 Valve Overdrive
06:24 Phasor
09:05 Chorus
10:39 BBD
13:35 FV-1
16:14 Spring Reverb
17:33 Feedback"

---

Amongst Projects - Mega MPS - Demo

video upload by Amongst Projects - Mar 28, 2023

"Here's a demo of my 4 channel Mega Percussion Synth with integrated effects units driven by a Beat Step Pro. The MPS is a single board analogue drum module design courtesy of Thomas Henry.

More details here - https://amongstprojects.blogspot.com/...

The music of myself, Amongst Myselves, www.amongstmyselves.com"

---

FloriVoxTron - an introduction

video upload by Amongst Projects

"The FloriVoxTron is a fully stereo sample based synthesizer in a mostly analogue signal path using voltage controls VCFs and VCAs. A comprehensive modulation module makes this quite a unique instrument.

Some in depth details - https://amongstprojects.blogspot.com/...

As used myself as Amongst Myselves - www.amongstmyselves.com"

Lazarus Bubbles

video upload by Lower West Side Studio

"While playing around with a CGS29 Wave Multipliers I came up with a bubbling sound that reminded me of The Lazarus Pit from DC's Batman.

Here is a sample of the sound created by feeding some LFOs into a CGS29 then modulating it and twisting it with an Oakley Overdrive and MFOS 8-Stage Phase Shifter"

East-Coast Modular Eastern Osmosis

video upload by John L Rice

"Something just for fun. All first takes and some minimal editing.

Solo Synth:
Expressive E Osmose

Modular Synth Sequence:
Moon Modular - 569 sequencer, 591 switcher, 517 VCFs
Synth Tech - MOTM-300 VCOs
Oakley - Dual VCAs
Krisp1 - Octo LFO
Club Of the Knobs - C911p poly EG

Modular Synth Drone:
Modcan - 58B VCDO, 66B Control
Club Of the Knobs - C998B Spectral Modulator, C1660 VC Phase Processor
Marienberg Devices - Sine Phase VCO
Synthetic Sound Labs - 1250 Quad LFO
Oakley - Flanger/Chorus

Effects and Mixing For The Modular:
Strymon - BigSky and Timeline pedals
Lexicon - MX400 rack
Allen & Heath - MW3 20s mixer

Hand Percussion:
Generic - small Tabla, small doumbek, goat hooves
Zildjian - finger cymbals
PANArt - Hang Gede

Thank you for watching, rating, and commenting! :-) If you'd like to "tip your server" I would be most grateful and you can do so at the link below:
https://buymeacoffee.com/johnlrice"

A Sunday Morning Modular Synth Patch - May 19th 2014

video upload by John L Rice

"Featuring self transposing Moon Modular 569 sequencer with 569ES and 569EG expanders and two 564 switches to vary the pattern. All clocked by an Oakley Slim VCO through a Synthetic Sound Labs V-Gates divider. The voice is a single Marienberg Sine Phase VCO into two SSL Tube VCAs, one STG Soundlabs Envelope to modular both, and the VCA outputs go to a Modcan Dual Delay 73B. And a few notes played on the Mellotron M4000D Rack. Strymon BigSky and Lexicon MX400 for reverb."

Remembering Gert Jalass

video upload by John L Rice

"The sad news of Gert's passing put me out of sorts and I ended up looking through old pictures and decided to make a very short and quick remembrance video out of them. Rest in peace Gert, and condolences to all of his friends and family. Feel free to share comments and stories relating to Gert in the comments section below if you like.

The simple sequence is a Moon Modular 569 Quad Sequential Voltage Source running two identical voices each consisting of a MOTM-300 VCO, 1/4 of a MOTM-380 quad LFO, 1/2 of a Moon 517 VCF, 1/2 of a Oakley dual VCA and 1/5 of a Club Of The Knobs poly EG. Also used: Expressive-E Osmose keyboard, Mellotron M4000D Rack, Roland A-88 controller, Strymon BigSky and Timeline pedals, Lexicon MX400 rack."

Cherry Audio Announces the Rebirth of the Long-Awaited Chroma Synthesizer

Playlist:

1. Cherry Audio | Chroma Synthesizer

2. Cherry Audio | Chroma Classics Preset Pack

Chroma Classics Preset Pack for Chroma features an additional 100 phenomenal presets by Cherry Audio's Director of Sound Design, James Terris, blending vintage tones with a contemporary feel.

https://store.cherryaudio.com/presets...

3. Cherry Audio | The Story of Chroma

"Dive into the captivating history of the Rhodes Chroma synthesizer with "The Story of Chroma," a documentary that traces its revolutionary path from the final days of ARP Instruments to its celebrated release by Rhodes in 1982. This compelling video brings to life the innovative spirit of the Chroma through the firsthand accounts of those who stood at the forefront of its creation. Hear from Dr. Tom Rhea, a renowned electronic music historian, Michael Brigida, a dedicated ARP and Rhodes product specialist, and Mary Lock, the esteemed service manager for both companies, as they recount the synthesizer's development, challenges, and triumphs. Featuring exclusive interviews and insights, this documentary not only explores the technical breakthroughs and musical possibilities the Chroma introduced but also celebrates its enduring legacy and the recent resurgence through Cherry Audio’s efforts. Witness the story of a musical marvel that continues to inspire innovation and creativity in the world of music.

Produced by Daniel Keller
Editing and graphics by Mal Meehan
Music by James Terris"

4. Cherry Audio | Introduction to Chroma Synthesizer

Synth designer Mitchell Sigman of Cherry Audio introduces Chroma, Cherry Audio's virtual instrument that emulates the 1982 Rhodes Chroma polyphonic analog synthesizer and its Expander unit.

Online User Guide at https://docs.cherryaudio.com/cherry-a...

0:10 Introduction
1:18 User Interface Basics
4:44 Voice Architecture and Patch Configuration
9:43 The Chroma Arpeggiator
11:37 Sweep Generators (the LFOs)
17:02 Envelope Generators
19:46 Chroma CPU Usage

Cherry Audio Chroma User Videos


1. Cherry Audio Chroma: A demo + tutorial of an elusive analog synth - CatSynth TV - Patreon

We take a deep dive into Cherry Audio's new Chroma, a meticulous recreation of the legendary and elusive Rhodes Chroma. It was a polyphonic analog synthesizer that came with some unique features, notably the ability to reconfigure the signal path among its oscillators, filters, and VCAs, opening up a wider range of sound possibilities. Cherry Audio's version combines these features with a modern user interface that allows direct manipulation of the parameters (unlike the original with a single data slider), and adds a full-featured effects section. We go over the expansive feature set of this instrument, showing you how each feature works and how to use them to make your own sounds.

00:00 Introduction
00:27 History of the Chroma synthesizer
01:38 Presenting the Cherry Audio Chroma
02:39 Oscillator features
06:56 Filter features
11:17 VCA features
12:42 Dual Layers configuration
16:49 Dual Layers + Oscillator Sync
18:47 Dual Layers + Ring Modulation
21:13 Filter FM
23:54 Parallel Filters
26:09 Parallel Filters + Oscillator Sync
27:04 Series Filters
31:44 Effects section
32:38 Factory Presets
39:41 Conclusion

2. Cherry Audio Chroma Expander Sounds of Chaos Beauty Virtual Synthesizer - Rik Marston Official - AhnyxianSoundDesign

3. Cherry Audio Chroma Expander Sounds of Light & Darkness Virtual Synthesizer VST - Rik Marston Official - AhnyxianSoundDesign

Press release follows:

May 14, 2024: Cherry Audio is excited to unveil Chroma, a groundbreaking virtual instrument that brings the legendary sounds of the 1982 Rhodes Chroma into the digital age.

CLICK FOR MORE »

Phantom Of The Random

video upload by John L Rice

"A basic 4 voice poly modular synth patch (Synth Tech VCOs, Moon VCFs, Oakley VCAs, COTK EGs) with a lot of processing (COTK Spectral Modulator and Phase Processor, Oakley Flanger/Chorus) modulated by (Synth Tech, Krisp1, Modcan, and Marienberg LFOs)"

Time Corridors

video upload by John L Rice

"And another "modular Tetris" rearrangement session which led to some keyboard noodling which lead to a recording which lead to a video which lead to the need to add a lot more parts and video editing which lead to the reality that I have much more important things to be doing which caused me to stop where I was at which is why all you get is this unfinished thing! 😅

Modules used:
Oakley/Krisp1 - Slim VCO B, Diode Superladder VCF, Flanger/Chorus
STG - Envelope
Moon - 569 sequencer
Corsynth - C102 VC LFO
Grove Audio - PM Resonator
Modcan - Quantizer 55B
Marienberg - Sine Phase VCO
Club Of The Knobs - C1660 VC Phase Processor

Keyboard:
Expressive E - Osmose

Effects:
Strymon - BigSky, Timeline, Mobius
Lexicon - MX400"

The Never Ending Battle

video upload by John L Rice

"Another quick post reconfiguration doddle. ;-)

Modules used:
Oakley/Krisp1 - Slim VCO B, Diode Superladder VCF
STG - Envelope
Moon - 569 sequencer
Corsynth - C102 VC LFO
Grove Audio - PM Resonator
Modcan - Quantizer 55B
Marienberg - Sine Phase VCO

Keyboard:
Expressive E - Osmose

Effects:
Strymon - BigSky, Timeline
Lexicon - MX400"

The Eternal Now

video upload by davidryle

"American Format (5U) modular synthesizer performance in real time to a stereo track in Cubase.
For an atonal wash I used the Dove Audio Waveplane and WTF vco's through an Oakley Sound Systems Ring Modulator. I then sent it through A dotcom Q150 transistor ladder filter and a Lower West Side Studio Multimode Filter/Resonator and on to a fixed filter bank and a Frequency Central Stasis Leak digital delay. This drone wash comes in at the final section and ending.
The opening reed sound and accompanying organ sounds were derived from the Synthetic Sound Labs/Mutable Instruments (Braids) Woven Spirits module.
The initial reed sound is from the AUX output of the Woven Spirits through an SSL/Ian Fritz 5 Pulser and Oakley Sound Systems State Variable Filter. The filter is stepped with a random S&H from JNP Electronics.
The secondary organ chord sound is the Main direct output of the Woven Spirits in Chord mode. The combination of both elements are sent to an Electro-Harmonix Grand Canyon in DMM mode. Feedback is applied as needed for the drone sustain throughout the piece.
The bass line comes in next with a pair of STG Soundlabs Oscillators through a Dove Audio D502 Multimode filter in -24dB LP mode. The pitch voltage is from the upper Q960 step sequencer. It's timing is from a Catgirl Synth Master Divider, clocked from a custom Dual LFO/Analog Shift Register of Ken Stone (Catgirl Synth) design. An additional tap from the STG oscillator through a Corsynth C103 Frequency Divider/Multiplier module for a sub-octave feed.
The melodic line blended into the latter section is from a pair of Q106 dotcom vco's which are pitch controlled by the lower Q960 sequencer. Each vco pitch is from a separate row of the Q960. The Q960's shift timing is from the CGS Master Divider module. The output is routed through an Empress Reverb pedal in Blue Ghost mode. Panning is from the LWSS/Yusynth Panning Mixer.
All pitch quantitization is through a Moon Modular 565 series setup.
Additional voltage modulation to the Woven Spirits module are from the STG Soundlabs voltage mini stores, and vaious LFO's etc. Timing for the additional sequencers is also managed by the Moster Divider."

Quick Test Patch After Successfully Repairing My Modcan Control 66B

video upload by John L Rice

"All 4 channels of the Modcan 66B go into two Modcan 55B quantizers to provide CV and gates to 4 voices (Synth Tech VCOs, Moon VCFs, Oakley/Krisp14u VCAs, Club Of The Knobs EGs, and Strymon + Lexicon effects. Recorded on iPad Pro."

Make Any Patch More Interesting - Add a Ring Mod ' Synthesizers.com Patch Tutorial

video upload by Synthesizer Reviews // Tips // Patch Tutorials

"Use promo code KUBIN10 for a 10% discount code [at synthesizers.com]. This is limited to one time use per customer and capped at $500.00. So if you spend 5k you get $500 off. If you spend 6k they get $500 off. There is no minimum purchase amount - get what you need - but it makes sense to make your one time purchase with code KUBIN10 count.

If you need add this module Synthesizers.com offers two choices in Ring Modulators

Q116 Ring Modulator

Q158 VCA2++ Pan, Fade, Mix, Ring, Amplifier

For me, Ring Modulation has always been the key to inspiring patches. While working on a new song for Venus Hum I was having a hard time coming up with a part that I was happy with. I’d been experimenting with velocity and what it can do do create variations within a Ring Mod Patch. So, I made a very standard ARP2600 Ring Mod patch, added velocity to the exponential CV Input and the resulting sound was all the inspiration I needed to play a part that I think is perfect for the song. If you don’t have a Ring Modulator in your system you are missing out on some of the most beautiful and inspiring tones a synthesizer can create.

CLICK FOR MORE »