PM Foundatiions Quantola Demo

video by Randy Piscione

"This is a demo of the Quantola sequencer, from PM Foundations. It is based on the Synthola, which you can see here [posted here] The Quantola PCBs and panels can be purchased here: [https://www.tindie.com/stores/pmfoundations/] Choose the “Quantized” option. At 1:51, I said “quantizer” when I meant 'Quantola.' There are also demos on my channel of the 8080 SEM-tribute VCO, 3080 SEM-tribute VCF and ADSR-D SEM-tribute envelope generator."

Small Eurorack System - From Nothing to Crazy

video by Randy Piscione

For modules and patch details - hit Show More. Figured I’d do a video to show what can be done with even a small bunch of this stuff. Video is live patching. It’s a bit long, 15 minutes, but I hope you’ll consider watching the entire video, and follow along with the notes below. Drums are not coming from the small rack. Although I didn’t demo it fully here, the RingFolder is one of the best modules for getting variety out of a small system. Starts with the sequence running – and triggering the drums Sequencer CV to the VCOs (from the first mult) VCOs to the submixer Submixer to the VCF VCF to the VCA VCA to the final mixer Sequencer gate to both EGs (from the first mult)

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Most of the Stuff Dec 2020

Randy Piscione

"My son is a fan of Mike Dean, who does videos in his studio demoing his impressive collection. I figured I’d try the same, on a smaller scale. A bit of 70s prog rock showing off. Recorded live, two parts to the video, each with a pad and a lead. Hit “Show More" for the equipment list.

Oberheim FVS – drone pad
ARP Odyssey – second lead
ARP Axxe – second lead
ARP Little Brother – second lead
Roland A90 – second pad
Mutable Instrument Shruthi (6 of them) – second pad
Animoog – second pad
Korg Microstation – second pad
Roland Alpha Juno 2 – second pad
Roland A37 – first pad
Full Bucket Tricent Mk III – first pad
Full Bucket qyooo – first pad
Analogue Solutions Oberkorn - bass
Division 6 Business Card Sequencer - noodle
D:Machinery Black Seq - noodle
Pamela’s Workout – main clock
Animodule Tik Tok – clock divider / multiplier
Mutable Instruments Anushri – first lead
PM Foundations SEM Tribute modules – first lead
PM Foundations resemble panels (2 of them) – bass and noodle
PM Foundations RingFolder - noodle
PM Foundations 3080 VCO - noodle
Bastl ABC - noodles
Kassutronics VCO3340 - noodle
Frequency Central WaveRunner - noodle
Manhattan Analog SVVCF - noodle
Doepfer A-143-2 - noodle
MFOS VCA – noodles
Barton Stereo Out Mixer – noodles and bass
Behringer X32
Dynaudio BM5 MkIII
A few other Eurorack Utility modules

I think that’s it."

ARP Odyssey, Axxe and Little Brother

Randy Piscione

"This is a demo of an ARP Odyssey, Axxe and Little Brother. I want to thank John at PM Foundations for his substantial help in getting these working. The glitch at 2:27 is the last issue I need to solve, it's very intermittent. The original condition of these synths can be seen here:"

Old Synths pre-Restore
Randy Piscione

"Near the start of 2020 I ended up with a few old synths in need of restoration. This video was originally taken Feb 29 / Mar 1st 2020. Starts with some pics and then a short video of each of the synths in the condition I received them in."

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Trip seeing the Oberheim TVS w/o side panels. Almost thought it was a clear plexiglass case!

PM Foundations Chorus

Randy Piscione

"This is a demo of the PM Foundations Chorus Eurorack module. You can get it here:
http://www.tindie.com/products/pmfoun.... This module generates six copies of the input saw wave, each out of phase with the original and with each other. The phase differences are continually changing using six internal trapezoid oscillators. This effect replicates six VCOs tuned closely together to generate a rich, dynamic super saw wave. This module is a tribute to David Ward-Hunt who designed a waveform multiplier unit that was subsequently included in the Digisound-80 synthesizer"

PM Foundations 3320 VCF based on the Prophet-5 Filter

PMF 3320 VCF Randy Piscione

"Demo of the PM Foundations 3320 VCF. This one is based on the CEM3320 VCF chip, which was used in the Prophet 5. It's capable of some very organic sounds, make sure you listen to the entire video. Get it here: http://www.tindie.com/products/pmfoun..."

"Randy Piscione says: 'There are lots of bits that are squelchy, and almost organic-sounding, much like some of the sounds Joe Zawinul would get out of an ARP 2600. Everyone should have one of these.'

SUMMARY

Use this PCB and front panel to build your own FOUR-POLE VOLTAGE CONTROLLED FILTER using the classic CEM3320 filter chip from Curtis Electromusic Specialties or the new AS3320 from Alfa. The CEM3320/AS3320 is a self contained voltage-controlled four-pole filter with voltage-controllable resonance. It has an exponential (V/Oct) frequency control input which can cover more than ten octaves. The filter chip is temperature compensated.

The CEM 3320 was used in classic synths such as the Sequential Prophet 5.

IMPORTANT NOTE

This is a PCB and Panel set only. One high quality PCB and one front panel ONLY are included. You will need to purchase your own components and build your own module. Comprehensive build instructions and BOMs are provided to help you source the components needed and we even provide links to shopping carts to simplify sourcing those components. Some product photos above show COMPLETED build.

Read more about the CEM3320 and AS3320 and even purchase your filter chip there.

FEATURES

Four pole VCF low pass filter
Exponential 1V/octave response
Exponential voltage control of resonance
Two frequency CV inputs
Q CV input
Input level control for smooth or overdriven sounds
Board accepts DIP18 packages and sockets.
6HP Eurorack with our panel
CONSTRUCTION

This is a low component count project and an easy build so you can have high quality VCFs in your rack with minimum time and expense.

Build it yourself - This is a set of one high quality PCB and front panel ONLY for users who want to purchase their own components and build their own module. Some product photos above show COMPLETED build.

You can purchase the AS3320 from various sources including Cabin Tech and Electric Druid

This module will fit perfectly into a 6HP Eurorack space.

Comprehensive manuals, parts lists and component shopping carts are provided in the documentation link for building, testing and using the module."

Using VSTs - Minute by Minute

Randy Piscione

"I wanted to try to duplicate the sounds of some favourite keyboards using free VSTs. This time it's Michael McDonald's Rhodes from the Doobie Bros' Minute by Minute.

VSTs mostly from - http://www.kvraudio.com/
VST Host - Cantabile Lite - http://www.cantabilesoftware.com
Rhodes - DPiano - E - http://deadducksoftware.blogspot.com
Preamp - PTEq-1A - http://www.kvraudio.com/
Phase Shifter - HY-Phaser - http://hy-plugins.com"

Two reSEMble Additive

Randy Piscione

"Here’s another 2 reSEMble demo, this time some basic additive synthesis. reSEMble can be purchased at http://www.tindie.com/products/pmfoun.... First part is a short vid of a PM Foundations prototype scope showing the waveform as the various harmonics are brought in, as two triangles and 4 sines. At 1:00 the second part of the actual demo starts, and I do some knob noodling, along with a little bit of ARP Axxe providing a lead line in the background. Eventually I screw everything up by bringing in combinations of the ring modulation and folder on both reSEMbles. Besides the reSEMbles, there’s an Analogue Solutions Eurokorn sequencer and a PMF QuantOct quantizer."

PM Foundations Voltage Controlled Clock

Randy Piscione

"This is a quick demo of a Eurorack-format Voltage-Controlled Clock from PM Foundations. You can find the Quantizer, VC Clock and reSEMble here: http://www.tindie.com/stores/pmfounda..."

"This is a voltage controlled clock module to drive your synth sequencers and switches. All CMOS based, no microprocessor so it is easy to build and test.

There is a CV input so that the clock speed can be varied using a control voltage instead of, or as well as, the manual speed control.

If you are currently using a VCO or LFO as a clock generator, you can use this module to free that up.

IMPORTANT NOTE

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Oberheim FVS Demo

Randy Piscione

"Demo of my Oberheim FVS-1. This one took two years to get to where it is now, and is still a bit flaky sometimes (like me) but still amazing to play. I want to thank John at PM Foundations for his substantial help in getting this working. Without him, it would be in a closet.

0:00 is a thick pad. 2:16 is another pad using a pinball song, with the VCF between LPF and Notch. 4:37 uses the Bandpass filter. 6:54 is polyphonic VCO sync. 8:39 is a bird-related excerpt using a split keyboard, with one SEM playing the bass and the other 3 doing the chords. The top three are tuned an octave higher than the bass SEM."

Randy Piscione Studio Live 2020

Published on Mar 31, 2020 Randy Piscione

"On March 29th, while stuck in the house thanks to the isolation policies, I wandered around my office taking a video (with a Sony A6500) of some stuff while doing some narrating and some playing."

Two reSEMble Pad

Published on Mar 2, 2020 Randy Piscione

"Two reSEMbles droning while I move knobs around, just leave it on and listen while doing something else. One is tuned in 4ths and the other in octaves. Ring mod adds a bit of dissonance, Shaper adds some crunch. Sounds better live, and/or loud.

http://www.tindie.com/products/pmfoun..."

reSEMble 2 VCO

Published on Feb 23, 2020 Randy Piscione

"Demo of a partially-built reSEMble panel. Some live noodling and knob turning. Not sure I can still concentrate on two things at once (playing and turning knobs). I have left out the 3rd VCO and the Shaper (ring mod and folder). You can choose to build it like this, at least to start, and save some time and some money. The bass was recorded earlier, using the lower row of modules, which are the separate versions of those behind reSEMble."

Randy Piscione reSEMble posts

reSEMble asSEMble

Published on Oct 31, 2019 Randy Piscione

"Five minutes or so vid of the reSEMble panel being assembled. The, uh, soundtrack is reSEMble, one take, one track. Two sequencers, a clock, quantizer and the State Machine EG from PM Foundations where used as well but all sound comes from reSEMble. I also did some knob-twiddling while the sequencers ran. The video thumbnail shows the setup used for the soundtrack.

This is the prototype so we're still making minor (very minor) changes."

You can find the first demo here.

PM Foundations 6080 VCF Demo

Published on Oct 22, 2019 Randy Piscione

"This is a demo of a new Eurorack voltage controlled filter (VCF) from PM Foundations called the '6080 VCF.' It is based on their 2Q12 VCF, and is available as a panel and PCB combination. You can find it here:

http://www.tindie.com/products/pmfoun..."

"Compact 6HP VCF for Eurorack Modular synthesizers

This is a state variable filter using the same core as our 2Q12 filter but substituting multiple unattenuated F and Q CV inputs with some on board attenutaors. Like the 2Q12, this filter has a nice fat sounding low pass output. The two pole filter has simultaneous -12dB per octave roll-off for high pass and low pass and a -12 db wide (-6dB either side) bandpass output. It has voltage control of cutoff frequency (F) and voltage control of resonance (Q). F and Q are adjustable with panel controls and from external sources using two F CV inputs and a Q CV input. One F CV and the Q CV have attenuators."

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Introducing reSEMble

Published on Aug 25, 2019 Randy Piscione

"This is the maiden voyage of reSEMble, a single-panel, single-voice synth inspired by the Oberheim SEM, for Eurorack. More info below.

This is a prototype panel, home made (obvious I know) but the building blocks are available from PM Foundations. The panel is currently in Front Panel Designer, but I have not ordered one yet. The 'modules' can be built as standalone Eurorack modules or built behind the reSEMble panel. There is no point-to-point wiring. All connections are made with ribbon cables that run from the back of each module to a single busboard.

We haven’t decided how to market / sell it yet, or even if there is enough demand to bother, but I’m definitely making another one for myself. The 3 VCOs, VCF and two EGs are based on the SEM, but, in addition to a 3rd VCO, there are a few other enhancements, including an expanded LFO, Noise, sample and hold, a wavefolder and more modulation and routing options.

This is not a clone of an SEM. Unlike someone who shall remain nameless but whose initials are UB, we actually sent a note to Tom Oberheim, who forwarded our note to a friend of his, who spent some time on the phone with me. He encouraged us to take Tom’s work and build on it, which we did. The combination of toggles and expanded module functionality replace approximately 80 patchcords."

PMF Ringfolder Demo

Published on Jun 9, 2019 Randy Piscione

"Quick demo of the new RingFolder, from PM Foundations. This is a combination wave folder and ring modulator, with inputs for the folder, X and Y for the ring mod and an attenuated input for folder modulation. There is an onboard "mixer", providing the ability to fold an input wave, the output of the ring mod or a combination of the two.

Get it here (soon): http://www.tindie.com/stores/pmfounda...

VCOs used are all PMF, and all sending out only sines. Sequence CV and drums are provided by a Mutable Instruments Anushri. All other sound is coming from the RingFolder."

PM Foundations SEM Tribute Modules - Comparison with Vintage SEMs

Published on May 1, 2019 Randy Piscione

1. reSEMble 1 of 2

Quick comparison of an Oberheim SEM and the new SEM-tribute modules from PM Foundations. The SEM audio is on the left, PMF modules are on the right. This is live. I tried to play similar lines on both keyboards. It is tricky to get the patches exactly the same, especially when tweaking live like this. The "echo" you hear is actually the other keyboard and modules being played. Headphones are certainly helpful on this one.

These are not clones. I asked Tom Oberheim about doing an SEM clone for Eurorack, and he referred me to a friend of his who has been helping him since the 1970s. We had a long phone conversation and his take on Tom's take is that Tom would rather see us develop something new, even if it is based on his work. So, that was our goal.

2. reSEMble 2 of 2

This is a brief overview of the new “SEM Tribute” modules from PM Foundations. Featured are two VCOs, the VCF, one envelope generator and the first version prototype of the modulation module. The little musical excerpt at the start is the new modules playing bass, along with an Alesis SR-16 on drums and Casio CZ-101 doing the chords.

Intro to Synthesis - Part 4 - VCF Type VCF Mod LFO

Published on Apr 4, 2019 Randy Piscione

"This is a series of synthesizer basics in small, fairly simple (at least to start) bites. Each video is 4 to 6 minutes long (this one is a bit longer, sorry) and covers one or two basic concepts."

You can find all parts here.

Back At It - One Take

Published on Apr 4, 2019 Randy Piscione

"Right off the modular, one rack, one take. Just fooling around with stuff a bit, camera mic, sound is a bit muffled."