Some info on the Upcoming Buchla Modules (100, 200, and Easel)

This one was spotted and sent in via Soviet Space Child, on muffs.

Post by Eric Fox of Buchla U.S.A. You can find a recent interview with Eric Fox here.

"Hey everyone!

I appreciate the interest in what it is we’re working on. Although I don’t spend too much time on the forum, with all of the announcements and imminent release of Easel Commands into the wild it is probably a good idea for me to poke my head up once in awhile :)
Let’s see if I can quickly shed some light on a few things:

Easel vs Easel Command- When I refer to a “full” Easel, I am indeed referring to the classic configuration of some form of 208+218+Case. Just like what we did with the 208C, the 218 and case needs to be updated in order to make them better, more consistent, and have the ability to scale production based on demand. We’re actively working on these and hopefully I can make an official announcement with details this summer.

Easel Preset Manager- Joel, Darren, and Charles are now working on this one. Those guys are the masters at this stuff, so I’m gonna hopefully have the official rundown of what all it can do soon. While it will be different physically than iProgram Card, it’s my understanding that the the new UX from a software angle might be able to be an update for the iProgram card. I’ll stop talking now about it since those guys will yell at me for not knowing what I’m talking about. We’ll make a clear announcement about this soon :)

200 and 100 reissues- These full-size recreations are being headed up by Jon Nenson (The Human Comparator) and our own in-house designer, Charles Seeholzer. We were planning on having (5) 200 models to show off at SB. These certainly won’t be the only 200’s we offer... but it’s a little difficult to launch 20+ models all at the same time! We insist on making them as good as they can be. Otherwise, what’s the point? Releasing a handful at a time just makes the most sense so that each model can get the proper attention they deserve. If you don’t see your favorite one in this first run, just know that it will probably not be that far behind. Patience young grasshoppers.

Clones vs Official- To clarify, the point I’m trying to make is in regards to not wanting someone to think poorly of any brand based on the possibility that they are playing with a shitty, poorly built, corner-cutting diy project from god knows where. Please don’t confuse that statement with the fact that I know there absolutely are quality builds out there that do a great job of really capturing the true spirit of the original design. I’m friends with a lot of those who are considered some of the best at doing this and that’s why I choose to partner with them when possible. I know that I have the best resources out of anyone to do this right including involving actual people who were there alongside Don when these were being developed. If Buchla can offer a consistently high-quality official version that comes with full warranty/support and it helps support some of the “Associates” who were there with Don... seems like that’s the right way to do it. No shade being thrown at those using quality built products intended.

Who is “Dave”?- All I’ll say is that it is being renamed to “Don’s Barber Shop” as per the request of some of those who were closest with Don.

I hope I didn’t create more questions than answers! If there is a real pressing question you need answered, just hit me up directly and I’ll do my best to answer with the best available info I have and feel free to share my responses with the rest of the class :)

Thanks for your passion. Stay safe+sanitary+sane
-Eric Fox"

THE KEY-COLLECTIBLE GUITAR SYNTH

images via this auction
"So fasten your seat-belts & enjoy the read (and if you don't please don't tell me as I'm terribly insecure) About 15 years ago a client of the ad agency I worked for called me with an interesting question; "If money was no object (I wish!) What's the best professional performance keyboard available today--in terms of range and realism of sounds"? As I'm a part time musician all it took was a few calls to confirm it was the KORG m1. So my next question was why is the owner of well known telecom products company whose stuff was sold at every local and national retailer asking me about electronic keyboards--telephone keypads, maybe but music keyboards?!?! About six months and 3 non disclosure agreements later, I got my answer, it was called THE KEY. And it was the culmination of serious amounts of R&D time and money. The KEY was a culmination of a dream. It was designed to be an air guitar "brought to life" or an "air guitarists dream machine". Essentially it enabled ANYONE regardless how tone deaf they were to sound like the pro of their choice. Bsically the unit had "cartridges" Each cartridge was loaded with a selection of songs (usually representing a genre or artists) the guitar "part" which progressed along automatically was controlled by the "guitarist" in terms of style, rhythm, etc--in other words it was IMPOSSIBLE to play a wrong note and the variations as to how you played the right guitar parts were limited by your imagination or confidence which built along with your comfort level. If you were at all musically adept, you coud actually use THE KEY like a real guitar as the "fins" functioned as guitar strings the "rockers" on the neck functioned like the frets on a regular guitrar with the added benefit of pitch bending, classic "synth style" portimento (the note to note smooth "slide effect") and all the other stuff that was years ahead of its time. Case in point it even had "networkability: with a second KEY via a simple phone jack, plus it could even be used as a MIDI controller--right out of the box. And because the Soul of the KEY was a sound board used in the KORG M1,(which back then was over $500, JUST FOR THE BOARD) the voices are nothing short of flawless-both in solo or in full orchstral mode, Basically the unit is layed out as follows; 1)The Neck with the touch sensitive rocker frets which aside from letting you control the "tuning" of the song being played from the cartridge also make the KEY playable like a regular guitar 2) The Body which has two rows of selector buttons for; a) POWER (obvious) b) LEAD (choose the volume of lead insrtument+switch the "choice" of the lead instrument from whatever's programmed for that song to whatever satisfies our creative curiosity--imagine the signature lead giotar on LAYLA (one of the 9 songs included on the cartridge) replaced with a bagpipe , string section or sitar --all controled by you as you play it note for flawless note,,, c) SONG: How you choose the song from the cartridge d) VOLUME: self explanatory e) KEYBOARD: Guess what the "frets" can control the "strings" like a real guitar or if you want to channel your inner "Stanley Jordan" or "Andy Mcee" you can set the KEY up to play the neck as a second seperate instrument f) PAUSE: Say you get so excited by your newfound musicality you have to stop and compose yourself but dont want to lose your groove, just hit pause, take a few deep breaths, hit it again and youre back in action g) STRUMMER: Control all aspects and sounds of the action on the "fins" which is what you "strum" or pick, etc as the KEY handles the "grownup stuff" like going from note to note etc h) EXIT: How to leave program mode and start playing--'Cause people live for air guitar not air "programming" i) ENTER: How to tell the KEY what you've chosen in terms of sounds, styles, etc. Speaking of which the visual interface for the KEY is a simply elegrant red LED display--as it was designed to get you playing not programming theres no need for more confimation than the LED provides the interface and access is simple, intuitive and almost dare I say it--elegant? It was designed fot the "Master of the Universe" by day/Master of the Air Guitar by Night" so nothing mattered except for making music and the fastest, simplest way of accomplishing that--with dazzling results.In addition, theres also an "EXPRESSION" tab which is like a "Whammy bar" and a "CONTROL" tab which lets you change some stuff "on the fly" without accessing the menus. So now that you know what the KEY is and what it can do/does. here's the backstory to how I ended up with two of them; When my clients R& D team finally had the KEY to a marketable point, they realized that its $5000 ($4999.99 actually) price tag, meant it wasnt shall we say uh, Wal-Mart material. After numerous meetings, the game plan was to market it via the ROBB Report which is a magazine that targets rich folks to whom $5000 was a small price to pay when it came to realzing a dream--considering the Robb Report advertises $5000 bottles of wine, the strategy was pretty solid (even if my client and I DID agree on it!) Aside from that, the folks at Hammacher Schlemmer were shown a proto type and were more upset by the fact they couldnt get the KEY for the Christmas catalog than they were by its $5000 price tag. So here we are all revved up with a real dream product, the ultimate "adult toy" so we figured lets start the year with a "bang" and showcase it at CES (the Consumer Electronics Show) in Las Vegas...For those of you who dont know, CES is the ultimate playground for anything in gizmos, gadgets and great technology goodies. Not surprisingly the Key was a critical and consumer geek sucess. How sucessful? Let's just say that twenty out of 25 production samples were sold during the three days of the show--all at "full retail". Fast forward to 2008 my basement. As I said in the opening of this rather rambling read, aside from being an advertising creative type, I'm also a musician and over the years--like many part time musicians, with a "day gig" Ive accumulated all kinds of interesting gear and equipment, Anyway, Ive been clearing out my basement and there wrapped carefully in foam lined, road cases was not one but two--yep two KEYS. Why two? One was the reference model I was using to create the Robb Report ad and the other (based on the packing slip) was a unit sent to a member of the media--either Popular Science or Electronic Musician magazine who saw it at CES and was so taken by it, he was chomping at the bit to be the first reviewer to cover it and introduce it to the world. So why is the only place you've ever heard of the KEY in this listing? Turns out when the folks at KORG saw what magic had been done with their sound chips, they suddenly came up with all sorts of reasons why they couldnt live with the relationship --as I understood it, their egos couldnt live with being a mere chip supplier while the folks behind the KEY would get all the glory. And while there were other sound chip vendors out there, it means re-designing a goodly portion of the guts and more $$. So that locked the door on the KEY. NOTE: If you google "LONESTAR" &"THE KEY", you'll get media info about a "follow up" product that was shown at the following year's CES. Aside from using a way lower grade sound chip, the unit also employed a "stripped" down version of the technology all for which made for a lackluster experience for aspiring "air guitarists". The one's being offered here are the ones that targeted the ROBB REPORT reader and wallet. I had the follow up model as well and gave that to my nephew years ago, he liked the ultimate "air guitar" experience it provided so much that it inspired him to study trumpet...'nuff said! So here we are 2008 and I'm seeing how games like "Guitar Hero" are taking the planet by storm and I realize they're just that GAMES...Clealry not something a musician or serious collector of one of a kind"Guitar-a-bilia" can get behind and be tempted to sell their soul or first born man child in order to add the KEY to their collection. Then, to confirm, my suspicions, I ran the KEY by a gentleman named "Carmine Damico" (feel free to Google him, to see why he's the ideal guru of all things "guitarish". So after about 10 minutes it was love at first fret. Once Carmine "transposed" his years of grammy and platinum album winning talents and mastered the mechanics of the KEY, it was all I could do to ask him for it back. Did he make me an offer? Yep. But it was based on his selling some other stuff to make room for these, plus hes relocating to the West Coast, etc and much as I love musician types, I know its easier for them to part with a family member than one of their "axes", hence I said I'd look elsewhere, so here I am. Bottom line; I'm selling both as package. Based on research into similar one of a kind (or in this case two of a kind) fully functional performance-ready prototypes, the reserve is rather fair, as theres very few collectors whose collections wont be "rounded out" by the addition of these. When you compare this to whats out there today and what they sell for, the reserve on my 2 KEYS isnt gonna be cheap, but the fact that these have no comparable products, is a statement unto itself.
Re the technical stuff; both units work, the "action" on the fins and frets is flawlessly fine and the units include one cartridge (pictured) which is programmed with the following songs; LAYLA, HEY JEALOUSY, VASOLINE, ONE, IN MY LIFE, ALL APOLOGIES, THE RIVER OF DREAMS, BASKET CASE AND COME TO MY WINDOW. They work with a standard 9 volt adapter as well as 6 D cells, plus have a built in speaker that sounds pretty impressive. Aside from all this, you'll make anyone with a Guitar Hero fetish, feel very sily indeed (and sound even sillier!) As the KEY reads MIDI files, I have to believe if you google around the net (use the terms LONESTAR and KEY and take it from there), enough you'll find some video gaming related company that can sell you blanks for you to downlaod midi files on line and use the KEY like a jukebox or karaoke jukebox except with this karaoke youre playing along not singing along and its IMPOSSIBLE for you to hit a wrong note. Plus you know youll be the ONLY kid on the block whose got the KEY to taking their passion for air guitar to the next level"
via Major Babes.

Update via Mackenzie in the comments:
"I have one of these. Its in a video i put on youtube. Check it out, its kinda cool. Comes in around 38 seconds."

R.A. Mini Moog synthesizer Model D extremely rare made in March 1971

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

This one was spotted and sent in via M Me.


via this auction

"Up for sale is a (1) very rare R.A. Mini Moog synthesizer Model D. The serial number is 1045, it's the 45th Mini Moog on the planet and it's manufactured in March 1971. All boards have serial number 1045 except the vco board which has serial 1043. Jim Scott, who worked with Robert Moog in Trumansburg N.Y., told a friend of mine that it was messy in the beginning days of the factory. It was quite normal that synths left the factory with different numbers on the boards inside. The most important thing is that the boards are all R.A. Moog ones. Someone installed cv / gate inputs a couple of years ago, so it's not fully original anymore unfortunately. But the cv / gate is working fine.

The synthesizer sounds absolutely awesome! The oscillators are very raw and the filter is way better than on newer Minimoog synthesizers.

The synth is just been serviced and in perfect working condition. It's running on 220v and there is an European plug installed to the lead."

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Rare Dynacord ADS-K Keyboard Sampler

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

via this auction

This one was spotted and sent in via M Me.

This appears to be the first one to be featured on the site. Also see the Dynacord ADD-two.

From the listing:

"Here comes the rare keyboard version of the ADS, namely the ADS-K, under the hammer!

The ADS/ADS-K dates back to 1989 and raised the 16-bit bar a little higher with 20-bit converters. On the one hand, the ADS ties in with Dynacord's drum sampler history and, on the other hand, with their PA products (the well-known DRP-20 dates from the same time).

Extremely slick 80s design. Is - for my taste - only topped by the white version. But I've never seen them for sale. But the black version is also impressive. Who owns a Dynacord keyboard!?

Can also be used as a master keyboard due to the good synth keyboard and the large contact surface for computer keyboards or similar.

The features:
- 16bit with 20bit D/A converter
- Stereo sampling
- 16 votes
- 2MB, expandable to 8MB
- reads S-900 floppy disks (but I was never able to try it due to the lack of the sampler mentioned)
- Re-sampling (can sample itself)
- Additive synthesis with 64 harmonics
- Modulation matrix (see pictures; That's right, we also know it from another device, especially from the ramp generators. The software was said to have been programmed by the same gentlemen.)
- Internal mixer with loop-in path
- Individual outputs
- SCSI connection (I haven't been able to try that before, but it should still work)
- Good synth keyboard with effective dynamic conversion
- more features: see Internet

Unfortunately, the 33 years have left the following traces:

- The top two buttons are broken and beyond repair. I took them out of service and temporarily glued them on for cosmetic reasons. Didn't turn out that well - you can see a slight difference in height in the pictures. I hope the construction survives the transport.

- The upper right segment of the right 7-segment display is defective. You can see that in the pictures. "00" should be displayed. But that doesn't matter when playing, because you primarily look at the display and the button labels.

- The lower octave keys are slightly yellowed.

Scope of delivery:
- Dynacord ADS-K
- Original box
- Power cord
- Disks with sounds (unfortunately some of them are no longer readable)
- Leftovers/components of the two defective keys"

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PIONEER SA-055 - SOUND MIXER STEREO AMPLIFER

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

via this auction

This one was spotted and sent in via M Me. Anyone know when these were manufactured?

Why is this getting a post? Look closely. :)

Video below.

Update via Tristan in the comments: made in 1984.

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Mystery Kit?

Anyone know what this is? It's featured at 14:29 in this video.

This one was spotted and sent in via M Me.

Update via steve in the comments:

"Yes, Row Seven. An Analogue drum machine, apparently. I saw it at Synthfest in Sheffield a couple of weeks ago, but never got to investigate as the stand was always busy. They are a start-up."

via the SynthFest UK exhibitors page:

"Row Seven will be showing the Beta version of their analog drum machine. The machine provides modern digital control of legacy analog percussion voice circuits."

TTSH (ARP2600 clone) and ARP sequencer clone 1601

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

This one was spotted and sent in via M Me.

via this auction

"This is the TTSH v1 and includes fixes from the v1 recommendations, also have Gate input with Gatebooster to ensure compatibility with most synths that uses positive gate norm. (By default the ARP2600 or TTSH doesnt work with most part of gate signals, so need this adapter circuit to accept all positive gates signals) Also includes a top quality linear power supply with toroidal transformer. You can connect direct to AC using standard cable. This linear power supply ensure better performance than other standard switching regulators and DC DC converters... With this power supply the sounds improves a lot and is better to save from external laptop bricks used in the default configurations. The TTSH being a clone of a classic analog synth like the ARP 2600 improves a lot using a classic linear power supply!
The power supply can work in 100/110 or 220/240v. At this moment is set for 220/240v but can be changed via internal switch easily so can be set for your AC voltage spec before shipping.

Also for sale with it, the ARP Sequencer clone. Replica from the classic ARP Sequencer 1601. Is a pleasure to work with it, very musical and intuitive. The power Supply can run from 100 to 240v with no problem.

Instruments build by hand using classic thru-hole components. Not SMT parts are used.

The instruments were built 3 years ago. Instruments are used in studio only. Excellent/perfect working condition. Instruments can have some minor marks of use, but shape is very good."

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Rare Vintage PPG 1020 For Sale

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

via this auction

Surprisingly less than a Jupiter-8!

This one was spotted and sent in via M Me.

Google translated discription from the listing:

True rarity - PPG 1020 Monophonic digital synthesizer with analog filter

CONDITION: Used, in very good condition (see photos), playable immediately. The device was completely overhauled in a specialist workshop and works perfectly.

DESCRIPTION: The PPG 1020 is a very special rarity and in perfect technical condition. It is very stable in voice, has analog VCF, digital keyboard without bouncing contacts and a special, very expressive, fat super sound! More information about the device on request.

SPECIAL FEATURE: Double Glide ON/OFF switch above the pitch bender wheel."

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Custom Black Alesis Andromeda A6

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

via this listing

This one was spotted and sent in via M Me.

"ich biete hier einen liebevoll umgebauten Alesis Andromeda A6 zum Kauf an. Dieser wurde 2022 aufwändig umgebaut.

In diesem Zusammenhang hat das Gerät einen Service bei SCS (Doc Analog) bekommen (Rechnung vorhanden).

Zudem wurde ein neues FATAR TP9/s Keybed (Reverse-Ausführung) verbaut (Rechnung vorhanden)."

Googlish:

"I am offering a lovingly converted Alesis Andromeda A6 for sale. This was extensively rebuilt in 2022.

In this context, the device was serviced by SCS (Doc Analog) (invoice available).

In addition, a new FATAR TP9/s keybed (reverse version) was installed (invoice available)."

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Custom White Roland JX-8P w/ PG-800

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

This one was spotted and sent in via M Me.

Description in Googlish:

"CustomRoland JX-8P + Roland PG-800 + Roland M-16C Cartridge + Printed / Bound Owner's Manual.

Eprom OS 3.1

This JX-8P was in terrible condition when I got it (see last 4 photos), held together with wood screws, large scratches all around and a lot of rust on the front panel. Had 6 broken keys and the pitch bender was hanging loose.

The wood screws destroyed the inner bracket mounting holes that held the side panels together, so I had to drill these out and replace them with 5mm Allen screws, which looks pretty cool and gives the synthesizer back its stiffness.

Sanded the entire synth to bare metal / plastic to remove any remaining rust and scratches. On the bender panel, I filled in the holes drilled by a previous owner to hold the pitch bender.

Gave it a professional paint job in a contemporary light industrial gray that matches the buttons of the PG-800 and the industrial look of the JX-8P.

The PG-800 is built by myself with the original firmware / eprom. Potentiometers are from Alps and the knobs are from Sifam.

I made the graphics myself and are screen printed aka screen printing.

I bought an extensive screen printing kit so I can now print any design on any surface. I am satisfied with the result.

All keys have been cleaned and polished and the keyboard plays perfectly and the aftertouch works fine.

Also the light scratches on the display removed with a plastic polisher and that now looks like new.

All tacticle switches have of course been replaced with new ones :)

Getting this JX-8P back to its former glory was a lot of work, but I have to say it looks better than the original imho."

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AIRA -- The evolution of the Roland TR-808 Rhythm Machine

Published on Jan 14, 2014 RolandChannel·828 videos

"Roland Engineers discuss the initial concept of the TR-808 which was conceived and built in 1980. Although it was designed to create 'backing tracks', creative musicians started to use the Rhythm Machine as an instrument and music changed forever. Now the evolution begins again."

Follow-up to this post.

Some discussion on The MATRIXSYNTH Lounge & the MATRIXYSNTH Facebook Page

Update: image, price and details of AIRA:

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Novation Summit - A playing attempt at Brian Crain's "Imagining"

video uploads by eM

Playlist:
Novation Summit - A playing attempt at Brian Crain's "Imagining"

One of my favorite piano artists Brian Crain, his song 'Imagining' attempting to play it. IIt definitely takes some muscle memory, but I love this song, love to hear it sound on the Summit.

Novation Summit - "Morning Stroll" SM Plucked Keys

Took a walk outside with the family in our new neighborhood... beautiful sunny day. Much to be thankful for. a short inspirational piece from that played here. I hope wherever you are you will find an enjoyable stroll for yourself.

Novation Summit - SM Plucked Keys (Orano patch) - "Pirate's Beach"

Could pass for a guitar sound, do you think? Credit to Orano's patch again, some reverb from the flashback and hall of fame, subtle reverb and delay on the Summit, I know I know.. why not just use one or the other. Well, it's convenient to alternate, the HoF and FB pedals are primarily not adjusted as it's also sent thru my mixer as an FX channel for other instruments. Enjoy.

Novation Summit - "Aisle" - Multi Mode - 1. SM 5th Sense 2. Sm Who's Afraid (Orano's single patches)

Credit to Orano's Novation Summit single patches, I split them in multi mode, as you'll usually see me do. In this improvisation I'm playing with the delay timing effects on the #2 patch while playing pad on the #1. The onboard delay and reverb effects gives instant breaths for your creative atmospheres.

Novation Summit - "Crystal Falls" Multi Setting (SM Leviathan and SM Popcorn Arp)

Patch creation credit to Orano Music @ https://www.orano.co.uk/shop. Just having fun with blending his patches, very lush and enjoyable, highly recommended!

Novation Summit - SM Leviathan (patch Created by Orano Music)

This patch (along with many others) was created by Orano Music

Novation Summit - "Legendary Keys" - Solo Piano - Multi Mode

I like taking the same single patch and splitting them between both the A and B sections. There are a few minor tweaks between the two sections of course, the A section I'll use for solo piano playing with some slight filter manipulations while the B section is mainly conducting the arp in the play tick on the arp knob, this basically follows the key strokes and does a catch up, so to say, as there is also delay and feedback being added for dynamic effect. I like being able to create an immersivity effect to keep me going in my solo playing. The Summit never fails to conveniently produce this very basic task.

Since OBS has fixed their NDI plugin, it's less work around for me to set up these recordings again. Thanks for listening. appreciate any comments or tips for solo piano playing and any other recommendations to help me along this Summit playing journey.

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Jurgen Haible - Living Vocoder Custom Build

This one was spotted on Muff's from JanneI and sent in via M Me.

Jurgen Haible started work on the design back in 2009, prototype boards came in 2010, and he unfortunately passed away in 2011. His site is gone, however I was able to find his page on the Living Vocoder at the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine here.

"The Filterbank funktion will have 3 modes:

1) On
The Filterbank will always be mixed with the vocoded sound, acording to how you set the Filterbank sliders.

2) Off
Basic Vocoder function

3) Silence Bridging
The Filterbank function will fade in when there is no speech. So there is always a coloured Excitation signal. While you speak, the colour is set by the speech. When you don't speak, the colour is set by the 20 Filterbank sliders. This allows a seamless blend of ariticulated and non-articulated sound.
You can set the threshold - how many dBs down the speech signal is, before the filterbank is engaged -, and the attack and release time of the filterbank fade in/out, with 3 potentiometers.

Capacitors

I have reduced the expensive, 1% capacitors to two values: 10nF and 47nF.
That way, you can buy them in larger quanities and they won't be that expensive.
You will need about 150 pieces of 47nF 1% and 150 pieces of 10nF 1%.
They are available at www.rs-components.de , order number 169-326 and 166-6421 (These are bags of 10 pieces.)
You'll need a lot of other capacitors as well, of course, butthese can be 5% tolerance - not so hard to source."

You can find additional details and links to schematics here.

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Acid - The Sonic Foundry Story 1998

YouTube via DjPuzzle73 | September 07, 2010

"Sonic Foundry Corporate video from 1998. This little piece of History is very close to my heart. I helped score the au­dio for this video back in the day when I used to work at Son­ic Foundry in Madison. You'll see me at about 3:16 mins in to the right (your left) of a very nerdy look­ing Mike Scheibinger. I'm hold­ing my chin and wear­ing a green hoody.

My Side Of The Story:
Ray sent me to Nashville in 1998 for the Summer NAMM convention and that is where the story really unfolds. I stopped by a demonstration at the Sonic Foundry booth and listened to their sales rep demonstrate the latest version of Sonic Foundry's ACID Pro. We had already sold ACID version 1.0 at zZounds and I of course was amazed at what this program could do simply because there was absolutely nothing else like it and it certainly was a total dream come true. After the demonstration they announced that they were hiring and if interested they were to speak with a representative back stage. I was the first and only person to respond which almost made it seem as though it was meant to be.

I could hardly wait to return home because the meeting went well and my hopes were high. I followed through with every step immediately upon my arrival in Chicago and to no avail received a phone call from Mike Scheibinger at zZounds of all places, how nerve racking. Mike was interested and eager to meet and interview me at the Madison Wisconsin home base.
My experience in Madison was almost dream like. Mike let me stay at his house the night before the interview, not even knowing who I was. He had a wife, daughter, and a dog all living in a humble home in Cottage Grove Wisconsin. Everyone was so friendly and generous. I awoke to the smell of freshly brewed coffee and the wet nose of a dog sniffing my face. Mike drove us to Sonic Foundry and we hung out all day interviewing.

My bus ride back to Chicago was not easy to tolerate as I was completely excited about the possibility of working for such a cool company. One hour into my ride home and my mobile rings. I answer it and it's Sonic Foundry's Human Resources telling me I got the job.

I worked at Sonic Foundry for about two years editing and ACIDizing loops, making demo songs, preparing remix contests for ACIDplanet.com, and scoring advertisements. Some of my most adored accomplishments were helping to develop ACIDplanet.com, scoring and producing the Acid MTV commercial, writing the script and music for the Chicago B96 Acid radio commercial, editing the content and preparing samples for the Beck and Beastie Boys remix contests for ACIDplanet.com, and and demoing products at Peter Gabriel's WOMAD tour in Seattle. Working at Sonic Foundry was such a great experience and I learned so much but it was too good to be true. The company went public and became a huge success until the market crash winter of 2000. This is when 200 hundred employees including myself lost our jobs on Christmas weekend do to company downsizing.

Luckily Mike kept me busy with freelance work. I produced all of the loops for ACID Dj 3.0 which was developed specifically to sell at Best Buy and Computer Discount Warehouse nation wide.

Sonic Foundry sold it's software and media to Sony.
I then continued to produce 6 more loop CDs for Sony Media Software but this didn't pay the bills so I decided to start my own business producing royalty free loops for ACID and Soundtrack.

The company is called Peace Love Productions. The name was inspired by the conflicts in Iraq. I've been running PLP for nine years from today and it has been a very fruitful experience. I feel blessed every day when I think about how it has helped me to grow as a person both creatively , mentally, and spiritually."

New Eventide H9000 to Support Max/MSP Patches?

Soviet Space Child sent in news of the new Eventide H9000 effects processor.

There's a rumor that it will support Max/MSP patches. Whether that means integration with an external computer running Max/MSP, or actually hosting them natively, we will have to wait and see.

via Eventide does hint at it up front:

"Hello! My name is Jack Impink. I am an electronic musician by trade, working with both gear and software. I like to use older equipment alongside programs like Max/MSP to see what kind of odd sounds will be produced. I’ve been working in the Eventide Labs beta testing the H9000, and I can’t wait to show you what I’ve been finding so far.

First and foremost, the big news: Eventide will be unveiling the H9000 at the 143rd AES Convention on October 18th, 2017! You may have seen some footage of the unit from a certain promotional video already, but in this blog we’ll be going a little deeper. Tune in to see what features we’re working on and any hidden gems that I discover along the way.

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Roland LAPC-I Synthesizer Sound Card w/ MCB-1 Midi Connector

Microtec XT 2002 Master + Roland LAPC-I Published on Jul 30, 2016 Ricardo Contieri

This one was spotted and sent in via M Me. Never seen one of these before.

via this auction

"The LAPC combines the Roland MT-32-compatible MIDI synthesizer module Roland CM-32L with an MPU-401 interface on a single plug-in card. The sound is generated using linear arithmetic synthesis (LA), a form of sample-based synthesis supplemented with subtractive synthesis. As with other Roland plug-in cards with an MPU-401 interface, an MCB-1 is required to connect external MIDI devices. The sound is output either via cinch sockets or a jack socket. Compared to more modern sound cards, the LAPC masters the independent generation of sounds, but not the playback of wave files. However, it produced the sound for many retro games! Original packaging with description! Everything as new!"

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Lyre Inc. FDSS Studio Additive Synthesizer + Resynthesis

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via this auction

This is the first post to feature both Lyre inc. and the FDSS Studio Additive Synthesizer. It was spotted and sent in via M Me. The listing, images, and info is from Synthmaster.de, posted here with permission.

Details from the listing:

"I am offering my ultra mega rare Lyre FDSS Studio.

The FDSS is an additive synthesizer with analysis and resynthesis function from 1987

The technical data is on the last picture in the web, you can find almost nothing about it

Ultra rare , as far as I know less than 50 devices have been built , only three have been delivered to Europe .

This synthesizer was available as an 8 or 16 voice version,
The 8-voice version was always the basic version, which could be expanded to include a further 8 voices out of 16.

Like the famous Technos Acxel synthesizer, the Lyre
FDSS synthesizer also designed and built in Quebec / Canada.

You had to operate it via a terminal, similar to the

Synclavier, Synergy or Kurzweil K150FS.

Software was and is included for PC and Apple Mac

Mac could be connected directly and with the PC you needed a card (ISA is included)

price, no idea.....

with such rare things "whatever someone is willing to pay" applies :-))

or exchange for vintage synthesizer?"

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DSI still Sequential Circuits

This one spotted by prophei. He downloaded the sysex for the three individual OSes for the DSI Poly Evolver Keyboard off of the DSI website. When he looked at the manufacture in the Mac OS X SysEx Librarian this is what he saw. Anyone confirm?

Update: another screen shot sent in and confirmations in the comments.

Update via wavedeforum via the comments: "The manufacturer ID is not IP that would get sold with Sequential Circuits. It is an ID issued by the MIDI Manufacturers Association. Usually a number is retired or recycled when a company ceases doing business.

Because of Dave Smith's role in getting MIDI going, he gets to keep his ID, which is 1.

It's the programs that interpret Sysex that lookup the ID and display an appropriate string that are at fault for still displaying Sequential Circuits. I would think that they should be revised to display DSI/Sequential or something similar."

also sent my way privately via Stephen via Synthwood. Pretty cool when you think of it. Dave Smith was THE man behind MIDI. SCI was first with the Prophet-600 followed by Roland with the JX-3P. I'm guessing Roland has ID #2, but I have yet to confirm this. Be sure to see the comments of this post for more.

Update via Dave Cornutt in the comments:
"Roland is not ID #2 because the IDs are divided into three groups, American, European, and Japanese. The American group starts with 1; the European group starts with 20 hex, and the Japanese group starts with 40 hex. Roland is assigned ID 41H; for reasons unknown to me Kawai was given 40H. Here's the whole original list, from "The Complete SCI MIDI", January 1984 edition (all numbers in hex):

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Keytek CTS-5000R Vintage Expander

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via this auction

This one was spotted and sent in via M Me.

Only a handful featured in previous posts.

Googlish translation from the listing:

"An extremely rare Keytek CTS-5000R vintage expander with the sounds of the CTS5000
Fully functional
Midi Trio , Stereo out (left + right/mono ) Sustain Pedal in , Headphones out .
Sounds sampled in ROM/eprom are like bass , piano , spinnet etc."

Solton TS4 (Italy, 1989) Italo Disco Machine Rack Synth Module

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via this auction

This one was spotted and sent in via M Me.

"Solton TS4 synth module with PCM drums and some analog sections like bass especially designed for real-time arranger performance.

Made in Italy in 1989! It’s the brother of the famous Solton Programmer 24!

SERIAL NUMBER: 1675/89

Derived from the same project of Solton Programmer 24, the TS4 has the same analog fat sounds and programmable patterns. There are several preset functions for live play!

FUNCTIONS:

• Auto Bass
• Custom Arranger
• Patch Change
• Manual Drums (triggers with notes)
• Odd Bass 16/8 feet
• Tempo Change
• Memory Save
• Custom Variation
• Intro Fill in-End

SOUNDS:

• BASS: features 16 different presets e.g slap, picked, sixties, fingered. With BASS BRILLANCE which is a kind of filter EQ.
• CHORD 1: there are 32 patches e.g strings, EP, grand piano, fiddle, organ, choir, brass, pads... You can filter it with CHORD BRILLANCE function.
• CHORD 2: another wave of 32 patches: marimba, piano, funky, mellow, clarinet, flute, harmonica, guitar, bell.

You can mix sounds between bass, chord 1 and chord 2 to create incredible new sounds!

• DRUMS: 7 channels with individual gain and outs for a total of 43 percussions sounds samples. Some drum functions like ROLL and FLAME. Drums includes: kick, snare, hit hat, ride, tambourine, toms, shaker-maracas."

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