A6 Easter Egg?

No title link for this post. In via the Alesis A6 user group. Apparently there is a hidden page on the A6 that lists the OS history, development team members, and an ASIC page with paramaters that should not be tweaked. I almost didn't post this because of that last bit, but I figure there are plenty of other ways to damage a synth. Obviously be careful and take a peek at your own risk - I take no liability for you, strangers or crazy friends around your synths. : ) Protect and serve your synths. To access this screen hit global, soft button 7, and then soft buttons 7 and 8 at the same time.

Oberheim Prommer

Found this in my picture collection. What struck me in this image is the Oberheim Matrix-6 style membrane buttons AND the Matrix-12 style red and black push buttons. I never really noticed that before. Title link takes you to Synth Museum with more info on the Prommer. In short it was an EPROM burner for the Oberheim DMX. You would use it to burn samples into EPROMs that you could then pop into your DMX for triggering.

303 Expo in Germany

In via Music Thing. Wow, looks like it's going to be good. Make sure to check out the site for more inlcuding some images like the one below. Damn, check out the see-through red case. What is that anyway?

Moog Modular - New Flickr Shot

via flickr

Moog Buttons

Found these in my pictures. I remember when synth buttons were all over the *bay. For whatever reason I'm not seeing as many as I did before. Try a search on the 'bay for any manufacturer and buttons to see what comes up. Roland buttons came up empty for me. Moog only had about three sets. Hmm... makes me think I should have gotten some while they were there, but... I can always make my own stinkin buttons if I want I guess. Anywho, I do like this shot; makes a slick background wallpaper.

Sonic Six Manual Cover

Found this in my collection. I believe this is the cover of the Moog Sonic Six Manual. If not let me know.

Bandwidth Glitch

And I'm back! Sorry about the downtime if you happened to come by during it. My site was down due to exceeding my bandwidth on ACENET. Dang YMO videos! As promised though, I will put them back up in October. Site going down is my bad for not doing more due diligence on this. Acenet got me back up in about an hour after contacting them, so cheers to them. Honestly I am very happy with their service considering I have the cheap-o $3.95 a month host plan. BTW, if you are looking for a host, do check them out. I have a link to them on the bottom of the right pane, and yes if you do sign up clicking through there I get a little reward. : ) Ok, enough of this, back to synths. I have a few posts waiting.

Korg MS10 Patch Sheets

In via AH. Korganalogue.net is home to Korg Kornukopia, an excellent resource for Korg MS and PS series synths including manuals, pictures and more. Click here for the MS10 page with patch sheets for the Korg MS10. The punch cards of the synth world. : ) Korg Kornukopia takes you to the root.

Maple Voyager

Just a shot of a Maple Voyager from Big City Music, in via AH. Click here for a bigger shot.

Another Synthi-E on the 'bay

Second one in just over a month. This one for sale in San Fransisco, the other was in New York. Pictures are different. Check out the matching keyboard.

Literal Dream Synths - Polyevolver Desktop and OB12

No title link until I have the time and skill Sealed has to mock these up. : ) So, in the previous post I alluded to reoccurring synth dreams I have. I actually created a post on the-gas-station a year or two ago on this, but I didn't save the URL (I'll see if I can dig it up). Anyway, label me obseesed, but I freqently have dreams about synths. Usually they revolve around two scenarios - one, I'm travelling in a city and I hit all the pawn shops; or two, I'm seeing a band play live, and somehow I have access to the stage so I walk around and check out the synths being played; yeah, right. Almost always the synths are imaginary versions of existing synths. Last night I had a dream that I was walking around U2's stage. They had another dedicated band member who played synths for them - he was like the Edge, but another guy and he was an actual member of the band, not a stage or tour musician. He had a four voice Polyevolver desktop that looked about the size of a Future Retro Revolution, but was blue and knob ladden like a Polyevolver keyboard, but different - not as many knobs. He also had an Oberheim OB12, but it was more like an Access Virus or Nord Lead in that the knobs and sliders did not take up the entire surface like a real OB12. The funny thing is this was probably the first case a synth in my dream was not as desirable as the real deal. The really funny thing about this dream was that I realised it was a dream, so I pulled out a Post-It pad and tried to write the synths down before I woke up, thinking that if I did the Post-It would be in my pocket when I woke up. : ) My favorite dream synth? A glossy red Roland SH-101 that looked like a sloped, curved Ferrari. Absolutely beautiful.

Yamaha SY100

Sealed has a post up on the Yamaha SY100 PCM/Vector Synth, an even lower end Vector synth than the SY22 at $99. I have a TG-33 and I know about the SY22, (there once was one in a local classified ad for $0. Yep, free and fully working, but I was too late). So... A Yamaha SY100. I scratched my head a bit, as you might just be doing right now. I don't recall an SY100.... Why? Because it doesn't exist. : ) It's another one of Sealed's dream synths, however this one actually, almost got me. : ) Too many synths, too little time... What's funny is I have reoccuring dreams of synths that do not exist. Call me obsessed. Actually I'll post about a dream I had last night next.

Free Minimoog and Arp 2600 Soft Synths

Trip. Haven't run into these before. People on Vintage Synth Explorer seem to like them. Title link takes you to more info and downloads.

Hush Little Baby - New Flickr Shot

Oh... how cute... Wow! Jaw dropped when I saw this one. I think this beats the shot of the guy sleeping with his synth. Hmm.... Offspring? : )

Baby Roland SH-09

flickr by futilityengineer

Acess Virus Ti finally here?

Set to ship in October. Crossing fingers, not that I'll be able to get one just yet. : ) Title link takes you to Sonic State's News on this.

Making Loops - Video

In via Music Thing. Pretty cool. Title link takes you there.

Moog - New Flickr Shot

Took me a sec to find it. Must be the jet lag. : ) Click through for bigger shot.

MidiBass 303 - the ultimate 303 midi retrofit

Someone asked how to copy pattern on a Roland TB303. The general recommendation was unfortunately older than old school - pen and paper. There is a way you can step through the pattern you want and copy the new pattern referring to it, but most thought pen and paper were easier and more reliable for reference. However punkdISCO pointed out Colin Fraser's MidiBass 303. Title link takes you to more including a sample.



"The problem is that if you want to keep hold of your favorite patterns, but your memory is full and you want to create some more, it can be tricky and time consuming to accurately transcribe your patterns for re-entry at a later date...

To solve these problems, I have developed the MidiBass 303 midi interface.
This interface provides both midi output from the 303 internal sequencer, and midi input to drive the 303 synth section, along with midi clock in and out."

Analog Tea - Elka Synthex Sample

Elka Synthex from Matteo Santori. Right click and save Title Link. Start with a low volume and adjust as usual - protect them ears. : ) This patch particularly reminds me of a more delicate patch I made on a Sequential Circuits Multi-Trak. This one has a lot more bite. : )

Roland Factory Reset Procedures

In via montly-catalog on AH. Title link takes you to a text file with the reset procedures of a number of Roland instruments including the TR-909. Unfortunately there is no reset for the 808 and not all Roland synths like the Jupiters are listed, however quite a few are including some that are specifically called out to not have a reset procedure.

ROLAND TR-909
HOLD TRACK #1 AND PATTERN #1 AND POWER ON.

Noise

Ever wonder what makes up the different types of Noise offered on synths? David Hillel Wilson, curator of the New England Synthesizer Museum and host of Synth Museum posted the following on AH. Title link takes you to the Synth Museum website.

"OK Here is the theory. White noise has every possible sine wave all at the
same volume.
Unfortunately, since the Human ear hears frequencies logarithmically, the
pure randomness
of white noise sounds high pitched to us. Since we hear twice as many
frequencies in any
octave as we do in the octave just below it, to create a noise that "sounds"
right requires
that the amplitude of the noise drop off at 1/2x per octave, or 3dB/Oct.
This is the definition
of Pink noise. Further low-pass filtering can make red noise, while high
pass filtering would
make blue noise. There are, to the best of my knowledge, no exact
definitions for colors
of noise other than white and pink. The "Color" idea comes from optics:
Light containing
all colors in equal strengths is seen by the Human eye as "white". If we
remove the higher
frequency (shorter wave length) lights, the color literally shifts to pink,
hence the name."

David Hillel Wilson
Curator
New England Synthesizer Museum

Wendy Carlos

David Kristian posted the following in the comments section of my post on Raymond Scott below. I thought it would be worth posting separately. Thanks David! : )



"Notice the 7 or 8 Eico Model 377 tube oscillators (sine and square)about three rows down from the cart with the scope. That same make of oscillator also appears in some photos of Wendy (then Walter) Carlos' setup circa Switched-on-Bach.

http://130.58.92.218/webstuff/Phys22/wendycarlosstudio60s70s.jpg

I picked one up at a garage sale a few years ago and used it on a few tracks. It's nothing special in terms of precision, but it sounds very nice and warm.

There is a manual available on this site:

http://bama.sbc.edu/eico.htm"

Raymond Scott

There is a post up on Sonic State's The Gas Station dicussion Raymond Scott. Who was Raymond Scott? Ever watch Bugs Bunny? : ) Title link takes you to everything you might want to know.


Raymond Scott's Wall of Sound, an electro-mechanical sequencer
designed & built by Raymond Scott, 1950s (New York)

More Minimax ASB Demos and Review

Via Sonic State's The Gas Station. 16 mp3s towards bottom. If you don't speak german, try this Google Translator Link.

Yamaha PSS-570 - Dexon Field

Devin sent me a link to his site on the Yamaha PSS-570, yet another home keyboard you might dismiss at the local yard sale or pawn shop. The interesting thing about it is that it has a digital synthesizer button that lets you tweak the sound with five sliders. Interesting. Title link takes you to the site with more info, pictures and an audio clip. Thanks Devin! : )

Commando Bridge - New Flickr Shot

from left to right: Casio VZ-1, Teisco 60F, Korg ER-1, Yamaha DX200, Casio CZ-3000, Elektron Machinedrum Userwave, Elektron Sidstation, Nord Modular, Roland TR-707, Korg MS-2000, Yamaha CS-15, Roland SH-09. Not in pic: Future Retro 777, DSI Evolver.

Custom Oberheim TVS

A custom painted Oberheim TVS. Title link takes you to more shots. If you have any more info on the history of this particular synth, please share.

How to Make Choir Voices without Samples

From Mark Smart who brought us How to Make Arp Strings. The site gives you an example of how to create choir voices, sometimes referred to vox waves, on a JD-800, which can be applied to other synths with similar architecture. Amazing. I'm really impressed with Mark Smart's technique not only in creating these patches but also in how clearly he shares them via his website. Title link takes you there.

Worlds Smallest Tube Amp?

From ZVEX AMPs. Not a synth, but you can process one through it. : ) Title link takes you there.

Black Yamaha VL1

Title link takes you to more and larger shots. Apparently this Yamaha VL1 suffered from some damage and was restored. Part of the restoration included painting the body black.

Dave Smith Evolver Demo

This one from Niall Munnelly via AH. Title link takes you to an mp3.

here are a few sequences, with no FX, performed with one
tabletop evolver. they may not be what you're looking for,
since they're not particularly "fat", but i reckon they're a
pretty good snapshot of many of the sounds and sequences you
can wring from it:

http://www.syncretism.net/snd/evolver_sequences.mp3

--
yours,
niall.

Analog Casiotones and More

Ever wonder if any of those old school home keyboards are analog. Well, here you go. Title link takes you to a page with everything you might want to know about them. It's an amazing list with full details on each piece. Make sure to scroll down to see the list and then click on a model for more details.

Minimoog Voyager Samples

Title link takes you to some Minimoog Voyager Samples on the Moog Music site. Haven't been to the Voyager site for a while...

Bob on a Harley

Found this great picture of Bob Moog on a Harley on Keith Emerson's website. Thought this was an absolutely great shot. : ) Title link will take you to the source.

Roland Juno 60 with Taurus Interface

A Roland Juno 60 with Taurus interface just came up on Craigslist. Interesting. Title link takes you to more shots.

Polyevolver Helicopter Sample

Another from Stefan Trippler. Someone was asking about chopper patches and he came up with this. Enjoy.

Synapse Magazine

Cynthia of Cyndustries.com has been putting up issues of the old Synapse Magazine. She just put up the January/February 1978 issue. Title link takes you there.

Sequentix P3 Shot

Paul Maddox is selling his Sequentix P3 pictured below. Title link takes you to a bigger shot I thought I'd save before it was lost to the ether. : )

Serial Number 6 Sequentix P3

Alpha Juno Yahoo Group Shot

Ran into the Alpha Juno Yahoo Group and saw this beauty of a shot. Title link takes you to the site.

More Videos

Four more in since I last posted.


http://www.ishibashi.co.jp/academic/history_of_the_keyboards

http://www.ishibashi.co.jp/academic/history_of_the_keyboards/yamaha/yamaha_video.htm

http://www.ishibashi.co.jp/academic/history_of_the_keyboards/roland/roland_video.htm

http://www.moogarchives.com/movies.htm

Novation XStation Demo

BoxofDirt posted this on Vintage Synth Explorer. 7 minute long Novation Xstation demo of his patches. I love these because they are raw, unique, and real world examples of what users of the gear come up with. Novations have a certain gloss about them. You can hear that in this demo.

More Video

Digital Screams on Vintage Synth Explorer posted a link to the YMO Videos I put up. There were more links listed of various synth videos, so I thought I'd post them as well.
Enjoy. : )

Club of the Knobs Modular:
http://www.cluboftheknobs.com/videos/destruction.mpg
http://www.cluboftheknobs.com/videos/fear2.mpg

Kraftwerk 1975:
http://users.skynet.be/fb230810/Tomorrow_s_World_1975.rm

Vangelis with a CS-80:
http://www.arturia.net/samples/videos/vtmahm.mpeg

Space's "Magic Fly" circa 1977
http://www.space.tm.fr/videos-en.php

Udpate:
Space - Magic Fly

YouTube via rafatribe
"Space - Magic Fly video (1977)"

SquareWave - New Minimoog Voyager Group

New Yahoo group dedicated to the Moog Minimoog Voyager.

Alesis Ion Demo

10 minute demo of what the Alesis ION can sound like. Pure demo of sounds rather than a musical track, so this is great if you just want to hear it raw. From ex_action_figure, Matt Moniz, via Vintage Synth Explorer.

Roland Alpha Juno 10

I was so tempted to just put this shot and let it be, but I'm no Elhardt. This is a dream synth mock up of a Roland Alpha Juno and a Roland D10 from Sealed on his Deep Synthesis page.

120 Years

Obsolete.com's 120 Years, 1870 to 1990. A great site documenting key dates in the history of electronic instruments.

Begins with The Musical Telegraph Elisha Grey USA 1876

GetLoFi's 3 VCO Opto Sequencer

Title link takes you to more. LED patch cables! Cwazy. : )

Everything You Always Wanted to Hear on the Moog - New Flickr Shot

Click through for bigger shot. Wonder when this came out and what it sounded like.

Deep Synthesis Roland Alpha Juno Page Added

Sealed added a Roland Alpha Juno Page to his site. As usual it's good with links to resources, images, images and MP3. Check it out.

Korg Poly61 Shot

Via WC Olo Garb again. I just love this shot of the Korg Poly61.