jetlib.sec » Tags » synth

The Commodore SID was the audio chip in the venerable Commodore 64 and in the 30 years since release has attained classic status and become one of the best ways to get your chiptune on. Designed by famous synthesizer designer [Bob Yannes], it was only a matter of time before we saw a real, homebrew [...]

Tags:  synth creating midi bob-yannes commodore-sid the midi-synth commodore-64 audio-chip classic  

For all the musicians out there, here’s a great use for your Raspberry Pi. All the features you would expect from a nice analog synth are implemented in a Raspberry Pi-based polysynth – dual oscillators, LFOs, and phasers – and it looks like there will be a few more features added before the Raspi synth [...]

Tags:  raspberry synth softsynth analog-synth phasers oscillators musical hacks  

For all the musicians out there, here’s a great use for your Raspberry Pi. All the features you would expect from a nice analog synth are implemented in a Raspberry Pi-based polysynth – dual oscillators, LFOs, and phasers – and it looks like there will be a few more features added before the Raspi synth [...]

Tags:  raspberry synth softsynth analog-synth phasers oscillators musical hacks  

A little bird sent in a tip about a really cool MIDI synth. It’s called the Ambika, and it seems like just the thing to introduce a synth head to the world of soldering. Compared to an entry-level synthesizer like the microKorg or its ilk, the Ambika is packed full of really cool features that [...]

Tags:  synth source bird ambika microkorg little-bird musical hacks  

Finally one device combines the power of the Commodore 64 SID, Atari ST YM2149, and Amiga MOD audio into one awesome box. It’s called the RetroCade Synth, and there’s a Kickstarter that is perfect for starting your chiptune composing journey. [Jack]‘s RetroCade synth is connects directly to the Papilio One 500k FPGA. All the classic chiptune ICs [...]

Tags:  chiptune retrocade synth jack sid commodore-64 atari-st amiga-mod classic hacks  

While CRT televisions fall to the wayside as more people adopt flat-panel TVs, the abundance of unused sets gives hacker/artist [Kyle Evans] an unlimited number of analog canvases on which to project his vision. He recently wrote in to share his latest creation which he dubs “de/Rastra”. The “CRT Performance Interface” as he calls it, [...]

Tags:  analog synth crt performance-interface kyle-evans flat-panel-tvs classic hacks  

Chiptunes are great, and we can’t imagine a world without the Mega Man 2 soundtrack, but sometimes we all like a more 70′s style synth. This is where the Roninsynth steps in. It’s an Arduino shield that puts the basic components of a wall of synth into your pocket. Unlike the analog oscillators of yore, the Roninsynth [...]

Tags:  digital roninsynth synth analog-oscillators mega-man-2 digital-synth musical hacks  

There’s a million and one ways to play around with MIDI and an Arduino. It’s trivial to have a ‘duino spit out a scale to a MIDI keyboard, or even respond to SysEx messages to change a lighting or effects rig. There’s one thing that has eluded MIDI-duino builders, though: implementing a MIDI synthesizer with [...]

Tags:  synth arduino midi midi-synthesizer midi-keyboard midi-synth hacks  

[Charles Gershom] has been tinkering around with his keyboard and Arduino in order to build his own version of a MIDI controlled synthesizer. It looks like he’s gutted the enclosure of some commercially available MIDI hardware to use for the project. This works nicely since it gives him both the MIDI and audio jacks that he needs. [...]

Tags:  synth midi arduino-based charles-gershom midi-synth midi-hardware audio-jacks arduino hacks  

A week or so ago we featured an FPGA MIDI interface. Since then the builder has gone crazy with his FPGA and revised his code to include polyphony and PWM output, and posted a polyphony demo. In our previous coverage of the build, the synth was monophonic, and the MIDI implementation was pretty shaky. After [...]

Tags:  fpga synth midi midi-implementation midi-interface pwm-output Hardware  

[Dino] recently sent us some info on his latest project, a 555 timer-based slider synthesizer. The synth was built to emulate the sound made by playing a slide whistle, and also as an entry into the 555 Design Contest, which is quickly coming to a close. If you’re not familiar with a slide whistle, just [...]

Tags:  slide synth fun dino slide-whistle fun-slide design-contest contests  

[NatureTM] sent in a writeup for the MIDI synthesizer he recently built using a TI LaunchPad. The construction is pretty simple overall, consisting of little more than the MSP430, a handful of resistors, and an optoiosolater. Of course, a MIDI controller is required, but he already had that on hand. Once the MIDI data is [...]

Tags:  synth launchpad midi midi-synthesizer midi-synth midi-data microcontrollers  

Famous synth manufacturer Korg has released the schematics (get them here if you don’t like to fill out forms) for their wee little Monotron for all to see and use! This is great news for anyone looking to build up a synth from scratch or to circuit bend their existing monotron. The filter circuits alone [...]

Tags:  monotron synth openly synth-manufacturer filter-circuits korg digital audio hacks