SynthFrog » modular

Parallel project

aris — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 20:08:00 +0000

A parallel project starts.. Components are on their way, panel is designed, boards are here…..
it will be an MFOS Sequencer!!!!

For more info, you can look here at Ray Wilson’s MusicFromOuterSpace (and he will host Mr. Braska on his US tour!)

Some more views of tigrics’ workplace!!!

aris — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 09:39:00 +0000

Some more views of tigrics’ workplace!!!

A corroded Ultimate Percussion module. It is also here (exactly the same This one must be quite rare. Couldn’t find any manufacturer info..

Well here we are at a cable junction.. A serge VCs is right behind Mr. Brask and LFO/VCA at the left.
The mising link might me a filter? The red in the middle?

Another view.

Here, Mr. Braska with cucc… The drawings of tigers all over the place is by tigrics’ hand

Beside the distortion generator… BZZGGFFFZZZZWEEEEZZZZFFGGHHHH

VCO Core. If it has hard sync it will be VCO Hard core!

Module graveyard!

A small VCF

The unfinisheds

Future formant

MS20 VCF!! This should include a sample!

Mr. Braska with the owners of all these modules: szarvas and MJ. Tigrics pays them rent to use them!

And of course, Mr. Braska is always in the mix. Or better, in front of it!

Midi2CV Part 1

aris — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 18:09:00 +0000

This is a module for my synth. A pretty basic module as it is a note to Control voltage converter. It is based on midibox ucapps.de designs and it features 4 CV and 4 gate outputs. These can be made 8 bits which are quite good for note playing (4 x 8 bits) or can be made 4 and 12 bits each pair. I chose to have them all at 8 bits resolution.. The circuit is ready and it needs a panel (which you see in the photos) and some wiring an mounting

I used a long screw I found in the hardware store. It was a one meter , 3mm width screw which I cut at around 17 cm pieces. Then glued a nut on the panel with instant glue and put resin glue on top of it. Put the screw so now the nuts are filled with resin glue.

You can see here the resin . To align the screws, I fixed the other sides of the screws on a board .

Making a module case

aris — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 20:17:00 +0000

It is about time me and Braska started making a case for modules/synths we’ve made. The panels for the modules I’ve made are 12×12cm a unit and I have some standard panels made with 16 holes evenly spaced. These are the generique type that may house vcos, filters etc.

The big one is for midibox seq. which slowly but surely manifests on my desk. The others are for the soundlab I’ve finished and for an AVRsynth I’ve repackaged so this is a no-go.

So, the construction started by drilling holes for wooden dowels

… and marking the other wood panel where they should land

.. thus constructing the raw cabinet sized aprox. 72×36cm

The hard edges on the front side where smoothed with a router

.. and then it was painted with four coats of satin walnut finish (Water based, doesn’t stink, washes easily until it gets dry. Quite nice actually)

.. the balcony was a mess (and still is because I started something else

.. and here is after first coat

… and this is its current state, with soundlab fitted

The WSG is the next thing that will be fitted along with a yusynth filter and a midibox Midi2CV

(you can see that it is getting warm here on the white thermometer on the right!!)

Tempcos in the missed

aris — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 20:08:00 +0000

The yusynth VCO was missing a tempco. So I ordered some from Vintage Planet and as soon as I got them (ultra fast) I put them on both the VCOs I’ve made and TADAAAAA! ONE OF THEM WORKED almost as expected (the other one is still too unstable). So I will hunt down and kill the wrong component. (I hope)..

(Thank god I had the oscilloscope.. the first frequency I could read was 43 KHz!!!!)

It wasn’t the micas

aris — Fri, 06 Feb 2009 22:27:00 +0000

The silver mica 220pF capacitors arrived, substituted and failed… Still no response. Only random noise (if it wasn’t random. it wouldn’t be noise, would it?). So the only thing that remains to be done is to follow the schematic and have the soundcard probing various positions on the circuit so I can see (hear) where the signal ends.

Ray Wilson from musicfromouterspace.com has a nice article on using your sound card as an oscilloscope and I use http://zeitnitz.de/Christian/Scope/Scope_en.html for display

(Ray Wilson’s article is here)

Not quite functional!

aris — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 22:22:00 +0000

Made two yusynth VCOs the other day.. None works… But the real problem is that at the schematics it mentions using a 1% silver mica capacitor. I have used plain ceramic and multilayer. Voltages are OK. The comparator and OP Amps get nice voltages. No electrolytic capacitors are the other way around. So it has to be this. While I wait for the silver micas, I might put together a yusynth moog filter clone.

Yusynth modular

aris — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 21:04:00 +0000

New parallel project starts: The yusynth modular.

this is based on this which is a rather easy DIY set of modules.

The boards are etched, some even drilled, the panels are made (that means that someone else will make them for me, I just drawed (eg designed) them) and the components have arrived (very cheap postage fees to where I live and all components required for this project available..).

Will get some photos of the panels once made.

For now, there is always Braska, lurking in the shadows of DIY.

Basic modules are made: 2 VCOs, 2 LFOs, an ADSR, a VCA, 2 Filters for starters (and the psu that has already been made)

Now I will have to make a case for it..

Modular synth PSU

aris — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 22:09:00 +0000

Went today to the shop to get many 150k and 75k resistors to finish the AVRSynth32 but they didn’t have enough. My eye caught this fine toroidal transformer of 50VA (I know it is overkill!!!) that outputs +15V, -15V and common ground. So I decided that since I am going to build some yusynth modules, I should have a PSU at hand when the time comes.

The design followed is like the ones of ken stone and ray wilson (PSUs are not THAT complex) so for more info you can go here and here. Cautions apply as you will be working with lethal currents if you decide to build such thing. A note to perfboard makers like myself. The pinout of 79xx is DIFFERENT of the 78XX. For some, this may seem obvious, but for others, if they dont pay attention to the pinouts, they have surprises coming! The regulator might get extra hot and/or explode. Had done this some time ago with a 5v regulator (7905) and when I “checked” it if it was hot (using my finger) I left my fingerprints on the regulator (along with some skin layers that got roasted).

Making it on a perfboard is very simple but BEFORE you plug it, use your multimeter to search for any shorts that might damage the circuit and use a fuse on the mains part of the transformer.

As all sites that have such projects mention:

Disclaimer

A note to readers:

All electronic projects and designs presented on this web site, or associated web sites should be considered dangerous if not lethal if not used safely. When working on projects based on these designs, use extreme care to ensure that you do not come into contact with mains AC voltages or high voltage DC. If you are not confident about working with mains voltages, or high voltages, or you are not legally allowed to work with mains voltages, or high voltages, you are advised not to attempt work on them. The author, host, and all people associated with these web pages disclaim any liability for damages should anyone be killed or injured while working on these projects, or projects based on these designs, or any other project or design presented on these web pages and any associated web pages. The author, host, and all people associated with these web pages also disclaim any liability for projects, or projects based on these designs, or any other project or design presented on these web pages and any associated web pages when used in such a way as to infringe relevant government regulations and by-laws.

(this also taken from ken stone’s modular synth pages)