Morphing Terrarium

E350 Morphing Terrarium

Synsthesis Technology's E350 Morphing Terrarium is a possibility for my next module, so  I'll gather a few relevant posts here.

• Megaloceros has developed a DIY expansion board.
• Euroticism (who seems to have stopped posting) has reviewed and demonstrated the module extensively on Vimeo.
• Universalblender has demonstrated it on Youtube.
• Here's the manual.

Case 4 revisited

c4n 18Apr13

Legs on, time to revisit the modules.

• I have replaced the Plan-B VCO with the 95E to save space. It's smaller, possibly slightly less flexible, but prettier and, goddamit, British. And also significantly shallower, which makes positioning easier (I can move the two Red Modules back together).
• I think that pairing the MATHS with the Synchrodyne might initially prove an excessive learning curve as they are both complex modules, but they're in for now. I might temporarily substitute a random voltage module for the MATHS at some point.
• There's a Doepfer Manual Gate to kick the Flame.
• The Frequency Shifter had to move to the bottom row because of its depth - the power supply lies under the top row.
• I might get a Doepfer thin multiple A180-2 to lever in. 
• The current configuration includes six VCLFOs - one A147, one 143-4 and the uLFO. You cannot have too many VCLFOs. I'm still in the market for a VILFO.
• No standalone filter and no standalone ADSR, but some of the modules incorporate these things.

There might be slightly more HP in c4 than I have declared in ModularGrid, but I have not screwed them in yet and that always squeezes the space.

C4 with legs was [to me]  a thing of beauty, even empty (calling to mind Rincewind's Luggage). But with modules it becomes something altogether more magnificent.

What else might fit in? The VILFO and Morphing Terrarium combination has already been mentioned. f(h)'s IMP must also contend. Perhaps a second Noise Case is called for (I still have a spare power supply): but let's fiddle with c4 first.

Case 4 legs

inside C4

The Case 4 Noise now has legs.
Four Dansette legs from ebay, a little battered, but sound and reasonably-priced (some sets sell for £30+). Four mounting plates from the celebrated Dunn & Sons hardware store in Bex (£2.60 the lot). The first snap shows the whole thing, the second one of the plywood reinforcements inside the case.

And the Pittsburgh delay has arrived, so all will be running in a few days (after the CAMRA AGM in Norwich)

c4n manuals

c4n 9Apr13

Here are (will be) the manuals for the modules listed in c4n.

• Trogotronic 676
• Strakal Brulu
• Plan B Complex VCO
• Doepfer A126 Frequency Shifter
• Doepfer A143-9 QLFO
• bubblesound uLFO
• Pittsburgh Delay
• Doepfer A143-4 Quad VCLFO
• Makenoise MATHS
• WMD Synchrodyne
• Flame Talking Synth
• Cwejman MX-4S

And a reminder of some of the sounds to aim for:

• Trog & Strakal
• uLFO & delay
• MATHS & Synchrodyne
• VILFO and Morphing Terrarium

Flame talking synth

Flame
Talking Synth

The module arrived today. I have only played with it for half-an-hour, but I'm pretty certain it's the most bizarre module I have encountered. A splendid and lucky find.
Here's the manual, noises to follow.

Case4Noise 5Apr13

WTB and Sponsorship

The outfall from the Case4Noise plan requires:

1. Synchrodyne
2. VILFO
3. delay - previously considering Pittsburgh and FoH. There's also the Synthesis Technology E580 resampling mini-delay
4. and perhaps eventually a Morphing Terrarium.

The Little Drummer Boy will have to wait.

[2Apr13] Four OU invigilation sessions and a cheque from Google Adsense all in today's post will pay for the Morphing Terrarium.
I might reintroduce the Inadvertent Module Sponsorship first envisaged in the original blog (two links there), as when LiDL (in an obscure way) gave me £90 for a sequencer and CAB were going to pay for the Trautonium.

Case 4 Noise

Draft setup 28th March

I've been thinking about packing Case 4 with (probably) four discrete noisy patches, each meriting the marat (arhythmic, atonal muck) seal of approval. This would be a winner for the next synth meet, wherever and whenever that might be. Candidates include:

1. My favourite pairing,  Trogotronic 676 and Strakal Brulu with a versatile VCO to poke the former. The Plan B worked well at Brighton.

2. Livewire Dual Cyclotron plus AFG.

3. Bubblesound uLFO plus a (yet to be acquired) delay, as here. The patch also uses a Doepfer A110
VCO.

4. Flame talking synth (ytba nabbed one on ebay at a decent price later that day) with whatever it likes. Instruction manual here.
5. Synchrodyne and Maths (50% in stock) video here. In terms of HP, it's either #2 or #5.

v2 draft 1st April 

Perhaps a Pittsburgh LFO2 would fit in - excellent cost benefit case.

Run them through the Cwejman mixer to fiddle the levels and pans.

I'll work on the setup in modular grid. Case  4 will hold three rows of 65HP and includes the A199 spring reverb.

This thread on haiku patches is pertinent. It includes a post on the Maths Synchrodyne patch.
And a post on pairing the VILFO and Morphing Terrarium, there's a beautifully noisy sound file here.
There also links to two other threads - One Module and ultra-small patches.

There's a v2 with option 5 replacing option 2. I have also added my custom IO to modulargrid and a VILFO to the setup.

SoS: Weird Science

Al James' extensive piece in the April 2013 Sound on Sound examines modules by category, giving brief appraisals of the most highly recommended products and listing additional honourable mentions. Discussed on Muffwiggler here.
And here's a run-down (I have the ones in bold):

Oscillators
Tiptop Z3000
Intellijel Dixie II (for size) and Rubicon (for flexibility)
Cyclonix Cyclebox
Makenoise DPO
Harvestman Piston Honda
Livewire AFG
HMs: Flame Talking Synth; Harvestman Hertz Donut; ASol and ASys; Bubblesound VCOb; Cwejman VCO6; Doepfer; Kilpatrick K3020, Metasonix R55; MFB Triple; Pittsburgh Generator; Malekko Anti.

Filters
Tiptop Z2040
Intellijel Korgasmotron
Harvestman Formanta Plovoks (worth a look from the description)
Livewire Frequensteiner
Doepfer Wasp
FoH Plague Bearer
HMs: AMSynth range; ASys RS500e; Cwejman range; Bubblesound SEM20; Doepfer range; Harvestman Bionic Lester; Intellijel Dr Octature; Metasonix R52; Pittsburgh; Toppobrillo; Malekko Borg & Boogie; WMD Synchrodyne and Hadron Collider.

Function Generators
MakeNoise Maths
MakeNoise Wogglebug
ADDAC Marble Physics
HMs 4MS PEG; ASys RS510e; Bubblesound uLFO;  Circuit Abbey ADSRjr; Flame C3 Knob Recorder; Harvestman Double ANdore; Intellijel Quadra and Planar; MFB Dual LFO; Pittsburgh ADSR; Synthesis Tech E355 Morphing Dual LFO; Malekko Envelator and NoiseRing.

Sequencers, Clock Dividers & Pitch Quantisation
Tiptop Z8000 Matrix Sequencer
MakeNoise Pressure Points and René
4MS RCD and SCM
Intellijel uScale
HMs
Pitch - ADDAC 207; Flame Tame Machine and Chord Machine; Doepfer A156; Toppobrillo Quantimator
Sequence - Modcan Touch; Intellijel Metropolis and uStep; Doepfer A155
Clock - Flame Clockwork; Doepfer A160; 4MS PEG

Mixers, Low-pass Gates, Utilities & Logic
MakeNoise Optomix and ModDemix
Intellijel Mutamix
HMs Doepfer range; Fonitronik MH01; Intellijel Unity Mixer;  Manhatten Mix; STG .Mix; Synovatron CV Tools.

Effects
Tiptop Z5000 and ZDSP
Harvestman Malgorithm and Tyme Sefari
MakeNoise Echophon and Phonogene
Intellijel  uFold
Toppobrillo Triple Wavefolder
Doepfer Spring Reverb
ASol SR01
HMs: Flame FX6; Doepfer BBDs; Pittsburgh Delay; FoH Sound of Shadows; Snazzy FX Ardcore; Synthesis Tech Deflector Shield; WMD Geiger Counter

The second image is the author's current setup.

They [nearly] fit

Schneider's parcel arrived today and so all the essential modules are now to hand.
And they fit in several important ways:

• there's enough HP - and a little to spare for module juggling;
• it's deep enough for the A113 sub; but
• adding my luxurious velvet lining made the lid a rather tight fit which I dealt with by trimming the edges and applying some brute force;
• it has also stiffened the lid and there is not quite enough space for the module knobs.

A few shavings off the side walls will take care of that tomorrow and I'll probably add the new handle at the same time as it's bound to be needed soon and disassembling the lot when the modules are screwed down will be a pain.

Here's a snap, and here's Kevin.

20th March
A delay in completing as the screws I ordered seem to have gone astray. More on the way.

There's a major article in the new Sound on Sound on boutique modules. I'll digest that and reconsider the wish list which currently comprises the Delptronics Little Drummer Boy, a delay, either f(h) or Pittsburgh and perhaps the rather expensive WMD Synchrodyne.

Case 5

Even before installing any modules, the plywood adds significantly to the weight of the case and I doubt whether the original handle will be up to the task for long. I have ordered a new (described as) heavy duty leather case from Stagebox Online. They only had black. This should bolt through to the new plywood sidewall.

On the rails question, the problem with installing the (superior in use) aluminium type is locating the bolt holes accurately: a problem which is solved by rack ears but only at the expense of lost HP. It occurred to me this morning that I can use the bolt holes in the rack ears as a template for drilling holes in the plywood. Certainly worth a try, especially as I will be using rail offcuts from Case 4. There's no loss in trying and if it doesn't work I can still revert to wooden rails.

Thursday 7th
Schneiders report the modules are now in stock, so they should be here by the end of next week.

I fiddled with the rack ears but decided in the end to go for wooden rails. I'm hoping to complete the case this weekend (though the rugby will interrupt), including a makeover for the inside of the lid with an extravagant fabric.

The remaining aluminium rails can upgrade cases 2 and 3. I have one more spare Doepfer power unit, so one more case can be made.

A nagging question is the size of the Heisenberg and the RS35 as these will jockey for position in the case to drive the noise. The Heisenberg is 14HP and the RS35 12HP, so no problem swapping.

Friday 8th
On with the wooden rails. The Doepfer Mechanical Details page (click Products - Mechanical) shows module height as 128.5mm with the distance between the centres of the mounting holes as 122.5.

Woodwork complete ahead of schedule. As hoped, there's a small storage space at the top for patch cables. I just need to stain it and reline the lid. I was hoping for a paisley design, but my local haberdasher was asking £67 per metre (most of which would go spare) and so I settled for an offcut of blue velvet for £1 from a nearby charity shop. Fedex have confirmed the modules are on their way from Berlin: it usually takes the best part of a week. The new case handle is here - just the right size and looks pretty sturdy.


Saturday 9th
All done but the lid lining. I'll leave the old handle on until it gives way.

The modules have reached Cologne.

There's an excellent Heisenberg demo here.

Case 5 (Trautonium)

The inside of the case is a bit of a mess (fig. 1) and so I have lined it with plywood (fig. 2).

I would still like the case to be self-contained, i.e. to carry the wall-wart and a small speaker and so have incorporated compartments for those (fig. 3), but not yet as a permanent fixture.

I'll still need to ensure that the essential modules will fit, bearing in mind the rather thick plywood I have available (left over from tiling the bathroom floor) and the inevitable loss of space if I use aluminium rails and rack-ears. Perhaps a rethink (all modules, no storage) will be necessary.

The Doepfer article on the Trautonium, which I have quoted at length here, states

Oskar Sala used for nearly all recordings a freeuncy shifter (made by the German company Telefunken). This is why we included the Frequency Shifter A-126.

and

Another module that could be included is the Spring Reverb A-199. Mr Sala used reverb or delay for almost all recordings.

And this is clearly demonstrated in this video of  a 1991 concert. This made me wonder whether I would regret not incorporating these (FS. delay and/or reverb) into a larger case, however

1.  the FS is significantly deeper, requiring a much larger case;
2. those units are separate in Sala's setup; and
3. I had already bought a case

and so I'll steam ahead and see where it ends up. If necessary I can buy some thinner plywood, use space-saving wooden rails or aluminium rails without the rack-ears.

My probable minimum module set is shown in this Modular Grid  example. Most of the HPs are listed in this post and the Heisenberg is 14HP

Zeus - Heisenberg - 2 * VCOs - sub - noise = 4 + 14 + (2*10) + 26 + 8 = 72 HP

foot - ribbon - vclfo - mixer - filter - lfo - adsr - dvca = 4 + 8 + 8 + 8 + 20 + 8 + 8 + 8 = 72 HP

The space with compartments is about 14½ inches (72HP) without is 17½ inches (87HP). I'll calculate the loss for rack-ears later.

I might not need the second LFO.
The foot controller is included (only 4HP), but there is no space for foot controls.

Other VCOs might make the sound more interesting, but I think the Doepfer is the narrowest I have (ASys RS95E is 12HP).
I would quite like to have an ASys RS35 (see apples and pears) in addition to the Heisenberg, but that's not going to happen with Plan A.
If I accept a separate case of utility modules (FS (deep), delay reverb), I guess this could also house the Heisenberg and RS35 and others which could usefully serve any of the other cases.

I guess the easiest solution is to build v.1 of the case with wooden rails (no loss of HP) and then consider v.2 with aluminium.

Storage for the 60cm ribbon controller also needs consideration. I thought of a snooker cue case (these come up easily and cheaply on ebay). There are also those cylinder art holder things and perhaps plastic tubing could be employed.

Schneiders say two weeks for the out-of-stock modules (104 & 140).

Modules

The second ASys RS-35 has arrived (the converter cable has to be ordered separately, but there should be one on the ASys VCO I can commandeer in the short term.
I have ordered the  Trautonium bits (filter, sub-osc, footswitch, an extra ADSR) from Schneider, including rails and rack-ears for the case. The A103 filter is shown as out of stock (I expect there's been a run on them following the Trautoniks Trautonium publicity), so this could take some time.

Just the Delptronics Little Drummer Boy and a delay to go on the current list.

There's a quick burst of the RS-35 here on Vimeo.

Trautonium 2Mar13

The case arrived today. It's in reasonable condition. It looks as though the modules should fit, although the lid sits snugly over the main compartment and so the control surface will have to be recessed to close the lid over the knobs and patch leads will be right out.

I have transferred the Doepfer Trautonium module suggestions (shown here) to Modular Grid. A few changes - I removed the bus access and replaced the two separate VCAs with the dual unit. The Frequency Shifter, though it would be fun to have in the suitcase, will probably not fit with a depth of 105.

I'll make a start on the plywood inserts for the case. I will almost certainly go for aluminium rails rather than wood (the offcuts from Case 4 are just about the right size) and  intend to upgrade Case 2 and Case 3 to aluminium at some point. Wooden rails are easy to make, but not satisfactory when the intention is to move modules around.

I'll order the modules and alumongery from Schneiders as soon as the liberated funds arrive.

There are some terrific Ttm performances on YouTube by Oskar Sala: here's one and the rest are in the menu. There seems to be a lot of delay/echo used in the performance: perhaps that's another requirement for the Case.

Trautonium 1Mar13

Still waiting for the suitcase to arrive. In the meantime, here's another copy from the Doepfer Ttm page.

Remarks:

• The system is controlled by the Trautonium Manual A-198 (manual and module left above). This manual/module generates the pitch control voltage for the oscillators and possibly the Gate signal for the "Schlagwerk" (envelope generator A-140 ) and a loudness control voltage for the first VCA A-131 if requested.
• Right to the A-198 module a multiple A-180 is located. This can be used to distribute the CV of the A-198 to the VCOs (one A-110 as master VCO for the A-113, one A-110 as side oscillator) and the Quantizer A-156. The CV for the VCAs can be patched at the front panel (i.e. directly to the CV1 inputs) or via the Bus Access module A-185.
• Next to it the Quantizer A-156 is arranged. This module is not available in the original Trautonium. It can be used to generate exact semitones from the control voltage coming from the A-198. From our point of view it is a useful extension for the system's possibilities. E.g. the envelope generator A-140 can be controlled by the trigger output of the A-156 to generate arpeggio-like tone sequences.
• Next to the A-156 the system contains a voltage controlled switch A-150. It can be used to switch - e.g. with the foot - between quantized and not-quantized operation. The second switch of the A-150 can be used to switch the gate control for the envelope generator (e.g. between the Gate output of the A-198 or the trigger output of the A-156).
• The following Bus Access module A-185 is suitable to connect the CV and Gate signal to the A-100 bus. In this case it is no longer necessary to patch the CV inputs of the VCOs A-110 and the Gate input of the envelope generator A-140 at the front panel of these modules.
• The next modules are a VCO A-110 (master oscillator for the A-113), the Subharmonic Generator A-113 and another VCO A-110 ("Side Oscillator").
• The Noise module A-118 is another sound source for the system.
• The desired sound sources (Subharmonic Oscillator, Side Oscillator, Noise) are mixed in the A-138 and the output of the mixer is fed to the input of the Trautonium Filter A-104.
• The output of the Trautonium Filter A-104 can be passed through another filter (e.g. the Wasp Filter A-124 controlled by the envelope generator A-140 or the A-145) and/or the Frequency Shifter A-126. Oskar Sala used for nearly all recordings a freeuncy shifter (made by the German company Telefunken). This is why we included the Frequency Shifter A-126. The additional Wasp Filter A-124 is not available in the original Trautonium but is a very useful extension for the system's possibilities. 
• Finally the audio signal is processed by two VCAs (A-130 and A-131). One of the VCAs is controlled by a foot controller, the second by the pressure voltage of the Trautonium manual A-198, the envelope generator A-140 or the LFO A-145.
• Module A-177 establishes the connection to the double foot switch (e.g. VFP2) and foot controller (e.g. FP5). The double foot switch can be used to switch between the mixtures of the Subharmonic Generator A-113. Alternatively one of the foot switches could be used to control the A-150 to switch between quantized and non-quantized mode (see Quantizer A-156 above). The foot controller is normally used to control the overall loudness with one of the two VCAs. But it could be used too to control the filter frequency of the Wasp Filter A-124.
• Another module that could be included is the Spring Reverb A-199. Mr Sala used reverb or delay for almost all recordings.
• If you prefer MIDI control instead of the A-198 the MIDI interface A-190 can be used.
• These modules are not required for a replica of the original trautonium but are useful extension for the system's possibilities: A-156. A-150, A-185, A-124 and A-126 nicht benötigt.

I have the Wasp and Frequency Shifter, but the HP is expanding beyond my original calculations (and see my post earlier today about adding an AS RS35).

Apples and Pears

Appleton and Perera exercise

Jon Appleton and Ronald Perera's The Development of and Practice of Electronic Music (1975 Prentice-Hall) includes an exercise using voice and music as sources (p. 165, see right).

ASys RS35

I have toyed with this idea several times and have set it up again using the marvellous Anaolgue Systems RS35. It does a delightful job of turning Radio 4 into wurble-bleep and I have ordered another. I intend to run two parallel patches taking Radio3 and Radio 4 respectively each through an RS35 to provide the lead noises and each into separate ASRs to provide some sort of conflicting drone background.

That'll need eight oscillators, a 6-channel mixer (original, wurble and drone *2) and possibly two cases. I'll try to post an example of one channel processing this weekend.

Speech on both channels (e.g. an interview with clear stereo separation) might be interesting: perhaps an episode of Any Questions. And maybe well-known speeches. Or Copland's Lincoln Portrait, if I can separate voice and orchestra.

An RS35 into the Trautonium could be fun, too.

Tidy cables

Pomona

Voltcraft

I started using combs clipped to shelves, then made my own wooden slotted version attached to a recycled broom handle.
Popular at Brighton was the  Pomona 1508 which I have seen before, but only found available in large quantities. I was told that Amazon have them, but they were out of stock when I looked. I found them on ebay, but selling for £16+. A correspondent from the Brighton meet wrote to say that there is a cheaper alternative, the Voltcraft ML-1 which sells for £7, looks pretty similar and is well worth buying, even with overseas postage. I have installed one on the desk and will try to rig up a second for travelling.

[Aug 2015] I return to the subject a few years later.

Trautonium 26Feb13

A104 Trautonium Filter

A113 Subharmonic Generator

Andy at EMIS is out of stock of the A104 filter and the A113 sub-harmonic generator, the two essential elements, so I'll have to shop around.

I have to decide whether to use simple wood racks, as for the first three Cases or aluminium rails, as in Case 4. The Trautonium is likely to be a more-or-less permanent setup, so wood will do, but if I'm buying from Schneider, then so more aluminium rails can easily be included.

AMSynths modulation source

This looks like a thoroughly well-conceived, nicely-designed, useful and sensibly-priced module.

Straight in when it becomes available.

Trautonium

Trautoniks Trautorium

The March Sound on Sound reviews the Trautoniks wondrous recreation of the Trautonium.
Regrettably, it sells for €5,000, which puts it beyond my budget.

But there is Doepfer's implementation of the Mixtur-Trautonium which is affordable.

I already have the ribbon controller, so I just need the A104 trautonium filter and the A113 sub-harmonic generator.

Doepfer Trautonium patch

The patch suggested by Doepfer (towards the bottom of the page on the link above, or see right) requires, in addition:

• 2 A110 oscillators - tick
• A118 noise generator - I think I have one of those
• mixer A138a or b - tick
• two VCAs A130 or A131 - tick (the second is to use with an A177 and a foot controller) 
• A140 ADSR - I do need more
• A145 LFO - tick

So most are already in stock. I have been saying for a while that I'll do one more case in an old leather suitcase and what could be a finer subject for such a case than a Trautonium. The plan is

1. get the modules
2. set up a Trautonium in Case 1, to settle the requirements in terms of modules, accessories and space required
3. source a suitable suitcase and transfer the bits to the new home (power supply the Xeus and also the Outs  from Case 1) [I guess the Outs isn't really necessary and the 2nd VCA can go straight to the speaker.]
4. recycle Case 1 as a carrier for cables, wall warts, speakers(?) and other necessary bits for two other cases when travelling.

A note on sizes:

• A198 ribbon 8HP 40mm deep 40mA
• A104 filter 20HP 45mm deep 30mA
• A113 sub 26HP 90mm 30mA
• A110 vco 10 - 55 -70
• A118 noise 8 - 40 -20
• A138 mix 8 - 35 10
• A130 VCA 8 - 45 - 20
• A177 foot  4 - 30 - 10
• A140 ADSR 8 - 50 - 20
• A145 LFO 8 - 55 - 30 

It should fit, with room for a few extras: I'd like to add a random CV generator (perhaps the Heisenberg to break the Doepfer monopoly) and a VCLFO for rhythm and also allow space for the wall wart, patch cables and a mini-speaker (maybe even a pedal, if I bother with one), so I'll come up with a requirement for the case size.

• Case 1 internally is 260x345 
• the depth must be 90 for the A113 - the depth requirement applies to the main portion of the case, not including the lid
• An Altec Lansing speaker is 90x55
• the wart is 70x70x160 + cable
• plus a space for patch cables
• that doesn't include the foot controller

So, extending the width from 345 to 450 should provide storage for the speaker and wart and the patch cords might be left in situ (if the lid allows) or in a bag (if not).

Initial conclusion, 260x450x90(main) or imperial 11x18x4(main) inches (rounding up). That (see right) might do - ending on eBay tonight. Bought for £33. I'm hoping that the ribbon controller (about 600) will fit in the lid diagonally (I'll wait and see rather than invoke Pythagoras), otherwise I'll play with some sort of scabbard arrangement using a snooker cue case or similar. More news when received.

Regarding the diagonal, a quick approximation with the measuring tape suggests it will not fit. That is deemed acceptable, because a case large enough for it to fit would be too large for all the other kit. Everything is a compromise.

WTB Feb13

Having obtained a MATHS at the Brighton meet, the wish list is currently (not necessarily in any order of significance):

• Pamela's workout (new release due this week) - ordered 21st Feb, delivered 26th.
• Delptronics Little Drummer Boy
• a delay, either f(h) or Pittsburgh
• additional ASDRs
• another S&H - ordered 21st Feb with a 183.3 Amplifier, delivered 22nd.
• and the rather expensive WMD Synchrodyne

If the most popular module I don't have at the last Brighton meet was the MATHS (now acquired) then this time it's Pamela (in the pipeline) followed by the Dave Jones O'Tool. The Jones oscilloscope is certainly a useful nice-to-have, but it will be a shame to spend that much on a module that does not make a sound.

I also need some amplification to get decent levels of sound for the speech conversion piece. There are several options here, all expensive except for the Doepfer A-183.3.

Brighton meet

I wandered around the campus for an hour before finding the location (who would have thought there would be two Attenborough Centres, one derelict?), but eventually, thanks to a lift from a resident workperson repairing the paving, found the venue. The fault was all mine: it was clearly signposted once you got there.
A terrific show: I bought a 2nd hand Maths from thonk; enjoyed some compliments on Case #4; had help in exploring the nature of the Trog676 (thanks, David aka a100); and met a bunch of helpful, friendly  and handy folk, including those behind FSS and Postmodular.

I had intended to experiment with verbal radio into an envelope follower, thereby developing tunes through an ASR, but instead just played the Trog and  Strakal Brulu.

And here's a sweet post on wurbling with few modules: modular haiku.

Peter Speer

Found this chap's posts in Vimeo today.
Terrific results from a limited number of key modules. Something Churchillian here - rarely have such good noises been made by one person with so few modules.

Case #4 Noise

 Delptronics LDB

4ms RCD

The power wiring is complete and Case #4 made a noise with  a random selection of modules to hand.
I have taken it apart again to add I/O jack sockets on both sides.
Should be about done this week.

Modules I am currently seeking are Pamela's Workout, VILFO and a delay, either Pittsburgh or foh.

I am also rather intrigued by the Delptronics Little Drummer Boy. The demo on their site shows it running with the 4ms Rotating Clock Divider

Case #4 22nd Jan

2. power inputs

1. Case 4

Racks done [1], power input done [2]. I have had to move the power supply as there is less room at the top than I had thought.
Two power supplies as the Trogotronic has its own: red because the 676 is too.

Case #4 18th Jan

Case #4 18th Jan

I'm working in the kitchen today as it's snowing outside and too cold to work in the lean-to.
The power supply board is in place and the first rack built. Something of a miscalculation on the design: I hadn't allowed for the bolts used in the rack-ears and so could have used a single sheet of ply which would have allowed slightly more HP.

Case #4 11th Jan

1. Case 4

2. new handle

The racks are on the way from Schneiders.
1. Case 4
2. With a new handle from Buster Cases
3. Doepfer power rails in
4. Double plywood sides in to support the rack ears.

3. power rails

4. sides

uLFO patch link

There's a great demo here by machinate.



The embed seems to flip to another of his - I'll try to sort that out later.In the meantime, select from the playlist, bottom left of the screen.

The modules mentioned are:

• Bubblesound uLFO - sine out to 
• A110 VCO - sine out to (from the posted comments) 
• "bugbrand pt-delay frac modified for euro. The closest thing commercially available is the FoH Sound of Shadows, which uses the exact same chip" 
• the delay is being CD modulated by the sine shape out from the uLFO
• the rate of the uLFO is controlled by another LFO (in this case the Doepfer A147 VCLFO)
• half way through, he modulates the VCLFO from the uLFO sine mod out

Housed in what is described as a "GT turtle tool case".

Trogotronic 676

Having moved the Rietveld desk to the back bedroom, the first noise was from the 676 and the Doepfer Spring Reverb. I began by using the uLFO to provide CV control, but abandoned this for knob-twiddling by hand. The 676 is sensitive to variations and the strategy I have learned is to fiddle gently with the other controls, then adjust the modulator until it gets edgy again.

Another first, a video on Vimeo using the Sony 190: sound from the camera as a temporary measure.