Tiptop Audio and Buchla 259t, Erica Synths EDU DIY BBD, Minimal Audio Current 2.0: Synth Journal
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The best of the rest of this week’s synth news including Tiptop Audio and Buchla 259t module, new DIY delay module from Erica Synths, Minimal Audio’s Current gets bumped up to 2.0, and much more.
Synth Journal
Tiptop Audio and Buchla 259t Programmable Complex Waveform Generator Module
The good people at TipTop Audio have been doing God’s work, converting Don Buchla’s fabulous 200 series modules into Eurorack format and knocking the price down to if not exactly affordable then much less expensive. The latest to get the 3U treatment is the long-awaited Tiptop Audio and Buchla 259t, the Programmable Complex Waveform Generator Module.
Based on Don’s 1978 259 Complex Oscillator, the Tiptop Audio and Buchla 259t has two oscillators, Modulation and Principal, each with multiple outputs. The Modulation oscillator has a fixed triangle waveform and a toggle-selectable output, which you can set as triangle, square or sawtooth. You can also use it as an LFO or audio-rate oscillator. The Principal oscillator, on the other hand, has three audio outputs including a fixed sine wave, a fixed square wave plus a final output, which provides complex waveforms thanks to the timbre and harmonics sections.
Tiptop Audio and Buchla 259t sells for $529.
- TipTop Audio and Buchla 259t product page
- History of Buchla
Erica Synths EDU DIY BBD
The latest module in Erica Synths’ educational DIY kit series is the EDU DIY BBD, a digital delay unit with a BBD chip. BBD stands, of course, for bucket brigade delay, so named because of the way that digital samples of the source audio pass through the transistor-capacitor chain in the chip.
EDU DIY BBD features time, feedback and dry/wet knobs, a long and short range switch, plus CV control over the time.
You’ll need to put the module together yourself and this does require soldering. However, Erica Synths hopes that you can learn something about analog synthesizer circuits in the process, saying, “What you’ll find in the box is not simply meant to be soldered together and then disappear in your rack. Instead, we want to take you through the circuit design process step by step, explaining every choice we’ve made and how it impacts the finished module.”
At €70, this is very affordable for both a Eurorack module and a BBD delay. Find out more info at the Erica Synths site (link below).
- Erica Synths EDU DIY BBD product page
Minimal Audio Current 2.0
You may remember Minimal Audio and the ill-fated subscription-only launch of its wavetable software synthesizer, Current. Minimal Audio eventually pack-pedaled on that pricing decision, offering alternate purchasing schemes including one-time purchase and an all access subscription with monthly store credit. It’s too bad that Current started out with a black mark on its name as it’s a powerful modern soft synth in its own right.
Minimal Audio has now upgraded Current to version 2.0, adding a new interactive XY pad and enhanced browsing of the factory presets and optional Stream sound add-on. Wave Shifter, the company’s frequency shifting effect plugin, is now part of the package as well.
Current 2.0 is regularly priced at $199 but is on sale for $99 for a limited time. It’s a free update for existing users.
- Minimal Audio Current 2.0 product page
Black Noise Modular Modules Now in VCV Rack for Free
Forward-thinking Eurorack company Black Noise Modular has made three of its modules available in VCV Rack for free.
“Our main mission is to create unique and innovative modules that empower musicians and sound designers to express their creativity and explore new sonic territories,” Black Noise said on its website. “We want to make these tools accessible to everyone, and VCV Rack feels like the best way to achieve that goal!”
VCV Rack users will find Cosmos, Slew-LFO and the brand new Goma II available for download right now. Cosmos, which was inspired by early analog computers, offers a wide range of applications and can be used as a VCO, LFO, ring mod and much more. Slew-LFO combines the two functions in its name into a single module, while Goma II is a new take on the attenuvertermixer concept.
You can download VCV Rack 2 for free, as a one-time purchase as Rack 2 Pro, or as a subscription as VCV+. See the VCV Rack site for more (link below).
- Black Noise Modular VCV Rack product page
- VCV Rack home page
Sequential Circuit Prophet-5 Rev 2, Lexicon 224 and Schulte Compact Phasing ‘A’
Blessings of the algorithm. While catching up on the latest YouTube synthfluencer videos the other day, I came across this lovely little concoction from foleytronics fx repair. It’s a Sequential Circuits Prophet-5 Rev 2 run through a Lexicon 224 and Schulte Compact Phasing ‘A’, the so-called Krautrock phaser. That’s a heavenly combination.
In case you’re unfamiliar, the Schulte Compact Phasing ‘A’ is the best phaser ever made. That’s not just my opinion, it’s scientific fact. Don’t believe me? Just ask Tangerine Dream.
- Sequential home page
- History of Sequential
Radio Paradise Introduces Generative Ambient Radio Channel, Serenity
Internet radio station Radio Paradise has introduced a new channel called Serenity. Unlike traditional radio, Serenity is devoted to ambient music made on Eurorack modular synthesizers.
“There’s a new addition to your channel selector: Serenity,” the site says. “Serenity is a trippy, ambient channel offering fully original, generative soundscapes. Using Eurorack modular synthesizers, Rule 42 has created dynamic and evolving sonic landscapes that provide an ideal backdrop for productivity, study, or moments of mindfulness—something to keep you in the zone.”
I’ve been listening while I write this installment of Synth Journal and it’s gorgeous stuff. If you’re into ambient, meditation or sound baths, give it a listen.
You can access Serenity on the Radio Paradise website (link below) or via any of the station’s free apps, available on iOS, Android, Sonos, BluSound, Apple TV, and more.
- Radio Paradise Serenity home page
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