patching

via isopod: Brent talks about the mystery of self-programming synths – the fact that old batteries sometimes lead to synth patches that are actually pretty cool.

A lot of people take an Eno-esque view – that the quirky results can lead to something more interesting than you might program yourself, or at least provide an interesting starting point.

Many TB-303 owners find that they get interesting random sequences, too, when their batteries get old.

Have you ever had this happen with one of your synths? And do you think synths should come with a “Randomize Patch” button?

This video demos programming an Oberheim Xpander synthesizer. Read more…

Marc Doty offers his take on the Korg MS-20 patch panel.

This is a demo of the Analogue Systems rs35 External Processor eurorack synthesizer module, being used to control a modular synthesizer with an electric guitar.

The rs35 is a frequency (or pitch) to voltage converter. It can turn virtually any sound source into a one volt per octave voltage allowing you to control an analog synthesizer. 

The patch runs a Strat into the Barber Electronics TonePress compressor pedal for added sustain. The guitar signal is then run into the low pass filter section of the A.S. rs110 Multimode filter to roll off some of the highs. 

From there, the guitar is patched into the rs35 ‘Frequency In’. The rs35’s voltage out goes to the rs95 voltage controlled oscillator. From there, various modules alter the oscillator sound, including the rs100 Low Pass filter, the rs120 Comb Filter, and the rs290 voltage controlled digital delay/sampler.