Handbuilt Modular Synthesizer, 2011

Handbuilt modular synthesizer designed and built at Mills College. The synth consists of various circuits constructed from scratch using widely available schematics with several adaptations, as well as some customized PAiA kit modules and a modified Realistic Reverb (analog delay) effect. The overall design was inspired by my experience with Serge and Buchla synthesizers and uses banana jacks for patch connections. It is built into a 19" by 13" suitcase that opens 180 degrees to lie flat.



Concert Hall Recording and Patch Diagram of my quadraphonic thesis performance at Mills College, 2011.

Left Side:

10 Step Sequencer w/ CV, Gate (legato), Gate (staccato), and Individual Step Outputs
Clock Divide by 2-10 (2)
Clock Oscillator w/ Square, Triangle, and Auxiliary Divide by 3, 4, or 6 Outputs
CMOS Hex Squarewave Noise Source
Craig Anderton Super Tone Control Multimode Filter
AD633 based 4-Quadrant Multiplier (4)
Gain x2 Amplifier (4)
SSM2040 VC Lowpass/Allpass Filter (2)
Thomas Henry 8038 Audio Generator Linear VCO
AD/R Envelope Generator (2)
Buchla 230 Envelope Follower
Inverting Attenuator with Mix outputs (5)
Yusynth-based Sample/Hold
Comparator
N/AND Gate
Voltage Source
Modified Realistic Reverb Analog Delay w/ Voltage Controlled Delay Time

Right Side:

PAiA 9700 MIDI-to-CV Converter
PAiA 9710 Triple VCA w/ Looping ADSR
PAiA 9720 Dual VCO w/ Looping AD/R (2)
PAiA 9730 Dual VCF w/ Looping AD/R
Unity Gain 4 Channel Mixer w/ Inverted Output (3)
Headphone & Line Output Interface