Remix the washing machine drummer and win Ableton Live
August 6, 2010 – 12:05 pm | 97 Comments

OK, I was just so infatuated with the washing machine drums video, that it would be criminal not to remix those drums into a song.
So we’re going to have a remix contest! Ableton has …

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Steam powered sequencer
September 1, 2010 – 10:09 am | No Comment

Dabbler & experimenter Paul Bower was browsing eBay looking at vintage steam engines one day, and decided to do something fun with it: he built a DIY steam-powered sequencer.

Using an old 1920′s steam engine to turn a dynamo and generate electricity, he powered a host of MOTM and CGS modules.

He says:

“You’ll recognize the MOTM 120 sequence with a little variation courtesy of some CGS modules. The dynamo is just regulating the tempo of a MOTM320 LFO via it’s V/Oct input. I did spend most of the bank holiday monday building a steam powered pulse generator (add a rotating disc and a pair of commutators) but the steam engine wasn’t powerful enough to power my clunky transmission (bits of old tape machines, the shaft from a coffee percolator, bits of hard disk and a hairdryer)”

Here it is running:

I imagine that you could combine this with the steam oscillator, and a few other modules and have a full steam powered modular synth! Now that’s real steampunk!

While he’s not trying to figure out how to power his synths when the hydro goes out, Paul’s day job is putting out music on iTunes and other services.

Edison – Monome Ninja
August 31, 2010 – 2:58 pm | 2 Comments
Edison – Monome Ninja

The video below is Edison, playing the track “Tonka Truck” from his album “All the Information at Hand”.
What is completely remarkable about this track is not just that it’s played entirely on a Monome, but …

Synthesizer club
August 31, 2010 – 11:50 am | One Comment
Synthesizer club

Synthesizer enthusiast Rory Daniels stars in some hilarious shorts called “Synthesizer Club” that only a synth geek would enjoy. He says:
I’m no Alain de Bottom, but I think it’s here because we all need …

Build your own electronic instruments
August 30, 2010 – 8:53 pm | One Comment
Build your own electronic instruments

In 1979, a book written by P.K. Sood called “Electronic Musical Projects” was published that contained plans and instructions for building all sorts of DIY electronic musical devices. It’s got plans for projects …

Trombone + flamethrower = all kinds of awesome.
August 30, 2010 – 7:44 pm | No Comment
Trombone + flamethrower = all kinds of awesome.

Trombone players often get a bad rap, so trombone player/DIYer Jonathan Crawford decided to really step up to the plate and do something about it.
Jonathan took a barbecue ignition system, a propane tank and …

Death to Vinyl – make your ashes into a record
August 27, 2010 – 4:07 pm | 2 Comments
Death to Vinyl – make your ashes into a record

The company “And Vinyly” will take your charred remains and press them into your own death vinyl. You can use a personalized message, your own music, or any recording that is 24 …

One Red Patch Cable for trade!
August 26, 2010 – 6:59 pm | No Comment
One Red Patch Cable for trade!

Rob Wright has followed the idea of Kyle MacDonald’s one red paper clip trade idea, applying the idea to synthesizers.
Rob is looking to gradually trade a single red patch cable up to something that he …

Vince Clarke’s Analogue Monologues
August 26, 2010 – 6:45 pm | No Comment
Vince Clarke’s Analogue Monologues

The legendary Vince Clarke has put together a great series of mini synth demos called “Analogue Monologues”. The demos take place in his mouth-watering Maine Studio, and will feature a different synth each episode.

The …

Massive Synth Collection
August 26, 2010 – 1:09 pm | No Comment
Massive Synth Collection

Michel van Osenbruggen is a musician and synth collector from The Netherlands, and he produces music under the name Synth.nl. He had a friend over to take some pictures of his drool-inducing studio, and …

Xylophone fence
August 25, 2010 – 12:02 pm | No Comment
Xylophone fence

This is a great example of someone integrating a musical instrument into something that is typically non-musical – the xylophone fence.
At Good Hope Beach in Shanklin, Isle of Wight, a beach fence has been made …

Korg Monotron vs Korg MS-20
August 13, 2010 – 10:08 am | 2 Comments
Korg Monotron vs Korg MS-20

The Korg MS-20 is one of the more coveted vintage synths these days, and as such they fetch some pretty high prices. People like them not only because of their patchability and knob-laden instant-gratification …