Simple legit synths?

[suryabeep]

Hi all,
I'm thinking of dabbling in synthesizers. Does anyone have any simple schematics that I could try out? Either stand-alone stuff or stuff I can feed a keyboard into?
Thanks!

[rockola]

Have you already built an Atari Punk Console?

[KarenColumbo]

This is from a post here in this forum. Haven't tried the links - maybe they still work, maybe not. Knock yourself out

www.electro-music.com
www.muffwiggler.com

for kits and PCB's
www.cgs.synth.net
www.bridechamber.com
www.elby-designs.com
www.oakleysound.com/projects.htm
www.synthcube.com
www.musicfromouterspace.com

a great source of information on vintage moog DIY. this guy designed the new arturia minibrute
www.yusynth.net

more DIY info
www.timstinchcombe.co.uk/
www.uni-bonn.de/~uzs159/
www.sdiy.org

[Mark Hammer]

Here is a simple compact unit, that can be built as a single-board, or as modules.  Mine is  sitting awaiting wiring up.

http://www.aleph.co.jp/~takeda/radio/homemadesynthE.html

[cnspedalbuilder]

The atari punk synth is super simple--I did one in about 2 hours straight from the schematic! You can pair that with a "Baby" 8 or 10 step sequencer and it looked pretty awesome on youtube. I've not yet finished my sequencer and I'm waiting to box everything up (not looking forward to putting in 12 pots and drilling like 20 holes), but the circuitry is dead simple.

If you want more sophisticated sound there are a lot of places selling PCBs for synths that you can still put together yourself (e.g., Synthrotek).

[potul]

I know it's not the DIY spirit but her goes my experience....
I tried during some months to build some sort of synth, but I wanted it to be digitally controlled via an arduino or similar to make it MIDI capable. I found some interesitng digital synths using arduino, but they didn't sound great. One day I found a KORG monotron for 25 bucks. Man, this thing rocks for the price, and it's highly hackable. The schematic is public and it has some pads you can use to add some functionallity. So it's not DIY but it's a good starting point for a fun project.
Some time later I discovered the KORG volca products and fell in love with them. I have now 2 of them (A Volca Keys and a Volca Beats, both analog sounds but digitally controlled). They are an incredible.

[ponce]

This sounds cool and looks simple on the breadboard. Guy posted the schematic down on the comments section.

Korg Volco series is great, been thinking of getting at least one of them for a while, but then I'd play guitar less 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=yZSkNASlMjM

[jimbeaux]

Two chips that have recently come back into production are the CEM3340 (VCO) and the CEM3320 (VCF) - these simplify things - especially the VCO chip.

VCOs usually require a temperature compensating resistor (tempco) and an exponential convertor (two matched transistors) - but both are already built into the CEM3340.

The Thomas Henry subforum at Electro-Music.com has information on the VCO maximus (cem 3340) - the chip is available for $20 + shipping (not bad considering it was originally $10 + shipping back in the day) - a PCB is in the works (more info there)

I recently saw a website selling cem 3320's for about $5 apiece (that's real cheap). - search multiple identity filter (Craig Anderton) - there's a free pdf available online - has around 12 switches that can morph it into a phase shifter, low pass, high pass,...

There are simpler circuits for these chips than the ones I've mentioned - it's easy to see a system can start out real simple and increase in complexity as you go along.

You still need an ADSR, LFO, VCA, Noise source - but those are not that complicated to build.

Just One Word of Warning - it can be as addictive as pedal building !

[Mark Hammer]

Smallbear carries the 3340 for $12.80 and will soon start carrying the 3320.  The 3320 is really just a quad OTA, not that dissimilar from the Coolaudio clone of the SSM2164 quad OTA, which Smallbear sells for four bucks.  So I'm guessing the 3320 won't be all that much more expensive than the 2164.

What is making these chips come back from the dead is the 12-voice DeepMind hybrid analog synth that Behringer produces.    That needs a dozen 3340 (maybe 2 dozen) and dozen 3320 chips per synth.  The oscillators are digital but there are 2 LFOs per voice, and I gather the 3340 is used as LFO.

Hate Behringer all you want but they're the folks who keep long out-of-production chips alive.  All those BBDs and synth chips would have been gone like passenger pigeons, but for Uli Behringer's efforts.

[bluebunny]

Don't forget our own Electric Druid.  Tom has lots of synth-related stuff there to buy, build and learn about.

[ElectricDruid]

Thanks Bunny. I'm much too polite to mention it myself, but it's true, I do.

[bluebunny]

You are indeed a gent, Tom, and modest too.

So shall we call it a 10% discount with the next order?   

[ElectricDruid]

You are indeed a gent, Tom, and modest too.

So shall we call it a 10% discount with the next order?   

Your next order gets a free sausage. How about that?

T.

[bluebunny]

Now you're talking!