[sdiy] Synth DIY beginner

[harrybissell]

HI Troy...

Troy Gray wrote:

> Yeah the one's on paia just sounded like sounds I have on my cheap Casio keyboard. I'm looking for more like moogish bass. Something that will provide really raunchy bass lines

that would be a monosynth...

> but will be able to create some nice etheral synthesizer strings.

and that would be a polysynth....   (usually you get one or the
other...)

> Something that would be good for an Art rock setting that's more musical sounding. But I still think I'll get the Fatman.
> Also I'm interested in making this thing modular. Would it be that difficult to convert?

well I see you have Mssr. Gravenhorst on the line, so he'd answer the
conversion question.
The PAiA gear tends to be very 'purpose built' ie. there is usually not
a single resistor that is
not strictly necessary for the circuit function.  You could 'modularize'
it but it might take a lot
of components added.

I started with a PAiA 2720 (1974) and by the time I had it all working
the way I wanted it
to, I was quite an accomplished designer.  So buying a cheap kit and
hacking to your hearts
content is strongly recommended in my book.

I might also suggest EFM (Electronics for Music) synthesizer 'kits'
(also available as PCB
only).  They are not for strict beginners... the documents do not offer
the (hand-holding)
step by step directions... but the end result is good cheap modules. 
There is an online forum
on Yahoogroups where you could get help.  A Moog Ladder filter would
help a lot in getting
the fat bass you crave. I've have just about every board by now...  They
are similar to PAiA
in being simple, you can hack them to make them more sophisticated.

Also, check out Ken Stone's boards (CGS-Synth)... I cannot say enough
NICE things
about his work. The boards are small, beautiful, and have every pad and
hole that I would
desire for hacking (extra space on his boards often is filled with a
playpen area for mods).
The prices are very reasonable. I have the Metalshop wavefolder and the
digital waveform
board...

H^) harry

>
>
> --- Scott Gravenhorst <music.maker at gte.net> wrote:
> >banana_8_ape at herzeleid.net wrote:
> >>I appreciate the info to get me started. I found a wealth of
> >>information. The Fatman seems just what I need to start, but I
> >>listened to the sound samples and it doesn't really sound that
> >>good. Were they just bad samples or is that what I'll have to
> >>expect from it?
> >
> >I'm not sure what you mean by "not that good".
> >
> >I think it's difficult to use sound samples to show what a synth
> >does.  If done well (i.e., no clipping or noise) they show what
> >one set of settings does, but not the entire dynamic range of
> >what the instrument will do.
> >
> >If you're referring to the sounds on my site, they are some bass
> >sounds that I converted to sound fonts and don't represent all
> >of what the instrument does.  They also may not be the best
> >quality samples.  They are there for a "rough idea" of perhaps
> >more "natural" sounds and not crunchy electronic sounds.  So
> >these bass samples may be rather boring.  The main purpose of
> >those sounds was to replace the use of a U-110 rompler for bass.
> >I don't use a lot of real "synthy electronic" bass sounds.
> >
> >If they are sounds on the PAiA site, I don't know because I've
> >never heard them.  Perhaps you can tell me what sounds exactly
> >you refer to, I can listen and then give a better opinion.
> >
> >What I can say is that the FatMan is capable of Moogish and ARPish
> >sounds given a patch that looks like the FatMan.  Namely 2 VCOs
> >mixed and sent to a VCF controlled largely by an A(S)R and then a
> >VCA controlled largely by an ADSR.
> >
> >There are many sounds, like the phasing between two closely tuned
> >VCOs or filter sweeps, or a plethora of other things we play with
> >that are probably not represented, possibly because these are
> >"been there done that" sounds that may not be of general interest
> >even though they sound very nice.
> >
> >Perhaps also I should have asked what it is you want to do with
> >a synth.  If you are making noise-scape stuff, clicks and pops with
> >random pitch bloops and bleeps and noise, the FatMan is a very poor
> >choice.  If, however, you do more melodic music, it will work quite
> >well.
> >
> >>--- Scott Gravenhorst <music.maker at gte.net> wrote:
> >>>banana_8_ape at herzeleid.net wrote:
> >>>>I've been making guitar fx boxes for about 3 years and I'm
> >>>>wanting to get into synths. Does anyone have any good advice of
> >>>>where I could start.
> >>>
> >>>PAiA FatMan (MIDI triggered analog synthesizer).
> >>>
> >>>For more info, go to:
> >>>
> >>>http://home1.gte.net/res0658s/fatman/FatManProsAndCons.html
> >>>
> >>>and
> >>>
> >>>www.paia.com
> >
> >=========================================================
> >- When merit is no longer rewarded, excellence fades.
> >- Hydrogen is pointless without solar.
> >- Good or bad, that which gets rewarded, gets done.
> >- What good are laws that only lawyers understand?
> >- The media's credibility should always be questioned.
> >- Governments do nothing well, save collect taxes.
> >
> >-- Scott Gravenhorst | LegoManiac / Lego Trains / RIS 1.5
> >-- Linux Rex         | RedWebMail by RedStarWare
> >-- FatMan: home1.gte.net/res0658s/FatMan/
> >-- NonFatMan: home1.gte.net/res0658s/electronics/