[sdiy] Filters

[R. Drake]

d, 

sorry, thot you said you were a beginner.

to have much fun w/ th filter, you'll probably want something to modulate it
with (something to produce a control voltage, which you run into the CV in).
folks on the list have been talking about envelope followers; you could also
you a straight lfo if you want a standard "sweeping" filter effect.  the
psycho lfo (and superpsycho) gang several regular lfos together so they
interact and produce a more complex sweep... which may or may not be what
you want.  my free advice: put some circuits together individually and play
w/ different interconnections--once you get a combination that produces the
sound you like, then package it up into a box.

i used to do lots of things as individual boxes, but having individual power
supplies (or dozens of batteries to change) got to be a pain.  i like the
flexibility of being able to reuse the circuits in multiple combinations.

blacet (www.blacet.com) sells full kits.  oakley (www.oakleysound.com) sells
both boards and "prepopulated" boards.  both sell completed units as well.

both of them, and MOTM, are geared primarily towards making modular synths.
although tony (at oakley) doesn't do panels himself, lots of folks package
his things using the MOTM format, and there are panel designs along those
lines available at his site.  blacet uses the smaller "fracrack" format,
although some folks repackage his into MOTM as well.  all my stuff is
fracrack, which means sometimes the oakley stuff doesn't fit as neatly into
the scheme of things.  and, as said, i'm sure you could package them up as
individual units.  most of these boards are probably a bit big for the
traditional stomp-box format tho.

hope this helps.  keep asking questions on the list, it's a great community
& i've found 'em to be very helpful to folks at all levels.

asever,
lbd 




on 12/30/03 3:25 PM, The D.U.G. at dug at dugdesign.com wrote:

> I have been doing some diy projects. Some fairly complicated. I built an
> 1176 from gyraf!
> 
> I'll check out the filter plus the psychoLFO, would it make sense to put
> them in the same box?
> I would use this mostly as an "effects pedal" sorta like the sherman
> filter bank.
> How it is like a rack box, so the knob twiddler might be cool.
> 
> Is Blacet and Oakley other kit makers? As far as more expensive stuff,
> the MOTM stuff looks cool.
> 
> d./
> 
> rdrake wrote:
> 
>> d--
>> 
>> Ken's boards are a great value, i've built about 6 so far and have about that
>> many more on the bench.
>> 
>> when thinking about how much this is gonna cost, don't forget everything else
>> involved besides the PCB: board parts, pots switches jacks knobs, panels/case
>> (always a bigger deal then it appears), and a good power supply.  and tools.
>> it adds up.  
>> 
>> the steiner filter plus psychoLFO make a great combo, particularly for
>> starters: low parts count, few controls, easy to set up, immediately useful
>> (assuming you have a sound source to filter).  likewise, ken's digital noise
>> module is a personal favorite, very versital noise source, easy to build.
>> the bandpass filter is also pretty easy, but not as impressive--not voltage
>> controlled, so it's a knob-twiddler.  as a set, these would make a great
>> introduction to diy, and a stepping stone to more complex projects.
>> 
>> the wave folder is great, but a step up in complexity... i'm still building
>> the VCOs, they're based on a well-known circuit so i'm sure they'll sound
>> good, but quite a bit more involved.
>> 
>> a lot of the other modules (gate sequencer, sequential switch) are
>> controllers rather than sound sources, so you need to have some basic modules
>> to control.  i've been building some of the Blacet things for those basic
>> modules (VCOs especially), and a couple of Oakley modules.  They seemed
>> expensive at first, but you get all the parts plus panels and
>> instrucitons--really, if you buy parts yourself in small quantities, it can
>> cost as much as the full kit.
>> 
>> asever
>> lbd
>> 
>> 
>> 
>>> ----- ------- Original Message ------- -----
>>> From: "The D.U.G." <dug at dugdesign.com>
>>> To: rdrake <rdrake at data2action.com>
>>> Sent: Tue, 30 Dec 2003 10:20:32
>>> 
>>> Cool! His stuff looks cool and his pcbs are cheap!
>>> Should I pick up any of his other stuff?
>>> 
>>> d./
>>> 
>>> rdrake wrote:
>>> 
>>> 
>>> 
>>>> Try Ken Stone's based on the CGS35Steiner VCF
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>> Steiner-Parker Synthacon VCF
>>> 
>>> 
>>>> lbd (who was up at 4:30 am stuffing 4 stone VCO
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>> boards...) 
>>> 
>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>> 
>>>>> ----- ------- Original Message ------- -----
>>>>> From: "The D.U.G." <dug at dugdesign.com>
>>>>> To: <synth-diy at dropmix.xs4all.nl>
>>>>> Sent: Tue, 30 Dec 2003 09:05:54
>>>>> 
>>>>> Can anybody recommend some good sounding easy to
>>>>> build filters for
>>>>> beginners. Either something that has a pcb or is
>>>>> easy to P2P.
>>>>> 
>>>>> I like the Sherman filter bank and the moog
>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>> filters
>>> 
>>> 
>>>>> but I know there are
>>>>> prolly kind complex.
>>>>> 
>>>>> I found the EFM stuff and they seem cheap but
>>>>> nobody ever responded to me.
>>>>> 
>>>>> d./
>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>>>> 
>>> (http://www.cgs.synth.net/modules/cgs35_syntha_vcf.
>>> html).  One IC, 4 transistors, PCB available,
>>> awesome sound.  Ken is very responsive, and various
>>> on this list have lots of experience w/ these
>>> modules.  While you're at it, pick up a Psycho or
>>> Super Psycho LFO to go with... another easy project
>>> w/ great sound possibilites.
>>> 
>>> 
>