The Cyndustries List

The first Blacet format Zeroscillators are shipping!
Here are the words of Doctor Bob reposted from the Blacet List.

The Blacet format Zeroscillators presently fit the Paia 
brand of Frac Racs better than the Blacet brand of Frac Racs.
We're making the necessary adjustments, and shipping is 
uninterrupted.

Please enjoy the words below!

Cyn

---Start---

Date: Tue, 11 Apr 2006 21:27:55 -0700
From: Robert Trelease <trelease@ucla.edu>
Subject: [BML]  Blacet format Zeroscillator - First hardware
	impressions
To: blacet-list@lists.blacet.com
Message-ID: <p06230905c061d2f04dff@[10.0.1.2]>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" ; format="flowed"

In the recent "new to group" thread, a lot of people held forth on 
the great features of Blacet compact modules and other current synth 
developers' gear (MOTM, Wiard, Metalbox, Doepfer, ModCan, etc).  As 
Wiard's Grant Richter nailed it, "this is the best time ever in 
history to be a modular synthesist".

In the same spirit, I'd like to let list readers know about some of 
the outstanding features of Cynthia Webster's new Blacet format, Mark 
Barton- designed Zeroscillator (ZO).  Lucky me, I popped for the 
deposit last fall when Cynthia first announced it, and UPS delivered 
my ZO today.

If you're lucky enough to have 4 of Blacet's fine VC 
wave/PWM/sine/saw/tri syncing/FMing 2100 VCOs, you might think you've 
got enough super oscillators.  But the Zeroscillator is one very 
powerful, complex uber-synth package and well worth the extra 
investment.  It's aimed right at folks who want the outrageous sounds 
coming from digital FM synthesis, but with real analog hardware and 
extras like quadrature (4 phase) outputs, expo and linear FM control 
with zero frequency crossing and inversion (phase reversal), wave 
morphing, variable sync, and other practical goodies.  FM is just the 
beginning with this analog beast.

The first impression started with the well-cushioned shipping box, 
boldly labeled "delicate instruments".  The naked ZO inside is 
engineered like a fine electronic instrument, like a rugged Tektronix 
or Hewlett-Packard instrumentation module or a panel of aerospace 
electronics.

You can see a couple of behind-the-panel images at:
http://63.198.234.228/AnalogDomain/ZO1s.jpg
http://63.198.234.228/AnalogDomain/ZO2s.jpg

If you're used to fine Blacet or MOTM plated-through circuit boards, 
this is something else again.  The ZO circuit boards are layered, 
with Blacet-specific panel controls and adapter boards stacked in 
front of the main ZO motherboard. Firmly plugged into motherboard's 
back connectors are three daughterboards with the main guts of the 
ZO: the modulators, the main "loop" oscillator, and the waveshapers. 
Everything is robustly and rigidly secured with hex standoffs at the 
board corners.  Gold-plated, heavy duty IC sockets.

Ummm... as befits a Cynthia module, there seem to be as many words as 
holes on the interconnect boards, with very extensive labeling of 
signal points and traces... ;-)

The gloss-anodized front panel has a clean, practical Deco layout 
with cool touches like smooth switch collars, profuse, route-labeled 
I/O jacks, and phase LEDs.  The big main tuning knob drives a smooth 
10 turn wirewound pot for fine frequency adjustments.  The small 
control knobs are a good match with those on Wiard (blue) and 
Metalbox Blacet-format modules.

Having taken up lots of space describing the hardware, I'll leave the 
functional description of all the controls, different wave types and 
modulation to Cynthia's Web site. 
http://www.cyndustries.com/modules_zero-osc.cfm?type=37 Included in 
the shipment was a 14 page operations manual by Mark Barton, focusing 
on a basic FM synth patch to familiarize the user with how the ZO 
works.

There's lots of other stuff you can do with this outrageous module, 
and high on my list is trying the ZO quadrature output in LFO range 
to modulate 4 VCOs.  (And I'll bet Ingo Z has got some great sounds 
he can share, since he's apparently had a Eurorack ZO for a few 
months....)

Cynthia said she's planning on bring out more Blacet format modules. 
Oh boy!  Get another rack, indeed!

Now if you'll excuse me, I think I'll go nuts making new ZO sounds 
for the next several hours.  Forbidden Planet, here I come!

Best regards,

"Dr Bob"


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