nathan@woosteraudio.com | Photos on Flickr | About
Growing up obsessed with both legos and music, I've wanted to have a modular synthesizer for a LONG time. In 2007/2008, I finally got the right combination of time, money, and space to make it happen!
Modular Synthesizer
The Format
I went with the MOTM format because I thought the big panels and wide knob spacing would make it easier to make DIY modules.
The Modules
My first module was a MOTM-440 Discrete OTA lowpass filter kit, which sounds awesome. I was happy with the way my Soundlab turned out, so I ordered most of the rest of my module PCB's from Music From Outer Space. I also have a Jurgen Haible Compact Clone, a Michael Ruberto Synthacon, a Marc Bareille AD633 ring mod, and some DIY utility modules.
Everybody says you can't have enough VCA's, but I've been okay with two. In a pinch you can use a filter as an audio-VCA. Also I think I have too many LFO's. All three of my oscillators go into LFO territory, and so do my self-oscillating filters, so I don't really need the two specialized LFO's. I didn't learn my lesson from the Soundlab project, because I wish I had more envelopes.
Panels
I used the Front Panel Express service to engrave my panels, although I designed them using Front Designer. I discovered some money saving tricks with Front Panel Express which I have documented here.
Power Supply
Power supply is a Power-One +/- 15 V dual linear supply. I use a star distribution topology with a MOTM-960 board
Case
My friend helped me put the case together with a pocket-screw system. The wood is African Mahogany, coated with a glossy marine finish. I usually prefer matte finishes to glossy, but in this case I think it accents the glow of the wood. I classed it up with some leather & brass steamer trunk handles on the sides. Modules are secured to the case using standard Mid-Atlantic rack rails and screws.
Central Bus
The central row of jacks is a bus/multiples module. There are two sections of 12 jacks each. Each section is connected as "A B C D A B C D A B C D". The two sections can be AC coupled, DC coupled, or disconnected.
Return to index