[sdiy] History of SDIY?

[David Manley]

On 6/5/18 7:12 PM, Adam Inglis wrote:
>
>> On 6 Jun 2018, at 11:06 AM, Dave <dlmanley at sonic.net 
>> <mailto:dlmanley at sonic.net>> wrote:
>>
>> I found an archive via the wikipedia article on Synapse Magazine:
>>
>> https://monoskop.org/log/?p=5720
>
>
> Thanks Dave!
> From perusing Synapse Vol 3 No 1 (the one with Eno on the cover), it 
> appears we have forgotton someone: Rick Coupland, inventor of the 
> incredible-looking Coupland Digital Synthesiser Model One “where the 
> next new sounds will come from”  !!
>
>
You're welcome!  I'm amazed a few of my synapses are still firing well 
enough to remember that magazine.  I used to pick it up at a news stand 
on the south side of Chicago.  Thanks to whoever decided it was worth 
the shelf space - I can't believe many copies were sold.

A few comments about the importance of John Simonton:  He knew how to 
make things cheap, how to promote them, and this is important: 
functional *enough*.  Were the modules that PAiA made the best? Did his 
VCO have an expo front-end, or was it temp compensated?  Did it track 
more than 3 octaves?  Was his VCF 4-pole?  Did his VCA meet any of  the 
specs of any of his competitors?  Were his jacks high quality?  Was the 
silk screen printing on the face plates even?  The answer is: A 
RESOUNDING NO TO ALL OF THE ABOVE *BY DESIGN*. And here's another key 
point: it was OK to his customers because his VCA cost just $14.95, 
something even a pimple-faced teenager could scrape together in a week.  
For $14.95 I got a PCB, parts, faceplate, jacks, knobs, probably some 
solder, and useful documentation.  Even with all of his design 
limitations it allowed anyone, of any means and some determination, to 
have a functional synthesizer.  Then as microprocessors became cheap he 
did the same, and made his software open-source to boot.

So kudos to Bob Moog for understanding how a bipolar transistor BE 
junction could be the heart of a voltage controlled filter, and to Alan 
Pearlman for applying his background in precise discrete op-amp design 
to synth design, but also to John Simonton for making it available to 
anyone .

-Dave
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