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[Michael Buchstaller]

Hello Ryan,

wecome to our community !

On Wed, 26 Apr 2000 18:21:44 -0700 (PDT), you wrote:
>things. First, I realize that most diy projects are
>modulars, and from my understanding a modular is a

IMHO most list members do not have only their homebuilt
synths, but do also own a variety of commercial machines.
Some of them for reference, some of them for pure enjoyment.
But nearly all synths nowadays (used or new)  have a fixed
arrangement (patch) of their inner parts and how they do make
sounds with it; sometimes changeable by means of some
switsches and knobs.
But only the modular concept gives you the freedom to do
*everything* you want. At first, it seems to be cumbersome and
time-consuming to have to set up a bunch of patch cords to get
even the simplest sounds out of a modular, but it is addictive !

>do they cost to make? How do you get sounds into
>modulars, or do you have to make them yourself?

It depends on your modules. "Normally" (what is normal in DIY ?)
you have some kind of oscillator, and do your weirdo stuff (like
filtering, waveshaping and so on) with it and connect the output
to your amp. But, of course, you can also build some kind of a
sampler module, but then you will have to develop a means of
dovnloading sound samples onto that module. (i have done this
once for my "perfect sine oscillator", where i computed a sine and
put it into an EPROM, then played back the contents of the EPROM
in the module with varying speed th achieve pitch changes).

But let me here apply a warning: DIYing is not cheap ! (Not cheap in
materials, and it will cost you also huge amounts of your spare time)
So, to repeat Harry´s comment, if you just want to play music and noises
as fast and as inexpensive as possible, go and get some used
snth(s). But if you are ready to invest your time and money into this project,
and can wait until your first modules and power supply are working, you
will be *really* happy to hear a simple saw emerging from your speakers.

But, you will need a minimum of tools:
- a decent soldering iron of 30 - 70 Watts (forget those 10 W irons - they will
   take such a long time to heat up solder joints that they will harm the components
   long before the solder melts, and also do not use a 300 W plumber´s iron)
- good quality solder
- Desoldering pump and/or solder wick
- a simple Multimeter to check voltages, current and resistance
- an oscilloscope (you NEED this, believe me - but every cheapo old one in
   working condition will do)
- a good diagonal cutter for wires and component leads

As time goes on, you will see (depending ou your working focus) what additional
tools you will need.

Of yourse, you will also need an amp and a speaker to hear what your synth is
doing. Here, do not use your expensive highend amp and speakers; get some old
used ones, because sometimes it is possible to blow up the speakers with some of
the signals you will be generating, and you can also damage the amp if the signal
output voltage is too high...

I do not want to discourage you, but just wanted to tell that building a synth is not a
weekend project.
But if you do it, you will not only get a respectable synth that you can be proud of because
you have built it yourself, but also gain a lot of knowledge in electronics, troubleshooting,
calming down upset neighbors, and all kinds of mechanical skills.

Good luck !


-Michael Buchstaller