[sdiy] Software/Hardware (was Freescale Soundbuite)

[Tom Wiltshire]

On 26 Jan 2008, at 02:13, karl dalen wrote:

> Hmm, its going to be a software synth behind a aluminium face plate.

I'm not sure this division between hardware and software is really  
that useful at this level. The distinction comes from programming and  
general-purpose computing - you know, PCs and stuff. When you're  
talking about embedded processors, people talk of 'firmware' which  
already blurs the boundary a little. Dedicated hardware around the  
processor blurs it further, since the system becomes a mixture of  
hardware and software elements. FPGAs blur it completely - are you  
'programming' a FPGA when you set up a design, or are you designing  
dedicated hardware? Who cares if the sound moves you?!

Obviously there is a continuum here. Sticking a cheap motherboard and  
soundcard with Windows and a VST running on it behind a panel would  
really be a softsynth dressed up as hardware (Ahem! Korg OASYS?). As  
the hardware becomes more specific to the purpose (addition of A/D  
and D/A channels, for example) and the software becomes less general  
purpose (replacing a standard OS with dedicated firmware) you move  
closer to a 'hardware' synth. Aside from analog modulars, just about  
everything is going to include a software element, and has done ever  
since the Prophet 5.

So don't bother worrying about what kind of synth it is (it'll be a  
hybrid!), just built it!

Regards,
Tom