SergeModular

> The 6 vs. 8 pots mentioned below was already switched over by July of 1977 when I started
> working in the Hollywood facility, this being both both pre-Oakland and pre-STS. There was a
> major upgrade already in effect when I started. Most of the modules still in existence today date
> back to that time period. The NTO, all the filters, Wave Multiplier, TKB, Pitch Follower,
> Transient Generator, Slope Generator, etc. were all being made by that time.

I think some of the 8pot/banana modules were advertised in
Synapse from 1977, so that ties in.

My 1979 catalogue has the following modules marked as "new":

Dual Comparator, Res EQ, Extended Preamp, PEF, ACPR, ADSR
and scaling buffer. (Pomona molded cables were also marked
as new.)

All the other modules listed above were also in the catalogue,
but not marked new.

> I think the Wilson Analog delay came out later that year and the
> Frequency Shifter a year later.

Neither of these made it into the 1979 catalogue. The WAD was in
the 1982 catalogue and the frequency shifter made it into the 1983
catalogue. I think Serge had been working on a delay module earlier
- it was mentioned in an interview.




Steve

>>>I think some of the 8pot/banana modules were advertised in
>>>Synapse from 1977, so that ties in.

We had just made the switch to the 8 hole panels before I was hired on in July of 1977. The
holes were cut with both 8 and 6 hole patterns so that a combination of new and old modules could
be mounted. My first task was to layout the graphics for the newer modules.

>>>>My 1979 catalogue has the following modules marked as "new":

>>>>Dual Comparator, Res EQ, Extended Preamp, PEF, ACPR, ADSR
>>>>and scaling buffer. (Pomona molded cables were also marked
>>>>as new.)

Just because they were listed as new in the 1979 catalogue, doesn't mean that they came out
that year. :) I left at the end of summer 1978 and several of the above listed modules were
already out. It's a bit too much of a strain on my already over-taxed RAM to give you
uber-specifics beyond that, though the ones I do remember clearly in 1978 are the Res EQ, the
Extended Preamp, the PEF, the Wave Multiplier, and the ACPR. The WAD and FRS were not yet out. I
don't remember a dual comparator, though we had the triple comparator from the old 6 hole days.
We were using Pomona cables in the early days, though when I came on board, Serge was
experimenting with DIY cables for the kit builders. These were truly POS. I think another
cheaper alternative was being supplied with the pre-made panels, though they quickly went out of
favor as well. By 1978, we had returned to the much-more-expensive-and-well-worth-it Pomonas. I
purchased my set of Pomonas through Serge in early 1978.

> I think the Wilson Analog delay came out later that year and the
> Frequency Shifter a year later.

>>>> Neither of these made it into the 1979 catalogue. The WAD was in
>>>> the 1982 catalogue and the frequency shifter made it into the 1983
>>>> catalogue. I think Serge had been working on a delay module earlier
>>>> - it was mentioned in an interview.

I was probably jumping ahead of myself there. I do remember a delay unit being developed,
though I'm not sure when exactly it came out. Remember that the catalog listings don't accurately
reflect the actual date of production...

Gawd, this must sound incredibly boring to all but one or two here... mea culpa!!!

Stephen




















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Since Rex is now selling only a certain number of pre-configured panels,
do the prices of individual modules mean anything anyway?

Wouldn't he be listing complete panel prices?

Is this the complete available panel list at this point in time?

1. Touch Envelope Voltage Source
2. Red Voice
3. CV-1 (Red Control)
4. Sequencer Panel
5. Blue Voice
6. CV-2 (Blue Control)
7. TAK
8. Soup Kitchen
9. Soup Kitchen 2
10. Animal

Maybe a phone call into Rex is in order. Perhaps I can get updated
graphics and a panel price list from him...

TKB?

> TKB?

Whoops - typo!
7. TAK = TKB

> 2007/12/30, Les Mizzell <lesmizz@...
> <mailto:lesmizz@...>>:
>
> Since Rex is now selling only a certain number of pre-configured panels,
> do the prices of individual modules mean anything anyway?
>
> Wouldn't he be listing complete panel prices?
>
> Is this the complete available panel list at this point in time?
>
> 1. Touch Envelope Voltage Source
> 2. Red Voice
> 3. CV-1 (Red Control)
> 4. Sequencer Panel
> 5. Blue Voice
> 6. CV-2 (Blue Control)
> 7. TAK
> 8. Soup Kitchen
> 9. Soup Kitchen 2
> 10. Animal
>
> Maybe a phone call into Rex is in order. Perhaps I can get updated
> graphics and a panel price list from him...
>
>
> Keep on Patchin'!
>
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
> (Yahoo! ID required)
>
> mailto:SergeModular-fullfeatured@yahoogroups.com
> <mailto:SergeModular-fullfeatured@yahoogroups.com>
>
>
>
>
>

> We had just made the switch to the 8 hole panels before I was hired on in July of 1977. The
> holes were cut with both 8 and 6 hole patterns so that a combination of new and old modules could
> be mounted.

That's one of the things that confuses the timeline. Serge would
sometimes sell a board and front panel label kit, and as all possible
holes were already there, you could swap out one module in the panel
for something else. The label would cover the unused holes.

> My first task was to layout the graphics for the newer modules.

Would these be the first of the new curvy graphics or the last
of the mid 70s simplified "box round the outputs" style graphics?
Was it all pen/ink/letraset back then?

> Just because they were listed as new in the 1979 catalogue, doesn't mean
> that they came out that year. :)

Very true. And catalogues don't have obvious dates. In 2000 years,
archaeologists are really going to love Serge (c:

> Extended Preamp,

What was that? It's in the catalogue, but I've never seen a real one.
I know the old Preamps (as in PRE, PREV) and the later preamp/detector,
but the XPRE sort of came and went overnight. Did it just get renamed,
or was it flawed and got replaced quickly?

> don't remember a dual comparator, though we had the triple comparator from the old 6 hole days.

It replaced the triple COM.

> We were using Pomona cables in the early days, though when I came on board, Serge was
> experimenting with DIY cables for the kit builders. These were truly POS. I think another
> cheaper alternative was being supplied with the pre-made panels, though they quickly went out of
> favor as well. By 1978, we had returned to the much-more-expensive-and-well-worth-it Pomonas. I
> purchased my set of Pomonas through Serge in early 1978.

Thanks for clarifying - I thought they went back earlier.

>> ...WAD...

> I was probably jumping ahead of myself there. I do remember a delay unit
> being developed, though I'm not sure when exactly it came out. Remember
> that the catalog listings don't accurately reflect the actual date of production...

Serge was definitely doing something with a delay or BBD reverb - and a
few other things which came to nothing around that time - but I think the
WAD was a different later thing. (Who is/was David Wilson?)

> Gawd, this must sound incredibly boring to all but one or two here... mea culpa!!!

It's much more interresting than prices (c:


Steve

--- In SergeModular@yahoogroups.com, S V G <vsyevolod@...> wrote:

I'm listening too; I just haven't contributed to the list lately.

Bob Hearn (w/ 7-panel STS Serge)

> My first task was to layout the graphics for the newer modules.

<<Would these be the first of the new curvy graphics or the last
<<of the mid 70s simplified "box round the outputs" style graphics?


It was between the two. I'm guessing that modules like the NTO hadn't been sold before I got
there, cause there weren't any faceplate graphics yet... Serge was moving away from the old style
(which he really loved) and was caving into complaints from Universities to make the faceplate
graphics more accessible. Outputs had rectangular boxes around them and everything else was just
labeled. There was no 'outline' around the entire module. This was prior to the 'new curvy
graphics', which came in after I left. I have to say, that the graphics I put together didn't
have a strong aesthetic appeal. The newer graphics (which are still in use today) are much sexier
than the ones that I did.


<<Was it all pen/ink/letraset back then?

No pen or ink. The panel graphics were laid out on graph paper so we could line up the holes
correctly. Thin black crepe tape was used for all the straight or curved lines. The typeface was
printed up on a sheet of glossy paper (I forget the name of the process), and glued into place
with rubber cement. Letraset was used occasionally.

A funny story... Serge had someone else (Rob or Kevin?) doing the graphics for the Gentle
Electric Pitch to Voltage Converter. He had used Letraset for the "Gentle Electric' logo at the
bottom of the panel. When we got the first batch back from the printers, he realized that he
accidentally Letrasetted the words 'General Electric'!!! Rather than face a big lawsuit, we had
to ditch those graphics. I remember the feeling in the shop that day. We were such a small Mom
and Pop type of organization that any major mess up like that really hurt.

> Extended Preamp,

<<What was that? It's in the catalogue, but I've never seen a real one.
<<I know the old Preamps (as in PRE, PREV) and the later preamp/detector,
<<but the XPRE sort of came and went overnight. Did it just get renamed,
<<or was it flawed and got replaced quickly?

Sorry, I was just using your nomenclature. I meant to say the Preamp/detector.

> don't remember a dual comparator, though we had the triple comparator from the old 6 hole days.

<<It replaced the triple COM.


Ah yes, dual comparator in a 1" space (8 hole) as opposed to a triple comparator in a 2"
space (using the old 6 hole layout).

>> ...WAD...

> I was probably jumping ahead of myself there. I do remember a delay unit
> being developed, though I'm not sure when exactly it came out. Remember
> that the catalog listings don't accurately reflect the actual date of production.. .

Serge was definitely doing something with a delay or BBD reverb - and a
few other things which came to nothing around that time - but I think the
WAD was a different later thing. (Who is/was David Wilson?)

I never knew Mr. Wilson. I'm thinking now that the WAD must have come out later, after I
left. Then again, I seem to recall running jokes at the time about getting so frustrated with it
that you'd pull a gun on it. "Honey, I just shot my WAD..." And don't get me started on the
Bi-sexual Router...

I do know that up to this day, I've yet to hear the WAD in action, so this must surely date
it as after my time... (late summer 1978).

Stephen



















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very interesting and amusing, thank you

(and agree, > + interesting than the price discussion)


best wishes for 2008 and beyond to all !

fernando

>> Extended Preamp,

> Sorry, I was just using your nomenclature. I meant to say the Preamp/detector.

There was a module called the Extended Preamp (XPRE) - it appeared in the 1979
catalog, and was different to the preamp Detector. There's a picture in the files
section under "79 Panels", at the bottom:


http://f1.grp.yahoofs.com/v1/0Ip7R-aHAs8-kDd9bfXHBdu5JBBBTU0GmBQ-VUWkchvWuUsbhHrqeirIbzoqAHZlGbJuXbrc23NF2S6DSGouLwiqdjYWvYn9Og/79%20Panels/Xpre.jpg


I just wondered if it was an early version of the Pre/Det, or
something else. Anyone ever seen one?

> >> ...WAD...


> I never knew Mr. Wilson. I'm thinking now that the WAD must have come out later, after I
> left. Then again, I seem to recall running jokes at the time about getting so frustrated with it
> that you'd pull a gun on it. "Honey, I just shot my WAD..." And don't get me started on the
> Bi-sexual Router...

Was that because the inputs and outputs were interchangeable (c:
(Inuendo or outuendo)


Steve

The Preamp/Detector that I did graphics for (1977) was configured differently to the XPRE
that you refer to. I don't think it had the 'gain adjust'. My brain RAM is a bit fuzzy on it and
is starting to generate sparks and smoke. Is this a bad thing?

Sorry I can't be of more help on that one.

Stephen