MU single width VCO Ideas

dslocum · Post by **dslocum** » Tue Dec 07, 2010 7:30 pm

A discussion was getting off topic here so I redirected to this thread.

fac · Post by **fac** » Tue Dec 07, 2010 8:16 pm

I would definitely be interested in a couple 1MU VCO's even if they were the same price as Roger Arrick's and had less functionality.

Being 1MU, I think there wouldn't be enough panel space for comprehensive modulation options or plenty of waveform outputs. I'm thinking maybe four knobs and four jacks, tops, so my suggestions are these:

Jacks: Output, FM Input, 1 V/Oct input, and PWM input

Knobs: Coarse and Fine Frequency (or Octave + Frequency), FM Amount

Switches: FM Exp/Linear switch, Waveform selector switch (Tri / Saw / Pulse)

That's three knobs, two switches, and four jacks. If there were space for one more jack, it could be used for hard sync.

Default pulsewidth (with no PWM input) would be 50%, and PWM amount would have to be controlled with an external attenuator or VCA module, but I think it's a good compromise.

My planned system has space for one more Q106 VCO, but I'd gladly buy two 1MU VCO's instead.

Christopher W. · Post by **Christopher W.** » Tue Dec 07, 2010 8:24 pm

Sorry to do the derailing, Doug. Definitely wasn't my intent.

Having said that, fac describes a good summary of what I'd like to see. Especially if it were super stable for the purposes of tracking (I loves me some FM!)

Failing that, and here I risk descending into heresy), what about a good digital unit? I really am waiting for the day when I can find a digital sound source that's high quality enough not to audibly alias.

Bryan B · Post by **Bryan B** » Tue Dec 07, 2010 8:32 pm

CV input (instead of a switch?) for the wave shape would be very awesome. I love that feature on my Moogerfooger Freqbox. Or better yet CV morph between Saw and triangle shapes, then have a CV for fading between Pulse and Saw/Triangle.

$200 for a VCO is cheap even in 1MU. A 2U VCO is a bit overkill when I just want a simple LFO to modulate something.

dslocum · Post by **dslocum** » Tue Dec 07, 2010 8:52 pm

Christopher Winkels wrote:Sorry to do the derailing, Doug. Definitely wasn't my intent.

Hey man. No problem. What are discussions about anyway. Ideas spring up. Too bad forums like this tend to be so linear, not that I not happy to have them!

Christopher Winkels wrote:Having said that, fac describes a good summary of what I'd like to see. Especially if it were super stable for the purposes of tracking (I loves me some FM!)

Failing that, and here I risk descending into heresy), what about a good digital unit? I really am waiting for the day when I can find a digital sound source that's high quality enough not to audibly alias.

Sounds like good options. My thinking cap is nearby....

fac · Post by **fac** » Tue Dec 07, 2010 8:56 pm

Christopher Winkels wrote: Failing that, and here I risk descending into heresy), what about a good digital unit? I really am waiting for the day when I can find a digital sound source that's high quality enough not to audibly alias.

Hmmm.... interesting.

Considering the 1310 VC Digital Delay and the JJP Samplecorder, I'd say Doug may be quite the right guy to introduce a digital VCO to MU land.

Maybe a simple ESQ1-like wavetable oscillator with FM and sync?

bwhittington · Post by **bwhittington** » Tue Dec 07, 2010 9:27 pm

Bryan B wrote:CV input (instead of a switch?) for the wave shape would be very awesome. I love that feature on my Moogerfooger Freqbox. Or better yet CV morph between Saw and triangle shapes, then have a CV for fading between Pulse and Saw/Triangle.

I'm a fan of the Q106, but I might enjoy a 1U oscillator if it specialized in one thing that it did well instead of just being a stripped down version of Roger's. VC waveshaping of any kind in place of a bunch of output jacks would be an awesome example of something I'd love to buy. An audio-rate, 1 v/oct tracking version of the VCS would be another. Space-saving efficiency isn't my number one interest, though.

Cheers,
Brian

sduck · Post by **sduck** » Tue Dec 07, 2010 10:40 pm

Maybe consider taking a good look at the motm 310? It's a super sounding 1U vco, with most of the bells and whistles that people are bringing up.

JohnLRice · Post by **JohnLRice** » Tue Dec 07, 2010 11:09 pm

sduck wrote:Maybe consider taking a good look at the motm 310? It's a super sounding 1U vco, with most of the bells and whistles that people are bringing up.

And another advantage of the MOTM-310 is that the PCB is very shallow so conversion to a dotcom panel would be a breeze! (the PCB can remain mounted perpendicular to the panel I'm pretty darn sure . . . same with the MOTM-380 quad LFO and the MOTM-800 EG)

Dragonslair · Post by **Dragonslair** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 1:43 am

The functionality of the module will have a lot to do with how stuck in the mud you are about cosmetics, do the knobs have to be the same size as the dotcom ones? and do the pots and jacks have to conform to the dotcom standard grid? just check out STG's 5 channel mixer, it's amazing how much you can fit in a 1 mu panel.

sunsinger · Post by **sunsinger** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 2:52 am

Is Paul still making 310's?

JohnLRice · Post by **JohnLRice** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 3:02 am

sunsinger wrote:Is Paul still making 310's?

I believe so!

He sells assembled 310's and seperately just the panel, PCB and an extra parts kit. Here is the PCB:
http://www.synthtech.com/testcart/index ... cts_id=242

ed buller · Post by **ed buller** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 4:14 am

Some kind of wavetable oscillator would be ace.

e

Christopher W. · Post by **Christopher W.** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 6:28 am

fac wrote:
Christopher Winkels wrote: Failing that, and here I risk descending into heresy), what about a good digital unit? I really am waiting for the day when I can find a digital sound source that's high quality enough not to audibly alias.
Hmmm.... interesting.

Considering the 1310 VC Digital Delay and the JJP Samplecorder, I'd say Doug may be quite the right guy to introduce a digital VCO to MU land.

Maybe a simple ESQ1-like wavetable oscillator with FM and sync?

I think that'd be a good place to start. I really want an oscillator to inolve some form of waveshaping, either through FM, sync, playing with duty cycles, etc. Add in some sort of wavetable scanning and that opens up the functionality even more. But above all: quality. So many synths by the big Japanese companies still are stuck in the 44.1kHz / 16-bit paradigm, which is frankly not enough resolution for my tastes. Find if nothing you play gets more than an octave above middle C or you like aliasing. Terrible for really sweet higher octave sounds.

bwhittington · Post by **bwhittington** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 9:03 am

In the wavetable niche, Paul's theoretically-one-day-available-in-5U/Dotcom Morphing Terranium would be tough to beat . . . if it actually gets released in the format.

Cheers,
Brian

dslocum · Post by **dslocum** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 9:25 am

bwhittington wrote:In the wavetable niche, Paul's theoretically-one-day-available-in-5U/Dotcom Morphing Terranium would be tough to beat . . . if it actually gets released in the format.

Cheers,
Brian

Got a link?

bwhittington · Post by **bwhittington** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 10:08 am

dslocum wrote:Got a link?

http://www.analoguehaven.com/synthesistechnology/e350/

(part 1 of 4)

JohnLRice · Post by **JohnLRice** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 10:20 am

Richard Brewster did a beautiful 1U build of the MT!

http://pugix.com/synth/synthesis-techno ... terrarium/

essex sound lab · Post by **essex sound lab** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 10:28 am

Well, all this talk of MOTM is well and good...but what's the reality of a production MU-paneled 310 or a 5U/MU version of the MT or CG inside 2011?

I'd still like to see a real-world MU single-width VCO and I'd personally prefer to see it in analog. Don't get me wrong...I like digital oscillators, and own several. But the appeal of a 1U oscillator, to me, is that you can put together a bank of them in a reasonable amount of real estate.

I wouldn't buy more than 1 or 2 of the same digital oscillator. But a 310-class VCO in MU would be great. I'd buy 6...maybe 8.

Bryan B · Post by **Bryan B** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 10:40 am

How about a Dual Oscillator in 2U? Same real estate more knob and jack space.

Synthbuilder · Post by **Synthbuilder** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 10:42 am

Well I have something planned... and it's not digital.

Tony

essex sound lab · Post by **essex sound lab** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 10:50 am

Synthbuilder wrote:Well I have something planned... and it's not digital.

Tony

MU if there are enough pre-orders?

Synthbuilder · Post by **Synthbuilder** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 11:05 am

essex sound lab wrote:MU if there are enough pre-orders?

The final decision will be Paul's since he is the one who coughs up the cash for the MU panel runs and builds. But I will be doing a single width VCO module as a PCB project and I hope it will be ready in February*. I have two designs in mind, one is a basically a single width version of my double width VCO board, the other is a more 'traditionally inspired' module.

* The actual date does depend somewhat on sales of the current stocks of boards. I can only order new boards if I can actually afford to do so. So hopefully there will be enough people that will want Diode Superladders, Deep Equinoxes and Journeyman-IIs in January to pay for it.

Tony

Christopher W. · Post by **Christopher W.** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 11:13 am

How about a Dual Oscillator in 2U? Same real estate more knob and jack space.

... or to expand on that idea (which is a good one), how about a multi-operator digital FM oscillator. VC over the various operators, of course....

krisp14u · Post by **krisp14u** » Wed Dec 08, 2010 11:15 am

I want all 3

If there is enough interest I will do it

I was going to do The VC-LFO as a 1MU VCO but with this update we shall have to see

MOD WIGGLER

MOD WIGGLER

MU single width VCO Ideas

MU single width VCO Ideas