Now (mostly) retired, I'm pursing electronics and computing just for the fun of it! I'm a computer scientist and engineer who has worked for AMD, Hewlett Packard and Siemens. I also taught hardware and software development at Case Western Reserve University, Tufts University and Princeton. Hopefully, you will find the information on this site to be helpful. Educators and students are particularly welcome!
It looks cool — the limited edition Korg microKORG Crystal synthesizer and vocder. Videos: Ooh and Aah.
The picture to ship a thousand synths (or whatever the cliché is)
No word of new content. €539 transparent bag included. Available July 2023.
Yeah, Superbooth 23 has commenced. I don’t intend to make a big deal out of it. After NAMM 2023, I need a break from chasing shiny objects (Korg Crystal excepted).
I like the form. I like the size. I like the price ($199 USD). Roland AIRA S-1.
The Roland AIRA Compact S-1 Tweak Synth
I hope Roland grow the AIRA product line. Most punters — me — are more likely to buy a 200 buck expansion box than a $5,000 Oberheim OB-X8. Please, please, please add an AIRA like the D-05 boutique. Roland, you would sell zillions of ’em.
I’m happy to make a first report about the Korg NTS-2 Oscilloscope kit. The NTS-2 is bundled with the book “PATCH & TWEAK with KORG”, by Kim Bjorn. Whatever the reason for the delay, it took Korg several months to deliver after the NTS-2 was first announced. Fortunately, the bundle finally hit my doorstep. 🙂
Korg NTS-2: The box bundle
The NTS-2 kit and book are a fairly hefty package, mainly due to the weight of the enclosed book. The book looks, feels and weighs like a “coffee table” book. Tain’t light.
Korg NTS-2 Book and kit
The NTS-2 kit itself is packed in an unmarked white box. All the components are lovingly protected by bubble wrap. In addition to the printed circuit boards (PCB), you get the now-familiar corner and side pieces, hardware, USB Type-C cable, a way-too-short 3.5mm stereo cable and two acrylic stand pieces.
Printed circuit boards
The Nu:tekt manufacturing concept is rather clever. Korg design and manufacture one (or more) large-ish, break-apart PCBs for each kit. The PCBs are loaded with surface mount (SMT) components and other random stuff like the display and battery holder. No soldering is required. Thus, one gets all of the benefit of SMT without the grief of soldering components made for mice. [My old hands and developing cataracts can barely handle work at this fine level.]
Korg NTS-2 main electronics board
The main board consists of four subboards to be broken apart.
Korg NTS-2 screen and interface board
The color display (240×320 pixel 2.8″ LCD) is mounted on the flip-side of the main board. A second fully-assembled PCB has the jacks, ON/OFF switch and other gizmos needed for interfacing. The interface board plugs into the main board.
Korg NTS-2 main board detail (the money shot)
The image above is a close-up picture of the main electronics, including the ARM processor. Thank you, Korg, for wave-soldering this!
Assembly
The NTS-2 follows the pattern established by the rest of the Nu:tekt product line. The NTS-2 arrives disassembled and you do the work of putting the major components together. The kit includes assembly instructions, and “1, 2, you know what to do.” [Apologies to Junior Wells.]
The kit includes the cutest little screwdriver I’ve ever seen. Keep the screwdriver and use it to repair your eyeglasses. Yep, the kit screws are freaking small.
Korg NTS-2 bottom assembly
The image above shows the bottom assembly. You can see how the metal corner and side pieces tie everything together. Note the orientation of the interface board. Getting the orientation right is the only step that requires any real thought. Don’t forget to connect the battery lead to the interface board.
Korg NTS-2 top assembly
Screws secure the main board, AKA “the top”, onto the metal corners — after you’ve plugged the interface and main boards together, of course.
Assembly time is roughly the length of the Skye & Ross album (one hour). Overall, it was a fairly pleasant way to spend the morning, including coffee.
PATCH & TWEAK
The PATCH & TWEAK with KORG book fits the cliche, “richly illustrated.” If you want to know about synths — KORG synths, in particular — this is a fantastic book.
If you want to learn how to operate the NTS-2, not so much. The book has a few basics, however you must download the NTS-2 Owner’s Manual from the Korg web site to get the real dope. The Owner’s Manual (4 pages) isn’t much to look at although it does list the basic control parameters for each of the four operating modes:
The NTS-2 operates on either USB power or two AAA batteries. I put in two AAA batteries, hit the switch, and no smoke. 🙂 No idea about real-world battery life at this point.
The user interface is menu-driven and is a lot easier to understand than my old Gabotronics oscilloscope. The front panel buttons line up with the on-screen menus. Simply press the appropriate button to rotate (navigate) through the menu items.
I wanted to see what happens if I just put a (mono) audio signal into the NTS-2 without any set-up or prep. This seems like the most typical first use scenario. I’ll bet the NTS-2 was inspired by the Korg Minilogue scope; people love to watch signals dance around.
First, you need to know that the INPUT and signal THRU jacks are stereo and the OUTPUT jacks are mono. I connected the NTS-2 INPUT to the MONO out from Yamaha MODX, selected an organ patch and taped down a key to form a simple tone generator. 🙂 Select SCOPE mode and press VERTICAL to select Input 1L.
And, flat line. What the? Well, out of the box, the vertical voltage range is set too high, 10 volts. The MODX is line out (approximately 1V max). Turn the parameter knob and change the vertical range to 0.1V. (The current range is shown in the status bar at the top of the display.) Now, we got picture!
Korg NTS-2 first signal and no smoke!
Thanks to the simple NTS-2 menu system, I had fun playing with the function generator, too. I did have trouble grokking the FFT spectrum analyzer and need to revisit FFT mode after reading up.
I’m quite pleased with the NTS-2 and it should handle audio and control voltage analysis, no prob. I don’t know what to expect when analyzing high speed digital signals. The old Gabotronics does OK with digital and it has a logic analyzer capability which the NTS-2 does not. I use the Gabotronics with its Windows app because the Gab is absolutely horrible as a stand-alone scope. The NTS-2, on the other hand, does not have a personal computer-based app (at least not yet).
Thus, if you intend to do a lot of digital troubleshooting, you may want to consider one of the many inexpensive bench oscilloscopes that have popped up in recent years. If you want to do audio only and want easy fun, try the NTS-2.
Turn your back for one second after NAMM 2023 and Roland slip out the Boss Gigcaster 5 and Gigcaster 8. These are audio streaming mixers aimed at the podcasting community.
Astutely, Roland recognize that these mixer have application beyond podcasting. They are, after all, mixers! Gigcasters have all the features one might want in a small format studio mixer. Thus, Roland show musicians happily strumming, singing and playing keys in their bedroom studios. They are rather attractively and colorfully styled.
Boss Gigcaster 5
The Gigmaster 5 sells for $480 USD and the Gigmaster 8 costs $700.
There’s gold in those podcasting hills and small format podcasting mixers (desktop production boxes) are busting out all over. Yamaha, for example, introduced the AG08 USB streaming mixer ($630) at NAMM 2023. The AG08 joins the lower-priced AG03 mk2 and AG06 mk2 models.
Indiegogo: InstaChord
InstaChord is a MIDI guitar Indiegogo project. They are trying to get enough backers to go into production with expected delivery in April 2024. Early bird bundles go for $374 USD.
The InstaChord looks like a Klingon Bird of Prey. 🙂 There are six strummable “buttons” instead of strings, and a 2-D button matrix instead of a fretboard. Buttons in the matrix select chords using a numeric method similar to I, ii, iii, IV, V, vi, dim vii notation within a scale.
InstChord
InstaChord produces sound through its own internal speaker. The internal tone generator is a Dream SAM2695 (GM sound set). The SAM2695 is the same chip inside of the Akai MPK Mini Play. InstaChord sends and receives MIDI via USB Type C or Bluetooth.
UJEII — AKA “My Main Man” — shows off an early prototype in this Insta Chord Demo (Katsunori UJIIE). UJIIE shows that he can rock out strumming, not just shredding keys!
The InstaChord reminds me of the old You Rock Guitar (still sitting in my closet). Unlike the YRG, InstaChord does not try to mimic guitar strings or fretboard. YRG requires standard fretboard fingering, which is a barrier for many casual players (like me). I simply don’t have the time to practice guitar skills on top of keys. InstaChord requires a modicum of music theory; any good keys player should be able to adapt.
Check out the free InstaChord-i IOS app, if you want a taste.
Not to pick on the InstaChord folks in particular, but, hey! If you have a new product, at least Google the product name before committing to the name. Searching on “InstaChord” took me to the W.A. Productions plug-in by the same name. Come on!
BlackBT SusEx Pedal
BlackBT® announced the SusEx® pedal which combines MIDI foot switch and continuous control (expression) functionality. SusEx is available for pre-order costing $150 USD. It is expected to ship in June 2023.
BlackBT SusEx pedal
I contend that the SusEx is not “the first” to combine footswitch and expression control in one pedal. The “first” title goes, instead, to the Boss/Roland EV-1-WL. I’ve been using the EV-1-WL for well over a year now… Like the Boss EV, SusEx communicates over Bluetooth BLE and USB. No 5-pin capability, tho’
None the less, the SusEx has a cool way of switching between sustain mode and expression mode. It senses foot position and automatically switches mode. With the EV-1-WL, one either adds an external footswitch for sustain, or presses down hard with the toes at the top of the pedal. Check out the SusEx demo video
The SusEx pedal is absolutely tiny and should be lightweight and easy to transport. Dunno about you, but I’m tired of toting around heavy, built like a tank expression pedals. Some folks may not like the pedal throw, but that is personal preference.
Donner
Donner established a reputation for bargain-priced guitar toys. Now they are coming for keys. Donner have a line of portable piano and arranger instruments. Products include the Donner Essential B1 Analog Bass Synthesizer, the DMK-25 PRO MIDI controller, and the D1 Drum Machine and Sequencer. Of course, they also have — TA-DA — podcasting gear, too.
The expanding Donner-verse
The Donner direct sales outlet is currently running a sale on select products including the B1. These guys want market share!
Donner are going to give low-cost specialists Casio and Akai conniptions. I don’t have any direct experience with Donner products, but do suggest getting native English tech writers to produce and edit their marketing literature and manuals. Slipshod writing gives people a bad impression of product quality and many people are unsure about Donner as a brand.
Just a quick Yamaha CK observation. The CKs are clearly aimed at the Roland VR-09, which sells at the same $1,000 price points. The CK beats the VR for non-organ sounds. Fight’s on!
NAMM 2023 is a wrap with all of the major products rolled out. Here are a few items that might have escaped your attention and are worth checking out on-line.
Hammond 122H Heritage Leslie
You just can’t buy a new Hammond XK-4 and not connect its 11-pin speaker port to a new Hammond 122H Heritage Leslie. This new model comes out in August: solid-core wood cabinet, 40 Watts, new servo motors, independently controllable upper horn and lower rotor, switchable from a 122 to a 147. Projected price is $7,000 USD.
Artinoise re.corder
The Artinoise re.corder is not new, but it was at NAMM 2023. The re.corder is a wireless wind controller based on the classic soprano recorder. I took a look at the re.corder a few years ago and decided that it wasn’t quite mature enough. It’s time.
It’s only $199 USD. Cheap enough to try wind today!
Audio Modeling SWAM and Camelot
Speaking of SWAM, Audio Modeling announced upgrades to SWAM (now v.3.7.0) and Camelot (v.2.2.4). These are the full fat personal computer versions. The Camelot upgrade includes a Yamaha CK Smart Map. That was fast work.
I hope that many of the enhancements will eventually appear in the IOS versions of SWAM and Camelot. I would love to see SWAM ensembles, too.
Audio Modeling, BTW, have a partnership with our friends at ILIO.
Bastl Bestie
Bastl have kicked loose a new box: the Bastl Bestie. The Bestie looks like a Dude, but it’s nasty. Bestie is a 5-channel stereo mixer with stereo distortion and saturation. It can mix clean with distortion kicking in during boost (i.e., rotating past 12 o’clock). Leave Channel 3 unplugged and it feeds the output back to the input.
Like the Dude, Bestie operates on either USB power or four AA batteries. The Bestie is 180 Euro through the B Shop. I didn’t see the Dude in the B Shop, so Bestie may be the new Dude. North American retailers include Patchwerks in Seattle.
This beast could be fun as a key-top small mixer that adds grunge.
mki x es.EDU DIY System
No, I didn’t accidently lean on the QWERTY keyboard. That is the name of the series of educational DIY synth kits developed by Erica Synths and Moritz Klein.
C’mon, dudes. Try your new product names in the Google before branding. If customers can’t easily search on a name (like “re.corder”), they ain’t gonna find you.
Kits in the EDU DIY series include:
EDU DIY VCO $79
EDU DIY VCA $69
EDU DIY EG $69
EDU DIY Sequencer $79
EDU DIY VCF $84
EDU DIY Mixer
EDU DIY Noise/S&H
EDU DIY Output
EDU DIY Wavefolder $109
You’ll find them wherever fine modules are sold. 🙂
Whimsy
Yamaha took a lot of heat by using the word “breakthrough” in its NAMM 2023 (self-)promotion. To some, releasing a modestly priced keyboard like the CK is not “breakthrough” enough, though I see Yamaha selling scads of these.
I’ll close with a little bit of Yamaha whimsy. Thanks and a tip of the hat to the person who posted this link on Gearspace.
It would be easy for a keyboard player to blow off the IK Multimedia AXE I/O ONE. It is so obviously pitched at guitar and bass players.
Not so fast. Where else can you get a 1-in/3-out USB audio interface — with MIDI — for $130 USD?
IK Multimedia AXE I/O ONE
If you’re an iPad-toting keyboard player who needs MIDI IN and stereo audio out, the AXE I/O ONE has it covered. That’s 5-pin MIDI, by the way. The AXE I/O ONE has two expression/switch pedal inputs. Many MIDI controllers do not have an expression pedal input, so the AXE I/O ONE could fill that gap. The control panel application assigns MIDI channel, CC#, minimum and maximum data values. [MacOS and Windows only.]
The main audio input is a Neutrik jack backed by a Class-A mic preamp. You can go clean as well as down and dirty. Should be possible to post-process keyboard audio through an IK effect chain. Audio conversion up to 24-bit/192 kHz is supported. Unfortunately, you can’t hit the AXE I/O ONE with a stereo signal (mono input only).
AXE I/O ONE is USB-C bus powered. The box is 5.1″ x 5.7″ x 2″ (13cm x 14.5cm x 5.2cm) and weighs only 0.8 pound (0.37kg). Software includes AXE Control Panel, Amplitube 5 SE, and TONEX SE. Available today.
If you need to replace your aging Korg Plug-Key or Alesis Control Hub, the AXE I/O ONE is worthy of consideration as long as you can live within its limitations. An IOS control panel app would just about make this perfect for keys at $130.
The Arturia MiniFuse 2 provides similar features for $149 USD. The MiniFuse 2 does stereo input and also has a USB-A hub port. That means you can connect a MIDI controller to your iPad (or computer) through the hub port. Unfortunately, the hub port can source only 250mA of current. Still, a viable alternative.
Given the long run-up to NAMM 2023 (April 13-15), I expected manufacturers to trickle out new product announcements. [Not the usual supernova explosion nebula.] Thus, I’ve collected a round-up of pre-NAMM announcements:
I will continue to monitor the Inter-webs for interesting product announcements.
Keyboard-wise, that’s not a bad bunch of new issues in a global economy which is still recovering from supply chain problems, factory fires and that damned, bloody virus.
CK61 and CK88 keyboards are shipping and first impressions are reported on various forums. It’s good to have product ready when everyone’s passion is high. No point in raising the (marketing) heat when units won’t ship for months and months. Initial impressions are good, but keep an eye out for open box CKs from order-try-return customers.
MTW2 models slight pitch fluctuations due to tonewheel backlash and volume fluctuations due to de-centering. The virtual multi-contact keyboard simulates the feel of an electro-mechanical keyboard.
The XK-4 provides three vintage combo organs: Farfisa, Vox and Acetone. It also includes classical and theatre pipe organ stops which can be registered in the traditional way.
No manual (yet). Folks will want to know more about those assignable knobs, etc. Will the XK-4 make a good controller for non-organ voices on iPad? Will it interoperate with IK Multimedia B-3X? If the XK-4 is a good controller, it’s lack of non-organ sounds could be moot.
The new XK-4 replaces the old XK-1c model. You can find XK-1c advertised as low as $1,395 USD, if you can still get one, that is. Typical XK-1c MAP is $1,725. As usual, no XK-4 price announced as of today. Jim A’s source sez “2K MAP, available August.” Hold your breath. 🙂
Instead of talking about the big kids, here are a few boutique, cottage industry MIDI gizmos. My current fixation is finding a fully programmable, tiny MIDI controller to send patch changes (Bank Select MSB, Bank Select LSB and Program Change messages).
If you’re ready to buy, try tindie.com — an Etsy for independent, boutique electronics. Tindie sells an incredibly wide variety of electronic goods. Keep those inventors and makers busy and happy!
Phantasmal Force
The Distropolis Goods Phantasmal Force is tiiiiinnnnyyyy. It has sixteen individually programmable buttons, a programmable knob and an OLED display. It’s bus-powered and sends MIDI over USB Type C and TRS-A serial ports.
Distropolis Goods Phantasmal Force
Phantasmal Force sells for $125 USD on Tindie. There, you get to customize case and button colors.
The retro, pseudo-typewritten reference manual is a scream.
AMC3 MIDI Controller
The AMC3 MIDI Controller is back in stock. The AMC3 has three, fully programmable, 3x100mm faders (Bourns). The AMC3 is class-compliant, sending MIDI over USB. The AMC3 has a 3-digit LED display.
AMC3 MIDI Controller
The AMC3 reminds me of the Sparkfun Danger Shield, which I used in my Danger Shield Drawbars project. Unlike the Danger Shield, the AMC3 lives in a rugged, dust-resistant ABS chassis. The chassis is 5 by 7 inches. If you’re looking for actual drawbars, try the Crumar D9U kit.
The AMC3 costs $149.99 and AMC3 are offering a 10% discount (good for the next two months).
The AMC3 is configured via tycocommander. Tycocommander is part of the Koromix Tytools package. Although the AMC3 folks don’t mention it, the AMC3 is Teensy-based, hence, tycocommander. Thus, it may be possible to overwrite the original AMC3 code with your own.
I would contact AMC3, however, before doing anything so drastic! Be sure to get a copy of the original factory code!
Anavi Macro Pad 8
Gamers are familiar with macro pad keyboards — small keypads capable of quickly sending multi-character sequences. Stands to reason, if a macro pad can send ASCII over USB, it can send MIDI, too.
Amazon is clogged with macro pads. The trick is finding a macro pad which is fully programmable (as opposed to being configured for ASCII key strokes).
Anavi Macro Pad 8
The Anavi Macro Pad 8 fits the bill. It has eight mechanical key switches and an optional mini OLED display. Everything is mounted in a clear acrylic enclosure (optional). The Macro Pad 8 communicates through a Micro USB port.
According to Anavi:
Anavi Macro Pad 8 is powered by a Microchip ATmega32U4 microcontroller, so it is possible to use as an Arduino Leonardo-compatible development board and upload Arduino sketches through Arduino IDE or PlatformIO.
Now we’re talking!
The base Anavi Macro Pad 8 is $46 USD on Tindie. If you dress it up with the enclosure and OLED, it’s $69 USD, including shipping to the USA. I have one on order. Fulfillment is good and it’s on its way from Bulgaria.
In the old news department, Yamaha have released the CK stage keyboards and have given the YC organ-focused keyboard an update. The CKs are good value for the money and are better “all-rounders” than the YCs. The CKs even have pipe organ voices lifted from Genos™.
If this week’s postings are meager, I spent waaay too much time blasting Yamaha for the lack of pipe organ voices on the YC. Montage and MODX have two decent FM pipe organ performances and should have been included in the YC update. Presently, the CKs undercut Yamaha’s own YC as far as church music is concerned. If you have a Montage or MODX, sample Genos and add pipe organ voices of your own. YC is a closed system in that regard.
Hammond XK-4 teaser
Meanwhile, Yamaha’s competition are not sitting still. Hammond are teasing the XK-4: 61 keys, pitch bend and mod wheels, color display, and assignable knobs. It follows in the footsteps of the lower-cost XK-1c model, having B-3, Farfisa, Vox and pipe organ (!) sounds. The XK-1c MSRP is $1,995 ($1,725 MAP). We await the official announcement for anything definitive. I’m curious to see how Hammond will price this puppy.
The Yamaha NAMM 2023 pages are active with placeholders for a few new products to be announced at the show. Hope for the golden magical unicorn is fading. Still, there is the princess.
What if you could buy a Yamaha synth with AWM2, AN and VL synthesis and buy it today? It’s not the unicorn super-Montage, it’s the Yamaha EX5 (released in 1998). The EX5 supports:
AWM tone generation
VL tone generation
AN tone generation, and
FDSP tone generation.
The EX5 had brothers, the EX5R rack module, and the diminuitive EX7. The EX7 is more limited in a number of ways including the absence of VL. Formulated Digital Sound Processing (FDSP) is a note- and velocity-dependent effect processor — an early version of Virtual Circuit Modeling. FDSP models electromagnetic pick-ups, water, PWM, flanger, phaser, etc. [I won’t say too much more about FDSP.]
AWM, AN, VL and FDSP can be combined (layered) in a variety of ways. (See the EX5/EX7 manual for details.) All of the synthesis methods share a common element structure as shown in the image below.
Yamaha EX5 common element structure [Yamaha]
The main difference between the synthesis types is how the “oscillator” is handled:
AWM: The oscillator is formed via sample-playback.
VL: The oscillator is the instrument model (mouthpiece, bow/string, etc.)
AN: The oscillator is a simulated VCO (Voltage Controller Oscillator).
FDSP: Same as AWM.
The remainder of sound processing is based on the standard AWM pipeline with the addition of a few extra VL, AN and FDSP parameters.
Yamaha EX5 allowed combinations of synthesis methods
All is exciting and fantastic until one reads the polyphony spec:
So, I would forget about that fat stack of AN or VL oscillators (layers). Forget phat two-handed analog chords.
How did Yamaha create this many-headed beast? Glancing at the EX5 service manual, the EX5 tone generation hardware consists of two SWP30B processors configured in the age-old master/slave tandem. (The SWP30B is two generations older than the current SWP70.) The EX7 has only one SWP30B. Further clues come from Yamaha itself:
The DSP (Digital Signal Processing) system used to create the EX effects is also used by the AN, FDSP, and VL (EX5/5R only) tone generators to create voices. This means that less DSP capacity is available to produce effects when the aforementioned voice types are used. This imposes limitations which are different for the EX5/5R and EX7. The Reverb and Chorus effect units function normally regardless of the type of voice used.
There are no limitations to using insertion effects in the EX5 or EX5R Voice mode. In the Performance mode, however, insertion effects can be used on a maximum of 4 parts (voices) if the performance setup consists entirely of AWM voices. If a VL, AN, or FDSP voice is used in the performance setup, however, an insertion effect can only be used on one part (voice).
Colloquially, Yamaha have robbed Peter to give to Paul.
Yamaha EX5 DSP limitations [Yamaha]
In EX5, DSP1 is always assigned to reverb, chorus and one level of insert effects. DSP2, however, is flexibly assigned between insert (AWM), VL, AN, and FDSP. Likely, Yamaha returns DSP2 output to a single TG channel in the front-end of the AWM2 pipeline (i.e., a return datapath).
Given the limitations in the EX5 internal architecture, I understand why Yamaha deployed the SSP2 digital signal processor in the Reface CS. Reface CS uses AN Analog Physical Modeling and is eight voice polyphonic. Although Yamaha don’t say much about its filter, Reface CS is not restricted as to filter algorithm (i.e., can be something other than the AWM2 hardware filters).
Sometimes you need to look back in order to see forward. AN-X™ is on the horizon and we will soon see if Yamaha raids its treasure vault. [Again, 25 years later.]
Here is a special Yamaha Electone StageA organ. “The Electone LUNA project, which started in October 2022 based on your questionnaire, has been completed! As decided by Twitter vote, the motif is a ‘princess costume.'”
The design is based on the Electone ELC-02 and is “a design that can be enjoyed by adults and children.”
Electone LUNA final design [COVER Corp.]
The special edition “has the same performance functions as the ELC-02, and we plan to provide opportunities for the general public to play it in the future.” The Electone LUNA will have an unveiling tour (Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya) yet to be announced.
Electone LUNA prototype — Simply beautiful [COVER Corp.]
If you would like to know more about the design process, Yamaha have an interview with its designer and producer. I love the pictures including a few images of finished, molded chassis parts. Quite elegant!
I don’t think you’ll be seeing this model at a biker-bar blues jam. 🙂 I really wish StageA were available in North America…
