This page is dedicated to SDIY (aka Synthesizer Do It Yourself).

When I was a teenager, back in the seventies I became fascinated by those weird sounding machines with those huge panels full of blinking light bulbs and knobs. My first encounters with music produced by Moog synthesizers were two radically different pieces:  Popcorn (by Gershon Kinsley) and the original soundtrack of Clockwork Orange (by Wendy Carlos). This was really weird at this time but I sure knew that I liked that very much!  The music I was listening to was that of bands like ELP, Genesis, Pink Floyd, Yes and so on... Then the Germans came ! Klaus Schulze, Tangerine Dream, Popol Vuh, Kraftwerk, Ash Ra Tempel : fascinating, hypnotic and repetitive. In parallel, some other really interesting musicians extended the realm of synth creativity : Tim Blake, Brian Eno, Jean-Michel Jarre, Vangelis and others.

At the time, I had this hobby of building electronic circuits (mainly for short wave listening) and it became obvious that I had to build myself one of these big modular thing. Well, considering the fact that I had no money, this was a very optimistic goal. I eventually managed to build a modest modular synth (US1). Then I discovered computers, I bought a Sinclair ZX81 kit and started programming. This took me away from SDIY for about 25 years!

Back in 2000, while surfing on the net, I accidentally came across a site dedicated to SDIY. And that was it ! I was bitten again by the virus !

By the way if you care to listen to some relaxing cosmic music don't miss visiting the site of my long time pal Christian AKA AlphaLyra.

And, if you're in love with modulars and analogue keyboards you ought to visit the incredible collection of a good pal of mine, Olivier Grall !

- Archives : this page provides PDF files of some "oldies but goldies" articles that appeared in various journals (Electronic Design, Electronics, Wireless Word, Elektor) between 1974 and 1986. All have something to do with electronics and music...
- My Old Gear : this page describes the synth I built and those I purchased between 1979 and 1980. A lot of schematics and pictures are available.
- New gear : the new analogue synths I recently purchased.
- EFM Wildcat : I bought from Tom Gamble one of the pre-version PCB of the Wildcat single board modular MIDI synthesizers. This page is a compilation of the corrections and additions I made to this nice little modular.
- My big DIY modular  : In 2004, I started a new project of a big modular. This page show its current status and gives you all information to build your own (schematics, PCB drawings and tips).
By the way, none of these is for sale ! I do not provide either kits or etched PCBs for it.
- Links : some of my favourite SDIY links
By the way, I am no native english speaker ! Thus, you will find a lot of misspellings and stylistic nonsenses. In such a case, please send me an email pointing at the mistakes and help me to eradicate them.

A note to readers:

All electronic projects and designs presented on this web site, or associated web sites should be considered dangerous if not lethal if not used safely. When working on projects based on these designs, use extreme care to ensure that you do not come into contact with mains AC voltages or high voltage DC. If you are not confident about working with mains voltages, or high voltages, or you are not legally allowed to work with mains voltages, or high voltages, you are advised not to attempt work on them. The author, host, and all people associated with these web pages disclaim any liability for damages should anyone be killed or injured while working on these projects, or projects based on these designs, or any other project or design presented on these web pages and any associated web pages. The author, host, and all people associated with these web pages also disclaim any liability for projects, or projects based on these designs, or any other project or design presented on these web pages and any associated web pages when used in such a way as to infringe relevant government regulations and by-laws.