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
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- 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 synths : this page describes the synths I built and those I purchased between 1979 and 1980. A lot of schematics and pictures are available. |
- Projects:
my on-going projects, progress and construction
information... |
- Hints & Tips :
Some useful technical infos when one comes to build
analogue synths. |
- Links : some of my favourite SDIY links |
- Contact
me : send me a message, your comments and remarks... |
By the way, I am no native English speaker ! Therefore, you may find a lot of misspellings and stylistic nonsenses. In such a case, please send me an email pointing at these mistakes and I shall correct 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.
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