Hammond Solovox Sounds

The Solovox Solo-Pedal-Unit was built in to Hammond's RT2 & RT3 organs to provide monophonic accompaniment/ lead voices.

The picture and sounds were kindly passed on to me by my colleague, Christian. The recording was made from the direct outs of the unit that was built into his 1952 RT2.



It was the first time I'd heard of the Solovox and its wonderful tones. Sadly, he'd already sold it before I could get a chance to experience this rare, tube-based instrument for myself. Worse still, apparently the new owner is a fan of 'easy listening'.

Here are a few links (1, 2) to the history of the Solovox. I notice one credits Eric Barbour of Metasonix. Now, why doesn't that surprise me?

Fonitronik mh31 VC Modulator

A look at the Euro-prototype of Fonitronik's unconventional ring modulator.



See this thread at the electro-music forum for the background to this project and Kevin Kissinger's excellent demo.

"Harry Bissell once recommended Irvine's design for a ring mod. I changed the resistors to our common values, and added two VCAs to the inputs, thus giving a voltage controlled ring mod. Makes a lot of fun."

Matthias's opening description in that thread might lead one to believe that this circuit is indeed just another ring modulator with the added benefit of voltage control, something akin to Doepfer's A-133 VC Polarizer. Irvine refers to his design as a 'frequency mixer' and, while I'm not sure of the the semantic difference, the sonic results certainly are unlike 'normal' RM.

Here's a comparison between the Cwejman VCO-2RM, the A-133 and then the mh31:

mh31a.mp3

The Cwejman and Doepfer (0:26) exhibit 'classic' RM, with the latter distorting at higher CV levels. The mh31 (0:54) produces a harsher, more metallic tone that, while having RM characteristics, doesn't yield the expected sine-on-sine bell-tone. Here's what the waveforms look like:



Irvine's circuit sums the inputs, then inverts, rectifies and doubles the amplitude of the sum. This offers a clue as to why this circuit sounds different. In the following example, I've modulated an audio signal with an LFO. Using a traditional DC-coupled RM, the amplitude is attenuated as the LFO nears 0V and is then polarized. To the ear, flipping the polarity of an audio signal should make no difference:

mh31b.mp3
(VCO-2RM, A-133 @ 0:11, mh31 @ 0:25)

This last clip highlights the difference in Irvine's approach. Rather than simply changing the polarity, at slow speeds, the waveform seems to 'change direction'. This reminded me of the type of soft sync that is implemented in some VCOs or mixing waveforms in a min/ max analogue logic module like the A-172. Here's what it looks like:



The term 'ring modulator' might be misleading, but that shouldn't detract from the possibilities of this circuit, both in terms of timbre and function generation. The build quality is excellent and, taken as an alternative to the classical DC-coupled ring mod, the mh31 offers new sounds and surprising results when processing control voltages.

Leaf Audio Fuzz-O-Mat & Kenny's Death

A demo of Leaf Audio's DIY distortion-in-a-snackbox effect.



Described by its makers as a 'lethal lash', this deceptively simple circuit is capable of serious audio destruction. It features three gain stages, two feedback loops and adjustable power starve. It was originally designed by Leaf Audio to process electronic beats although, as you'll hear below, it's quite happy when fed with other material.

Despite its diminutive size and innocuous looks, the Fuzz-O-Mat is capable of dramatic gain swings, so be careful of your ears and speakers! I've used a limiter on these recordings to keep the levels in check.





The Fuzz-O-Mat is only available by taking part in one of Leaf Audio's workshops. The kit contains everything you need and the PCB is well laid out, making it fun to build. Manuel of Leaf Audio and Matthias of Curetronic are on hand to help should you get stuck.

Check the list of upcoming dates and their other 'snack-box synths': the BingBong, NoiseFuzzFilter, RingDing & Bumssss analogue drum synth.

The next workshop in Berlin is on the 4th December at the Haus der Kulturen der Welt as part of the Worldtronics festival, where you can also look forward to a modular set from me, quite possibly shredding pristine Cwejman sounds with my Fuzz-O-Mat.



If you can't take part or would like something pre-built, head over to Kenny's Death and contact Manuel to order "the most kaputt sounding fuzz workstation ever" - a Fuzz-O-Mat with all the Hazarai.

Patch Tips #14 - Sub-Harmonic Division

Using Maths or the VCS to generate sub-harmonic variation.



Today's Patch Tip is cribbed from Seth Nemec's Bananalogue/ Serge VCS demos and the 'Undertone Generator' patch in Rich Gold's Serge book:

"Sub-Harmonic Generator: If a series of triggers are applied to the VCS faster than the total rise and fall times, the module will divide the incoming signal by a whole number. In the audio range the output will be the sub-harmonic series."

The VCS has the benefit of an AC-coupled output, but I feel Maths offers finer control over the settings. As this patch relies on the rise time, Math's EOR pulse can be used to provide an even beefier sub signal.

The technique simply involves patching a mult of your principal oscillator to Maths' trigger input and mixing either the envelope or EOR with the main VCO in a filter etc. Set the response to linear, fall to fully CCW and then gradually increase the rise time. Additionally altering the fall time will give you more control over the timing and hence sub-divisions.

Here's what it can sound like: subharmonix.mp3

The patch relies on the envelope's inability to respond to a second trigger until it has completed its cycle, meaning it will 'skip' pulses and thus generate a lower frequency. You can try this patch with other trigger-able envelopes like the Plan B Model 10, Cwejman CTG-VC or Doepfer A-143-1, bearing in mind that the minimum possible cycle time and trigger response will affect the possible sub-divisions.

Berlin Music Days - Navs Live

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photo: g.p.macklin

I'll be taking part in the De:Bug Musiktechniktage this Saturday, helping Andreas Schneider with his workshop and playing a short live set. Time should be between 16:00 & 18:00. See the De:Bug link for more information.

Look forward to seeing you there!

De:Bug Musiktechniktage
5th & 6th November 2010

Radialsystem V
Holzmarktstr. 33
10243 Berlin

Schneiders London Testsalon Opening

Some pictures from the opening event at Rough Trade East last Sunday.









It's been a while since I've been down Brick Lane and I was amazed at the buzz on the streets. Rough Trade East is a great location for the Testsalon and I wish Andreas and the lads every success with the venture. Thanks to everyone who came along - it was great to meet you!



TOP: Cwejman RES-4, MMF-1, Toppobrillo TWF, A-132 VCA, Harvestman Hertz Donut, VCA-4MX; BOTTOM: A-147 VCLFO, A-160/1 clock divider/ sequencer, Fonitronik Attenuverting Mixer, Analogue Solutions SH-NZ, Make Noise Wogglebug & Maths, Bananalogue/ Serge VCS.

Above is a picture of the 6U case I took with me. I can happily confirm that it met Easyjet's carry-on luggage regulations. There was a sharp intake of breath from the passengers behind me as I opened the case at security in Berlin - the people at Luton didn't even bat an eyelid. I asked Easyjet about taking a 9U as carry-on: unfortunately, it's too big.

Putting together a 6U performance case was a real challenge. My normal approach is to ensure that I have all eventualities covered e.g. VCAs, polarizers, mixers etc., but this time the solution was to think in terms of the set I wanted to play and populate the case accordingly. Anything I hadn't used in rehearsal (mults, logic, sound-shaping filters, complex envelopes etc.) was easily left out.

My set comprised of three sections and relied on re-patching & repurposing the modules e.g. filter as oscillator, envelope as trigger delay etc. Rather than using LFOs, a joystick or keyboard/ Pressure Points, I made all changes manually.

Section one: white noise tuned by the RES-4 to provide a pad, the MMF-1 randomly pinged by the Wogglebug (the Allen Strange 'tail-chasing' patch); section two: my faux binary zone patch (MMF-1 through TWF as bassline), RES-4 pinged by clock divider for 'Berlin-style' stabs, high-pitched waveform discontinuity sound from Hertz Donut principal as high hat, modulator as kick drum and, section three, the RES-4 excited by the VCS and run through the TWF for some distorted klonks, with the HD providing some 'stupid' accompaniment and the MMF-1 rumbling the subs.

Part workshop, part gig, this was an interesting experience - despite rehearsing, the one thing I wasn't prepared for was shaky patch-hands. On more than one occasion, I missed the jack and hit the face-plate! Self-contained instruments like Maths, the Wogglebug & Hertz Donut are perfect for small systems (although the latter's secondary CV inputs, which need to be activated, are hardly performance-friendly!). The biggest lesson, though, was to bring your own monitoring: if you can't hear your music properly, you can't respond. Next time, I'll be wearing headphones!

Navs Live @ Schneidersbuero London

I'll be performing a short set at the opening of Schneidersbuero's London showroom at Rough Trade East this Sunday.

Here's a short taste of what it might sound like:

Roughtrade Teaser by navs

The carry-on luggage regulations mean I'll be traveling from Berlin to London with a 6U case. It's been quite a challenge to find a happy balance between favourites and functionality, but also quite revealing to discover just what my desert-island modules are.

I hope you're as excited as I am about the opening and look forward to seeing some of you there!

Schneidersbuero London Showroom
Sunday 10th October, 11:00-17:00
Official opening and music @ 14:00
Rough Trade East