MiniDexed Raspberry Pi V1 IO Board – Part 2

This is the build guide for my MiniDexed Raspberry Pi V1 IO Board. Warning! I strongly recommend using old or second hand equipment for your experiments. I am not responsible for any damage to expensive instruments! These are the key tutorials for the main concepts used in this project: MiniDexed: “Bare Metal” Raspberry Pi MiniDexed DX7 Raspberry Pi … Continue reading MiniDexed Raspberry Pi V1 IO Board – Part 2 →

MiniDexed Raspberry Pi V1 IO Board

I already have two different IO boards for use with MiniDexed on a Raspberry Pi and whilst MiniDexed works best on a Pi 3 or 4, providing 8 full DX7-compatible tone generators, it is also possible to run it on a V1 Raspberry Pi, although it is limited in performance to a single tone generator. … Continue reading MiniDexed Raspberry Pi V1 IO Board →

MiniDexed TX816 – Part 7 – In use!

Now that my MiniDexed TX816 seems largely usable (for me at least), this is the last part in the series for the time being and is simply a short demonstration of the module in use! Here is an 80s style FM synth version of Jupiter from Holst's Planets Suite. Previous posts in this series: Part … Continue reading MiniDexed TX816 – Part 7 – In use! →

MiniDexed TX816 – Part 6 – Pico MIDI Router and TX816 IO Code

It's been a while since finishing the MiniDexed TX816 Mechanical Assembly and I had a bit of a distraction recently rebuilding my Lo-Fi Orchestra, but I've also been tinkering with the code for the TX816 IO panel and router. This post looks into a bit more detail what it is all doing. Posts in this series: … Continue reading MiniDexed TX816 – Part 6 – Pico MIDI Router and TX816 IO Code →

Lo-Fi Orchestra – The Flight of the Bumblebee

This is the second of my additional new Lo-Fi Orchestra performances. This is Rimsky-Korsakov's Flight of the Bumblebee from his opera "The Tale of Tsar Saltan". Listen out for the "flute" (R2R DAC) with the short chord accompaniment in the strings. Full details of the rebuild process can be found here: The New Lo-Fi Orchestra Explainer. … Continue reading Lo-Fi Orchestra – The Flight of the Bumblebee →

Lo-Fi Orchestra – The Dam Busters March

I have two more performances recorded after my Lo-Fi Orchestra rebuild. The first is a performance of Eric Coates' legendary Dam Busters March from the 1955 film of the same name. Listen out for the "piccolo" (R2R DAC) descant second time through the first theme. This is also quite a nice showcase for the Adafruit … Continue reading Lo-Fi Orchestra – The Dam Busters March →

Arduino OPL FM Synth – Part 2

Despite saying last time that I looked at the YM2413, I didn't need to build a protoboard version of the YM2413 "shield", I've had an idea for something that would really benefit from one, so here it is. I've built it onto one of my Arduino MIDI Proto Shields. Warning! I strongly recommend using old or … Continue reading Arduino OPL FM Synth – Part 2 →

Raspberry Pi Pico MIDI Note Balancer

One use for my Raspberry Pi Pico MIDI Splitter is as a way to get pseudo polyphony from a range of monophonic sources. I've called this "note balancing" from the idea of "load balancing" online systems - sharing out the "ask" across a number of devices. In a similar way, this can take requests to play … Continue reading Raspberry Pi Pico MIDI Note Balancer →

The New Lo-Fi Orchestra Explainer

In honour of my 400th post to my blog, and having now designed and built a range of relevant PCBs I wanted to completely take apart the existing Lo-Fi Orchestra and rebuild it from scratch. This post details how the orchestra has been updated and will hopefully serve as a new explainer for the Lo-Fi … Continue reading The New Lo-Fi Orchestra Explainer →

The New Lo-Fi Orchestra and The 1812 Overture

In celebration of my 400th post on my blog, I've just finished rebuilding the Lo-Fi Orchestra. And seeing as for my 100th post, I presented the finale for Tchaikovsky's Solemn Overture, 1812, in honour of my 400th post and for the inaugural performance of the new orchestra, I thought it was about time I did … Continue reading The New Lo-Fi Orchestra and The 1812 Overture →