Building my Oskitone Poly555

This isn't really a post like my usual blog posts. This isn't a project of mine as such or a build guide or anything. It is simply a few comments and photos of my building my Oskitone Poly555. https://makertube.net/w/a8SsXP33nymrRqNxXnbbNA I've always liked the idea of the Oskitone. I've used it as the inspiration for some of my … Continue reading Building my Oskitone Poly555 →

Raspberry Pi Pico Synth_Dexed? – Part 2

Now that the initial elation at getting a reasonable sounding, er, sound from my Raspberry Pi Pico Synth_Dexed has worn off, I've been seeing what I can do about the performance. TL;DR: this is all analysis and measurements, working out and attempting to understand how it all currently works. I haven't fixed anything or improved it yet. I'm … Continue reading Raspberry Pi Pico Synth_Dexed? – Part 2 →

Raspberry Pi Pico Synth_Dexed?

For a while I've wanted to get Synth_Dexed up and running on a Raspberry Pi Pico. This is the library written by Holger Wirtz for use with the Teensy microcontroller, and the core synth engine used for MiniDexed. This is how I got everything up and running although it is too early to know if this … Continue reading Raspberry Pi Pico Synth_Dexed? →

Diagnosing and attempting to fix a Yamaha DX100 – Part 1

I was very lucky to be offered a non-working Yamaha DX100 from Simon Walters. On arrival I can see it attempts to boot but apart from the odd character on the screen, I wasn't really getting anything useful happening. My thinking here is that as it is a pretty nice synth with most of its functionality … Continue reading Diagnosing and attempting to fix a Yamaha DX100 – Part 1 →

RPi 400 MIDI and Audio PCB Build Guide

Here are the build notes for my RPi 400 MIDI and Audio PCB. https://makertube.net/w/tMyv2KC5D9zFLqs32MEjQa Warning! I strongly recommend using old or second hand equipment for your experiments. I am not responsible for any damage to expensive instruments! In this case - inserting this pcb incorrectly (which unfortunately is possible with the RPi-400) could damage the … Continue reading RPi 400 MIDI and Audio PCB Build Guide →

RPi 400 MIDI and Audio PCB Design

Now I've got my Raspberry Pi 400 up and running I've built a MIDI and I2S audio add-on board for use with the GPIO. Build guide here: RPi 400 MIDI and Audio PCB Build Guide. Warning! I strongly recommend using old or second hand equipment for your experiments. I am not responsible for any damage to … Continue reading RPi 400 MIDI and Audio PCB Design →

Raspberry Pi 400 Cyberdeck MIDI Player

I've finally gotten myself a Raspberry Pi 400 computer. I've wanted one for a while to use as a MIDI player for my Lo-Fi Orchestra. The idea is that eventually I might be able to run it without a large display, but instead use something like the Adafruit Cyberdeck and a PiTFT display (or similar) … Continue reading Raspberry Pi 400 Cyberdeck MIDI Player →

Raspberry Pi Zero MIDI PCB Build Guide

Here are the build notes for my Raspberry Pi Zero MIDI PCB. Warning! I strongly recommend using old or second hand equipment for your experiments. I am not responsible for any damage to expensive instruments! If you are new to microcontrollers and single board computers, see the Getting Started pages. Bill of Materials Raspberry Pi Zero … Continue reading Raspberry Pi Zero MIDI PCB Build Guide →

Raspberry Pi Zero MIDI PCB

This is a MIDI interface for a Raspberry Pi Zero. It is designed to be stackable so it can be used with my RPi Zero MiniDexed IO Board PCB. Here is the Raspberry Pi Zero MIDI PCB Build Guide. Warning! I strongly recommend using old or second hand equipment for your experiments. I am not responsible … Continue reading Raspberry Pi Zero MIDI PCB →

Lo-Fi Orchestra – The Carol of the Bells

This is my Lo-Fi Orchestra performance of the Carol of the Bells, heavily based on Robert Buckley's amazingly rhapsodic arrangement of the carol entitled "Let the Bells Ring". Listen out for the Adafruit Feather on glock and MiniDexed on Tubular Bells. Full details of the rebuild process can be found here: The New Lo-Fi Orchestra Explainer. … Continue reading Lo-Fi Orchestra – The Carol of the Bells →