How to use tap mode on a Roland MC-202, TB-303 and TR-606

Since I've had a few requests about tap mode I figured I'd make a video showing how to do this on the MC-202, TB-303 and TR-606. All in all it's quite simple to do as you can see. If you are wondering about the weird hand directions when I'm working on the 606 it's because of the camera tripod in the way ;-)

Motu Voltages and cable chart

I came across this chart of voltages and cables which should prove useful to those people with MOTU interfaces that want to use silent way.

Using Silent Way

I just bought these excellent plugins so I figured I'd make a quick demonstration of some of the features. The software includes many different plugins that are useful to anyone with modular gear and an audio interface that is DC coupled.

Full details of the software package are here

There's also a list of supported interfaces here.

The whole package is simply put, awesome. However one thing to consider is that while the plugins themselves don't have any latency they do use the audio outputs to create the control voltages. What this means is that the control voltage will be delayed by the size of your audio buffer. If you have a host that has plugin delay compensation then you can use the latency fixer tool available free at the Expert Sleepers website which allows you to delay any track by any amount you wish.

Using the latency fixer I was able to get comparable results with the voice controller to my hardware midi to cv interfaces. You can download a time limited demo of Silent Way here

All in all a great package and priced at $50 it's also excellent value.

New topics added.

As you can see from the header above I've added the line "Also featuring eurorack modular synthesis and DIY projects." I figured that it could be nice to officially include that since from last weeks post I can see many of you are interested in modulars and DIY projects.

The old "MODS" tag has been replaced by "DIY" and a new tag "Modular" has been added.

So expect more of the same in the coming weeks.

DIY 8 Step Sequencer

If you've done the MC-202 mods then this could be a nice addition to your setup. The sequencer is very cheap and easy to build, it's based on the "baby 10". I did a few modifications and plan on making more in the future along with a proper front panel for my modular (right now I used an old cd cover).

I think the total cost of the project is around £10-15 pounds, the main cost being the potentiometers. The mods I did to mine are a 4 step switch,a reset button and output attenuation (it was outputting 12 volts which is a bit hot for my gear). There's scope to add switches to disable steps or output the clock pulses, you could even add a mutli switch to set the last step or set ranges on the output. The scope is only limited by your imagination.

Here's the original article that was inspiration for this project.



And some useful links

electro-music
fonik
audiomidi

New TB-x0x panels based on my original design

I'm sure some of you have already seen my custom TB-x0x overlay for my x0xb0x. I made a couple of these with the help of Jeff at Custom Synth. Here's a picture for those that haven't seen them.


The old panel

As you can see the design is based on the TB-303. Now while it looks very nice there's a few problems with it. First its an overlay, which means you have to stick it on your existing panel. Also the overlays weren't 100% perfect when it came to alignment, if you look closely you can see some of the original panel around some of the holes. Finally since its printed onto vinyl the text isn't as sharp as I'd like it to be.

The overall effect is nice, but it could be better. However there is now a silkscreened version thanks to x0xsh0p. Recently Substyler who runs x0xsh0p approached me and asked permission to reproduce my design. In the spirit of the x0xb0x (open source) I of course agreed and I also helped him out with a few photos of my TB-303 to make the logo a little more accurate. Once they were complete he very kindly sent me one free (thanks man!!) and I've just installed it. Here's a picture of the new panel.


The new panel

At first glance of the pictures they look almost the same, but with close inspection you'll see the new panel is silver anodized with a nice black silkscreen. It fits perfect and the text is sharp and clear. And with the new more accurate logos it really takes the old design to a new level. Substyler did a really great job on these and I hear there will also be black versions in the future. So if you are interested in getting one of these or perhaps some other x0xb0x related items drop by Substylers webshop. He has all sorts of x0x stuff in stock including everything you need to build your very own x0xb0x.

Transistorize the World!