PICSynth V4 chip

picsynth · Joined: Oct 16, 2008 Posts: 27 Location: New Zealand

Hi all,
PICSynth v4 chip is now available - this offers an easy way to build a monophonic synth!

Full details on my site

http://picsynth.000space.com/index.html

Try youtubing picsynth to see examples of picsynths others have built too

Have fun !
Kevin

ericcoleridge · Joined: Jan 16, 2007 Posts: 889 Location: NYC

Kevin,

This is pretty amazing. Nice work.

Also It's super close to something I've been hoping someone might program on a pic chip/arduino. I don't know anything about chip programing or software controllers yet, I'm hoping to learn at some point. But in the meantime-- I've been hoping someone will come up with a way to offer the functionality of the SH101 keyboard scanning arpeggio with CV and Gate outputs.

Your chip is so close already, it even has a trigger output. I'm sure when you were designing it you probably considered giving it the ability to control analog VCOs. Is this something that you might still be interested in exploring? Someone could even use it, as is, with a MIDI to CV convertor; and that wouldn't big a big thing, as there's several tiny DIY convertor chips available now.

But there's just one other thing that would make it really useful for this application, more than CV, and that's a trigger input. That's what makes the SH101 so useful for synchro-type synth music, being able to sync up to analog drum machines, and to sync to anything with a trigger output-- so that for each trigger, the arp/seq advances one step.

Do you have any interest in exploring that kind functionality?

picsynth · Joined: Oct 16, 2008 Posts: 27 Location: New Zealand

A nice idea, I will add it to V5 wish list!

One problem I have is I have run out of input pins on the 18 pin PIC so to add a new input I would have to drop something else, the chips have been pin compatible since version 2 - oh the joys of this kind of development!

ericcoleridge · Joined: Jan 16, 2007 Posts: 889 Location: NYC

It's really an amazing project as is. But , I couldn't help myself from suggesting this other possible functionality-- i've wanted a keyboard scanning arpeggio controller, really forever, ever since I lost my sh101. I just can't bring myself to spend $800 for that flimsy little synth, just for that one use. But it's soooo useful...

I think a sync input would be very useful in general, besides using it as a controller. I'd guess most people making there own synths are just as likely, if not more likely to be using trigger sync for control, than MIDI.