Junit, N.U.S.S. and Instruments You’ve Never Seen Before: Synth Journal
Junit, N.U.S.S. and Instruments You’ve Never Seen Before: Synth Journal · Source: Deepsounds, Joranalogue Audio Design, Make Noise
In this edition: Junit turns your Novation Circuit into a Juno, Joranalogue releases two new Eurorack modules, and the finalists of the Guthman Musical Instrument Competition have been announced.
Synth Journal
Junit: Turn Your Novation Circuit into a Juno
Roland’s legendary Juno is among the most popular synths ever made – because of its sound, but also, if not more so, because of its straightforward architecture and intuitive user interface. Part of the Juno’s appeal is that it makes it easier than most synths to quickly dial in the perfect sound for your track.
Got a Novation Circuit or Circuit Tracks? You can now edit them in true Juno style! Junit by Deepsounds is a touchOSC-based patch editor that brings the beloved Juno interface to the Circuit series. You’ve even got two virtual Junos at your disposal, including all their typical features such as PWM modulation and the famous chorus effect.
The editor comes with 110 presets, 56 of which are based on original Juno factory sounds.
While Junit is optimized for iPad, it also works on Windows, macOS, Linux, and Android. To use it, you need the latest version of touchOSC. Free versions are available for Windows, macOS, and Linux. touchOSC for iOS and Android is available through the respective app stores.
Junit is available from the developer’s website for €15.
You can get the Novation Circuit Tracks from Thomann*.
Joranalogue Walk 4 and Warp 1: New Eurorack Modules
Joranalogue Audio Design has released two new Eurorack modules. Both are available immediately!
Walk 4 is a ‘Quad Brownian Accumulator’. If you don’t know what that means, you’re not alone! But it’s less complicated than it sounds. An analog accumulator stores a voltage and then discharges it in discrete steps according to a trigger signal. Think of it as a kind of ‘battery’ for CV.
In addition to four of these accumulators, Walk 4 includes a clock generator, four white noise sources, and an auto-reset system. The result is a module that’ll redefine how you approach stepped modulation. ‘Sample & Hold with a Master’s degree’, as Joranalogue puts it. Check out the details in DivKid’s video – who could explain it better:
The second new module is Warp 1, a ‘new breed of analog waveshaper’, Instead of the inherent properties of transistors and diodes, it is based on a mathematical relationship between the input and output signals, defined by a variable power function. The function bends the waveform into concave or convex curves.
In addition, Warp 1 includes a precise clipping stage in the output, which lets you shave off the positive and negative peaks of the waveform. There’s also a Hyper mode for even more extreme sounds, an inverted output, and a comparator gate.
Joranalogue Walk 4 and Warp 1 are now in stock at Thomann*.
MIDI Shiftin‘ with the N.U.S.S.: New Video from Make Noise
In my opinion, Make Noise’s New Universal Synthesizer System is one of the most interesting new concepts to emerge in Eurorack in recent years. If you’re like me and it took you a little while to figure out what the idea is, this video featuring the newly released New Universal Skiff System comes at just the right time.
The patches demonstrate what N.U.S.S. is all about: Simple inputs – be it MIDI or CV – result in multi-layered, complex, polyphonic, interwoven textures that form an organic whole. All in a compact skiff system – pretty impressive if you ask me!
You can get the Make Noise New Universal Skiff System and the individual modules from Thomann*.
Check out these Instruments You’ve Never Seen Before
Inventing a completely new musical instrument is much harder than it sounds. One of the most renowned competitions in this field is the Guthman Musical Instrument Competition at Georgia Tech. This year’s finalists have just been announced, and among them are a bunch of very unique electronic creations!
Take the Amphibian Modules, for example. The installation consists of several modular synths that interact with each other through electrodes submerged in salt water. The electrical currents in the water become part of the music. The Demon Box captures electromagnetic frequencies from other electronic equipment and turns them into audio signals, MIDI data, or CV.
I also really like Kalíptera, a hybrid electroacoustic instrument. It consists of what looks like two Kalimbas joined together by an enclosure that contains a bunch of sensors and a gyroscope. The resulting signals are then used to control a digital synthesis engine. Hey KORG, how about a Phase 8 MkII?
However, my favorite of them all might be VERTO. This mesmerizing space organ consists of a set of 49 rotating tone wheels mounted underneath a protective cover, and a pair of gloves with electromagnetic pickups at the fingertips. By bringing your fingers close to the tone wheels, you can play notes and chords and manipulate the sound using gestures. I’d love to try this thing out!
You can check out the ten finalists here. The winners will be determined on March 13 and 14 on the Georgia Tech campus in Atlanta. Tickets for the competition concert on Saturday, March 14 at 7 PM at Georgia Tech’s First Center for the Arts are on sale here.
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