​If you have any questions or would like to report any issues, please head over to the forum where you can find more information: https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2435/tbd-android-app

​Futuristic AE Modular System - this monster rack is a symphony in black and purple neon and the creation of @betaboon. Now we just need to hear some sounds coming out of this beauty ;-) 
​https://forum.aemodular.com/post/20856/thread

In a very welcome forum post, Dr. Lanterman of Georgia Tech's Electronics department advised that his course "ECE4450 Analog Circuits for Music Synthesis" will have students design a module in the AE format as their final course assignment. Lectures from previous instalments of this course can be watched on Youtube and are a great way to get started with DIY! Read more about this here: 
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2479/georgia-techs-ece4450-format-project

​January Zoom Meetup

Our first Zoom meetup of the year was on the 21st January and it was well received as usual. The main topics were about new 3rd party modules, how to manage customer reactions to new and improved module versions and how to get (or stay) motivated to make music.

The next meetup will be Saturday 25th February 2023 at the usual time. For more info, check the forum closer to the date.

​Superbooth, Berlin, Germany - 11-13th May 2023

We would love to meet you there, so time to get organised! You can already buy tickets here:
https://www.superbooth.com/en/tickets.html

Let’s start this off with a new member of the AE community, RSKT, who has wasted no time after receiving his starter rack and made this really well done tutorial followed by a track which shows off how simple modules like S&H can have great impact.​

The last Zoom meetup of the year 2022 was on December 3rd with special guest Frae LaSci who runs the Future Sounds workshops for teenage girls at the Willie Mae Rock Camp in New York. The main thing that makes this school special and conducive for teaching electronic music is that Frae took much care to create a space that has a vibe that makes the girls comfortable and relaxed so they find it easier to be creative. The delivery of the workshops follows a model that is 25% speaking and 75% listening to the students (the opposite from normal school). Most projects focus on small deliverables which consist of experiments: stated hypothesis is tried in experiment and discussed in reflection. Making mistakes is OK and strongly encouraged after the Jazz saying: if you make a mistake, make it again and it sounds deliberate.

Here you can see a performance by the girls with quite a few different electronic instruments and see if you can spot the AE Modular Synth Explorer!

Natural Connection, Munich, 13th & 14th January 2023

This will feature various installations where plants interface with electronics to make art. User @tomblane from our forum will present the Organa a Biodata Sonification module for Eurorack and AE Modular. You can find more information about the module here:
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/1908/biodata-sonification-module?page=2&scrollTo=20458

And you can sign up for the event here:
https://fb.me/e/2fD0dykL9 

​Superbooth, Berlin, 11th - 13th May 2023

Just putting the date in your calendars if you are planning to come to the world’s biggest synth event! Tangible waves will be there and we would love to meet you!

https://www.superbooth.com/en/ ​

​The price increase, which I announced last month, is now coming into effect. But I stand to my word and if you feel financial pressure and still want to make music, please contact me via this form and we will work something out!

Since the first AE Modular Zoom meeting @pt3r was busy putting out new patch challenges to make us think about our modular in different ways and to challenge our ordinary ways. These are always fun and we encourage everyone to try these at home and even to record them and share on the forum. There is a very encouraging crowd and you can only learn more about your instrument! These were this month’s challenges:

#23 No Predictions - Try to build a patch that generates triggers and or gates as random as possible without resorting to the usual suspects, so no Noise module.
Show us your creativity. 

 #24 - Bread and Butter - Only ENVelopes and VCAs are allowed and some output so we can hear your creations. Perhaps a bit of FX to make the medicine go down? That's up to you.

#25 - There is no Spoon - create sound with “no input mixing”, but watch those feedbacks and don’t let them get out of control!

#26 - Ugly Ducklings - Build a patch with your most overlooked module and finally convince us all but mostly yourself of its usefulness.​

​You may remember the mystery module which we showed in last month’s blog. Here is a picture of the real deal … It's modelled after the legendary Fixed Filter Bank 914 by Moog. There are 12 fixed frequencies (technically these are bandpass filters) which can be attenuated on the incoming signal and in addition the very low and very high ends of the signal can be controlled too. The filter bank works differently compared to a usual equalizer: In an equalizer, the signal bands can be attenuated or amplified by a certain amount (usually -12dB to +12dB) whereas the filter bank settings can attenuate the frequency bands completely to zero. It’s a great tool to focus / emphasise certain frequencies which is typical for acoustic instruments. Klaus Schulze said in an interview, he can create a human voice out of white noise through a filter bank :-)
Another nice feature of the FILTERBANK914 module is that there are separate outputs for the even/odd numbered bands, meaning you can use it to create a kind of pseudo stereo effect.

This module will soon be available in the shop.

Music made by the Community

Record your Music!

If you haven’t yet recorded your jams with the AE Modular and always wondered how to do this, or if you are a total pro and happy to share your workflow, please visit this thread and comment or ask questions about recording your AE Modular (and other gear):
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2264/talk-recording-music

AEtherwaves Vol. 4 Submissions by 20th October!!

The submission deadline for the 4th volume of our community album AEtherwaves is coming closer. Last year we had over 40 submissions, and it would be so amazing to replicate this again this year! More info here:
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2254/aether-waves-vol-submissions-wanted

Halloween Compilation Submissions by 28th October!!

If you have another track in you (after your submitted one to AEtherwaves ;) ) you might want to send it to Aural Films to have it included in their Halloween Compilation. All proceeds from that album will go to a charity that helps US American families in need. Musicians from all genres will be submitting their music, so let’s get a few AE Modulars into the mix! More info here:
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2250/halloween-compliation-track-request

Exquisite Corpse still looking for parts!!

The Exquisite Corpse project started by @maydonpoliris is still open for submissions. This is a fun little experiment for when you just want to do a 20 second sound snippet. Get all the information here:
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2192/exquisite-corpse

Patch Challenge #23 - No Predictions

After the first AE Modular Zoom meetup user @pt3r thought to rekindle interest in the fabulous patch challenges. If you are not familiar with them, they are little modular puzzles to make you think deeper about the possibilities of your modular and to stimulate your creativity by asking you gently to do things a bit differently than usually. This one is all about randomness without the usual random suspects (looking at you NOISE and RBSS). It's never to late to submit patch notes or a short performance. Check it out here:
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2271/patch-challenge-23-predictions ​

Klondike Incident

As if to prepare for Halloween comes this horror track from our mast of the drone @pt3r .. Check it out at
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2270/klondike-incident

Droning Around

Inspired by the “recording your music” thread @duddex uploaded his first song which features the DRONX, DRONE38 combo:
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2267/droning 

Laser Sun Drop

This acid ambience piece by @glitchyfrog is not only a great piece of AEmbient sound craft, but also started a healthy debate about noise gremlins in the AE Modular system and what to do to get rid of them…
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2253/laser-sun-drop-acid-ambience 

8th October - UK Synthfest with Wonkystuff!!

This year's UK Synthfest will host @namke aka Wonkystuff as an exhibitor! If you're nearby (or even on the same isle) then definitely go and visit him!
​
https://www.synthfest.co.uk/exhibitors

22nd October - Second AE Modular Online Meeting

This will happen again via Zoom at 8pm UTC. Please see more info in this thread on the forum (only visible to forum members):

https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2272/modular-online-meetup-saturday-october

​

Things are ticking along well enough here at the tangible waves headquarters and we are relieved that a few cooler days have come along and relieved us from the incredible heatwave that has swept through Europe this summer.

While the situation with the chip shortage is still somewhat problematic, we are not too bad off and, except for the O&C and the Cirrus, we are able to produce all our modules and can fulfil all orders. In that regard we are really lucky especially when looking at a few other synth manufacturers who are struggling much more or even had to close their business.

The current energy crisis which has been caused by the Ukraine invasion by Russia is coming more and more into focus, especially here in Germany. This has given me even more incentive to work on the solar power/battery module which I talked about in the last blog. It’s not quite finished yet, but here are some photos of a working prototype. Please let me know what you think of it.​

After introducing the micro modules last month I have received numerous requests and ideas from people about a more cost effective and integrated way to mount those modules instead of having to buy a dozen base mounts. So here is an initial prototype which can be attached to an existing rack via the usual method (via hinge kit and bus link cable) and can hold ½ modules and ⅓ modules directly. This “microCASE” would be available in all three widths. Again this is an early prototype and I’m keen to hear your feedback.​

Also in a collaboration with Matthias aka @visuellemusik who has helped so much with fixing the Cirrus bug (and introducing half a dozen new and exciting modes in the process) we have a prototype of another programmable module! This time we just provide a mounting system for the Micro:bit educational single board computer. This is also a prototype, let me know what you think of this!

Next to the Micro:bit module below you can see another module which I'm currently working on. I won't tell you what it is, can you guess?​

Our resident drone master @pt3r was recently on holidays and took only the Blackbox sampler full of AE samples. This is what came of it:
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2199/ph3rn

Here is a wonderful collaboration between @maydonpoliris and @pol now going by the name Beaucarnea. The album is fabulous and definitely worth the purchase on Bandcamp Friday:
https://beaucarnea.bandcamp.com/album/walking-around-zion

And here is a very trippy video for one of the tracks:​

​But back to flutes … this whole thread is of course about Karplus Strong algorithms and the amazing insight by @pt3r that this can be achieved by the MultiFX and a noise module - Wow! Read on here:
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2195/electronic-wind-instrument

Meetups and Events

Knobcon in Chicago, US will happen this month from 9th to 11th September and AE Modular will be presented by Toms aka Kyaa with some help by Noisebug. So if you are anywhere near Chicago on those dates, then please go say hello to Toms!

Words from Robert

The last two months have been challenging. You’ve heard me write this a few times now over the years, but it’s true, operating a small manufacturing business is quite a  challenging thing  and sometimes the problems tend to become overwhelming, especially in these crazy times. We’ve had to deal with illness, delays in receiving parts from China and lately the soaring US Dollar (or falling Euro?). We are now paying almost 20% more for parts than before, however we’ve decided to not pass this extra cost on to our customers. The wait list still stretches back to orders from May, but we’ve again re-organised our production workflow and are quickly catching up. As always, we are very grateful for the patience and support of our customers!

Those challenges notwithstanding, we are as happy as ever to create synth modules and to see how they are being used by our incredibly creative community! 

Good News and bad News

The HEARTBEAT module was advertised a bit too early and it took me a very long time to finish the firmware, but it is now finally done and all orders will be shipped as soon as possible! This taught us a very valuable lesson to never again promise a module again before it’s not absolutely complete and ready to ship!

Inspired by the current energy crisis which is the result of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, I have been thinking about energy consumption and have started development on a solar power / accumulator module! More info on this once it gets past the prototype stage.

The KUZMIN Filter has sold reasonably well and we have been able to donate close to 1500 Euro to UNICEF to help children who are affected by the war in Ukraine.

The ORNAMENT & CRIME module is currently on hold. Due to the global chip shortage, we have not been able to source any more Teensy 3.2 boards, which are absolutely essential for this  module. This means that for the time being, we can’t produce those anymore!
 
New Products

Micro Modules

After the announcement at Superbooth in May, I had to change the layout of the base and micro modules a bit and now finally the boards have arrived ready from production. The following modules are now available for purchase from our online shop - a whopping 14 new modules! (ok, some are shrunk versions of existing AE modules, but anyway…)

You can order these modules now in our shop.

I'm also thinking about a case for one row of these micro modules in the usual case widths that can be attached the same way as cases are already connected, via the hinge kit. Let me know what you think about this idea!​

Mixer Comparison - This is not a hardware project, but a great resource for anyone who may be confused by the many different mixer modules of the AE Modular. This is a great comparison matrix made by our Wiki Master @pol: 
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1fAnq_wG-IyTYt36PenXePDh8rkmY4QD_vg1J5mIdU64/edit#gid=0

Filter Comparison - Again the works of @pol this sheet gives you a comparative overview of the different filters of the AE Modular system:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1250AgqWtZNNn6CccfdCI1xfppCxsX0bYZD0i09BeYSI/edit#gid=0


Meetups and Events

​Hopefully we will see some kind of AE Modular presence at these upcoming events. If you plan to go to any of these events and would like support with presenting AE at the event then please contact us!

Leeds Synth Fest - Leeds, UK, August 14th 
This meetup has free entry and is organised by DivKid. If you’re nearby, you should definitely try to attend! More info: https://www.facebook.com/events/460328272613452/

Knobcon - Chicago, USA, September 9th - 11th https://www.knobcon.com/ 
This year we will have Toms aka Kyaa manning a booth at Kobcon and showcasing the AE Modular and his own amazing modules! If you’re in the area, please visit him and say hello!

Synthfest UK - Sheffield, UK, October 8th https://www.synthfest.co.uk/ 
Please make sure to visit John at his desk with Wonkystuff and say hello when you're in the area!

New Products - Micro Modules

The biggest surprise for visitors to our Superbooth stand was the new tiny format for AE Modular. This consists of a base module which can hold either 2 ½-sized modules or 3 ⅓-sized modules. This is currently a prototype and modules are in development from us, Wonkystuff and Keurslager Kurt! Here are a few photos of those prototypes to give you an idea:​

Currently the following micro modules are in development (partially finished already) from tangible waves:

• µLFO - a tiny LFO with wave selection and PWM
• µDISTORTION - a diode based distortion with different modes
• µTONE - control highs and lows with this tiny module
• µPROBAGATE - switches between two channels according to a probability gate
• µ2MIX - a tiny mixer with 3 attenuated channels and 4 fixed channels (at the moment the only ½-sized module)
• µ2SIGNALAMP - same as the 2SIGNALAMP module, shrunk to ⅓ size
• µ4BUFFER - this is an active buffered multiple, great for distributing clock signals
• µSUBOCTAVE - lets you mix 1 and 2 sub octaves to the incoming oscillator signal
• µBITCRUSHER - digitising and bit-reducing + variable sample rate
• µLOGIC - same functionality as the LOGIC module in ⅓ of the size
• µ2VCA - a dual VCA
• µATTENUVERTER - adjust signal level inverting/non-inverting plus offset; perfect for CV shaping
• µSAMPLEHOLD-NOISE - a sample & hold plus noise/random CV source

You can expect them in the shop… …as soon as they are finished and produced ;-)

Keurslager Kurt is also developing a micro module called "What's Sub?" which is a DIY kit for a sub oscillator. However this module is in the early prototype stages.

Wonkystuff has been in on this new format from the start and has the following modules in the works:​

• bd55 - a tiny ⅓ analog bass drum module which is modelled after the vintage RD55 drum machine from Roland
• rs55 - a tiny ⅓  rim shot drum module also modelled after the RD55
• sd100 - a ½ snare drum module modelled after the Amdek RVK-100​
• there are more drum modules in the design phase already ...

These modules are still in prototype phase and we will let you know once they are available for purchase from the Wonkystuff online store.

New Module by Kyaa - 2AUTO

Kyaa has already taken the AE world by storm with the ingenious Euclid Grid module. This new module is also an amazing piece of hardware and software engineering. The 2AUTO module is a dual envelope / LFO with a twist - it records the knob movements of the CV knob and replays those movements, either as a one shot envelope or looping like an LFO. You really have to see and play with it personally to understand how incredibly cool this is. The moment your fingers touch the knob, it immediately and magically switches into record mode and then records any twist and turn until you let go. There are many more features like syncing to an external clock and locking among others, but this simple idea of recording knob movement already adds a new playable dimension to your modular which is truly magical.

For now it is only available for pre-order and you can find out more about it on the forum:
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2083/2auto

Early Teasers ...

We also saw prototypes of almost production ready modules from Keurslager Kurt and M4vrick, a newcomer to the 3rd party maker group. Keurslager Kurt will soon release a new oscillator which is based on the 555 timer design by Thomas Henry. This module is very feature rich and can produce a true sine wave, sawtooth and square waves. M4vrick has provided us with a prototype of a very beautiful chord oscillator. Stay tuned for more information!

Accessories

As more people are buying the VMIX-10 mixer and using it for connecting their Volcas, they have found that sometimes an audible noise floor can be heard. This has been reported for Volcas with other mixers as well, so it’s not necessarily a problem with the VMIX-10, but we found a solution anyway with this nifty little audio cable which has a noise filter built in (technically, it does a ground isolation for the audio connection). We also now sell a power cable for connecting power to Korg Volcas directly from the VMIX-10.

You can find the Volca power cables here in the shop. And the noise blocker audio cable is here.

Additionally we have made a very simple power cable for your AE Modular which includes a power switch! You can purchase it here.

Music made by the Community

Every month our incredibly talented community produces more synth gems and it’s not always easy to follow it all on the forum. Therefore we are listing a random selection below.

This first patch by @glitchyfrog shows that you can turn a filter into a whale if you just add a delay and lots of reverb: https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2098/space-orca-recorded-real-habitat

And here is a very fun and groovy video by the same artist: https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2103/sunrise-surrection-official-video

Our resident Jazz musicians and fishing expert @funbun has made another video which mixes the love for nature (and fish) with groovy AE synth tunes: https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2097/cane-pole-cat-trolls

This is a wonderful jam with the AE Modular and the venerable MS2000 by @martynaudio https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2091/ae-ms-2000-live-jam

Orca is a very powerful, albeit cryptic software MIDI sequencer. We have no idea how it works, but it looks beautiful and sounds very pretty in combination with an AE: https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2087/refilling-heart-containers

User @nols has released this really nice bandcamp album: https://nols.bandcamp.com/album/atop-kilvey-hill

DIY Projects

This project describes a comparator circuit which can be made with the BrAEdboard module and user @pt3r not only describes how to do it, but has also posted a video and sound demo of its use:

https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2109/indispensible-braedboard-project-comparator

https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2096/patch-challenge-bring-braed-table

This post describes a very simple oscillator circuit and there’s also a video that shows how it can be used very effectively in a 1 minute sound challenge:

https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2104/simple-oscillator

Meetups and Events

Hopefully we will see some kind of AE Modular presence at these upcoming events. If you plan to go to any of these events and would like support with presenting AE at the event then please contact us!

Leeds Synth Fest - Leeds, UK, date TBA

Knobcon - Chicago, USA, September 9th - 11th https://www.knobcon.com/ 

Synthfest UK - Sheffield, UK, October 8th https://www.synthfest.co.uk/ 

​

​From the forum

Almost every day there is a post about a new track or composition for and with the AE on the forum. If you don’t read the forum every day then you can find a selection of these below for your listening pleasure.

@matthewd - Cosmic Urple
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2073/cosmic-urple

@maydonpoliris - Scratching an itch
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2072/scratching-itch

@glitchyfrog - Dark Clouds and Fresh Berries
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2037/stream-snippet-clouds-fresh-berries

@ampersand - Lo-Fi Raving - experiments with minimal rhythmic patterns
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2065/lo-fi-raving

@namke - Back to Basics - Playing with a minimal setup: Euclid Grid, a kæstle drum, and a pair of mystery modules  with the multifx.
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2053/back-basics 

@glitchyfrog - COVID Live stream - over an hour of live jAEmming!
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2036/covid-livestream

@pt3r - Quarantine Drones (this is scary good)
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2054/quarantine-jam

@rami - Jungle DnB (-ish)
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2044/first-composition-jungle-dnb-ish

@pt3r - Bite Beets (making the Algodrone do most of the work)
https://forum.aemodular.com/thread/2031/bite-beets

Meetups and Events

Superbooth is just around the corner! It’s not too late to grab one or more day tickets:
https://www.superbooth.com/en/tickets.html

Meet the Makers! It is our absolute pleasure to have all AE Modular makers in the same place at the same time at Superbooth! Meet John aka Wonkystuff from England who brought us the incredible RBSS and CoreAE among other cool modules. You can also meet Zeno aka Keurslager Kurt who has created Quadboost, Sloth and other instant cult classics. And last, but definitely not least, you will be able to meet Toms aka Kyaa the creator of the de facto standard module for Euclidean Sequencing “Euclid Grid”. He will come all the way from the United States to present his newest creation. 

We hope to see many of you at the tangible waves booth soon!

​We also had great success with the sale of the KUZMIN filter. We declared in this blog post that we would donate 70% of the sales of this module to UNICEF to help the children of Ukraine who are most affected by the brutal war inflicted on them by Putin. So far 32 modules were sold over the last 2 weeks which generated more than €960 which we’ve donated to UNICEF. If you haven’t yet decided to make the purchase, don’t worry, we will keep up with the donations in the future, as surely help will be needed even after the war ends.

​This cable is now available from our online store.