Mixtape Alpha – Cassette Sized 8-bit Synth & Sequencer

Via prostheticknowledge:

A re-release of our pocket-sized 8-bit synth, complete with four voices, four effects, five-note polyphony, record, playback, and more!

Mixtape Alpha was a successful experiment for us, so much so, we ran out of our first production run. And, after much soul-searching, we decided to retire the product. But, before we did that, we wanted to give one last chance for music enthusiasts everywhere to get a Mixtape Alpha. As Neil Young said, “it’s better to burn out than fade away”.

The Mixtape Alpha has a stylophone style input for continuous tone generation, and six buttons for discrete notes. With four voices, four effects, and five-note polyphony there is quite a range of expression. You can even loop a pattern and play a second part on top. But, the best part is, you can record the songs you make, and trade mixtapes with your friends! And it comes in its own cassette case, with instructions.

mixtape-alpha-phones-2_project-body

Loop. Play. Record.

You are able to loop a pattern and play a second part on top. But, the best of all, you can record the songs you make. Trade Mixtapes with your friends! Each Mixtape Alpha will come in its own cassette case, with instructions.

Open Source Design

If you want to dig into the guts of this 8-bit synth, check out the wiki page. You will find all the schematics and code, and we even have a Pure Data patch for making your own wavetables.

The project is based on the same processor used in the Arduino (the ATmega328p), and all of the source code is online, so it can be hacked to make even crazier sounds than we came up with.

Read more!


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