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Some items have sound clips- click on a picture or highlighted text to get an mp3 of that device.
The Circuit-Bent Delay is based on an unidentified toy that generates three different sound samples. Speed and pitch can be warped way up and way down to create some really gnarly sounds. In addition, an 800ms delay circuit provides lots of additional texture. Now with Tuna.Music in the UK...
The Pulse Generator was based on a teddy bear heart beat and lantern toys- both with pitch control circuit bends. Now in a Chicago-area studio.
The Hollywood Echo was built into a tube tester case. Features an 800ms analog delay, atomic oscillator circuit and cool "Hollywood" meter.
The Electronic Prayer Machine is a circuit-bent loop player built into a vintage bench meter. I like the Nixie tube display. The loop player does three little meditation songs and a chant. I acquired it from some nice folks in Hong Kong. Completely different sounds than the FM3 Buddha Machine thing, but similar in conceptual design. Also in Illinois.
The Funky is a wacked-out envelope filter I built for one of my brothers. I think this might actually be in the bottom of the parts bin now....
Electronic Music Generator is also based on an educational toy. This one was for learning numbers and their sounds. Now capable of generating random compositions for hours and hours of fun and is now in California. More EMGs on the bottom of the next page.
The EMGTV is the same circuit as the Electronic Music Generator with some added fun! Re-housed into an old steel video monitor cabinet, I added a strange-blinking reflector inside with a fresnel lens front screen (headache inducing under the right conditions) and a neat-o superflous lamp on top. Now in the collection of Bill T. Miller- who has perhaps one of the largest private collections of circuit-bent and experimental instruments around!
The Vox Generator is your basic circuit-bent Speak & Spell. Brass handles, new paint job, a real output jack and some funky controls. I like the "Say-It" mode the best...
Machina Dementia is based on a Speak N Spell toy. I reduced the input mode functions by replacing the cheesy membrane keyboard with just a few momentary switches and other controls. This found a home in a recording studio in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Verbum Machina really shines at the twisted, vocoded, robot-like speech that circuit-bending enthusiasts seem to be looking for... this unit also went to Ann Arbor.
