This new synth is inspired by the abacus
Published on
June 27, 2022
Category
News
New sounds can be created by moving and spinning the beads.
Student designer Elias Jarzombek has created a new synth inspired by an abacus, dubbed ‘Abacusynth’, DJ Mag reports.
Watch next: Celebrating synth pioneers with Moog
Formed of a wooden base unit with four lines above it, moving and spinning the beads adjusts the sounds produced by the synth.
Jarzombek designed the synth as a way of making visualising synthesis easier, as well as making the idea of working with synths less intimidating to beginners.
“The Abacusynth interface organises the timbral building blocks – oscillator waveforms, harmonics, filters, and time-based modulations (or LFOs) – in a visual and spatial interface that prioritizes interaction and invites experimentation,” he explains.
Demonstrating the synths working capabilities, Jarzombek also shared a compilation on Bandcamp of tracks made with the Abacusynth.