The Maker Shed now has an Atari Punk Console Kit available for $25 – which makes it a very inexpensive way and pretty foolproof way to get started with synth DIY.
If you’re not familiar with the Atari Punk Console, it’s a DIY synth/noise machine. The design, by Forrest M. Mims III, was originally published in a Radio Shack booklet, Engineer’s Notebook: Integrated Circuit Applications, as the Stepped Tone Generator.
The design got the Atari Punk Console nickname because of the devices lo-fi sounds.
Similar kits are available from several suppliers, so we’ve included them below, too.
Atari Punk Console Kit Sources:
If you’re more confident with your synth DIY or just want to be punk rock about it, you can build the Atari Punk Console off of the schematics. Here’s a video that demonstrates the punk schematic approach.
Here’s an example of the Atari Punk Console being used to play Pachelbel’s Canon:
I've assembled both the Getlofi and the Jimmie P. Rodgers kit, and I must say they both are great kits. Jimmie's kit (which is the same sold by Makers Shed) has a better PCB, the Getlofi kit has a couple of nice mods already included in the kit… but the pcb is a homemade one (which is probably more consistent with the whole idea of DIY synth making… but you need to solder on-surface or drill some holes in the pcb).
BUYER BEWARE: Do not order this kit. I ordered one and never received it.
I never received mine either.
yup- i never received mine from Rodgers either. AVOID
I’ve had the same issue with Rodgers. I’ve emailed him directly and tried contacting him through Twitter and did not receive a response to either attempt at communication.