26 thoughts on “Inside The Korg ARP Odyssey Synthesizer”

  1. Great video Markus!

    I think the most interesting is that the LFOs & envelope generators are discrete components too, so there’s no digital control of an analog signal path going on here (a la DSI). This is a genuine analog synth!

    (Did you spot the typo on the PCB?)

  2. Anyone else notice the number of empty solder pads pads knocking around on there? Sugests there’s a reasonanable amount of modification possible if anyone’s got the guts to attack one with a soldering iron.

    1. I saw a lot of vias, which are plated-through holes that allow electrical signals to pass between layers on a circuit board. I did not see many empty solder pads.

      1. I saw plenty of vias too, like you’d expect, but they’re covered by the solder mask. what I’m talking about are non-masked pads, which I saw a fair few of. Try pausing the video at 5:57; There’s about 5 of them in view there.

        1. I’m pretty sure they are test pads, since they are all marked with a t. They are placed in places where you can be sure it shows, if anything is wrong “upstream”.
          Unfortunately not in places where modding necessarily makes sense.

  5. A few years ago I saw a whiteface on eBay that had been modded with multiple patch points on the front panel. I thought concurrently “How cool” and “What a shame”. It will be cool to see how people hack this thing up (think Monotron, Monotribe, etc.). I’d love to be able to patch it into a modular or TTSH or (dare I say) a 2600…

  7. But really, I’m holding my breath for new analog polysynths with circuit boards built using all the latest technology, miniaturised etc. KORG have just demonstrated how it can be done.

    1. Actually, chips like the Korg NJM2069 from the 1980s integrated a 12/24 dB/Octave filter, VCA and level mixer on a 22 pin IC. This board is filled with discrete components and off-the-shelf op-amps that imitate the designs of the 1970s, and it’s not the way you build a compact and affordable polysynth.

  8. congrats to Korg! and congrats to Markus on yet another great video…well done.

    i like how you know the chip codes by heart hehe…i have to look them up on the net but you know them from sight? wow

    Richard maybe that patch cable slot is for a future memory board that can save patches? that would be wonderful eh

    1. There’s no possibility to save patches with any plug-and-play mod. It’s a fully analog board.

      There’s nothing digital between the controller and the thing it controls – so there’s no way to store or recall a patch. For example, the filter cutoff will always reflect the slider position – because the slider is a potentiometer wired directly to the filter voltage. And that goes for everything else, too.

      The only thing the USB MIDI side does is convert incoming note data into plain old dumb CV for the gate and pitch of the oscillators – essentially doing what the locally scanned keybed does.

      1. Yeah, that’s what I thought too. Except with these modern boards, the capacitor ratio converter is less susceptible to interference than the 1970s technology. Therefore, by increasing the frequency output on the motherboard and adding the appropriate resistance, it should be feasible to integrate rudimentary patch memory into synths like these with discrete boards.

          1. Well that would work perfectly , in theory.

            The problem arises when interference from the omega particles generated by the intersection of fields from the x-y axis of the chips mason integrators begins to destabilize the axial coefficient acting upon the capacitive output.

            A crystalline carrier amplifier would be ideal and allow you to output a clean signal that could easily be saved or recorded by dropping the relative voltage at the hydrated fluid silicate.

            Of course such a crystal would be subject to immense temporal destabilization that could result in micro singularities in the mason field and either distort regional space-time resulting in a cascaded dark matter inversion or, more likely, produce a sick wub bass.

            1. @caligari– I’m trying to decide if your post reads more like the label on a bottle Dr. Bronner’s liquid soap or the recent Aphex Twin “press releases”.

            2. Brilliant… I was actually going to say that in the video but I think You just described it much better especially the temporal destabilisation and micro singularities. Im always having problems with them. LOL 🙂

            1. SickRick states he knows nothing about electronics, but his comment is correct. What he was observing is that socko was making a mock or sarcastic comment clearly intended for humorous effect. SickRick, a human being who is intelligent and self-aware enough to know what he doesn’t know, and to not be a poser, was self aware enough to comprehend that socko’s comment was not serious. Thus SickRick’s comment is helpful as a guide to interpretation of socko’s humorous remark.

              What might we say though about those who instead are so ignorant and unaware that they do not realize that socko’s comment was not serious? And those who dishonestly misrepresent themselves in attempting to impart a level of advanced knowledge and awareness through rude remarks? People with a level of comprehension of electronics that is below “nothing”? What could we possibly say about such persons? I do not know the answer to this question.

              1. Actually there is such thing as aging parts, carbon resistors in the old days where very susceptible. And electrolytes even today’s one can age and breakdown
                But if you want to see a real age problem with solid state look up juno 106 voice chip

                1. Bill my friend, it is so good to hear from you. As you are no doubt aware, I own a 106 myself. Do you own one as well? I dissolved the epoxy on the voice boards in an acetone bath. Have you done this as well? Or are you simply speaking of matters of which you have no experience, as nearly all white supremacist folk are wont to do while engaging in their cultural practice of “big talk”? Let me know if you need photos, we can do an exchange!

              2. Ha! Point taken, but if you want some really snarky responses to honest questions, go hang out at muffwiggler. It’s like getting gang jumped in the Lower East Side at 3am in NYC

  9. The USB to MIDI in sends CV and trigger out.

    Just thought I’d add that. And I plugged mine in first, to make sure I wasn’t just talking out of my behind.

    Also, I discovered a simple trick about the PPC. I started practicing my chops with it.
    It may seem kooky, and it’s definitely harder to press than I would like, but it is one of the things that gave ARP its unique flavor. Love it or hate it, it works in a practical fashion once you’ve practiced with it for a while.
    It’s sort of like bending strings on a guitar. The harder you push, the more resistance you’ll feel. However, it does provide more immediate muscle feedback than the uniform feel of many pitch bend wheels (and ribbons, as well).
    It may not be to your personal taste, but it *does* work effectively, and accurate pitch control is possible.
    I complained to Korg about how hard it is to push; I hoped mine was broken. Sadly, no, it’s “supposed” to be that way. Still, the more I use it, the more I like it.
    And it definitely gives a unique – and uniquely ARP- feel to the thing.

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