Developer Oliver Wittchow is using a Kickstarter project to fund production of his new nanoloop synthesizer – a hardware sequencer/sequencer.
It’s the latest incarnation of nanaloop, which was previously available as a GameBoy cartridge and smartphone app.
Here’s what he has to say about it:
The original nanoloop software started as a study project to explore the game-like character of making electronic music on little devices. Developed from ground up around the Game Boy’s button interface and tiny greyscale display, it introduced the 4×4 stepsequencer matrix and a simple, flat structure for easy access, with graphical elements reduced to a couple of dots and digits.
While the first version of nanoloop (still available as “nanoloop one”) relies on the Game Boy’s internal tone generators, subsequent variations have their very own sound:
Nanoloop two implements an FM-based software synthesizer on the Game Boy Advance’s 16 MHz CPU and the latest version nanoloop mono embeds a complete synth with true analog filters inside the cartridge.
The new nanoloop device merges these two approaches and combines FM with analog for maximum flexibility.
The new synth features four synth engines:
- dual square wave with true analog filter (mono)
- 4-voice polyphonic FM (stereo)
- monophonic FM (stereo)
- noise & clicks (stereo)
Pricing and Availability
The Nanoloop Synthesizer is being produced via a Kickstarter project, and is available to backers for €97. The project has already met its funding goals.
That sounds and looks awesome!
Wer braucht all die Toys? Wer ein iPad hat kauft einfach für ein Appel und ein Ei eine gute Software und fertig.
Korg Gadget ist nun echt besser und erzeugt keinen zusätzlichen Elektroschrott.
Beim iPad brauchts aber auch wieder Hardware für Midi und Audio In/Out. Ich habe noch ein iPad 2 im Einsatz mit einer Station von Alesis. Da darf mir nichts von kaputt gehen. Ausserdem gibt es schon eine Weile keine Updates mehr für die Apps und fürs OS. Am Wochenende ist Skype ausgestiegen wegen einer nicht möglichen Aktualisierung.
Wenn man gute Hardware hat, kann man die auch noch nach 20 Jahren einsetzen. Meine Motu Midi-Matrix ist von 1998 😉
Re: Who needs all the toys? > “The project has already met its funding goals.” Which means there is definitely demand. I’m really happy for Oliver too, because I think he makes great stuff – I actually bought two gameboy cartridges from him last year, we built an adapter for Eurorack sync and now the gameboys are hapilly bobbing along to eurorack sync. We made some pretty nice track with them as well.
Korg Gadget is fantastic value. Nobody is arguing that. The problem is that the lifespan of an iPad is incredibly short. In ten years, it’s almost guaranteed that my iPad will be electronic waste anyway.
Hardware has the advantage of a tactile control surface and a certain permanence that’s lacking in software. There have been a few little hardware devices like the Yamaha QY20 and Alesis MMT-8 that had a massive impact on my life. I spent thousands of hours with each, and I still have them.
One simply has to use a bit of care when buying hardware. Strongly consider if you’re going to use it until the buttons wear out. Enough people have used the old nanoloop apps to know if they fit their needs.
I ordered one. May not be able to do anything too complicated but for the price if it entertains me on a few train/plane rides it will be worth it.
If I could could write some song skeletons I was happy with on the go then take midi/sync out and fill it out with the modular when I got home, that would be amazing.
I have the nanoloop for the original gameboy, just a beautiful piece of work, so this kickstarter is a no brainer, I have already pledged, also the prize point is more than good.
I am hoping for this thing to be MIDI sync enabled, as the nanoloop witht he gameboy is kind of tricky to sync to some other midi clk device.
So support it, this will be a sweet little device and far from any electronic waste.
hm, I am thinking about it – I have used nanoloop on android – this though could be really fun with the cv sync – it means you could do stuff with volcas and POs.
“$57,773 pledged of $13,617 goal.”
Go Oliver!