Reader Anig Browl let us know about ThisSynthDoesNotExist.- a new website, in the tradition of ThisPersonDoesNotExist, that uses AI to generate photorealistic images of synthesizers that do not exist.
Here’s what Browl has to say about it:
“Out of money and space in your home, but still can’t get enough synth porn? Then surf over to https://thissynthdoesnotexist.com/, where you can get an endless supply of completely imaginary synths. Browse for hours, secure in the knowledge that you can’t do further damage your bank account or furniture.”
What’s a little surprising about the site is that it’s easier to identify synths as fakes than it is to identify AI-generated people.
AI-generated headshots have crossed over the uncanny valley and, to most people, are indistinguishable from actual headshots. If you think you can tell the difference, try out WhichFaceIsReal, and prepare to be humbled.
AI-generated synths are fanciful and many of them look appealing, on first glance. But a closer look reveals errors that reveal the fakes, especially keyboards that would be impossible to play.
For example, the above synth looks kid of cool, but the keyboard has all sorts of anomalies, ranging from keys that fuse into the synths’s body, keys that merge into adjacent keys, random key widths and incorrect white note/black note configuration.
It still looks like it might be an interesting synth, though!
What do you think of the state of AI-generated images? Check out ThisSynthDoesNotExist and share your thoughts in the comments!
Well, given that I haven’t seen a reply to a thread in almost a month now, I guess I don’t exist, either.
oh John, you’re still here. sadly, AI is too. this is the dumbest looking stuff I’ve even seen.
more keyboards that make no fucking sense please! in every color of the rainbow too! don’t stop at linear keys either, lets see some really random shapes in there too! like a shamrock shaped key that would be boss! or a hello kitty knobs!
this stuff is just an insult. I would not fuck any of these AI generate synth images. not miss phony face either.
You must be fun at parties.
I smell a nice Cherry Audio version in the near future, or a Soniucouture take that has Dr. Seuss written all over it. The ridiculous keys are a big giveaway if anyone saw them as hardware.
One plus: the designs are “EDM album cover 1.0”. Another step or two and it’ll probably become a lot more inventive. I like what’s posted, but its so easy, it may also wear out within a few months. Its very “DEVO vs. Yellow Submarine.”
>>I smell a nice Cherry Audio version
We’ve got a pretty large backlog of ideas, but hey, if we run out…
This could help aid in some way to the design aspects of future gear
The fact that a mindless AI algorithm makes up synths that look more interesting than 90% of the real instruments on the market should really make manufacturers think. We could use a little more boldness in instrument design.
This was my main motivation or submitting it.
Real instruments have real limitations – features, price, cost, manufacturability. AI is a hallucinogenic fantasy world with no constraints, but it’s like that steak in The Matrix.
Not inventive enough!?!? They’re not realistic, sure, but the designs are wild!
Awesome! These would fit right in with the Korg Gadgets.
Of course, there is a bothersome issue about these AI engines “borrowing” from the creative efforts of humans (without compensating them). Leaving that aside, I’ve really enjoyed looking at AI generated images– and these synth images are fun/goofy/entertaining.
In many ways, these AI generated “creative” works– in music, in sound (generally), and in images; have sort of clarified some things that we humans can do well. We are better composers and artists, but we also can enjoy seeing what our creations can create.
One tech writer (I can’t recall the name) made the point that with Language Modeling AI, those bots don’t have a clue what they are saying. They literally don’t know what they just said. I suspect there is something similar with other AI generative things. They don’t know/care if what they did is good/bad, etc. They just splice stuff together.
The steampunk brass synth looks cool. Would be fun to use those images as inspiration to create the sound that goes with it.
To be fair, I have never encountered a single piece of human-made music or art that did not borrow from the creative work of other humans without compensation either. That’s generally how art works; machine learning algorithms are just way faster at it.
it’s also the way synth design (any electrical design) works – copy circuits from app notes, old jobs, and stuff you’ve seen before. folks putting design engineers on a pedestal is the silliest thing ever. 90% of design is copying someone else, the other 10% is goofing off at the water cooler.
the only really notable one was the moscow edition. steampunk all looks the same, might as well be a steam punk toaster than a synth. actually, I think that exactly what it is.
It seems this is not generating endless synth variatons.
After a while tapping all the same pictures shows up, no new variants …
That site is fake
They are saved pics from some other AI image generating website
Looks like passing off someone else’s work as their own
Maybe the site is operated by Behringer
Not a real AI generator service, just some gallery and all same pictures are cycling when you click through
Indeed like eoin above said, harvested synth pictures from AI generators
not only that but he’s trying to shill some other bullshit on there for $5 at the same time
This looks like it was generated by midjourney. You should try it. Using up my 25 free prompts at midjourney, it was surprisingly easy to generate some pretty out there designs. One was ’a synthesizer combined with an arcade game and boom box.’. Curious how aware it is if synthesizers, I tried arp odyssey related prompts, and it was clear it wasn’t in whatever library it pulls it’s logic from. It’s all a bit incoherent, as a lot of AI art is presently. It doesn’t know to put the keys in the correct pattern, for instance.
Don’t care about the boxes. I want to 3D print that AI woman and turn it into a synthesizer! 😛
watching these synths is funny 5 min, and I have made a few ones on Stable Diffusion. But we rather look at real stuff, not AI vaporware…
The AI stuff can be an interesting ‘creativity booster’ for all kinds of design, including synthesizer design. Here are some synth / MIDI controller designs that (I think) are rather less boring:
https://www.facebook.com/craig.h.becker/posts/pfbid02kX4LoyET8zusC8pVaG5GRjnJYfVgr9SjJYHTUkdke44R3GUF3we5Jga1AHXUNagSl