Few people have heard of it, yet many consider John Blankenbaker's KENBAK-1 to be the first commercial personal computer.
Build a Sound Lab mini synthesizer
By James Grahame
Analog synthesizers have a reputation for being expensive and finicky. Ray Wilson's Sound Lab sets out to change this perception. It's a straightforward design that can be built for less than $100, if you're careful. You'll have to dream up your own case and front panel design, but that's half the fun.
Once finished, this little sound box will produce a variety of musical (and not so musical) squeaks and squawks from its twin analog oscillators, state-variable resonant filter, low frequency oscillator and amplitude envelope. Be warned that this project isn't a good choice for noobs and that you'll have to perform a few tweaks (such as a fine-tuning mod) to make it truly useful in a musical setting.
A bare circuit board is available for $30 (plus $5 shipping) and a full parts kit is available for $176 (AUS) from Elby Designs. By the way, if you're interested in MIDI-enabled analog kits, be sure to check out PAiA's fantastic Fatman synth.
