The Noodle Rider gives you MIDI and CV control over the tape player, which can play back up to four tracks, which are all played with the same controllable speed.
It offers four individual audio outputs, and a gate output, so you can use the module’s output as source signals for further sound mangling.
In addition to the main module, Nudlhed offers a Sidecar module, right, that provides four channels of envelopes and gate. It features a 4-channel VCA, controlled by envelope generators (AD/AR), with MIDI Gate Sequencer and Mixer built in.
The Sidcar module is designed primarily to create gate-controlled sounds when fed with the base module audio source, but can be used for other purposes within a Eurorack system, also.
Noodle Rider Demo:
A short live performance of a Noodle Rider (Base Module) with MIDI control. The patch is → Noodle Rider + 4xGate Sequencer + 4xADSR + 4xVCA + 4xMixer. A synth and drums are added. A loop-tape is used.
Oklahoma-based inventor Dano Kablamo has launched a Kickstarter project to fund production of the ResoLute, a new electro-acoustic musical instrument that he says “combines the expressiveness of analog synthesis with the tactile feel of vibrating springs…”
The unique instrument is based on magnetic resonance-driven sound synthesis. You play it by plucking a ‘ToneSpring”, which may remind some of spring door stops, or using an ‘AirPick’, which lets you create plucked sounds.
ToneSprings (patent pending) are specialized springs that can be swapped out to create different types of sound and effects. The springs, paired with a modified guitar pickup, generate sounds that can be filtered, modulated, and transformed.
Each ToneSpring can:
Produce an array of sound envelopes
Layer your music with distinct textures
Create its own unique attack and sustain
ResoLute Full Demo:
Features:
Magnetic resonance-driven sound synthesis
Touch-sensitive membrane for pitch control
Modular “ToneSprings” lets you swap out springs and alter the sound (e.g., Tremolo, Sustain, and Mute Tone Springs)
Touch-free “AirPick” provides an alternate way to play
Compact design
Available in multiple finishes, including Deluxe paisley fabric models, subject to fabric availability
The ResoLute is available to project backers starting at $299 for a DIY kit and $399 assembled.
*Note: Crowdfunding projects can involve risk, similar to investing in stock or any business. Make sure you review the risks that are discussed with any project that you are interested in.
Earlier this year, Google Labs launched MusicFX DJ, an AI-powered music generator that produces evolving and layered musical compositions based on text prompts.
Since then, the team behind MusicFX DJ has been busy developing the tool in partnership with Grammy-winning musical polymath Jacob Collier, and today they’ve unveiled an updated version that considerably expands what you can do with the platform, while making it more intuitive and user-friendly.
Like its earlier version, MusicFX DJ lets you stack multiple text prompts together to create music based on your instructions in real time. Simply type in the instrument, genre or vibe that you want to hear, and MusicFX will instantly generate sounds in response, blending them into the music in real time – a bit like you’re giving requests to a virtual, AI-powered DJ.
MusicFX DJ’s interface enables you adjust the influence of each prompt on the overall composition or mute individual layers. In the latest version, you’re able to specify BPM and key to shape its tempo and tonality, mute drums, bass and other instruments, and even dial up or down the density and brightness of the music. Once you’ve landed on a result that you’re happy with, you can share the results or download a minute-long audio clip.
The results are a mixed bag. As was the case with MusicLM, an earlier version of MusicFX, the majority of its output sounds a little confused, and the quality is decidedly lo-fi – it’s miles behind tools like Suno and Udio. However, it is a lot of fun to play around with, and could be an interesting way to create musical ideas that can be fleshed out elsewhere, or generate royalty-free samples to use in your own tracks.
In a video premiered on Collier’s YouTube channel, the artist compares working with MusicFX DJ to improvising on a traditional instrument. “The joy of improvisation is I’m also in the audience,” he says. “I’m also watching what’s coming out. I can make choices based on what happens and what’s inspiring me at any given time. It’s trusting the first thought that comes into your mind.
“It’s a similar process when I’m prompting something into existence [with MusicFX]. It’s a continuous form that’s consistently creating things you’ve never experienced before. It’s an amazing premise. What am I dreaming up today?
“You craft this real-time sonic putty that’s endlessly surprising, and essentially seeks to alchemize or forge connections between things that would otherwise be unlikely… can you put a banjo in a dubstep drop?”
