Synthesist and developer Stephen McLeod shared this video, demonstrating how he got the new Elektron Outbox 8 to work with the unsupported OctaTrack.
McLeod’s unofficial firmware mod is a Claude ‘vibe coded’ change, part of the sudden explosion of firmware mods and audio plugins that are being enabled by LLM coding tools.
This trend is raising some concerns, but it’s also fueling the rise of alternative firmware options that add new features and functionality to existing gear.
View the video and share your thoughts on this OctraTrack Outbox 8 mod in the comments!
In the video, developer Justin Joe demonstrates running unofficial firmware on the original 1010 Music Blackbox.
“Twelve new features on the original 1010music Blackbox, added with an unofficial firmware mod: solo, chords, Elektron-style note conditions, SP-1200 / SP-12 / S950 lo-fi modes, a 24 dB filter, a sidechain ducker, slice start/end on the knobs, and a granular delay.
It’s free, the code is open, and it runs on top of stock firmware 3.1.9.”
The mod is available via Joe’s site.
*Note: Unofficial firmware is unsupported, so use it as your own risk.
The M-Vave FM-1 is a compact FM synthesizer featuring six operators, 32 algorithms, 128 presets, an arpeggiator and a 16-step sequencer.
But – with the recent rise of alternate firmware distributions – it also can be a groovebox, a multi-engine instrument and more, using alternate firmware.
The FM-1 is a pocket-sized synthesizer, built around a six-operator FM sound engine. It provides 32 FM algorithms and 128 presets, along with an arpeggiator and 16-step sequencer for creating and performing patterns.
It’s also a hardware platform that third parties are creating alternate firmware for. Here are several examples:
Felucca Firmware – Multi Sequencer, 9 Engines, Scale Model
The Baud Girl firmware is focused on live performance, quality-of-life features, and the addition of a brand-new Virtual Analog engine. Here’s an overview via DECIMA1:
Lunar Modulator is open firmware for the M-VAVE FM-1 that turns it into a multi-engine instrument:
five sound engines with more than 160 models, shapes and patches between them;
four effects;
next, a step sequencer with parameter locks.
Sloop Firmware
SLOOP turns the pocket FM synth into a free 4-track groovebox: three synth layers plus a drum machine, built on the Felucca engines (VA, 4-op FM, phase distortion, organ, formant, granular, sampler, lo-fi) with chorus, delay and reverb. Here’s a demo via Darren Lock:
X0X for the M-VAVE FM-1
X0X is a standalone groovebox firmware for the M-VAVE FM-1. It features: a TR-909, a TR-808, two TB-303s with TB-3PO acid generators, and a breakbeat generator, with 16 patterns (each part can play its own), a song mode, recorded knob moves, shared reverb / tape delay sends on every part, and a master compressor with kick-keyed pump, a sweepable filter and a limiter.
The M-Vave FM-1 synthesizer is available for about $80 on Amazon.
Let us know if you’ve tried any of the alternate firmware options in the comments!
