Alex Ball: From Guitar to Godular
Composer and synth enthusiast Alex Ball joins Nadia Struiwigh to talk creative workflows, why hardware still wins, and how his journey from guitars to modular has shaped his music – and his YouTube success.
Join the club and enhance your synthesis skills
Choose your path and start your journey! The Patch & Tweak Club has something for everyone. Join the Core Membership to get all seven ebooks – 2000+ pages(!) or go Pro to unlock deep-dive articles, interviews, podcast episodes (coming soon), short documentaries, and more. Discover, learn, and get inspired – wherever you are in your synth journey.
Interviews
Conversations with Serge Tcherepnin
Visionary, DIY pioneer, synth rebel. In this rare conversation, Serge Tcherepnin shares how communes, Buchla schematics, and artistic philosophy shaped the Serge Modular system. Discover the roots, design mindset, and evolution of one of modular synthesis’ most original thinkers.
From piano and tape to groove boxes: the True Cuckoo journey
From early experiments with piano, tape decks, and video game melodies to building groove box-based live sets and a beloved YouTube channel, True Cuckoo talks to Nadia Struiwigh about his creative journey, performance style, and the joy of staying playful with music.
Dave Rossum and the early history of E-mu Systems
From Moog schematics in a 1970 dorm room to the Prophet-5 with Dave Smith in 1977, and into the digital early '80s, Dave Rossum’s impact is profound. In this timeline, the E-mu Systems and Rossum Electro-Music founder shares how it all began – featuring Moog, Oberheim, Strange, Linn & more.
Pushing strings and pedals: Lisa Molinaro’s expansive approach to sound
Lisa Molinaro explores the sonic potential of amplified viola and effects pedals in this in-depth interview from PEDAL CRUSH. From reverb-drenched pizzicato to synth-like textures, she shares how gear and technique shape her sound across Talkdemonic, Modest Mouse, and beyond.
Hainbach: For the love of making music
Step into the sonic world of Hainbach; musician, YouTube educator, and sound explorer. In this candid conversation, he shares early inspirations, creative evolution, rare gear, and advice for artists seeking their own path in music and sound design.
Latest Posts
Alex Ball: From Guitar to Godular
Composer and synth enthusiast Alex Ball joins Nadia Struiwigh to talk creative workflows, why hardware still wins, and how his journey from guitars to modular has shaped his music – and his YouTube success.
Get inspired and creative with unusual interfaces
Break away from keyboards and screens! Instruments from Ciat-Lonbarde, Leaf Audio, Playtronica, Clank, and others, invite you to create through touch, gesture, and chance – unlocking new sounds, ideas, and inspiration you won’t find in traditional music-making tools.
Exclusive video interview: Will Gregory and the Moog Ensemble
Exclusive Video Interview: Filmed on stage in late October 2024, just before the Moog Ensemble's show at The Anvil, Will Gregory (Goldfrapp) talks Minimoogs, synths with orchestra, and wind controllers. Don’t miss this behind-the-scenes chat ahead of the premiere of Heat Ray: The Archimedes Project.
A brief history of Analogue Systems
While Doepfer is often credited with launching Eurorack, Analogue Systems, founded by Bob Williams, was right there from the start. In this article, Bob shares his story: from early filter banks to iconic modules, keyboards, and the legacy of a parallel modular path.
The synthesizer – an introduction (Part 2)
In this second part of our synthesizer introduction, we explore how core building blocks, such as VCOs, filters, envelopes, and modulation, work – using classic instruments like the Jupiter-8, Alesis Andromeda, Crumar DS2, and Moog Sonic Six to illustrate key concepts.
Multiples 2: The science behind buffered mults – and what they don't fix
Think buffered mults fix everything? Think again. This follow-up dives into what they don’t solve – like poor tracking in oscillators and controllers – and unpacks the real science behind impedance, detuning, and why even one VCO connection can throw off your tuning.
Conversations with Serge Tcherepnin
Visionary, DIY pioneer, synth rebel. In this rare conversation, Serge Tcherepnin shares how communes, Buchla schematics, and artistic philosophy shaped the Serge Modular system. Discover the roots, design mindset, and evolution of one of modular synthesis’ most original thinkers.
The synthesizer – an introduction (Part 1)
Synthesizers may seem wildly different, but most follow the same core ideas. This beginner-friendly guide breaks down the basic building blocks – LFO, VCO, VCF, ENV, VCA – and shows how signal flow, control voltages, and front panel design come together to create sound from scratch.
Multiples 1: When and why you need passive, buffered, and logic mults
When patching your modular synth, it's easy to overlook the quiet heroes: multiples. But choosing the right type – passive, buffered, or logic – can make or break tuning, timing, and signal integrity. Here's how to pick the right mults to keep your system sounding tight and working reliably.
Podcast Episode 1: Gareth Jones – from Depeche Mode to modular explorations
In the premiere episode of the Patch & Tweak Podcast, legendary producer Gareth Jones (Depeche Mode, Wire, Erasure) joins us from his London studio to talk early electronic music, modular adventures, and his current work with Sunroof and ElectroGenetic.
Paul Schreiber and Module of the Month (MOTM)
Paul Schreiber is known for Synthesis Technology, but few may know how it all began. This detailed and personal history, told to Chris Meyer years before Paul's passing in March 2025, traces the story of MOTM – built on rare Curtis chips, audiophile dreams, and engineering passion.
Slow, wide, and beautiful: Synths that shine in ambient music
Looking to create lush pads, evolving textures, and immersive soundscapes? These synthesizers – ranging from expressive hybrids to analog and digital engines – are made for ambient music. Explore some inspiring hardware options for spacious, atmospheric sound design.
ebooks
An art gallery of electronic aesthetics
Now you can enjoy SYNTH GEMS 1 as an ebook – right here on your screen, whether on your phone, tablet or computer – as long as you have an internet connection. Sign up for our Core membership where you get access to SYNTH GEMS 1 and six other titles.
Get inspired by 50 years of Roland's history
Since its beginnings in 1972, Roland has become one of the most influential music brands in modern history. In 400 photo-packed pages, this book tells the story of how they got there, and how they brought the music world along for the ride.
Craft new sonic landscapes with FX pedals
Get creative and inspired from 200+ tips and ideas and creator interviews. Learn about all the different effects types, what to get for your type of music, and how to get the most of what you already have.
Basic Concepts
Basic Concept 10: Random Sources
Random voltage generators bring organic variation to synth patches. Learn how smooth, stepped, and trigger-based randomness can add life, unpredictability, and evolving textures to your sounds.
Basic Concept 9: LFOs
LFOs bring movement to synthesis by modulating parameters like filter cutoff and pulse width. Learn about waveform types, sync, delay, and how to shape modulation for evolving, expressive sounds.
Basic Concept 8: Envelopes
Envelope generators shape how a sound evolves over time – from percussive hits to swelling textures. Learn the basics of AD, ADSR, and looping envelopes, and how they control amplitude, filters, and timbre in a synthesizer.
Basic Concept 7: Waveshaping
Waveshaping alters the harmonic makeup of a waveform to create new timbres. Learn how techniques like saturation, rectification, and wavefolding shape sound, and how modulating these parameters brings movement and complexity.
Basic Concept 6: Filter Resonance
Filter resonance – also called Q or emphasis – boosts harmonics near the cutoff point, creating vowel-like tones and dramatic peaks. Learn how resonance shapes sound and brings filters to life in expressive, musical ways.
Basic Concept 5: Filter Slopes
A filter’s slope determines how steeply it removes harmonics beyond the cutoff point. Learn how 1-, 2-, 4-, and even 8-pole filters shape sound with increasing intensity – from subtle roll-offs to dramatic tonal sculpting.
Basic Concept 4: Filter Modes
Filters shape sound by removing or reducing harmonics. Learn how low-pass, high-pass, band-pass, and notch filters work – and how adjusting the cutoff frequency creates dramatic changes in tone and texture.
Basic Concept 3: Noise
Noise in synthesis comes in many "colors" – from white and pink to blue, brown, and beyond – each with unique frequency content. Discover how different noise types sound and why no two noise modules sound exactly the same.
Basic Concept 2: Oscillators & Waveforms
Explore how different oscillator waveforms – like sawtooth, pulse, triangle, and sine – affect the harmonic content and character of a sound.
Basic Concept 1: Pitch and Volume
Discover the core concepts of pitch and volume in this first installment of our Basic Concepts series. Learn how oscillators, frequency, amplitude, and voltage shape the sound in a synthesizer.