makin’ it

What is goin on here !?

The May 1979 issue of DOWNBEAT magazine has a short article on the subject of Do-It-Yourself synthesizer kits.  I’ve uploaded a scan of the entire article as a PDF below.  Much of the article focuses on kits from Paia.  Paia, if you are not familiar, is a very long-running company that makes audio kits.  One of my earlier experiences building audio electronics was constructing their Theremax Theremin. I got the Theremax together in about a day, and it worked right away. No issues.  I used it (mostly as a performance voltage-controller) for about a decade before I sold it at a moving sale.  It was a good, reliable piece.    I know that nowadays there are a lot of cheap theremins on the market, but 15 years ago it was a pretty unusual item.

DOWNLOAD ARTICLE: SynthKits_Dwnbt0579

Anyways…  PAIA still makes and sells descendants of the synth modules that are described here, and the prices are extremely reasonable.  A time-honored way of getting into audio electronics.

btw, dude in the pics here is not me, but it might as fukking well be.