4 ms·

Custom made synth, audio and retro-gaming gear

96 points by mattkevan 4y ago

carlgreene 4y ago
Wow. Those are some insanely beautiful pieces
midislack 4y ago
Only thing I don't like is the chair, those right angles, oof!
danachow 4y ago
Nice looking, but - hmm :/ https://www.lovehulten.com/uploads/3/0/4/8/30489724/pk42-14_orig.jpg https://www.lovehulten.com/uploads/3/0/4/8/30489724/pk42-14_...
- hifikuno 4y ago
  It took me awhile to realize what was wrong. However, they did have one further up that showed the joystick unscrewed. I'm hoping the same happens for that one. https://www.lovehulten.com/uploads/3/0/4/8/30489724/ef4f4_orig.jpg https://www.lovehulten.com/uploads/3/0/4/8/30489724/ef4f4_or...
  - danachow 4y ago
    No no, that is not the problem I was thinking of. Hint: what is displayed on the screen?
    - recursive 4y ago
      Street Fighter II I think?
    - pimlottc 4y ago
      Not enough buttons?
      - danachow 4y ago
        Yes. I’m surprised this was so difficult for people to pick out for a game as well known as SFII.
    - Luc 4y ago
      Could be photoshopped but might also be a CRT shader.
    - YeGoblynQueenne 4y ago
      A game in the process of being played on a console with no users? Is that what you mean? I'm not too familiar with Street Fighter to know if that's the case, in my eyes it could be a display game automatically playing. Explain yourself!
      - danachow 4y ago
        Street Fighter II is a classic of the fighter genre and is the principal example of the 6 button fighter. If the marketing rendering was as closely attentive to detail as the item themselves there are plenty of 4 button fighters that could have been used. It’s so obvious that I wouldn’t be surprised if it is an intentional troll.
        YeGoblynQueenne 4y ago
        Thanks for clarifying. To be honest I haven't played Street Fighter much so I didn't know. That, and when I play arcade games I normally have a full QWERTY keyboard...
  - sarnu 4y ago
    To me, it looks like a reference to a Braun phonosuper sk 4. https://braunaudio.de/en/snowwhitecoffin-sk4-dieter-rams-hans-gugelot-design-moma/ https://braunaudio.de/en/snowwhitecoffin-sk4-dieter-rams-han...
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
elihu 4y ago
I see multiple Korg Monologues or Minilogues and a Teenage Engineering Modular 400 hiding in plain sight, but I don't recognize any other synthesizers. I wonder how much of this is functional, and to what extent electronics were modified or reverse engineered to get them to work in unintended ways. At any rate, it's impressive work.
- kennywinker 4y ago
  If you click into the individual projects it says what most of them are. Lots of different gear blended together, plus some custom circuits. I assume you actually lose functionality compared with the source gear, since some of it involves hard-wiring things together in ways that you can't mess with. Still, I do like an opinionated piece of equipment
  - elihu 4y ago
    Oh, nice. I didn't realize the images were clickable links.
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]
- TheOtherHobbes 4y ago
  I suspect they weren't modified at all - just re-housed, which likely required some replacement of the basic panel controls, but no internal changes. Have to admit I've never been a fan of mid-century, and this seems like a curious reinvention. It's the TE aesthetic. Nice if you like it, but (I'd guess) insanely pricey for what you get.
hifikuno 4y ago
I really like all these. Even if they were nonfunctional mockups I would be hard pressed to recreate even one of these items. Good job to the creator!
- moron4hire 4y ago
  That's funny, because I was thinking the opposite. One of my first electronics projects years ago was an interactive museum piece that played audio and tested people's comprehension of some material they had just learned. It looked almost exactly like one of these things, and really want that hard to build, even as a beginner just hacking things out. https://youtu.be/oIFA7msO_x0 https://youtu.be/oIFA7msO_x0 Hardest part was getting all of those lights and buttons to be addressable from a single Arduino.
mortenjorck 4y ago
While I was already familiar with Hulten‘s work, I had not seen some of these more recent pieces. The custom commission for a band combining a Korg Minilogue and a Roland TR-08 (and some kind of tape delay?) is absolutely brilliant.
- robotresearcher 4y ago
  Tape delay is a T-Rex Replicator https://www.t-rex-effects.com/replicator https://www.t-rex-effects.com/replicator
incanus77 4y ago
Love this stuff. If you want to really appreciate it, watch one of his videos like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHksi9lvuHM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHksi9lvuHM
chaosprint 4y ago
Beautiful
emptybits 4y ago
Gorgeous gear and photography to match. I laughed and winced at this delicious travesty: https://www.lovehulten.com/apple1.html https://www.lovehulten.com/apple1.html (If you lived the Warring Eight Bit Period, you'll understand.)
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
throw_m239339 4y ago
Bulky, kitsch and no very appealing to me. For some reasons these photos are heavily used in scam ads and fraudulent internet shops. And completely misleading title. There aren't "custom made synths", they are broadly commercially available synths put in custom enclosures or cases, that's very different. If I took a Macbook and put it in a wooden case, I wouldn't be calling that computer "custom made".
- kennywinker 4y ago
  Currently on the front page of HN is a “cyberdeck” that is a raspberry pi neatly fitted into a pelican case. I’d count that as a custom made computer, just as much as any pc assembled from components off newegg. With synths it’s a little more out of place, since the majority of “custom made” synths involved soldering, and there are plenty with fully original circuits. But I still consider what he’s doing as “custom made” as the modular synth I made for myself by sticking prebuilt modules into a case
- tobr 4y ago
  Thank you for sharing this mix of negative opinions. The title on HN is written by mattkevan, so if it’s misleading that’s on them. If the photos are used in frauds, that’s on the fraudsters. If you are unable to enjoy deliberately kitschy custom-made cases because they’re kitschy, that’s on you. Personally I find these creations absolutely delightful. Maybe there’s something else in life you can find joy in.
junon 4y ago
If you like this stuff, check out what Look Mum No Computer[0] is doing. He makes crazy electronic instruments, including a wall of synthesizers and a Furby organ. He's also opening a retro computing museum that looks super interesting. Super cool dude. [0] https://youtube.com/c/LOOKMUMNOCOMPUTER https://youtube.com/c/LOOKMUMNOCOMPUTER

96 points by mattkevan 4y ago

carlgreene 4y ago

Wow. Those are some insanely beautiful pieces

midislack 4y ago

Only thing I don't like is the chair, those right angles, oof!

danachow 4y ago

Nice looking, but - hmm :/ https://www.lovehulten.com/uploads/3/0/4/8/30489724/pk42-14_orig.jpg https://www.lovehulten.com/uploads/3/0/4/8/30489724/pk42-14_...

hifikuno 4y ago
It took me awhile to realize what was wrong. However, they did have one further up that showed the joystick unscrewed. I'm hoping the same happens for that one. https://www.lovehulten.com/uploads/3/0/4/8/30489724/ef4f4_orig.jpg https://www.lovehulten.com/uploads/3/0/4/8/30489724/ef4f4_or...
- danachow 4y ago
  No no, that is not the problem I was thinking of. Hint: what is displayed on the screen?
  - recursive 4y ago
    Street Fighter II I think?
  - pimlottc 4y ago
    Not enough buttons?
    - danachow 4y ago
      Yes. I’m surprised this was so difficult for people to pick out for a game as well known as SFII.
  - Luc 4y ago
    Could be photoshopped but might also be a CRT shader.
  - YeGoblynQueenne 4y ago
    A game in the process of being played on a console with no users? Is that what you mean? I'm not too familiar with Street Fighter to know if that's the case, in my eyes it could be a display game automatically playing. Explain yourself!
    - danachow 4y ago
      Street Fighter II is a classic of the fighter genre and is the principal example of the 6 button fighter. If the marketing rendering was as closely attentive to detail as the item themselves there are plenty of 4 button fighters that could have been used. It’s so obvious that I wouldn’t be surprised if it is an intentional troll.
      - YeGoblynQueenne 4y ago
        Thanks for clarifying. To be honest I haven't played Street Fighter much so I didn't know. That, and when I play arcade games I normally have a full QWERTY keyboard...
- sarnu 4y ago
  To me, it looks like a reference to a Braun phonosuper sk 4. https://braunaudio.de/en/snowwhitecoffin-sk4-dieter-rams-hans-gugelot-design-moma/ https://braunaudio.de/en/snowwhitecoffin-sk4-dieter-rams-han...
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]

elihu 4y ago

I see multiple Korg Monologues or Minilogues and a Teenage Engineering Modular 400 hiding in plain sight, but I don't recognize any other synthesizers. I wonder how much of this is functional, and to what extent electronics were modified or reverse engineered to get them to work in unintended ways. At any rate, it's impressive work.

kennywinker 4y ago
If you click into the individual projects it says what most of them are. Lots of different gear blended together, plus some custom circuits. I assume you actually lose functionality compared with the source gear, since some of it involves hard-wiring things together in ways that you can't mess with. Still, I do like an opinionated piece of equipment
- elihu 4y ago
  Oh, nice. I didn't realize the images were clickable links.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
TheOtherHobbes 4y ago
I suspect they weren't modified at all - just re-housed, which likely required some replacement of the basic panel controls, but no internal changes. Have to admit I've never been a fan of mid-century, and this seems like a curious reinvention. It's the TE aesthetic. Nice if you like it, but (I'd guess) insanely pricey for what you get.

hifikuno 4y ago

I really like all these. Even if they were nonfunctional mockups I would be hard pressed to recreate even one of these items. Good job to the creator!

moron4hire 4y ago
That's funny, because I was thinking the opposite. One of my first electronics projects years ago was an interactive museum piece that played audio and tested people's comprehension of some material they had just learned. It looked almost exactly like one of these things, and really want that hard to build, even as a beginner just hacking things out. https://youtu.be/oIFA7msO_x0 https://youtu.be/oIFA7msO_x0 Hardest part was getting all of those lights and buttons to be addressable from a single Arduino.

mortenjorck 4y ago

While I was already familiar with Hulten‘s work, I had not seen some of these more recent pieces. The custom commission for a band combining a Korg Minilogue and a Roland TR-08 (and some kind of tape delay?) is absolutely brilliant.

robotresearcher 4y ago
Tape delay is a T-Rex Replicator https://www.t-rex-effects.com/replicator https://www.t-rex-effects.com/replicator

incanus77 4y ago

Love this stuff. If you want to really appreciate it, watch one of his videos like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHksi9lvuHM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DHksi9lvuHM

chaosprint 4y ago

Beautiful

emptybits 4y ago

Gorgeous gear and photography to match. I laughed and winced at this delicious travesty: https://www.lovehulten.com/apple1.html https://www.lovehulten.com/apple1.html (If you lived the Warring Eight Bit Period, you'll understand.)

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

throw_m239339 4y ago

Bulky, kitsch and no very appealing to me. For some reasons these photos are heavily used in scam ads and fraudulent internet shops. And completely misleading title. There aren't "custom made synths", they are broadly commercially available synths put in custom enclosures or cases, that's very different. If I took a Macbook and put it in a wooden case, I wouldn't be calling that computer "custom made".

kennywinker 4y ago
Currently on the front page of HN is a “cyberdeck” that is a raspberry pi neatly fitted into a pelican case. I’d count that as a custom made computer, just as much as any pc assembled from components off newegg. With synths it’s a little more out of place, since the majority of “custom made” synths involved soldering, and there are plenty with fully original circuits. But I still consider what he’s doing as “custom made” as the modular synth I made for myself by sticking prebuilt modules into a case
tobr 4y ago
Thank you for sharing this mix of negative opinions. The title on HN is written by mattkevan, so if it’s misleading that’s on them. If the photos are used in frauds, that’s on the fraudsters. If you are unable to enjoy deliberately kitschy custom-made cases because they’re kitschy, that’s on you. Personally I find these creations absolutely delightful. Maybe there’s something else in life you can find joy in.

junon 4y ago

If you like this stuff, check out what Look Mum No Computer[0] is doing. He makes crazy electronic instruments, including a wall of synthesizers and a Furby organ. He's also opening a retro computing museum that looks super interesting. Super cool dude. [0] https://youtube.com/c/LOOKMUMNOCOMPUTER https://youtube.com/c/LOOKMUMNOCOMPUTER