Video Synths, DIY VJing, etc.

mandrigora · Joined: Jun 04, 2007 Posts: 51 Location: maryland

I've been scrounging the net for "Video Synths" and older analog visualization devices with schematics and have come up completely empty handed.

I know that software is all the rage, but I'm looking for a DIY hands-on modular type device, to run alongside my audio analog modular. Lot's of great sounding machines but no clues how to make one...

Inventor · Posted: Thu Oct 25, 2007 4:41 am Post subject:

Why not just get an old oscilloscope? You can see the waveforms of the music, or use the X-Y mode to create lissajous patterns and such. Put your left channel on X and your right on Y, instant video show. Or is that not what you had in mind?

egw · Posted: Thu Oct 25, 2007 5:12 am Post subject:

Here's a DIY video synth:
http://music.calarts.edu/~pstearns/electronics/VGA-synth.html

and here:
http://www.critterandguitari.com/catalog/

another one:
http://www.mediumrecords.com/vs0/vs001.html

some examples of video circuit bending:
http://www.karlklomp.nl/pro/vbend.html

In the days before software could do any video processing, there were some hardware video synths. They can be found used, but are still expensive:
chromascope

fairlight CVI

Lots more info on video synthesizers here:
http://www.audiovisualizers.com/toolshak/vsynths.htm

A new video synthesizer (expensive):
Roland CG-8

In general, you can do a lot more with modular video software, here are two free programs:
vvvv
http://www.gephex.org/

Also Jitter and Visual Jockey are popular (but not free).

mandrigora · Joined: Jun 04, 2007 Posts: 51 Location: maryland

Thanks egw for replying, and great site you have btw.

Some of your links are defunct, some lead to exactly what I'm looking for minus the schematics, and others lead to software equivalents which are what I was hoping to avoid.

I pretty much want to take original and found footage, sequence it to music and add effects/anomalies via a hands-on interface. My mind doesn't lend well creatively to software but I guess that's what I'm left with, eh?

egw · Posted: Sun Nov 11, 2007 6:32 am Post subject:

Winstontaneous · Joined: Oct 31, 2008 Posts: 28 Location: Berkeley, CA

Thread resurrection....

I am taking a video class and have been fascinated by the world of visual fx & generators.

I want to explore the VJ realm--the sorts of things I seek (tempo synced fx, LFO modulations) don't appear to be a central feature of the video editors I've used. Basically I'd like a setup that could respond to control events created by a modular software music synth. Still, I'm managing to get a lot done with keyframe automation in Sony Vegas Platinum 10.

I recently came across this manufacturer of a voltage controlled modular video synthesizer in the Eurorack format:
http://www.lzxindustries.net/

Will post some links to things I'm working on soon!

Blue Hell · Posted: Fri Aug 13, 2010 4:23 pm Post subject:

destroyifyer · Posted: Fri Aug 13, 2010 10:29 pm Post subject:

mandrigora wrote:

ocp · Posted: Mon Dec 26, 2011 4:16 pm Post subject:

Check out LZX Industries' website and their "user resources" section.

pyrosonic · Joined: Jul 12, 2008 Posts: 285 Location: Kent,Oh. USA

LZX also has this nifty little box that I saw a band use a month ago.It doesn't do a real lot,but it's not very expensive either.
http://www.analoguehaven.com/lzxindustries/bitvision/