Chinook and Moog Opus 3

Chinook is checking out his latest patch on the Moog Opus 3 by playing a low D. Submitted by Andy Excuse via our Facebook page.

We also have a more styled version of the photo.

The Opus 3 may not be the most well-known of Moog’s classic instruments, but it is a great little synth and very accessible, with separate sections for Strings, Brass, and Organ, each with its own Moog-style VCF. It’s been used by some famous bands we admire, including Kraftwerk and Stereolab.

Ansel, JL Cooper Synapse, and Zara

Our friend Ansel poses next to a JL Cooper Synapse MIDI processor. We see one of his fellow cats hiding just below – we’re pretty sure this beautiful black cat is Zara.

From Charles Whiley via Facebook.

The JL Cooper Synapse is a MIDI router and processor which can route and merge various MIDI inputs and outputs. It’s very similar to the Digital Music Corp MX-8 that we have at HQ, but bigger. I recall seeing the JL Cooper one in brochures earlier on but it was out of my league at the time. Ansel is lucky to have found one, though.

Casper, Paul, and Speak&Spell

Caspar (black cat) with Paul (human) who sports a Speak&Spell t-shirt. The venerable Speak&Spell has become a mainstay of circuit-bending and other lo-fi electronic music practices.

Submitted by Paul Williams via our Facebook page.

his is Casper, he is the friendliest cat and he belongs to our hosts at an Air B&B we’re staying at in North Wales.

Always fun to meet friendly cats on travels.

Black Cat with Roland, Kawaii, Yamaha, Korg, and more

A beautiful black cat with green eyes (like our beloved Luna) sits atop an impressive stack of modules. We see a Yamaha TX81Z (which we also have), as well as a few offerings from Roland, Kawaii, Korg, alases, and more Yamaha. From endmusik_studios via Instagram.

New art for the studio, but it’ll have to wait until the intern finishes recabling everything

Oberheim (the cat) and JL Cooper Synapse MIDI router

Oberheim the black cat next to a JL Cooper Synapse MIDI router

Oberheim the cat is back, this time with a JP Cooper Synapse MIDI router and processor. From Charles Whiley via Facebook.

The JL Cooper routers were among the earlier MIDI devices I read about as I was understanding what is needed to go from one synthesizer to a home studio. I never did get one (not practical for me at that time in the late 1980s), but I still have the Digital Music Corp MX-8 that got later on to serve a similar purpose.