Modified Atari Video Music

Heres a completely modified Atari Video Music by the fantastic Switched On Austin synth shop. If only I lived in an NTSC zone!

from flickr description

"This Video Music is the first to receive our custom set of modifications, including composite video output, 1/4" audio inputs and direct outputs, color control inputs, rectified audio outputs, and an 8 channel waveform mixer to control image output shape. Videos coming soon!"

Interesting Arduino Video Synth

Slow Noise from jonbro on Vimeo.

Video Bulb

Video Bulb is a cute little product from japan that plugs in to the composite socket at the back of your TV an displays a continuos loop of pixel based animation. Not to exiting on its own but imagine being able to take a box of these to a gig with different clips on them and literally pick you clips up and handle them! its nice to dream. Video via galloween on youtube

 

Video Oscilloscopes !

Some very expensive digital oscilloscopes have composite outputs, if like me you can't find one cheap there are a few other products on the market to fit the bill.

The very cool Critter and Guitari Video Scope produces colourful NTSC video for $99

For us Europeans the MFB VD-01 Videoscope synth module gives a more traditional black and white PAL scope image for €159.

Both units give a slightly blocky output unlike a real oscilloscope image but they could both find a home in a hardwarevideo set up. They also eliminate the need for rescanning a normal oscilloscope screen (which has its own charm but demands space and equipment). 

Here is an excellent video from DamagedMeat on youtube illustrating the MFB VD-01's potential

PM Pitch Analyzer by Voice Identification INC

found this super cool thing listed being sold via this auction a while back looks like some kind of lab/analytical equipment but it has a BNC video output!

"Up for auction is a very intriguing PM Pitch Analyzer from VII Voice Identification, Inc. We are not sure of everything it does, but our simple experiments with a monitor allow us to get a wide variety of readings from an external audio source. Great for a new circuit bending project! There are buttons for sample rate, smooth, shift, freq scale, amp ref., load program and more. Some of the input/outputs include Mic, Line, BNC Video, printer remote. There is also a sort of pen that looks like it can be used to change the video gain, height, right edge, horiz synch, gain/balance. Some of the chips inside include: AMD 8520DPP NEC D8085AHC, D8085AHC-2, -5 Intel 82716-1"

The Arduino Eye Shield

The Arduino Eye Shield by David Chatting is a circuit board that can be plugged on top of the Arduino allowing it to interpret analogue video (PAL or NTSC) from a camera or other source. It gives the Arduino the power of sight. I can see allot of potential for interesting live video manipulation here!

Narrat1ve Video synthesizer

another video synth in development but this time a stand alone product from the maker of the excellent WTPA sampler kit 

sporadic info here 

LZX VISIONARY VIDEO SYNTHESIZER

very exiting stuff happening in the modular video synth market with two product ranges set to grace more experimental racks everywhere with modules to create and manipulate video signals 


the LZX Industries project seems to be going full steam and is very exiting check http://vimeo.com/7970725 and http://vimeo.com/lzxindustries for more info. I think its really good to build up customer support by posting these kind of dev/demo videos interesting stuff!


Lars Larsen one of the guys behind the project corrected my earlier conjecture about the The Jones Video Synth being the same project as the Visionary


"Hi Chris! Thanks for mentioning the Visionary. This isn't the same project, but ours will similarly be a EuroRack format modular video synthesizer/processing system. There is a splash page up at http://www.lzxindustries.com and we'll be releasing module details very soon. Please stay in touch with us!"

I hope the two projects make a new video synth renaissance a viable prospect 

Jones Modular Video Synth Coming Soon

The Jones Video Synth will be in Euro format and should
come out sometime soon holding page here.  Dave Jones is 
a long time video synth expert and he worked at the 
Experimental Television Center 

LZX Visionary modular video synthesizer has 
been mentioned on VJ forums could this be the same project
or a rival ? info here and here

THE BIG BENT NES POST

so there are quite a few NES/famicoms out there that have been bent for audio reactivity here in decending order are Pixel Form, Kaseo, Casper Electronics and Collapsicon
more to come

Parallax chip video synth by Wil Lindsay

video from Wil Lindsay and his video synth based on Parallax chips see him at blip festival in NYC soon!

Circuit Bent Video Self Portrait

Here is an nice video from youtuber Psychenaturadatura check out more through the link

Vintage Archer Analog Video Processors

Super chilled out video from a man named Kevin demoing some analogue video correctors that can get a little glitchy and interesting at the far end of the potentiometers

Atari Video Music

One of the most readily available (if still relatively rare) video synthesizers is the simple but effective Atari Video Music. It has appeared in many music videos and on many blogs. It is poplar with VJs, synthesists and hifi buffs.

It is however as far as I know only available in NTSC not PAL and only rarely do they turn up in Europe. Even if one did you would need a converter. Of course the UK has its own vintage music visualizer the Chromasope.

However both of these are expensive and hard to find. Help is at hand if your in the mood for some DIY with The Pixelmusic 3000 designed and built by Tarikh Korula based on the Parallax Propeller and detailed in Make issue 14! The code is for NTSC but I think it can be altered for PAL. Also see gadgetgangster for a kit based of the Pixelmusic project.

I may give it a go!