nrjiser's blog: SuONOIO synth takes soundgeeks from zero to tweaking in fewer than 60 cycles (video)

Tuesday, November 23, 2010

SuONOIO synth takes soundgeeks from zero to tweaking in fewer than 60 cycles (video)

We'll admit that sometimes it doesn't take much to get our engines running here at Engadget HQ. If you can throw a couple of knobs, exposed circuitry, a 9v battery, and a sense of adventure into a semi-coherent package, we'll be pleased as punch. The SuONIO synthesizer, therefore, makes us very happy indeed.

SuONOIO is the band of former Nine Inch Nails keyboardist Alessandro Cortini, and SuONOIO is a pint-sized slab of silicon that comes bundled with a digital copy of the band's latest album. Delivered bubble-wrapped in a hand-stamped cardboard box -- if you've ever had the pleasure of unboxing an Arduino kit, you'll know the feeling -- it's pre-loaded with two banks of samples that were used to create the album.

Although it's a sample-based instrument, it's the user's job to create new noise using an array of jumper-activated effects and mixing techniques. It's not quite as expansive as an MPC, but as any good experimentalist knows, there's a lot to be gleaned from limitations and new interface paradigms.

Read on for our impressions of the noisebox and a tour of its inner workings!

Gallery: SuONOIO