Circuit bending, modding and the analog future

"Yo, check this out."

I'm standing next to Dmitri Ponce as he fires up the mountain of analog gear he has amassed in the middle of his living room/studio. He starts hitting the pads on his Roland TR-505 drum machine and quickly programs a loop of a jacking snare and hi-hat combo. Then, he begins plugging RCA cables into a network of patch bay connectors on the upper right corner of the drum machine. Suddenly, the drums begin to pitch up. Then down. He plugs in more cables and the loop begins to distort and toughen. A strange resonance appears when he puts in one cable, a metallic effect with another.

This isn't your father's 505.

But it once was. This pawn shop TR-505 has undergone a radical makeover. Ponce has cut into the guts of his machine and did some Dr. Frankenstein remodeling, or what is more commonly referred to as circuit bending. Wires have been soldered to points on the ROM chip; potentiometers were built in to control different volumes and pitch. A copper contact point that allows for bends to be controlled by touch is strung out from the machine and connected to a wooden briefcase which now contains this monster. Additionally, Ponce has modified, or modded, his kit by adding eight separate outs, eight separate volume knobs, and trigger outs that allow it to be used as a sequencer. A drum machine generally considered the runt of Roland's TR-series litter is now a force to be reckoned with.




Ponce is part of a growing number of dance music producers who are delving into the dark art of bending and modding their studio gear. Circuit bending is the process of intentionally shorting the circuits of an electronic device—whether it be a throwaway, battery-operated children's toy or a high-end audio sampler—and then controlling these new circuits with an assortment of switches, patch bays and potentiometers. In layman's terms, it's about "pushing these machines to do things that the original designers went out of their way to avoid happening," as Paul Norris explains it in an email exchange. Norris, whose website, circuitbenders.co.uk has been "selling and offering to mod circuit-bent gear" for nearly ten years. Norris adds, "The popularity has definitely increased a lot over the past couple of years," due to the fact people are finding out they can resurrect their old gear.

Roland HD-1 V-Drums Lite Electronic Drums | Cheap Electronic Drumset

A New All-In-One Drum Kit for the Masses Rolands V-Drums are the most popular electronic drums in the world, but not everyone has the room or budget for a full V-Drums kit. Introducing the new Roland HD-1. It’s forged from the same technology as its predecessors, but it’s much simpler to use. Its also incredibly quiet, thanks to the newly designed kick beater, cushioned tom pads, and snare head. The HD-1 is also conveniently compact and stylish perfect for every home, school, studio, etc. and it’s priced for the masses. Most of the HD-1s components are mounted on one stand for easy setup and transport, and for a clean look. Just take it out of the box and play.

Hart Dynamics – Pintech – Roland TD 6 electronic drums: Starting price: $715.00(View Auction)

Roland TD-6 V Drums Electronic Drum Set Complete: Starting price: $595.00(View Auction)

V-DRUMS - Which electronic drumset is better…?: [...] -

you know i've been playing drums for 2 years and i have a Roland TD-12 (its an electronic drumset)

ROLAND FD-6 HI HAT PEDAL FOR ELECTRONIC DRUMS: Starting price: $20.50(View Auction)

All about-- electronic percussion

Roland has larger gross sales than any other drum company, acoustic and/or electronic. * As with any emerging technology, determining specific dates for ...

Modern drummer, MD.

Roland crash 4. Yamaha crash 5. Yamaha cymbal (bell) 6. Roland ride 7. Roland crash Hardware: Roland V-Drums rack and: aa. Roland electronic hi-hat pedal bb ...

Music trades

In addition, a large number of acoustic drummers are incorporating small electronic drum pads, like the Roland Octa- pad or the Simmons Portakit, ...

Guerrilla Home Recording, How to Get Great Sound from Any Studio (No Matter How Weird Or Cheap Your Gear Is)

Using an electronic drum kit, such as Roland's V-Drums (right), is a great way to get sampled drums into your recordings. But even the most obsolete MIDI ...

The Ultimate Live Sound Operator's Handbook

Since the Roland V-Drums came out several years ago, electronic drums have provided decent sounds and acceptable triggering. The drum pads feel pretty much ...