Tindie

Love the ARPIE. Kit came quickly to the US in an impressively small package. Build instructions (especially on the wiki) and user's manual are very thorough. The ARPIE has been great in helping me dig deeper into some of my smaller, less feature-rich synths. I never got into them too much because playing while tweaking is a big distraction and sequencing through the computer seems like so much overhead. But just sitting down with a little ARPIE has made me spend more time exploring their sounds. The no-input mode is very great too; I can just plug a small, battery-powered nugget into a synth to start making sound with it.

My only feature request so far is to make it easier to bypass the ARPIE and simply pass through the notes as played. I was able to do this with an empty pattern and with global setting to forward original notes. But a single toggle in the Mode menu would be nice. Or maybe there's an easier way and I just missed it in the manual.

Polo Jonatan | Feb. 25, 2014

Easy to build

Everything is ready for build, manual is easy to understand

Owen | Feb. 11, 2014

Fantastic

I built my Arpie in one night and it's the first major soldering kit I've built without someone helping me. The components were extremely well-organized with everything carefully divided and clearly labelled. The tips and tricks throughout the instructions, like how to get the LEDs flush with the board, were extremely useful.

Everything went smoothly until I burne out a trace running down from the primary blue LEDs, though. At first I thought I burned out the LED itself and spent a long time trying to remove it (and then clearing the hole I had filled :( ...), but adding a bridge wire between the two terminals fixed the problem. I had to do this twice. So when making the UI board be careful and solder quick!

And of course the software is on github making this really a dream tool for music hackers. Highly highly recommended Review Image

Daryl | Feb. 2, 2014

Midi switcher to control record lathe

For MIDI Switcher: Set your MIDI free!!

I've been searching the internet for months trying to find a solution to put gaps in between each track when I'm cutting a vinyl record.

With the midi switcher , it gives me the freedom to automate my vinyl cutting machine without Any manual handing whilst I'm cutting a record.

For example when I cut five tracks on side A, I setup cubase (daw) to trigger a midi signal between Each track, this puts a gap in between each song, without me manually turning the lathe handle by hand.

Not only was this easy to build, it's the fact that there's no c+
Code that you have to write. This is great for electronics newbies like me who have no programming skills or a electronics background.

Works well thanks!!
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Andy | Jan. 16, 2014

Awesome

Just got my Le Strum today very straightforward build looking forward to having a proper explore of it . But so far looks to be a brilliant piece of kit

Patrick | Jan. 16, 2014

Amazing Kit

As with Le Strum this is a straightforward, well-explained build even for a novice.

The end result is a solidly constructed and extremely inspiring and musically useful piece of kit.

Christoph | Jan. 13, 2014

Arpie

The Arpie kit was my first electronic soldering and i´m very happy about the easyness and the result.
Thanks a lot, fantastic work.

Just a few ideas of future developments of the Kit: CV-outports, integrated USB, easier updating of the programs, different sequences for different midi channels.

John | Jan. 12, 2014

Awesome Kit

This thing is awesome. It's well documented and easy to build. It was exactly what I was looking for and more. Well done and highly recommended!

Patrick | Jan. 8, 2014

Excellent Kit, Excellent Controller

I'm not experienced at soldering but having done one project I found no problems with this.

The finished kit is sturdy, very small and very cute. As a controller it is like nothing else out there and is a lot of fun to use.

Mattzog | Jan. 7, 2014

Digging my Arpie

I bought an Arpie a little while back, and I'm really digging it. It's surprisingly easy to use and seem fully featured. I still need the reference sheet to remember which button takes me to which parameter, but I'll memorize all that eventually. Flexible enough that I can reconfigure on the fly, and since it's external I can drive a bunch of synths at once. A lot to like.

I'm slightly concerned that the open frame will be less than ideal for gigging, but I think it'll be safe stuck down in my pedal board case.

All in all, I'm a fan.

Matt | Jan. 1, 2014

Yay!

For USB to MIDI cable

Great service thanks tindieeeeeeee

Ben | Dec. 23, 2013

What fun! Great kit - great instructions

This was a very well put-together kit. Everything was included (even a few extras of this and that) and the kit went together relatively quickly. I would say that I'm an intermediate-level assembler of soldered kits and this took me about 1.5 hours to put together. You will need an iron with a fine point, but that's a given with this type of assembly.

Once assembled the controller works flawlessly. I haven't had a chance to use it very much yet - I just connected the DIN-out to a midi to USB interface and ran that to GarageBand on my MB Pro. The number of preset settings packed into the device is really impressive and I've been having a lot of fun with the various guitar modes.

Outstanding! Thanks for taking the time to create and share this.

Benoit | Dec. 17, 2013

Great kit!!!

Really cool kit! Really easy to built and fun to play! Thanks!!!

Mark | Dec. 10, 2013

A creative way to play your guitar samples or synth.

A nice kit that works.
I originally bought this because I wanted to strum my guitar samples - which it does very well.
Instructions are clear and straightforward and it's easy to put together.
Team this up with your favourite sample player or synth and you can add a new creative dimension to your tracks.
Looking forward to modding it a bit and experimenting.
Will definitely be using it in my next album.
marksmusicaustralia.com

Basilio N. | Nov. 26, 2013

Super Idea that opens up synth playing to different dynamics

Excellent idea and great Midi implementation!

It could use some ergonomics tweaking (I know it has been done this way to save on PCB costs) because it is not the best for playing too frantically, but it sounds super!

Using a 6 voice poly synth, some distortion and delay, it sounds killer. The functions and presets are quite useful, and allow for a wide variety of playing.

Kit was well packed and instructions clear and precise. It took about an hour and a half in experienced hands, but anybody with patience and solder can do it!

Basilio N. | Nov. 26, 2013

Surprisingly playable!

It is amazing how low in the pixel count one can go and still have a satisfying retro gaming experience.

This proves you don´t need much to video game on the go.

Kit is excellently packed and the final product once assembled is tiny and great looking in it´s own way.

The possibility of making your own games is icing on top, the included games work very well with the available controls.

Assembly takes about an hour in experienced hands, but beginners would not find this to big too much of a challenge provided they have patience and follow the online instructions.

Lovely kit with loads of character!

Michael | Nov. 24, 2013

shit is sick

This thing rules - wish it had a case tho

Jason | Nov. 23, 2013

This is the coolest thing I've ever built in my life!

For Please see new product BANANA SPLIT!

Very fun and satisfying to build.
Plus there is no other product like it.

Basilio N. | Nov. 22, 2013

Super Useful!

A must have for MIDI enthusiasts!
Excellent kit with very clear instructions.
Build level is fairly basic, with about an hour of build time.
Although the Star layout of the sockets seems like a nice idea at first, the design would benefit from a layout with all sockets on one side since MIDI connections can be quite bulky. This is not to say that the current design isn´t attractive or the layout clear and easy to set up!

Basilio N. | Nov. 22, 2013

Simple and Excellent!

For midihub 6-way MIDI Thru and Metronome Module

For MIDI fiends, a must have!
Excellent device with very clear instructions.
Although the Star layout of the sockets seems like a nice idea at first, the design would benefit from a layout with all sockets on one side since MIDI connections can be quite bulky and having them alligned would make it more space efficient. This is not to say that the current design isn´t attractive or the layout clear and easy to set up.

Chris | Nov. 19, 2013

a must have in the studio!

I bought the ARPIE and that it is very comfortable and fun to build it, it is a fantastic tool to have in the studio. I consider the arp in reason as one of the best (to use) in software form and ARPIE is just that in hardware. once you get comfortable with the leds its just so much fun playing with it. however i wanted to use it in a live environment, there is basically no hardware alternative to this item. the problem is to build a case around but in fact its not a huge problem, you just have to be a little bit creative. i missed that point and used the parts that were delivered but you should think about how you want to put that gear in a case _before_ you solder. i would have definitely soldered micro switches with longer press buttons to let them stick out of the case. if you have a lasercutter at hand you can get the 1:1 EAGLE pcb design on github.

anyway, this gear is a big bang for the bucks and jason is a great guy.

thanks!

Sami | Nov. 14, 2013

Excellent kit!

Easy to build, well-thought out user interface and quality components.Arpie was just what I needed on my hardware synth setup. Heartily recommended!

Jonic | Nov. 10, 2013

Excellent little kit

I just finished putting this kit together, and it was a cinch! Took maybe two hours in total, but I'm not the fastest solderer in the world!

Only minor complaint I have is that some of the components in the kit differed in appearance to the ones illustrated in the wiki on Github.

It was fun to assemble, and I'm looking forward to digging into the coding side of it. I've needed an excuse to code for Arduino, and now I have a little console to program for I think I'm much more likely to write something :)

Well worth the asking price - buy one now!

Sean | Nov. 5, 2013

Great kit, great machine

For midihub 6-way MIDI Thru and Metronome Module

Extremely well put together little kit with a nice printed function sheet. Highly recommended.

Martin | Nov. 3, 2013

midihub++ 6-way

Really nice build and and a very useful tool. I already did some jam sessions with all my synths, drum machine and sampler attached to the hub and had a lot of fun with it. If you just look for a simple midi splitter a buffer circiut will do the job but having the midi filter and midi clock make this small device great for live jams.
Midi timing and jitter seem to be good but I didn't have the opportunity to measure it. I saw that it uses the internal clock source of the chip. Maybe it could be even improved with an external clock source but so far I'm happy and recommend the product.

Jordi | Oct. 9, 2013

Great product, top seller

Good fun to assemble and use. Very well documented user guide and bulding instructions. Lots of useful and musically sensible features. Worth every cent. Can't wait to build two more units. Thanks!

Gerry | Sept. 29, 2013

Great Kit

I bought one of these for my son who is 9 years old. He constructed it himself and got it working and has enjoyed playing with it. Its a really novel kit for learning with. The space invaders game is surprisingly playable and the "Simon Says" memory game is a lot of fun too. The kit is well organised and nicely packaged. Thumbs up form me.

Daniel | Sept. 15, 2013

another amazing little machine!

For midihub 6-way MIDI Thru and Metronome Module

Easy to build and really fun to play!
I sweat a bit when IC2 sanity check led refused to blink,
but arpie works 100% and it's absolutely great as expected!!!
Keep up the outstanding work
Till next time

Matteo | Sept. 9, 2013

Yeah!!! Great!!!!

Arrived, tested, PERFECT!!! U r Great, Man!!! the new firmware work perfectly, I use only for FX clock, with the tap function, but I will try the midi in connection and the other functions.
THAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANX!!!
Teo

Santiago | Aug. 16, 2013

increíble!!!

Nice machine, very easy to build, perfectly packed and really, really, useful. I've written a review of arpie and midihub in
[url]http://contubernio.es/wp/?p=1095[/url] (in spanish)
Cheeers Review Image

Clay | Aug. 11, 2013

Whats not to like?