Modular Monthly

GMSN!

Glasgow Make Some Noise – more commonly known as GMSN! – started out as a series of DIY workshops aiming to help people build their own modules and devices, understand how they work, and what the circuits are doing. As this grew, modules became available as kits or assembled modules, and they’ve since gone open-source. With a donation, you can have your own PCBs and panels made. There’s also a range of DIY communities supporting each other with group buys. It’s an exciting and growing scene to get into, so it’s well worth looking around.

Regardless of open-source designs and the DIY aspect, the Pure Modular system is great for beginners as it offers simple and great-sounding core building blocks to create or expand a modular system. In the audio path, we have analogue oscillators, a low-pass filter with two- and four-pole outputs, a multicoloured noise circuit and VCA, all with plenty of CV across them to get things moving. On the CV and modulation side, we have an LFO, sequencer, quantiser and envelope generator. There’s no mixer, but we do have a few ways to work around that with multiple inputs on the oscillator and filter.

At the core are most of the building blocks you’ll need to build a comprehensive system capable of melodies, basslines, drums and sound FX. Whether you’re into Moog style East-coast sounds or Buchla style West-coast sounds, there are options to patch up sounds that cross both disciplines allowing you to create your own hybrid voice.