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medearis
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Just found this (freakin' gorgeous) sammichSID on ebay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/sammichSID-Commodore-64-midibox-synthesizer-SID-6582-/290579212372?pt=Keyboards_MIDI&hash=item43a7dee854

Sorry for my ignorance here - I am no builder (yet), but the seller says there are two sid chips and highlights several other points but this caught my eye "...an ensemble engine that operates like a multitimbral synth ..." does that mean that I could turn a voice into a polyphonic sound? Not sure if the SID is polyphonic - as I don't own my own SID synth (yet) - so I had to ask. I'm sure someone here could clarify what that means for me, very interested in that. Would like to team a sammichSID up with my Machinedrum and having multiple voices is a must and having a polyphonic voice would be a super fat cherry on top.

Sorry to be ignorant - seems to be a highly educated crowd 'round here. :)

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:frantics: holy moly that is a quite high asking price :frantics:

Each SID itself has 3 oscillators and you can either create patches to create three (more basic) voices per SID or one more powerful voice.

For more SID polyphony go MB6582 :-).

Best regards,

Peter

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Each chip is like a minimoog with 3 oscillators, a great lowpass filter, 2 envelopes and 2 lfos! It has a drum synth engine with TR 909, 808 like sounds, a bassline engine for TB 303 like sounds, an ensemble engine that operates like a multitimbral synth and a SID playback mode where it can playback SIDS in stereo!

Wow, what a shameless marketing phrase... I love the SID sound, but this makes it sound like the sammichSID was a replacement for all these synths and drumcomputers... and more, of course ;)

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Yeeeeeeah. That IS a really high asking price. Too bad the box is so gorgeous!

I'd love to buy a Sammich though, especially knowing now that each SID chip has 3 oscillators, that keeps the option of something polyphonic open. It's always more fun to play poly sounds "live" on top of mono sounds being sequenced. Feels just right. :hug:

The advert he wrote at the end makes him sound like a total d-bag. Even though I'm not an avid poster here, I could instantly tell he wasn't 100% part of this community. His words bleed "GIMMEH MONIEZ". :sick:

By the way: Is it still possible to order a sammichSID kit and source the two SID chips on my own? Building one doesn't seem to be TOOOO hard. I'm willing to f*ck something up a few times to get it right and make it my own... which I think this whole community is all about.

Edited by medearis
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By the way: Is it still possible to order a SammichSID kit and source the two SID chips on my own?

Yes :thumbsup:

Building one doesn't seem to be TOOOO hard.

It isn't, that's how we designed it to be.

I'm willing to f*ck something up a few times to get it right and make it my own... which I think this whole community is all about.

That's the spirit!

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About how many hours has it taken some of you to build a sammichSID?

It'd be nice to have as a week(end) project. I don't think that sourcing the chips would be TOOOO hard. Maybe get screwed over by a shady dealer or two. T'would not be a quest without dealing with some estranged synth-gypsies or drunken dwarves. :tongue:

Any reputable chip sellers? I've only ever really seen some up on the ebay. For some reason buying sound chips seems sketchy there. :whistle:

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About how many hours has it taken some of you to build a sammichSID?

It'd be nice to have as a week(end) project. I don't think that sourcing the chips would be TOOOO hard. Maybe get screwed over by a shady dealer or two. T'would not be a quest without dealing with some estranged synth-gypsies or drunken dwarves. :tongue:

Any reputable chip sellers? I've only ever really seen some up on the ebay. For some reason buying sound chips seems sketchy there. :whistle:

I built mine in about 6 hours including troubleshooting, perhaps a little more for paint drying and so on. I just worked on it a little after work each day for a few days.

I didn't have that good luck with getting SIDs and Wilba bailed me out in the end as I kept ending up with defective ones. As for whether he has any kits left, or whether he has any 6582s left you'll have to ask him directly. Failing that finding commodore 64s will eventually get you some working 6581 sids if you get enough of them, but finding fully working ones is a needle in a haystack, and I prefer the sound of the later SIDs after hearing them next to each other anyway.

I have a defective SID around here that is good for testing (filters are gone but it makes sound) if anyone wants it.

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You could still have some success asking your friends, relatives, co-workers etc if they have a C64 or C128 gathering dust in the closet. Otherwise, they also still show up sometimes at thrift stores, and sometimes you'll find chips in the "fleamarket" section of this forum.

Ideally, the newer 8580 and 6582 chips sound better to my ears than the 6581, but that is very much a matter of taste - and what you want to do with your synth. The 6581 is the classic Commodore SID, used in millions of computers. It sounds grittier, while the newer 8580/6582 chips (very similar to each other, if not identical) sound cleaner, with way better filters.

Keep in mind: that sammichSID description on ebay (which has now sold for $600 btw), a SID is absolutely not a Minimoog or a TR-909/808 on a chip. In fact it doesn't sound much like any of those things. But it has a rude, tweaky sound, capable of producing the best game/chiptune tones, as well as much deeper synthesis options thanks to the fantastic MIDIbox SID software.

Some pretty good examples can be heard at http://ucapps.de/midibox_sid.html

I don't want to sound like a salesman, but there will be no more sammichSID kits produced. Wilba is currently selling off the final batch of 50. It is a pretty flawless kit, suitable for all levels of expertise, with an excellent build guide.

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Keep in mind: that SammichSID [...] on ebay (which has now sold for $600 btw) [...]

Wilba is currently selling off the final batch of 50. It is a pretty flawless kit, suitable for all levels of expertise, with an excellent build guide.

Which means we will likely see high prices again. Good for the owners :-). I never ever would consider selling my MB6582. Ever. I swear. Not for 2K and Paris Hilton washing my car.

Build your own, enjoy it twice!

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^^ Agreed. Love my MB-6582, just bought a sammichSID kit because my MB-6582 is complete, and I might want to fart around with the software or hardware. My MB-6582 has become part of my studio, so I don't want to have it open or otherwise inoperative when a creative moment comes along! I have a lot of gear, and the MB-6582 is one of the last things I would ever sell - not because I built it, not even because of the licence, but just because it's just a great synth.

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