POLY555 kits, back in stock

I've got some POLY555 electronics kits available now on the shop and ready to ship today. Thanks for your patience!

Buy it here, as you wish: POLY555 DIY Synthesizer Electronics Kit

What is this POLY555, you ask?

Thanks for asking!

The POLY555 is a polyphonic, analog, square wave synth based on the infamous 555 timer chip. Its 20 piano keys arbit power to 20 identical 555 timer circuits, lovingly displayed under a plexiglass window.

Full disclosure and a request for feedback

Warning: Recommended for advanced users! This kit has over 250 pieces and can take 5+ hours to put together. It requires a solid grasp of electronics and through-hole soldering.

The POLY555 is in the awkward position of being the oldest kit I still sell and am proud of but I've learned enough since its launch that it's not my first recommendation... even for people who love soldering hundreds of components as a joke!

• No audio output. No MIDI input. I know, I know.
• It's a pain to tune! Sometimes too painful.
• The volume thumbwheel frustrates people and really abuses that poor trimpot.
• LED nits: too low 9v resistor value, blinding brightness in dark rooms, shipped colors confusingly don't always match instructions
• The speaker is tough/expensive to source and the enclosure's design means it can't easily swap to a different, nearly identical model. My biggest gripe!

That's a nice list of things for me to fix for the next version. When I run out of this version's PCBs, I likely won't order more or sell them again. Of course, it'll live forever as open source. And if you're unbothered by my gripes and want to make one of the last of the OG models, please buy a kit.

Have you made one of my POLY555s? What did you think?

What I've been hacking on: speaker_capsule()

It's a round speaker enclosure/cabinet that screws together with threads.

So 1) you get a good fit without nuts and bolts, 2) it's easy to swap a product's speaker post-launch (see gripe above), and 3) it's really satisfying to screw together.

Either cap can integrate into bigger pieces, as seen in the burgeoning prototype out of focus in the photo above.

To simple pleasures,
Tommy from Oskitone