Belgian company Polaxis has been pushing the boundaries of speech synthesis for over a decade, and now they’re bringing back a classic: the Talko.
The original Talko was their very first speech synthesizer, later followed by Emy, which added an OLED screen, SD card support, and a whole new level of control.
Over the years, Polaxis gathered 10 years of user feedback, collected thousands of LPC files, and experimented with new chip emulations.
The result? Talko returns — with onboard FX!
This new-generation Talko(2?) stays true to its raw, charming character, but now comes packed with fresh features.
Based on a Speak & Spell emulation (probably running on an Arduino?), it can speak numbers, alphabets, phonemes, and phrase banks, all while running in real time through built-in effects.
It’s designed to be DIY-friendly and will be available both as a Eurorack module or in a quirky standalone “bricky” format (a nod to @errorinstruments).
🔊 Want to hear it live? Come check it out at Dutch Modular Fest, Saturday September 6th in Rotterdam!
Synthesizer Content Creators Are Making a Comeback!
It feels like a blast from the past....suddenly, the synthesizer content creators from the early 2000s and 2010s are roaring back to life!
The nostalgic wave of synth enthusiasts who shaped the online music tech scene a decade ago seems to be rekindling their passion, and I’m here for it.
Last month I shared that *Retro Synth Ads*, a beloved blog for synth nerds, started posting again after a nearly four-year hiatus.
Their return has been a delight for fans of vintage gear and quirky ads from the golden age of synthesizers. If you haven’t checked it out yet, dive into their treasure trove of retro goodness at
Now, there’s more exciting news: Raul Pena, the mastermind behind *Raul’s World of Synths*, is back in action!
Raul recently uploaded a mix of new and archival videos, including a Q&A where he reflects on how his channel began, the reasons behind his break, and his ambitious plans for future content.
You can catch his latest updates on his YouTube channels
For those unfamiliar, Raul’s work is a goldmine for synth enthusiasts. Through Raul’s World of Synths (active for 14 years) and Modular Wild (running for 12 years), he combines on-site video recordings and photography from synthesizer events to promote awareness and education about music technology. His content dives deep into the innovations of the music and audio industry, making it a valuable resource for musicians, techies, and enthusiasts of all ages.
I've had a lot of fun playing with the new Dtronics DT-303 that I bought a few months ago.
The Dtronics DT-303 is a small analog distortion and overdrive desktop unit (non-eurorack) made by Dutch company Dtronics.
It’s not a synthesizer, it’s mainly designed to work with machines like the Roland TB-303 and other bassline synths and offers 3 types of distortion.
The DT-303 changes your sound by adding distortion and overdrive .You can make it sound a little rough, or very dirty and aggressive, depending on the settings.
If you want your acid lines to sound more dirty, loud, or punchy, this box can help.
The unit itself is small and strong, with it's metal case and rubber feet it sits sturdy on flat surfaces. Mono In- and Output are on the backside. The unit comes with a 9V power supply.
It only has a few knobs and buttons that feel sturdier than the ones on my TB-303.
3 buttons to select types of distortion Classic / Turbo / Overdrive or Bypass.
1 Bypass button allows you to switch back to the original sound quickly.
It also has 3 knobs for Distortion level, Filter cutoff and Volume
...al in a very cool looking TB-303 aesthetic
The sound is warm and full and doesn’t make the bass disappear like some cheaper distortion boxes do.
My own TB-303/DT-303 Combo
Wifred Pover from DTronics got the idea for the DT-303 in 2023; "On a rainy Sunday in January 2023 we were brainstorming about new products. Until then, we had mainly made programmers for synthesizers. examples of this are the DT7, DT-300 and DT-200. We thought it would be nice to broaden it and see if we could create a distortion. While we were talking, we came up with the idea of a distortion that could adjust the nuances and that would fit well with the appearance of the 303. We were also bothered by variants where the connections were not at the back, causing the wires to run over the instrument.
Step by step the project became clearer and took more shape. We have been busy fine-tuning the parameters so that it matches our expectations as closely as possible. We also enlisted the help of several good friends who have a lot of knowledge and expertise in the field of distortions and of course experience with the Roland TB-303."
"We started designing the hardware and the casing. An important part was the recognizability and the connection to the Roland TB-303. We used custom buttons and pots for this.
This is how the first prototypes of the DT-303 were created."
Funding was realized within a month via Kickstarter. The first modules were shipped in early 2024
and there are still units available via: SynthCity.NL
Basically the Dtronics DT-303 is a simple but effective box. If you like acid music or 303-style basslines, it’s a great way to get that extra drive and grit. It only works in mono, but for what it’s made to do, it does an excellent job.
I didn't have the right state of mind to make an original short video of this FX module, but I will try to feature it in upcoming video's. The Dtronics website has enough interesting videos about it anyway....
There is/was still a free Aux send on my mixing desk, so now I can also send 909 Bassdrums and other synths through this box... I love it!
This year, we're celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Eurorack format. It's a great time to reflect on its journey.
When I started with Eurorack in 1998, only a couple of synth shops sold the modules: The Music House in Utrecht and MIDI Amsterdam. The real hype began with a "MIDI and Recording" magazine article on the Doepfer A-100 system around that same time. I recently spoke with Martijn at The Music House, who was the first official Doepfer dealer. He taught me so much back then, and I'm still a huge Doepfer fan.
We're planning an interview for later this year.
The team at Modulogue sat down with Tim Nieuwenhuis from MIDI Amsterdam to discuss his store and the early days of Eurorack. It's a fascinating look at the start of the Eurorack scene in the Netherlands and how it led to a whole new community centered around sound.
I'm definitely looking forward to the next part of this story—if it becomes a series!
Video: The Story Behind MIDI Amsterdam /by/ Modulogue " We visited Tim Nieuwenhuis' music store: 'MIDI Amsterdam', a staple in the Dutch electronic music scene for almost 30 years. Tim talks about the origin of his store, his passion for electronic music, the famous artists he's encountered over the years, and more!
The Bopp & Steve Deconstructed Reverb by This is Not Rocket Science (TiNRS) has been on my radar ever since it was first teased at Superbooth Berlin a few years ago. With its unique approach to reverb and its unconventional interface, it immediately stood out among the sea of more traditional effects modules.
Earlier this year, TiNRS finally unveiled the finished version, and it’s been making waves in the modular community ever since. You may have already come across excellent deep-dives by DivKid and SonicState, both highlighting its creative potential and playful sound design possibilities.
But today, a new perspective caught my attention — a fresh video by Dutch modular artist Raaf Modular just popped up in my feed.
He’s relatively new to creating content, but his style feels personal, musical, and refreshingly unpolished in the best way.
It’s always exciting to see these modules in the hands of musicians who approach them from a purely creative angle rather than just technical.
In this one, I’m focusing on a single module — BOPP and STEVE by This Is Not Rocket Science. This is not a review. I’m not a reviewer — I’m a musician. (plus a teacher! (red))
So rather than diving into every technical detail, I’m giving you a musical demonstration: how I use this module to patch, play, and make music.
It’s a new direction I’m exploring, and I’m really enjoying it. I originally started this channel to share my music, but more and more people have been asking how I create it — how I patch, how I build my sounds, and how I work with modular gear. So this is the first step in sharing more of that side of my process. Let me know in the comments if this kind of video speaks to you —
I’d love your feedback. Thanks for watching
Raaf "
* The date for next year's Superbooth has just been released: May 7- 9 2026
Polish SOMA laboratory was founded by Vlad Kreimer in 2016 after success with the LYRA-8 synthesizer, an interesting concept that he called“Organismic”, meaning that LYRA uses some principles that lie in the base of living organisms. "The way how LYRA’s modules interact between each other and the behavior of the instrument resembles a live digital conversation."
New colors added to the original white and black versions
While LYRA-8 was based on eight generators, Soma re-launched this as LYRA-4 as a 4-voice version and the latest news is that they added a bunch of flashy colors for the fans... They now added green, pink, orange, and Zanzibar blue to its cast of colors.
Their design is not like any traditional subtractive synthesis VCO.
Instead of having a linear or logarithmic dependency on control voltage, they resemble the tone generators in old electric organs. Hence the use of the term “voices” instead of “VCOs”.
Lyra uses non-linearity a lot, and the voices are constructed in such a way that allows for non-linearity to express itself.
It even comes in pink now! <3
The voices are divided into two pairs (12, 34), creating tree-like structure.
The voices can function either in an electric organ mode or in an FM synthesis mode with each of the voices and its envelope acting as a separate FM operator. The voice’s impact on FM synthesis will decrease along with the decay of its envelope.
LYRA-4 also has the next blocks:
The HYPER LFO is a complex low-frequency generator, whose waveform is synthesized from two simple LFOs by summation or multiplication of their frequencies. It also has a sync mode. The LFO can modulate the selected pairs of voices and the MOD DELAY.
The MOD DELAY consists of delay with feedback. The delay has a unique possibility of self-modulation where the output signal modulates the delay sample rate, creating cool effects.
The DISTORTION is last in the chain, after the delay. It enables the delay to also influence the distortion.
For all its experimental character, LYRA is a professional instrument. Its output dynamics and frequency response are balanced and ready for a live performance or studio recording without any additional processing.
On the other side of the color spectrum, the company is offering a special “Rusting SOMA” limited-edition bundle containing the PULSAR-23, LYRA-8, and COSMOS. Not just another color, the special bundle's housing utilizes the highest level of production by using a unique technology and not just an artificial aging of each product.
While each product is being offered individually, each order of a complete set of the Rusting SOMA bundle comes with matching serial numbers for each product.
Each new color variant, including Rusting SOMA, is already shipping. LYRA-4 is priced at €360 The PULSAR-23, LYRA-8, COSMOS bundle is priced at €2,700 (add €300 for Turret version)
The final thing that had to be done in the studio after moving to Hilversum was re-organizing and cleaning my modular system.
It's a dirty job... but someone's got to do it...
I recently sold my Doepfer MAQ 16/3 sequencer, that one has mainly been replaced by the BeatStepPro sequencer.
My Doepfer vocoder modules also found a better home... they took up too much space, and i'm more than happy with the easier to use Roland Boutique VP-03 vocoder... and this one still gives my tracks that retro Electro-Funk vibes. Some other modules that i hardly ever used were sold too... I still do still have a few Doepfer modules for sale (pm me for a list).
The old layout just didn't make any sense anymore. Some modules were so weirdly placed that patching them always resulted in a whole spaghetti of cables.
I love my knobs nice and clean
The new tower is now a fully analog, independent 5-Oscillator synth with a plethora of different modulation, calculation and filter options.
The new Eurorack mini-tower, controlled by the BeatStepPro
After re-organizing the modules I took all the plastic knobs off and soaked them overnight in a jar filled with warm water with a bit of (biologic and bio-degradable) household cleaner added... It seemed to do the job perfect...
Never use alcohol or other synthetic products because it might damage (the text on) your front-panels.
The next day I rubbed them all clean with a microfiber cloth and let them dry in the sun.
I used a slightly dampt cloth with the same cleaner to clean the front-panels, wiping them dry directly after.
I placed my Novation Drumstation on top of the tower for some of the most authentic TR-808 and TR-909 clone-drumsounds... and all still controlled by the BeatStepPro that I mentioned earlier.
The Drumstation's DIN-SYNC out is going into my TB-303, so this one nicely follows along, while it feeds its CV and a Gate signal back into my Eurorack tower . I can re-use these signals to create a copied version of the loop playing on the TB...and mutate it in any way i want...
I'm soo happy now,
the new workflow has much improved, less of the old cable-spaghetti, and the first soundcheck sounded crisp and clear.
I can't wait to record new sounds soon.
I couldn't find many guidelines for arranging modules on the web, so I made a few notes during the process last time that I did this...
/ modulogue.events 
/ modulogue 
/ modulogue 
