Category: General

MadWaves MadPlayer – Generative music device from around 2003

I found one of these in a drawer whilst I was looking for something else. I think I have another one somewhere.

It has an apparently common problem of the rubberised paint becoming what can only be described as “slimy”. But for its time it is a pretty interesting bit of kit. Basically creates up to 6 part generative music in a variety of styles with pretty much (I think) infinite variation.Including an FM radio that can (it appears) be sampled from.

This is a recording direct into Logic of a “TripHop” track (which is completely randomly generated, instantly) with a bit of messing around at the end in terms of regenerating the drums. Which was done in realtime as the audio was recording into the Mac. Just with a bit of compression and reverb added in Logic.

It will save created tracks to midi but does so to a SmartMedia card – I have an order in for a reader. Which should really increase the potential. There is a USB interface but it uses a proprierty cable that is long gone.

I do have a bit of an idea that if it was, even now, repacked in a form that looked a little less like a children’s toy (and perhaps the inbuilt track themes were updated a little), with a normal USB port and SD card support, it would still stand up.

And losing the slimy paint would be good (off to wash hands).