MOTM General Purpose Information

If you have never built an electronics kit, or you are simply interested in what MOTM is, this is the right place!

MOTM really stands for Mother of All Modulars. Some customers refer to it as the Module Of The Month. That's because we try to have one new module every 4-6weeks.

MOTM is an analog modular synthesizer. Like the big Moog, Buchla, and Polyfusion modulars of 25 years ago, there are no presets, no limits on sound creation! Well, except your budget! You are free to choose which MOTM modules are suited to your style of music, and using standard 1/4" patch cords, you must create the patch to get the sound. Sometimes this is straight-forward, and sometimes a "mistake" will lead you off on a new direction!

MOTM modules are available as kits or assembled. Kits are the best way to save money, AND you will enjoy the process of building your own synth. Proper tools are required (see the TUTORIAL page) but the $$$ savings on the kits will pay for the tools and MORE! The kits are 100% complete: even the wire and solder is included. Plus, we offer the following promise: if you build a kit and for any reason you think it is not 100% functional, return it to us with $5 and we will fix it for free, usually within 24 hours.


At Synthesis Technology, there are no "secret circuits", potted modules, and such. Just the opposite! We provide FULL schematics, parts lists, and theory of operation. We offer toll-free tech support. Our goal is for you to be comfortable owning a MOTM modular, and not spend time worrying over support issues down the road.

Here is a picture of some "parts bags" from the motm-420 VCF. Notice that each type of part (resistor, capacitor, etc) gets it's own bag. The parts are soldered into the pc board one at a time, bag-by-bag.

We pride ourselves on the quality of parts used in the MOTM modules. Rather than spend hours finding cheaper alternative parts, we spend hours to find the best parts. For example, we use 0.125 aircraft aluminum front panels, with baked-on paint and epoxy-ink silkscreening. The most single important part any a modular is the panel pots: if these go out or get "scratchy" the entire module is no good. Do we use cheap sliders? NO! (ever try to get a slider cap for an ARP2600?) Do we use cheap Asian carbon pots? NO! We use only Bourns or Spectrol industrial, sealed pots with cermet or conductive plastic elements. We spend more on one pot than our competition spends on 10. But....5 years from now our pots will still be like new, sealed from harmful dust and dirt. Also, these pots are "off-the-shelf" from many industrial electronics suppliers and not some custom job.


Switches also take a beating! Do we use typical "open-frame" rocker switches? NO! We use epoxy-sealed, silver contact NKK industrial UL/CE rated toggle switches with 100,000 cycle lifetimes. See the following close-up of what we are talking about.

Power supply distribution is a critical part of getting a low-noise output. 25 years ago, the term "low-noise" was relative to LP's! Today, with 24-bit, 96Khz hard-disk recorders, "low-noise" takes on an entirely new meaning! The MOTM modules are the ONLY analog synthesizer that has "CD-quality" SNR specs where it matters. Part of this is the unique power supply system used. Each module has a 4-pin AMP MTA-156 male connector (very common in commercial equipment). The motm-900 Power Supply has a pc board with 12 connectors as well. Each module ships with a 4-conductor, 18ga. UL-listed wire harness that simply "snaps in". In this manner, a "star ground" is established back to the power supply. NO easier (read: lower cost) "buss bar" system is used. See the following close-up of the power cable mated to the module.

If you look closely, you can also see how the pc board is attached to the steel support bracket underneath. This bracket is in turn attached to the front panel via 2 stainless steel studs.

The size of MOTM panels was debated for weeks and weeks. We wanted to use BIG knobs, and 1/4" jacks (1/8" jacks are just too weak and flimsy). What we decided on was to use the industry-standard 1U (one "rack space") as a multiple. So, our MOTM panels are 5U tall and 1, 2, or 3U wide (the upcoming sequencer will be 5U wide). As it turns out, you can fit 10U width across a 19" rack. Perfect! So, the MOTM modules are designed to fit into existing 19" racks.
But...there is one detail! How do you attach them TO the rack? The answer: the motm-19A Mounting Rails. These custom-made, 11ga steel L-brackets are designed to bolt across a 19" rack, 5 spaces apart. There are 8-32 holes tapped into the steel at the standard rail spacing (19" rails use 10-32 size holes). The MOTM modules are designed so ANY modules can go ANYWHERE along the rail! See the following photo of a motm-800 EG bolted all alone between the 2 rails.