Thee Gristleizer

*Thee Gristleizer is an effects box built by Chris Carter of Throbbing Gristle fame. The device was based on a kit and schematic in 'Practical Electronic' by Roy Gwinn. The original unit had a switch to choose between a VCF (voltage controlled filter) and VCA (voltage controlled amplifier) setting. It also had 'Speed', 'Depth', and 'Bias' controls. You could choose the waveform with the 'Shape' knob. The 'Speed' and 'Depth' knobs controlled the LFO (low frequency oscillator). Simply put, Thee Gristleizer could be thought of as a sound destruction unit with a tremolo like setting. But it is so much more than that in the right hands. Recently a company based out of Asheville, North Carolina, have started making an authorized version of Thee Gristleizer and Throbbing Gristle used the new version on their recent reunion tour. If you'd like to pick one up, here's a link:

Endangered Audio

However, if like me, this recession hasn't been so kind to you, and dropping $375 on an effects device isn't currently feasible, maybe I can interest you in my version built for Propellerhead's Reason 4. This effects combinator routes sound thru Reason's Thor synthesizer. Using it's LFO's and sequencer to approximate the original. And for the dirt I used a Scream, "Sound Destruction Unit". This squelching bad boy can be yours for the low price of $374. No just kidding. It's free. Here's an RPS file to check it out:

Gristleizer.rps

If you'd like a copy of the combinator:


THEE_GRISTLEIZER

(If for some reason that link doesn't work, e-mail me thru the blog or on the Props forum ~ lewis72)

Here's Chris Carter himself, playing two Buddha Boxes thru a couple of Gristleizers:

Two Gristleizers Modulating Two FM3 Buddha Machines from Chris Carter on Vimeo.

* All product names used are trademarks of their respective owners, and in no way constitutes an association or affiliation with resonantfilter.blogspot.com. Thee Gristleizer and Throbbing Gristle trademarks are solely used to identify the products whose sound was studied during L.72's sound modeling development.

** To those wondering how I can afford to release this product at such a low cost. One word = volume.