Summary of SCREECH OWL IS A TRIBUTE TO THE EOWAVE PERSEPHONE
The Eowave Persephone–inspired Screech Owl is a monophonic ribbon synth replica by Ben Glover built around an Arduino Leonardo with a custom shield. It uses a 500 mm Softpot membrane potentiometer combined with a thin-film pressure sensor for aftertouch; the Leonardo reads these controls and generates audio frequencies. Electronics are housed in a laser-cut enclosure resembling the original, with professional PCB fabrication and design help from services like Fiverr and ChatGPT.
Parts used in the Screech Owl:
- Arduino Leonardo
- Custom Arduino Leonardo shield (designed for the project)
- Softpot 500 mm membrane potentiometer (ribbon controller)
- Thin-film pressure sensor (aftertouch layer)
- Laser-cut enclosure
- Printed circuit board manufactured via JLCPCB
- Miscellaneous wiring and electronic components (for synth circuitry)
The Eowave Persephone was a beautiful thing—a monophonic ribbon synth capable of producing clean, smoothly varying tones. [Ben Glover] used to own a nice example that formerly belonged to Peter Christopherson, but lost it in the shifting sands of time. His solution was to build one of his own from scratch.
Known as the Screech Owl, the build is based around a custom shield designed to suit the Arduino Leonardo. The primary control interface is a Softpot 500 mm membrane potentiometer, layered up with a further thin film pressure sensor which provides aftertouch control. The Leonardo reads these sensors and synthesizes the appropriate frequencies in turn.
All the electronics is wrapped up inside a tidy laser-cut enclosure that roughly approximates the design of the original Eowave device. [Ben] noted the value of services like Fiverr and ChatGPT for helping him with the design, while he also enjoyed getting his first shield design professionally manufactured via JLCPCB.
It’s a tidy build, and in [Ben’s] capable hands, it sounds pretty good, too. We’ve seen some other great ribbon controlled synths before, too. Video after the break.
Source: SCREECH OWL IS A TRIBUTE TO THE EOWAVE PERSEPHONE
- What inspired the Screech Owl project?
The project is a tribute to the Eowave Persephone ribbon synth. - What microcontroller is used in the build?
An Arduino Leonardo is used as the core of the build. - What is used for the primary control interface?
A Softpot 500 mm membrane potentiometer serves as the primary ribbon controller. - How is aftertouch implemented?
A thin-film pressure sensor layered over the Softpot provides aftertouch control. - How are the sensors processed?
The Leonardo reads the sensors and synthesizes the appropriate frequencies. - How is the electronics housing described?
The electronics are enclosed in a tidy laser-cut enclosure approximating the original device design. - Did the builder use professional manufacturing services?
Yes, the builder had a shield professionally manufactured via JLCPCB. - Did the builder use external services for design help?
Yes, the builder noted using services like Fiverr and ChatGPT for design assistance.
