Synthesizer Build part-21: ARP2600 LOWPASS FILTER (4072).

The famous ARP 4072 VCF. The best sounding filter of any I built so far! With verified stripboard layout.

A word of warning right at the start; this is an advanced project, not for beginners. You need to know your electronics and you also need to have a good oscilloscope.

The ARP2600 is my favourite synth from the early 70's. It's been used on so many iconic records.

In any synth the filter is the defining factor in the creation of the sound and after tackling the ARP's Envelope Follower I thought it was time to try out the famous 4072 filter. ARP has had a number of well known filter types. The 4012 (4035 for Odyssey) which was a Moog type ladder filter over which they got in trouble with Moog for patent infringement. The 4023 two-pole filter of the early Odyssey synths. Then later came the 4072 (the one we're going to make) for the later ARP2600's. The ones with the orange labels with white lettering. These had a fault at first due to miscalculation, which limited the bandwidth of the filter to below 10kHz. This was later fixed with a few component value changes. And then there's the 4075 which was the filter used in the later ARP Odyssey's.

If you want to build this filter there's really only one schematic you can turn to and that's the Yusynth schematic. So I set to work making a layout. I first tried just starting at the lower left of the schematic and building the layout up from there. Within minutes it turned so complicated I couldn't make heads nor tails of it. So after an other unsuccessful try I came to version 3 of the layout and this time I decided to place all the semiconductor components neatly on the board first. All transistors in a row on top and the two chips in their own space underneath and wire it all up that way. This worked fantastically and after a days work I had a layout that looked really good and, more importantly, turned out to be faultless right from the get go.

I was blown away when I tested the finished filter. Of all the filters I built, from the Moog Ladder Filter to the Steiner-Parker, there is no filter that sounds as good as this one. Now I love the Steiner filter and it sounds awesome but this one just has more quality and better resonance control. More meat on the bone if you know what I mean. It sounds how a synthesizer should sound. But of course this is all a matter of personal perception. Mind you this filter, at least the one I built, has less output volume. It's a bit quieter than other filters which is why I suggested a upgrade of the gain in output opamp. More on that further in the article.

BUILD PROCEDURE

Like I mentioned at the beginning, this is not a project for beginners. It's reasonably complicated and you need to work very methodically and do things in steps. First map out all the cuts in the copper strips with a Sharpy and cut the traces accordingly. Then solder in all the wire bridges and then solder in the components. Keep counting the holes and make sure everything is placed exactly like on the layout, otherwise you will run into trouble with space on the board and things end up not being connected right. I worked from left to right soldering it all in and checking every connection with a powerful loupe. And in the end, of course, it didn't work straight away. It turns out I had forgotten to cut four copper strips near the 1V/Oct trimmer. After I cut those the filter suddenly sprung to life and started making sounds that instantly reminded me of the ARP2600.

SCHEMATIC:

Here's the Yusynth schematic. It looks a bit weird but the LM3900 really operates on negative voltage, in this circuit. 

LAYOUTS:

And here's the layout. Like I mentioned before, the layout is verified because it's the one I used for my own build. (All potmeters are shown from the front with shaft facing you). 

Addition: I've had confirmation from multiple readers that this layout has been used successfully. 

To increase the gain I strongly advise to change resistor R41 from 56K to 100K. R41 is the 56K resistor over pins 6 and 7 of IC-2 at the bottom left (from hole U-8 to V-8). Otherwise the volume will be a bit too low.

Stripboard only:

Sometimes you'll see a cut in the copper strip overlapping a component in the layout above. I've done that on purpose so the cuts are easily visible. The layout is pretty complicated especially for beginners because there are so many cuts to be made, so I want things to be as clear as possible. 

Below is the cuts and wirebridges layout. Mark the cuts with a Sharpie or Edding pen on the component side and then put a pin through the marked holes and mark them again on the copper side. Then cut the traces at the marked positions with a sharp hand held 6- or 7mm drill bit.

Cuts and Wirebridges component side:

To make it even easier here's a layout showing just the cuts that need to be made in the copper strips. This is seen from the COPPER SIDE!:

Bill of Materials:

If you don't trust yourself to build this on Stripboard then here's the PCB design for this filter. You can find it on the YuSynth website along with all other necessary information. Click the link below for that.

http://yusynth.net/Modular/EN/ARPVCF/index.html

SOME NOTES ON COMPONENTS:

There are 12 transistors in this filter and they need to be 6 matched pairs. I simply matched them on Hfe value with the transistor tester on my multimeter and that seemed to be good enough because the filter works fine. Officially they need to be matched over the value of Vbe, so if you measure the voltage drop over the Base-Emitter junction, and match them that way, that will be the best method but you'll need to set up a little test rig for that on a piece of stripboard.

Here's the circuit for matching PNP transistors. Use a cut in half DIP8 IC socket to stick the transistors in and easily switch them. You'll need a +/-12V dual voltage source for this setup.

If the transistors are matched the voltage measured between both emitters should be zero (0V).

Make shure you give the transistors time to cool down after you held them between your fingers. I always blow on them to cool them down faster. A match of 0.3 mV or lower is good enough.

The four 470pF capacitors need to be high quality and also closely matched in value. I used polystyrene caps for those. I even matched the 220 Ohm base resistors so they all had the same value. In my case they are all 216 Ohm.  The CV inputs all have 100K resistors on the inputs and a 150K resistor on the wiper of the Cut-Off Frequency potmeter. I didn't have room for them on the stripboard so I hung them over-board so to speak. In reality I soldered those resistors straight to the wipers of the potmeters and in case of the 1V/Oct. straight to the input jack. Then I put some heat-shrink tubing over them and after that I put some heat-shrink tubing over all the wires from one input together so there's never any tension on the resistor itself. This works fine. Of course, if you use a bigger piece of stripboard you can accommodate those resistors on the board itself. Or you can use a small piece of stripboard, solder the resistors on that and connect it to the main board with wires and then use some hot glue and a plastic spacer to glue it to the main stripboard. Lots of options :-)
The resonance potmeter needs to be a dual- aka stereo potmeter. I didn't have one but luckily my neighbour, who repairs audio equipment, had one laying around but it was a logarithmic potmeter. I put it in anyway and it worked like a charm. :) For the trimmer potmeters you can use a 50K for trimmer T1 if you don't have a 47K. In fact, it can be any value from 20K upwards because it's just connected between plus and minus 15V so the actual resistance isn't important for the working of the circuit. But don't forget there is 30 Volts across that trimmer so don't use a value below 20K to keep the current flow down. For trimmer T2 you can use a 2K instead of a 2.2K, but you must keep close to the recommended value for that one because it is part of the input bias for the transistor Q3. I used a 2K on my print and this works fine.

ABOUT TUNING:
This filter has a 1 Volt per octave input connection to make the resonance follow the chromatic scale if you want to use the filter as a sinewave oscillator with resonance fully open. The filter sounds better over all if you use that connection although it is not necessary for the filter to function. There's a trimmer (T2) for the 1V/Oct and the way I set it was to listen to the filter's response while going over the keyboard from low to high. If it is set wrong you'll hear the notes become all muddled up and out of tune at the higher end. If you set the filter potmeters in such a way that it self-oscillates, then the resonance pitch will follow the keyboard scale. So you need to tune the filter so that the self-oscillation is in tune with the keyboard notes if possible. I myself however did not tune it that way. I simply tuned it so the notes sounded ok over all the octaves and left it at that. That's good enough for me and the filter works fine. I don't think the self-oscillation of the filter will track well over multiple octaves anyway, but again, I didn't try that so I may be wrong. The filter is an Alan R. Pearlman design (ARP) and they are usually really good designs. Let me know in the comments if you managed to get self-oscillation tracking over the octaves, please!
The other trimmer is the Low Frequency trim-pot (T1). It needs to be set so that the output wave at the lowest end of the keyboard, and with the Cut-off pot turned all the way counter-clockwise, is a nice sinusoidal bass tone, at least, that is the way I set it. I'm not saying that this the way to do it. I'm simply saying, this is how I did it.
The frequency cut-off potmeter is wired up in such a way that it opens up and lets through the high frequencies when you turn it clockwise and when you turn it counter clockwise it cuts off more and more of the high frequencies making the sound very deep and low.
The values of the potmeters for CV IN and for the audio inputs are not critical and you can use anything from 10K to 1M for those because they are just level potmeters. For the audio potmeters the schematic says to use logarithmic ones but in reality linear will work fine too. It's log because it's audio. Like I mentioned before, I used a logarithmic stereo-potmeter for the Resonance control because that's the only thing I had but it seems to work very well eventhough the schematic says to use a linear type. It probably wouldn't matter what value you use for the Frequency Control either but I'd stick to the recommended 50K or 47K for that one. (I used 100K's for the CV level control potmeters.)
Don't forget to solder the 100K resistors, for the CV inputs, to the wipers of the potmeters or to the input on the stripboard, and don't forget either that the resistor on the wiper of the Frequency Control potmeter is a 150K and not a 100K one! (A mistake I initially made.)

PICTURES AND DEMOs

Here are some pictures of the finished stripboard. This is an early version that has one more jump wire than the new layout. I realized I had a copper strip that was not in use so I used it to replace a jump wire. You can see I marked out the cuts in the copper strips with a black felt pen. I also marked out the 0V/Ground strip with a black line on the component side of the stripboard. Marking out the ground helps to prevent mistakes.

Here's a little video with a demo of what the filter sounds like, taken right after I built it in. Remember when I filmed this it was the first time I played around with this filter so this is just a simple demo of the sounds it produces. At this point in my synthesizer building journey I hadn't even figured out that you need to connect an ADSR to the filter's CV input to get that characteristic filter sound. I just have an LFO connected here. Oh well, I've learned a lot since this was published ^____^

In this second video (which I filmed later) the filter CV-1 input is connected to the little 7555 AD/AR with the big arcade button. This kicks up the cutoff frequency of the ARP filter as soon as a key is pressed and then releases it pretty quickly thereafter. The AD/AR is set to trigger mode so it gives an Attack/Decay response.  The filter is fed with a single squarewave from the VCO. I think you'll agree it sounds amazing. Like a synth should sound. With apologies for my poor keyboard playing :p 

This is a new video posted on the 12th of November 2020:

This filter can also produce those helicopter sounds that you can hear in the beginning of 'Apocalypse Now'. (Francis Ford Coppola had an ARP2600 himself.) All you have to do is turn the cut-off frequency counter clockwise and connect an LFO with a sawtooth wave to the CV input, set to the frequency that the rotor-blades of the helicopter would have and turn the resonance counter-clockwise too. You can add some noise too on Audio IN 2 if necessary.

One little attention point you must remember when using this filter. It's possible to overload this filter with audio in so much that the resonance won't work at full capacity. I had this happen to me where the resonance wouldn't produce the famous whistling sound and I had been trouble shooting for a day changing out the IC's, checking transistors, replacing the capacitors until I finally found out I had the input level set too high (The Audio-1 level potmeter on the front panel). I turned it back by a quarter and everything was back to normal. I'm telling you this so you don't make the same mistake. ^___^

This is what the panel looks like now. I've touched the lettering up a bit because it was all crooked (and it still is I guess, LOL) so it's good enough for me. What's important is what this panel represents; the best friggin' filter I've ever built!! :)

Okay that's it for now.
To finish off this article here's a fantastic documentary about the history of ARP Instruments by YouTuber Alex Ball who has the best synthesizer channel on YouTube in my opinion. Enjoy!

That's it for this article. I hope you liked it.

If you have any questions or remarks please put them in the comments below or on the special Facebook Group for this website.

Synthesizer Build part-15: DUAL KORG MS-20 HP/LP FILTER.

This is just two Korg MS-20 filters behind one panel with switches to go between using them as individual filters or switching them in series.  This is one of my early projects so the implementation is a bit clumsy with how I use the switches etc. but it'll be easier to use socket switches instead of toggle switches but in my early building days I didn't know these things. 

I'm keeping the article up for archival reasons plus this dual configuration actually sounds pretty awesome but in hindsight, I wouldn't build it like it's presented below. Just so you know. 

I wasn't too pleased with the performance of the Prophet 5 lowpass filter so I decided to remove it and put a new filter in its place. I've seen lots of videos about the Korg MS-20 and really like the sound of it. I noticed that synthesizer has two nearly identical filters next to eachother; the highpass- and the lowpass-filter, so I wanted to emulate that in my own synth. So I set out to build two of the 'Late MS-20 filters' by Rene Schmitz, and fit them behind a single panel that was the size of the old Prophet 5 filter that I took out. It was a tight fit to put all the knobs and switches on but it worked out beautifully in the end.
The schematics and layout I used are just the same as the ones I used in article 12 of this blog, so if you want to build your own dual filter arrangement you can go to the Korg MS20 filter page and build TWO of those. Build both filters with the HP/LP switch but do not include the bandpass switch. You build two MS-20 HP/LP filters and put them behind one panel. Then, as extra, you add switches to the inputs so you're able to put them in series or use them independently of eachother. The wiring diagram for those switches is further down the article.

Here's a picture of what that looks like. You can see I have filter one on the left side and filter two on the right. Each has its own Cut-Off Frequency and Resonance controls and each has audio and CV-in level controls and each has it's own Highpass/Lowpass switch. Beneath those switches you see two more switches which enable me to switch both filters in series without using patch cables to connect them to eachother.:

The wiring of these two stripboards was a bit of a nightmare but I got it done in the end. I made some initial mistakes and had to re-wire some potmeters so that's why the wires look like such a mess. Luckily it doesn't affect the working of the filter.

In the first filter I used the LM13600 chip and in the second the LM13700 chip. And having them side by side is a good opportunity to compare them and the LM13600 is a bit tamer than the 13700. So if you have both chips in stock you can decide whether you want your filters to sound aggressive or a bit less aggressive. It's not a big difference though.

You can see in the pictures above that it's a tight fit but I did managed to include two volume or level potmeters for the audio inputs, which are not included in the original build but are very useful to have. I'm going to make sure that every filter I build in the future has input level control.
Beneath the HP/LP switches are the two switches that give you the option of using these filters as two stand-alone filters, so not internally connected, or if you want to put them in series so the output of filter 1 goes into the input of filter 2.
One other weird option would be to switch the output of filter 1 to the output jack but leave the input switch for filter 2 as is, so filter 2 has no input. Because these filters are self-oscillating you can now use filter 2 as an oscillator. Put the output into the 4 channel mixer described in article 17 and put the resulting wave through filter 1 or wherever you like. Connect a 1V/Oct voltage to the CV input. Just an idea, but you see there are endless possibilities. That is the beauty of modular synthesizers. :)
However, it would be better to use a single DPDT switch here and use it just to switch between two filters in series or both separate. That makes it easier to switch but that way you can not use one of the filters as stand-alone oscillator, but you won't use that function much anyway I'll bet.

Here is the wiring diagram for those two switches. By all means try and think of a better way to do this. Like I mentioned in the beginning, this was one of my early projects so not everything is perfect. I still get confused by these switches when I use this module after 4 years of using it LOL (I don't use it any more)

Use the switches inside the sockets instead of toggle switches. Much less confusing. But I used the wiring diagram below. 

Finally I want to show you a little video I made which demonstrates the sound of these two filters in series with eachother. I filmed this just after I had finished the build and I was still figuring out what the filter could do but it shows the added benefit of having two of these in series. It can do really deep and full sounding bass tones and it can also scream and distort and sound really weird. I am glad I fitted these and they are certainly a big improvement over the Prophet 5 filter although I will use the AS3320 chip inside it for a future build.
Plus all those knobs and switches so close to eachother look really cool I think ^_____^

Here's a look at the different sounds this filter can produce. (The phaser effects come from the special effects unit and not from this filter):

Okay, that's it for this one. If you enjoyed this article please check out the rest of my synth build and leave me a comment if you have any questions, or even to just say hi. Please also subscribe to my YouTube channel. That would be a great help. THANK YOU!!

Other websites that deal with the DUAL MS-20 configuration:

https://www.modulargrid.net/e/befaco-sallen-key-filter-bf-22

https://www.perfectcircuit.com/signal/korg-ms-20

Synthesizer Build part-12: THE KORG MS20 FILTER.

A good working version of the famous Korg MS-20 filter by Rene Schmitz, with updated stripboard layout and wiring diagram with LP & HP .

As popular as this filter is, I would not recommend it as your first filter build. Just because of the audio input level behaviour. For your first filter, build the Steiner-Parker diode filter. Instant gratification. 
Now on with our regular program:

There are PCBs available for this VCF. See 'PCB Service'

This is a filter I absolutely had to include in my DIY synthesizer project, for one because Sam Battle from LookMumNoComputer raves about it and it sounds amazing in his videos and the other reason is that it has the option to go between Low-Pass and High-Pass and I didn't have a High-Pass option in the synthesizer yet. I also added the Band-Pass option in the layout drawing however I tested it and it adds no extra benefit to this filter. 
There was a discussion on the Synth DIY Facebook group a while back about the possibility of switching this filter between 6dB per Octave and 12dB per Octave. I've tried it and it works but only in LowPass mode. More about this further down the article.
Btw, I tested this filter on dual 12 Volt and it works just as well as on 15 Volt so no need to change anything if you are feeding it from a +/- 12V powersupply. Of course you need to open Resonance a little more than on 15V but it's all within the normal throw of the potmeters so no problem there.

Btw, eventhough this is THE going design for the OTA version of the MS-20 filter, in my humble opinion it doesn't sound much like a vintage MS-20. But that's just me. It does sound good though so don't get me wrong, you're not waisting your time.

SCHEMATIC:

For this filter I used the 'Late MS20 Filter' schematic from Rene Schmitz which you can find by clicking here. I think he called it the 'late' version because the earlier versions used the Korg MS35 module which was sealed off and what was in it was only revealed in 2000. It was transistor based. The later versions used the OTA chip the LM13600.

This filter is definitely different from other filters. It doesn't sound like the Moog Filter but it does have that 'ripping the fabric of the universe' synth sound and it's a real Speaker Ripper!. It's a 'Sallen-Key' type filter and it produces really divers sounds. (I always think of this filter as the 'Heavy Metal Guitar' pedal of the synthesizer world.) You can get deep bass tones out of it and if you connect an Envelope Generator like the little AD/AR to the CV1 input you'll get a squarewave changing into a really bassy sinewave as the note progresses. It's awesome to experiment with this filter.
In HighPass mode the Cut-Off Frequency potmeter doesn't work over its complete throw. I found it usually only works over the first 50%. This is also true of the other MS-20 filters I built for the Dual version so this is normal behaviour for this design.
This filter is self oscillating in both the Low and High-Pass configuration. The more Resonance you give it, the more the two yellow LED's light up. I found that by using an LM13600 instead of a LM13700 you can  tame the filter a little. The 13600 seems to be a bit less aggressive although the difference is really small. Btw, instead of the TL074 you can also use the TL084 or the LM324. They are pin for pin compatible and work just fine. I personally tested them all successfully.

Here's the original schematic with the pinout numbers for the LM13700:

Here's a link to an image I made showing the switch connections for HP and LP mode: --- click here --

About Resonance and Self-Oscillation:

On the oscilloscope you won't see much Resonance ringing on top of a squarewave in Lowpass mode. I've noticed this with all 3 Korg filters I built so far. Maybe one little sinewave bump on the top left corner of a squarewave but it's not like the ARP or Steiner filters where the whole top and bottom of the squarewave is full of Resonance or self-oscillation. (It gets better with lower input levels though.) But in HiPass mode you get much more. However, this is normal for this filter and it still sounds pretty amazing so this doesn't matter.

Beware this filter does not like high input levels! When I feed it 0-10Vpp squarewaves directly from the Digisound-80 VCO it doesn't work right. It is much happier with the -5/+5Vpp levels of the Thomas Henry 555-VCO. It is always a good idea to put an input level potmeter on the audio input of this filter so you can regulate the input volume. You can try to put a capacitor between 470nF and 1µF on the audio input to block the DC offset voltage of a 0 to 10V signal and turn it into a -5/+5V signal. That should work.

This is a well known characteristic of the Korg MS20 filter. If you increase the level of the audio input you will drown out the resonance of the filter. So you must find a balance between input level and resonance.

6dB vs 12dB.
Although this is a 12dB per Octave filter (2 pole) it is possible to get an output with 6dB per Octave roll-off (1 pole) if you tap the signal from pin 7 of the TL074 (A1 in the schematic drawing) with a 470nF capacitor, just like the normal output. The 6dB however won't work in Highpass mode because the signal is output from the stage before the one where we input the Highpass audio signal.
I have experimented with 6dB and at first I dismissed the option but having recently rebuilt my filter using (vintage) Polystyrene capacitors (and Polyester box caps for the 470nF output caps) it now sounds much better and the 6dB function sounds better too. So I made new layouts which includes the 6dB/Octave function with a switch to give you the choice between 6dB or 12dB. In the rebuilt filter I also used two BC558 transistors that were roughly matched. I'm not sure if this is necessary but it can't hurt. The 6dB/Oct setting sounds more distorted an rough around the edges if you know what I mean. It's a heavier sound. 

LAYOUT:

Below here's the stripboard layout. I made my own version from the ones that are circulating on the internet to which I added the potmeter connections and the audio in and out, CV in, plus the switch connections for Low-, Band- and Highpass with the altered position of the 1nF cap at pin 12 of the LM13700. So with this and the schematics you should have all the info you need to build it right the first time. BTW, the 2 transistors used on the layout below are BC558 PNP's but you can also use the 2N3906 but those have to be put in the other way around. In subsequent builds I used the BC557.

ABOUT THE LED's: 

Make sure you use LED's with a voltage drop of around 1,8 Volts. That means Yellow, Green or Red LED's are okay but do NOT USE Bright white LED's or Blue LED's. They have a much higher voltage drop and won't work well in this filter. Remember the LED's replace the original 3 diodes in series. These diodes have a voltage drop of 0,6 Volt so 3 in series means 3 x 0,6Volt = 1,8 Volt.

(Last revised 7-Oct.-2023 Cosmetic changes to make layout clearer.)

Please note: I did add the Band-Pass option to the layout but if I were you I would just leave it out. But do some tests and decide for yourself.

About the DPDT switch wiring for HP/LP mode: 

Connect the top two pins and the right middle pin of the High Pass/ Low Pass switch together and connect that to the High-Pass input. You could even just forget about the top right pin and bypass it but I thought it was neater to include it. The lower right pin goes to ground. The audio signal goes into the middle left pin, and the lower left pin goes to the Low-Pass input. The Band-Pass switch is simply connected to the Low-pass input and the audio input. If the filter is in Low-Pass mode the BP switch won't have any effect but in High-Pass mode the switch will connect the audio to the Low-Pass input aswell so both inputs get the audio signal thus creating the bandpass characteristic.

A little sidenote about the writing next to the switch in the layout: the HighPass and LowPass marking next to the switch on the wiring diagram reflect the function of the actual wires connected to that part of the switch. A Toggle switch works the other way around. If you flip the switch upwards, the middle and bottom pins are connected to eachother. If you flip it downwards the top and middle pins are connected so on the eventual panel, the switch should have LowPass marked at the top and HighPass at the bottom.  This way of marking the switch functions goes for all the layouts on this website that have switches in them.

Close up of just the stripboard layout (Print this one and use it for your project. The lay-out is guaranteed, tested and verified faultless. It has been used by hundreds of people by now). Don't forget to cut all the copper strips under the IC's.

(Last revised 7-Oct.-2023 Cosmetic changes. Removed colour codes from resistors, added colour coding to wirebridges.)

Cuts and wirebridges as seen from the COMPONENT SIDE! As always, mark the cuts to be made with a black waterproof Sharpie on the component side. Then put a pin through the marked holes and mark them again on the copper side. Then cut the copper at the marked positions with a sharp, hand held, 6 or 7mm drill bit. Check your cuts with a continuïty meter or a powerful magnifying glass before you proceed.

Bill of Materials:

About the components:
I used fairly cheap LM13700 chips I got out of China via eBay and I think I got lucky and got real ones instead of fakes. But play it safe and get your chips from a reputable source.
I used a DPDT toggle switch (Double Pole Double Throw) to switch between High-Pass and Low-Pass but you could also use a jack socket for High-Pass input with a build-in switch that connects C4 to ground when nothing is plugged in there.
The Cut-Off Frequency potmeter in this build is a 100K one, but you can use any type you wish because pins 1 and 3 are connected to the + and - of the power supply so it is nothing more then a voltage devider. I saw that Sam Battle uses a 4K7 pots for this in his layout so use what ever value you want. (Beware that the voltage difference over that potmeter is 24 Volts so don't go too low with the value or you'll fry your potmeter. Remember Ohm's law!)
I don't think the Resonance potmeter is that critical either but you better stick to the schematics for that one. Keep it a 100K potmeter. I used a logarithmic one but linear will work fine too. As mentioned earlier, you can use an LM13600 instead of the LM13700 and instead of the TL074 you can use the TL084 or the LM324. They all work just fine.
I rebuilt the filter recently and used polystyrene caps instead of ceramics. It did make a difference in my filter but the first version I built of this filter was a mess to look at. Building something neat and tidy always makes it work better I found out. So don't expect miracles by changing the caps from ceramic to polystyrene.
One thing that might be worth experimenting with is the 10K feedback resistor over opamp A3 in the schematic. The one by the LEDs. You could put in a 15K trimpot and see what it does if you change the feedback resistance. I haven't tried this yet myself but it might be worth experimenting with.

Here's a picture of the panel I made for it. Because I recently re-built the filter I had one unused mounting hole left in the panel so I put a white 3mm LED in there. It's a bit bright =)

Here's a picture of the insides. Those big brown Mullard 'tropical fish' caps (so called for their colourful stripes) at the top and bottom are just 100nF caps for de-coupling. They're spread out a bit because they're so big. I advise to use polystyrene caps for all the other capacitors although that's not necessary for the filter to work. I just found polystyrene caps to sound better but you mustn't attach too much importance to the use of polystyrene caps. They are difficult to find. Any type will do.:

DEMO VIDEOS:

Here's a new demo video I recently made. Just trying out the different functions. I had it connected to the 8 step sequencer. It sounds really awesome but it needs a snappy ADSR input and attenuation on the audio input to make it sound like this:.

This is an old test video, made right at the beginning of when I started building modules. It has the Korg filter (in Highpass mode) and the Moog Ladder filter (in Lowpass) in series and using my 8 step sequencer and reverb from the CaraOK effects module:

Sounds quite good doesn't it? Especially with added echo or phase-shift effects. 

WARNING: Beware your speakers!! This filter can oscillate at below audible frequencies and the cones of your bass speakers will take a hell of a beating if you've got some serious amplification going. If ever a filter could be called a 'Speaker Ripper' this one is it. Quite literally. (I added this warning because tonight I almost blew my speakers up with this filter.)

EXTRA DOCUMENTATION:

I want to direct your attention to a very useful page from Scott Stites' website. He talks about all the different aspects of this filter, using two of these filters in tandem and his approach to adding a Band-Pass mode to it. If you want to build this filter, you have to read this text I think.: Click here for Scott Stites website.

Here is a link to a PDF file called: "A Study of the Korg MS10 and MS20 filters by Timothy E. Stinchcombe --- click here for that PDF ---
It's an in depth study with formulas and schematics, excellent if you're an electronics student and want to get into the details. I must admit it goes way over my head ^__^

Lastly, here's an other very interesting document I found by Sound Semiconductor entitled "Designing Voltage Controlled Filters for Synthesizers with the SSI-2164."
It goes into great detail into how filters work and how to design them and places specific emphasis on the Korg MS-20 filter.

Okay, that's it for this one. If you have any questions or comments then please put them in the comment section below of post them in the special Facebook Discussion and Help Group for this website.

Fun fact: this article is on a solid number two listing of most popular builds on this website, number one being the AS3340 (Digisound-80) VCO. (you know, the really good one.. ^___^  )