Tiptop Audio Buchla 248t MARF is a modern recreation of the legendary Buchla multiple arbitrary function generator for Eurorack.
In 2021, Tiptop Audio announced an official partnership with Buchla to bring 200 modules to the Eurorack format. The largest module released in the series to date is the epic 296t spectral processor.
Now there’s an even larger flagship module from the Buchla 200 series. Tiptop Audio has released a recreation of the massive Buchla 248t MARF multiple arbitrary function generator for Eurorack.
Tiptop Audio Buchla 248t MARF
The Buchla 248t MARF, or Multiple Arbitrary Function Generator, is a highly flexible programmable control voltage source for Eurorack. It’s a modern recreation of the original MARF, released in the 1970s, which has become one of the most powerful CV generators ever made.
According to Tiptop Audio, the Buchla 248t MARF was in development for two years, so it was not an easy project. It has all the original features, plus improvements to ensure that the 248t holds up in the modular space.
At first glance, the module appears to be a sequencer. That’s only at first glance. It has 16 stages of programmable control voltages with two independently addressable output sections.
Yes, it can step through voltages like a sequencer, but it can do way more stuff. It enables the creation of wonderfully odd, non-typical, non-symmetrical, and non-linear voltage movements for designing truly spectacular sounds and sequences.
For example, it can interpolate between them by gliding from one value to the next. With the array of switches and buttons in the middle, you can program in different ways, including continuous, quantized in divisions of 12, mapped to specific voltage ranges, and more.
Thanks to this massive flexibility per step (individually and independent configs), the MARF has many faces depending on the configuration: a sequencer, an ADSR envelope generator, a portamento pitch processor, or any other application for stored control voltages. It’s like a dreamland for CV manipulations.
Powerful Like No Other
The Tiptop Audio Buchla 248t MARF for Eurorack has all these powerful abilities of the original. Also, the option to designate group stages into sub-groupings – such as pitch sets or varying envelope shapes.
To that end, stages can be assigned Stop or Sustain commands, as well as First or Last designators to establish the boundaries of said Cycle grouping. It’s also possible to address stages internally or via various external sources, opening up a wide range of options for complex relationships between modules.
Another powerful feature is that you have two output sections for the 16 stages, allowing you to address and access different stages simultaneously. Scaling the assigned timing values is also available via the handy time multiplier control (knob and CV).
The 248t MARF also features pulse inputs for the start and stop commands. And the module features a rich plethora of outputs, including stored Voltage, a stage-triggered ramp Reference, two assignable pulse outputs, and more.
Unlike the original, the Tiptop Audio Eurorack version also houses their innovative ART protocol with a dedicated output, facilitating connection between the 259t and other ART modules.
On top of that, it has non-volatile memory that allows presets to be recalled after powering the module off.
First Impression
The Holy Grail of modulators has now arrived in Eurorack. This isn’t your average modulator; it’s a beast that requires a significant investment of time to fully understand its concept and to explore all its capabilities.
MARF covers all modulation needs one could want in a Buchla system, but at a price not exactly low.
Tiptop Audio Buchla 248t MARF is available now for $999/989€.
More information here: Tiptop Audio
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