The Buchla Music Easel Program Manager Card
Store your best sonic memories on the Program Manager Card! The PMC takes full advantage of the program interface, storing up to 48 Easel presets and interfacing with your computer with a class-compliant MIDI connection. The Buchla Program Manager App for Mac and Windows gives you the power to manage banks, create programs, and import and export your presets for sharing.
Evolution of an idea
The program interface’s edge card connector was originally designed to let artists create presets by wiring resistors to a circuit board to fix the positions of the sliders and banana connections. Each preset was its own card. Simply swapping cards in the program interface completely changed the sound. This was valuable, if not outright necessary, to musicians who needed to easily recreate patches for performance and create repertoire. The 2013 “iProgram Card” created a vital link between computer and Easel. Now, in 2022, Buchla USA has refreshed and simplified the design, giving it more memory, embed-ability, and making it easier to use.
Virtual Solder Station
While you can still solder up some sounds for all generations of the Easel, the new Program Manager Card provides microcontroller precision and computer convenience. Serving as the digital bridge between your computer’s USB port and the 28 pins of the Program Interface, the PMC gives you instant recall and easy access to 48 unique programs that control almost every parameter and patchpoint on the Easel’s front panel. Repeatability and repertoire are made instantly available.
Computer Precision
Using the Buchla Program Manager Application in Mac or Windows to design presets gives you even more programming options than the Easel’s front panel controls. The unique “Depth” controls for the patch cords put a virtual knob on every cable, allowing gradual and even inverted connection for every patch point. The fine resolution provided by high resolution controls means you can dial in extremely precise values for parameters, in a way not easily achieved by hand. The application serves as an endless extension to the Program Manager, with nearly unlimited space for presets and bankSharing is Fun
Import and Export features make it easy to backup or share your presets and complete banks with other Easel musicians in a simple, small file.
Adventure Awaits
With the optional embed kit, you can install the Program Manager card directly into your easel, replacing the Program Interface connector with the screen and buttons. Embedding the card makes it easier to control and travel with.
What about the iProgram Card?
The Program Manager Card is an updated version of the iProgram Card. With a firmware update that we’ll be providing very shortly, you can use the new software with your iProgram Card over a USB connection.
Compatibility
The Program Manager Card is compatible out-of-the-box with the Easel Command 208C and upcoming Music Easel. It can be used with the 2013-2017 Music Easels with a DIY modification to the card’s connectors or to the Easel itself.
How much is my shipping?
Shipping is automatically calculated before you submit your payment information. Simply add items to your cart and proceed to the checkout page, where you'll be offered shipping options and their prices. In the UK it's normally around £4 for order values under £150, and free above that. Shipping to mainland EU is typically between £7 and £20, depending on the shipping method and the size and weight of the order.
Do you ship to my country?
Almost certainly - the site will give you an estimate of shipping costs if you add an item to the cart and then enter your country and postcode. If you have specific requirements (such as if you prefer UPS over FedEx, for example) then let us know in advance and we'll try to work something out for you.
Shipping methods
We use a combination of Parcelforce, DPD, Royal Mail and UPS for the UK, and for international orders it's either Royal Mail, UPS, DHL or FedEx depending on where you are in the world. If you have a particular preference then try to let us know BEFORE you order so we can look into it for you. Please note that there may occasionally be additional shipping charges if you live in a remote area, depending on what surcharges are applied by the shipper. We'll get in touch to discuss this with you in such cases.
Dispatch times
For UK orders, we normally dispatch the same working day if we get the order before 15:00. If you have a really urgent situation then of course drop us an email before ordering and we'll always do our absolute best to accommodate you.
For international orders, we normally dispatch the same day if we get the order before 13:00 but again, occasionally it might be the next day before we can send it out, and sometimes FedEx or UPS may come a little earlier than scheduled which would also push an order into the next day.
Shipping times
Since April 2020 the couriers we use have suspended guarantees for shipping times, so even though we're paying them for priority services - 24-48 hours for most of the world - in practice it's often an extra day on top and sometimes it can be longer.
There is absolutely nothing we can do about this unfortunately. If you are outside the UK and it's a life-or-death situation where you absolutely MUST have that passive mult for the next day then... it may be better to find a local supplier.
Saturday shipping
If you're in the UK and you order before 15:30 on a Friday then we can send something for a Saturday delivery (NB: this applies to UK mainland addresses only). The success rate with DPD is about 95% so it's worth a punt most of the time. Please note that if you select Saturday shipping on an order placed earlier in the week, we'll wait until Friday to ship it.
Pre-orders
If a product is listed as a pre-order, it means we've ordered it from the supplier but it's not physically in stock yet. The product listing will include an estimated shipping date based on the best information we have from the supplier, but do bear in mind this is subject to change and is not a guaranteed date.
If you place an order containing a mixture of in-stock and pre-order items, we'll normally hold off on shipping anything until the pre-order item(s) have arrived, rather than splitting it into multiple shipments. If you need the in-stock items sooner, we'd recommend placing separate orders. As always, please get in touch if you have questions.
Product Overview
The Buchla Music Easel Program Manager Card
Store your best sonic memories on the Program Manager Card! The PMC takes full advantage of the program interface, storing up to 48 Easel presets and interfacing with your computer with a class-compliant MIDI connection. The Buchla Program Manager App for Mac and Windows gives you the power to manage banks, create programs, and import and export your presets for sharing.
Evolution of an idea
The program interface’s edge card connector was originally designed to let artists create presets by wiring resistors to a circuit board to fix the positions of the sliders and banana connections. Each preset was its own card. Simply swapping cards in the program interface completely changed the sound. This was valuable, if not outright necessary, to musicians who needed to easily recreate patches for performance and create repertoire. The 2013 “iProgram Card” created a vital link between computer and Easel. Now, in 2022, Buchla USA has refreshed and simplified the design, giving it more memory, embed-ability, and making it easier to use.
Virtual Solder Station
While you can still solder up some sounds for all generations of the Easel, the new Program Manager Card provides microcontroller precision and computer convenience. Serving as the digital bridge between your computer’s USB port and the 28 pins of the Program Interface, the PMC gives you instant recall and easy access to 48 unique programs that control almost every parameter and patchpoint on the Easel’s front panel. Repeatability and repertoire are made instantly available.
Computer Precision
Using the Buchla Program Manager Application in Mac or Windows to design presets gives you even more programming options than the Easel’s front panel controls. The unique “Depth” controls for the patch cords put a virtual knob on every cable, allowing gradual and even inverted connection for every patch point. The fine resolution provided by high resolution controls means you can dial in extremely precise values for parameters, in a way not easily achieved by hand. The application serves as an endless extension to the Program Manager, with nearly unlimited space for presets and bankSharing is Fun
Import and Export features make it easy to backup or share your presets and complete banks with other Easel musicians in a simple, small file.
Adventure Awaits
With the optional embed kit, you can install the Program Manager card directly into your easel, replacing the Program Interface connector with the screen and buttons. Embedding the card makes it easier to control and travel with.
What about the iProgram Card?
The Program Manager Card is an updated version of the iProgram Card. With a firmware update that we’ll be providing very shortly, you can use the new software with your iProgram Card over a USB connection.
Compatibility
The Program Manager Card is compatible out-of-the-box with the Easel Command 208C and upcoming Music Easel. It can be used with the 2013-2017 Music Easels with a DIY modification to the card’s connectors or to the Easel itself.
Technical Specs
Shipping Details
How much is my shipping?
Shipping is automatically calculated before you submit your payment information. Simply add items to your cart and proceed to the checkout page, where you'll be offered shipping options and their prices. In the UK it's normally around £4 for order values under £150, and free above that. Shipping to mainland EU is typically between £7 and £20, depending on the shipping method and the size and weight of the order.
Do you ship to my country?
Almost certainly - the site will give you an estimate of shipping costs if you add an item to the cart and then enter your country and postcode. If you have specific requirements (such as if you prefer UPS over FedEx, for example) then let us know in advance and we'll try to work something out for you.
Shipping methods
We use a combination of Parcelforce, DPD, Royal Mail and UPS for the UK, and for international orders it's either Royal Mail, UPS, DHL or FedEx depending on where you are in the world. If you have a particular preference then try to let us know BEFORE you order so we can look into it for you. Please note that there may occasionally be additional shipping charges if you live in a remote area, depending on what surcharges are applied by the shipper. We'll get in touch to discuss this with you in such cases.
Dispatch times
For UK orders, we normally dispatch the same working day if we get the order before 15:00. If you have a really urgent situation then of course drop us an email before ordering and we'll always do our absolute best to accommodate you.
For international orders, we normally dispatch the same day if we get the order before 13:00 but again, occasionally it might be the next day before we can send it out, and sometimes FedEx or UPS may come a little earlier than scheduled which would also push an order into the next day.
Shipping times
Since April 2020 the couriers we use have suspended guarantees for shipping times, so even though we're paying them for priority services - 24-48 hours for most of the world - in practice it's often an extra day on top and sometimes it can be longer.
There is absolutely nothing we can do about this unfortunately. If you are outside the UK and it's a life-or-death situation where you absolutely MUST have that passive mult for the next day then... it may be better to find a local supplier.
Saturday shipping
If you're in the UK and you order before 15:30 on a Friday then we can send something for a Saturday delivery (NB: this applies to UK mainland addresses only). The success rate with DPD is about 95% so it's worth a punt most of the time. Please note that if you select Saturday shipping on an order placed earlier in the week, we'll wait until Friday to ship it.
Pre-orders
If a product is listed as a pre-order, it means we've ordered it from the supplier but it's not physically in stock yet. The product listing will include an estimated shipping date based on the best information we have from the supplier, but do bear in mind this is subject to change and is not a guaranteed date.
If you place an order containing a mixture of in-stock and pre-order items, we'll normally hold off on shipping anything until the pre-order item(s) have arrived, rather than splitting it into multiple shipments. If you need the in-stock items sooner, we'd recommend placing separate orders. As always, please get in touch if you have questions.
