“Sittingattheroundmetalcofeetable,onthedeckofmybeachhouse, I cannot tel whether it wil come inland or stay hovering over the waters; I know it is a storm cloud because of the lightning, extending tospaceandsalt,exchangingenergies.”
The Sprott module is a model of chaotic jerk system with standardized voltage control of all parameters. Thus, the chaotic attractor can be shrank down to distill the module into a resonant filter that is the dynamical sub- circuit underlying most jerk systems. It is named after J.C. Sprott who has published numerous papers, articles and books on chaos and chaotic circuits, from a rigorous physical view-point. This module is of course for musical purposes; although the voltage control feature has limited import in physics experiments, it is crucial to aesthetic purposes.
Sprott is an 12HP Eurorack module that runs on +12 and -12 volts. Attach power connector positive to “+” and negative to “-”. Failure to follow proper power polarity will result in instant destruction of unit.
Sprott has three integrators and one “signum” non-linearity, according to the simple differential equation, “0 = ax''' + bx'' + cSGN(x) – dx”. In re-structuring the circuit to fit voltage control guidelines, the use of transconductance amplifiers offers an experimental input to change the subtle dynamics of this system: by modulating their linearizing diodes, paradoxically adding to non-linearities available. The module is thus for experimentation, but it can always boil down to a simple resonant filter, perhaps this is its power, in going out and coming back to a basic regime. Since any differential jerk equation is highly dependent on “initial parameters,” Sprott has a dedicated VCA on the input.
Use of this VCA can help inform use of the other three sections. Looking at the front panel of Sprott, note that inputs are marked by copper fill. For any section there is an “in” and a “diode”. The in inserts signal energy directly into that portion of the differential equation, with the VCA inserting directly into the high-pass. It should be mentioned, however, that
inputting into one section will affect all; they are not separate filters but all inter-connected as per the equation. The diode is the least explainable of all inputs, but just note that a higher voltage here will in general bring the frequency down, but it should also bring it into a more linear mode of operation. As Ieaskul said, it is experimental. The VCA has a basis knob, on the left, which sets a basic amplitude for its input. It then has the VCA control input and associated attenuverter which modulate it furthermore. An attenuverter works like this: at noon the modulations are nulled out, they have no effect; clockwise from there they increase in intensity, with positive input meaning “more”; to the counter-clockwise direction, modulations increase as well, but with negative input meaning “more”. This knob is essential to controlling how much, and in which direction, your modulations apply.
For each section, there is an output that reflects one part of the differential equation, in the natural order it is built in circuitry. So, from top-down, there are high-pass, band-pass, low- pass, and finally, chaos-pass outputs. Each section has it's own range switch. When in middle position, the section runs at a standard audio rate. Pointing downward is a low audio rate, and pointing upwards is a definite CV, lowest rate. They are separated for experimentation purposes, however standard operation is to have them set at the same range- all up, all mid, or all down.
The next section is labeled, “Q,” meaning voltage control of quality, or resonance. It has a similar “in,” “diode,” “control,” and knobbage structure. The “Q” is highest when this knob is down, and that can cause saturation of the waveform allowing experiments in distorted filtering. For sweet filtering purposes, turn “Q” up later than noon.
The next section down is labeled “FR” for “frequency”. Here is where the general time-dependance is modulated, also known as “cutoff” in filterland. It too has a similar knobbage/jackage structure.
Finally the bottom section is devoted to chaos, through control of the “third integral”. It has a similar jack structure, and it should be pointed out that the knobs control how much chaos is inserted back into the dynamic. With its basis knob all the way down, Sprott should return happily to filterland.
To read more about Jerk Equations, please consult J.C. Sprott's massive corpus of publications at:
http://sprott.physics.wisc.edu/pubs.htm
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
“Sittingattheroundmetalcofeetable,onthedeckofmybeachhouse, I cannot tel whether it wil come inland or stay hovering over the waters; I know it is a storm cloud because of the lightning, extending tospaceandsalt,exchangingenergies.”
The Sprott module is a model of chaotic jerk system with standardized voltage control of all parameters. Thus, the chaotic attractor can be shrank down to distill the module into a resonant filter that is the dynamical sub- circuit underlying most jerk systems. It is named after J.C. Sprott who has published numerous papers, articles and books on chaos and chaotic circuits, from a rigorous physical view-point. This module is of course for musical purposes; although the voltage control feature has limited import in physics experiments, it is crucial to aesthetic purposes.
Sprott is an 12HP Eurorack module that runs on +12 and -12 volts. Attach power connector positive to “+” and negative to “-”. Failure to follow proper power polarity will result in instant destruction of unit.
Sprott has three integrators and one “signum” non-linearity, according to the simple differential equation, “0 = ax''' + bx'' + cSGN(x) – dx”. In re-structuring the circuit to fit voltage control guidelines, the use of transconductance amplifiers offers an experimental input to change the subtle dynamics of this system: by modulating their linearizing diodes, paradoxically adding to non-linearities available. The module is thus for experimentation, but it can always boil down to a simple resonant filter, perhaps this is its power, in going out and coming back to a basic regime. Since any differential jerk equation is highly dependent on “initial parameters,” Sprott has a dedicated VCA on the input.
Use of this VCA can help inform use of the other three sections. Looking at the front panel of Sprott, note that inputs are marked by copper fill. For any section there is an “in” and a “diode”. The in inserts signal energy directly into that portion of the differential equation, with the VCA inserting directly into the high-pass. It should be mentioned, however, that
inputting into one section will affect all; they are not separate filters but all inter-connected as per the equation. The diode is the least explainable of all inputs, but just note that a higher voltage here will in general bring the frequency down, but it should also bring it into a more linear mode of operation. As Ieaskul said, it is experimental. The VCA has a basis knob, on the left, which sets a basic amplitude for its input. It then has the VCA control input and associated attenuverter which modulate it furthermore. An attenuverter works like this: at noon the modulations are nulled out, they have no effect; clockwise from there they increase in intensity, with positive input meaning “more”; to the counter-clockwise direction, modulations increase as well, but with negative input meaning “more”. This knob is essential to controlling how much, and in which direction, your modulations apply.
For each section, there is an output that reflects one part of the differential equation, in the natural order it is built in circuitry. So, from top-down, there are high-pass, band-pass, low- pass, and finally, chaos-pass outputs. Each section has it's own range switch. When in middle position, the section runs at a standard audio rate. Pointing downward is a low audio rate, and pointing upwards is a definite CV, lowest rate. They are separated for experimentation purposes, however standard operation is to have them set at the same range- all up, all mid, or all down.
The next section is labeled, “Q,” meaning voltage control of quality, or resonance. It has a similar “in,” “diode,” “control,” and knobbage structure. The “Q” is highest when this knob is down, and that can cause saturation of the waveform allowing experiments in distorted filtering. For sweet filtering purposes, turn “Q” up later than noon.
The next section down is labeled “FR” for “frequency”. Here is where the general time-dependance is modulated, also known as “cutoff” in filterland. It too has a similar knobbage/jackage structure.
Finally the bottom section is devoted to chaos, through control of the “third integral”. It has a similar jack structure, and it should be pointed out that the knobs control how much chaos is inserted back into the dynamic. With its basis knob all the way down, Sprott should return happily to filterland.
To read more about Jerk Equations, please consult J.C. Sprott's massive corpus of publications at:
http://sprott.physics.wisc.edu/pubs.htm
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.
