In 1999, the Swedish company, Elektron released a popular synthesizer.  Rather than being equipped with a keyboard, these machines were controlled by knobs and a keypad and had an LCD screen, similar to Korg's Electribe line.  They have three oscillators and four LFOs, the signals of which pass through a single analogue filter.  Elektron's synth is used by a variety of popular bands such as Depeche Mode, Nine Inch Nails, and KMFDM.  But what's all this got to do with chiptunes?  Well, I'm not telling you unless you hit the link.

Thanks to Scott for the tip-off

The big secret is the synth's sound processor, the SID, or Sound Interface Device.  This particular chip is the very same one used in the Commodore 64.  That's right; Elektron's SidStation, as it's called, makes the exact same sounds as the C64.  The SidStation can produce sawtooth, triangle, and pulse waveforms, an arpeggiated lines, and a handful of effects.

There's even a bit of controversy over the SidStation.  Elektron purchased all the SID chips from MOS Technology.  When they got down to their last 100 chips, they laser etched numbers into the chassis as to add some history and collectability to the final stock.  But sure enough, after a few years, Elektron stumbled upon 100 more chips. What luck!  They again etched in some numbers and sold the "last" 100 units at an inflated price point.  And then - you guessed it - 100 more!  The most recent batch was sold in 2003, so it seems the secret stash is now exhausted, allowing the resale price to level off at an average of $1,200.

This sound chip was so good that, for the early '80s, it was definitely ahead of its time. And as it turns out, several bands have been ahead of their own times, chiptuning without even knowing it.

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