The Elektor Formant — Hardcore DIY synths, Then and Now — EEI #59

The Elektor Formant is a well-known modular analog synthesizer that first showed up in Elektor magazine back in the late 1970s. Since then, it has built a strong reputation in the DIY music world, especially among people who like getting hands-on and building their own synths from scratch.

Elektor Formant returns in Elektor Engineering Insights #59 on Wednesday, April 29, 2026, when I speak with Erica Synths founder Girts Ozolins and educator-performer Jacq Noise about the revival of one of Elektor’s most iconic DIY synthesizer projects. The episode will look at what made the original design so gritty and old-school, and why that old-school difficulty still teaches real electronics, and how a modern rebuild can update the experience and still keep its feel authentic. It also lands at a moment when the current kit version is putting the project in front of a new generation of builders.

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Earlier Elektor coverage of Formant culture has already shown how stubbornly relevant this synth remains, almost 50 years later.

About the Guests

Jacq Noise is a synthesizer builder, educator, and workshop host whose work connects electronic music, DIY culture, and hands-on learning. She has been involved in public-facing build events and collaborative projects that bring analogue synthesis and electronics education to a wider audience.

Girts Ozolins is an engineer at Erica Synths and has been closely involved in the redevelopment of the Elektor Formant. He brings both technical and historical perspective to the project, including the design decisions required to update a classic synthesizer concept for modern builders.

The Elektor Formant as a Learning Instrument

The Formant was never just a musical instrument, but was also intended as an education in analog thinking. Building modules, tracing faults, calibrating circuits, and learning what each block in a subtractive signal chain actually does is still one of the best ways to turn abstract electronics knowledge into something you can hear immediately.

What the Elektor Formant Redesign Changes

That does not mean a modern version should be stuck in time. One topic for discussion will be the balance between historical authenticity and practical redesign. What do you preserve because it teaches something essential, and what do you change because modern builders expect better documentation, more reliable parts availability, and a smoother path to a working system? 

Giveaway

You’ll also have a chance to win one of two Elektor Audio DSP FX Processor boards. Built around an ESP32 and the ADAU1701 from Analog Devices, it is a neat fit for a show centered on synthesis, signal flow, and DIY audio hardware.