Introducing a limited edition re-release of this iconic electronic instrument in a modular format.
This limited edition of 75 units is a tribute to the pioneering work of Dutch musician and instrument maker Michel Waiswisz (1949 - 2008), who first invented the Cracklebox with Geert Hamelberg in the late 1960s.
The Cracklebox was a small, handheld device designed as a way to explore new sonic territories. It was one of the first electronic musical instruments to use circuit bending techniques in the creation of electronic music. It allowed musicians to manipulate and control electronic circuits in real-time, creating a wide range of unique and experimental sounds. Waiswisz used a circuit from a toy piano as the basis for the instrument, and then added a series of touch-sensitive pads that were connected to the circuit. When a player touched one of the pads, the circuit would be completed, producing a crackling sound.
The Cracklebox was probably the first commercialy available portable selfpowered alternative 'keyboard' analog electronic instrument with inbuilt loudspeaker.
In the 1970s about 4000 Crackleboxes were built and sold by STEIM in Amsterdam.
Nowadays many people refer to the The Cracklebox as the archetype of 'glitch' or 'circuit bending'.
In the decades since its invention, the Cracklebox has continued to be an important and influential instrument in the world of electronic music. It is still in use today, and is considered a classic example of the potential of electronic music to create unique and innovative sounds.
This Eurorack recreation includes a 9v battery, swappable through the frontpanel; this allows to isolate the current flowing through the user's fingers from the Eurorack frame PSU, protecting the user from undesired electrical shocks. We also removed the internal speaker and used a transformer instead to isolate the output signal.
The output generated can be used as an audio, as a gate or a cv signal. When using it as a cv source, due to the specific qualities of the signal, users may want to send it through other modules as slews, sample and holds, quantizers to tame/control it's peculiar cv output.
Controls:
- The module features an on/off switch to turn off the 9v battery (remember to turn it off when you turn off your Eurorack system).
- A Power Starve knob reduces the 9v voltage feeding the circuitry changing its overall timbre/pitch
- An Output Gain knob to control the output volume.
- A Boost switch to add more presence to the signal.
Tech Specs:
12HP
5.5 cm deep
20mA +12V
20mA -12V
9v battery required
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, 'next working day' shipping is free if the order value is over £150, and £5 otherwise. We can also ship on a 'next working day before 12pm' service, which costs £6 for orders over £150 and £7.50 for orders under £150.
Shipping to mainland EU typically costs 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 DPD, Royal Mail and Parcelforce for the UK, and for international orders it's either DHL, FedEx, UPS, Royal Mail or Parcelforce 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 aim to dispatch the same working day if we get the order before 16:00. 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 the couriers may come to collect a little earlier than scheduled which would also push an order into the next day.
Saturday/Sunday shipping
If you're in the UK and you order before 16:00 on a Friday then we can send something for a Saturday or Sunday delivery with DPD. This is FREE for order values over £350, £5 for order values between £75 and £250, and £7 for order values under £75. (NB: this applies to UK mainland addresses only). Please note that any orders placed after 16:00 on a Friday will ship on the Monday.
International 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.
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
Introducing a limited edition re-release of this iconic electronic instrument in a modular format.
This limited edition of 75 units is a tribute to the pioneering work of Dutch musician and instrument maker Michel Waiswisz (1949 - 2008), who first invented the Cracklebox with Geert Hamelberg in the late 1960s.
The Cracklebox was a small, handheld device designed as a way to explore new sonic territories. It was one of the first electronic musical instruments to use circuit bending techniques in the creation of electronic music. It allowed musicians to manipulate and control electronic circuits in real-time, creating a wide range of unique and experimental sounds. Waiswisz used a circuit from a toy piano as the basis for the instrument, and then added a series of touch-sensitive pads that were connected to the circuit. When a player touched one of the pads, the circuit would be completed, producing a crackling sound.
The Cracklebox was probably the first commercialy available portable selfpowered alternative 'keyboard' analog electronic instrument with inbuilt loudspeaker.
In the 1970s about 4000 Crackleboxes were built and sold by STEIM in Amsterdam.
Nowadays many people refer to the The Cracklebox as the archetype of 'glitch' or 'circuit bending'.
In the decades since its invention, the Cracklebox has continued to be an important and influential instrument in the world of electronic music. It is still in use today, and is considered a classic example of the potential of electronic music to create unique and innovative sounds.
This Eurorack recreation includes a 9v battery, swappable through the frontpanel; this allows to isolate the current flowing through the user's fingers from the Eurorack frame PSU, protecting the user from undesired electrical shocks. We also removed the internal speaker and used a transformer instead to isolate the output signal.
The output generated can be used as an audio, as a gate or a cv signal. When using it as a cv source, due to the specific qualities of the signal, users may want to send it through other modules as slews, sample and holds, quantizers to tame/control it's peculiar cv output.
Controls:
- The module features an on/off switch to turn off the 9v battery (remember to turn it off when you turn off your Eurorack system).
- A Power Starve knob reduces the 9v voltage feeding the circuitry changing its overall timbre/pitch
- An Output Gain knob to control the output volume.
- A Boost switch to add more presence to the signal.
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, 'next working day' shipping is free if the order value is over £150, and £5 otherwise. We can also ship on a 'next working day before 12pm' service, which costs £6 for orders over £150 and £7.50 for orders under £150.
Shipping to mainland EU typically costs 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 DPD, Royal Mail and Parcelforce for the UK, and for international orders it's either DHL, FedEx, UPS, Royal Mail or Parcelforce 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 aim to dispatch the same working day if we get the order before 16:00. 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 the couriers may come to collect a little earlier than scheduled which would also push an order into the next day.
Saturday/Sunday shipping
If you're in the UK and you order before 16:00 on a Friday then we can send something for a Saturday or Sunday delivery with DPD. This is FREE for order values over £350, £5 for order values between £75 and £250, and £7 for order values under £75. (NB: this applies to UK mainland addresses only). Please note that any orders placed after 16:00 on a Friday will ship on the Monday.
International 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.
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.
