TTSH v4 Build Part 1

The TTSH (TwoThousandSixHundred) v4 is the latest incarnation of a DIY clone of the now infamous ARP 2600 synthesizer from the early 1970’s. The TTSH project was originally started by The Human Comparator in 2013, it has gone through many revisions and bug fixes to the main PCB since then. Originally launched it was sold as “The Kit” that came with the powder coated and screen printed front panel, main PCB and 3 VCO PCB’s for $620 USD. You were still responsible for sourcing the rest of the BOM (bill of materials), the “rare parts kit” from Thonk.de or eBay and building a case for it all to fit into once done. This was a bar of entry a bit too high for me at the time and I withheld my order in hopes of a more complete kit in the future.

This latest version - v4 (rev. 8 main board) included a number of bug fixes and was made available as a complete kit by SynthCube on June 4th 2019.

I made a deal with my wife that night; I’d buy 2 of the full kits, and once completed, I’d sell one of them to “pay back” the original up front cost. On June 5th 2019 I pre-ordered 2 of the full kits, with all of the available upgrades ( all PCB’s, components, metal cases, slider caps, gate booster mods, midi implants ) for a total of $3,791.23. SynthCube were also selling assembled and tested units for $3499, so I figured I would have no problem selling a modded/upgraded unit for at least as much and make most if not all of my money back.

Then started the waiting game, this was a “pre-order” after all, SynthCube gave somewhat regular updates on the progress of the panels and sourcing all of the parts. It wasn’t until October 13 2019 when the kits were shipped, the first shipment only came with the panels, PCB’s and parts boxes. The cases, midi implant and slider caps were still owed but I had enough to get started on the builds.

Build process to be continued…