IT is entirely possible to build a synth out of a Raspberry Pi, the main hurdles are the limits of your imagination and your ability to tinker. For some, that will put them off and for others, it is a challenge. Whatever group you fall into, you’ll feel inspired by these amazingly geeky projects!

Using a Raspberry Pi as a synthesiser comes with some challenges – for starters, you need the code to generate the audio, secondly, you need to build a cool enclosure with lots of controls.

This list looks at projects of all levels. Some are DIY Raspberry Pi synths which you can build yourself, others are more of a one-off project without open source documentation.

READ MORE: Can You Produce Music on a Raspberry Pi?

The most recent Raspberry Pi (at time of writing) is the Raspberry Pi 4 which comes with significant performance boosts. I recommend you grab one of these as audio processing can be intense for such a small computer.

Alternatively, you could grab a Raspberry Pi Zero and go for an ultra-compact device at the cost of performance.

READ MORE: Can You DJ with a Raspberry Pi?

If you want to get more CPU headroom out of your Raspberry Pi to handle more powerful synth sounds, I recommend getting a cooling solution such as a fan and heatsink (the market is also kind enough to offer one with RGB). With additional cooling, you can overclock your Raspberry Pi and get a little bit more processing power out of it.

Toby Hendricks’s Raspberry Pi synth/looper

This is one of the coolest looking instruments I have ever seen, and it is all the more impressive that it is a DIY project.

In vibrant orange with an assortment of controls, YouTuber otemrellik AKA Toby Hendricks has made this awesome device.

This is one instrument I’d want on stage with me simply for the coolness factor, and that’s before the wide range of sounds are even created.

This is the kind of Raspberry Pi synth project most hobbyists dream of making. Also, otemrellik makes a lot of these videos of his various projects so definitely check them all out!

Build your own with a Zynthian kit

If you want the street cred of building your own Raspberry Pi synth, but the design prospects are daunting, you could do a lot worse than grabbing a Zynthian kit.

An Open Platform for Sound Synthesis, Zynthian is based on Raspberry Pi and Linux. What’s so great about it is that its hardware specification is public and software is open source. It is fully hackable!

UPDATE: some people report the Raspberry Pi cannot handle certain sounds in this kit. Will update more if more details arise.

If you get the bundle kit, all the parts are pre-soldered and you only need to plug the wires and screw the bolts. You don’t even need to solder anything!

A gorgeous FM touch synth

Unless you have goldfish memory, you’ll recognise this guy. Otemrellik returns to the list for another awesome project idea. In this one, he’s made a stunning touch FM (frequency modulation) synth with XY controls.

This synth offers a lot of expressive modulation control over the Y-axis and shows the sonic versatility available once you get tinkering.

NSuperSynth

This one’s a bit weird to describe. Made by Google, they say it is “an experimental physical interface for the NSynth algorithm”. It uses Magenta’s NSynth, Google’s neural network that generates sounds.

NSynth Super is part of an ongoing experiment by Magenta: a research project within Google that explores how machine learning tools can help artists create art and music in new ways.

All of the technology and design used to create NSynth Super is available as an open-source project.

The open-source version of the NSynth Super prototype including all of the source code, schematics, and design templates are available for download on GitHub.

Raspberry Pi guitar pedal

I know, it’s not technically a synth, or even an instrument, but having a Raspberry Pi as a guitar effects pedal would be a great partner for your Raspberry Pi Synth. You could plug them in together or kit out your whole band with at least one Raspberry Pi each for extra geek kudos.

What did I miss? Got a project you want added? Add your suggestions in the comments!

Disclaimer: this article contains external links to Seeed Studio

About Seeed Studio

Seeed is the IoT hardware enabler providing services over 10 years that empower makers to realize their projects and products. Seeed offers a wide array of hardware platforms and sensor modules ready to be integrated with existing IoT platforms and one-stop PCB fabrication and PCB assembly service. Seeed Studio provides a wide selection of electronic parts including Arduino  Raspberry Pi and many different development board platforms  Especially the Grove System help engineers and makers to avoid jumper wires problems. Seeed Studio has developed more than 280 Grove modules covering a wide range of applications that can fulfil a variety of needs. 

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The Raspberry Pi is a tiny (think cigarette packet-sized) computer designed to be cheap and easy to use for projects, and music production is no exception.

(This article has been updated to include the latest links and information)

Originally made as tool to teach computer science on the cheap, the Raspberry Pi has inspired millions of projects.

They are available for around £10-60 (depending on the model) and are awesome to have, even as just a small backup computer.

There are, of course, downsides to a system that small, it lacks significant processing power for any major scale work. Even the recommended operating systems tend to be smaller versions of Linux.

That said, with the latest models (the Raspberry Pi 4 and the Raspberry Pi 400), the processing power has gone up quite a bit. The latest models are even effective computers for basic users.

So the question one might ask is it powerful enough to produce music on it?

SEE ALSO: Raspberry Pi synth: A list of the coolest DIY projects
SEE ALSO: Can You DJ with a Raspberry Pi?

Using the Raspberry Pi to produce music

Even back when this article first came out, the answer was yes, you can produce music on a Raspberry Pi. Now, things have got even better!

The Raspberry Pi has come a long way since this guide was originally written. Processing power and the number of operating systems it can support are much improved and the amount of community support is enough for even the biggest noobs to solve their problems.

One of the best options for producing music with a Raspberry Pi is Non.

Developer by Jonathan Liles, an American software architect and musician set out to make a DAW under the aim of it being “fast, light, [and] reliable”.

He has developed a modular DAW great for use on small computers, such as the Raspberry Pi itself.

Best of all, Non is entirely FREE!

Non, the DAW that works on the Raspberry Pi

At 43k lines of code, Non an impressive example of efficiency. Getting most software in that size is admirable, let alone a fully functioning DAW.

He aims to maintain the simplicity throughout the life of Non.  

Non differs from other DAWs in its modular nature; each component can work independently of the others.

Originally designed as the Non-Sequencer, when Liles encountered difficulty with the available resources, he kicked the project into gear using JACK, a low-latency sound server.  

Non comes with several modular packages:  

• Non-Sequencer – A MIDI sequencer
• Non-DAW – The timeline/arranger section
• Non-Mixer – The mixer section with plugin hosting

The only real issues with Non as a DAW are that it is very much a one-man project, he is releasing it for free and updates are infrequent.

Obviously, for the serious producer, this won’t be a problem, as they will have another DAW, and for the hobbyist fan of Raspberry Pi hardware, it will be enough to tinker about with, so don’t let that put you off.  

If you do plan on running it on a Raspberry Pi, you will find you need more kit eg. a soundcard, however after the price of a Pi, you will likely have some money spare for these extra devices.  

It really comes as a shock to realise that most computers are more powerful than the Pi, and so should really be able to handle sound production processes.

In reality, the bottleneck is the size of most software DAWs. When provided with enough computing power (as most modern computers provide), developers don’t need to refine and streamline their products as much.

This, in turn, leads to unnecessary amounts of code in some cases. Yes, most computers can handle it, it’s still a waste of efficiency.  

It’s only when you get someone who realises what can be done, and is willing to invest the time, that you realise how little computing is necessary.

What Raspberry Pi should I buy for music production

As of 2020, the best option for you would be the Raspberry Pi 400. This version of the Raspberry Pi takes a detour from the standard formats and actually comes built into a keyboard.

The Raspberry Pi 400 is, in essence, a Raspberry Pi 4, but with the added keyboard, it has much more size to spread heat.

This means it runs cooler and the processor is overclocked by default at the factory making it even faster than the Raspberry Pi 4.

It does come in more expensive, and you do lose some functionality, such as lack of an audio jack. This can be resolved with a cheap USB soundcard though, which you’ll want anyway for better sound.

That said, if you are looking for a Raspberry Pi for multiple projects, you may be better off with the default Raspberry Pi 4, this allows a bit more freedom, and all the standard features of Raspberry Pis, including an accessible GPIO.

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