Intro to Bread Modular
Bread Modular is an affordable modular synth platform built around the following core principles:
- Minimalistic Design
- Open Source Everything
- Modern Capabilities
Let's expand:
Minimalistic Design
We make it affordable by making things minimal rather than cutting corners on electronics and parts. For example:
- Our modules are just PCBs
- All the components, including knobs and sockets, are soldered into them
- We use a common ground, so we can use single-wire data communication
Open Source Everything
We develop in the open. You can access everything we do from our GitHub. We share all the schematics, PCB designs, and code.
We even show you how to use PCB manufacturing services to assemble PCBs as well as sourcing parts.
In contrast to other projects, we use the permissive MIT license. So, you are free to do whatever you wish, and you don't need to share your derived work. (But we appreciate it if you do.)
Modern Capabilities
We use proven analog designs but incorporate modern electronics to add more features and reduce costs. Here are some examples:
- We use MIDI as a communication method across modules, which allows us to do more while reducing the wiring between modules.
- We use USB-C as a power supply, so you can power Bread Modular almost anywhere.
- We use SMT components and modern microcontrollers like the ATtiny 1616 to do more while being small and cost-effective.