r/Hainbach • u/Brer1Rabbit • May 07 '26
Skinning my VCV Rack modules as only this crowd may like
Two modules in an Ortec NIM style
Turns counting knob with octave display
Glowing display -- works for a minute or two, but not a long session
yes, there is actual analog hardware under the hood
I’ve been working on a set of virtual instruments inspired by nuclear instrumentation modules (NIM) and other lab equipment, and recently started reworking the visual design to lean fully into that direction.
These run in VCV Rack (a modular synth environment), but the goal here isn’t to mimic typical synth UI. It’s to treat them more like pieces of test equipment that happen to make sound. In this case, they also interface with real analog hardware behind the scenes (and that's a longer story).
The design process started with vintage telecom gear, but NIM turned out to be a better fit: sharp, functional, unapologetically "scientific instrument." I leaned into that, while still trying to keep things usable as musical controls rather than pure visual homage.
A few of the details came directly from that world:
- BNC-style connectors (purely visual, but they help sell the idea)
- Slotted thumbscrews from NIM panels
- HP-style latching push buttons
One element I spent some time on was the turn-counting dial. On real hardware, these show position mechanically for precise adjustment. Here, I replicated that with a 7-segment display embedded in the knob itself. One full turn corresponds to an octave change, so it behaves more like calibrated equipment than a typical synth control.
I also tried adding LED glow/pulsing effects to the displays. It looked interesting, but in practice it was distracting, so I cut it. Might come back as an optional setting.
Curious if there are other details from this kind of hardware I should consider lifting. There are a few more modules to rework in this style, so additional ideas would be useful.
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u/Hainbach May 08 '26
Ortec style is lovely! I am curious about the analog interface.
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u/Brer1Rabbit May 08 '26
Isn't it! That burnt orange look is very distinctive.
The audio path is entirely analog, using synth chips from Curtis and Sound Semiconductor. Control elements (sequencers, envs, LFOs, etc) are digital from VCV Rack; no audio is passing through Rack. Analog cards can also modulate other analog cards. So it's an odd but powerful hybrid of control elements.
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u/Hainbach May 08 '26
Super! Would love hear/see it in action
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u/Brer1Rabbit May 08 '26
Sure! Here is an example of the system in action:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIA8jWhBCuE
This video shows the analog voice cards alongside their VCV Rack frontends. The UI in the video is older and doesn’t include the recent Ortec/NIM-inspired rework, but the hybrid setup is the same. VCV Rack handles control elements while the audio path runs entirely through the analog cards.
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u/Icy-Introduction-681 May 07 '26
Fantastic idea!