December 5, 2001

6:01 PM

Nanoloop - a synthesizer / sequencer for the Game Boy, which lets you compose and sequence sound loops (samples), entirely on your Game Boy. There's also a soon-to-be-released compilation of songs written entirely with Nanoloop, featuring Merzbow, Hrvatski, Pita and more.
posted by skwm (12 comments total)

Definitly a worthwhile buy, in my opinion.

See also BoyScout, a GBA song tracker for PC, and Little Sound DJ, a different GB synth.
posted by skyline at 6:10 PM on December 5, 2001

Link via Pitchfork.
posted by skwm at 6:10 PM on December 5, 2001

I've been dinking around with Nanoloop for a while now, and if you're into making electronic music you should really consider getting one (assuming you have a Game Boy).

At $80+ in the U.S. it might seem a bit steep for a Game Boy cartridge, but you get a great instrument and a great sequencer. Compare $80 to the cost of MIDI hardware or software, and the price doesn't seem so expensive anymore.
posted by adamv at 6:27 PM on December 5, 2001

Goddamn.

Me want.
posted by tpoh.org at 6:39 PM on December 5, 2001

That's pretty damned neato. I would have never thought that you could get such cool sound out of a GBC.

If you're serious about a sequencer for that price, though, I'd take a look at Fruity Loops which runs on PC and is only around $100 for the full version.
posted by eyeballkid at 7:34 PM on December 5, 2001

If you're looking for a full-fledged sequencer/synthesizer, look no further than Buzz. It's a bit hard to undertand the interface at first, but once you get used to it (with the help of a tutorial), it's easy. And the best part is, its free!
posted by skwm at 7:40 PM on December 5, 2001

Alec Empire of Atari Teenage Riot fame released a whole album of "music" done on the gameboy. Released under the name "Nintendo Teenage Robots," I was never quite sure how it was done. It's, uhm, interesting... to listen to. I ran a search again today and I saw this page. I see now how he did it, but for 80$, I think I'll just be an admirer.
posted by RubiX^3 at 7:43 PM on December 5, 2001

skwm: Sweet. I've used the Buzz synth through Fruity, I didn't realize it had a sequencer behind it. Thanks.
posted by eyeballkid at 7:59 PM on December 5, 2001

I've never used Buzz (mebbe I'll go check it out now), but I have to agree about FruityLoops; it's one of the coolest things I've come across. It has a very intuitive interface and, so far, has been able to do everything I've wanted it to... simplicity + power = good.
posted by transient at 8:52 PM on December 5, 2001

i've been looking for a useable sampler/sequencer for the mac for a little while now without any results.
somebody can't suggest one in my price range (free) can can they?
posted by clockwork at 11:29 PM on December 5, 2001

The PalmOS devices have some neat musical solutions available. The hardware choices are grouped on this page which belongs to a company that has some pretty nifty software that works with the devices. I haven't tried them out but I am salivating for the Beat Plus which has a Yamaha FM module that plays 16 voices!
posted by mmarcos at 2:27 AM on December 6, 2001

DP! ... Just makes me want one twice as much :)
posted by dlewis at 4:04 AM on December 6, 2001