Polyend releases the Tracker firmware source code(polyend.com)
81 pointsby austinallegro8 hours ago11 comments
  • sebastienbarre3 hours ago
    For people afraid of bricking their units, I can't stress enough how groundbreaking it is that they're acknowledging that risk and still offering to repair your unit. You pay of course, because this is a risk you took, but at least they will have a look at it:

        "Out-of-Warranty Repairs Available: In the unlikely event that something ever goes wrong with your hardware while using custom firmware, it is not covered under standard warranty. However, Polyend is always happy to help get your instrument back up and running through its official out-of-warranty repair service (standard service, parts, and shipping fees apply."
    • embedding-shape2 hours ago
      > groundbreaking it is that

      Hmm, out-of-warranty repairs for music hardware is pretty standard, at least here in Europe. I've done this with Elektron, Novation, Korg, Adam Audio, Yamaha and a bunch of other brands before as well, with everything from speakers to synths. Is it different in the US perhaps?

      I've even sent gear running custom firmware in for out-of-warranty repairs, without any questions asked about it. AFAIK, even if you're within warranty with custom firmware, they would need to prove it's specifically the fault of the custom firmware in order to deny warranty claims, they couldn't refuse it outright just because of the firmware on the device.

  • gregsadetsky3 hours ago
    Relatedly, Erika Synths released the source code of the LXR-02 very recently as well: https://www.ericasynths.lv/news/post/lxropen

    (I/AI had fun porting it to wasm/web! I don't want to seem too self-link'y, so if anyone asks, happy to share the link)

    I also have a Polyend Tracker for sale if anyone's in the market..! It's a great device, I'm just trying to focus on having less right now.

  • NDlurker40 minutes ago
    Exciting! I have a Tracker I need to update. I've also been seen stuff about Doom OS for the SP404 MK2, need to update that too.
  • keylean hour ago
    What excites me most about this, is alternative hardware running this firmware.

    I love the idea of the polyend stuff but they're too pricy when there are perfectly usable trackers with more possibilities like renoise.

    The novelty of a handheld tracker wears off quick once you start plugging things in.

  • 3 hours ago
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  • dimatura4 hours ago
    The avalanche of reverse engineered/custom firmwares is definitely changing the synth landscape. I'm wondering how many other companies will start open sourcing. It isn't always trivial since sometimes there's proprietary software components or toolchains that can't be open sourced. But it's hard to imagine it won't be more common. There's a lot of mixed feelings in the community. A lot of musicians don't like AI, but they do want to have more features and bug fixes. A lot of synth makers are probably ambivalent too, especially if they have a stronger vision of what the synths should be that custom firmware ignore. Not to mention the commercial implications of adding features into existing synths, possibly making newer models less appealing. And of course people are copying UIs and workflows from other synths that took a lot of work to develop.
  • girvo4 hours ago
    I'm glad! It makes sense though: the community has been reverse engineering it and building their own with LLM help lately. I love my Tracker+, such a neat bit of kit, and I'm excited to see what we can do now the firmware is open
  • vyaa3 hours ago
    Awesome! I don’t use any of their gear but still great news.

    If only Ableton and Max would follow. Maybe that’s a weekend project.

    • keyle2 hours ago
      Ableton is an overpriced piece of shmoo that will soon go away. It has over extended its welcome.
    • embedding-shape2 hours ago
      I'm secretly wishing for Ableton to not become FOSS, even though I probably couldn't survive without Ableton, and I'm also into FOSS. But I fear if Ableton would become FOSS, they'd just eat the entire DAW market, and it'd be impossible for new entries to even get the slightest of attention.

      At least this way there are still cause for eyeing in other directions than Ableton.

      • vyaa2 hours ago
        I think logic will stick around. A lot of people want to stay in the Apple ecosystem. And doesn’t Pro Tools still has a grip on the professional studio market?
  • viraptor5 hours ago
    "Click to accept marketing cookies and enable this content" on a video? Have some shame, developers...
    • thih95 hours ago
      Note that this is a youtube embed. Polyend is at least transparent about youtube tracking.
      • viraptor3 hours ago
        That's not what the message says though. It implies using marketing cookies there, not externally. They could've said "Click to play from YouTube (may involve cookie tracking)" if it's actually for YouTube
  • nullstyle3 hours ago
    Looks like my Tracker is getting promoted from drawer jockey to the main jamspot in my music setup, and I've got a weekend project to take on.

    I love to see this new trend in the electrical musical implement industrial complex.