The Mars Roveriser is an experimental granular crackle-noise and echo-percussion synth inspired by the Spirit and Opportunity Mars rovers. Isn'tses designed it to move between radio-like crackle, intermittent micro-clicks, rhythmic hits, metallic pings, strums, and overflowing feedback drones.
An Arduino Nano runs custom Isn'tses code that generates PWM audio before analog filtering and line-level amplification. Particle crackles can follow the internal clock, the manual trigger button, or an external trigger, with white-noise and low-frequency bitcrushed source modes feeding a glitchy lo-fi reverb and echo stage. Six knobs shape gain, particle length, clock speed, space, pitch, and bipolar feedback; two switches select ordered or randomized timing and high- or low-resolution pitch ranges.
The desktop instrument provides a mono 3.5 mm audio output, a DC trigger-pulse output for synchronizing external gear, and a mono 3.5 mm trigger input. It runs from a standard center-negative 9 V guitar-pedal supply and is available fully built or as a soldering kit.
