The Ming Mecca is a pixel art-oriented modular sound and interactive

video synthesizer A video synthesizer is a device that electronically creates a video signal. A video synthesizer is able to generate a variety of visual material without camera input through the use of internal video pattern generators. It can also accept and " ...

designed by Jordan Bartee, manufactured by Special Stage Systems, and released in 2014. It was followed by the Ming Micro in 2016.

Overview

The Ming Mecca is a modular synthesizer designed to allow users to create, control, and manipulate retro video games. The system has 2 main modules. In the World Core users can make changes to the game world via a series of toggles and switches, and in the Control Core users can use a

NES The Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is an 8-bit home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was first released in Japan on 15 July 1983 as the and was later released as the redesigned NES in several test markets in the ...

controller to give inputs directly into the game to produce various results.Mitchell, Richard.
Ming Mecca: An analog video game synthesizer
. ''

Engadget Engadget ( ) is a technology news, reviews and analysis website offering daily coverage of gadgets, consumer electronics, video games, gaming hardware, apps, social media, streaming, AI, space, robotics, electric vehicles and other potentially ...

''. 3 May 2013.
Previously printed
in ''

Joystiq ''Joystiq'' was a video gaming blog which was part of the Weblogs, Inc. family later owned by AOL. It was active from 2004 to 2015, acting as the primary video game blog for the group, and operating alongside ''Engadget'' and sister blogs such ...

'')Elliot, Patrick.
Ming Mecca, The Jazz Instrument for Videogame Improvisation
. ''

Kill Screen Since the origin of video games in the early 1970s, the video game industry, the players, and surrounding culture have spawned a wide range of technical and slang terms. 0–9 A ...

''. 30 March 2015. These two cores allow the creation of

glitch art Glitch art is an art movement centering around the practice of using digital or analog errors, more so glitches, for aesthetic purposes by either corrupting digital data or physically manipulating electronic devices. It has also been regarded as a ...

videos, however the unit is intended to allow users to explore the

game world Game World is a Tennessee Walking Horse stallion who won the World Grand Championship in the Tennessee Walking Horse National Celebration in 2011. Life and career Game World is a chestnut stallion with a star and strip on his face, foaled on A ...

and to use it as an "ontological toy" with sprites, backgrounds, and effects like gravity and object interaction. It is also intended to function with the

Eurorack Eurorack is a modular synthesizer format originally specified in 1995 by Doepfer Musikelektronik. It has since grown in popularity, and has become a dominant hardware modular synthesizer format, with over 15,000 modules available from more than ...

synthesizer family to allow electronic music to interact with the graphical world in realtime. In addition, a third module, the Oscillographic Block (which also interfaces with Eurorack) has provided expanded audio capacity via the

Texas Instruments SN76489 The Texas Instruments SN76489 is a programmable sound generator chip from the 1980s, used to create music and sound effects on computers and video game systems. Initially developed by Texas Instruments for its TI-99/4A home computer, it was late ...

chip so that it can allow

chiptune Chiptune, also called 8-bit music (although not all chiptune is 8-bit music), is a style of electronic music made using the programmable sound generator (PSG) sound chips or synthesizers in vintage arcade machines, computers and video gam ...

glitch music Glitch is a genre of experimental electronic music that emerged in the 1990s, which is distinguished by the deliberate use of glitches in audio media and other sonic artifacts. The sounds featured in glitch tracks usually come from audio recordi ...

, synthesized voice, etc. when interfaced with a Eurorack.Bartee, Jordan.
Oscillographic Block
. Special Stage Systems. Retrieved (via archive.org) 1 May 2020.

Modules

The Ming Mecca range included the following modules: * World Core – Manipulates the game world (video,

physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...

, and

collision In physics, a collision is any event in which two or more bodies exert forces on each other in a relatively short time. Although the most common use of the word ''collision'' refers to incidents in which two or more objects collide with great for ...

) with pre-loaded graphics from an

SD card Secure Digital (SD) is a proprietary, non-volatile, flash memory card format developed by the SD Association (SDA). Owing to their compact size, SD cards have been widely adopted in a variety of portable consumer electronics, including dig ...

* Control Core – Utilizes an NES controller to manipulate voltage with each button command passing analog input to control, e.g., sprite behavior * Oscillographic Block – Enables three channel digital synthesizer voice with integrated function generators, preset memory, algorithmic patch generators, and CV/gate control. Bartee has suggested that future module expansions to the World Core may include artificial intelligence, game logic, conditional statements, and sound.

Ming Micro

In early 2016, Special Stage Systems announced that it would be releasing a portable version of the Ming Mecca called the Ming Micro. Launching a

Kickstarter Kickstarter, PBC is an American Benefit corporation, public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York City, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative project ...

campaign in February 2016, the Ming Micro was fully funded in early March and manufacturing began with an estimated June delivery date.Bartee, Jordan.
Ming Micro: Portable 8-bit Video Synthesizer
. Kickstarter. February 2016. Initially billed as a stripped down low-cost alternative to the Ming Mecca, further development of the Micro resulted in its re-conception as the second generation of the Ming series. Whereas the Mecca employs analog interface with voltage control, the Micro is designed to use USB as its means of data transfer, and a MIDI controller for manual use.Pangburn, DJ.
Meet Ming Micro, the Portable 8-Bit Video and Audio Synthesizer
. ''

Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, Habit (psychology), habit or item generally considered morally wrong in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character trait, a defect, an infirmity, or a bad or unhe ...

''. 9 February 2016. The central engine is designed to showcase graphics with the four main elements including sprites,

tile Tiles are usually thin, square or rectangular coverings manufactured from hard-wearing material such as ceramic, Rock (geology), stone, metal, baked clay, or even glass. They are generally fixed in place in an array to cover roofs, floors, wal ...

tile map A tile-based video game, or grid-based video game, is a type of video game where the playing area consists of small square (or, much less often, rectangular, parallelogram, or hexagonal) graphic images referred to as ''tiles'' laid out in a g ...

s, and palettes. As previously, the Micro outputs NTSC composite video, and allows for storage via a SD card called the World Pack. In addition to the graphics engine, the Micro contains a simple audio synthesizer with two

square wave Square wave may refer to: *Square wave (waveform) A square wave is a non-sinusoidal waveform, non-sinusoidal periodic waveform in which the amplitude alternates at a steady frequency between fixed minimum and maximum values, with the same ...

s and a

noise generator A noise generator is a circuit that produces electrical noise (i.e., a random signal). Noise generators are used to test signals for measuring noise figure, frequency response, and other parameters. Noise generators are also used for Random numbe ...

. To ensure the portability of the Ming Micro, parts of the Mecca's two cores have been stripped out so neither collision detection in the World Core nor NES controllers on the Control Core are available, however Bartee's intention was to increase visual aspects to appeal to VJs and chiptune musicians. Bartee has suggested that gaming controller interface may be expanded in the future via a current project called "Micro Mod".Yulman, Nick.
The Weird Virtual Worlds of Jordan Bartee's Pixel Instruments
. ''

Medium Medium may refer to: Aircraft *Medium bomber, a class of warplane * Tecma Medium, a French hang glider design Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''The Medium'' (1921 film), a German silent film * ''The Medium'' (1951 film), a film vers ...

''. 18 February 2016.

Development

The roots of the Ming Mecca emerged from Bartee's research into ontological toys as he worked on a doctoral thesis for

Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...

's Department of Music.Bartee, Jordan.
Ontological Toys
.

- Department of Music. 2014. Bartee's original interests sprang from his introduction to the

Commodore 64 The Commodore 64, also known as the C64, is an 8-bit computing, 8-bit home computer introduced in January 1982 by Commodore International (first shown at the Consumer Electronics Show, January 7–10, 1982, in Las Vegas). It has been listed in ...

as a child and his introduction to

circuit bending Circuit bending is the creative customization of the circuits within electronic devices such as children's toys and digital synthesizers to create new musical or visual instruments and sound generators. Circuit bending is manipulating a circuit ...

as a young adult. Fascinated by the concepts of aesthetic

glitch A glitch is a short-lived technical fault, such as a transient one that corrects itself, making it difficult to troubleshoot. The term is particularly common in the computing and electronics industries, in circuit bending, as well as among pl ...

es and

virtual space A virtual world (also called a virtual space or spaces) is a Computer simulation, computer-simulated environment which may be populated by many simultaneous users who can create a personal Avatar (computing), avatar and independently explore th ...

, he developed a

-based

logic analyzer A logic analyzer is an electronic instrument that captures and displays multiple logic signals from a digital system or digital circuit. A logic analyzer may convert the capture into timing diagrams, protocol decodes, state machine traces, op ...

early in his college career that he called the "Trimaxion Logic Listener". His experiences with the TLL led to a series of video performances that he termed "DIGIMANCY", and set the course for his graduate studies. Seeking to connect 2D video

s and

modular synthesizer Modular synthesizers are synthesizers composed of separate modules for different functions. The modules can be connected together by the user to create a patch. The outputs from the modules may include audio signals, analog control voltages, ...

s as early as 2011, he began working on an interactive

that he named after the "Ming Mecca" chip from

Darren Aronofsky Darren Aronofsky (born February 12, 1969) is an American Filmmaking, filmmaker. His films are noted for their surreal, dramatic, and often disturbing elements, frequently in the form of psychological realism. His accolades include a Golden Lion ...

's 1998 film '' Pi''. Originally intended to interface with the Commodore 64, Bartee's recognition of the similarities between the TLL and the original

Game Genie The Game Genie was a line of Video game accessory, video game accessories that allowed players to alter codes transmitted between ROM cartridge, game cartridges and a video game console, known informally as a cheat cartridge. Developed by Codemas ...

(which was better

documented A document is a written, drawn, presented, or memorialized representation of thought, often the manifestation of non-fictional, as well as fictional, content. The word originates from the Latin ', which denotes a "teaching" or "lesson": t ...

and whose patent had recently expired) led him to switch the Ming Mecca to a NES-oriented program. After exploring the possibility of modifying and adapting an existing NES, Bartee decided that the complexities involved in retrofitting the console would take too long and the Ming Mecca became its own console designed from scratch. Borrowing the voltage-control (a central element of the original TLL), the NES graphics, and the modular aspects of fellow Brown student Chris Novello's "Illucia" program, the Ming Mecca was designed to interface with

synthesizers and produce visual output directly to an

NTSC NTSC (from National Television System Committee) is the first American standard for analog television, published and adopted in 1941. In 1961, it was assigned the designation System M. It is also known as EIA standard 170. In 1953, a second ...

composite display.

Release

Marketed as a

retro Retro style is imitative or consciously derivative of lifestyles, trends, or art forms from the past, including in music, modes, fashions, or attitudes. It has been argued that there is a nostalgia cycle in popular culture. Definition The term ...

"videogame synthesizer" at shows like Indiecade 2013 and released by Special Stage Systems (today Analogue Haven and Perfect Circuit), the Ming Mecca became available in summer of 2014 with a retail price of $1000 for the World Core and $350 for the Control Core. Bartee also simultaneously released the schematics and source code for free download from the Special Stage Systems website. Launched via

campaign in February 2016, the Ming Micro was funded in early March and Special Stage Systems released the unit the same year with a retail price of $200 for the assembled unit or $175 for a DIY kit.Wilson, Scott.
Ming Micro is a synth that generates 8-bit sound and visuals
. ''

Fact A fact is a truth, true data, datum about one or more aspects of a circumstance. Standard reference works are often used to Fact-checking, check facts. Science, Scientific facts are verified by repeatable careful observation or measurement by ...

''. 2 October 2016.

Reception

Describing the Ming Mecca as "if a Nintendo Entertainment System and a recording studio mixing board had a baby", Kotaku's review praised the ad campaigns as fully embodying the dark and intense 80s vibe, and described the unit as "the weirdest piece of new video game hardware announced this year. Or maybe any year". Similarly impressed were reviewers at AnimalNewYork where, borrowing from Special Stage Systems' blurb, they acknowledged the system as "the ultimate god mode".Galperina, Marina.
Voltage-Controlled Videogame Glitch Console
. AnimalNewYork. 17 May 2013. Generally positive about the Ming Micro, which they referenced as "the ultimate pixel art instrument", ''

'' magazine did complain that the retro aspects like the composite video output requiring old CRT displays boosted "authenticity" at the expense of usability. As with Kotaku's review of the Mecca, Bartee was praised by

for his evocative VHS-quality videos used in his marketing campaign.

Fan reception and use

Having pledged more than three times the original Ming Micro target of $10,000 on Kickstarter, the Ming series has inspired use in

and

retrofuturistic Retrofuturism (adjective ''retrofuturistic'' or ''retrofuture'') is a movement in the creative arts showing the influence of depictions of the future produced in an earlier era. If futurism is sometimes called a "science" bent on anticipat ...

visual artists. In an interview with ''

'', Bartee described his excitement with various indie projects using the Ming series, and points to Darren Blondin's further development of the Mecca to turn it into a graphical sequencer as well Andrew Gibbs' adoption of the Mecca as a VJ rig for live chiptune shows.

References

External links

* *{{Internet Archive, id=20170509081147, name=Special Stage Systems - Oscillographic Block
Funded and closed Kickstarter campaign for Ming Micro
Monophonic synthesizers Analog synthesizers Modular synthesizers Musical instruments invented in the 2010s