A Starvation Synth Made with DIY Solar Cells

If you venture far enough into the uncharted jungles of the homebrew hardware synthesizer scene, you might be lucky enough to glimpse the elusive starvation synth. A starvation synth is an unusual device that you’ll only ever come across in experimental music. The term “starvation” refers to the lack of voltage driving the analog synthesis. Not only can a starvation synth run on very low power, but reducing the power creates interesting new sound effects. The technology is perfect for almost-dead batteries and inefficient solar cells, as demonstrated by Shih Wei-Chieh’s starvation synth powered by his own DSSCs.

We recently covered Shih Wei-Chieh’s adventures in constructing his own DSSCs (Dye-Sensitive Solar Cells) and they’re truly impressive. On a technical level, it is pretty incredible that someone can make functional solar cells using the kind of equipment you can find in most makerspaces. And on an artistic level, the resulting panels look amazing. On top of that, Shih Wei-Chieh uses plant-based dyes that are friendly to the environment. But though Shih Wei-Chieh’s DIY DSSCs are really extraordinary, the technology isn’t very efficient compared to the monocrystalline solar cells that are so common.

Because these DIY DSSCs aren’t practical as a substitute for mass-manufactured solar cells, Shih Wei-Chieh found an esoteric use for them: powering a starvation synth.

Shih Wei-Chieh is currently in residence at Kulturhus Björkboda (KUBU) in Finland and was able to make this happen with the help of their equipment. He modified his DSSC fabrication technique to make a panel with an array of independent cells in a beautiful Voronoi pattern. He used an xTool P2 CO2 laser machine to etch the pattern in glass and sinter the electrodes. The titanium oxide and platinum paste were applied with screen printing techniques. Finally, Shih Wei-Chieh applied the dye, sealed the glass, and injected the electrolyte solution.

That beautiful custom DSSC panel fit into a 3D-printed enclosure that also contains the starvation synth circuitry built with help from Marc Dusseiller. That synthesizer circuit requires very little voltage and current (about 1.2V and around 0.12mA) to drive the oscillators that feed piezo buzzers. As the power goes lower and lower, the circuit becomes more unstable and produces interesting sounds.

The starvation synth circuit is perfect for the DSSC-based solar panel because it doesn’t need much power. And the user can influence the sound by further decreasing the panel’s output, such as by covering cells with their fingers to reduce the light exposure.

This is a truly unique concept and likely the only project of its kind in history, which is really saying something.