Built for the curious noise.

Feral Cat Synthesizers is building Portable Instrument: a tactile, slightly wild portable synth designed to reward turning the wrong knob at exactly the right time.

Meet the first build

System status: stalking a first note.

Detailed concept render of the FC-01 Portable Instrument: a cream portable synthesizer with mini keys, speaker, knobs, buttons, screen, and side I/O. — **Portable Instrument / FC-01**
A Feral Cat Synthesizers concept render in active signal mode.

01 / the den

One portable synth. Plenty of places to wander.

Our first instrument is in the workshop now: a hand-assembled, 3D-printable portable synth with a real keyboard, a little screen, built-in speaker, and an architecture made for new sounds to grow into.

A / PLAY

Keep it under your fingers.

Keys, knobs, buttons, and fast visual feedback make the first build an instrument before it becomes a platform.

B / TINKER

Leave room for strange ideas.

Its audio and graphics systems are deliberately separate, so a new visual toy, effect, or control surface can stay experimental without interrupting sound.

C / EXPAND

Grow a small ecosystem.

Future Feral Cat modules and alternate housings are being planned as companions to Portable Instrument, not distractions from making music.

02 / field notes

The workshop is awake.

We are documenting the first prototype honestly: experiments, constraints, useful failures, and the moments where it finally starts behaving like an instrument.

NOW
FC-01 proof of concept
A portable, hand-assembled synthesizer is taking shape around playable controls, a compact display, and a tough little speaker.
NEXT
Sounds with boundaries
Custom instruments and effects will arrive through a carefully bounded audio engine, so experimentation does not trade away reliability.
LATER
Modular side trail
An optional 1U Eurorack-compatible direction is being explored as its own mechanical and electrical project.

03 / find the signal

The first noises are almost loose.

This is an early workshop site and a place to mark the beginning. More prototype sounds, build notes, and proper ways to get in touch will appear as the instrument reaches its first playable form.

SIGNAL
ACTIVE