Scintilla
Get it: Install on my FM-1 on its page (over USB, in Chrome or Edge), or the .fwsc from the latest release, installed with the FM-1 Firmware Hub or firmware/tools/fm1install.py scintilla-0.1.1.fwsc (USB-MIDI).
- Custom firmware
- Alpha
- Medium brick risk
- Reversible
This project hasn't been claimed by its maintainer yet, so its details come from the community. Is it yours? Claim it
Scintilla 0.1.1: the 1981 Elka Synthex, reborn on the M-VAVE FM-1.
The same firmware as 0.1, with its own identity: it now reports FM-1_96300101 (0.1 reported FM-1_960, which SID-1 also uses). Release builds are FM-1_963 + the version from now on. The code is 0.1's, which was installed and played on a real FM-1: the two builds differ only in the identity and version strings.
The Synthex of synthex-web, ported to integer C and checked sample by sample against the original, as a firmware of its own for the FM-1.
- the 80 factory sounds (PRESETS 10..49, MEMORIES 10..49), Paul Wiffen's Laser Harp "Ring mod." among them
- two layers of 8 voices (single, split, double), poly / mono / unison, glide and portamento
- chorus, and an algorithmic reverb (plate, room, hall, galactic)
- KNOB1..4 edit the four parameters on screen; pages for OSC, MIX, FILTER, ENVs, LFOs, GLIDE, OUTPUT, REVERB, JOYSTICK
- MIDI in over USB and the DIN jack: notes with velocity, pitch bend, CC1 / 74 / 91 / 93, program change
Install: scintilla-0.1.1.fwsc with the FM-1 Firmware Hub or firmware/tools/fm1_install.py scintilla-0.1.1.fwsc. Hold OCT- while switching on for the USB rescue; the hub takes it back to the official firmware. Scintilla reads no other firmware's projects or samples. Not there yet: the delay, and saving edited sounds.
scintilla-0.1.1.fwsc sha256 3fc929a29db7096c2f0751a67b6682c10ed531b3411f25daa6c825dfb36784c5 (identity FM-1_96300101; ./build.sh --release 0.1.1 at the tag rebuilds it bit for bit)
The videos: scintilla-short.mp4 (1080x1920) and scintilla-square.mp4 (1080x1080), the firmware playing in fm1-emu, sound unedited.
Free and open source (GPL-3.0-only). Not affiliated with or endorsed by Elka, Generalmusic, Behringer / Music Tribe or M-VAVE.
Before you start
- How hard is it?
- EasyCopy a file or use a web page. No extra software.
- What you need
- Comfort with the command line
- A computer
- Can it break my device?
- Small chance of trouble, with a way to recover.
- Can I undo it?
- Yes. You can go back to the official software.
Did it work for you?
Did Scintilla v0.1.1 work on your M-VAVE FM-1?
No reports yet for v0.1.1.
One-tap reports from owners. Bricked reports are checked before they count.
Compatibility
Devices: M-VAVE FM-1.
No compatibility information yet.
Getting started
From the project's README ("Scintilla"):
The 1981 Elka Synthex, reborn on the M-VAVE FM-1. Scintilla is the Elka Synthex of synthex-web as an engine for the M-VAVE FM-1 pocket synth: fixed-point C for its JieLi AC791N (pi32v2, no FPU, two 240 MHz cores), checked sample by sample against the browser original and measured on the emulated FM-1 (fm1-emu).
Status: 0.1.1, runs on the FM-1. The engine plays all 80 factory patches (the 40 PRESETS and 40 MEMORIES, Paul Wiffen's Laser Harp "Ring mod." among them; the PRESETS with the values synthex-web decoded from the Synthex's own EPROMs) on this computer and on the emulated FM-1, with the same bits on both. firmware/ makes it a firmware of its own on Dinghy: the keys, the knobs and pages, the screen, USB and DIN MIDI, USB audio, velocity and aftertouch from the FM-1's own keys (on its SETTINGS page), installable as scintilla.fwsc. Installed and played on a real FM-1 (2026-10-23); every check in the tests runs in fm1-emu. The delay is not there yet (see PLAN.md); the reverb is an algorithmic one measured against the app's.
Get it: Install on my FM-1 on its page (over USB, in Chrome or Edge), or the .fwsc from the latest release, installed with the FM-1 Firmware Hub or firmware/tools/fm1install.py scintilla-0.1.1.fwsc (USB-MIDI). Hold OCT- while switching on for the USB rescue; the hub takes it back to the official firmware. The release also has a short video of it playing. Scintilla does not read other firmwares' projects or samples: its own 80 …
Risk and recovery
- Brick risk
- Medium
- Reversible
- Yes
- Requires opening the device
- No
From the project's README ("Scintilla"):
The 1981 Elka Synthex, reborn on the M-VAVE FM-1. Scintilla is the Elka Synthex of synthex-web as an engine for the M-VAVE FM-1 pocket synth: fixed-point C for its JieLi AC791N (pi32v2, no FPU, two 240 MHz cores), checked sample by sample against the browser original and measured on the emulated FM-1 (fm1-emu).
Status: 0.1.1, runs on the FM-1. The engine plays all 80 factory patches (the 40 PRESETS and 40 MEMORIES, Paul Wiffen's Laser Harp "Ring mod." among them; the PRESETS with the values synthex-web decoded from the Synthex's own EPROMs) on this computer and on the emulated FM-1, with the same bits on both. firmware/ makes it a firmware of its own on Dinghy: the keys, the knobs and pages, the screen, USB and DIN MIDI, USB audio, velocity and aftertouch from the FM-1's own keys (on its SETTINGS page), installable as scintilla.fwsc. Installed and played on a real FM-1 (2026-10-23); every check in the tests runs in fm1-emu. The delay is not there yet (see PLAN.md); the reverb is an algorithmic one measured against the app's.
Get it: Install on my FM-1 on its page (over USB, in Chrome or Edge), or the .fwsc from the latest release, installed with the FM-1 Firmware Hub or firmware/tools/fm1install.py scintilla-0.1.1.fwsc (USB-MIDI). Hold OCT- while switching on for the USB rescue; the hub takes it back to the official firmware. The release also has a short video of it playing. Scintilla does not read other firmwares' projects or samples: its own 80 …
Releases
| Version | Name | Released |
|---|---|---|
| v0.1.1 | Scintilla 0.1.1Latest | 23 October 2026 |
| v0.1 | Scintilla 0.1 | 23 October 2026 |
Credits, license and support
- License
- GPL-3.0