Today we’re talking to Nick Donaldson, Lead DSP Engineer at WMD and formerly of his own brand, Infrasonic Audio. Prior to joining WMD full-time, Nick had been developing his own modules and doing DSP and firmware development as a freelancer for other synth companies including Cyma Forma, Modbap Modular, GLX Audio, and many more. Nick also occasionally performs and releases music as Kip Schwinger.
This interview is part of our ’20 Questions’ series, you can see all of those interviews HERE.
01 How would you introduce yourself to someone who has no idea who you are and no idea of the modular, synth, & music tech spaces?
I’m Nick from Denver, Colorado. I’ve been a musician pretty much my entire life, and I’ve also been interested in science and technology pretty much my entire life. I’ve been through a number of jobs in the software space, but these days I am a DSP and firmware developer, which means that I write code to tell music devices how to manipulate and generate sounds. This is most often inside tiny chips on hardware devices (usually synthesizer modules), but occasionally inside software that runs on desktop computers. I studied some of this stuff at a university level but I’ve also learned a lot on my own. I also enjoy making music, especially with things I’ve developed myself.
02 How would you introduce yourself to someone who is aware of modular, synth & music tech worlds?
I’m Nick from Denver, Colorado. As of January 2026 I am the lead DSP engineer at WMD, and before that I spent several years making my own modules and doing freelance development as Infrasonic Audio for a bunch of different small companies. If you’re into electronic music gear and have bought any new products in the last four years, there’s a decent chance you’ve used something I’ve worked on. I’m interested in developing DSP for novel and unabashedly digital use cases – not so much in “virtual analog” modeling.
03 What were your early influences for getting into what you do now?
My dad is a guitarist and so I grew up in a very musical household. When he was gigging regularly I got to spend a lot of time around music tech – pedals, mixing consoles, etc – and developed an early fascination in how sound can be manipulated and produced electronically. This steered my academic interests toward electrical and computer engineering, but once I discovered a love for programming, that kind of took over and I became enamored with learning how to write code to generate and manipulate audio.
04 What was the first thing you created either as Infrasonic Audio or something for yourself?
The very first thing that I’d say was an “original” creation of mine was a project for a physical modeling seminar in grad school, using Karplus-Strong-like digital string waveguides to simulate guitar feedback, as a really janky piece of desktop software that only ran from the command line. I was amazed at how interesting the sounds were for a relatively simple algorithm. That concept formed the basis for the SynthUX Audrey II DSP design which is one of the first things I made under the Infrasonic Audio moniker.
05 What was the first product you brought to market and how was that received?
My first original product was Warp Core, the stereo phase distortion oscillator I released under my Infrasonic Audio brand. Phase distortion is a really fascinating synthesis technique and it had barely been done in Eurorack prior to that. The original, more limited version was first released in VCV Rack in late 2022, which was a great low-risk place to start. I got enough positive feedback from that community to boost my confidence that it was an idea worth pursuing as a hardware module. I released the physical module about a year later, debuting it at Knobcon, with a redesigned UI and many additional features. The reception was really positive. I sold a lot of units (more than I anticipated) that first week after Knobcon. But I didn’t know what I was doing in terms of marketing and developing brand awareness, so sales kind of dropped off beyond that, until I released the EG/VCA expander a few months later and that helped expand awareness a bit further.
06 How did making that first product influence the next one? Any lessons learned to pass onto others?
Warp Core was a fully digital module, built on the Daisy platform, which was something within reach for me to achieve by myself while still learning a lot about actually designing and manufacturing hardware. I wanted my next module to be fully analog, to stretch my skills development in a different direction. I came up with Disentangler, which is a mid-side encoder and decoder that has a slider to also allow it to act as a stereo width processor. The idea was to pair it with Warp Core; treating the Warp Core outputs as full hard-panned stereo sounds good, but it’s also really nice to mix them a bit toward the center of the stereo image. Taking a stereo signal and moving it progressively toward a mono sum is trivial in a DAW but there aren’t a lot of dedicated modules for this, so that was the concept behind Disentangler. Given the original intention of the design, I expected it to mainly sell to existing Warp Core users, but I ended up selling a fair amount of these to first-time customers.
As far as lessons – I would say, if you have designed something that’s getting some buzz and/or positive reception, get your ducks in a row with dealers and marketing early. I wanted to do everything by myself and was always hesitant about the retailer cut and marketing spend, but that was foolish. Especially once I had more than one module design, I realized that it makes way more sense to lean on dealer networks and spend some money on real marketing channels than to try to make everything happen on your own.
07 Would you say you make things for yourself? How much community influence comes into play with new ideas?
I would say I make things pretty much exclusively for myself. I don’t ignore or blatantly disregard community feedback and influence, but I also don’t seek to capitalize on what’s trendy or what I think will sell really well. I think that’s really the only approach to creative development, especially in an increasingly crowded market like Eurorack. You have to trust your own instincts and follow what you think will be cool, and trust that others will agree. The same goes for my time so far at WMD. For example, the new 4hp channel / bus processors we debuted at Superbooth (Channel Surfer and Bus Rider) originally started from a desire Alex had to create better sounding mixes in his live sets. I contributed a few ideas of my own, born of a similar desire, and so the end result is something we are genuinely very excited to start using in our own setups.
08 How do you decide on the value ranges for the controls or CV inputs on your modules?
I make mainly digital stuff and outside of designs that specifically necessitate more expensive high-resolution ADC’s (broad-range quantizers, etc) typically we’re dealing with 12-bit ADCs to read CV. This sort of forces a de facto standard of ~10V span for CV range before the limitations of 12-bit quantization become undesirable. This can be -5 to 5V, 0 to 10V, etc. For modulation CV I generally prefer -5 to 5V since it allows for bipolar modulation. It’s a bit of a tradeoff though since without analog attenuation up front, many analog CV sources will exceed this range and end up clamping at -5 or 5V on the input. There are some who feel very strongly about this, but from my point of view this is a well-known limitation when working with digital modules and rather simple to overcome with external attenuation.
Audio headroom on the other hand, I have stronger feelings about. With 24-bit codecs being incredibly commonplace nowadays, it eludes me as to why so many digital modules are still designed with analog frontends for the codec that top out significantly below the maximum rail-to-rail analog headroom. Meaning, even if the analog signal chain supports an “extra hot” full scale signal (~20 Volts peak-to-peak, or Vpp) without clipping, the analog input buffers in many digital modules will only accept up to ~15 Vpp or similar, causing the signal to clip before it even gets to the codec. I look at it this way: if we have ~20 Vpp available as the full-scale analog headroom on the analog signal path of the module, and we scale the codec input to accept that full range, a typical 10 Vpp for eurorack signal will result in just 1-2 bits of resolution below the digital full-scale. On a 24-bit codec that’s still lots of bits – and dynamic range – to work with!
09 Generally speaking, what do your products offer that others don’t?
This is a tough question to answer. I think the cool thing about Eurorack is there’s something for every different preference and approach to modular synthesis. But I suppose I’d say “tweakability”. Looking at Cosmic Debris as an example, I set out to design it so that it’s an effect you really want to “play”, which is not the case for all effect modules out there. It’s a very hands-on module and I find myself tweaking it as much as I do a filter or sequencer when I’m jamming. I suppose the same could be said for Warp Core. There’s a wide range of oscillators out there, some that you just tune and leave alone, and others that crave tweaking as part of a performance. I would say Warp Core falls in the latter category.
10 What are some of the challenges in manufacturing, any tips to share?
Woof. Where to begin. I don’t like dealing with manufacturing, personally. That’s something I learned pretty quickly while making my own modules. With my new role, I’m really glad the team at WMD has so much experience in that area and can handle that stuff so I can focus on the design and DSP engineering parts. I started relatively late in the game for modern electronics manufacturing and missed a lot of the challenges the OG’s had to deal with. Placing an order with JLC or PCBWAY is really not that hard. The hard parts in my opinion are supply chain management, dealing with absurd tariff uncertainty, and maintaining capital/cash flow when starting out. Not to mention trying to find any consistency in quality when it comes to things like faceplates.
I would say my biggest tip is not to be timid about asking for (and paying for) help with this stuff. I did final soldering, assembly, and packing on every single module I sold as Infrasonic Audio because it’s a process I knew I could both achieve and afford, and it minimized uncertainty and actual monetary cost as I was just starting out. If I ever had to manage my own manufacturing again, I’d want to line up enough capital to be able to afford more turnkey assembly services and/or hire help.
11 How do classic instruments and designs influence your own work?
Somewhat, but in a slightly abstracted way. I learned music through classical and jazz piano training and taught myself guitar, so my musical roots are more in classical instruments. As a result, I tend to think about electronic instrument design from a perspective grounded in western music theory and not so much in the abstract, “synths are made for a totally new kind of music” Buchla-esque philosophy (which is an equally valid and interesting approach, just not really my thing). I make mostly dance-able music and write and improvise music from a basis grounded in my history on guitar and piano, and I don’t really consider use cases too far outside of those classical theory roots when I’m designing stuff.
Synths, on the other hand, I never really had any exposure to classic/vintage synths so I would say any specific “classic synth” doesn’t have much impact on what I do, beyond of course the pioneering techniques and architectures shared in common with many classic designs. People often ask if I’m a big fan of the Casio CZ since I made a phase distortion oscillator, and the answer is frankly “no, not really, because I never played one!” I became enamored with phase distortion purely from modern digital synths and computer music sound design environments, and only learned about the CZ and the specific PD techniques it employed later on.
12 Do you find inspiration in areas outside of the one you work within?
Not really, to be honest. I’m not the kind of person who finds inspiration for new sounds or new module designs from spending time in nature or enjoying non-musical art or reading about new scientific discoveries, at least not in a conscious way. I like all those things, and I think it’s cool when people’s brains work like that and can consciously make those connections, but mine really doesn’t. I feel like that’s a dull answer but it’s sincere. Maybe my brain is forging those paths subconsciously.
13 What would you do if you weren’t designing and making gear?
I really don’t know. Before this I was mainly working as an iOS application developer at SaaS startups, which was lucrative but rather soul-sucking. I don’t think I’d ever be able to go back to doing that again, especially in the current AI-dominated industry where those jobs are much harder to come by (not to mention platform-native iOS application development is basically dead now).
If I wasn’t making gear anymore I’d probably opt for something completely different, but my marketable skills are pretty limited to technology and music. As long as it would not be completely draining and would allow me to leave any work stress at the door so I can still have the motivation and energy to make music, I’d be reasonably happy.
14 Whose equipment besides your own inspires you and why?
I’ve been a Bastl fan since the wood panel days. Popcorn is still my favorite in-rack sequencer. Their stuff has always had a sense of whimsy and fun while still being practical and useful, if at times a bit quirky. The wood panels certainly speak to that, and were eye-catching at a time when silver aluminum was dominant.
I’ve also made a lot of small-maker friends along my journey and I’m constantly impressed by what they’re able to accomplish with limited resources, especially when teaming up for collaborations. The Mega Modular folks (Setonix Synth, Robots are Red, Decapod Devices, and several others) have released some absolutely banging modules as a small independent collective through collective knowledge and resource sharing and I find that very inspiring.
15 What was the last product you created?
The last product I created to go to production is Cosmic Debris, in collaboration with WMD, which is a feedback delay network effect (delay, reverb, and continuous blend in between) designed for hands-on performance. This one I’m really proud of. The original design inspiration was for it to be a very playable, hands-on, and even modulatable effect that becomes as much a dynamic part of a live performance as a voice or a mixer – not just something to set-and-forget – and I feel that’s exactly what it turned out to be. It was in development for about two years before it officially shipped in April. Originally it was my own design, but by the time I had my first working prototypes ready I didn’t know how I could possibly afford to manufacture it. Thankfully what started out as me seeking manufacturing advice from William of WMD turned into an amazing offer to collaborate on refining the design and having them manufacture it as a co-branded module. That changed the trajectory of my career in a really positive way and I’m super glad it’s finally out there now.
16 Rather than ask “what’s next?” Where is your current inspiration and thinking for your future?
I’m currently drawing inspiration from the rest of the crew at WMD, especially Alex who is such an awesome performer and a great designer to be working closely with. It’s great to be joining such a talented and experienced team with a similar mindset about instrument design and live performance. In taking this new role, I’m really excited to be able to just jam on design and DSP engineering and get new stuff through the pipeline quickly. The new WMD modules you may have seen at Superbooth were largely developed in the last 4-6 months, so things are moving really quickly and I can’t wait to get these out there along with more of the ideas we have lined up.
17 What’s a piece of music you’d like us to check out?
The video of MSTRKRFT – (Live) in The Lab NYC, because this was one of the performances that really awakened for me what Eurorack could be in a live dance performance setup. My specific musical tastes have shifted a bit since I saw this but at the time it was revelatory and I still credit it as a huge inspiration for my path musically and as an instrument developer in the 10 years since.
18 What is something unrelated you’d like to mention for people to check out or be aware of?
Music-related, but not synth-related: my brother is a kick-ass rock drummer and plays in a band in my hometown in Illinois. He didn’t get into synths and electronic stuff the way I did but we share the same musical roots, and he has mastered drums as an instrument in a way that I never mastered any single instrument.
19 What’s a question you wish I had asked?
“What’s a piece of advice you’d give to module developers who are just starting out?”
I wish I had seen people’s answers to this when I was starting out. I kind of already alluded to this but mine would be “don’t be afraid to ask for help”. Nobody can know or do everything alone. But simultaneously, don’t be afraid to try things because you think you might be doing it “the wrong way”. That’s part of the process.
20 To end the questions here’s one from the previous guest – Graham of Sonocurrent asked “What is the most interesting trade show interaction you have had to date? And what’s a question you’d like me to ask the next guest?
At Knobcon last year (2025) I was getting my table ready on the morning of the second day of exhibition and my case was not powering on. I’m still not sure how or why it happened, but the main inlet fuse had burned out. I heard rumors of a major issue with venue power. The fuse in that case was unfortunately SMD and could not be replaced. Thankfully my amazing friends in the modular maker scene came through diagnosing the problem, lending me a spare skiff case, and helping me move modules over just before the doors opened, saving me from a minor freak-out moment and allowing me to enjoy some great conversations and demos with attendees throughout the rest of the day.
The fuse randomly blowing like that has not happened before or since – but the way my friends immediately jumped to action to help out speaks volumes about how awesome the community is. Shout out to Ray (Creyspace), Scott (Danesi Designs), and Wray (Swamp Flux) for having my back.
Question for next guest: What is your spirit animal and why?
Thank you to Nick for taking the time to answer the questions, don’t forget to check out other 20 Questions series interviews, go watch the new DivKid demo for the Cosmic Debris if you haven’t and thanks to Nick for also being a supportive member of the DivKid community on Discord.
