The founder of Glaswegian synth company Instruō, Jason Lim’s drop‑dead gorgeous designs have landed him among the UK’s most respected module designers. He’s also a capable educator, taking the time to create generously extensive video guides on how to get the most from Instruō’s modules.
On his entry into modular
I got into synthesis in college. I was studying guitar and violin at Berklee College of Music and ended up focusing on a major in Electronic Production and Design, with a minor in Acoustics and Electronics. Joining the EPD department scratched all creative itches. I studied synthesis and sound design in parallel to my own research into hardware electronics and programming. I had the great fortune of learning synthesis from Michael Brigida, who is a master musician and synthesist. I remember my first classes vividly. It took place on a pair of vintage ARP 2600s. Berklee had an incredible collection of synths to explore.
On his go‑to modules (aside from his own!)
I’ve used exclusively Instruō systems for many years now, but I do still have a collection of modules that are still very much in use at Instruō HQ. I built myself a full Doepfer system that I use when teaching and is quite traditional. They have an excellent range for deeply exploring subtractive patching. Over the years I’ve become good friends with many module designers and we all regularly trade. While we have a great collection of modules, my own time for patching doesn’t often get prioritised these days. The rest of the team are always having patch stops while making coffee and lunch, though. It’s fascinating hearing how a patch’s sound changes throughout the day as people come and go!
On the story of Instruō
Instruō was an unexpected restart after a pretty abrupt change of employment back in 2015. I was actively studying more ‘traditional’ analogue circuits and designed my Troika Triple Oscillator module, which is the original Instruō module. I did this entirely because I wanted more oscillators in my rack!
‘Instruō’ was an artist name I played out under and used in credits on various collaborations of music productions and art installations. I documented the design of the Troika and published a time‑lapse video of the process. The Instruō logo itself is actually an hourglass because of that time‑lapse style, which on some level I considered to be the main focus as a creative outlet. It began as a side project which unexpectedly grew into a modular brand.
Instruō in 2024 is a team of 20 people. The scale of operations has grown through the years and my goal has always been to function as a creative co‑op. We work together and I collaborate as much on the business side of things as I do the creative, design side. We actively profit share from the product range and developers retain personal ownership of what they create. A lot of how we work is not typical, but this is far from a typical industry! I feel incredibly fortunate to be doing what I do and it simply wouldn’t work without the partnerships that make up the team. There is so much in the pipeline. I honestly feel like we’re just getting started!
On the Instruō Dåpf
All‑pass filters have been an interest of mine for a while. Frequency‑dependent phase shift as a signal process is a mind‑bending concept! Especially when you all‑pass a basic sawtooth wave: it can remain sonically unchanged, but the wave shape gets completely mangled in the time domain!
Realising how fundamental APFs are within voltage‑controlled filters just brought more questions. So I made a 4HP module prototype called the ‘Apf’. I completely screwed up the design, but it generally worked and through patching with it as a building block I quickly found the utility it could serve creatively. The design evolved and became the Dåpf (Dual All‑pass Filter), which I like to describe as a ‘module module’. It’s a lower‑level building block that can really be added anywhere and will almost always add an extra level of musical timbre control.
If opportunities to collaborate come up, I always try to make it happen. It’s a fundamental part of this whole culture.
On the culture of modular
The Eurorack community is truly incredible. It’s such a fun format and platform to develop within, and I think a lot of that comes from the community of developers and users that Eurorack has inspired. Meeting so many designers over the years, I couldn’t believe how generous everyone was. Even today, presenting at Superbooth and other events, it’s a time to catch up with friends who are into exactly the same things I’m into. It never feels like other brands are in competition. It’s such a creative space where people are innovating and making weird and wonderful things. Especially going through Covid and the supply shortages, we all check in with each other and there is genuine care about how things are going. If opportunities to collaborate come up, I always try to make it happen. It’s a fundamental part of this whole culture.