David Hilowitz Music Turns a Graphing Calculator into a Sonic Outback Adventure

Enter Houston Tracker—a piece of software that transforms the calculator into a chiptune beast, giving off serious Game Boy LSDJ vibes. Installing it, though, is like trying to herd kangaroos through a revolving door. David’s epic struggle involves four computers, a dodgy USB cable, and enough patience to make a koala look hyperactive.

Once the dust settles and the software’s finally loaded, the calculator’s ready to jam. Navigating Houston Tracker feels like decoding ancient runes, but soon enough, David’s laying down basslines, melodies, and even some gloriously abrasive percussion. It’s retro, it’s raw, and it’s got that unmistakable lo-fi charm that only a calculator could deliver.

Getting music out of a calculator with no speaker or sound chip is like squeezing tunes out of a sausage roll—messy, but surprisingly satisfying. David explains how the calculator’s data port, meant for swapping maths homework, is hijacked to spit out square waves. The result? A crunchy, one-bit audio experience that’s as subtle as a magpie at sunrise.

Despite the technical headaches and the calculator’s limitations, the music that emerges is weirdly captivating. There’s no volume control, so percussion smacks you right in the face, but that’s part of the charm. It’s a lo-fi aesthetic that’ll either have you grinning or reaching for the earplugs—no in-between, mate.

Not content with just calculator jams, David takes things up a notch by coding a plugin that lets you turn equations into waveforms. It starts with a simple sine wave, but soon he’s tweaking parameters, adding sliders, and letting users sculpt sounds like a BBQ chef with too many sauces. The plugin even clips wild signals, turning mathematical chaos into sonic character.

This isn’t just a nerdy maths exercise—it’s a full-blown synth with modulation, MPE support, and a stack of presets for those who’d rather not wrestle with algebra. Whether you’re a maths whiz or just after some fresh sounds, this plugin opens up a paddock full of experimental possibilities. And if you want to see how wild things can get, you’ll have to watch the video—some sounds just can’t be tamed in print.