ModularGrid uses so-called cookies to ensure it's so-called functionality. We also use dubious tracking scripts. Find out more in the Privacy Policy. We use cookies and wanna let you know.
Yep I know about the cables and I don't have an aversion to them, however its the spread of cables that clutters everything as the pedals don't fit in the rack. So by consolidating I'm keeping everything in one place rather than here there and everywhere
I'm looking to add reverb, delay and anything else that gives a sense of depth and space. I have a 6U Rackbrute that has the bottom row free at present. That's 176 and then maybe 60 spare up top. Forgive my slight vagueness but I'm not near it atm
an aversion to cables is not going to be helped by replacing pedals with modules, is it really? - you're just shifting from one set of cables to another and probably more of them as in rack effects want modulating...
but saying that:
what pedals do you wish to replace and how much racks space do you have to house them?
"some of the best base-level info to remember can be found in Jim's sigfile" @Lugia
Utility modules are the dull polish that makes the shiny modules actually shine!!!
Total newb here. I've been messing around with the 3 tier Moogs (Mother, Sub and DFAM). Having lots of fun! As a guitarist also I've been wiring up effects pedals to each one, a simple in and out of the jack sockets. I really like the ability to change the sound of each module whilst still having them sync'd and it makes a huge difference to my sound
It's getting quote messy with different bits of kit so how could I create a similar thing in my rack? i.e where I could route separate modules to separate effects, perhaps in one effect module or a collection of modules with a small-ish footprint. I currently also have a Maths, Marbles and Quad VCA, using the Mother 32 as the primary oscillator.
I know, I know.. my rig is missing so many things but I'm on a tight budget and just finding my way. When I see something for a good price I buy it and figure 'hey, I'll learn to use it properly at some point!'. It's taken me a good 18 months to build up to this point and the main thing for me is to get interesting results fairly quickly. I still struggle with the whole science of modular so any help is appreciated to get some more interesting ambient and musique concrete sounds
Disclaimer: I'm a modular novice myself. So take my advice with a huge grain of salt. ;)
In general, I feel like you have too many audio modules and far too few cv-generators & utilities.
I'd like to pass an advice on to you - which I got myself:
choose a rack-size, which is slightly larger, than you anticipate needing
have a concept, what you want to achieve: like ambient with occasional drums
buy and fill up your rack incrementally:
think about your most minimal combination of modules for your first "complete voice" and start from there
take your time getting to know your modules
if you find some specific "feature" missing for your goal, check if you already planned your rack with such a module and add only a (view) single one(s)
take your time again fiddeling around
revise your plan for the rack, as you gain more experience
I took some time to work out a rack suggestion:
It's quite different from the setup you presented above, so I'll try to lay down my reasoning for the module selection and my thoughts about the rack below:
I tried to stick to your concept of having a rack for ambient (generative?) music with ocassional drums or different genres in general.
Overall I tried to find a good balance between hp per module, ease of use, flexibility and functionality
I kept all the 1U modules you chose: they are quite usefull
I only selected very view oscillators, a sampler enables you to still mimic more sound-sources
enough cv sources enable complex movements and automation
enough fx to create atmospheres and more interesting voices
First row, mostly audio modules:
BitBox Micro: since the rackspace is quite limited, I feel like a good sampling module - like this - will provide you with the most felxibility: You can use drum samples (save space by not having a couple of percussion specific modules!), layer several sounds to make your arrangements more complex or record cv
Ensemble Oscillator: You chose this originally, so I kept this. It seems fitting for the task and quite flexible
Basimilus Iteratis Alter: Oscillator, I also kept this from your original design. Seems fine if you like it: bass, lead, percussion, etc
Falistri: similar to Maths, but different (and less hp), can be used as sound and cv source, besides all other usefull and versatile features, I like the ring-modulation capability to sculpt your oscillator's sounds even more
A-132-4: quad exp vca, probably for audio, excellent hp to usefullness ratio, you always need more vcas
Squawk Dirty To Me: nice digital VCF, selectable filter mode, includes vca, filter mode also selectable via cv
QPAS: nice advanced VCF, which you already wanted
Black Quad VCA2: good 4ch vca & mixer, you already wanted
Switch: filler for empty space to enable more advanced patching
Second row, mostly cv modules:
Pamela’s NEW Workout: famouse clock based cv generator, you already wanted, unbeatable
Ornament & Crime: another power-house of cv generation
Bloom: generative generator for 2 voices, you already chose this
ochd: lots of oscillators in view hp, excellent for movement in ambient
Zadar: deep, quad envelope (and cyclic = lfo) generator for more complex movement
Pons Asinorum: versatile quad envelope / lfo generator in view hp
333: small mixer & mult
OSD: combine cv in several kinds (3 times) in only 4hp
A-130-8: 8 lin vcas and mixer in only 6hp, best hp / vca count ratio
321: all the necessary cv utilities
Melotus Versio: very nice effect module you already chose
Milky Way: nice multi-fx module, instead of your chosen "large" Doepfer fx module I suggest 2 separate smaller ones, you could think about using effect pedals and use the space of the fx modules for something else
FX Aid XL: another nice multi-fx module with LOTS of fx to choose from (not sure about the current availability though)
Jumble Henge: innovative mixer for an easy "final" mixdown
What you might find missing (or not?):
more advanced sequencing
midi control
dedicated performance controls
more random voltage sources
Let me know, what you think about these suggestions.
hopefully you weren't intending to buy all of this at once anyway... better to go slowly and learn the modules you have, inside and out, before buying more modules... and then repeating!
so just get a 6u case - start buying modules and as you do put some money aside for the next case...
if you can manage to save ((cost of case/hp) * hp of module) for each module you buy like this - by the time the case is full, the next case is paid for...
you'll probably make a few changes along the way - but that's how it is... and should be... no plan survives contact with the enemy (no matter what the enemy is...
have fun!
"some of the best base-level info to remember can be found in Jim's sigfile" @Lugia
Utility modules are the dull polish that makes the shiny modules actually shine!!!
Midi module is gone. Replaced with a mult for the Pam's for clock distro. This should in tern free up Pam's outputs for more creative applications I also dropped the Befaco IO - it was pointless given how this case will be integrated into my studio.
Unless people can point out any glaring issues or omissions, I think I'm there design wise.
Thoughts and/or optimisations anyone?
can you please link to your latest public rack (copy and paste the url)
The total power output of the Doepfer P9 PSU3 Case is as follows:
Output + 12 V (mA): 2000
Output - 12 V (mA): 1200
Output 5 V (mA): 4000
The consumption of this system is: 2164 mA +12V | 1025 mA -12V | 0 mA 5V
Is that +12V rail going to be a problem?
-- rextable
yes almost definitely on the +ve rail and quite likely on the -ve rail as well!
you really need to leave 25-30% headroom on each rail to allow for both inaccurate power consumption figures and inrush spikes...
I'd want at least 2800mA on the +ve rail and 1300mA on the -ve rail...
this is the big failing with the doepfer 9u cases - not quite enough power , as they use the same power as the 8u - where the power is sufficient... either find someway to reduce the power consumption or consider 2 * 6u - which will leave you with some expansion space (which is never a bad idea)
"some of the best base-level info to remember can be found in Jim's sigfile" @Lugia
Utility modules are the dull polish that makes the shiny modules actually shine!!!
Midi module is gone. Replaced with a mult for the Pam's for clock distro. This should in tern free up Pam's outputs for more creative applications I also dropped the Befaco IO - it was pointless given how this case will be integrated into my studio.
Unless people can point out any glaring issues or omissions, I think I'm there design wise.
Thoughts and/or optimisations anyone?
The total power output of the Doepfer P9 PSU3 Case is as follows:
Output + 12 V (mA): 2000
Output - 12 V (mA): 1200
Output 5 V (mA): 4000
The consumption of this system is: 2164 mA +12V | 1025 mA -12V | 0 mA 5V
Thanks for looking and for the feedback! Obviously I have a lot to learn, and appreciate the places to look into more. I had heard the terms exponential and linear used with VCAs but couldn't really conceptualize the difference. I had thought of stages primarily as an envelope generator, and it has a variable response that I thought I could get exponential, but was I mistaken? Does it do envelopes differently than something like Maths?
I had not heard about the issues with placing audio modules next to power supplies. Oops! More research and placement experimentation to come. As for other placement issues, my mental map was to have the Pam's and the VCAs near the center with my sequencing and sound sources on the left and sound shaping/modulation on the right, but still playing around with what feels comfortable to tweak in more of a performance setting.
Again, thanks for responding. I so appreciate seeing yours and others' feedback on racks. I know it must get tiring seeing all of us noobs coming in with so little understanding, but I'm grateful for your willingness to share your wisdom!
I typically stay out of the online Behringer discussion, but I agree 100% with everything you've written here. I have an RD8 and VC340, and adore both of them. They absolutely nailed these and several of the other, um, "tributes" that they released over the past few years. But...
The constant vaporware teasing and "R&D" over the last year is annoying. Who runs a company like this? I sympathize with the supply chain issues and all of the obstacles that synth builders are facing at present, but for god's sake just release something or shut up. People still can't get the RD9 that was released a year ago. Even though Uli seems to thrive on the wrong side of the ethical gray area between right and wrong, I was begrudgingly excited about picking up a few more of the clones for a while. I've given up though. Every time I see some new tease, I just scroll right past it. I mean, does anyone really think their teased Polykobol clone is ever going to see the light of day?
I am a synth lover and a synth buyer, but I'm starting to suspect that I'm not the target market for any of this anymore. So, who is the target market for all of Uli's shenanigans? It just doesn't make sense to run a company this way.
OK...so a week-ish ago, this listing for this Behringer knockoff of the Buchla Sound Easel voice turns up on here. Everyone's happy and dancing around and so on...but I don't think anyone read the Facebook bit on it, which says:
"We'd love to have your feedback.
We have started to design an “Easel 208” inspired Eurorack version called Enigma. While the analog section is an authentic replica of the original synth, which also includes 14 optocouplers, we plan to add total recall functionality with an OLED display and CC control plus USB/Midi.
We believe we could make this product for US$ 399 retail.
What do you think about the functionality, layout and price?"
OK, so read that again. This is NOT an actual product yet, nor are we likely to see one anytime soon. What IS going on here is that Behringer's throwing shit at the wall and seeing what sticks. Put a CGI-rendered pic with it and you can get ANYONE to go into a frothing conniption fit for the duration.
Also, there's zero explanation of what "started to design" means. Are there actual diagrams? Is this "design" a scribble on a cocktail napkin? Did they buy a second-hand Easel and that transaction constitutes the "start" of "design"? Could we possibly, eventually not be told about this stuff UNTIL AND UNLESS B. has them at least in prototyping?
Yes, I like when B. comes out with something synthwise that's a big win. But getting constantly yanked around by the "Tribe" using everyday consumers as their R&D department doesn't seem...well, I was going to say "ethical" but this IS Uli's company we're talking about. Ethics seems to have gone through the same shredder as those litigious dbx and Mackie manuals in Uli's bottom desk drawer.
Uli, if you want market research, HIRE MARKET RESEARCHERS. Don't lead potential buyers around by the nose for months (years, decades, MILLENNIA), taunting them with something you may or may NOT produce. Having a "vaporware production line" is NOT something that should be considered an "asset", and for most companies (yours included, pal), that's eventually a huge liability...if they're stupid enough to have engaged in this sort of sketchy customer relations, which most (IMHO, Korg fits riiiiiight there!) companies are NOT.
Damn, Uli...just learn to STFU for a while, OK? If you tease something you're not going to whip out for a few YEARS, then DON'T DO IT. It doesn't help what rep you have, or might've built up thus far. We already know that the vactrols themselves are a huge stumbling block...and don't expect either Buchla or Tiptop to be selling any of theirs to the likes of your "Tribe". This basically means that you're looking at an uphill slog from having to design the vactrols...just like Don and the gang at Tiptop had to do themselves. Did you or did you not consider this serious technical issue before splatting that CGI mockup and doing the "stealth marketing research" on FB?
Feckin' Behringer...they get things right, like the 2600, the Pro-1 and so on...and then whip right around and give us those ugly-ass "Bolcas" and this West Coast near-impossibility for...uhhh...$400. Company needs to take its meds...and learn a thing or two about the purpose of discretion.
I tried messing with this, but it's got some real problems. For example, there's nothing that can generate envelopes as such. There's a couple of modules that could "fake it" for those, but that's not the right way to proceed. The Abyss Devices mixer is sort of...eh. No info on response curve, but since the VCAs seem to be DC-coupled, we can presume that they're linear. So...no VCAs that are properly-capable for audio unless you had an envelope generator that could do exponential envelopes. But as far as that's concerned...well, see above. Module placement is a real hellscape here, too...it seems like you tried to do the function separation via the two rows, but within them it's a little haphazard. Case in point: the uBurst next to the power supply; putting audio modules in proximity to the power supply has the potential of inducing P/S noise in them. And given that this has a digital module next to a switching-type P/S, with the very real potential of ultrasonic interactions between them, it's not a good idea at all. It might work for the sort of thing you're using it for, but if you try and get too far out of its comfort zone, you're likely to be very disappointed at the results.
One point: if you have to crawl behind/under/on top of a rack or three to work on something, you'll find that a paper hardcopy is far more useful than trying to drag a tablet/phone back there, or trying to contort yourself into a shape that lets you see the screen with the info on it. My routing patchbays in here were ALL worked out on paper, and once things got done, I could tack the "patchbay maps" to the wall by each bay so that the scheme could be referred to whenever needed.
anal-log sounds painful - I'd buy an analog mixer if I were you!!
sub-mixing and attenuation is really useful in the rack - so I'd get some if I were you!
stacked cables should always be kept to a minimum - by chaining them instead of stacking them!
whats the use case for the midi->cv module?
-- JimHowell1970
I am anal-log! :-D
To answer your question: Please correct me if I'm wrong, but as I understand it, the Keystep Pro's knobs only output midi. The Keystep has a usb midi output and thus I thought the little 2HP midi module was a no-brainer. It's cheap and cheerful and better than nothing. If this is not the case then I can drop the midi module.
I have a more general question for peeps: Is there a way to make CV outputs on the Keystep Pro accessible via Ableton Live?
-- rextable
re:keystep knobs - I'd read the manual - I suspect you'd want both more channels, and a midi->cv converter that works with midi cc - I suspect that the 2hp midi module only works with a single channel of pitch/gate... maybe have a look at the befaco midi thing... but note that midi is stepped 0-127 - whereas a truly analog rotary controller will be continuous within the specified range
the cv outputs should be duplicated in midi - again read the manual
-- JimHowell1970
I think you're right. It was an afterthought really. The encoders on the Keystep are just that - encoders - not smooth knobs. Oh well. That's one less module to worry about :-)
anal-log sounds painful - I'd buy an analog mixer if I were you!!
sub-mixing and attenuation is really useful in the rack - so I'd get some if I were you!
stacked cables should always be kept to a minimum - by chaining them instead of stacking them!
whats the use case for the midi->cv module?
-- JimHowell1970
I am anal-log! :-D
To answer your question: Please correct me if I'm wrong, but as I understand it, the Keystep Pro's knobs only output midi. The Keystep has a usb midi output and thus I thought the little 2HP midi module was a no-brainer. It's cheap and cheerful and better than nothing. If this is not the case then I can drop the midi module.
I have a more general question for peeps: Is there a way to make CV outputs on the Keystep Pro accessible via Ableton Live?
-- rextable
re:keystep knobs - I'd read the manual - I suspect you'd want both more channels, and a midi->cv converter that works with midi cc - I suspect that the 2hp midi module only works with a single channel of pitch/gate... maybe have a look at the befaco midi thing... but note that midi is stepped 0-127 - whereas a truly analog rotary controller will be continuous within the specified range
the cv outputs should be duplicated in midi - again read the manual
"some of the best base-level info to remember can be found in Jim's sigfile" @Lugia
Utility modules are the dull polish that makes the shiny modules actually shine!!!
The SeM20 from Bubblesound, their interpretation of an Oberheim SEM filter combined with a MS20 filter.
This is an older module, from 2008, not their later one. Modular Addict still sells this one.
Great sounding unit. OK build, but getting the pots, jacks, and faceplate aligned was a big pain. Even though the soldering is easy, I would not recommend this as an early kit in your career.
But again, it sounds great. SeM20 build
anal-log sounds painful - I'd buy an analog mixer if I were you!!
sub-mixing and attenuation is really useful in the rack - so I'd get some if I were you!
stacked cables should always be kept to a minimum - by chaining them instead of stacking them!
whats the use case for the midi->cv module?
-- JimHowell1970
I am anal-log! :-D
To answer your question: Please correct me if I'm wrong, but as I understand it, the Keystep Pro's knobs only output midi. The Keystep has a usb midi output and thus I thought the little 2HP midi module was a no-brainer. It's cheap and cheerful and better than nothing. If this is not the case then I can drop the midi module.
I have a more general question for peeps: Is there a way to make CV outputs on the Keystep Pro accessible via Ableton Live?
Three stereo channels of line level IO to feed: a percussion/sample playback channel (top left corner), a monosynth channel (top-right corner) and an audio processing/FX chain (middle row). Of course, it's a modular system so it could be patched any-which-way.
Main sequencer = Arturia Keystep Pro.
All Line level IO to be connected either to a small anal-log mixer or directly to an PC audio interface. Because of this, I figured having level control on the IO modules themselves was pointless. I chose a Befaco output module for the monomyth because.... Why not?
I'd like to keep stacked cables to a minimum, hence the multiple multiple/attenuator modules.
For context, I have a Mother-32 and an MS-20 mini so I can patch out/into them if need be.
Given that I have a Mother-32, is the Doepfer A-108 redundant?
Much appreciated!
Heads up: this is mostly me just wanting to share my creation with humans who care, with a few questions at the end. I've only had my wife to share my excitement with and I don't want to exhaust her anymore : )
I've been lurking for the last few months, pulled the trigger in March and started building my dream synth. I've been doing droning/ambient things with electric bass and an old Moog Taurus v2 for a long while, and previously played with some other friends, but COVID and life changes meant I was making a lot more music on my own. I did some research and thought that the modular route would open a lot of sonic capabilities to let me make more complete audio experiments by myself.
I've spent more money than I thought I would give myself permission to (oops!) but my oh my this is one of the best decisions I've made in quite a while : )
I mostly like to have slow moving drones, introducing some generative melodies here and there with some rhythmic pulses ebbing and flowing. I love harnessed randomness, and adapting to how things are moving on their own. I plan on eventually playing other instruments alongside evolving patches from the rack, mostly in droning/ambient/generative territories.
Inspired by Mylarmelodies' videos on small systems and generative strategies, I wanted the Turing machine as my main melody generator, running that through the uO_c for mainly quantizing duties. I have it running hemispheres so I can use half for quant and half for AD/burst/Bernoulli/extra sequencer/whatever else I'm in need of. I recently got the ALM O/A/x2 that I put before the quantizer to play around with scaling and transposing the Turing cv before the quantizer, makes for some fun sweeps and recontextualizing. I'm also using the Morcom (aka Pulses) to trigger the note holds in uO_c to make for a sort of sample and hold, making less parallel but still related note information to pass to the sound sources. My other main CV source for pitch is pressure points. Sometimes I'll run direct from the outs to muiltiple sound sources, sometimes I'll run the 3 outs to a the Pico SEQS to make a longer sequence. I just got Beast's Chalkboard to do octave switching out of the uO_c before sound sources, which has been a nice addition. My main voice usually comes out of Beehive, bass and some counterpoint out of the halves of Paradox (sometimes running them off the same CV), and nRings sometimes is a voice of its own but I've been exploring using the IN for the exciter a little more recently, avoiding the Insta-ambient tones when I can haha
Hexamix for some VCA/mixing duties, Doepfer Octal VCA for the rest. Ochd is my main modulation source, I love using the slowest LFOs and inverted copies of them to control the faster LFOs to make the timing a little less regular. Pam's is main clock as well as some extra modulation. Stages is my main envelope source, if I have extra channels there I'll use them for S&H or LFOs. 4tten and Shades for some hands-on fine tuning as well as offset/static CV generation, uBurst and Pico DSP for effects. I've mostly used the Clouds clone as reverb with a little of the Clouds flourish, and DSP for delay.
I have an outboard Mackie mixer that I send everything into that has Aux sends/returns for the effect modules.
So now for my questions:
1) Everything in the pic I have and have been using except for the Brains. I've mostly just been using Pico SEQS with some offset voltage to limit it to the first 3 channels to run through the Pressure Points channels, and then I manually pick which pad's CV is being sent, so I have 4 3-step sequences. I don't plan on expanding PP to have 8 steps, and I'm wondering if it's still worth it to add brains?
2) The other thing I feel like I'd like is something like the Malekko Invert Mix. I use shades to invert Ochd LFOs, and it seems like kind of a waste of a shades channel if I could invert it separately someplace else. Is that a good plan? I have a sneaking suspicion that between 4tten, Shades, and O/A/x2 I'm using more Attenuators/verters than I should, maybe a little high on VCA count too, but honestly I use them. Maybe that means I'm over-patching, I don't know
3) I had initially gotten the ADDAC T-Noiseworks, I like the rhythms you can get out of Pulses and Pam's with random skip, and I sort of miss it. Should I go down in VCAs/Attenuators to get that back in? or just get a small kick drum module and gate some noise in the VCAs?
Thanks for letting me rant, I've so appreciated the insights many of you have had on other racks, I really feel like it's helped me start off on the right foot and not make regrettable purchases. Good stuff : )
Understood. I´m currently fiddling around with excel sheets, listing the base data but most importantly keeping an inventory regarding number of balanced/unbalanced IO, impedances, digital interfaces etc. Much like the patches section, it would be awesome to have that in an easy to handle format.
My best bet at the moment is color coding the excel cells and the patchbay fields, so I´ll go with that for a while.
Just bought Soma's sensor adapter with the intent to control Lyra's envelope with an external trigger signal (preferably from Soma Pulsar 23 or Moog Mother 32)
The idea is to be able to have Lyra's voices decay when triggered like an ADSR would do when creating an envelope for a more conventional synthesizer.
I'm aware one is able to achieve this by playing the knobs on either Lyra or the adapter by hand, but my goal here is to be able to sequence it, and have Lyra's sound more staccato and less legato.
Yeah that article on Synth Anatomy says it all :-( Thank you Jtunes_ia for sharing that with us.
Well of course for a few more years one can buy Mutable Instrument modules on the second hand market and some companies might even start to make some of MI-modules in their way (that already happens), since it's all open source but that doesn't really solve the issue here...
The fact is that if soon Mutable Instruments doesn't exist any more, is that we are going to miss that special way that Emilie had of thinking of new modules and how to use them. For me, Mutable Instruments, is one of those few interesting brands that have a slightly different approach. It's not really your daily common straight forward to use module, say like a Doepfer. With Doepfer, for example, an LFO is "just" an LFO. I am not saying that that's bad, no not at all, I actually like that, hence I am quite a Doepfer fan. However Mutable Instruments gives us that extra humph, those extra interesting "bits" to modules and that typical Mutable Instruments' way of approaching Eurorack modules that no other brand can or does like Mutable Instrument does.
Make Noise reminds me a bit of that but it's still different.
So, sure, for a while don't worry, on the 2nd hand market you still can buy Mutable Instruments modules but the saddest part of this news that Mutable Instruments will stop to exist is that there will be no longer new interesting modules coming on the market with that kind of "interesting way of creating a Eurorack module" like Mutable Instruments did.
I am not even saying that Mutable Instruments is the best Eurorack brand in the world, no I don't think so, but that funny and bit weird angle of looking at it and creating new modules, that's what I am going to miss if Emilie leaves us here in the dark ;-)
Mutable Instruments and Emilie will leave me with that as bitter-sweet memories.
A very big thank you to Emilie (if she's member here, I don't know) for those modules you have made so far and enlighten us with. Sorry to hear that you will leave our Eurorack synthesizer "world" but of course I wish you all the best in the future, whatever your plans will be.
In honour and with huge respect, Garfield Modular.
Edit: Removed typo.
For review reports of Eurorack modules, please refer to https://garfieldmodular.net/ for PDF formatted downloads
Hey, thanks very much :)
There is definitely lots of scope for ambient sound, the little clicky static crackle stuff is great to add a decayed natural feel.
Enjoy your spare HP, don't rush to fill every last space, this is not like filling sticker books. Resist the urge to 'complete' your rack, its never complete so just relax.
Modulargrid became an essential part of my studio setup, I love the inclusion of pedals. But what about 19" rack gear? I´m sure someone thought about that already, so was there a decision not to? Or is this on the roadmap?
Not too shabby, nope. One recommendation I'd suggest for augmenting the CV/mod manipulation would be, when it finally hits the stores, the Tiptop/Buchla 257t. Loads of abuse potential for this...
-- Lugia
Thanks. At the moment I'm gravitating more towards a Maestro - I've got Sapel in my Frap case - and the new Constellation: that combo would replace some modules I've bought when I started building my system (Muxlicer, Rampage, EC etc). But: the TipTop 200 series are intriguing, to say the least...
Not too shabby, nope. One recommendation I'd suggest for augmenting the CV/mod manipulation would be, when it finally hits the stores, the Tiptop/Buchla 257t. Loads of abuse potential for this...
VCAs...well, if you want versatile, Veils has that. The ability to sweep between linear and logarithmic responses is a huge plus, and the design itself is so good that...well, lookit all the clones! But at 10 hp for a quad VCA mixer, how can you go wrong? But if we're talking about only linear VCAs, a big fave is Happy Nerding's 3XVCA. Unfortunately, some butthurt jackass decided it would be a good idea to start a war with Ukraine, so if/when we get more of HN's stuff is very up in the air.
If you have a cab or power supply that has no indicators for the DC rails, I STRONGLY recommend keeping 1 hp open for a KonstantLabs PWRchekr. It's small, it's cheap, and it lets you know if you're having DC rail issues.
Mixing utilities: there's two mixers that I like for altering/mangling modulation signals, depending on how much space I'm dealing with. And those are the Tiptop MISO and Frap's 321. These give the best ratio of usefulness to cost on something that many users unfortunately ignore, that being a way to get a lot more mod signals out of just a couple of modulation modules. Paired with a couple of linear VCAs, this is the quick and simple (and if you use a dual Veils clone VCA to pair with the 321, also very SMALL) way to get at that.
And of course, one of the best purveyors of useful utes has got to be Ladik. 4 (or multiples thereof) hp form factors, cheap prices...that's a win. Especially their voltage "reading" modules, which output a gate depending on the input and module behavior. If you're doing heavy sequencing, or especially generative, their stuff has plenty of the "tricks" needed.
In my current rack, which is a half full Intellijel 7U, I have an enormous amount of VCAs and mixers. Take a look below. A summary:
Veils. It's just a great and very flexible VCA. You get control over linear/exponential and the offset. In exponential mode, it can give you lots and lots of gain. It also acts as a mixer.
Doepfer octuple VCA. Just linear, no relative volumes, but for sheer VCA per HP, it's unbeatable. Works great e.g. for stereo (same envelope via multiple to two channels) or beats made out of noise (summed into one).
Quadratt. I sometimes feel like I need a second one of these. It can do bipolar, e.g. inverse an envelope for ducking, and it acts as a mixer.
Ladik stereo mixer. I used to use this a lot before I got the ES-9. Output went to the Befaco out and then to my speakers. Nowadays, I mix in my iPad and the mix goes back to the ES-9, then out to the speakers. Still, I don’t regret having this extra mixer.
Other utilities? On my shortlist are the Divkid Rnd step, Intellijel Shifty, an FSR, Pamela's, Joranalogue's Select 2 and Compare 2, etc. Pamela+Rnd Step for S&H for randomisation, but also to reduce the sample rate of something. I'm actually also considering the Joranalogue Orbit 3 as a source of chaos. Even though it's not really a utility, it can serve as a many things: VCO, LFO or modulation source, …
veils for vcas - 4 vcas in 10hp - and actual amplifiers...
matrix mixers - Ive got a couple of DIY ones, but if I was going to get just one now I'd go for the doepfer due to ergonomics - if you want voltage control, then the 4ms VCAM
sequential switch - again the doepfer one is inexpensive and does what it says it does
logic - joranalogue compare2
also can't go wrong with happy nerding 3MIA (or their 3VCA), mutable kinks and links (or clones now they've been discontinued) or the WMD/SSF toolbox (if you can find one, again discontinued)
"some of the best base-level info to remember can be found in Jim's sigfile" @Lugia
Utility modules are the dull polish that makes the shiny modules actually shine!!!
I love this community! - All great ideas/advice. One of the things I've been struggling with has been deciding to put the moogs into the eurorack or not. The thing is that I've been using these DFAM and Subharmonicon soooo much as starting points for music and sound design that I keep feeling that they are such a huge part of my process right now, why keep them separate? The other thing I just wanted to explain is that I'm working with a really limited amount of studio space and was putting the moogs into the rack in an effort to conserve all desk space and keep all Modules together in one rack. I'm going to keep thinking about if I should take them out or not, I really appreciate the advice. I have them both in a tiered rack right now and they're great of course I just thought if I need to conserve studio space why not put them all together into a larger Eurorack...
Thanks for the info about the 2hp modules, makes a lot of sense!
I'm also considering putting the Mutable Instruments modules into a separate rack which would live below the Eurorack on my desk (close by) - I know, I know, seems really weird but, I'm almost starting to think about the MI modules as their own set of utilities and functions.
Can anyone recommend their favorite VCA's and Utilities? Thanks again
Stereo channel 1 of SSF Vortices is the IRv4 with added Sine wave going through the DannySound Timbre and then into Mimeophon.
Stereo channel 2 of SSF Vortices is the IRv4 Drum-Output going into a bit of delay from the Erica PICO DSP.
Stereo channel 3 of SSF Vortices is the IRv4 with a nice wash of Monsoon Clouds Reverb.
DivKid / Istruo Ochd and 2hp RND are doing all the CV control of IRv4 along with swiping the Color control on Mimeophon.
Enjoy your spare HP, don't rush to fill every last space, this is not like filling sticker books. Resist the urge to 'complete' your rack, its never complete so just relax.
Here's my current system: 3 cases. I wanted to keep the Frap Tools together in one case, all mutable in one row and I also think the EC and BIA (Noise Engineering) combo works well together.
Upper 2 rows are my Frap Tools system. Middle 3 rows are for audio & CV procerssing. Bottom two rows are for my drums (midi out to Digitakt), bass and further processing.
As always this setup changes a lot, but the main concepts stay roughly the same.
I'm also adding the Oxi One when it arrives. Looking forward to integrate it with my setup.
Let me know what you think about the configuration, what could be better, wat you like or don't like.
i tried to play a midi file in mode J3 from the sd card but unfortunately i don't hear any sounds. It can't be the SD card because the wav playback works. I exported the midi file via ableton live as usual. The files are on the SD card and not in a folder
