Hi all,
Can anyone give me some tips on what to add or subtract from this setup. It's for house and techno mostly. Bass, leads and atmospheric/weird sounds. I have a couple sequencers (digitakt and deluge) as well as an endorphines shuttle system. I guess I'm looking for a few modules to add to the shuttle system as well as being usable standalone. Any advice or thoughts would be appreciated.


Plonk and rings do similar sounds, i would pick one first and other if i really loved it.
Plaits is great for dronning and ambient, maybe not for usual bass and lead works.
Batumi is a great modulation source, dunno if you still need stages, i would pick one and then see how much you need more modulation later. Maybe save the space for some Evenlope generator, like Intellijel dual ADSR, or someone who does envelopes and modulation like maths or Intellijel Quadra.
Maybe uZeus+Tiptop 1000ma would be enough for this system and save one power supply.
Unless you really need oscilloscope, maybe Pamela´s wourkout would save more space instead of mordax.

Also i would probably look into more tecnho oriented modules, like Intellijel atlantis(sh101 techno goodness), acidlab m303, or some more traditional stuff for bass?


OK...no. Let's dispel a few rumors here.

First of all, the killer bass sounds you hear in a lot of techno are NOT ALWAYS the result of analog synths. One of the more popular for this purpose in the Detroit end of things has actually, for some time, been the Yamaha DX100. Derrick May, in fact, is a real master of 4-op programming; Carl Craig's also made extensive use of the DX7. The idea that you MUSTMUSTMUST have analog for bass is, in fact, bullshit. Even I have a certain death-dealing bass patch on my long-beloved CZ-101 that has, through the proper amplification setups, caused actual physical damage due to it's subbass properties. So is the Plaits usable for bass? Sure...because in analog synthesis, the key to huge bass isn't the oscillator, it's the combination of the VCF and the right modulating EG for that, plus maybe a little nonlinearity in the VCA to do a touch of waveshaping. A sharp, percussive attack modulating a good 4-pole lowpass VCF fed with most anything will create hefty bass, depending on how you've set up the cutoff and resonance on it and the pitch class of the incoming audio. As for the 303...yeah, sure, it says "Bass" on the case, but most people using it, starting with Larry Heard, MISused the TB-303 to get all sorts of higher-range squelchy sounds, particularly in tandem with the "glide" control in the step sequencer.

Second of all, modulation. The Batumi and the Stages both have sliders. And that's where the resemblance stops. The Batumi is a great source of LFO curves. But the Stages is more akin to a sequencer in that you set your different stage levels and the module sweeps through these to create a user-defined modulation curve, or discrete modulation steps, plus a few other tricks. It's not an LFO or EG per se...but at the same time, it can be both and more besides.

Three, the Maths and the Quadra. The Maths is an interconnected and self-contained pair of what, for the most part, are a pair of Serge-type slope generators. It's more akin to a very simplified analog computer in how it creates both self-generated and externally-derived voltage curves. The Quadra, however, in its base form is just four AD envelope generators. To get it to work on an order of complexity more like the Maths, it's necessary to add the Quadra Expander, which contains the controls and patchpoints for more complex functions. But this also kills another 12 hp of space.

Lastly, why do this in modular? Consider for a minute that if you're simply trying to augment a Shuttle System, wouldn't it be easier, smaller, and cheaper to go with a small patchable or two? You could snag a MakeNoise 0-Coast for much less and make ample use of that (especially its LPG!) in tandem with what you have now. This would also be helpful if you were playing live, in that a handful of patchables, your sequencers, a drum machine to sync with those, and a mixer could easily fit in one decent-sized compartmented flight case. Modular may be sexy...but it's also spendy and, unless you have a very specific need for it, kind of impractical in live settings.


Sure. Not proving universal facts here, just my thoughts as requested, (i´ve played synth of all kind since my first purchase in late 90s). I don´t say you need this or that for a certain purpose cause i´ve read this or that. It just happened that a Dx7 didn´t worked for me as the bass i wanted at the time, or that plaits which i have right here, isn´t really my first choice for the bass/lead track. It´s not rumours, nor the universal to-do list, simple personal experience on how things turned to be for me.
All cool ;)


Hi,
Thanks for the tips. I have an erebus 3 and a nyx that i was looking for more tempo synced modulation for (which they both lack a bit), as well as more modulation and attenuation for the shuttle system. I guess I'm looking to make the more complex "wubs" of bass house/dubstep. The mordax will help a lot with education/understanding the modulation as i'm using it.
I will leave out rings for now and put a maths in there. Think i'll get rid of one of batumi or stages, probably batumi.
I appreciate your different viewpoints and thanks for the tips.
Christmas day here with the kiddies so i'll respond more tomorrow. Boxing day sale at moog audio here in Toronto.


Two suggestions -
Get Frap Tools Falistri, instead of MATHS. Take a look - it's pretty awesome.
Also - Xaoc ZADAR instead of Batumi. ZADAR can't do clocked LFOs, but for "atmospheric/weird" sounds - it has some of the coolest glitchy modulation curves. It can do standard LFO modulation, but it also has a multitude of envelopes and other options for creating movement.
Mordax DATA is AWESOME. I will never let mine go.
Consider Intellijel Quadrax vs. Mutable Stages as well. Really awesome for snappy AR and ASR envelopes. Burst generator is cool too.
For tempo-sync'd modulation - get Pamela's NEW! Workout. 8 LFOs or Gates on the clock!
Also - contrary to Lugia's statement - I use my Stages almost exclusively as a combination of AR, ADSR envelopes or LFOs. I never use the gate triggered sequence function - the CV output is too wild and uncontrollable.