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I just received my Klavis Quadigy (what a beast!) from @frits - the deal was super smooth, great communication and very careful packaging, recommended trader :-)

Please review my rack and comment. My intention is a performance case with both structured and unstructured elements that use macro changes to influence movements over various voices. I can also bump some techno.

EDITED Feb 28th 2023, 12:33

Ah, support said, PPQN x8 multiplier will be back in the next firmware update... nice... :)

Tarot seems to be a great module, like everything else that Modulaire Maritime does. It wouldn’t be a bad idea for getting new timbres and sometimes a deeper or more aggressive touch. I would go with that. But the choice of one (or more) module is mostly dependent on the musical direction you want to go in.

Hi everyone,

I have questions about this 2*84hp rack : I have all those modules but the A138i, Alm mmMidi and Happy Nerding 3xVCA. And there is a big hole in the middle.
Do you think the A134i will be enough as a global mixer here ? or do you have any recommandation ? x-pan ?

What about the big hole ? any idea ? a multimode filter like Filter 8 ? a waveshaper like the Tarot from Modulaire Maritime ?

Thanks for your advices,
All the best

Thank you a lot both 33PO & Wally_Garten, I'll check all these out!

The After Later QARV is also black and is, I think, terrific value for money, in that it gives you four attack/release functions and some basic mixing, as well as a 5v and 10v offset (so, somewhat similar to a Maths), but ALSO four VCA’s. If you stick with the 62 hp effects rack plan, you may not need the VCA’s — but if you add anything else at all, they’re very handy.

Cosmotronic Delta-V is a good alternate for Maths and is available in black. Add a black Miso for mixing and attenuverting.

Befaco Rampage is another great alternate for Maths

Take a look at the Noise Engineering effects modules

Mantis is ugly, but a great value (and available in black)

Appreciate your feedback, Jim -- had no idea the Maths with the black faceplate are this rare... color is inordinately, nonsensically important to me (I'm, somewhat sadly, not being sarcastic) :/

Totally hear you on the rack size. Iono why, but for whatever reason the Mantis looks... kinda ugly to me. I do think you're right and eventually I'll have a need for a larger one but this one's good for the moment. Pretty sure this is my version of golf and I'll just have to keep upgrading as long as I can afford it :)

get a bigger case - perhaps a mantis - not only much better value for money, but you will need it eventually - which means you may end up only buying one case...

don't expect to get a black maths - they are unobtanium - generally only available as part of a shared system

So, they removed the PPQN x08 setting from the clock menu.
It jumps from x4 to x16 with nothing in between.
My entire Live setup relies on Hermod clocking Pamela. And Hermod's clock can only output 1/32, 1/16, 1/8 and so on.
Meaning I had to swith from a 1/32 (wich requires the x8 on the receiving end)
to a much slower 1/16 clock on hermod with a PPQN x04 on pamelas PRO workoout.

But oh boy does that not work. Pamela takes a beat or two to even start and then it does so on some random 16th note. Never on the actual downbeat. And tempo is constantly drifting a few BPM.

Just for shits and giggles, I connected both pamelas to the same clock/reset signals.
Pams New Workout is stable. very much so.
Pams PRO Workout doesn't seem to know what a clock is.

How come?
Has anyone else got the sync problems with pams PRO Workout?
Anyone knows of a good a Pams PRO Workaround or something? damn....

Hello everyone,

I'm new to sound synthesis, my first synth is a Moog Grandmother which I got about a year ago. Really want to delve into the world of modular and be able to get a lot more ambient-y, noisy and drone-y effects to it. Haven't really devoted any space or modules to synth voices as I'll still be using the Moog for that purpose, but I was curious to hear any thoughts, opinions, suggestions that you might offer if you were aiming to do something similar?

Happy days,

H

It’s 5 pins an the colour scheme on the cable is identical to the colour scheme on pexp1‘s cable. I am tempted to try hooking pexp1 up to pams pro! 🤣
-- nemoy

I would probably try tracing them with a 'scope or logic analyzer first, just to be sure...

(The signals would be always-present if it is the same, +5/run/x24/midi/gnd)

EDITED Nov 22nd 2022, 18:54

Ok, I got myself one. It has two connectors… one labelled „expand“ and the other one „midi-ex“ i guess thats gonna be the name of pamelas new midi expander…
It’s 5 pins an the colour scheme on the cable is identical to the colour scheme on pexp1‘s cable. I am tempted to try hooking pexp1 up to pams pro! 🤣

Oh wow, I just found the little side note about Pro Workout NOT being compatible with the PEXP1. damn.
Is it just a different connector, and could be somehow connected with a little bit of hacking and knowing the exact pin outs? or is it a completely different thing?

Also, are we limited to one expander at a time? Like axon-1 only?

-- nemoy

The sales copy seems to indicate that the AXON port and the future output expander port are separate. The AXON ports on other ALM products only connect one at a time, as did the output expander port on PNW, so I'd expect it's one-of-each.

Oh wow, I just found the little side note about Pro Workout NOT being compatible with the PEXP1. damn.
Is it just a different connector, and could be somehow connected with a little bit of hacking and knowing the exact pin outs? or is it a completely different thing?

Also, are we limited to one expander at a time? Like axon-1 only?

EDITED Nov 22nd 2022, 17:06

Hi Martin,

very helpful, thank you! I think I'm going to replace the Ruina with two WMD 4TTEN then.

And yes, I'm aware of the limitation of the OPTX inputs, but that's not a problem for me as I definitely want to avoid the integration of the software part again. That's why I'm coming back to real synths in the first place. I'm going to record and remix the audio tracks on Bitwig though.

Thanks again!
Dieter

EDITED Nov 22nd 2022, 17:30

probably the best way to do this is to slave Pam's to Ableton (or any other DAW)

create an audio track in your DAW and paste a kick drum sample on every 16th note... send this to an output on your audio interface - you may need to mess around a bit with volume to get it to work properly

save this as a template - so you can use it for other sessions in the future - tempo should properly match session tempo, it does for me in Logic

patch the audio output to the clock in on Pam's and set up Pams to use 4ppqn (parts per quarter note) and to run/stop on receipt of clock

this will give you much more solid clock than using midi in (audio always has higher priority in computer operating systems than midi)

Hi,

I am thinking to start including Ableton into my setup (which i've never done before to be honest).

Now, i still want to use Pamela New Workout as master clock driving my eurorack sequencers, so i need to find a way to slave ableton to Pamela.

The modules/gears which i have are:

1. PAM
2. Polyend Poly2 (Midi to cv)
3. SSL+ (audio/midi card)
4. Mac running Ableton

Now, i am wondering how can i send PAM's clock to Abeleton. Not sure if the Poly 2 can pass the clock to Ableton using one of the gate and the midi out.

Anyone has experience whit does modules and this setup?

Thanks
Mat

EDITED Nov 22nd 2022, 16:20

Hi Dieter,

Both the BIA and 4ms Ensemble will benefit greatly from attenuation on the inputs. There is no built in attentuation on the BIA, and only some of the inputs on the 4ms Ensemble are attenuated by the module itself. I've got attentunation modules next to both of these in my setup.

The OPTX works great with Bitwig for sending additional pitch, modulation and triggers to your rack. But the inputs are AC only - works fine for triggering Bitwig from your rack, but you'll need to use the Grid to modify incoming CV signals to get Bitwig moulations that are related to those coming in from your rack.

Have Fun! Martin

EDITED Nov 22nd 2022, 14:46

Hi,
Dieter from Germany here (a different Dieter of course). I'm starting with modular again and eventually came up with this rack (MI modules will be replaced by clones). My musical style is rhythmic, repetitive, semi-composed / semi-chaotic; sort of heavily cranked up Berlin school.

I'm going to perform live as well as record on my beloved Bitwig via the optx and I'd like to have an all in one portable package.

I'm interested in your opinion. Did I miss something? Thank you!

EDITED Nov 22nd 2022, 10:46

Regarding Rhythms generation,
Shakmat is really great at this. Knight Gallop and Four Bricks are amazingly powerful.
I agree with the above: looking for clock dividers/logic is a very fun approach to patterns generation. 4ms clock dividers are feature packed. Shakmat time wizard combines dividers and logic.
I agree too that Befaco Percall is great.
Also look at sequential switches.

For sounds this really depends on the sounds that you want to achieve. Endorphin has nice multi voice modules. But there are many options to listen to.
A square wave osc , a noise source and a good filter can do a lot :)

I'm working with a couple of musicians playing reeds and I want to be able to provide percussion, bass lines, and sometimes the odd countermelody. Please check my case and let me know what you think.

The concept is to maximize CV modulation that I can adjust, create, transform in realtime. The ability to save some sequenced things on the fly (and in studio) is also an asset. So I had MATHS, but found I couldn't justify the rack space to have that as the main CV source. I find it too 'brainiac' for me. I need something that I can set in motion and transform. Thus the Voltage Block in the place where MATHS used to be. Plaits, nRings, BIA, and FRACTURE are the main sound sources, with distingEX and/or Pique when they are not being used for other purposes. o_C (Hemispheres) will of course do whatever needs doing that the other modules haven't done. Although I have the classic two menu-diving modules (EX and o_C), I'll likely use them for their functions, turing and other stuff like that that is more or less set and go. Audio feed from my Zoom L-12 mixer will be the sound source (my reed musicians) for MORPHAGENE, possibly mixing that signal with mixup #1 sources from the rack. Control is Voltage block, Pachinko, Tempi, (and/or distingEX, Pique, o_C if needed).

So far I have had great success just using what I currently have, which is the rack I link to above without Pachinko and Fracture, nor the AfterLater little line sum at top left.

Due to the evolutionary compositional concept, my main sequencer is now the Torso T-1 desktop module, which I have controlling the pitch modules (Plaits, nRings, BIA). I need Voltage Block and Pachinko for percussion.

By the way, audio out goes to 1010 music bluebox, where other synths are also patched in for use in larger setups. For using the rack standalone, I am relying on the Beads reverb as my endpoint. I realize this is a bit limiting, but I do have an H9 and/or STRYMON nightsky for final processing of the audio out from the rack.

Any suggestions much appreciated!

John

The best advice is to start slow. Get only a few modules at a time. Learn them and figure out what modules to get next as you figure out a workflow

Just spitballing modules that I'd want to include...

Sound Generation:
Quad Drum + Qex expander or Erica Synths LXR should be on the top of your list for drum sounds. Either of these alone could start banging out beats with a sequencer (like Beatstep).

Basimilus Iteritas Alter is THE king of kicks, but Kickain is a newer option that looks really good too

Check out Percall if your thinking about creating drum sounds from "scratch" with oscillators and noise

Sequencing:
Euclidian Circles

Varigate 8+ with Voltage Block is an incredible combo for sequencing gates and stepped modulation

Check out the full suite of 4ms clock modules (+ expanders). Rotating Clock Divider is an all-time favorite. Quad Clock Distributer and Shuffling Clock Multiplier+ are all amazing. Pingable Envelope Generator for modulation

There's a lot of rhythmic fun to be had with gate generators like Grids, Zularic/Numetic, Knights Gallop and Moffenzeef MITO. Add in some logic and sequential switches for more variety.

Pamela's Workout is useful in every rack

Mixers:
Jumble Henge
Tesseract mixers + output module or Cosmix

Effects:
Tons of great choices for multi effects or specialized reverbs/delays. FX Aid sounds great and has many algorithms.

EDITED Nov 22nd 2022, 00:31

Been a year since i first posted here and started into modular - So this is where I am at with my build - I have everything on the top row and everything from left to maths on the bottom row. pretty different than my initial plan but its warped and molded as I've been playing with it.

tempted to fill that 8hp with a second pams, but i technially still have the bottom right half to play around with new modules (pretty set on the far right modules though; qx to addacs.)

externally sequencing with the opz - also using for guitar, not really using for performance at all, just experimentation and sound design.

Just thought i'd share and see and get impressions/feedback

edit: just noticed i shared an image not the link

EDITED Nov 23rd 2022, 12:02

I have a 150HP cabinet coming in very soon. This cabinet will be used to house a modular drum machine/pattern generator/sequencer with an emphasis on performance. Live performance, that is. Ideally, when this thing is complete, I want to be able to program rhythm patterns on-the-fly, trigger pre-programmed rhythm patterns, trigger algorithm-generated rhythms, or any combination thereof.

My first challenge is to choose a decent drum sound synthesizer/sampler. It would be nice to have the capability of using sampled drum sounds but sampling is not a must-have. A drum synth that can generate great percussive sounds is acceptable. Or some module that combines the two would be even better. Eight voice total polyphony is my desired target.

For on-the-fly rhythm programming and the triggering of pre-programmed rhythm patterns, I could just use something like an Arturia Beatstep Pro, a Korg SQ 64, or something else that I may not have yet considered to control the sound generators that will eventually populate this rack. But when we get to algorithmic drum pattern generation, I really don't know where to even start looking.

I figured it would be a good idea to ask someone who is a lot smarter than me. And this exactly why I am here. If you had 150HP of rack space to dedicate to the ultimate modular drum machine for live performance, how would you build it? I welcome your insights and thank you for any help you may be able to provide.

There's something I really do not understand about this module.

Why are the effects individually stored on proprietary memory cards? Couldn't they be stored on a USB drive or an SD card and loaded to internal memory as needed?

Thanks guys!
Those are actually pretty good ideas, I know I'm way too much into effects...
I'm going to have a look at what you suggested, thanks again.

seems like you have a decent number of effects modules already

a matrix mixer... especially when used to combine copies of the modulation sources you already have to generate some more interesting ones...

Fine transaction with @abozzelli via Paypal f&f.
Fast communication and shipping, careful packaging. Module in excellent conditions.

First day with the MFX. Not all FX are being tested in this no talk video.

I will make demo for this one. What kind of source would you test?

Bought a Takaab 2LPG v2 from @39tutu and everything has been perfect. The module better than described. Perfect packaging. Good seller.

That case sounds dope though!

If it does all the things i'm imagining it certainly will be, but that'll be another thread one day! (Along with the little internal-expander backpack i made for the PNW)

This pro version doesn't seem that great tbh. A new screen and some new shapes that could have been a firmware update. Maybe I'm missing something.

The only vaguely compelling feature i've seen so far is the option to use an AXON for more CV ins, but i barely use the two that PNW has currently, so yeah it seems like mostly a "meh" upgrade for existing users. I wonder if they'll backport the firmware features or pull an apple there too?

Ah so that's why they were awful and condescending when i asked support about PNW's expander pinout recently...
-- justarandomgeek

If you care to share, what happened exactly? Treating people badly, especially ones that put food on your table, not so cool.

-- yeahivandalizm

I was looking for info to route the clock signals to ports on a custom case, so I emailed support and they just said "we don't have that information" and ignored any further replies asking for someone who does. So I contacted them on twitter and got told "well you should be able to figure that out yourself". So I got out my logic analyzer and did. By far the worst interaction with a eurorack manufacturer i've had so far.

(i'd list the pinout here, but apparently the Pro's is different so it would be misleading here)
-- justarandomgeek

Yeesh, seems very Apple of them. That case sounds dope though! Received a similar answer from Strymon once concerning a pedals actual dimensions, because the only dimensions I found listed were for the box it came in. Lost all interest after that. This pro version doesn't seem that great tbh. A new screen and some new shapes that could have been a firmware update. Maybe I'm missing something.

Ah so that's why they were awful and condescending when i asked support about PNW's expander pinout recently...
-- justarandomgeek

If you care to share, what happened exactly? Treating people badly, especially ones that put food on your table, not so cool.

-- yeahivandalizm

I was looking for info to route the clock signals to ports on a custom case, so I emailed support and they just said "we don't have that information" and ignored any further replies asking for someone who does. So I contacted them on twitter and got told "well you should be able to figure that out yourself". So I got out my logic analyzer and did. By far the worst interaction with a eurorack manufacturer i've had so far.

(i'd list the pinout here, but apparently the Pro's is different so it would be misleading here)

EDITED Nov 20th 2022, 15:52

Ah so that's why they were awful and condescending when i asked support about PNW's expander pinout recently...
-- justarandomgeek

If you care to share, what happened exactly? Treating people badly, especially ones that put food on your table, not so cool.

Voltage Block would be a nice addition if you'd consider a non-effects module. There's lots of opportunity in this rack to send stepped modulation and alter many parameters at once

An alternate idea would be Mimetic Digitalis + one of the new NE effects modules

Hey guys, this is my rack, pretty much happy with everything in it except for the Erbe-Verb than I can't seem to wrap my head around even after a year, so I've decided to get rid of it.

First thought was to replace it with Qu-Bit Data Bender, which leaves me with 6hp to fill and I thought about maybe a uVCA?

I'd like to have your thought on what you'd personally do with those spare 20 hp and what you think you'd be missing in this rack.

And just so you know sequencing comes from a keystep pro and drums from a TR-8S.

Edit: also thinking about the new endorphines x Huang Ghost which would leave me 4hp!

Thanks guys!

EDITED Nov 20th 2022, 10:48

I would like to know how it sounds?

EDITED Nov 20th 2022, 05:44

I had to register just to reply to this one. I have been in the backline rental business for 25 years and trying to source an original vocoder for one gig is a pretty hard task. So when behringer released the VC340 i thought we’d give it a go, despite being sure that behringer was complete crap, because it really used to be just that. Now I have tried and tested the model d and parts of the system 100 and moog modules as well as the odyssey and I must say these products are very, very nice. And the prices reflects the reality of 2022 as opposed to the moogs and rolands of today, where most of your money buys you the names and not the cost of the actual product. And as for the teasing and “involvement” of the public I say Go for it! Nevermind waiting for 2 or 3 years, we’ve been waiting for decades already!

EDITED Dec 6th 2022, 14:04

EDITED Feb 27th 2023, 07:22

A multipurpose module from Music Thing Modular,a clock source,a mixer,a line out/headphone amp.Meant to be a small space addition to a small rack.
Very easy build, SMD components already installed, took about 30 minutes to build even with my talking.
Always good to have another clock source if nothing else.
Great for a beginning builder.
Build

Ah so that's why they were awful and condescending when i asked support about PNW's expander pinout recently...

Triple the cost? It's like $10 more compared to the old one ...

Makes sense, i will defininetly consider it for the build.
thanks

Triple the cost, I think not.

While watching too many videos about maths and Mimeophon, I thought of this manifestation. Question is, will it Synth?

Based on what I've seen, Maths can provide Clock, VCO, Envelope, VCA, Filtering, Sequencing, mixing and a variety of CV/LFO accents.
Mimeophon can provide reverb, delay, loop-lock-playback, and even act as a voice on its own.

With enough patch cables and patience, a synth emerges. Obviously it can be as many rows as needed. Tempted to build a one-row version just to see what it's like to play. Unfortunately I couldn't find Make Noise in VCV Rack for play testing.

I just got a Filtrone and I love it. It sounds beautiful.
6/18 is the best setting since it allows crossfading between a fairly closed slope and a very open one.
I just wish there was a CV input for tone control (maybe instead of v/oct, if room was an issue), but besides that, I'm very happy with my purchase. Even though I have many filters already, this one is a unique addition - something I missed until it existed.

EDITED Nov 18th 2022, 16:49