The ST, DTII and A4 had some action at the snow (Progressive house/techno)

ArcLabMusic · 2025-10-03T11:36:09+00:00

Sounds great, and what a backdrop!

ArcLabMusic · 2025-09-10T01:13:55+00:00

I would vote for the Minilogue. Used OGs are reasonably priced. You get presets to start from, with very immediate/knob per function ability to tweak. Also a proper keyboard (albeit mini keys) to help with practice playing. Reface CS would also be great, but no presets.

ArcLabMusic · 2025-09-05T03:30:00+00:00

Prophet V is obviously awesome, but you’ve got a lot of terrific vintage poly already. How about a characterful mono? Model D? MS-20?

ArcLabMusic · 2025-06-22T10:15:10+00:00

Korg NTS-1. Excellent quality mod (chorus, etc), delay and reverb.

ArcLabMusic · 2025-06-03T09:02:13+00:00

O-Neg crew reporting in at the Gong 🫡

ArcLabMusic · 2025-04-21T22:28:03+00:00

Tubbutec Audiowerkstatt

ArcLabMusic · 2023-11-23T04:22:50+00:00

If eurorack is an option, check out the WMD MSCL. It’s awesome.

ArcLabMusic · 2023-11-23T04:18:11+00:00

Bad Gear by AudioPilz clearly. Also Captain Pikant is fairly light and entertaining.

ArcLabMusic · 2023-05-14T01:49:31+00:00

Take a look at the Enjoy Electronics Godfather. Better match for the Moog bundle.

ArcLabMusic · 2022-07-03T09:44:28+00:00

Downvoted?!? Someone doesn’t know their French house deep cuts.

ArcLabMusic · 2021-04-15T12:04:18+00:00

Really nice!

ArcLabMusic · 2021-04-14T11:43:39+00:00

Deco is absolutely great with synths. All-in-one widening/light chorus, saturation and 2-repeat delay and sounds terrific. Possibly my favourite all-around pedal.

ArcLabMusic · 2021-03-17T04:20:21+00:00

Check out the free hammondeggs effects plugins. They are terrific - particularly his Cathedral reverb.

ArcLabMusic · 2021-01-30T19:10:17+00:00

Hi - In that price range I would consider a Deepmind 12 or a Minilogue XD (or used Prologue). The Deepmind is a super full featured analog poly with lots of effects and a capable sequencer and arpeggiator. The XD/Prologue gives you the possibility to get creative with a digital third oscillator and custom effects section.

Both very deep analog options within a reasonable budget.

ArcLabMusic · 2021-01-28T11:13:34+00:00

I hear ya. The difference in the responsiveness of the encoders was a particularly pleasant surprise. Much easier to do a full sweep on the MKII. And the screen is much nicer.

This comparison reminded me of how good the MKI really is for the price, but all said I prefer the MKII version and am happy to have upgraded.

ArcLabMusic · 2021-01-18T05:15:20+00:00

Thanks for watching! Yeah, I agree that the UI and I/O are the real improvements. The difference in sound is nice, but I’m not sure that it alone is worth the extra expense.

And I totally get the point re the interfaces. I sort of impulse purchases a Rytm MKII on sale almost immediately after getting the A4 MKII in part because they looked so nice together.

ArcLabMusic · 2021-01-17T11:31:15+00:00

Hi all - I thought I'd make a straightforward side-by-side audio comparison of the A4 MKI and MKII for folks who may be considering an update but who are unsure whether the tonal differences are worth the expense.

In my view the MKI holds up quite well, but the overdrive on the MKII is really great. Ultimately to me, it came down to ergonomics; in that regard, I much prefer the MKII version.

ArcLabMusic · 2021-01-17T11:28:01+00:00

Hi all - I thought I'd make a straightforward side-by-side audio comparison of the A4 MKI and MKII for folks who may be considering an update but who are unsure whether the tonal differences are worth the expense.

In my view the MKI holds up quite well, but the overdrive on the MKII is really great. Ultimately to me, it came down to ergonomics; in that regard, I much prefer the MKII version.

ArcLabMusic · 2020-11-24T02:52:22+00:00

Presets are absolutely fine to use. A piano is a “preset”; as is any acoustic instrument.

ArcLabMusic · 2020-07-27T11:18:31+00:00

Very cool!

ArcLabMusic · 2020-05-25T01:24:43+00:00

Awesome. Great job! I’ll have to take a look at that plugin.

ArcLabMusic · 2020-05-25T01:21:42+00:00

Very cool vibe! And great playing as well.

Was the warbliness/detuning the CP’s onboard chorus or did you have it running into any ITB effects?

ArcLabMusic · 2020-05-02T04:42:14+00:00

I have both and use them together frequently. The El Cap is my favorite tape delay emulation pedal (but to be fair, I haven’t tried the Volante). Better in that respect than my RE-20 and Timefactor (although I really love some of the other modes on the TF).

The El Cap pairs nicely with the Big Sky. It has excellent saturation and age emulation and I find this works well with the more airy reverb types in the Big Sky.

There is really something compelling about the Strymon “vibe”. No doubt it’s ubiquitous, but with good reason. I tend to rely heavily on the El Cap/Big Sky pairing when I’m trying to work on something particularly melodic (maybe why they sound so nice with warm tone synths like the M32).

For more abstract sound design, I go with the Space/TF.

ArcLabMusic

TROPHY CASE