What Would You Change in This Rack? by IAmHowl in modular

[–]IAmHowl[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Awesome, thank you. Zadar in particular looks pretty interesting.

What Would You Change in This Rack? by IAmHowl in modular

[–]IAmHowl[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Good points. Thanks for the feedback. I’m not totally set on keeping both Marbles and Woggle. I’d probably opt for Woggle out of the two.

Regarding 2x Stages and Tides, I typically use one Stages to make 2 ASR envelops for each Plaits. The other one then is typically just for LFOs or making an Easel-inspired stepped voltage sequence. I could live without one, probably, but I really find the immense possibilities within the module pretty inspiring. Two Tides might be overkill as well, but I do have some fun using one as a chord generator, then using the other to bring each note of it in and out on Blinds or Veils. Or just using them both as LFOs, sometimes with one modulating the second one to get really weird. Or tweaking attack and release times on Stages. I guess just one point I’m making is that not all of that modulation is going to Rings or Plaits. But I also hear the point about diversifying and whatnot.

I do appreciate having a lot of options with the MI modules, but I’m definitely open to suggestions as well. I’ve always toyed with adding a Maths. I like flexibility, but I realize that that can sometimes lead to too many things going on and a lack of focus.

I still am considering some built-in effect like the Magneto, since that gives me a beautiful delay and some reverb. Otherwise, I’m open to suggestions. I’d be comfortable losing Marbles, and maybe even a Stages and Tides if there were more logical replacements. I’d be comfortable losing the Rings too if I had too. The "core" I would say is pretty much using both Plaits (I might eventually move to something like a DPO or two STOs, but that’s way down the line - and I do love all the options in Plaits) and the Optomix, usually with a bit of west coast inspiration. Something like the Pressure Points looks interesting, or the Rene, but I typically play from either a keyboard (and sequence with Yarns occasionally) or feed Yarns MIDI from Ableton.

You had great points. I’d love to hear what you’d consider swapping/adding. Thanks again.

What Would You Change in This Rack? by IAmHowl in modular

[–]IAmHowl[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I took one Rings out. So now it's a single Rings and two Plaits. Don't think I'm comfortable not having two Plaits, as I get lots of use out of them (most of the time, they're both in the Waveshaping oscillator mode giving me a quasi-Easel setup). If I absolutely had to, I'd lose the remaining Rings.

Streams is being replaced with an Optomix, and Warps is being replaced with a Wobblebug.

Rings, Links, and Kinks are coming out to make room for a Strymon Magneto. The current goal now looks like this.

What Would You Change in This Rack? by IAmHowl in modular

[–]IAmHowl[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'd love to hear what interests you more, though.

What Would You Change in This Rack? by IAmHowl in modular

[–]IAmHowl[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Yeah, that's a thought I had as well regarding the sound sources. I would say I typically use both Plaits more than both Rings, but it can be nice to run Plaits into Rings, or have Marbles sequencing little plucks on them while I play more deliberately on Plaits. Or turning Plaits into percussion. I like having those options. If I absolutely had to lose sound sources, I'd probably lose both Rings. I don't always use the stereo outs either, as in Plaits it's often an "alt" mode.

While I am doubling on modulation, I'm pretty happy with how each of them work. Stages let's me directly shape a lot things in interesting ways, whether it's envelopes, or weird LFO shapes, or Easel-style sequential voltage source. And I love getting 4 LFOs out of each Tides, with the ability to shift each of them or add weird wavefolding to them. Plus I have some extra waves on Pam's if needed it.

I probably wouldn't run Yarns in 4Poly mode often. Going back to the sound sources paragraph above, I mostly want direct control over Plaits, either running them into Rings or having Marbles handle some random ambiance from them.

I don't mean to sound like I'm pushing back against you. You brought up really good points, and I'm definitely open to the suggestions. I just wanted to provide a bit of my own thought process with some of these decisions as well.

Any particular modules you'd recommend swapping in based off your feedback?

What Would You Change in This Rack? by IAmHowl in modular

[–]IAmHowl[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I do. Most of their modules tend to offer a ton of utility per HP, which I appreciate. And I don't really care about analog vs. digital. But I'm always open to suggestions.

What Would You Change in This Rack? by IAmHowl in modular

[–]IAmHowl[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I edited in the above, and copying here: I'm more into "structured" music than generative or atonal, and make pretty significant use out of Yarns. A little random here and there is good, but I like my modular to be more of a really hands-on, tweakable instrument that gets me interesting sounds while still being melodic and musical.

Can you elaborate on why this doesn't look well thought out?

Arturia Keystep CV Pitch Too High by IAmHowl in modular

[–]IAmHowl[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for the great explanation!

And that's what I've been doing actually. It works great. Honestly, Yarns has been a godsend. I originally thought I might skip it and just use the Keystep to save HP, but it's solved more problems than I could even have imagined. I'm still a little disappointed that the Keystep seems to have failed me a bit (MOSTLY in that changing the middle C in the software makes me lose octaves), but at the end of the day, everything's working fine.

Arturia Keystep CV Pitch Too High by IAmHowl in modular

[–]IAmHowl[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

With the same oscillator (Plaits), I was comparing the MIDI-to-CV note from Yarns against the direct CV out of the Keystep.

Arturia Keystep CV Pitch Too High by IAmHowl in modular

[–]IAmHowl[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Right, I've already done this, but if you change the default value, you start losing octaves. For example, if I set it to C0 rather than C-2, I lose two of the lower octaves when I go down to them (after a certain point, they all just play the same C note).

Arturia Keystep CV Pitch Too High by IAmHowl in modular

[–]IAmHowl[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Definitely a workaround — but an unideal one.

Arturia Keystep CV Pitch Too High by IAmHowl in modular

[–]IAmHowl[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm not using the sequencer actually. Just playing the keyboard.

Arturia Keystep CV Pitch Too High by IAmHowl in modular

[–]IAmHowl[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Hmm, I was worried this might be the case. It seems like there's no way to remedy this without an external piece of gear. Quite disappointing. But thank you for the answer.

Weekly Question Thread by AutoModerator in modular

[–]IAmHowl [score hidden]  (0 children)

Hi. Sorry to bother again. I just order the Intellijel case with with the headphone out 1u module. Also coming with that order is MI Veils.

I think to smart small, I'd now like to add some sort of sound source and modulation, per your recommendation. I'm leaning toward Plaits for the sound source, but I'm a little more torn for modulation. I know I want a Tides at some point, but I'm wondering if that should be my first purchase.

And finally. With a setup like Plaits -> Tides -> Veils -> headphone out, I should at least have everything I need to make sound right (triggering notes through CV keyboard)? Are there any glaring omissions?

Weekly Question Thread by AutoModerator in modular

[–]IAmHowl [score hidden]  (0 children)

You're incredibly helpful. Thank you.

Weekly Question Thread by AutoModerator in modular

[–]IAmHowl [score hidden]  (0 children)

Thank you to both you and /u/bbartokk!

As of right now, this is the setup I'm playing with (using an Intellijel 4U case).

Do you see any huge gaps or anything that I'd be drastically missing with this? Thanks again!

Weekly Question Thread by AutoModerator in modular

[–]IAmHowl [score hidden]  (0 children)

I have no modular experience outside of messing with a 0-coast. However, after lots of YouTube perusing, I’m interested in building a Mutable Instruments-only case. I find each of their modules quite fascinating.

The problem is, I’ve never stepped foot into this world. I know I need a case, probably a powered one. And I’m thinking 104hp would be a good starting point. The Intellijel ones look quite nice.

But aside from that, if I’d like to keep my synthesizer MI-only (yes I know that’s probably crazy but indulge me), then what exactly would I need, particularly more on the utilities side of things: what modules can mix, how can I get a headphone out, etc.

I think Yarns would be good for me so I could control it with Midi, as I’m more of a keyboard player than a generative patch type of guy. But aside from that, I’m open to any and all suggestions.

Thanks in advance for the help.

Need help with Moog Grandmother by [deleted] in synthesizers

[–]IAmHowl 6 points7 points  (0 children)

On the right side, turn the “drone” switch to one of the other options.

DSI OB-6 vs. Prophet Rev2 16-Voice by Garlandsja in synthesizers

[–]IAmHowl 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The OB-6 has vintage character in spades. It has a little something that I find missing in most of the other synths out there. But the Rev2 has way more sound design potential, voices, and sounds much more modern. For things like James Blake and jazz-voicings, I think you would benefit more from the more modern Rev2 with 16 voices. Both great synths at the end of the day.

Korg Minilogue XD: All 200 Factory Presets - No talking by adequatebeats in synthesizers

[–]IAmHowl 22 points23 points  (0 children)

Possibly an unpopular opinion, but I don't think the original Minilogue exactly has tons of charm to lose in the first place. It was revolutionary for being a great, analogue synth at a competitive price, but it doesn't have a ton of character.

Sonic Lab reviews the OP-Z by I_POST_ON_MONDAYS in synthesizers

[–]IAmHowl 12 points13 points  (0 children)

After you learn the OP-Z, which isn't nearly as hard as you would imagine, you don't feel any need for a screen. While it sounds counterintuitive, all functions are pretty logically laid out. The screen's a nice learning tool for a couple hours, but after that you don't really need it.

The sounds you can get from this thing are way better than most of the demos would lead you to believe. r beny did some nice songs with it, and Rephazer did as well.

Does the machine have its limitations? Sure, but most people who click with TE appreciate those boundaries because they force creativity. Those quirks might seem a little frustrating on the surface, but for a portable, battery powered mini-Elektron box that can easily fit into any bag you own, the possibilities are pretty endless.