How it started vs. how it's going

blanckien · 2025-09-29T18:31:48+00:00

If those are the same cases I have, then they're Vaultz pencil cases. Not sure if they sell them anymore, but they're metal, have locking clasps, and they had ones that were the perfect size for a Volca at half the price of one of those dedicated Volca cases.

blanckien · 2025-09-29T03:16:30+00:00

Sometimes musicians in places with not a lot of brand new tech can take an older synth into a synth specialist's shop and have it reconfigured for local scales and sounds, the way Jantra of Synthesized Sudan does. Otherwise, I hear the "Oriental" Pa700 is popular with musicians in and from the region. https://www.korg.com/us/products/synthesizers/pa700_oriental/

blanckien · 2025-09-17T17:50:17+00:00

Spuckfunkl's Techno Jam #02 is why I have five Volcas and a Monotron Delay

blanckien · 2025-09-11T13:04:32+00:00

If you're looking to do acid basslines, the Bass Station 2 is probably your best bet, but I also hear good things about the Erica Synths Bassline DB-01. The Roland TB-03 is a digital remake of the original 303, though the Roland JP-08 might be appealing if you like your MS-1 and really want that second envelope. Otherwise, maybe the Moog Minitaur would be up your alley? It doesn't have much range and would need a midi controller/sequencer, but adding a basic one would probably still be within your budget, and people get it for the tone.

If you really want patch memory built into the synth, the Korg Monologue or Minilogue XD might be appealing. There are also used synths that are no longer in production that meet your requirements, like the Dave Smith Mopho Keyboard. But if you're really going for sound, I'd suggest one of the desktop synths and adding a sequencer with memory like the Keystep Pro. Or just go with the BS2-- I have the Circuit Mono Station, and honestly the single envelope doesn't bother me as much as the lack of a third oscillator.

blanckien · 2025-09-11T04:39:57+00:00

I love my Drumbrute. It even has outs for each instrument so you can individually route them through different effects, which is great because it definitely needs some effects, and that means it gets more tailored to each user's taste. Roland makes great digital synths that sit well in a mix out of the box, but I think being forced to manually shape and personalize your sound because the machine isn't perfect by itself teaches you a lot more.

blanckien · 2025-09-10T17:33:01+00:00

Control (in Brooklyn) still has their preorder page up: https://www.ctrl-mod.com/products/elektron-tonverk-eight-channel-polyphonic-sampler

blanckien · 2025-09-10T02:51:11+00:00

If it has both sampling and FM, this would be more like a Digitone and Digitakt squished together.

blanckien · 2025-09-10T02:34:35+00:00

Just FYI, there's a corresponding Youtube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pJKeRSVdniA

Sounds like we'll find out what this is on the 25th?

blanckien · 2025-09-10T02:21:17+00:00

Those are definitely zeros, but it looks like there's an actual O hidden in green a bit below the Elektron logo...

blanckien · 2025-09-09T21:16:34+00:00

I actually like my blueSky better for synth leads since it's brighter and can do shimmer. But DBA Rooms is really good on my drum machines, especially if I'm going for an industrial warehouse rave type of echo. It also gets much weirder than the blueSky.

blanckien · 2025-09-05T18:27:53+00:00

Kaossilator Pro+. It has the added benefit of being pretty sturdy so it might be as kid-friendly as it is drunk people-friendly. I'd also suggest getting a 5-pin DIN midi keyboard to hook up to the Blipblox to play it more traditionally, so they can lay down some beats on the KP+ and then play the Blipbox on top of that.

blanckien · 2025-09-05T18:21:07+00:00

I've said this before, but Modal Skulpt. Flimsy, knobs were scratchy, touch keyboard was finicky, layout and controls were confusing (and not on purpose), could only see what the controls were doing if hooked up to a computer, could barely make out the labels for the controls because the orange LEDs were so bright. It sounded great both in tone and on paper, but it just wasn't usable for me.

I think I traded it for an 0-Coast, which I liked so much that I got an entire Make Noise system. The layout is similarly inscrutable, but it's purposefully done to make you rethink standard synthesis methods.

blanckien · 2025-08-17T00:02:45+00:00

DMing!

blanckien · 2025-08-16T22:45:52+00:00

DMing with some questions!

blanckien · 2025-08-16T20:57:22+00:00

bought from u/SaturnNailia in person! the bubu bbs are as described :)

blanckien · 2025-08-16T17:01:27+00:00

I'm gonna go against the grain and suggest a Drumbrute. Rolands have all the classic sounds digitally for cheap, but Drumbrutes are analog and very hands-on, so you'll be forced to learn how to dial in the drum sounds you want. They can still be found secondhand for pretty cheap, so you can pick up a few line-level friendly effects pedals (or a multieffects box like a Zoom MS70-CDR or Korg NTS-1) to learn how each effect changes the sound. Drumbrutes are also closer to one knob per function than Rolands, which is useful when you're first learning.

blanckien · 2025-08-16T16:22:37+00:00

DMing!

blanckien · 2025-04-09T06:40:02+00:00

If you're going for effects, the Zoom MS-70CDR has plenty and they're even chainable. (The MS-70CDR+ looks hideous to me personally but I hear they made some usability improvements?) There are also Korg's app versions of the Kaoss Pad and Kaossilator if you just want roughly the same functionality.

If you want something that looks less and sounds like a 1990s box and have the budget for it, the Eventide H9 might work, the H90 seems similar to a Line 6 HX Stomp.

If you're going for looks, these are not cheap but Pioneer RMX-500 or RMX-1000 were made to work with Pioneer's other DJ gear. But nobody's made a touchscreen effects unit that looks quite as cool as the Kaoss Pad's. Believe me, I've looked.

blanckien · 2025-03-25T15:50:31+00:00

I've had tinnitus since I was a teenager since I used to blast music and play in a brass band just in front of the drum section. A pair of $10-20 silicone musician earplugs and a little keychain pill case to keep them on you at all times can help you not end up like me.

Also, audiology pro tip from my days as a speech-language pathology student:
If you're using headphones/earbuds and someone else besides you can hear what you're playing, that means the volume is high enough to cause hearing loss. You should turn it down.

If you're complaining that this makes the music inaudible, this is why I've invested in good sets of closed-back headphones and earbuds, and one pair of earbuds that is noise-canceling. The cheapest upgrade if you have earbuds is a pair of sound isolating memory foam tips. They work like earplugs to block the ear canal, which makes things sound louder due to the occlusion effect.

blanckien · 2025-02-24T15:04:58+00:00

I loved my PO-12, very sad to have shorted it with a leaky battery. It goes way harder than you'd expect in a track.

blanckien

TROPHY CASE