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Hi Sacguy71,

Yeah! Your Metron has arrived and you immediately made a nice movie and track of it so we can see the Metron directly in action! :-) Great work!

So what's your first impression? Looking at the video's it's good? :-D To me it looks brilliant!

Have fun with it and kind regards, Garfield.

Hi Steve, All,

Steve: Brilliantly done and thank you very much for your efforts here! :-)

I am going to listen at this in the weekend, bit too busy this week.

All those who provided input for this album: That's superb, I am going to have a fantastic weekend, just because of you! Thank you!

Modulargrid: Thanks a lot for publishing this on Facebook :-)

Kind regards and oh man, what's modular lovely! :-) Garfield.

When I took my first tour of modular synths back in 1998-2002, before taking a break from making music due to life factors, I had a Doepfer system of this same size. It was terrific, and this looks terrific too. And I think you're right... having one manufacturer to focus on takes some of the G.A.S. out of the equation, and also makes the system look and feel cohesive. Enjoy!

the only sensible advice to take in modular, is to buy a bigger case than you think you need, buy fewer modules than you want and grow slowly = there is no need whatsoever to fill the case immediately
-- JimHowell1970

Precisely. For one thing, users invariably want more modules...especially if they've put together one of these mini-builds and come to realize how limiting the damned things are.

I also think that there's an inappropriate "game" mentality going on with a lot of new builds...they all seem to have this unfortunate idea built into them that the builder HAD TO get this right on the first try, otherwise...well, I dunno. If you can build a Minimoog in a 24 hp Pod, perhaps you win all the Interwebz? Whatever the mindset, it's erroneous and dumb, since those of us who live with these devices on a day to day basis KNOW that you'll NEVER nail a build (any size!) on Try #1. Even WE can't do that!

Consider: when Walter Carlos (at the time, now Wendy of course) was working on "SOB", even HIS custom Moog modular wasn't truly "complete". He was still working directly with Bob Moog to get things to be more "instrument-like" with the instrument. And there were a lot of things we now take for granted (like CV latching, for example) that had to be developed over a span of YEARS. So in a sense, there's no such thing as a "completed" modular...even today.

Hi Amliw,

I totally agree with you that the Sinfonion is completely bananas expensive, there are no words for describing how %&^(#*^# expensive the Sinfonion is and just don't buy it, saves you lots of money and you can buy so many more modules from that money, right? So who needs a Sinfonion? ;-)

Of course I am joking but yes the Sinfonion is expensive but no, it's seriously worth it, what I am trying to say here (my above text), that yes with the money of Sinfonion, you can get so many other nice modules but not really what Sinfonion can offer you here. Don't expect wonders from it either but if you are ready for the next step into more complexity, yet harmonised and get the things kind of organised (well.. when is something really organised within Eurorack, never I guess? ;-) ) then the Sinfonion might be actually the right module for you.

But before I continue: Hey, did you saw that woman just walked away at the end of the movie and leaves a very interesting modular synth there in that crappy building? Run fast and see if you can get that synth for yourself, perhaps she hasn't returned yet! I mean... come on... who walks away from a system like that and leaves it unguarded? (assuming the camera man wouldn't be there of course). Well at least Hélène does ;-)

Anyway, back to the Sinfonion. Bit more details then, with the Sinfonion you have 3 channels that you can use for your "regular" voices, each channel has a slightly bit different extra functionality compared to each other but the main functionality is about the same. Then you have another chord channel, it only requires one input but gives you up to four outputs to play for example (that's how I like to use it) with a polyphone module like the Doepfer A-111-4 Quad VCO. Last but certainly not least is the arpeggio channel, I love to use that one, very flexible in it's use.

That might not sound very complicated but it exactly gives you so many possibilities and complicated ways of using it harmonised or even unharmonised if you like (detuned). You can have slew option on channel 1 and on the chord channel. In my demo "The Cry Of The Modular Synth" you are hearing there that "Cry" sound using partly the slew option in combination with channel one. I am only using channel one here for this track (so "barely" using the Sinfonion actually):

https://www.modulargrid.net/e/forum/posts/index/9397

The other voice you hear in that track (more kind of LFO driven sound) that's not done by or via the Sinfonion.

If you want another example of the Sinfonion I used, take this track here:

https://www.modulargrid.net/e/forum/posts/index/8749

I fully utilise the Sinfonion here with all it has: 3 channels, channel 1 in A/B mode as well, chords, and the arpeggio. In that track I didn't used any keyboard or whatsoever to put "notes" into this track, that was mostly done by the Sinfonion. You just give it some bizarre sound and Sinfonion spits the notes (and chords) out you prefer, brilliant!

These are only two examples, I am not sure if Hélène is actually using a Sinfonion but if she would then that would be some other examples, but you can do so many various things with a Sinfonion, it's almost endless.

One thing to keep in mind though, it's not a sequencer in the classical way, it actually isn't really a sequencer; ACL likes to call it a chord progession sequencer and that's exactly what it is, the "only" thing you can sequence with the Sinfonion itself are the chords, all the other channels can't be sequenced, at least not by the Sinfonion itself. But that's not the idea of the Sinfonion anyway. See it more as a kind of master control of your entire rack getting all your stuff channed into the Sinfonion and get it a bit nicer out of it :-) Harmonised, quantised, whatever you like to call it. For details please download the Sinfonion manual, it's in English and it's written with some nice kind of humour. The manual will give you a good idea of what is possible, but actually that's just the beginning of it, what you are going to make out of it at the end might be way beyond what has been described in the manual and the Sinfonion is the tool for you that allows to do just that.

So yes, it's expensive but I have never regretted it. If I have to sell a few of my modules, the Sinfonion will be one of the last ones!

Though having said that, please do keep in mind that the Sinfonion becomes the black hole of your entire modular synthesizer! It sucks up any of the modules you have, it's very module hungry, because you need to feed it with inputs, so it can processes the sounds you provide it and then spits it out again and then it might again cry for more modules to do funny bits with the output. So you must have tons of modules (that's a bit the con of the Sinfonion) and Sinfonion will "slurp them all up" :-) Hence the reason I call the Sinfonion the black hole of my modular synth!

Have fun and kind regards, Garfield Modular.

+1 for the Sinfonion here...yeah, it's spendy as hell, but you've got to consider what it IS. Multichannel sequencing quantizer + "theory engine" ain't gonna be cheap. F'rinstance, I've got a NDLR here, which definitely covers that "theory engine" aspect, and even though it's just a little desktop box, it was an EXPENSIVE little desktop box. You get your money's worth with the Sinfonion, tbh.

I'm not sure if my old ears could tell the difference, but it may be nice to have the option.
-- farkas

I think that the VCA portion of the A-101-2 Low Pass Gate is exponential, so that ought to at least give me a sense of the flavour and provide the option if needed. Thanks for pointing me towards more info!

I'm not sure if my old ears could tell the difference, but it may be nice to have the option. Lugia could probably break down the science of it for you, but changes in volume sound unnatural with linear VCAs if I remember correctly. Here's some additional info:
https://learningmodular.com/linear-versus-exponential/

Start off with the linear VCAs, and if you decide you need exponential, that's what you'll end up buying next. The beauty of modular! :)

Have fun.

Sounds like you have a great plan, and I'm sure this system will give you many years of excellent service!
-- farkas

Cheers mate. As you pointed out, there are no exponential VCAs here; I'm hoping to get by with just linear. Based on your experience, is that feasible?

Sounds like you have a great plan, and I'm sure this system will give you many years of excellent service!
I only have a few Doepfer modules myself, so hopefully some of the other users will chime in with specific module recommendations (or warnings).

Hi wrecksmoondee. Looks like you have just about everything you'll need.
You are off to a great start here, though I wouldn't recommend buying everything at once. If you just buy a few modules at a time, that will give you the opportunity to adjust your plans on the fly to incorporate modules that may be a better fit for the type of music you want to do.
Have fun and good luck!
-- farkas

Hi farkas, thanks a bunch for your feedback.

Maybe some exponential VCAs (unless I overlooked those) and additional attenuverters, though the matrix mixer may work for inverting signals. > -- farkas

It's true, no exponential VCAs here; I'm hoping to get by with just linear, I guess. Is that feasible? If not, what should be dropped instead? There are a few polarazers there and I also have a couple some passive attenuators (basically little external patchable volume knobs) that I hope will do the trick for inverting and/or attenuating signals.

Will you be adding any external effects? -- farkas

I have a few quirky pedals that I plan to bring into the signal path: Chase Bliss MOOD, Pladask Fabrikat, Red Panda Tensor and Particle.

Also curious if you are only interested in Doepfer, or will you be researching other manufacturers too? As much as I really want that A154/A155 combo, but there are very capable sequencers in a much smaller footprint. -- farkas

Currently, I'm planning to stick with Doepfer; this for reasons both strategic and aesthetic. Strategically, I hope that sticking with Doepfer will be a buffer against getting lost in a constant search for novel modules--there's just so much out there and I would always wonder if the next thing is better for me. And I bet there's a lot to discover right here. Strategically, too, I think working with Doepfer's building blocks will provide a deep education in modular synthesis and "patch programming". Aesthetically, the look and consistency appeal to me. I reckon it's like how some folks dig going for all Serge or all Buchla or whatever.

Thanks again for your feedback!

Hi wrecksmoondee. Looks like you have just about everything you'll need. Maybe some exponential VCAs (unless I overlooked those) and additional attenuverters, though the matrix mixer may work for inverting signals. Will you be adding any external effects?Also curious if you are only interested in Doepfer, or will you be researching other manufacturers too? As much as I really want that A154/A155 combo, but there are very capable sequencers in a much smaller footprint.
You are off to a great start here, though I wouldn't recommend buying everything at once. If you just buy a few modules at a time, that will give you the opportunity to adjust your plans on the fly to incorporate modules that may be a better fit for the type of music you want to do.
Have fun and good luck!

Hi everyone,

Been searching high and low for tutorials on using the Doepfer A-171-2 VCS Slew Processor/Generator Serge clone module that came with my Doepfer A100 Basic modular system but cannot find anything on how to patch it and the manual is less than useless from Doepfer.
-- sacguy71

Hi sacguy71,

Have you gotten a handle on this module yet? Did you find any useful tutorials? How do you find yourself using it?

EDITED Jan 8th 2021, 00:26

Hi folks,
I hope some seasoned modular moguls can take a look at the system I'm designing and offer feedback. It's 15U spread across two cases (a Doepfer low cost case (9U) and low cost base (6U)) as seen in the following: (Edit: the bottom case doesn't seem to be displaying in it's most up-to-date layout; clicking the link should display the updated version)

The aim guiding the design involves: the ability to generate a broad palette of interesting "experiemental" and evolving timbres and textures; generative patches; loads of modulation; loads of flexibilty; both control and room for the unexpected; a unique, personalized instrument.

Do you reckon this 2-part system can satisfy the stated aim? Any obvious omissions or redundancies? Something I might have overlooked?

Thanks for your time,
wrecksmoondee

EDITED Jan 8th 2021, 00:05

Hey thanks sac!

I dont want to disappoint you, but I dont do videos for the time being. Maybe I change my mind on this someday...
The Hertz is really nice compared to other WT-synths I used, can recommend to buy one if there is one available. I was lucky to get one used...

best,
jingo

EDITED Jan 7th 2021, 23:21

I'll try that @mog00

@troux not sure how to get you the files, can you download from

Thanks for putting this together!

cant wait to build it...

Sounds great! Would love to see a video of you jamming on your Honda modular setup. I want one but had to choose between that and Hertz Donut MK3.

hello folks,

i jammed a bit with the piston honda... does it do some ambient/trance-like sounds?
judge for yourself :):

EDITED Jan 7th 2021, 23:16

Experimental drone using 4ms Dual Loop Delay and Noise Engineering Desmodus Versio. I used tons of modulation from Acid Rain Maestro.

Sweet, thank you @modulargrid!

Awesome! I have published it on the Facebook page. Maybe it get's some more attention.
https://www.facebook.com/ModularGrid

I have Doepfer cases and MDLR case. By far, love my 14u MDLR case. Here is why:

2 rows of 126HP for 1u tile modules: Intellijel 1u are super ace

4 rows of 126HP for larger modules that are HP pigs like Rossum and 4ms modules- I am looking at you wonderful HP piggies.

Two massive 85W power supplies- never had issue power modules even piggies like Rossum Trident and Mob of Emus. Funny the modular guy at Patchwerks I think mentioned someone had issues power Mob of Emus in a smaller case. Not me!

I bought smaller 6U case in the beginning and was a mistake! You will want the larger piggy do cool modules sooner or later and not many fit and leave room for the oh so critical support modules like matrix mixer, attenuator/attenuverters, VCAs, LFOs, sequential switch, etc.

I am now a fan of MDLR cases they fold easy and come in all sizes. Not cheap but hand made of nice wood and well engineered. They make a 9u and 12u case if you don't want to go supersize like I did. Plus knurlies fit easy. I had a hard time screwing in knurlies to Doepfer monster base case.

Yes, I think the Sinfonion is what you are looking for. I know that one of the members here uses the Sinfonion. Maybe @GarfieldModular can give you some guidance.
Have fun and good luck!

Hey guys!

I've started with modular synths about one year ago and having a lot of fun with my case so far.
Even though I've made the common mistake and didnt take enough time to think about what I am REALLY looking for.

I still have a lot to learn, but there is one thing that interests me a lot and where I still have a lot of questions.

How do you create some more complex harmonies, melodies, basslines and chords, that all harmonize together?
Are there some quantizers or sequencers that are especially useful for that?

I know that this topic is a rather complicated one but I thought maybe some of you have some helpful input for me.
I feel like that the ACL Sinfonion is covering a lot of what I'm searching for but its so damn expensive.. So when you have some specific modules in mind please tell me!

Here's one example for what I'm looking for:

Would love to create stuff like this an get lost in it..

Thank you very much in advance, love this forum/website!

Did anybody else have messages disappear from their inbox?
-- talkboxert

There is a bug that might "hide"messages when they appear on the second message page of the pagination.
As a hotfix I have extended the display of messages to 500 per page. Does that help you?

as everyone else has said - larger case

these 'beauty cases' are great for specific purposes once you know what you are doing, but as a beginner you don't have a clue, to be honest they hint at a lack of research - particularly not reading a lot of the thousands of newbie posts (here, reddit and muffwiggler for example) - because almost every single one says GET A BIGGER CASE if the OP is asking about 'beauty cases'

with regards to the case - both the mantis and the lc9 are great value for money - one thing to watch out for is that if you think you might want to get high power consumption modules (metasonic, for example, or video) in the future is that the mantis has a lot more +12v available than the lc9 - -12v are the same iirc - for most people this may not be an issue, and you can always add an extra psu if you need

the only sensible advice to take in modular, is to buy a bigger case than you think you need, buy fewer modules than you want and grow slowly = there is no need whatsoever to fill the case immediately

just get the absolute minimum (sound source, sound modifier, modulation source, way to play, way to listen)
if you have money left over then the following modules (or similar) are very useful additions - links, kinks, disting, shades, a quad cascading vca (veils perhaps) - the last one may be (should be) your way to listen from above

from a learning perspective Maths is my modulation source of choice to recommend to beginners - it's complex, but only because it has a few different sections - but the illustrated manual is an excellent modular tutorial in itself - work your way through the patches in it a few times and you will know a lot more about modular synthesis than you did before

play with that for a month or 2 and try to work out what you are missing - disting is a great help here - and then buy another module (or 2 at most) and repeat and repeat and repeat etc etc

Glad to do it and glad you all are on it!

Thank you @troux, this is pretty cool! Great job everyone!

Did anybody else have messages disappear from their inbox?

Ha, such an honor to be in this compilation!
Great job everyone and thank you @troux!

My new Winter Modular Eloquencer sequencer arrived today! A fun jam I put together

Used my new Hexinverter Mutant Drums High Hats that came as well. The Eloquencer is more immediate and easier to use to me thus far than the WMD Metron sequencer.

I started with a 0-coast as my first modular then a Doepfer A100 Basic system. Now I have a lot more. Pamela New Workout is a fantastic module and can do a lot like clock, sequencer, quantizer of notes fed into it and so forth. Larger case is my advice- I ran out of space fast and now have 14u and that is almost full already.

@lugia : checked it out, but for the same price you can get two Isolators, which would suit me better. I only have mono things in my rack, and it goes into a mixing desk which already does all the other stuff. The only "feature" I need is to stop worrying that I plug something in wrong, or forgot about some normalling somewhere, and accidentally cook the speaker coils with DC!

The closest contender is the Menu Qi Please Exist, but that's more expensive, discontinued, and only has unbalanced outputs.

Yep, the HN Isolator is one I'm constantly pointing people toward...especially if they intend to do any live work with their modular. In your own studio, you've got all the time in the world to chase down ground loops, noise, etc etc...but when you're on a gig, you don't have those luxuries. By relying on the transformer isolation in that, a HUGE percentage of the typical electronic crud issues get cancelled, and you don't waste time futzing around with trying to figure out where that annoying hum, etc is coming from. $100-ish for sonic peace of mind is well worth it!

Also, you can push the transformers a little bit and, like all BIG IRON in the audio path, you'll get a bit of a warm-up to fill out your signal. And, as noted, the venue will be very happy that you didn't pump some DC into their expensive-as-hell sound system!

the-erc: You should check out the Isolator's big bro, the OUT. Stereo ganged level over both the incoming main stereo signal AND a parallel stereo-in, which just begs for use as an extra FX return...with panning! Stereo metering, headphone preamp, more IRON and balanced TRS 1/4" outs. Actually, the ganged stereo controls make a lot of sense from a mixing standpoint; they're equivalent to your desk's Master fader, which also (usually) functions as a stereo control.

Tbh, you might find it easier to do this sort of thing in VCV Rack. The fact that quite a few name-brands in Eurorack have VCV "replicants", plus the point that it's got pretty much everything else in some way or another AND that it's local to your machine might help a bit.

I'm one of those that doesn't bother with an output module -- just be very careful with the DC! -- but if I was going to get one I'd get the Happy Nerding Isolater. It would be better if had either separate attenuators for each channel, or another channel instead of an attenuator but it's still pretty good value, both in cash and hp.

Hi Kieranjonesmusic,

There are quite a few, some examples I am myself happy with:

• Intellijel - Audio I/O, jacks input & output versus mini-jacks output & input, nice module, only con is that it doesn't have a headphones connection
• ACL - Audio Interface, XLR input & output versus mini-jacks output & input, includes mini-jack headphones connection
• Befaco - Out v3, either input or output module, includes jack headphones connection

All three modules I like to use, however the Intellijel one is the one I use most but I can't explain why because the ACL is excellent too. Only the Befaco is a bit simpler but cheaper, still using that one regularly too.

I hope this helps and kind regards, Garfield.

Edit: Removed typos.

EDITED Jan 8th 2021, 01:40

a mixer and an I/O module to go external though some of our members here do this without the I/O module, up to you, can't say haven't warned you to be careful then with DC signals ;-) I haven't even mentioned other utility modules yet, which would be the next step and only after that the more fancy looking modules (if at all).

@GarfieldModular, what would you recommend for an I/O module and other utility modules?

Thanks for all your feedback everyone!
All very helpful and insightful. Gonna look into some other case ideas, draft some new rack ideas and get back to you all. Thanks again!

Wow! Cool! Thank you, @troux!
Superb compilation!

Heyas,

thanks a lot for the postive feedback, I really wish that I will have more time this year for some exploration of the endless journeys our "obsession" has to offer :)!

Also curious to listen to your latest stuff!!

Best,
jingo

EDITED Jan 6th 2021, 20:32

thanks @troux, just started listening :)

Thank you farkas !
Well I'm not the manufacturer, and it's a PCB + panel kit.
Maybe I will add the module as other/unknown.
It is not constructed yet.

Have a nice day

All praise to the forums @farkas, and you get a special kudos for helping me build my first rack without which we might not be doing this today.

Awesome! Thanks so much for curating this @troux.
Just purchased.

Very happy to @the-erc, thanks for being on it!

@troux -- you are a star! Thank you so much for making this happen!

Check it out here: https://communitymodularelectronic.bandcamp.com/album/best-of-modular-grid-2020-cme-018

Please check it out if you're on it and let me know if there's any issues with your tune, link, or name (or anything else). I'm psyched we put this together and it totals up to about 2 hours of sick music, starting groovy, getting spacey, and then returning to some energetic vibes. @mog00 and @mowse, I didn't get copies of your files, but if you can send them over I can look at slotting them in, and if I missed anyone else let me know too. Other than that, share far and wide so we can get some listeners on this thing!

Thanks again to everyone for contributing, and I'm already looking forward to doing this again next year 🕺