All Posts

A more ambient piece with tulips. Basic patch details in the video description.

Cheers :)
The joystick is the https://www.modulargrid.net/e/transient-modules-7j
Underneath that are the DNI pro Dot and the Roaux LL8 and ep that is mostl for the percussion, though I have the Roland TR-09 playing too which is behind the rack along with a mixer.

Thanks a lot for all your comments :)!

And yes, XAOC becomes a 2nd ES to me. They just deliver! :)

I have the Greyscale one. Could buy it from me. (Based in Holland)
-- Pmwmartens

That would be amazing, will drop you a PM.

I have the Greyscale one. Could buy it from me. (Based in Holland)

Does anyone know of a decent battery I can get in the UK so I can take my Palette out and about?

This is my current build:

Power Consumption: 553 mA +12V | 211 mA -12V

EDITED Jun 7th 2021, 19:18

Trying to get a silver Disting MK4 alternative panel but the Greyscale one isn’t being made anymore and I can’t find one anywhere.

Anyone know of any other options I have to get a silver panel? (based in UK)

@toodee yeah it works well. Sometimes I will feed another VCO like the Doepfer basic VCO into Rings then modulate with Marbles. Mimeophon rocks so fun.

Rings into Marbles ? Now, that's adventurous but at least it differs from the old Rings-To-Clouds everyone started sharing years ago which was getting a bit old

A new track with my Cocoquantus processing an Electro Faustus Black Fly and a kalimba, with overdubbed hollow body git box and electric bass, and then the Monday track with the sax added.

Cheers!

Rings into Marbles and use Mimeophon for great results.

I'm bumping this thread so I don't create a new one.

Would that make sense? Or should I go 9U? I think I already know everyone's answer on this one but still...

yes it's a vca matrix mixer - similar to 4ms vcam but a lot smaller and without attenuaton or mutes, but you do get 4 inputs/4 outputs and 16 vcas to mix them together with - feed envelopes, lfos etc into these

See, my philosophy is that Eurorack is too darn expensive to do things with it I can do with other cheaper devices, not to mention it's also a bit space intensive. When I was making only "regular" techno with a sound similar to the bands you mention, I was basically just using a couple of good samplers (octatrack + MPC or Digitakt) along with a couple of good synths (varies with taste, I'm a sucker for the Elektron workflow so in my case, that was Analog Four and Digitone). The only reason I went to modular was because I wanted to make weirder music which needed very specific tools: in my case, complex oscillators with wavefolder which Arturia's Pigment and Serum sort of got on my radar, crazy wavetable VCO's and filters I can touch as opposed to VST's, ways to have extensive control over complex modulation, and a hands-on modulation "controller" which I built with things like Intellijel's Tetrapad and Malekko's Voltage Block.

So what do YOU need ? Well, assuming you picked those Mutable Instruments modules because you like the sound of it, the first thing that comes to mind is not modular but the Elektron Digitone. It essentially gives you 4 tracks - more than what you have above - for a fraction of the price. It sounds beautiful, the design is really clever so what appears as a small object is actually quite capable, for me it's the king of the "inexpensive" digital synths. You also have the ability to go poly with it, you gain a powerful step sequencer and it's MIDI like your other devices.

I think you considering that option and then telling me why the DN is not (or maybe it is) a good option for you would help design a modular system that fits your needs, right now I have too little information to determine what those are...

And looking at what you built, the most obvious omissions in my opinion are
-at least one additional modulation source, for me it would be Voltage Block or maybe Marbles
-ways to combine modulation like Links/Kinks and/or a matrix mixer and Maths
-probably a proper EG like Quadrax to free up Stages
-a good analog filter

Thanks for the replies, a bigger case will be in the future. I found a blackhole 7U sixty used and it was too cute.
The more I look at it, the more I think I should do the silly thing and add another o_C running hemispheres. It would be more flexible and take up less space than anything else. the vector EG is exactly how i'd use the zadar.

Can you tell me more about the mixer?

Thanks for the feedback, @wishbonebrewery :)

Great little sequencer the DOT, pairs well with a Robaux LL8, I like that the DOT lets you program ratchets and you can control Euclidean sequences with CV for a constantly moving set of rhythm. Programming it can be a little boring but its great for little fills and background percussion, I also use one channel as an Accent pattern on the Patching Panda Hatz.

If I was going to give a negative about the DOT it would be that the Trigger outputs could be a bit stronger, and the Channel mutes should come up first on the Long Press Encoder knob.
-- wishbonebrewery

Thanks for your input, appreciate it.
Coincidentally someone contacted me regarding a diy clone module, oh excuse, ‘based’ on the Dot. I’m curious to find out what the difference is. Just might adress your issues.

EDITED Jun 7th 2021, 17:42

delays, reverbs and lo-fi tape effects are often what I go to for when I try to make ambient ish music

exact modules are down to individual taste but I like Magneto, disting and fx aid xl for a lot of these effects as well as moogerfoogers etc

plus a lot of modulation - run through a lot of utilities

EDITED Jun 7th 2021, 10:09

The modules in my rack I use the most when making ambient-related stuff:

• XAOC Zadar
• Intellijel Quadrax
• Make Noise Mimeophon
• Make Noise Morphagene
• Ornaments & Crime
• Squard Hermod
• Mutable Instruments Marbles

I'd agree with this

If you only ever played a piano and try to pick up the guitar or trombone or whatever, there is a learning curve - and productivity will take a nose dive until at least a certain level of skill has been attained

the same with modular - it's like just like learning a new instrument - except this one is often constantly evolving

Hi Matteo. I am a big fan of the Make Noise QPAS filter. It has a lot of potential for stereo ambient explorations. The 4ms Dual Looping Delay (DLD) is a lot of fun too.
Have fun and good luck.

Thanks

I record all my Stuff with the 4ms WAV Recorder. Works perfect.

I have been exploring this module on VCVRack.. It's really great!!! But one thing that confuses me about the hardware version that puzzles me: Why are there so few VC inputs? This combination of delay/overdrive/flanger effect is just Crying for modulation. Is there a similar Eric module with m0re inputs?

EDITED Jun 7th 2021, 07:56

Hi,

I am looking for an hardware solution to record my modulars.

I am tempted to buy a 4ms WAV recorder. I've read quite a good amount of reviews and it does what i need.

Anyway, i've also come across a few articles/reviews which suggests the ZOOM (h series) to record modulars. At the same price of the 4ms, you can have the zoom 5h (or even 6h second hand).

Any of you is recording modular with hardware device? If yes, any suggestions?

thanks
Ciao

Hi,

Have been searching the forum for this topic but no real luck, hence the question, what are your favorite modules for ambient music?
I personally think that a bunch of modules from MI works great, those are, Elements, Rings, Clouds and Beads.

If you are into ambient, what are the modules you like more to produce it?

thanks
Ciao,
Matteo

Thank you again! Nice to hear you liked it, and by the way every sunday I will release a new video, hope you'll enjoy.
Next time I will fill the cup of coffee haha
Have a nice day

For that size, probably the ES-8 would make the most sense...IF you opted to go with a module as a solution. However, CV Tools and so forth can ALSO use any DC-coupled audio interface to do the same thing. Not only is this way cheaper, it's also just as expandable since you can chain up more I/O via the ADAT Lightpipe interface. I currently use a MOTU 828 mkii for this, works just great. But here's the real point: you can get these older "obsolete" interfaces for dirt-cheap. Right now, the original 828s go for around $75 on Reverb, with the mkii coming in only a bit higher, and either are just fine for this purpose. So if you felt you needed 16 channels of CV/gate/trig/clock send, you can get there this way for $300 LESS than the ES-8...and also wind up with more outputs than the ES-9!

Looking for some feedback on the Expert Sleepers ES-8 vs. ES-9

My 'hybrid' setup will only ever be as big as the RackBrute 6U...I know, thats what everyone always says when they get into modular :) I have Ableton Live 11 Suite and want to make use of CV Tools to integrate my modular setup with Ableton and I've heard the Expert Sleepers module(s) are a must have for this. I'm just wondering what I would be missing if I went with just the ES-8 vs ES-9...Since the RackBrute 6U is as big as I'll ever get, I obviously want to conserve space for adding cool modules so am looking at the ES-8 for that reason alone, but wondering if I'd be missing out on any thing big if I didn't go ES-9.

One other item of note regarding my setup...I also have a Hydrasynth desktop which I've already been playing around with using the first module in my RackBrute (the Make Noise Maths)...so ES-8 vs ES-9 with that in mind also comes into play. I currently have a Focusrite 8i6 audio interface, Push2 and LaunchKey49

Thanks for any suggestions/feedback!

• Productivity: a Modular is by far the least productive thing you want to use if you want to make music. You tend to get entangled while finding a sound or simply by patching. You may end up with something interesting, but it possibly is not what you wanted or needed for the composition you had in mind (if you had one).
  -- suomynona

Actually, this only seems to be a problem with people starting off in modular, while they still have more of a sense of exploration...which, frankly, is good. Modular synths allow for lots of that. But I wouldn't call any of this exploratory effort unproductive...rather, it's just the electronic equivalent of figuring out what all of the keys on a sax can allow you to play. But after several years of living with modular synth gear, it's actually QUITE easy to patch up what you need once you've got the instrument(s) sorted out...and exploration is the key to getting there.

Hi Sacguy71,

Thank you! :-)

Yes for this kind of crazy things as well as for other stuff this Vector is just superb! It ain't cheap but it provides a lot of pleasure. Kind regards, Garfield.

Hi Wishbonebrewery,

Oh yes! A bonus track, an extended version! You made my day :-) Nice video by the way, good quality and it's nice to see you at work. Nice to watch you handling the Planar joystick module. What's that module under the Planar? Looks interesting, are you enabling and disabling percussion voices with that?

I hope to see more videos/jams from you in this style :-) Thank you very much for investing in a camera and kind regards, Garfield.

Hi Shanewave,

Oh lovely, a second video and jam from you :-) Nice, slowly building track indeed. Calm as ever, yet very intriguing!

This Sunday, the end of my weekend is getting better and better, thanks to you! Kind regards, Garfield.

P.S.: One pretty "disappointing thing" I noticed... your cup of coffee (or hot chocolate or whatever it was) looks quite empty, it requires a refill! ;-)

Hi Mowse and Toodee,

Mowse: A lovely track from you again, really nice to listen at. A great way to "close" the weekend.

Thanks a lot for sharing this and for providing a grand finale of the weekend ;-) Kind regards, Garfield.

Toodee: Indeed, now you mention it, certainly in the beginning I recognise a few elements here and there from On The Run :-)

Kind regards, Garfield.

Yes, and I suggest u the QX expander to ampliate the links to other modules and also the possibility of concatenate 4 lfo of quadrax in different ways.

Thank you everyone! I will review more options and hopefully visit a dealer to try some things out :)

OK, I bought the OBS Camera app and installed OBS..... Live tweaking!

Great little sequencer the DOT, pairs well with a Robaux LL8, I like that the DOT lets you program ratchets and you can control Euclidean sequences with CV for a constantly moving set of rhythm. Programming it can be a little boring but its great for little fills and background percussion, I also use one channel as an Accent pattern on the Patching Panda Hatz.

If I was going to give a negative about the DOT it would be that the Trigger outputs could be a bit stronger, and the Channel mutes should come up first on the Long Press Encoder knob.

EDITED Jun 6th 2021, 16:46

Hello, here's my second video with a more organic sound through beads this time, with the nice melodies from marbles again!
Thank you for listening !

It is one of the very few dedicated compact modules with which you can CV shift the patterns, what I found really interesting as I want something non-chaotic shifting which can be easily reset top the default value. I have a uGrids, but we don't get along; I can't shift and I want the visual feedback, but I do like the compact size.

Thanks so much !! I just buy a VCA Mutable. I forgot it. My music is similar to Fjaak or some times like as Boys be kko.

Anyway my setup is the next
Modular rack (singular sounds)
Cobalt8 (atmospheres)
Tb03
Mpc1 (sequencer and drums)
Mixer Blue Box (with reverb and delay)
Pedal Elipson dreadbox

:) what do you think ? In general I prefer more minimal sounds. Jjj
This is my first approach

Pretty cool, it reminded me of Pink Floyd's On The Run but with a softer, more gentle timbre, thanks for sharing

Great advice from Jim here, and note he also included NaN, the expander for Zadar which I think is a must-have, especially for ambient types of music that will greatly benefit from the additional CV input per channel and the ability to trigger the shapes manually.
I also think that for a build where space is limited, the FX Aid is an instant win, absolutely gorgeous sounding algos and again, I think Jim's choice of the XL version is a good one for your type of music, the additional CV input and the CV over sample rate is pretty useful.
Something else to consider in such a small build: do you really need that buffered mult ? If you remove it, you'd have space for an Erica Pico module, for example, and you could use inline mults instead...
And also another vote for Jim's advice on a bigger rack, if you can afford it of course, if you don't mind the small-sized modules a 7U 104HP would get you far ;)
Actually I could've just written "Jim was right" and called it a day

I bought one recently and have no regrets, the CV matrix is a really clever design and once you have remembered all the button combinations, this module offers a lot of power in relatively few HP. Oh, and the link modes are also very very useful for creating complex yet controllable modulation. I initially thought it was a bit on the expensive side but it's actually great value for the money imho...
Another win for the robots :-)

Hi Diego,

What type of music do you make ? What do you hope this rack will achieve ? I see some shortcomings but I wouldn't want to advise on anything before knowing what you want this build to be...

Let us know more about what you want to do with modular and maybe we can help ;)

Diego (yeah, me too)

I doubt there's that many people with them - it's doesn't appear to be in the top 100 sequencers by popularity on here

I think it's more important that the sequencer fits in your workflow and that you enjoy using it than what a few videos show

only you can really decide if it's a keeper

zadar is great, but watch out about the enocders - especially if you are buying used and are the type of synth user that constantly wiggles - I'm not so much and I just bought a new one - so fingers crossed

fx aid xl is a great and versatile fx unit in 6 hp

I would probably want something like this https://www.modulargrid.net/e/rebel-technology-mix-04

which basically gives you

and after that there will be the search for the next case - hint go bigger, much bigger

Though I have followed several videos of this module, I’m still in doubt if it’s a keeper.

EDITED Jun 6th 2021, 14:08

Hi Folks,
This is my first modular setup and I could use some suggestions. My goal for this is an ambient music machine. I think I need a solid function generator and I'm leaning toward a Zadar because it will throw all kinds of shapes by trigger giving me easy note shaping. I also need some effects, but I'm completely lost there. It would be nice to have something that plays with samples like the morphagene, but that's a pretty intimidating unit, and I'm running out of space.

EDITED Jun 6th 2021, 10:45