did you have any direction in mind? more voices, signal processing, upping your modulation game
what sort of music are you making - and what do you want to make - this often helps in module suggestions!
how much rack space do you have available???
what do you find yourself using the disting for mostly - 1st thing would be to get a dedicated module to cover that use of disting so you can use your disting for something else!
and remember - you can never have too many vcas - so a quad cascading one is a good investment
"some of the best base-level info to remember can be found in Jim's sigfile" @Lugia
Utility modules are the dull polish that makes the shiny modules actually shine!!!
You are so right about the rack but there is just something so aesthetically appealing about having it in the same wood etc and attaching to the brute nicely etc.
I am wanting a fun mini modular setup hence the 3u.
I completely understand the want for a rackbrute, given the minibrute and the ability to connect them - but seriously consider the 6u instead of the 3u - it's quite a lot cheaper per hp - and you will almost definitely need the hp - 6u is still quite a small modular - fill the gaps with blind panels - you can make them from cereal boxes if you don't want to spend money on metal ones - plus it folds together and fits the carry case better
I play many acoustic instruments in my music with real drums, guitars, bass guitar and a Rhodes piano. I love working with samples too and have always used an MPC for doing that. I am far more ProTools than Ableton 😄
I don't get on with Ableton either - used to use ProTools but moving to logic
I am not looking to become an out and out electronic music producer so to speak and have a clear-ish scope of what sound spectrums I am looking for from my synth. I have not gone gate heavy in my modules as these seem more for drums etc. - i might be waaay off here though.
gates trigger and keep open envelopes, envelopes open vcas, vcas let signals through when open - they're kind of useful!
The brute does a great job for what I want but hope that with just a few more modules I could add a bit more depth, texture, polish and complexity to the sound.
I 'just wanted a few modules' a few years ago - I now have a 100+ module synthesizer that outputs both audio and video which was never my intention and neither was synth or case diy (most of my cases and half the modules are diy) - it just creeps up on you!
"some of the best base-level info to remember can be found in Jim's sigfile" @Lugia
Utility modules are the dull polish that makes the shiny modules actually shine!!!
well that was quick ! - this was started before your reply to my last post - I'll reply to that separately....
ok so some great modules in there - again - bigger case recommended - as I suspected not a lot of utility - think plumbing! they are 'essential' for extending modulation - mixing, modifying and multiplying - really really important for the enjoyment of modular - almost as important as ergonomics!
rack wart - i hate these with a passion - especially these arturia ones - needless, overly big module with overly big branding if you ask me
plaits - fine - it's a good module - very flexible
mimeophone - it's huge - and not really enough modulation/utilities to support it fully I would suspect
polaris - it's a filter - I'd hold off on this one longer as plaits doesn't really need a filter
I'd want more vcas - they are incredibly useful for modulation as well as audio and plaits has a built in vca/lpg so you don't really need one for that - use another 4hp (in your bigger case) and get a veils! almost the same price but twice the vcas! veils will also double as an input module for external instruments - as it has up to 20db gain available - most vcas are effectively voltage controlled attenuators, not amplifiers - despite the name!
links is great - but I'm not convinced that you need a buffered mult at this stage and the mixers are very simple (ie no control)
distortion - hmm - I'd be more tempted to get a pedal interface and use a pedal - especially if you are determined to stay with the tiny case - and if you already have pedals - AISynthesis do a reasonably priced one in 2hp and it's even cheaper if you can diy!
Maths - brilliant module, a bit too big for a 3u, but buy this first - work your way through the illustrated manual - 32 patches for patch programming - the best modular primer there is, imo
Wobblebug - it's a great module but it's too big for this case - there are many many random sources - find something smaller
are you using an external mixer?
"some of the best base-level info to remember can be found in Jim's sigfile" @Lugia
Utility modules are the dull polish that makes the shiny modules actually shine!!!
Thanks for this Jim,
You are so right about the rack but there is just something so aesthetically appealing about having it in the same wood etc and attaching to the brute nicely etc.
I am wanting a fun mini modular setup hence the 3u.
I play many acoustic instruments in my music with real drums, guitars, bass guitar and a Rhodes piano. I love working with samples too and have always used an MPC for doing that. I am far more ProTools than Ableton 😄
I fancied using some rhythmic modulated synth parts to do the job where I would have usually used a rhythm guitar part. This is why I bought the brute 2S and it makes a cool job of that, especially with the metaliser and brute factor.
I am not looking to become an out and out electronic music producer so to speak and have a clear-ish scope of what sound spectrums I am looking for from my synth. I have not gone gate heavy in my modules as these seem more for drums etc. - i might be waaay off here though.
The brute does a great job for what I want but hope that with just a few more modules I could add a bit more depth, texture, polish and complexity to the sound.
My plan is now to get a Rackbrute 3U as my next steps and am thinking about what modules to pair with the minibrute.
No - see below
My plan is to spend around £300 per month to get one or two new modules every month give me time to get the hang of what they do and how to use them as well as still pay the rent!
sounds like a sensible plan!
Having done some research I have filled the 3U with the modules in the order that I plan to buy them (this is not the order that I plan to place them in the end)
I know that I could obviously get more in a 6U rack but think that there is a creative plus (and financial one too) to limiting what you have in some ways and this is only one part of my music making set up.
What do you guys think?
Would you suggest a different oscillator or filter to contrast the Brute 2?
will wait and comment when you've posted the link
re case: look at the total cost of ownership - price/hp - the 3u is way more expensive than the 6u and you will run out of space in the 3u very very quickly - personally I would get a mantis - way better value for money than the rackbrute - and no rack wart - but each to their own! - I'd recommend getting a jar (or dedicated savings account) and putting the rack rent* for each module you buy in it - by the time the current case is full the next case is paid for!
*rack rent = hp of module * (cost of case/(hp of case - hp of rack wart))
Do I have too much modulation and not enough sound source or vice versa?
almost definitely not enough utility modules
"some of the best base-level info to remember can be found in Jim's sigfile" @Lugia
Utility modules are the dull polish that makes the shiny modules actually shine!!!
I am taking the first nervous steps into Modular.
I got a Minibrute 2S as my gateway drug and am loving it.
My plan is now to get a Rackbrute 3U as my next steps and am thinking about what modules to pair with the minibrute.
My first priority is fun over functionality so modules like the Disting Mk4 and Pico DSP may be more practical choices but do not seem as fun to use as some other options.
My plan is to spend around £300 per month to get one or two new modules every month give me time to get the hang of what they do and how to use them as well as still pay the rent!
Having done some research I have filled the 3U with the modules in the order that I plan to buy them (this is not the order that I plan to place them in the end)
I know that I could obviously get more in a 6U rack but think that there is a creative plus (and financial one too) to limiting what you have in some ways and this is only one part of my music making set up.
What do you guys think?
Would you suggest a different oscillator or filter to contrast the Brute 2?
Do I have too much modulation and not enough sound source or vice versa?
@GarfieldModular wow, thank you so much for such a feedback!
It's incredibly interesting to read such stories! It is especially gratifying that these memories were inspired by my music.
I was in Budapest 2 years ago, just before the pandemic started. And I was lucky enough to get into St. Stephen's Basilica and hear the organ playing there on exceptional holidays. Somewhere I had a video filmed with a phone where this organ is heard. I'll search and add here if I find it.
I hope that after the end of the pandemic, I too will be able to make a little trip to Italy, France and Spain, which I planned before.
Thank you very much again for your feedback.
I'm hoping to get some suggestions to start really expanding on this rig - any suggestions of pieces you think would be worth researching? I also have the Disting MK4.
Awesome, great feedback, and definitely the kinds of things it would have taken me a while to realize. As for the 2nd rack, yeah... I knew it was an ambitious goal. I later found an isolated Prodigy oscillator clone, and really the point of that rack was to have a variety of oscillators and filters that would allow me to mix and match the Moog, Roland, Sequential and Korg analog mono sounds as a basis, then extend from there. It's a pie in the sky anyway, since I don't have $3500 sitting around to actually build it at the moment.
For parallel effects processing, I use a 1-in / 8-out stereo Distribution Amp made by Studio Technologies, then I mix the effects returns via a Rane SM26B. By doing this, I can take a stereo FX feed, divide it without loss across up to eight different rack processors, then I can submix it all back down to another stereo pair for the return via the Rane. Those Rane SM26 units are getting a bit spendy as of late, but they're still a bargain...and there's all sorts of Distro Amps out there, although I would try and find one that's specifically for audio instead of the ubiquitous A/V distros that're out there for cheap (because, as a rule, they ARE cheap consumer-grade junk). But this would let you get away with a pair of send/return modules as being the only thing needed in your build, letting the Distro and the submixer handle the real voodoo!
Let's see if I can post this without erasing it this time...
OK, reworked the Boland entirely, mainly to get this closer to the actual 100M architecture.
I changed the MIDI interface for sizing reasons while keeping much of the necessary functions. The power was switched to a 4ms Row 40, which NOW gives you twice the current capacity than the modules, plus I trust 4ms's power circuits more than Uli's. This lets your P/S loaf along, generating less heat and experiencing less strain overall...which you want. Other than those, the only other non-B. module left is the Clouds clone; I chucked the Distings and the 'scope so that you could have a second pair of VCOs for even better doubling/detuning results. Plus, I added the CV mixer/portamento module to the bottom row, which should let you make better use of your modulation sources. I did toss the multiples, though, as this is just too small a build for having a dedicated mult (especially NOT one that takes up 16 hp!) and it would make more sense to use inline mults, plus this allowed the CV mixer. The only thing I regret here is that I didn't have space for the phase shifter/delay module, but those are functions you can add outboard.
As for the second rack...it really strikes me as more of a hodgepodge, really, and I don't think it'll work out all that well. For one thing, the Prodigy voice takes up loads of space for what it does. And at $3400 and change for the second rack...if you're trying for that Moog sound, consider a Subsequent 37 instead. For one thing, it's less than half the cost of the rack, and you're 100% in the Moog sound "pocket" with it. Also, the Sub37 has plenty of other tricks up its sleeve, such as a step sequencer and an arpeggiator. And the cherry on the cake: since it's duophonic, you can (in theory) use it to control itself AND the Boland rack, depending on how you opt to set it all up. Better still, if you can find a Sub37 CV used on Reverb, eBay, etc, that would up your connectivity between it and the Boland rack while STILL coming in below the original cost!
Actually, I see a problem here...first up, that Erica mixer in the top row seems like it does too much and is too big for a source submixer. Also, it has a compressor onboard...but you ALSO have a compressor module in the bottom row, and that can get dicey when trying to set up levels in a modular. And you're eventually heading for a stereo image by the time you're hitting your output stage.
Do this instead: pull the Erica. Replace it with Doepfer's Mini Stereo mixer, then add a second stereo mixer for the drums in the middle row. Once that's done, the FIRST mixer should feed VCAs #1 and 2 in the Veils, and the SECOND should feed #3 and 4. After that, then patch the individual VCAs from the Veils to the two stereo inputs on the MakeNoise crossfader, optionally using the FX Aid XL for the 1/2 feed and the little FX Aid for the 3/4. This way, you're in stereo once you get past the sources, with VCA level control all the way to your output via the Veils' VCAs.
Wow indeed! This is indeed very beautiful. I am almost speechless that kind of good :-) When I started to listen at your music for no particular reason (I guess) I started to think back to my childhood.
I must have missed that great organ in Budapest when I was there back in the 1990's. Next time I will come to Budapest I try to check it out :-)
That reminds me of a small travel to Italy (several years ago now), alone by car, just a couple of days and I love to just drive around on small streets somewhere in the mountains of the Northern Italy towards the west coast when I made somewhere in a rather small town a little break and just walked around in that little town. Till I passed by a little church where I heard organ music, I almost continued my stroll when I, luckily, made a U-turn back to that church "to check it out". There was nobody in the church, only the woman who was playing the organ. In the beginning I don't think she was aware that I quietly slipped into the church and sat there listening at her playing the church organ, though a small church it had a relatively large organ with those large pipes. Beautiful to look at, somewhere deep in the mountains/hills, very peaceful and beautiful to listen at the organ being played.
It are those moments that will stay with you forever. Your music track here belongs definitely to this category that will stick. Seriously beautifully done, thank you very much for sharing this with us and kind regards, Garfield; wishing I was driving around in Northern Italy again :-)
For review reports of Eurorack modules, please refer to https://garfieldmodular.net/ for PDF formatted downloads
Wow! This is certainly moving you into hyper space at warp speed, no doubt at all! :-) Lovely jam this is and nice long (could still be longer for me though).
Nice work here and thank you so much for sharing this, kind regards, Garfield.
For review reports of Eurorack modules, please refer to https://garfieldmodular.net/ for PDF formatted downloads
Few hours downtime of this fantastic website? Wow, I don't know if I will survive that, I think I better have this checked with my doctor to see if my heart can take this. Imagine a few hours less hyper space travelling possible in my life...
;-)
Good luck with the migration from the old to the new server, hopefully no issues when you move the database! Kind regards, Garfield.
For review reports of Eurorack modules, please refer to https://garfieldmodular.net/ for PDF formatted downloads
Hello!
Im coming from the world of not modular and transitionning to semi-modular.
Im already planning on going almost full modular, but effect pedals are a huge part of my sound.
I was wondering how to deal with aux sends with modular.
Do I need a regular mixer for routing?
How do you deal with this?
Hi All - I'm a noob to modular, and trying to wrap my head around some basic builds. Here are the 2 I'd love a few other experienced eyes on, to see if I'm missing anything obvious or doing something stupid.
My overall setup is tons of hardware and software, a variety of semi-modulars (MS20, Boog, Dark Energy mk1), and controllers MPC One and Beatstep Pro.
First build is a simple Boland Sys100:
Second build was a first attempt at trying to approach U-he's Diva in a modular, but with a Prodigy voice and a few twists:
matrix mixer, sequential switch, kinks, logic and quite frankly all the other ones, it really depends on you
have a look at a few different types and try and work out how you would use them - particularly for modulation purposes (sa you mention that) - extending what you already have in more interesting ways than 'just getting another eg/lfo' by mixing, modifying, multing and switching
my other suggestion would be to spend the money on the next case - then you really won't care about the fact you only have 14 hp left
"some of the best base-level info to remember can be found in Jim's sigfile" @Lugia
Utility modules are the dull polish that makes the shiny modules actually shine!!!
Hi all!
My new video is the generative polyphonic composition, inspired by memories of the organ at the St. Stephen's Basilica in Budapest. Also, I tried to do something interesting with a Neutron that I borrowed from my friend.
This simple patch is built on sequences of Behringer Neutron and Make Noise Telharmonic with light modulations of Mutable Instruments Plaits. All fx from Happy Nerding Fx Aid XL.
Better to listen with headphones. More explanations on YouTube.
...for trying to find a bridge between the current Intellijel vs Pulplogic tile mess! EVERYONE making tile modules needs to have a look at what they're doing here!
And I'll also point out: if XODES can come up with a full series of drum tiles, this could go some distance to fixing the "drums don't work with modular" issue. You could easily devote a tile row to this, along with the requisite mixers, etc, and this keeps these types of modules OUT of the 3U rows, meaning that you'd have the space for the intensive sequencing needed AND space for the rest of the build as well.
-- Lugia
Thanks! (I never really thought about checking the forum...)
This idea actually came from... laziness, as I didn't want to deal with 2 front panels for the same product. It looks to me like most people adopting 1U in IJ format are not that into black panels (despite the black cases...), while some true PL fanatics seem to kind of dislike anything that is not expressively made for them. I guess it will never be possible to make everybody happy.
Prototypes for the full 808 set have already been (hand) assembled a couple of years ago actually (all archived now, there might still be some references about these on the internet I guess), yet planning production for 10 different modules at once is another story, and will involve big $ and may need quite some time.
Normally, I'd not give this a second thought...but, oh, lookit what we have here: an eBay banner that's modular-centric! This is effing brilliant and, depending on ones' credit line, potentially irresponsible...but what the hey! Makes $$ for MG, AND entices us with shiny toys. Sounds like a WIN!
I like giving myself obstructions and believed I could achieve what I want in 3u/104hp as I'm using a set up that involves additional components, eventually I'd like to only use my laptop to record into the DAW. But you're probably right on one or both accounts, replace Maths, fill that space with a proper envelope generator and get a bigger rack.
-- Excommunicate
I definitely understand the concept behind "deliberate limitation", but I think you'll find that the obstructions that will result in this circumstance are NOT helpful. For example, you mention wanting to record directly...and this IS possible with some of Expert Sleepers' modules, but the space limitation eliminates them from potential choices here.
Also, when I was talking about "replacing" Maths, I was referring to replacing it as a source for envelopes. Maths is STILL one of the cornerstone modulation sources in Eurorack, even with its 20 hp size. But what makes it amazing for modulation involves using it for quite a bit more than JUST envelope generation. Plus, you can tandem Maths with a lot of things, including other EGs; one neat combo that comes to mind is using it with an Intellijel Quadrax + the Qx expander. Loads of abuse potential there...
Actually, I'll peg the problem here as being a too-small cab. One rule of thumb to always follow when working out builds on MG is that you always want to start with a cab that seems too large for your purposes. Most of the time, once you start dropping modules in, you'll discover that it WASN'T too large in the first place! Plus, if this is intended as a live performance device, you DON'T want teensy little modules as those will only result in trouble when gigging. Lots of potential to grab the wrong knobs, etc. The Intellijel idea seems right...but consider a 7U 104 from them instead.
Pittsburgh Modular also made a stomp-centric cab quite some time back, incorporating footswitches that could be added into your patch, etc. However, it's been quite some time since they were available new...but some poking around in the usual used device places could turn one up with a bit of diligence.
As for why it was discontinued...well, lots of itsy-bitsy knobs and jacks and wires + FEET. The problems for the avg. guitarist would be huge, especially onstage. Very much something for studio use only!
If you have a Unicorn account (WORTH IT!), you can do something along the lines of creating a large-scale "composite" build that encompasses all of your cabs. The Unicorn account breaks you out of the 4 row lock that the free account has, and by setting up various tile rows filled with blanks, and blanks to demarcate the different rack sizes, you can set up a pretty good approximation of what you're describing. And you can also save the modules you have to your "favorites" list so that they'll be on hand when needed.
I also looked at the summit, I just want a desktop poly don’t have space for the full keyboard, I am looking for modular modules to create that deep house fm bass you know it when you hear it. I can create a solid fm bass in software synths but want to create that in modular. Anyone into sound design that can point me at the best modules to recreate this sound I would appreciate the guidance.
You are welcome and if everybody in his/her way contributes to (modular) synthesizers one way or another then we all benefit of that somehow.
Regarding the Waldorf Eurorack modules in general, I just read an article about it that Waldorf seem to have stopped producing these modules, so if you consider one, you should hurry before it's getting sold out.
I wish you lots of modular fun and kind regards, Garfield.
For review reports of Eurorack modules, please refer to https://garfieldmodular.net/ for PDF formatted downloads
To be honest with you... the video is pretty scary :-( Your music makes the tension heavier and from a "dark" point of view it certainly fits well to the video :-)
Music as well as the video are impressive from an art point of view, though I am glad those times are over...
Thank you very much for sharing this (it might set people to think, again...) and kind regards, Garfield.
For review reports of Eurorack modules, please refer to https://garfieldmodular.net/ for PDF formatted downloads
