@jasper_t I saw the name check accidentally (try @ before the name and notifications kick in)

guidelines/rules of thumb - if they work for you great - but whatever may work for you!!! :-D

I'm sure there's a lot of people out there with modulars that are made up of a bunch of vcos and filters and a mixer - everything controlled by hand - and they're probably happy wiht it - but in general this

sound sources < sound modifiers < modulation sources < utilities

will give most newbies a better modular experience - the point of it is to try to stop people thinking that they need a lot of voices to create interesting music with a modular - you don't!

start with a vco, mult it a few times and process differently - different filters, frequency shifters, etc through different vcas and modulated differently will produce more interesting tones overall than a lot of sound sources with some sound modifiers, little in the way of modulation and almost no utility modules - which are in my opinion the most important modules you can get as they mult, modify and merge the really important stuff (CV) that makes the shiny expensive modules (vcos, filters, effects etc) actually shine and not tarnish after a short time

which is what newbies generally come up with unless they have spent a lot of time (and I mean a lot of time - months/years not minutes) researching and thinking about the subject

bu there are utilities and there are utilities - I don't see much point in format jumbler modules, that I see in your rack - just buy the correct cable!!!

if outside North America or Japan - chances are you don't need an output module - but if you are in those territories then you probably do!

isn't the rompler a voice too ?- I would consider it such!!! so 5 not 4!!

as for the modules that you are looking at -

MISO - yeah or shades or a host of other modules that do effectively the same thing - they are all good!

Doepfer Matrix mixer - again brilliant choice - but in this size modular you may find you want something smaller - you already have a lot of big modules - but if ergonomics are important to you this is the one to get!!!

Verbos Random Sampling - no idea - it looks great, but I think I'd rather have the functionality parted out over different 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!!!

sound sources < sound modifiers < modulation sources < utilities