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Don't forget a https://www.modulargrid.net/e/2hp-mult-love-panel

it's the patch cables - I think people associate analog and patch cables to some extent

Sieht Anna das nicht?

I love the Erica stuff, but I would probably lean towards the Quadrax for an EG/LFO module as you are starting out. It has four separate EGs with CV control over programmable parameters.
If I remember correctly, the Erica EG is only a single ADSR envelope.
Have fun and good luck!

Seeing as how I'm in love with the Basimilus Iteritas Alter, I just had to have it in my rack. So I revised what I'm after and tried to make smart useful choices.

I have a Moog 104hp skiff, and that's not very much room, however, I knew that I wanted something not too overwhelming, and something that wasn't going to take up much room on my desk. I felt that if I got a powered Mantis case, I would be overwhelmed with the question, "How the hell am I gonna fill this thing up?" I felt better knowing I could come back to that question at a later date after I've had some practice with the simple basics, not to mention I was just trying to be cheap(ish).

That raises the real question; Just what am I after in my rack?
I come from making and listening to progressive house, trance, industrial, idm, just all sorts of electronic music. So I knew I wanted variety. I knew I wanted something to engineer my own kick drums piece by piece. I wanted to make some melodic plucky moog-ish synths like Deadmau5. I knew I wanted some grungy crunchy percussive sounds like Nine Inch Nails. But I also want to practice more experimental things I could record to expand my productions and style. One other thing I thought about is this all has to go into my computer for editing, but I also want the option to externally sequence things with midi coming from my computer as well.

So, in summary, here's what I chose to achieve just that:

uMidi - This is going to mainly be for external sequencing melodies, arps, kick drums, all from Ableton Live

Pamela's New Workout - I want to use this with the Sequencer I chose but also for the inputs of Basimilus, the trigger for Maths, and possibly to clock the uMidi. I alos love that i have 8 different outputs I can change with Euclidean rhythms and clock deviders/multipliers.

Disting MK4 - I was recommended this module specifically for having more options in functionality. I like all the randomness it holds, as well as the amount of control and modulation it offers. Perfect swiss army knife with MANY options. I don't even know what ill use it for but I'm sure ill find something. What's important is having and learning about my options and unlocking functionality. And Disting is PERFECT for that.

Varigat 4+ - I knew I wanted a pretty standard sequencer with a cool balance between CV and Gate triggering, but I also found it useful that it comes with some scale shifting, quantization, different sequencing modes, and much more. I know I can also quantize it with Disting MK4 as a plus.

BIA - Basimilus is just bad ass sounding. That's it.

uBraids II - I like the original Braids by Mutable Instruments. I had the option of playing with the digital version in VCV rack. I like that it has some preset sounds that I can use to my advantage in making my house tracks, with the option of slightly modulating their sound.

ONA - I wanted a standard oscillator with a few more wave forms, but what really drew me to this module is that it has an LFO setting, and octave shifts.

Maths - because who doesn't need a Maths? Ill primarily be using it for an envelope generator, but I'm sure ill use its other functions somewhere along my experimentation sessions.

Polaris - I wanted this module because of its options. I wanted a filter that was useful in making some good plucky synths out of its frequency modulation, and some good drones with the bandpass setting. Seems like a good choice.

FX Aid - its got 32 different effects. sounds good to me. I also have the option to change the firmware to my wants.

Levit8 - I chose this for the sake of having a mixer with many inputs and outputs. It seems like a great utility, and fairly simple with lots of functionality. Something useful.

So there you have it. Something simple, efficient, and wonderful to behold. It will be great for practice, and hopefully give me an idea for my next case.

EDITED Mar 10th 2021, 13:38

After some back and forth I got an FX Aid from Schneidersladen and YES. So good. I also went with a passive dual LPG, which might not be as versatile as the pico LPG Lugia recommended, but the Skiff is just... full. No place for cables or modules deeper than 2cm. Which is alright because this small Kit just... works!
I streamed/recorded a session with the thing and ORCA last night. Best thing? I haven't even touched the Disting, which I want to add tonight.

A note on the trig sequencer: a valid contender to replace the Gibbon ALAK (funny little device, it seems) would be the Robaux LL8, loads of power hidden in there, I recommend having a look

I find it interesting that people associate "analog crazy shit" with a rack composed exclusively of digital voices. Not that they're bad, just not ... well, analog.

what do y'all think about the erica synths black eg? I want something pretty simple to start with honestly. i want to explore with making my own synth voice for a little while. i have the erica synths wavetable vco already. i'm waiting on the a-106 doepfer x-treme filter, and the intellijel quad vca as soon as my next check comes, or stimulus money. but anyway, this should get me a pretty simple synth voice i presume? any advice or opinions are greatly appreciated as i tend to learn the more i read everyone's replies, etc.. -justin

Can you tell I've been listening to a lot of Stellardrone? I hope so. One of my biggest sources of inspiration.

Garfield: Oh, you mean one of these?: O0YAAOSwQnpezCL2" target="_blank">https://www.ebay.com/itm/Soundcraft-Vi6-digital-mixing-console-mixer-upgraded-w-racks-church-owned/133599376656?hash=item1f1b24b510O0YAAOSwQnpezCL2 Well, this one's going for $13k, so the prices on the large-format DIGITAL stuff is coming down...ish. Give it another ten years and my bet is that these will drift down toward the $3-5k range. And how did I find that ML3000? Years of Nashville experience gets you in that super-scrounger groove, baybee. You haven't LIVED until you've dumpster-dived (in ACTUAL dumpsters!) the alley between 16th and 17th Ave. S. and pulled out "obsolete" gear (by early 1980s standards) like Altec "Birdcages" or CBS Volumaxes. Being able to parse German helps, too.

Nickgreenberg: Yeah, I learned on large-format. I'm used to it. Plus, I tend to create elaborate 'composite' sound sources that can necessitate having a pile of "hot" faders, plus I'm running a 32-channel Antelope Orion32 which allows me to use the FIVE in a huge split mode...24 ins feed to the Orion via directs, and the other 8 ins are from the groups. Then 24 outs from the Orion32 have their own strips, with the last eight being capable of direct out via the routing patchbay. But another nice thing about large-ish format desks in a more normal electronic studio is that users can normalize their setups...each instrument gets its own strip, and the user can keep that configuration more or less permanently, which cuts down on all of the connecting and disconnecting business.

Now, my studio isn't set up like that...mainly because my workflow needs TOTAL flexibility, as different works require rather different setups. Also, there's some "subsections" in here...modular/patchables are all in a "sandbox" environment with its own small mixer (original Mackie 1202), then there's a "classic studio" rig that uses test gear and this also has a stereo submixer (Alesis Studio12R), plus a set of shortwave receivers that ALSO get their own very basic stereo mixer. Everything is routed here via two MASSIVE patchbays, so if I need to change configurations, it's super-easy. And as if that's not enough, I have a pair of Rane SM26B mixer/distros (one in each patchbay cab) and a Studio Technologies 1-in/8-out stereo distro amp that lets me do parallel routing for FX send/returns. The total patchability paradigm is actually based on how a certain studio at Syracuse U. is set up...and given that that setup was designed in collaboration with Dr. Bob, the usefulness of it was VERY apparent just on a cursory examination. Originally, I had this with a Topaz-24 at the mixing position, but that desk was just not up to the task, given where my composition skills have gone over the past 20 years...it only allowed 4 AUX sends in post-fader, the EQ had some irritating limitations, and I never liked the sound of the FX return channels. The FIVE, otoh, gives me a massive amount of sonic control, and lets me entertain sound creation methods that would've been utterly horrific to try and suss out on the Topaz.

Here ya go... https://www.modulargrid.net/e/ai-synthesis-ai008-eurorack-matrix-mixer Even fits in the hole left by the o-scope with a couple of hp to spare.

Still seems like there could be some improvement here, though...give me a bit...

Haw!

OK, so sue me...I "cheated" a bit by using an Intellijel Palette 104 cab for starters. This gives ALL your I/O jacks, mults, MIDI via USB and power right off the rack, though. And this'll be a common theme in this build; why put in single function devices when you can double up your functionality in the same space?

Tiles: MIDI interface, Noise Tools (noise, clock, sample and hold, slew limiter), dual linear VCA, QuadrATT, Multi-FX, Stereo out.

3U row: Pam's (eight channels of clocking and/or sequencing), Wogglebug (fun with randomness), Batumi + Poti (4 LFOs), Zadar + Nin (4 envelope gens), Gibbon ALAK (4-channel step sequencer), 2 x Klavis Dual Waves (dual VCOs with internal quantizing), Veils clone (VCA submixes to the VCFs), G-Storm Delta VCF (multimode w/ 2-ch input mixer), G-Storm SH-101 VCF clone (LPF, also with 2-ch input mixing), Antumbra 1/2 of a Veils clone VCAs, Happy Nerding FX Aid.

Now, take a closer look here...there are very few single-operation modules in this. Everything in the 3U row (except the Wogglebug and the FX Aid) either does multiple functions, or can output multiples of the same function. The tile row lets you move the attenuator/mixer OUT of the 3U space, along with letting you use a number of other things that you also wouldn't necessarily have room for in the 3U row. And likewise, this is capable of operating in a true 2-voice mode, or one massive single voice with FOUR oscillators. Four channels of CV sequencing, eight of trigger sequencing and/or clocks, plus a NINTH clock as an overall master in the Noise Tools. Two different FX paths (mono-to-stereo and true stereo), two different VCFs that can also sum down two VCOs each (via their VCAs, natch), and so on. Relying on additions such as tiles (when doable) and multifunction modules allows this...even in 104 hp! So, yeah...you CAN build a single row skiff that's VERY workable, it just requires a very different "eye" for the right devices, and a very different mindset about how to pick the right modules as opposed to a larger build.

EDITED Mar 10th 2021, 02:54

Had a feeling...

im having a hard time finding a "matrix mixer"

@JimHowell1970, sure, this is my actual Nifty Case:

As you can see it misses a lot of stuff, but I'm slowly expanding it. The things I'm planning to get next are LFOs and VCAs, precision adders, attenuators and maybe a complex filter.

@troux thanks, I considered getting the Palette too. Maybe it's too expensive for me at the moment, but it would be a nice addition for sure.

Sure thing @Lugia, for the future I'm planning to build a way more complex setup, but for this time I just wanted to get to grips with these few hp. I know the sound you get is very limited but it's really what I'm looking for haha.

This is a very simple patch with a lot going on.

XAOC Odessa, MI Plaits, MN STO, MN Telharmonic, and a Mother 32 create ambient pads and arps while WORNG Vector Space provides all modulation of oscillators, filters, and effects.

Points of modulation include: Odessa 'Density', 'Warp', and 'Harmonic Factor, Mother 32 'VCF Cutoff' and 'Mix CV' (noise), Plaits 'Harmonics' and STO 'Shape', and Ripples 'Freq.'

WORNG Vector Space is my new best friend.

replace the oscilloscope with a matrix mixer

if you feel you need an oscilloscope - just get a dso150 and work out how to connect it to the modular without taking up rack space!

Okie Dokie.
Got rid of the sound sources, added some better choices as oppose to the fuckery I had in my last build.
This should be a better half for Beep Boop hopefully.

Hi Nickgreenberg,

Yeah fair enough :-) One thing I forgot to mention: I try not to use the computer too much hence I try to avoid the DAW option. In the future I might not exclude it but for the moment I try to "survive without DAW" :-)

I have soon for sales a Behringer 16 channel mixer, nice small and cheap, interested? ;-) Just teasing! Kind regards, Garfield.

Lol, no worries.

Thought I'd mention it though, as in the last 18 months or so I learned a good workflow for DAW mixing with a modest sized mixing controller. I have yet to see a project that I couldn't get to work well with 10 or less groups (stems) and 10 or less channels per group; that means a session with up to 100 tracks can be handled efficiently on small format mixer (in this case, with 10 channels). This has worked out well for me lately, and I thought was worth passing along! Hybrid / stem mixing is pretty slick!

But if I had space and $ and priority for a larger format mixing desk, would I want one? Yeah probably : )

Hi Lugia and Nickgreenberg,

Lugia: Dewey setup that can hold 2 1/2 TONS per unit. It ain't goin' NOWHERE! --> ha, ha, yeah good one, nobody is walking away with a 200 kg mixer, you don't need to worry about it get stolen or something like that! :-)

Thanks a lot for the BenchPro link, pretty interesting stuff available there!

I don't know how you do it but you just had a look at it and found already here in Germany an Allen & Heath - ML 3000 for me; great! :-)

As I mentioned I have a rather modern house and that's not always a benefit, yes it's good insulated so in the winter you don't need much heating and bla, bla, bla, but the bad thing of modern houses within a reasonable pricing region is that the house and its allocated rooms are pretty small... :-( What I am trying to say is, at my current location in the attic my studio shares my working space and that means there is not much space left. I am thinking of somehow create some space but no matter what I can come up with, I would never have decent (!) space enough for such a beautiful mixer... so I am afraid I need to look more at a modern mixer that's compacter and that's with a digital (smaller) mixer easier to realise.

Having that all said... If now these ML3000s and Five series are available at "dump prices" so to speak... how many years do I need to wait before an Allen & Heath - dLive S7000 or a Soundcraft - Vi7000 becomes available in that reasonable priced region? Both are beautiful modern mixers, bit smaller than their older analogue brothers but unaffordable to me for the moment ;-) Just nice to dream about them. So when would these "digital beasts" be affordable in 10 years time (perhaps that's something I can wait for) or would that take longer? :-(

Nickgreenberg: Well, at least for me, isn't it allowed to dream a bit ahead of what is affordable either price-wise or weight-wise or size-wise? At least the latter two are an issue for my current house and non-available space ;-)

You asked: Do you want / need a ton of analog mix channels? Well, that's actually the point I guess... Do I need it ... no most probably not... do I want it ... most probably yes! :-)

On the other hand, you know the "drill" and motto here of this modulargrid.net website, right? You never can have enough VCAs! In that same pattern, at least in my opinion, you never can have enough inputs and outputs on a mixer (or on any device)...

It's the same for a Eurorack, it can never be too big, it only can be too small ;-)

Both: He, he, funny and nice discussion and I hope you allow me to dream a bit ;-) Thank you and kind regards, Garfield.

@troux - couldn't agree more regarding small focussed cases - especially when they're pulled out of larger cases - but as starter modulars I'm not convinced they are a great idea at all
-- JimHowell1970

Agreed on the starter point for sure @JimHowell1970.

@Traxy

all great reasons to go for a tiny case in you situation - although I am with troux on 62 hp probably being a better fit

tbh based on what you have said - I would not bother with the pod at all - I would just take stuff out of the nifty case make or buy some blind panels (cereal box cardboard is fine) and see if that helps - add the modules that you need to do your minimal generative setup and put the case money to one side - either towards a smaller case or a mantis in the future

this way you could just buy a quad cascading vca (if you don't already have one) I like veils for a multitude of reasons - and use that as a mono output module - that way you can explore what you can do with the O & C - with a bit more space - which may make it a bit more playable

I think it really depends on why you find it unplayable now? uncontrollable or un-ergonomic or too complicated

maybe share the nifty?

troux makes a very good point here, as does Jim...the idea of building a "generative" system in 42 hp is VERY impractical. Having done work with those methods since...ah, crap, I dunno HOW long...I think I can safely say that you'll be lucky if you can get it to behave like a basic off-the-shelf monosynth. And while you apparently have other modular gear to interface this with, the idea that you can use only this live for generative ambient work in of itself is a pretty big stretch of the imagination.

20 more hp here would make more sense. 166 more hp would make a LOT of sense. You'll need it for the various modulation sources, control modules (comparators, anyone?), submixers, etc etc etc to arrive at a truly generative result. In fact, of all of the various modular paradigms, generative tends to require the size and diverse modular complements to be as MAXIMAL as possible, at least if you're trying to realize a schema that has multiple channels (as in an installation work), consists of a few different "lines" in front along with a "background" layer, and has a diverse palette of sounds that it can generate.

But here's how you can see how this'll work: build this 42 hp thing, and patch it up and let it run. If, after an hour, you've been driven insane by the limited sound palette and want to kick the skiff across the room at that point, DO SO. Then build a real generative setup.

Hi TumeniKnobs,

Oh this is fantastic, you are not only making great music, you "deliver a great music service" as well, meaning you updated it! :-) Superb!

The birds sound now even nicer, clearer, all-in-all it sounds as if you got your mix in pretty nice shape now, beautifully done!

Your birds sound really lovely, nice singing tones really. I got at the side of my house regularly meetings held by 50 or 100 sparrows (and sparrows only), making tons of noise but whatever they discuss during their meetings, it's not that nice singing concert stuff your birds are capable of! :-)

Beautiful and thank you very much! Kind regards, Garfield.

Hi TL,

Sounds to me that there is something rotten in the state of Denmark ;-)

Good luck with the troubleshooting and kind regards, Garfield.

@troux - couldn't agree more regarding small focussed cases - especially when they're pulled out of larger cases - but as starter modulars I'm not convinced they are a great idea at all

EDITED Mar 9th 2021, 23:07

Lugia, Sacguy71, how many channels are you needing to handle for recording / mixing?

Maybe I'm missing something, but I'm surprised to see a discussion of large-format desks. My understanding was these are really only called for in large / professional studios.

I took some good mix & mastering certificate training recently. Everybody involved (myself, the teacher-engineer, and the other students) were all basically using "hybrid" (digital + analogue) rigs consisting of: DAW of choice, interface of choice, select external hardware (incl. analog summing for me) and select control surfaces. RE control surfaces, for me a Softube Console1 and Faderport1 work great: good build quality and hands on control, great DAW integration, enough channels (especially by setting up with stem or group mixing).

So I'm surprised you would opt for a big console vs. a hybrid setup. Am I totally not understanding your intended use case(s)? Do you want / need a ton of analog mix channels?

That said, IF I saw a desk like Lugia found, with big functionality, pedigree and in great condition, and IF I had the space for it and wasn't concerned about the huge weight (which I am), then I would be tempted to get one!

Thought I'd ask about your mixing use cases and suggest a "hybrid" mix setup for those with smaller space / budget etc.

I checked the other half too before posting!
your hopes are unfounded Lugia!

hi all,

this is my actual physical rack - 5 cases - plus a case I need to build - to hold the DIY backlog and some other modules I want - really only needs power before I build it - I'm ordering the power this week!

over time modules have more or less been added wherever was free or where they got the best power (video modules) and it's a bit of a mess so as I add the 6th case, it feels like time to rearrange it

I'm not looking to add any more modules or swap out anything at all at the moment - although I can always see applications for more utilities, envelope generators and video modules, maybe even a couple more filters (I can fill the next case too) - so whilst suggestions are welcome this thread is primarily about re-arrangement

If any one who can is up for the challenge, please have a go at rearranging

a bit of further explanation (it might help)

the black blind panels and big gaps etc are meant to divide it into the 5 soon to be 6 actual physical racks that I have

upside down modules are either DIY backlog (mutable, blue lantern, synthonie) or to be purchased over the next few months (magneto, chromagnon, crossfader, deckard's voice, optomix, doepfer matrix mixer) - but for the purposes of this can be taken as in the case

the left 2 racks are 9u/104hp DIY case and a mantis - they are primarily video modules with a few analog utilities

the middle 2 racks are a 9u/104hp DIY case and a 6u/72hp bastl case - the bastl case will serve as an audio pull out - so this could be built as a separate instrument - hence the tm/tune/mixer with headphones etc

the right 2 racks are both 9u/84hp DIY - one of these rack is not built yet - but will be soon!

actual case arrangement is similar although the 2 84hp cases will be side by side, instead of on top of one another

the 84hp racks are in front of the tv and the other racks are to the left, the top 2 are on guitar stands

there is some scope to move the cases about a bit - I'm thinking of swapping the left and middle cases around - but then it would be mean that patching the audio modules over the video case - I could try to move the video modules to the 84hp cases but I've not looked into that for power reasons - I don't think there are any easy/optimum solutions:

for example a lot of the issues could be solved easily by having the 2 of the 9u case horizontally in front of the other 9u (where the 6u are now), but then I think it would be difficult to reach the ones on the guitar stands - and I would probably have to kneel - these cases are on the floor - but it would mean that a lot of the video modules would be straight in front of the TV

all the DIY cases have a befaco excalibus 1.2A +/-ve 12v (not sure what 5V is but overall 5v is negligible) the 104hp also have a frequency central psu in them, which is a further 500mA on +/-ve 12v rails

mantis is 3A +ve, 1.1A(?) -ve and something on the 5v

the bastl is 1.5A +ve, 0,5A -ve and I think it also has some 5v

modules that are in the video path are constrained to the mantis and the befaco power supplies (which seem clean enough)

chromagnon is to be powered externally and may get moved outside the case in the future (as it has it's own case - like a mom32) but it is better in the rack if possible

TL/DR

here is my audio/video modular - it is messy and needs re-arranging - please re-arrange, offer suggestions etc as you see fit - I think I need more envelope generators, utilities and video modules - but that is for sometime in the future

Jim's spot-on. The other half of this build had better be stuffed with nothing but mixers, attenuverters, VCAs, timing modules, etc etc etc...otherwise, all you're making here is a VERY expensive noisemaker, certainly NOT a musical instrument.

I'm a fan of small focused cases, knowing the limitations. Looking at yours it's hard to argue with some attenuators but I can see a few other routes too:

1) add a 2HP Clock Divider and a 2HP Sample and Hold, this lets you add changes that sustain over longer durations and that add a bit of structure if they are impactful enough
2) add a filter of some sort that fits in 4HP, IMHO filters are close to the funnest part of eurorack and a good analog filter always sounds great with a digital oscillator
3) pivot and get a 62HP Intellijel palette, more expensive but the extra HP would go a long way here and you could do all of the above, including attenuators pretty easily.

Listening now, great stuff as always @mowse.

Hi Jim, thank you for your in-depth thoughts!

So, first of all yes, I already own some of those! I own the Plaits, the O&C and the Monsoon. At the moment I have a 84hp 3U cre8audio Nifty Case, but it's almost full and hopefully I'm gonna upgrade it to a nice 104hp 6U Tiptop Mantis case very soon!
So, why the Pico Case? Well... it's mainly for "organisational" reasons with my other gear. I make ambient music and I'm really happy with my Synthstrom Deluge as the core for my system... modular is also nice for ambient sounds, but I find it a bit unplayable in a live situation. I use my modular to sample sounds and then I arrange them with my Deluge, or i prepare cassette loops... but I'm not really able to play it live, too many cables and patching, it's very unpredictable, requires tuning and you never really get the same results.

So, since I still love eurorack and I like to keep things minimal, I decided to make a really small system with a limited range of features I can easily tweak live. I got some really cool results modulating Plaits' harmonic in chord mode and Monsoon's pitch and density with my Marbles, so it's something I already kind of tried... I planned this system with the idea of creating some easy-to-make generative polyphonic ambience while I play my Deluge and the other stuff.

So the modules I was planning to get are the Doepfer LFO and the utilities (which are missing in my bigger case too haha). I thought that having 4 LFOs could be nice to make slow, constant variations on Plaits and Clouds with the off-phase thing. Marbles is a bit too on the "step" side, and it's also bigger. But maybe the Doepfer one is too limited, and I shoud consider something more complex... Batumi maybe?

I totally overlooked the VCA depth!! Haha sorry for this, usually I'm very careful to depth and power specs when I plan my racks XD
So I could remove it and put in something like the ALM Tangle Quartet! Four VCAs in 8hp, it fits perfectly, and I would also get the two additional VCAs.

O&C - yes, I was thinking of installing the Hemispheres for that exact reason! To use it more like a swiss army module than a quantizer on steroids. But - speaking of playability - it could be the wrong choice here (lots of menu diving).
I'll take a look at the 2hp modules you suggested me! Somehow I have to rearrange this.

Thank you so much!

EDITED Mar 9th 2021, 20:18

way way too many sound generators not enough of anything and everything else

imo

sound sources < sound modifiers < modulation sources < utilities

with at least 20% of the case for modulation and 30% for utilities

is always going to get better and more interesting results than anything else

in smaller cases probably even more utilities are actually needed (and are almost never there)

there are reasons why we usually suggest 1 voice per row, not 5!!!

please read the first post of this thread (on muffwiggler) https://www.muffwiggler.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=245154

EDITED Mar 9th 2021, 19:22

fill the case with utilities and maybe a bit more modulation (but not a lot)

specifically utilities for multiplying, modifying and merging modulation sources to create more complex ones

imo

sound sources < sound modifiers < modulation sources < utilities

with at least 20% of the case for modulation and 30% for utilities

is always going to get better and more interesting results than anything else

That's brilliant news!!!

both for you and others who want them and that they are going to keep making them

Hey guys,

I planned this minimal system for very specific generative music purposes.

I wanted to limit myself to this tiny 42hp case by Erica Synth.

Hi Traxy and welcome!

I hope you don't mind me asking, but why limit yourself to such a tiny case? especially for generative music, which often benefits from much, much more modulation, especially layers of changing modulation over time?

perhaps you could elaborate '"very specific" generative music purposes? so we know what you are talking about!

Have you actually bought any of this yet? or is this just a planned system?

I am assuming that it's a planned system - not actual (but if you do already own it then some of the below will still apply):

the really good news is that you have at least kind of got everything you need in there to make a basic patch and listen to it (on headphones or laptop speakers) but there are issues - not least that at least 1 the modules won't actually fit in the case! (according to MG and erica) - & yes you could get some m3 spacers - but talk of making the beauty case fugly!

I'm not convinced that the doepfer LFO will function exactly like you want it to (and would benefit from attenuators and of more vca channels) and I think you will be bored by it very quickly as your only modulation source

O&C - yes it's a great module and got a fuck load of functions, but remember that it can only do 1 thing 4 times at once (stock firmware) or 2 things twice at once (hemispheres) these are often functions that especially in a tiny case you are better served with a single channel of more of them - so you are taking up all or 1/2 the module constantly for generating v/oct - can't remember if it's quantized or not - if not that's the other side gone! and you probably only intend to use plaits as a v/oct controlled voice and then run it through clouds as an effect - instead of using clouds as sound source too... because you do not have enough mixer/vca channels to do this - so you only need 1 channel of v/oct not 2 - I'd possibly suggest the 2hp tm and tune - if you had the space and I thought they would fit in the case!

plaits is a great choice in such a minute case as not only does it have an on board modulation source - so you really only need to think about modulating clouds! - but it also has an onboard lpg (low pass gate) which is a combination of a vca and a filter - you only need to trigger it to get a nice decay envelope - so no need for envelopes (at least for now)

I just checked the depths of the modules and case - the erica case is only 40mm deep and definitely the vca (45mm) is too deep and there's no info on the depth of the beehive (may fit may not)

plus I would want more vcas at least 4 all for modulation - buy a load of stackcables and mult the modulation everywhere through the vcas - the vcas should at the very least be able to attenuate the input signal - clouds really benefits from attenuated modulation!!!

Personally I think that this system is not big enough to be an enjoyable synth over a long period of time - so the usual advice - and the advice I'm going to give now! - is go for a big case to start with and fill it with the modules you want AND the modules you need to get them to work properly, slowly over a decent period of time so that you can get to know them well and, often more importantly, spread the cost out over time - this also allows you to (at least to some extent) get the right case for the modules instead of trying to jam tiny unergonomic (unplayable in a lot of cases) and, often wrong, modules for you into a 'beauty case'

yes I know the youtube influencers make it look so cool with their beauty cases adjusting trim pots with tweezers and waviing their synths around in the air... but most of them have massive cases that you can't see on their videos, that they swap modules in and out of to make videos on (mostly because it's easier to film a beauty case than a big one)

And yes I know there are a lot of arguments for starting small, but, I've never seen one that didn't have a very persuasive and sensible counter-argument

If you haven't seen it please read this post on muffwiggler (at least the 1st post) https://www.muffwiggler.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=245154

EDITED Mar 9th 2021, 19:01

TBH, I had wanted to see if anyone had any info before reaching out. With the state of the world from COVID, I get scared for small manufacturers that I'll be reaching out to someone who is overwhelmed or worse.

But, I just did, and Rune got back to me super fast! Looks like there are more on the horizon, and the plan is to keep on making them. Pretty excited for that.

Anyone lucky enough to get their hands on one from the initial run?

EDITED Mar 9th 2021, 18:24

Dear greetings to all! Here I am asking for your opinion after having enlarged my initial case and treasured your advice. First thing, do you like my system??
What next step for you? A complex vco? or what....
Thanks in advance!

EDITED Mar 9th 2021, 20:21

have you tried contacting them? - there's a mail link in the middle of their home page

(DUPLICATE)

EDITED Mar 9th 2021, 18:13

I've been looking for the past few months at all the usual haunts, but to no avail. Anyone in the know have details on this super useful module?

I don't have one but I'd love to get a Steve's MS-22
-- troux

Seen some demos, seems good for dirty and overdriven, but can it do anything else?

-- the-erc

It can also do clean sounds, but many people like the dirty stuff, hence why there's so many demos showing off that sound. If you want an example of the cleaner sounds, check out the sound sample that's part of Steve O'Hear's review

@sohear/review-steves-ms-22-a-eurorack-filter-by-threetom-modular-86cd2950e235" target="_blank">https://medium.com/@sohear/review-steves-ms-22-a-eurorack-filter-by-threetom-modular-86cd2950e235

EDITED Mar 9th 2021, 15:19

This version has interresting patch notes. A lot of information in this muff thread.

-- defragmenteur

Wow, that's great! So is the thread. Thanks so much for pointing them out to me. Back to the drawing board!

The next half of my two part rack that I wish to build in the next year.
I absolutely fell in love with noise engineering stuff recently, as well as the Wogglebug and uBraids.
Should be a fun mixture of percussive sounds and analog crazy shit...

EDITED Mar 9th 2021, 15:26

Hey guys,

I planned this minimal system for very specific generative music purposes.

I wanted to limit myself to this tiny 42hp case by Erica Synth.
Beehive (Plaits clone) mainly in chord mode (I'm considering a Rings clone too, but Plaits is maybe more versatile), Monsoon for granular processing and reverb, Doepfer A-145-4 quad LFO for slow off-phase modulation on several parameters (so that the LFOs never come perfectly back into sync with each other): the goal is to achieve Brian Eno-inspired generative ambient / drone stuff, like he did with tape loops. That's it, really straightforward.
Then Ornament Crime for additional modulation, cross-modulation, random, envelopes, basic sequencing and so on; I'm also controlling stuff with the Doepfer dual VCA. Clock comes from a square wave LFO. I'm considering flashing the Hemisphere firmware to have more options on the Ornament, but I'm not sure.

So, I have 4hp left: what should I add? I was thinking maybe of some kind of attenuators / attenuverters to have more control on the CV, aside of the VCAs... or maybe a filter? What do you think?
Thanks.

EDITED Mar 9th 2021, 14:33

Thanks Garfield. Check out the new updated version of the recording. I thought the first version was a bit too high pitched, so I did a few more performance recordings of the very same patch, but with a lot of subtle differences including dropping an octave on the Mother 32, reducing the resonance on the QPAS, reducing the Maths controlled warble on the Mother 32, reduction of the level and repeats on the Mimeophon. Then I layered the multiple takes and have them slowly fading in and out over one main take. So in this version we have one main modular take, and two additional takes layered on top, and of course the birds. I pushed the birds up in the mix so you can now hear more of what they were doing. There's a lot more audible in this version. BTW - you'll hear some random clicks - those are birds landing on my feeder. :-)

Hi,
Faceplate with Cyclonix is the oldest version.
It runs the same firmware.

If the power consumption can be tallied in real time at the bottom of the rack, could it be possible to display a little window with the power specs to one side of each row? I know there's a way to see this on another page, but it would be helpful to not have to keep jumping back & forth between those pages.

Row title would be cool too, in the view described above AND/OR in the "show data" page.

I would say these feature requests ought to be Unicorn features.

EDITED Mar 9th 2021, 18:04