I've been using ModularGrid for years and what a great site it is, especially for modules but also for pedals, even though I am really not in the market for pedals. Instead, I have used the Pedals section to browse standalone semi-modular or otherwise patchable hardware. And I have to say, it's a chore to have to visually weed out such devices from the pedals themselves.
My feature request: Separate the non-pedals from the Pedals section and create a dedicated section for standalone semi-modular or otherwise patchable hardware. The category name could be something like "Devices" or "Tabletop" or if those names are too broad, then "Semi-modular" but if that name is too restrictive, "Patchable Gear" even though that might seem too long.
Distinguishing pedals from semi-modular / patchable gear comes down to some pretty straight-forward criteria:
1. Pedals are designed to be placed on the ground and consequently feature a prominent foot switch. Even if a pedal can be used as a tabletop device, the presence of a foot switch sets a device apart from those that are designed to be used on a table and operated with fingers.
2. Semi-modular / Patchable devices are designed to be patched with cables. Signal input and output are insufficient; patching requires additional, independent inputs and outputs that modify the signal within the device after the signal has come in from an external source and before the signal goes out to an external destination. Virtual patching does not count; the device must be at least capable of being modulated by an external source through a patch cable. MIDI can be part of the device's connectivity with other devices, but the device must be patchable in the sense of control voltage, gate or trigger.
These criteria can easily be used to test specific cases.
- The Soma Laboratory Lyra-8 is listed among the pedals but is not a pedal. It has no foot switch on its surface, is meant to be played on a tabletop with fingers, and admits CV for voices, CV for delay and gate for the hold function.
- The Koma Elektronik Field Kits are listed among the pedals but are not pedals. They have no foot switches, are meant for tabletop use, and feature in and out jacks in Eurorack format for being modulated as well as modulating outside devices.
- Koma's RH-301 Rhythm Workstation, on the other hand, really is a pedal, even though it is patchable both to and from its 1/4" jacks, and even though it sports knobs, because it has foot switches that enable it to be played on the ground once it has been patched and knobs set.
-Moog DFAM: not a pedal, but a semi-modular patchable device.
-Moog Moogerfooger: a pedal, not a patchable tabletop device.
- Empress Effects Zoia: this one has attracted a lot of attention for its tabletop usability and internal patch capabilities, but it is still a pedal, not a semi-modular or otherwise patchable device as it cannot be patched from external gear, and just takes a signal and passes it back out once it has modified it in a self-contained way.
- Alesis IO Dock II: (Here's one that's bugged me) neither a pedal nor a patchable tabletop device, from what I can see. It only features signal throughput, but no way to otherwise interact with external devices (that I can tell).
I think adding a section for standalone semi-modular or otherwise patchable devices and separating out those that are currently included among the pedals would add a great benefit to the site and its users. We could not only populate the new section with devices like the Lyra-8 and the Koma Elektronik Field Kits, but also add devices like the Soma Laboratory Pulsar-23, the Sherman Filterbank, the Iotine Core Sound Processor and the Sequentix Cirklon sequencer (with its CVIO expander).