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Went nuts on this...

I opted to go ahead and "complete" this. So the cab's now full in this version, and there's been some sizable changes...notably in appearance, because where I could substitute smaller clones for the fullsized Mutable modules, I did. In a build this small, it's essential to shrink things down as best as possible while maintaining functionality AND ergonomics.

Top row: Konstant Labs PWRchekr (for keeping tabs on your DC rail performance), Erica Quant (primarily) for the Plaits clones, then those Plaits clones themselves (I doubled the Plaits complement). After that is another internally-quantized dual VCO from Klavis; technically, this is now a TWO-voice system with dual VCOs per voice. The Veils clone handles summing with CV control over mix levels, and this can either be split with the Plaits clones on two of its VCAs, and the Klavis Dual Waves on the other two. This then feeds the two sides of a Malekko Dual Borg (a clone of the original Wiard version) VCF/gate. After that is a stereo mixer for situations where you'd want all of the VCOs as a single "voice" with stereo panning. However, this is something of an option; you could just as easily use the mixer at some other point in the "voicing" row. After this, you then have two stereo effects modules: Happy Nerding's FX Aid XL, then the Beads. But at the end is a final bit of fun, where you've got a dual-input stereo mixer...allowing you to parallel-patch the FX Aid and Beads if you want, putting one unit on "voice 1" and the other on "voice 2".

Bottom row: MIDI Interface, Pam's, then a mk4 Disting because the Disting EX has some depth issues with some cases. The Pachinko is a Marbles clone, then there's the Stages after this. Past that, I totally redid the modulation section. This now starts with a Tides clone (instead of the Ochd, since you get more timescale flexibility + CV with the Tides even though it's only a dual LFO) followed by a 1/2 Veils clone to give the modulation section a pair of VCAs. The MISO after that allows you to take signals from the Tides clone or the Quadrax (or BOTH!) and warp the hell out of them, deriving even more possible modulation signals. And lastly, the Quadrax + the Qx, which allows the Quadrax to do some extremely complicated modulation behavior.

Now you've got something way more potent. By "scrunching" things with the clone modules, I was able to up the module count and the system capabilities without arriving at something that would be a pain to use ergonomically. Mind you, NOBODY gets a first build right, and even this has some areas where things could be improved further; going with a larger case might be one idea there, which would allow you to implement even more improvements. Just 20 more hp per row is a HUGE step forward from a 2 x 84 hp setup without increasing cab costs (in fact, something like a Mantis would be cheaper than many other powered 2 x 84s).

Farkas awesome rack.and thank you for suggestions for interactive controller modules in my thread.

i am thinking about selling my mantis case,as i just got a bigger case

You are looking for an analog logic module! Mystic circuits Ana is my top recommendation.

Thanks for the input. I don't think it can be done with Maths, it does addition and subtraction but not the difference.
That Shakmat SumDif seems to be exactly what I'm looking for. I will take a look at adders too.

Thx again :-)

Thanks for sharing! I love to see people making the most of modular. I’m inspired to try some new ideas now.
-- farkas

Hey there. You're welcome. Thanks for taking the time to watch it! V. glad you feel inspired.

Fantastic, I enjoy these videos very much. But it also makes me want to get a Maths, over and over again 😬 I also dig the tune, not to shabby for only three modules (and sq1) used!
-- zuggamasta

Maths is super cool. It's a bit big, especially for my tiny rack, but I can't imagine trying to make a patch without it. I suppose other modules do similar things but I always seem to find a use for it. Glad you liked the tune, it was an odd little ditty. I still don't really know where the cuckoo came from... :)

For goodness sake, can we uk based buyers please have the ability to only receive notifications about items for sale from within the uk? I don’t need 10 emails a day about EU listings, especially when the sellers aren’t willing to post there because they’re completely ignorant about the new customs terms.
FYI - anything marked as a gift under £39 is NOT subject to ANY customs fees WHATSOEVER 🤦🏼‍♂️

EDITED Jul 11th 2021, 14:17

awesome guys,got alot of modules to study

On the eloquencer, if you activate a tie on a step, gate will remain open until next (non tied) gate. You should test this with chain patterns.

-- defragmenteur

I've got the chain patterns down, are you saying it's possible to have longer gates recorded as ties? That would be very cool, maybe if that's not possible at the moment it could be implemented as a software update? I'll ask Winter Modular about this, they have great support and I'd love to do everything from within the Eloquencer without having to add another module for this purpose!

doesn't disting have a cv recorder in it these days
-- JimHowell1970

What are your thoughts on FH-2 by Expert sleepers for this purpose?

From the top of my head, I would say the squid salmpler can do this. Maybe you should take a look at that thing. Or the Quad CV Recorder from Flame. Both aren't sequencers though.
-- MillionJT

I'll check these out, thank you!

It can sound great as a voice too! Here's a demo

One thing I'd suggest about the 2 hp gap in the bottom (sequencing) cab: drop in one of 2hp's Logic modules. This way, you can use TWO Pam's outs that "conflict" with each other in how they're programmed to create even more complex and elaborate clock behavior.
-- Lugia

That’s an awesome idea! Thanks, Lugia.

Fantastic, I enjoy these videos very much. But it also makes me want to get a Maths, over and over again 😬 I also dig the tune, not to shabby for only three modules (and sq1) used!

Thanks farkas. Apologies. My previous post was inaccurare. This is indeed what i am doing. Gate from sequencer/keyboad into the 540 ext. (Top left corner).
I am really wondering why it's not woking.

Hi Matteo. You should be using the gate from your sequencer/keyboard to trigger an envelope on the 540. That envelope should open the VCA based upon its settings. Try that out.

Thanks for sharing! I love to see people making the most of modular. I’m inspired to try some new ideas now.

Hello,
This is my very first post, thanks everyone in advance.
I recently bought a basic system 500 setup, it's comprised by 512, 521, 530, 540 and 572.
I am encourring two issues which i hope someone could give his/her advice one.

1. I can't get any sound out of it if the VCA Initial knob is not turned on. If i increse the initial level, everthing is fine but i can't get any sound from external source if the initial parameter is set to zero. I've tried with an arturia keystep and a korg sq64. The connection i use are:
   Arturia/Korg Pitch into the 512 VCO Key
   Arturia/Korg Gate into the 530 Ext
   If i increse the initial VCA level and play on the arturia, i can hear the different notes but if i put the initial VCA to 0, no sounds come out. Any ideas? Looks like the gate does not work.

2. I noticed that the sound the two Oscillator (512) is not the same. If i use the same parameter on the first section and second section, the sound i can hear is very different, with the second part being much more calm and lower then the frist. I am wondering if this is by design and hence exepceted or if the module is somehow broken.

Thanks in advance for the help,
Regards,
Matteo

I've been having fun this week listening to a monthly podcast I've discovered called Source of Uncertainty, which is all about Buchla synthesisers. It led me to rearrange my rack slightly to fall in line with a Buchla paradigm. I then created a patch that sort of uses the Maths as a sequencer...

In episode 5 of the podcast, they discuss two modules, the 281 Quad Function Generator and the 292 Quad Dynamic Manager. According to the podcasters, these two modules are a cornerstone of the Buchla synthesiser designs. What I was really surprised about was how much they have in common with the Make Noise Maths and Optomix Eurorack modules. This is probably not news to most modular enthusiasts, but it was news to me. And it got me thinking... I've got a Maths and an LxD (a half-sized Optomix) so I've basically got half a Buchla already! Not...

I've had a bit of an issue with my Cre8 Audio Nifty Case, and had to take all my modules out. I took the opportunity to place my Maths and LxD next to each other, just as the Buchla 281 and 292 modules are often placed together. I then came up with a weird little patch that, in my head at least, is sort of using the Maths as a sequencer and I liked it enough to record a short performance.

Thanks @wishbonebrewery!

LOL

I picked up two of these from Amazon, though I'm sure you could find something similar elsewhere. I use one to hang all of my cables from the edge of my table-style desk and the other to hang headphones. They rotate so you can tuck them under the desk when not in use. Also, I've been using fairly inexpensive Excel Valley patch cables. I color code them by length so I know quickly what to reach for.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07BVK2FQW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_image_o08_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Hi guys,
I am starting to build my first modular setup. I have got a case (Arturia Rackbrute 6U), sketched a couple of ideas for my first modules and ordered MI Rings as my first module :) One thing that worries me a lot is cables, and I need your advice on that.
What patch cables are good ones? (I ordered a couple of stackable ones by TipTip audio and a couple of regular ones by Doepfer to test)
What is the number of cables that is optimal for an average bedroom modular setup?
Are there any good ways to organize cable storage on the desktop so that the cables are easily accessible and there is no cable salad on the table? I did not find any suitable solution. The modular-specific Youtube bloggers usually keep their cables behind the camera so I have no idea how to place an optimal number of cables in a small bedroom space. For now, I am thinking of using IKEA SAMLA storage box.
Do you have any good suggestions?

Cheers,
Pavel

Welcome, Pete. What kind of music are you interested in making with this?
First things first, you do not have enough voices to make use of Harmonaig. Marbles already includes a quantizer, and Plaits has a pseudo-polyphonic chord mode, so Harmonaig will be a fairly expensive paperweight in a rack of this size. The Qu-Bit Chord v2 may be a suitable replacement as it has similar functionality and includes built-in oscillators (it's also smaller).
I've been using ALM's mmMidi module for MIDI input. That may be an option to check out.
Otherwise, I would just encourage you to consider if the Mutable Instruments user interface is right for you. Their elegance and sound quality are great, for sure, but I personally don't get along well with some of the opaque button combos and different colors of LED mean different modes and functions, etc. Others here love that way of working, or at least tolerate it.
Have fun and good luck!

So, first attempt at a modular rig. have I missed anything obvious - although this is intended to be standalone, I do need Midi connectivity should I wish to use with existing kit, Pico System III, DB-01, Crave, Bass Station 2, Minilogue XD + Cubase.

For a case, looking to be a Doepfer (for the inevitable expansion down the line) which is why I've added the uMidi and Sono Abitus for I/O.

looking for some good constructive criticism for this, if that entails flaming for being wildly off mark, then so be it.

many thanks in advance

Pete

Alright... I caved in to peer pressure and included the Doepfer A138-m. I eliminated a few redundancies to squeeze it in.
This thing better make me sound like Daft Punk. Haha.

well I was coming here to basically say the same as Lugia!

Thanks for the insights on case widths. I'll keep that in mind when I build my next cabinet. (I'm trying to stick to my self-imposed moratorium on buying/building any more shiny toys until I accomplish something musically useful with all the stuff I have already bought/built :) Well, maybe one or two shiny toys if I've been a good lad...)

that system is great - but easily circumvented

any sound is musically useful - you just have too find the right context

you could set the bar so low for good that it is almost impossible to be so bad as to warrant not being good enough so get a new module - I forgot to take the trash out - I'm not good enough to deserve a module - I emptied the moldy cheese from the fridge - I am good enough to get the module I want/need etc etc etc

obviously cash flow plays a part too

I tend to look at it as I could get knocked over by a bus tomorrow if I want it and can afford it and can find it - I buy it or build it

I like the looks of this tidy bundle from Konstant Lab: https://www.konstantlab.audio/shop/zdroj-set-high-end-linear-power-supply-bundle/ although I'd need twice as much +12V power to run my 400hp rig. Maybe they'll offer a beefier version in the months ahead.

Thanks again for your advice! And apologies to the OP for hijacking this thread :)

-- oldandintheway

I have no problems running multiple power supplies (befaco and frequency central) in the same case or patching between cases - nor any need for output modules - but I do live in northern europe where there is a balanced power supply

Yep, nice work :)

Hi Farkas,

Wow you got a very nice rack there! :-) Some great choices of modules. I would love to have that Furthrrrr generator :-)

Sorry, I am a bit confused is this your final rack or is this what you have now and in April you are going to extend it?

I have the A-138m Doepfer Matrix module and I love it, it gives you some great flexibility, so just go for it :-)

With such a rack every weekend must be fantastic, so I wish you just yet another great weekend! Kind regards, Garfield.
-- GarfieldModular

Thanks @GarfieldModular. The Furthrrr Generator is a fun module.
The rack pictured is my final plan. I have almost all of it currently, but still need to fill about 104hp of this plan. I'm still debating a few of the modules to include in that 104hp, but this should be fairly close to the final outcome.
Currently I have two Mantis cases and three Make Noise skiffs (so, 728hp filled). I will be swapping out the skiffs for two more Mantis cases in April or May, giving me 832hp.
I will be holding on to two of the skiffs as a portable live rig in case I decide to do some live performances. I have a friend in Leipzig who is encouraging me to play in some noise festivals or art shows in Germany when I visit again after COVID, so we'll see what happens.
Have a great weekend!

Actually, there's not really any "standard widths" in Eurorack. You see 84 hp (and multiples thereof) a lot but that's because 84 hp is about the limit that you can jam into a 19" rackspace. But other widths you see include 60 hp (Moog), 104 hp, 126 hp, 140 hp (Uli), 168 hp (double 19" rack width) and 197 hp (from ADDAC, using 1 meter length rails). As a rule, most cab makers tend to stay with even-numbered hp amounts since the vast majority of Eurorack modules have panel widths that come out to even numbered amounts. But not all...

The real bottleneck on sizes comes down to power issues...amounts of headers on distro boards, power load capability vs. potential load from the modules, that sort of thing. However, there ARE ways to deal with those, plus you don't exactly have to use typical Eurorack supplies...with some poking around, you can find LINEAR power supplies that fit the bill. And yeah, linear supplies are worth the expense + weight, as they're quite incapable of spewing ultrasonic rubbish onto your DC busses, and they tend to tolerate inrush behavior better than switching supplies. No radiated fields, either, aside of the usual line frequency junk (which they're usually good at filtering out).
-- Lugia

Thanks for the insights on case widths. I'll keep that in mind when I build my next cabinet. (I'm trying to stick to my self-imposed moratorium on buying/building any more shiny toys until I accomplish something musically useful with all the stuff I have already bought/built :) Well, maybe one or two shiny toys if I've been a good lad...)

And you must have been reading my mind re: power. I was researching linear supplies only an hour or two ago, just to see what has come on the market since I built this system a year or so ago. I went with a low-cost switching supply to get started, figuring I could upgrade to linear later if noise became an issue. I encountered inrush issues straight away and wound up going with two supplies to split the load, even though the combined draw total was on paper comfortably below the steady-state rating of one supply on its own. (The vendor was a champ and gave me a break on the second supply.) So that lesson well learned!

I think I've lucked out so far with noise, knock on wood. I'm not hearing anything, and assuming I can trust the spectrum analyzer in Cubase, I'm not measuring anything above -100 dB. It's almost as clean as my MatrixBrute, if that's a meaningful point of comparison. Credit to the noise filtering on the distro boards, I guess.

However, on my next system I'll definitely go with linear, and may upgrade my current system sooner rather than later. I'm not happy with the way these supplies flicker on power-up and power-down; I cringe to imagine what that's doing to my expensive modules.

I like the looks of this tidy bundle from Konstant Lab: https://www.konstantlab.audio/shop/zdroj-set-high-end-linear-power-supply-bundle/ although I'd need twice as much +12V power to run my 400hp rig. Maybe they'll offer a beefier version in the months ahead.

Thanks again for your advice! And apologies to the OP for hijacking this thread :)

Thank you @GarfieldModular :)

@farkas my current workflow is to record to my Disting, convert to 44.1khz in Audacity, and post here, so if the mixing is sounding good I think it's primarily the Soundstage (which I have really been enjoying). In this case I did use the Audacity default compression algorithm, so I am coming back to that question with @Lugia's comments from a few months back in mind but without any space, still working in the kitchen and all 🤣

Actually, there's not really any "standard widths" in Eurorack. You see 84 hp (and multiples thereof) a lot but that's because 84 hp is about the limit that you can jam into a 19" rackspace. But other widths you see include 60 hp (Moog), 104 hp, 126 hp, 140 hp (Uli), 168 hp (double 19" rack width) and 197 hp (from ADDAC, using 1 meter length rails). As a rule, most cab makers tend to stay with even-numbered hp amounts since the vast majority of Eurorack modules have panel widths that come out to even numbered amounts. But not all...

The real bottleneck on sizes comes down to power issues...amounts of headers on distro boards, power load capability vs. potential load from the modules, that sort of thing. However, there ARE ways to deal with those, plus you don't exactly have to use typical Eurorack supplies...with some poking around, you can find LINEAR power supplies that fit the bill. And yeah, linear supplies are worth the expense + weight, as they're quite incapable of spewing ultrasonic rubbish onto your DC busses, and they tend to tolerate inrush behavior better than switching supplies. No radiated fields, either, aside of the usual line frequency junk (which they're usually good at filtering out).

EDITED Mar 13th 2021, 03:46

+1 on the Joranalogue Comparator, to be sure! It's got windowing functions, which means you can extract multiple gates from a single inputted modulation signal, depending on the signal's state. There's only a couple like that in Eurorack; I myself use several Frederick Haer units for this (definitely NOT Eurorack) and they also have windowing...awesome for start/stop commands, logic tampering, and a bunch of other things (waveshaping! naaaaaaasty clipped-up pulsewaves!).

Interesting, thanks for sharing that one. And good point about price.

I've gone the DIY route myself, as woodworking is my other obsession. My lazy side was thinking it would be nice to be able to drop prepowered, prerailed sub-units into a cabinet of my own design so that I could focus on the woodworking side of things. One downside of this would be the constraint of the standard fixed widths (84 and 104, etc.), and I like the flexibility to choose my own widths. (My first build incorporated two 200hp rows, as I needed the width in this multipurpose cabinet/cart to accommodate a couple of keyboards.)

That did turn out good. Your mixes are very consistent. Is that a result of adding the Soundstage, or focusing more on mixing and EQ in your DAW?

Hi Steve,

Oh I love that sound, so much fun to listen at, that (leading) voice!

This is a nice start into the weekend, thanks to you! :-) Kind regards, Garfield.

Lol. Who doesn't need more blinkenlights and VCAs?
As far as potential additions, I've got 20-some VCAs including the ones built-in to modules, but I would consider adding another quad or hex VCA just in case I decide to get weird with it some fine evening, and the Joranalogue comparator for some extra logic functions. Other than that, I'm at my blinkenlight limit. haha

Hi Lugia,

Ha, ha, at almost the exact same time we had the exact same thoughts ;-)

Kind regards, Garfield.

Hi Farkas,

Wow you got a very nice rack there! :-) Some great choices of modules. I would love to have that Furthrrrr generator :-)

Sorry, I am a bit confused is this your final rack or is this what you have now and in April you are going to extend it?

I have the A-138m Doepfer Matrix module and I love it, it gives you some great flexibility, so just go for it :-)

With such a rack every weekend must be fantastic, so I wish you just yet another great weekend! Kind regards, Garfield.

Totally useless. For one thing, you need about 16 Distings...for starters. I would also consider adding about 372 hp of VCAs to this so that you've got enough VCAs, even if this happens to be too many VCAs. Lastly, I think OSHA regulations probably requires the following module: https://www.modulargrid.net/e/other-unknown-der-blinkenlights

EDIT: Oh, yeah...this also: https://www.modulargrid.net/e/d-machinery-event-horizon It gives you the "sound" that "all" the "kids" "want" to "hear" these "days".

EDITED Mar 13th 2021, 01:54

Modular isn't about "looks". It's all about FUNCTION. Plus, people sort of expect to see a hodgepodge of different panels now that modular is more commonplace and that people sort of "get" what Eurorack's about.

Don't worry about what it looks like...worry a LOT more about what it SOUNDS like.

MISO = awesome and inexpensive CV wrangling module. Another possibility there is 4ms's SISM, which is a similar sort of thing with more CV over function. These sorts of modules are pretty indispensable if you're trying to generate complex modulation curves from a few different sources.

One thing I'd suggest about the 2 hp gap in the bottom (sequencing) cab: drop in one of 2hp's Logic modules. This way, you can use TWO Pam's outs that "conflict" with each other in how they're programmed to create even more complex and elaborate clock behavior.

Had been farting around with this for a few days and thought I'd record the patch before breaking it down, turned out pretty dang good. VCFS, an NTO, and a Metropolis go to town:

https://stevehand.bandcamp.com/track/trail-haze-acid

This is what you're looking for: https://www.modulargrid.net/e/shakmat-modular-sumdif That, or something along the same lines. The Shakmat module here can do addition and subtraction of CV values, but any adder will also work because if you send an adder a negative voltage, it'll treat that as a subtractive operation.

Hi Artvark,

The Shakmat Modular - SumDif module, just 2 HP, can do this as well. Dual adder and/or subtraction.

Kind regards, Garfield.

Hello ModLifeCrisis,

Thank you very much for the interesting demo. Gives me a good appetite for the Morphagene (again) :-)

Kind regards, Garfield.

frap tools make one - but I think it works out quite pricey by the time you add everything up

I can make a DIY 84hp/9u case for just over 200€ - including power so I don't really look at cases that much

EDITED Mar 13th 2021, 01:21

I don't think any of us can claim any form of intelligent foresight - it's just what we've picked up along the way - often from making those mistakes ourselves in the process

start with too small case - check
not enough modulation - check
not enough utilities - check

4, maybe 5 years later - experience in how to build modular synths that are worthwhile and usable - in my case both audio and video - and pretty much any size

-- JimHowell1970

Ah yes, the case dilemma. I wish Euro had the equivalent of the brilliant Box11 system from Synthesizers.com in the 5U world, which is itself a modular solution to modular systems. You can start with a single 11-U wide box and expand from there, both horizontally and vertically. And the power solutions, another great Dotcom offering that makes power a no-brainer, can grow with you easily enough. (There may well be something similar in Euro, and I haven't run across it yet.)

But I happily embrace the mad uncertainty of it all as I continue to build out furniture and cabinets in my studio, knowing I'll end up with multiple semi-self-contained systems that can be linked as needed. I gather this is fairly common :)

Haha. Amen to that!

I don't believe in capitalist models of enforced scarcity @farkas, ALM Modules For All!