#1087

This is going to be a tangent but I’m curious:

Is your Optomix “clicky”? Like, when you use the strike input, or a Maths envelope with a sharp attack into the Control input, is there often a high frequency transient at the beginning of the sound when feeding an oscillator through?

There is with mine, often. I know it may be more about synching my oscillators rather than something in the Optomix itself, I just read somewhere that v1 and v2 “sounded different” so I thought I’d ask :wink:

#1088

Hi - I had one, mine was clicky, and I took it back. I got the FSS POCA (passive LPG) instead. The FSS one has a distinctly longer decay in my opinion and somehow a bit duller, but you get 4 LPGs / Vactrol VCAs for about half the price.

I tried lots of things with the Optomix - different voltages of triggers, syncing the oscillator to the master clock for zero crossings, etc. The only thing that worked was using envelopes with slower attacks into the cv input rather than a trigger into the strike, but for me that kind of defeated the purpose of the unit.

I’ve heard others get the Optomix working beautifully though, so this could just be some form of user error or inconsistencies in the batches of Vactrols.

Oh - one side note which may not be 100% correct, but makes sense to me. Using a clock to sync the zero crossing point of the oscillator sounds great in theory, but I’ve never got this to work. I read somewhere - and this makes sense to me - that if there is any offset at all in the audio signal chain - i.e. the crossing isn’t precisely zero - then this won’t solve the problem.

I still get this with normal exp VCAs, envelopes and less complex waveforms. Will be looking at the WMD DVCA to resolve at some point.

#1089

Thank you for the detailed answer. Yes I really like what the Mangrove does, maybe in the future it will replace the DPO, combined with something else. That would also free up some space. Didn’t hear about the Odessa, looks/sounds great, but also big. My smallish case already has a DPO and a Maths, not sure I can justify the space, though I really like Xoac. It seems it might not be available until August 2019 (unconfirmed).

I did look at Just Friends, I wasn’t inspired, though I know it gets lots of respect, especially here! Will have a look at some more demos, I guess thats the issue with not being able to try things out, I used to live in Berlin :sob: I am also a bit confused by JF, as in what is it’s main function, and I get that its multipurpose. I am looking for a dedicated oscillator. Also thinking of getting a MI Stages.

Also, thanks for the support, glad you like the record, much appreciated. Beyond Torneo Vol. III will be released on 1st December, so check back on my Bandcamp then.

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#1090

Thank you for your response! I think I’ll try to swap the vactrols and see if that will reduce the clicking…

Was yours a v1 or v2?

#1091

No problem. It was the V2.

#1092

I don’t know what to call this function, so I haven’t had any luck searching it out.

Is there a module that has several inputs and one output, where when each input receives a signal, the output sends a different, constant voltage? So, say a gate enters input 1 and the module outputs 1v, a gate enters input 2 and the module outputs 2v, etc.

#1093

Teletype :slightly_smiling_face:

Seriously speaking I don’t know of such a module but it sounds interesting. The teletype would do this but it may be more expensive and big than what you had in mind.

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#1094

Are the signals going anywhere else? Maybe this suggestion is oversimplifying, but is there a reason this couldn’t be achieved with attenuators (to bring the gates down to the desired voltage) and a unity mixer?

#1095

Yes, that would certainly work. But I was hoping there would be something that does this without being picky about input signal, so it could be activated by a gate, a trigger, audio, or anything other than 0v. It would take a whole network of attenuators, mixers, S&H’s, and comparators to achieve what I’m hoping to do, which is basically use triggers and/or audio filtered through parallel bandpass filters to select different slices on a Reflex Liveloop sampler.

#1096

this would just seem to be a sequencer/programmer with stage select? e.g. verbos: https://postmodular.co.uk/modules/sequence-selector/

elby:
http://www.elby-designs.com/webtek/euro-serge/es23-sequence-programmer/es23.htm

2 Likes
#1097

If you want that functionality for a preset selection of pitch voltages, check out Rebel
Technology Tonic.

#1098

Verbos Sequence Selector, or Sputnik 5-Step Sequencer, or Synthwerks PGM4x4. Or Teletype. Or Stages and write entirely new firmware for it… :grin:

I do feel like there’s a small hole in the market for a relatively compact “random-access sequencer” or whatever you want to call it. It’s a little surprising there isn’t already a Doepfer module that does this.

Maybe the Hemisphere Suite developer can whip something up. I’ll write a suggestion. :slight_smile:

I’ve thought about it before, since I have a CV.OCD with a ridiculous 12 gate outputs to its 4 CVs. My solution was to use a matrix mixer to turn my gates into CVs. Since then I’ve done a lot less MIDI sequencing though, and I’m more likely to generate gates in the combo of Marbles+Teletype.

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#1099

The verbos module looks like what I was thinking of. At least the stage selection part. Thanks for pointing that out!

@desolationjones That module looks very cool! I like the concept. Would be awesome to control that with an analog to binary converter like Vert.

#1100

I have two Optomixes. One is amazing (channel 1 is great, channel 2 is not bad) and the second is pretty good, but not as good as my first optomix. I heard that some Optomixes can be terrible and some can be great. It all has to do with the vactrols. When testing, they will have a “range” of what is acceptable for release, but there will be variation from one Optomix to another.

One thing I like about it all is that my rack has it’s very own character/sound that is almost unreproducible even if others used the same make of modules.

2 Likes
#1101

I’m new to modular and wonder if someone can help me with the following questions I have…Thanks!

At this point, I’m using only an ipad to make my music. I link apps together in AUM or AudioBus, trigger virtual instruments with sequencers, arpeggiators and such, and manipulate audio as well. I also play the virtual instruments with external midi, keyboard, or whatever. I’m looking to get into modular more heavily in the future and eventually build something that has capability as a stand alone instrument. But for now, I’m confused about what modules are absolutely necessary to get sound out of it and manipulate it on a very basic level, and what is optional stuff that adds dimension and more possibilities that I can add slowly over time. Right now I just want the modules necessary to:

  1. Have it make basic, moderately adjustable sound and be able to add it as a hardware input in AUM so it can receive midi and trigger with my apps, etc. on the ipad in the same way I do now with software synths.

  2. The ability to record it on the ipad via AUM.

  3. The ability to play it with a midi device, like a keyboard, etc.

  4. The ability to run audio samples, percussive beats, etc through it ( I’m thinking here in terms of the feature where you can plug a guitar or run an audio sample through it like you can on an MS-20, for example, and get it to track the rhythm or manipulate the audio and record your mangling :).

I can wait on #3 and #4 if it requires a huge investment, but I would like to know what I would need to do it down the road.

The overall sound is not as important to me at this stage cause I know I can add modules to shape that in my own way later and have a lot of fun with that process. Right now I just want it to work and do those couple of things I mentioned above. I know I need at least one VCO, but after that it gets fuzzy because a lot of modules seem to have multiple functions and so I don’t want to get more than I need yet. I like the sound of the Mannequin stuff, and I know that Mangrove is a VCO - but everything else they make I have no idea because their descriptions are trying to be cute or whatever but they make no sense to a newbie trying to figure out what the module actually is and does.

Anyway, long riff here but if anyone can sort me out I greatly appreciate it!

#1102

What kinds of sounds excite you? How much experience do you have with hardware synths?

You could also start with something like the Pittsburgh Modular SV-1 or Make Noise 0-Coast to start having fun with hardware and patching. Both have midi in if you want to sequence with your iPad.

I would also maybe try the VCV Rack sofware to help you understand what different modules do before you dive in and buy things.

Modular is endless and there are many opinions, so it’s hard to say what you should do exactly. Knobs (on youtube) has a charming series of videos about ‘going modular’.

3 Likes
#1103

I had time to test this and my Optomix (V1) also does this on both channels. Only pretty high frequencies do bleed, and I honestly never noticed that in a patch but it might be obvious for people doing different things though.

#1104

Thanks @oscillateur, I appreciate it. I tend to get a bit obsessive about little things like this.

When I first noticed it, I was thinking hard about sending it back to the shop, but the more time I spend patching the Optomix, it does feel like something I can work with and incorporate into a patch; not sure how limiting it’ll feel in the long-run, but we’ll see.

#1105

like @Jonny mentioned starting with a standalone modular hardware synth might be a good introduction for you as they come in a complete package of everything you need to get started (MIDI, VCO, envelope, VCF, VCA, etc). I started with the Pittsburgh Modular SV-1 and it helped me start making noise (pun kinda intended) immediately. The Moog Mother 32 has a built in sequencer, plus everything else you need, so that is also an option. The Make Noise 0-Coast is also a great option, but that is more a “west coast” philosophy [I know, I know, it’s a mix between both additive and subtractive synthesis, but I think it leans west more than it leans east] and might be a bit more of a learning curve. The 0-coast also cannot be placed in a rack without modification (why did make noise design it this way??) so keep that in mind too.

I also suggest VCV rack software to start and to understand the basics in a cheap and flexible way. From there you can get some ideas of what different modules do, their depth, and figure out what sounds you are drawn towards.

Modular is soooo incredibly open ended that you can make an insane amount of different sounds with it so having an idea of what sounds you want to make goes a long way in choosing modules before you spend an insane amount of money on hardware.

Also keep in mind that part of the fun of modular is researching, watching hours (days) of demo videos on youtube, reading the manuals of modules you’re curious about before you buy them, and building your modular grid rack and “planning” your modular adventure. There are always new modules coming out and one of my favorite things is discovering that one module that is relatively unknown/unique that does exactly what I’m looking for and adding it to my rack. Then people say “wow! what is that module?!?” and I gleefully explain how amazing it is and where/how I found it :slight_smile:

2 Likes
#1106

I started with an MS-20 Mini (well, started makes it sound like I was intending to get into modular but in fact I wasn’t really aware of it at the time), and I found that REALLY helpful in terms of visualizing what the various signals were doing and how that corresponded to varying sounds. Since it was semi-modular, I could make plenty of cool noises without having to know about what a VCA was, and then take advantage of new knowledge as I acquired it.

Also, if you have a setup that works for you, be warned that adding complicated hardware like a modular will slow you down A LOT at first. in my case, each time I made a significant change it took me a month or more to relearn what I was doing.

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