#1931

Since it’s a case of MI clones you might like this

Though i’d suggest deciding what modules you are going to play by hand and going with bigger versions of them:) Rings and Marbles especially

1 Like
#1932

“Brand new, extensively tested”… :thinking:

#1933

Why are you going for micro clones? If this is your first rack, then you’re missing a very practical understanding of the ergonomics of the format. That racks looks like a nightmare to actually use - you might like it, but I would urge immense caution.

What are your goals? Are you looking to multi track to a computer? Live improvization? There’s not really enough context to give advice.

Get yourself a full size Plaits, Rings, Marbles, some attenuverters and or VCA’s, and an output module. (And the CV pal since you likely need that for whatever control scheme you have in mind.) Your hands will be full for quite some time with even just that. Don’t buy too much at once. You will likely be overwhelmed.

9 Likes
#1934

Pico Drum is great for what it does in the space it does it. Sample loading is meh indeed, but it’s not something you’ll likely do all that often. It’s a super different beast than STS, so I’m not sure why those are your considerations? More info would be welcome.

STS is obviously a sampler itself rather than a micro sample player. If you’re making your own samples on the fly, than that’s definitely the superior solution.

If you need more control, something like the TipTop One would better suit you. For similar space to the STS you should probably be checking out the upcoming Squid Salmple from ALM/Busy Circuits.

1 Like
#1935

and even “Comes with Eurorack power ribbon” :grinning:

#1936

Since you are going with clones i’d suggest Moonsoon clouds clone as it actually improves upon the original.

#1937

I want a simple to use way to trigger percussive samples. I’m gonna go with two Pico Drums and when I build my bigger rack incorporate a sampler into it. As opposed to VCAs, you can never have enough samplers!

Or something.

#1938

This is sage advice. I hadn’t considered the actual use-ability of such a tight system. And starting small and expanding also makes good sense. Thanks for the feedback!

1 Like
#1939

Patching on a computer screen and in real life is a very different experience.
I also think that both Rings and Elements in the same rack is a bit of waste. They cover pretty similar grounds. Think of what you want and pick one of them.

1 Like
#1940

I’d say the same about Braids and Plaits; I’d just stick with Plaits.

As somebody who has two Rings, I can see reasons for using both a Rings and an Elements – but I definitely wouldn’t start that way.

I personally think, as long as you have other sources of excitation signals – and Plaits is excellent for that – that Rings is the better choice over Elements, but there is room for preference both in terms of feature set and some minor differences in sound.

1 Like
#1941

I second @grey advice. I have a micro rings and, while I made the choice for pure space reasons, I am constantly thinking about getting rid of other modules to get a full size one in my rack. All my other modules are full size, so I am dealing with it, but part of the beauty of mutable is the ergonomics of the design. I would highly recommend plaits, rings, marbles, veils/blinds, some kind of output (I recommend hyrlo by knob.farm). Id also think about adding a noise source so that you can have something to feed rings which will free up plaits from that duty should you want to explore the immense options in feeding things into rings. Further expansion could include an envelope generator. Maths immediately comes to mind as a good option, though stages could also be great if you want to keep it in the MI aesthetic. The envelope generator would allow you to vca blips of noise into rings which gives you a lot of control into the character of rings.

1 Like
#1942

Sorry, no experience with the A-136, but since you’re specifically mentioning the CP3 mixer, do you have one yourself? If so, how do you like the overdrive/distortion? Is it really like the mixers on Moog synths?

1 Like
#1943

Also 2 more things:

  • Make sure you buy from people you can trust and don’t forget to check post-sale support.
  • while you might get away with trimmer pots on some modules, they can often be a pain to use. Actually, sometimes even having attenuverters as trimmer pots can be a pain, since it greatly reduces their playability. There’s a lot of people who are ok with modules not being very playable, but you’ll have to find out yourself if that is your case.

Rings vs. Elements. Rings can do almost everything Elements can if you feed it the right excitation signals, plus it does Karpluss-Strong string-y sounds. On the other hand the nice thing about Elements is that you get a complete package, with carefully curated and playable excitation sounds. Both have their pros and cons, so it depends a bit what you’re after.
Second what @Starthief said. Just get Plaits and forget about Braids. There’s some things I still like about Braids, but Plaits improves on it in almost every aspect (more hi-fi sound, much better UI, one more parameter per model, etc.).

1 Like
#1944

I have two cp3 (Manhattan analog), no idea how they compare the the original, but they sounds awesome!

3 Likes
#1945

I do not have a CP3, nor any Moogs. I know I like the sound of its distortion from all the examples out there, but couldn’t say how close it is to an actual Moog synth.

1 Like
#1946

I removed the Moog DFAM from my eurorack set-up freeing up 60 hp.

I have a goal.

My goal is to introduce a textural element to my overwhelmingly percussive system.

As it sits, the system can produce many drum hits, melodies, bass-lines, and noises but nothing particularly pretty.

Making pretty textures is my goal.

From the screenshot below, you can tell I prefer “microwave dinner” modules to more strictly “modular” modules.

After, “smear everything with a Morphagene” my imagination rather fails me which is why I decided to write this post. Also, I have run out of tasks to do at work.

Thanks in advance for any thoughts on this matter.

1 Like
#1947

Textures, to me, are almost a matter more of technique/approach than gear. Timbres that aren’t a single cycle waveform that repeats, but which have longer cycles that they progress through or acyclic change. FM, AM, soft sync etc. slightly off-tuned from integer ratios. Subtle near-audio-rate modulation. Granular that’s kept a little less smooth than it can be. Samples or busy wavetables played a few octaves below their original rate, with highpass filtering. Intermodulation distortion. Errors or intentional disturbances in FFT processes.

6 Likes
#1948

Aside: you can actually produce some very pretty stuff by combining that Piston Honda or any of those other voices with some carefully tuned Erbe-Verb. Even the Basimilus can do some very pretty stuff with a little effects downstream.

As far as textural and pretty, the main tools seem to be tape simulation (or real tape—see Hainbach et al), granular, and/or DSP effects (whose algorithms often borrow from tape and granular and combine with delays and reverbs). You can certainly do all that stuff with modular, and I recommend studying the techniques of some of the modular artists whose music you like (rbeny? elinch?). I will also submit—and probably get torched for doing so—that modular isn’t necessarily always the best way to do any of these things. You could throw a lot of money at modules and get some or all of what you want, but there are certainly other avenues outside the rack that you could explore.

I’ll add that I’m beating around the same bush. So far, I’ve focused on DSP effects from pedals and modules, particularly delays and reverbs. I’ve been shy about the rest, but it’s inevitable.

4 Likes
#1949

What you say rings true. Basimilus, Piston Honda, Plonk, et al. can become quite beautiful in a traditional sense with a little love.

This also rings true. I have a pretty nifty pedal collection which I may be able to work in using the Sewastopol module (racked elsewhere at the moment).

My eyes have opened to this idea. When I am released from work, I will entertain the notion that there’s nothing missing from my textural set-up and see what happens.

2 Likes
#1950

Sorry for the late reply. Almost missed this.

The A-189 is a fantastic module. One of my absolute favorites. It has a very unique distortion to it. But I like it even more for it’s actual bitcrushing. It makes the simplest sounds come alive. Highly recommended.