Ditto on CV.OCD/mutant brain.

Personally, I went with CV.OCD since I figured I really only needed MIDI when I was at my desk, interfacing with other gear. Can’t recommend it enough. 4 channels of gate/cv, plus an additional 8 gates, all of which can be configured. The configuration process is super easy.

Mutant brain is apparently exactly the same, but it’ll take HP. The upside is that you don’t need to power it individually. I’ve heard FH-2 is pretty good too, albeit a bit more complex.

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CV.OCD is great for stuff with MIDI out. Dead simple and versatile enough. And zero hp. FH-2 is great if you also want to directly connect a computer/ipad, USB MIDI devices, USB peripherals like mice game controllers and such.

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Oh true, that’s a great callout. I mostly use y cv.ocd to connect my digitakt, so I haven’t worried much about USB. I’ve thought about trying to get a setup where I’m driving my rack with my ableton push (via ableton on my computer) so that’s an interesting consideration.

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I used a endorphin.es shuttle control for some time. Great module, lots of CV. Can connect to USB Host and device.

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You could get a small cheap midi extender so that you can unplug at the extender rather than at the module

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Could connect Norns to eurorack with FH-2 without MIDI out device?

The FH-2 plays nicely with other hosts (computers, tablets, phones). I don’t have a Norns so I can’t verify, but I would assume so. Anyone else have Norns and FH-2 and using them for CV control with direct USB connection?

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Yes, this works perfectly well.

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i know i need to expand my case in general, but for now: what would be the easiest way to add one more power connection in this rack? there are only 10 on the power bus, and i have ten modules right now, but i want to fill the last empty 4hp with the doepfer sequential switch.

i don’t really understand the 5v power thing with the ornament and crime, so maybe that’s an option? it can also be powered by usb i think, but i dont think its safe to actually use that way, correct? is there an option with this particular setup to somehow expand or swap out something to power one additional module?

i don’t know if this makes a difference but the case is also a niftycase. maybe i can cut out a section of the top of the case and put a tiptop zeus in there?

Would a flying bus cable be an option?
I just got one for my Intellijel Palette (14 modules in a 12 header case!)
Just watch the power consumption, though!

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The thing you’re looking for is a flying bus power cable like this https://www.ctrl-mod.com/products/flying-bus-power-cable. In this case it will replace one slot with 10, but any other brand of flying bus power cable should do also. Something to be aware of is how much power the niftycase can actually supply and how much room you have behind your modules to fit the cable.

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thank you @maztik8r & @Helen

i have actually seen those before but totally forgot

im not sure how to check for consumption but i can probably figure that out

I guess check the power consumptions listed on the Niftycase website against your MG set-up?
Fwiw, I got my cable from Thonk - they’re UK based but will ship elsewhere

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I may be missing some previous context, but answering “why do I need to expand” may be valuable to refine the idea behind the system you’re building. It seems like you have a good plateau to explore here before moving to expansion beyond this skiff.

Your case looks quite capable, just a friendly thought to avoid the consumptive drive of Eurorack.

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i was presupposing that the answer i would get is “dont limit yourself to a beginner case”. but yeah i agree. im already feeling the need to kind of expand because im selling modules that id like to keep just to make space for others. and i really do think to accomplish anything rhythmic, while maintaining the audio processing machine that i initially wanted, i would realistically need at least 6u. at least for what makes building generative polyrhythms exciting to me, and building sounds from fundamentals. things like sequential switches, clock dividers/mults, logic modules, lfos to blend together for sequences, attenuverters, mults, vcas/mixers. i thought i would be set with some all-in-one tools like the o_C. and i do love that module, but even with hemispheres as an option, it would be much more useful if i had like 4 of them in my setup. because the apps i really like (quadraturia, qauntermain, copiermaschine, low rents, piqued, dialectic ping pong) can only run one at a time, which leaves the need for an additional quad lfo source or quad eg, or quantizer, or sequencer, or all of those but one

i do agree, that i like this setup for now because it forces me to eliminate things i may not need. but overall, i think the point of modular is kind of lost on an 84hp limit. you cant really build anything beyond a behringer semimodular without a little more space. once you get 1 vco, one sequencer, one eg, one filter, one vca, and maybe an effect, you’re already out of space. and a lot of the really cool “eurorack-only” devices, which is what drove me to eurorack in the first place, are 20+hp. for instance, i just had to sell the dispersion delay i just got because i only had like 10 hp left, and thats a very dope, but very limited tool. then i wanted to get the moon phase sequential filter, but that’s almost the same size. and i already have a filter that’s 2hp.it would have added functionality, and i think a filter with more advanced features would be an incredibly powerful sound sculpting tool. but it wouldn’t leave me with much space. and i definitely couldn’t keep that and the nlc module

your statement is true for anything gear related, or even daw related (where i’ve gone way overboard and may contribute to this idea that i need access to everything imaginable to avoid limiting my sound design capabilities). but when i think of what would help add to my workflow, its usually a groovebox, some crazy expensive creative tool with newer technology that i dont have access to, or the middle ground, a version or component of that creative tool in a slightly more affordable eurorack format. and if i’m going to make my modular setup anything beyond a scattered set of random audio devices and into something cohesive or something that stands on its own, i may need more space. like if i wanted to make my own groovebox. i find that when i had rings and rene, i didnt really make a sequence on rene with rings, then build on that with my other gear. it didnt really make sense. i could just sample it or use something lse i already have to get those sounds. if i want to really build something unique that works for me, it’s going to be hard with limited space. someone said in another thread, something like “if we wanted straight forward solutions to music making, we wouldn’t be here”

i understand the point though, and that is also how im viewing it for now. i find clarity and presumptive statements to be useful in weeding out the more obvious replies. not being a jerk here, just saying that being more clear usually leads to more clear and helpful responses

edit: ( i guess i should clarify that im waiting for the telharmonic and the modules to the right of it in that modulargrid rack to arrive, so i dont have those yet. just recently sold the other modules to make room)

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Risking to say the unpopular, but I’d advise to get an intellijel or tiptop 6u. And keep the nifty case.
I personally find the duo of “synth case + control/processing case” to be really working for me. And I found that stashing away some modules I don’t use right now to be the best solution. I get bored of every module or the whole system sometimes. And I just swap one of two modules and it feels almost like new system :slight_smile:

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thats a really good idea. i’ve been trying not to spend a bunch of money on gear so at the moment im only using money i get from selling other gear. but i keep thinking about how much i’m going to have to spend on a midi to cv module, power supply, audio out module, and case if i abandon the niftycase. although the michigan synthworks $50 thing seems like it might work for usb midi. the only problem with keeping the niftycase would be that it’s so god damn ugly. but it is practical. i do think something like the tip top would be good.

i kind of like this too

or do what you said, keep the niftycase so i dont have to get a midi to cv module, or an audio out module, and supplement with this baby

i wouldnt really know how to set them up though. i have trouble with the niftycase as it is. if i leave it standing, it moves around way too much, so all patching and most things i do that involve touching anything in the case, requires two hands so it doesnt fall over. laying it flat takes up space, might prop it up with those little laptop feet and see how that goes. i kind of like the 6u cases, they look nice and are efficient with space and playability. or at least thats how it seems to me

good advice though, thank you

i’m sure there are lots of people here who use euro to process a live instrument… what do y’all like to use to process resonant metals?

i’m considering a big shift in my modular to do just this, using a vibraphone. i tend to love minimal/glitchy sounds. where should i start looking?

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If glitchy loop/buffer mangling is on your mind, you can do much worse than a Reflex LiveLoop. A huge stereo buffer, multiple loop modes, loop-pedal trigger support (if I remember correctly), elaborate CV and especially MIDI control, three-band EQ, save states with the optional expansion PCB… SDS Digital in general is fantastic.

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i wonder about things like this too. maybe a phaser. the doepfer 12 stage vactrol phaser looks like a really fun option for audio processing. warps is really good, as mentioned above. maybe the most immediately satisfying hardware effect i’ve ever used. awesome for blending two sources. the qubit data bender looks very glitchy and exciting