Recently got a WMD Aperture Variable Width Bandpass Filter and love it. I get why people fall in love with filter modules now. Anyone else fallen in love with the Aperture? What is your favorite filter?
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Sisters is my go to filter these days. The sound shaping possibilities are great and combined with Cold Mac you can dive even deeper(@shellfritsch shared a great DJ-style patch in the Cold Mac Ideas thread)
I’m also keen on the simpler filters like the Doepfer Wasp and SEM filters.
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A simple/cheapish one, but: I’m very fond of the Humpback - a SEM-style 12db/oct multimode filter, DIY from Thonk. It is particularly entertaining when its Resonance control is pushed high - the feedback can be set super-high and it distorts in exciting ways. I rather enjoy feeding Rings into it, and noise into one of the CV inputs, and letting chaos break out.
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It’s actually 8hp (at least the one I built was). This was my first synth diy project and was a lot of fun!
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doh, I meant db/oct. Should have just said “2-pole”.
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Just got a Xaoc Belgrad. Sounds amazing self oscillating. I like to use Rings as a kind of filter. Send the A and B outputs from uScale to two oscillators, mix together the outputs, and send the mix through Rings set to the “polyphonic” mode, twist frequency knob… 
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Only own Ripples but love it.
Sounds awesome and the built in VCA is handy for my small system
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I like my Three Sisters, but lately the Xaoc Belgrad has been catching my eye.
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Didn’t think I’d ever want a Make Noise MMG since I’m not interested in making acid basslines and percussive sounds, but I’ve finally realized that it could still be useful for the more droning, ambient applications I have in mind. Hopefully Make Noise will come up with a worthy replacement for it in the near future…
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Three Sisters and Belgrad all the way. I have an MMG too and I’m not exactly in love with it. Might sell it soon. Curious about the Erica Synths Fusion VCF. I really want some tube magic in my case!
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i’ve seriously considered a 3x3sis tiny rack.
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I demoed a lot of filters before ending up with a 3Sisters and a Synth Tech E440. I really want a second Sisters so I can cross-patch. It’s an incredible module. Until you try one you can’t appreciate the psychoacoustic effects it generates.
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Another rec for Three Sisters and the Harvestman Polivoks. I also really enjoy the Koma SVF-201; I had it in my isms case for a long time even though it needed standoffs because it’s just slightly too deep.
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I really like the Rossum Evolution variable slope ladder filter, the way the resonance and the distortion work with/against each other is super musical to my ears.
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I am not a big fan of subtractive synthesis in modular, but:
Three Sisters: it is AMAZING at filter FM; the control over the bandpass width or something about its resonance or… I don’t know what exactly the magic is, but it is magic. Also nice for triple sines, self-patching craziness, or creating psuedo-stereo or mid/side from a mono signal (including with the FM).
Cinnamon: I feel like it’s better for basic subtractive filtering stuff than Sisters maybe. The extra distortion switches don’t really grab me though.
Every once in a while I think about a Polivoks style filter, I’m just not sure I’d actually use it despite liking the sound in theory.
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my fav filters are the doepfer a102 and the og pitts filter (both of which i have owned twice now.) the 102 + a piston honda mk1 waveshaper combo is my jam.
another one, sorta, that no one really talks about is rings in its easter egg formant mode. love that thing so much for set it and forget it woody sounds with sine waves.
runners up: wmd/ssf mmf (lots o junk in a small space) and harvestman polivoks (so many weird sweet spots)
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totally would get into this
Love the Three Sisters filter - very versatile. Sometimes it’s hard to decide if I want to use it as a filter or sound source. Self patching can get crazy too, as with most Mannequins stuff.
The Pittsburgh Modular filter (v2) is my other filter. There’s some quirky things it can do with the oscillator mode, depending on what you put into it and how high the resonance is. It also has an odd vca-like feature that I’m still trying to figure out how to use. Talked to Richard from Pgh Modular and he said that Lifeforms Binary is similar, but lacks that gain of 1(vca-ish) mode and doesn’t scream quite as much in the Oscillator mode (unstable).
I’ve also had a Pittsburgh LPG/filter which was nice, but wasn’t indispensable in my rig. I kind of miss that one though.
Filters that I’ve considered trying in the future: Xaoc Belgrad (lotta hp though), Grendel Formant filter, MI Ripples.
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Rings and Elements are fantastic filters (Elements is a bit large for just that application) and underrated if discussed at all as this kind of timbral shaper.
i always rep Bastl Cinnamon in these discussions, can be mild or very nasty. it’s very straightforward but also 5hp.
i keep my old MFB Microzwerg around for a lot of reasons and the dual multimode filter is totally my kind of sauce. very close to an MS20 but also does BP and notch
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I really love the harvestman polivoks vcf. smol soviet bb.
do polivoks filters from other manufacturers sound/behave notably different?