I have owned a Moog Mother-32 controller since it was released back in 2015. It has become an integral part of my setup now. I have also bought the MOOG DFAM which is part of the same series. MOOG recently released information about the new commercial version of the MOOG Subharmonicon, which is super exciting. Before that, however, they released a new firmware update for the mother-32. a synth that has existed for 5 years. I was amazed to learn how a lot of features had been added both in terms of things you would not have been able to do before, and also features fixing various things like stopping the embedded sequencer from playing when hooked up to an external sequencer.
As much as I really love these instruments I also must admit that when I successfully downloaded the new firmware update I had no idea how to access any of the new features. Where could I go learn about these new features that my instrument was now capable of?
This is why I am creating this thread. I hope that there are others like me who recently upgraded to the new firmware 2.0 and who want to share experiences trying out these new features. I would also like this place to be about sharing cool patches and videos of playing with these types of machines.
I literally screamed out loud when I saw this in the update notes. I’d been “putting up” with it since pretty much release. I was so close to selling it mainly for this reason. Now it’s a real keeper.
With the update zip came a nice PDF that goes over the changes. Like an addendum to the manual (which afaik has not been updated).
Right yea this manual. sure I will have to check this out!
I just saw this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qsTkcL0U3XU. like all of the other videos on the new firmware update, it is all about the same new features. like oh here is the new sequencer modes etc. but they never just make a video on the whole thing. I get there is a lot to cover but i feel like the crowd they have for this very specific thing would be interested no matter what
True I feel the same way. I also updated like a week ago but i havent used the new features that much. I guess I have to get use to the fact that I can use it in more ways.
another thing I kept thinking about after i updated was, if you can load a new firmware update on the moog through midi, would you then potentially be able to make your own SysEx files and add your own features to it?
This video was amazing, did any of you see it?
Do any of you use a patch library like https://mother32.earthcontrol.de/ to save your patches or use it for inspiration and modify it?
I bought two of the first run Mother-32s and the live MIDI pitch bend never worked on them. Oh well. The 2.0 firmware update fixes that, it’s amazing. Another fun thing is that the clocks are now controllable much better. The clock division makes more sense to me now.
On top of this, while I fixed the infamous “sequencer always starts/stops on MIDI start/stop” with a filtering MIDI splitter, thanks to the 2.0 firmware update I could rearrange my MIDI setup in the home studio, putting the splitter front and center, removing some MIDI THRU use and I no longer have to filter MIDI in hardware, allowing for easier SysEx use across my little fleet. This turned out helpful for configuring the Subharmonicon. Another win!
Finally, there are still two features that I asked for and hope to still see in a future update: ability to upload sequences to the device with SysEx, and legato glide. Both features would maximize the potential of the Mother-32 for live use.
It would be pretty awesome to have a mode for CV-addressable patterns within the current bank, too, as a sort of metasequencer. I guess that doesn’t really fit with the “Tempo” input the way that the other modes do, but…I still want it.
Played around with this last night - it is indeed pretty fun and I’m sure there are more creative ways to use than I came up with.
One thing: my M32 does not willingly go into setup mode without several tries. Same for getting out of it. Many times, I just power cycled the unit to get out. Anyone else experience this?
One thing: my M32 does not willingly go into setup mode without several tries. Same for getting out of it. Many times, I just power cycled the unit to get out. Anyone else experience this?
If you are like me, you are not pressing RESET/ACCENT hard enough. My trick to get it right is to do this as an arpeggio (just keep holding what you pressed already): SHIFT then RESET/ACCENT then SET END then 8. The entire chord takes like 0.5s. Press pretty firmly.
It’s very cool they added this mode. I loved this feature in the Sputnik 5-step sequencer and I had emailed Moog about adding it a while back. Sadly I don’t have my Mother anymore… Playing wavetable LFOs into this a really interesting way to get unique repeating patterns. I do a similar thing with an A-152 these days.
I’m trying to clock the M32 from its own square wave LFO so I can achieve some polyrhythmic sequences using the filter and envelopes. Problem is that the M32 doesn’t seem to recognize its own square wave as being an appropriate clock signal.
I have the M32 in Analog Clock 2.0 mode and mult’d the clock on its own mult. The sequencer sees the clock but advances 2 steps instead of just one. I can divide the clock, change the PPQN, speed up the LFO, slow it down - still, 2 steps per click. The Single Clock Advance mode works fine. Anyone else experiencing this?
I checked to make sure Swing was off too. I can of course just clock it through MIDI but I’d like to sync up the LFO if its possible and I think this is the only way.
After putting it off for many months, finally got around to busting out the ol MIDI cable and doing the update on my 2 M32s.
Initial impression…WOW.
I think my first go at it has been my first time REALLY HAVING FUN with the sequencer on these!
Yeah, it’s still pretty basic. But it felt very limiting before and now it feels much more collaborative. Really enjoyed the retrograde playback.
Oddly enough, I just ordered a Winter Modular Eloquencer and a Pamela’s New Workout to REALLY bring my Moog stuff up a notch or 5. But this update is WELL worth the time if anyone else has been putting it off.
Watched the Patricia video at Moog using the Eloquencer and that was all it took to sell me. Looks like it should speed up the sequencing input process about 200% in no time. I look forward to going in a total opposite direction with them as well.
I did a search here and didn’t find a topic dedicated to the Moog semii-modular boxes. If I missed please collapse this into it.
Here’s a general topic for them.
I’ll start with a question: Anyone know what kind of power/audio cables are on the inside?
I’d like to mount mine in their cases upside down because of how I am arranging a workspace but I don’t know the part name to search for a longer replacement.
I am helping a collaborator think about getting a bit deeper into modular. He’s got a Mother 32 and an Arturia Microbrute, as well as Ableton, a small external Mackie mixer, and a bunch of guitar pedals.
Mostly I’m wondering what folks have liked as modules to complement a Mother 32. He’s particularly interested in sample manipulation.
While we’re at it, any suggestions for small and relatively inexpensive cases. He’s a decent woodworker, if that helps…
I have both DFAM and M32 which led to a full modular rig. I can share my use case for sample work. I have phonogene and Morphagene. For mother 32, I have loved throwing soft notes into MG with gentle attack and decay. Turn up morph knob and get the pitch shifted grains in stereo run through a delay to get lovely texture beds. Combine that texture bed with a punchy M32 bass line and you are off! Side chain the bass line and texture bed to get the sounds interacting further with something like an Optomix. Endless paths really. The phonogene in broken echo mode pairs nice with a sequence coming through the M32, giving it organic glitches and and delay lines with tone qualities that stand up to the fat moog oscillators. But the DFAM is my real favorite for pairing with those sample modules. Use pitch and velocity out to modular slide and grain size on preloaded samples and you get this highly musical synced modulation that feels married to the beat from DFAM. The moog semi-Modular’s are very intuitive and stable core pieces of kit that my modular can then mess with. Check out sylvan Esso backstage patch videos from @madeofoak as he carried a cv bus case on tour with a mother 32 supported by lots of sampling modules. Might spur some ideas. Happy patching.
