Your Favorite Opinionated Modules?

Hey everyone! Over the last year, my interest in Eurorack has very much changed from preferring unopinionated designs to being much more inspired by the opposite.

With unopinionated designs, I refer to modules that perform their function 'to spec' with the parameters you'd expect to have available (Think Doepfer).

With opinionated designs, I refer to modules where the functionality follows a certain vision of the designer, maybe hiding some parameters, focusing heavily on a subset, or even exposing parameters that you would never consider for that type of module (Think Make Noise).

With that said, I wanted to ask: What are your favorite opinionated modules? What modules change the way you approach your system?

For me, it's Nonlinear Circuits by a landslide. Many of Andrew's designs can be operated within a certain range to perform the way you'd expect, but are completely wild once you leave that territory. Sometimes, this is to the point that you might not even recognize what underlying principal or function they're based on. Some of his modules are tamer than others until you push them, but those seem to be far outnumbered by the absolutely buck wild ones.

EDITED May 13th 2023, 23:09

If I understand what you mean by 'opinionated design', Data Bender seems to fit. It is a module that can be very soft or very hard, but its opinions are always very personal :)

Have you checked out Error Instruments? I've got his Tele Blender (red version) and I'm still trying to figure out what it is supposed to be precisely.

Would some granular stuff fit this 'category'? I have MISO Cornflakes and yes it does things you would expect, but you can get into some pretty wild territory with it too...probably the same for other granular modules.

The SOMA lyra effects??

Would some granular stuff fit this 'category'? I have MISO Cornflakes and yes it does things you would expect, but you can get into some pretty wild territory with it too...probably the same for other granular modules.

-- jb61264

Speaking of Granular, and if I'm understanding renken correctly, I think a good comparison might be Morphagene and ADDAC112. They are both Granular modules but they feel very different. The ADDAC is like a supercomputer, it looks and feels analytical, it has a lot more functions and options for CV control, but that also means it can be harder to use. You can get lost with too many options and too many controls. Morphagene feels more like an "instrument" if that makes any sense. It's like some of the decisions you have to make with the ADDAC112 are already made for you by the Morphagene. It is not as capable but it is easier to "play". The ADDAC is a totally blank slate, the Morphagene carries with it some of the designer's artistic vision. And frankly I love them both.

I have had very little opportunity to play with them but right now the "opinionated" modules that interest me the most are from Bizarre Jezabel.

Currently I don't honestly own any "opinionated" hardware unless you count the Moog Mavis. However, I did buy a Poly Beebo just to use the Marbles port on my samplers/synths, and I also use it a lot in VCV Rack. Despite all the options available with computers and other modules, Marbles is just a nice, simple, organized, yet highly distinct way to randomize stuff gently or intensely, and I'm not sick of it it.

EDITED Dec 15th 2023, 18:08

My best Answer to this is Grone 2 by Maneco Labs. It always just leaves this subtle texture in the background. None of the CV ins and outs seem to act predictably. It always leaves me with the eary background vibe I want though.

Second to that, I would say Moskwa 2 if it counts as opinionated. Such a fun way to make sequences, and havent seen much else like it.

I would say Noise Engineering, Doepfer and Intellijel since they have a clean approach with lots of creative modulation options and easy to learn functions and great support. As much as I love Make Noise, the challenge with Make Noise is their quirky labels and functions that do multiple things at once.

With that said, I wanted to ask: What are your favorite opinionated modules? What modules change the way you approach your system?
-- renken

At the moment definitely Just Friends, by Mannequins/Whimsical Raps. Phonogene has a lot of personality as well.

Instruo's modules.

I guess they're not so much 'opinionated' as as 'feature rich' though. Their circuits get pretty damn creative, which I suppose is a form of opinion.

Carn (mixer/vca) might be the least fun to talk about, but practically useful examples. There is a small switch on the back to dis/engage a limiter (soft-clipper) across the outputs. When engaged it offers 'auto-mixing' relative to disengaged as it'll tuck things in as they hit the limit. Ofc you may not want this for plenty of reasons, so they let you turn it off, but new modules come with it engaged seems the be opinion. This, to me, is best of both worlds. ability to make a decision, while also turning it off. Other opinions are the layout of the panel/s themselves. In Carn's case, each channel works subtlety (or not so subtlety) different than the others. This may be considered flexibility, more so than opinion tho... which comes at a cost of course, both financially and of brain power

EDITED Aug 24th, 13:37