Hi folks,
I've been building out the control portion of my modular rig lately.
For clock / gate / trigs I've basically got this:
I'm wondering what else might play well with these modules? Particularly I'm wondering what your favorite clock/trig/gate modifiers are?
I will add a bit more explanation in a next post.
Thanks!!
Nicholas
Some explanation of above rig:
-- imagine the signal is ultimately going to in rig modules (esp percussion) and / or routed out of the rig via CV Thing / ES modules in lower right. I'm not including any voices in this image above but yes there is plenty for downstream voicing
-- top row above is sources. PNW, Circadian, Trigger Riot give a lot of capability on that end. Followed by 2 comparators to derive gates from CV/audio in my broader rig. A few mults so I can copy any signal for reprocessing / redistribution
-- 2nd row (left) in particular is where I'd love some suggestions. I'm thinking of this as "modifiers" for clock/gate/trig signals. Already we have some Logic, clock divide / multiply units, gate delay, integrator (Bytom) and switches. I'm wondering what else might be great adds?
BTW the above rig is already up and running and it is crazy badass, I love it. I got into modular for complex OSCs like DPO but over time I'm finding the control (CV/gate) possibilities are fantastic. I'll appreciate any suggestions to make this clock/gate/trig setup better, thanks!!
Definitely some "hellz yeah" stuff in there, notably the Bytom and the Malekko Gate Delay. My suggestion would be some "pick-off" modules such as comparators (window comparators, especially), discriminators and the like.
Comparators send a gate out when a given voltage threshold is reached. But window comparators are MUCH more complex, as they support several comparator circuits behind one panel. They're called that because they have two or more thresholds, creating a "window" range between them. The Frederick Haer biomed units I use offer gates on "below bottom threshold", "window" and "over second threshold", in addition to trigger pulses on crossing the thresholds, and you see a few (like Joranalogue's) that work in that same area of complex outputs. Feed 'em something periodic like an LFO, and you'll get repeating gate patterns off of the comparator.
Discriminators are a bit rarer. Ladik has a brilliant one that outputs a gate depending on the movement of CV...rising, falling, steady...and there's also minimum/maximum modules that output the appropriate voltage level between several incoming CVs.
Also, don't neglect inverters here. They're how you get NAND and NOR functions out of typical Boolean gates; some Boolean modules have this already, but when you've got those inverters busy, a couple more can ALSO be of use.
Thanks Lugia, I’ll do some more research on those modules you mentioned.
Not sure if you didn’t see them, I do have Compare2 and Coherence in my lineup (row1 right). But some simpler comparators may make sense to add to those, and/or some discriminators. I don’t own any Ladik stuff yet; several of their gate/logic modules might make good additions.
I’ve also been interested in EMW modules (like their counter) but think those have been unavailable for a while? Pulse Counter and VC Trigger Source stand out as options.
As I think about this more, I find it’s not only a question of “what other modules” but also a question “what important or interesting musical use cases for gate/trig are not covered with the setup above”?
Thanks for your ideas and comments!
Looks good to me! I love the Gate Delay too.
Hemisphere has a dual slope detector applet called Trending (https://github.com/Chysn/O_C-HemisphereSuite/wiki/Trending) that could be super interesting here. It will probably also give you an offset/inverter in another applet but I don't know the suite really well yet.
The deep thought could be interesting too. As of my favourite clock modifier, I'd say something like the Time Wizard: https://www.modulargrid.net/e/shakmat-modular-time-wizard but this is only from watching their intro video.
what important or interesting musical use cases for gate/trig are not covered with the setup above?
I'll talk only about my experience so consider that my racks are probably much smaller, and my music isn't good 😊 My first approach to eurorack was almost exclusively rhythm based. I bought and used extensively most of the modules in your second row. And to me, it resulted in a pretty uninspiring configuration. Note that I didn't have a lot of other modulators to make my sounds interesting, but more generally I don't think rhythmical beauty of a piece comes from that much clock complexity. Most interesting rhythms I found were created by other synthesis methods.
If I remember correctly, this video has been pretty helpful on that matter:
That being said, if I had to produce dance music, play live or just be effective in rhythm patterns and transitions, I think your rack would handle 99% of what I'd want!
Hope it helps 👋
My favorites that aren't already included here are the Noise Engineering Zularic Repetitor for some off-time/"polymetric" gates and the Low Gain Electronics Short Bus v3 for manual control of fills and gate sequence switching between different sound sources. NE also has the interesting but discontinued Confundo Funkitis that I have thought about tracking down.
Very cool, thanks for the comments above guys!
A few module notes I'm compiling from recent investigations (compiled here for my reference and anybody else interested!):
-- Pamela's New Workout (PNW) is SO capable that it may preclude the need for other related modules OR it may make sense to get a 2nd PNW instead of some other modules. For example my Doepfer A160 modules don't do anything a PNW can't do (I think!) and the three of those cost more than a 2nd PNW would; wish I'd figured that out months ago. Anyway, food for thought: the answer to a lot of these types of questions might be "get a PNW or a 2nd PNW if you need that many channels"
-- There are a few brands that carry a lot of relevant modules for this domain: Ladik, EMW, Noise Engineering, and NonLinear Circuits (NLC). A few of these are discussed below:
++Some Ladik modules of interest include J110 Derivator & J120 Comparator for getting gates out of general signal (audio or CV); U-031 Gate to Trigger Converter and S-185 Gatsby Gatemaker for going gate to trigger or trigger to gate; S-195 Microdelay or U-090 Clock/Reset Corrector to give micro-offsets to correct for signals that may be too overlapping (such as when trying to synchronize clock/reset signals needed across multiple devices). S-195 or U-190 I may need if running a big patch with a lot synch'ed; we'll see.
++of EMW modules, Pulse Counter and VC Trigger Source stand out as options
++Noise Engineering has a LOT to offer in this domain, however much of it already overlaps with stuff I already have. Worth checking out though if you have fewer clock/gate modules and are looking for additional interesting pieces
++NLC has quite a lot of interesting modules in this domain https://www.nonlinearcircuits.com/modules?tag=Logic%2FGates If I didn't already have clock dividers / PNW I would consider NLC's. Most interesting to me next from NLC are 8-Bit Cypher and Divine CMOS. But I am waiting on an order placed 2 weeks ago for Squid Axon and Neuron. I'll need to wrap my head around those. Safe to say, if I wanted a bunch more "make a fun mess with gates" capabilities, additional NLC modules would be a likely go to.
++ aside from those main brands with lots to offer in this domain, there are other interesting offerings from ADDAC (their clock), Shakmat, Ornament & Crime (and its variants) and a few others
I'll probably circle back in the next day or two with a few more comments on musical applications (not so module focussed), AND I need to spend more time reviewing the video and comments above. Thanks for all the comments, its a big help!
If we're talking NLC modules, you definitely have to throw the Sloth versions in there if you have a derivator or comparator. Since those values change so slowly, you can use them to make random shifts in the patch's architecture by tracking either their motion or levels. Definitely a must-do!
Any dedicated Euclidean modules? I know PNW can do that. But if we're talking about a case full of trigger/gate equipment, I think I'd want some dedicated modules to free up PNW and to possibly chain a couple of those together to create some interesting patterns.
@Ronin1973, I've thought about dedicated Euclidean modules and here's why I haven't added any yet:
-- Euclidean Circles v2 (ECv2) looks cool-ish to me, but then I think about its cost and pros/cons and I can't logically justify it vs. other options AND I'm not so emotionally into it that I'll just say "f*ck you brain" and buy it anyway
-- yes PNW does Euclidean AND a 2nd PNW (if needed) might be as good or better an option than dedicated Euclidean items due to price (a little less) and function (a lot more)
-- I don't have a full comprehension of Trigger Riot's possibilities yet, but my current understanding is that a lot of what I might want out of a Euclidean module, I could get that or pretty close to that out of TR
-- I do have other "generalist" sequencing (not shown in the rig above) such as Vector+Expansion so lanes from that could do Euclidean well if I wanted to use them, though it might be rather manual programming
-- basically it comes down to I haven't seen a dedicated or specialist Euclidean module that I saw and thought "I need that" or "I really want that"... I nearly did ad ECv2 but then a rare bit of musical sobriety kicked in and I thought "it can wait till later or never"
Am I missing something about how $#@! awesome some particular Euclidean module is?
And on a partially related topic, I've not looked for a ton of "off-metrical-grid" capability either (e.g. doing multiple unrelated time signatures, multiple unrelated subdivisions, random gates etc.) because to the best of my senses, the popular-ish genres I'm interested in cannot tolerate too many musical events off-grid or off-groove; they can tolerate a little of that but not a ton. This hits what @Gorilla was saying above about "not too much clock complexity."
Anyways, interesting question / suggestion @Ronin1973. If I'm missing the point on Euclidean, or random, or very complex rhythmic systems, I'd be pleased to be better informed on the topic.
Fractio Solumn by Noise Engineering is maybe not my favorite but it makes all the other ones shine. It is a clock divider and multiplier that does mainly fractions, think three in gives four out or why not five in and seven outs. It becomes King Crimson playing batucada very quickly.
@oilpanic thanks for the mention of Fractio Solumn. That was one I amlost bought a couple times but then thought "can't I do that with my PNW?" Maybe most of the Fractio's functions can be replicated with PNW, BUT Fractio's immediacy (vs. PNW's menu dives) certainly argue for it IMO. Anyways it's a great mention, and maybe a module meriting addition to the setup above owing to its immediacy and musicality. I'll certainly keep it in mind.
