- "I see people constantly asking what they need for their rack and I don't really relate to that very well because to me you should just start with enough to make some noise and then when you want to do or try something but can't, that'll inform what you want/need real quick."
Yes, ^this exactly.
Yes, very true. I started out thinking it'd be nice to get some analog tunes going with some noise added for percussion. Think the SID of the Commodore 64. That very quickly changed when I started using it and I added a Rample for sampled drums. I expanded based on what I needed after that. When somebody asks advice about their rack and "what to add next", it's more an opportunity to exchange ideas and options. With modular, nothing is set in stone anyway.
-"the point is not to use it all at once - it's like having a bunch of guitars/pedals, it just gives you more options"
I'm guilty of over-patching in an attempt to "use everything" but that's more an attempt at "learning" through trial and error than a "music production" aesthetic....and after my first few months of patching I've come around to the "less is sometimes more" aspect of not patching the kitchen sink each and every time.
Depends on what you have. If you have 1 oscillator and 20 effects, yeah, you'd probably not want to use it all at once. However, I have more voices than effects, so I end up using all my effects almost all of the times, but not using all my voices. I try to make full tracks, my synth is not an accompaniment to a band or something like that. So I go as much all-out as I need to go to get the result I want.
-"I did have a strong vision for my music, I think that's what a lot of people are missing and maybe what makes the journey more confusing for a lot of people."
And this is key. Modular is a major distraction from music-making, IF you don't know how to funnel your energies in order to harness the tools at your disposal.
-- Jukeshoe
Yes, modular can be very distracting very quickly. I found DAW to be even worse, actually, as it's all right there available on the same screen. With modular, when I'm patching the synth and building tracks, I'm undistracted by anything that is not right there.