Gosh, this is yummy ...

For discussion of the Voltage Modular synthesis ecosystem.
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xuoham
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Gosh, this is yummy ...

Post by xuoham »

Softube's recreation of a Buchla 259e :shock:

https://www.softube.com/buchla259e

Who would make one for VM ?? :mrgreen: Even expensive ... :mrgreen:

:oops:
MRBarton
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Re: Gosh, this is yummy ...

Post by MRBarton »

It was all I could do to restrain myself from replying to this, and as you can see I failed in my restraint. Caution: MRB plugs contained here.

OK, I just listened to over an hour of demos of the hardware and software version of this module and I didn't hear one sound that I've not already heard from the Zersocillator. But rather than rag on the 259e in particular (which I'm sure is a fine module), I will rag on its philosophy.

There are many modules out there that offer a closed (or preselected) ecosystem of routing and modulation which defines what you can get out of it. You mess around in their little predetermined playground where you get to make all the sounds that everyone else is making while you give yourself the illusion that you're a genius of synthesis. To me, this runs contrary to everything the spirit of modular is about. To paraphrase a wonderful episode of The Twilight Zone: "...and the best part is, I sound just like you!"

If you can, try to avoid the "time saving talent button". This term is credited to my friend Will Alexander who used to be Keith Emerson's keyboard tech and roadie. And if you want to travel miles beyond the 259e, just pair up the Zeroscillator with the Vector Processor (for modulation sources) from the Laboratory Bundle. Stereo too! Polyphonic too!
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xuoham
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Re: Gosh, this is yummy ...

Post by xuoham »

Haha, Mark, i KNEW you would chime in and, believe me, after posting this i thought that Zeroscillator could do most of it, in a more "elbow grease" way, (i am a guitarist, hence not so much time to play with VM), as you say, for sure, but definitely possible.

The "how cute" greed in me made me make this post ! :mrgreen:
This module definitely is yummy ! :D

Glad you couldn't restrain.
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xuoham
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Re: Gosh, this is yummy ...

Post by xuoham »

MRBarton wrote: Tue Feb 23, 2021 8:29 pm There are many modules out there that offer a closed (or preselected) ecosystem of routing and modulation which defines what you can get out of it. You mess around in their little predetermined playground where you get to make all the sounds that everyone else is making while you give yourself the illusion that you're a genius of synthesis. To me, this runs contrary to everything the spirit of modular is about.
I get your point, but i am not sure this necessarily leads to sound like everyone else.

MRBarton wrote: Tue Feb 23, 2021 8:29 pm ... many modules out there that offer a closed (or preselected) ecosystem of routing and modulation which defines what you can get out of it. You mess around in their little predetermined playground ....
Much like the MRB laboratory voice :mrgreen: , which is great, especially if expanded within VM.
Sometimes "compact" is not necessarily a bad thing, real estate counts.

This reminds me when you chimed in regarding a modeling module and said that it was doable with Laboratory VCF.
I really liked expanding from the preset you kindly suggested, learned a lot, and i get very cool marimba like sounds.
Thank you for this.
Even aligning 15 Laboratory VCF for three different "modeling" timbres was manageable, but for even more of them, i can see how compact modules could help.

So, if compact, pre-routed, means expansion, isn't it on the contrary in the spirit of modular, which is experimenting ?
MRBarton
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Re: Gosh, this is yummy ...

Post by MRBarton »

So I fell into your little trap, did I? Fair enough. Yes, I am guilty as charged with making a few "all in one" type modules, including Tiny Voice which is the best module in the store, he says shamelessly. What I try not to do is make specialty modules, like a module that makes clangy sounds, or a module that makes drippy sounds, etc. I'm sure you get what I mean. I try to make my stuff as wide ranging in capability as possible and avoid putting fences around it. When I worked with Cynthia Webster on hardware modules, we were always at odds about this. She would say that it was a module's limitations that define it, and I would always fight back against any avoidable limitations. Both schools of thought are actually correct.
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xuoham
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Re: Gosh, this is yummy ...

Post by xuoham »

Interesting talk indeed. :idea:
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