2019 a year in gear (what have you/are you bought/buying?)

[justin3am]

- Trading my DPO for (probably) a Hertz Donut mk3 (turns out I really prefer thru-zero FM!)
- Trading Rainmaker, Erbe-Verb and Doepfer BBD for a Qu-Bit Prism and 4ms SMR (dialing back some of the overkill and redunancy, but also trying something new)

Funny, I just got a Hertz Donut mk3 (it currently lives in the space which was previously occupied by the venerable HD mk1, but I cannot bring myself to let it go) and a QuBit Prism, last weekend.

The HDmk3 has thus far exceeded my expectations in a lot of ways. I though that I would be left cold by it's cleaner character but I find that it just results in damaged sounds that are more detailed! The HDmk1 didn't respond well to FM feedback but the HDmk3 responds very well. It smoothly transitions from perturbed to completely bonkers, as you increase the Mo index, if you have the Main osc routed back on itself via the external mod bus. The Phase Distortion, Umbrage and Resonance wave shaping parameters are pretty different from the Discontinuity parameter on the HDmk1 (make sense being that the HDmk3 is focused on PD where I remember Scott saying that the HDmk1 was influenced in equal parts by the 259e and Nord Lead oscillator section). It seems like Umbrage is similar to the effect of Discontinunity when using the Triangle shape but I really liked the way that Discontinuity worked on the Sine wave. Still, I think the HDmk3 is on it's way to be a staple in my rig.

The QuBit Prism is neat as an end of chain effect but it already bothers me that I can't get a wet only signal from the delay. It will probably be replaced by a Mimeophon in the not too distant future. The filter sounds good and it's great as a resonator/comb filter. so I may end up keeping it.
This is my current stereo signal processing case:


@Foosnark...
I can also talk about MOK's Waverazor module which I've been testing for a bit, now. It's a real beast of a digital oscillator. It can also be neat for processing other oscillators. It has Thru-Zero FM and all matters of sync and pulse width modulation type sounds, on lock. It's very deep, allowing for the creation of custom wave sequences with up to 8 steps, which can be synced to an external clock. Since it's two independent oscillators, you can set it up like a complex oscillator, with the help of an external VCA or two. I had a lot of fun with the Waverazor plug-in but the module takes the concept to (what I believe is) it's logical conclusion. It's really cool how individual wave slices and be tuned and manipulated in different ways and the multi-sync function gets really brutal. Definitely recommended!

[vurt]

re the wet only, i tend to use it like a send rather than insert for that reason.
which is also cool for the stuttering, bringing that in and out

[justin3am]

Great choice, I'm envious.

I saw that you just got a Krome EX. Great minds think alike!
I like Korg workstations for the Karma stuff but I haven't spent much time with since the old Tritons and the original Karma. After looking at a few other pictures, it looks like the Kronos X is in pretty poor cosmetic condition, but I don't care much as long as it's still in good working condition. I'll be going to check it out this weekend.

[justin3am]

re the wet only, i tend to use it like a send rather than insert for that reason.
which is also cool for the stuttering, bringing that in and out

I can see that, since the "dry" signal is still being filtered and bit crushed. Still, I wish there were independent wet/dry and feedback controls.
But it's not like there is a shortage of delays in my rig.

[vurt]

yeah, theres plenty of options
im in "not too long till granddaughter is born" mode so holding off spending atm.
but am considering, additional rack space and a nebulae to add to the ever growing "list"

[foosnark]

The HDmk3 has thus far exceeded my expectations in a lot of ways. I though that I would be left cold by it's cleaner character but I find that it just results in damaged sounds that are more detailed!

The HDmk2 was definitely in the running for my favorite oscillator. I foolishly let it go when I got the ER-301, just because the ER-301 does TZFM so well... but I missed it. I got a DPO instead, but it turns out I'm just not as in love with the DPO as much as the Donut.

HDmk3 intrigues me because of the phase distortion stuff, and also the unison. I thought at first it might not be as flexible as the mk2's classic Buchla 259-ish architecture, but since going through the tutorial video and manual I think it's probably more flexible. I'm still a little concerned it won't feel as hands-on and immediate as the mk2 did, but the concerns are starting to melt a bit.

The QuBit Prism is neat as an end of chain effect but it already bothers me that I can get a wet only signal from the delay.

Hmm, I hadn't considered that. My thought is: it'd be nice to have a relatively simple and immediate delay again, one that's flexible enough to tempo sync or go to comb filter rates, and having the multimode filter and bitcrushing built in is a nice extra (it'd replace what I use the Doepfer BBD for). This is, again, all stuff that the ER-301 can do well but sometimes I just want a separate, hands-on module. I should probably consider other alternatives too though.

I see you've got a T-Rackonizer -- I was kind of considering that too. Lack of CV control over the two parameters seems like a serious downside though.

I had a lot of fun with the Waverazor plug-in but the module takes the concept to (what I believe is) it's logical conclusion.

That was the impression I had when the plugin first came out: it'd likely be a killer Eurorack VCO, especially with some simplification, but as a partially complete VST plugin where it was difficult to dial in the sweet spots, not so much.

[justin3am]

I see you've got a T-Rackonizer -- I was kind of considering that too. Lack of CV control over the two parameters seems like a serious downside though.

I thought that would be the case too but I've found it very useful. Sometimes I wish I could modulate the delay or the PPL algorithms but the sweet-spots on the T-rackonizer are so narrow, I'm not sure it really benefits from CV control. When you hit a sweet-spot, it does some really cool stuff and I just tend to let it do it's thing. It's fun to FM the filters with it's own outputs though.

[foosnark]

It will probably be replaced by a Mimeophon in the not too distant future.

Now that I pay attention to the Mimeophon: The features read just like a wish list of "the perfect delay" that I wrote a few months ago, but through the Make Noise lens.

So, yeah, that's probably the one. hold on a minute

[foosnark]

I've got a 4ms SMR arriving Saturday, and sold my Volca Modular and Rainmaker so far.

I sat up with insomnia, thinking things over... and realized I've been avoiding my ER-301 and wanting modules that I tried to replace with it. It was fun to explore at first and I taught myself some stuff about FM and wavefolding with it, and gained an appreciation for additive/harmonic oscillators in modular. But in the last 9 songs I recorded, I used it only once and just as a noise source.

So I figure I should be like Elsa and let it go, to be replaced by:

- TZFM complex oscillator: Hertz Donut mk3, and in the unlikely event I don't love it, trade that for a mk2.

- wavefolder: Bastl Timber, which IMHO sounds great, also can do non-foldy or minimally-foldy drive, etc.

- delay: Prism. The simplicity appeals to me and a used one costs half of a new Mimeophon. I'm also a little concerned some of the Mimeophon's tricks could become easily recognizable cliches.

- additive oscillator: SMR should serve me pretty well I think. If I hate it, I could go for a Verbos Harmonic Oscillator or Xaoc Odessa instead, or even just put Stages in Ouroboros mode.

- compressor/limiter for maintaining levels in a feedback loop: I need to research Euro compressors, but previously I either used Maths & a VCA, or Dynamo & a VCA.

- random utility stuff: just keep my uO_C instead of selling it. I don't often need a quantizer or to extract gates from weird LFO shapes, but it'll do the job and stay out of the way otherwise.

[Distorted Horizon]

yeah, theres plenty of options
im in "not too long till granddaughter is born" mode so holding off spending atm.
but am considering, additional rack space and a nebulae to add to the ever growing "list"

U 60 yo?

[vurt]

yeah, theres plenty of options
im in "not too long till granddaughter is born" mode so holding off spending atm.
but am considering, additional rack space and a nebulae to add to the ever growing "list"

U 60 yo?

no, 29, why?

[Distorted Horizon]

yeah, theres plenty of options
im in "not too long till granddaughter is born" mode so holding off spending atm.
but am considering, additional rack space and a nebulae to add to the ever growing "list"

U 60 yo?

no, 29, why?

Nah u 60 u gramps

[vurt]

i bloody feel it some days
but im 45, according to the receipt.

[foosnark]

Changes so fast, my hex driver and my PayPal account are both on fire. Since my workday started, I

- bought a Qu-Bit Prism
- traded my ER-301 for a Bastl Dynamo, a Delta Sound Labs Origami, a T-Rackonizer and $$$
- spent that $$$ on a Hertz Donut mk3

[cptgone]

Costs ramp up quickly in hardware-land. Pedalboards, cables, power supplies, furniture, strings... and i/o.

A few inputs short, I just ordered a new Focusrite audio interface. A nice bonus: I no longer need Firewire, if I ever have to get a new computer I won't have to worry about migrating my PCI card.
The new setup will afford me 16 inputs, of which I'll use 15.
If and when the Behringer Prophets and 808 materialize I'll have another choice to make (retire some Volca? spend lots more for just 2 more inputs? drill extra holes in the Focusrite?)