How to make the Korg Minilogue sound warmer ?

[Dextroze]

Hello guys,

 

I have a Minilogue, and sometimes I feel like the sound could be warmer. I bought sometime ago a delay and reverb pedal, I'm very happy about them.

But what pedal could I buy in order to warm the sound of the Minilogue ?

I'm a newbie in the world of synths

Thanks for your help

[Markyboard]

Meh - I think you'll end up spending money and convincing yourself it sounds "warmer"...until you realize maybe not. My advice is always use a synth to its strengths and don't try to make it something it's not. If it's got an aggressive/harsh tone then let it rip. If it lacks balls then use it for soft breathy sounds and such. If you need something it's not good at use something else.

 

Having said that I don't know if you're a programmer or not. That minilogue may have just what you're after under the hood- you just need to get your hands dirty . Or find someone that can help you.

[Tusker]

Agreed with Marky 1000%.

 

There's a handful of things you might try, but you will hit diminishing returns very soon, and it will begin to grate against the coolness of the Korg's simple form factor.

 

1) Run some noise into the audio in.

2) Run a sine wave into the audio in (or combine noise with sine) to buttress the fundamental

3) Try some low level FM, and keep the filter pretty closed

4) Make sure you've explored the waveform variations which don't have a lot of harmonics. Try stacking mellow oscillators an octave or two apart. (detune anyway with closed filter as above)

5) Try the Ring modulator with oscillator at fifths and fourths, then detune slightly. (closed filter)

6) In general, try making some sounds with more pitch modulation and filter modulation than you normally would. Then close the filter a bit more than you normally would.

7) Try running the headphone out back into the audio in (the old minimoog trick) not sure if it will work the same way but probably worth a try.

 

Good Luck!

[Markyboard]

7) Try running the headphone out back into the audio in (the old minimoog trick) not sure if it will work the same way but probably worth a try.

 

Be careful of this and that Korg approves it. I think I just fried my Voyager this morning doing the same even though I was aware of the potential "short" comings. I was guessing that I had the modified resistor value in the headphone circuit but my now intermittent audio tells me differently. Oh well - off to the parts store.

 

Btw I'm blaming this one on you davedoerfler.

 

[AnotherScott]

Maybe some useful info here...

 

https://forums.musicplayer.com/ubbthreads.php/topics/2476903/Electro_Harmonix_Stereo_Tube_P

[Doerfler]

Btw I'm blaming this one on you davedoerfler.

 

Um, OK. :idk

 

So, which of the following is/are true:

 

A: Beware of Geeks bearing gifts.

B: The road to hell is paved with good intentions

C: Both A and B

 

Now, back to warming up Dexter's Minilogue. Carry on.

[ElmerJFudd]

Internally there isnt much to work with - but you can take favorite patches and tweak down the cutoff and or resonance settings to hide some of what you may be perceiving as brittle frequencies. If you really want to try a pedal or two an analog filter like the Waldorf 2-Pole or the Analog Solutions Mr. Hyde might help and also offer some fun mangling. You could get into tube preamps but on the other hand you may just prefer a different synth.

[Doerfler]

what pedal could I buy in order to warm the sound of the Minilogue ?

The Moog Moogerfooger Low Pass Filter (MF-101) might be a great option for you here. They are now discontinued though and are starting to get a bit pricy.

 

Description here : http://www.vintagesynth.com/misc/mf101.php

[Tusker]

7) Try running the headphone out back into the audio in (the old minimoog trick) not sure if it will work the same way but probably worth a try.

 

Be careful of this and that Korg approves it.

 

Yikes! Yes! Thank you Mark for catching my omission. It's completely possible to overload the inputs with a feedback loop. I've got used to making these types of connections and cheerily recommend them when I probably shouldn't without dire warnings.

 

Do check with Korg. See if others are doing it. If/when you do it, you should probably begin by patching through an external mixer first to control levels. Once you are comfortable and are beginning to design patches, begin with oscillator volumes at zero, until you (possibly) get to the slightly overdriven quality you are looking for. Of course it could damage your lovely synth so ....

[RABid]

Tube preamp.

[MAJUSCULE]

I was gonna say either tubes, or maybe a Tall & Fat (which I haven't tried myself).

[Markyboard]

Btw I'm blaming this one on you davedoerfler.

 

Um, OK. :idk

 

So, which of the following is/are true:

 

A: Beware of Geeks bearing gifts.

B: The road to hell is paved with good intentions

C: Both A and B

 

 

D: Geek bearing gift with good intentions motivated me to internally hard-wire the Headphone Output to the External Input - properly.

[mate stubb]

Layer it with a Boog. By the time you buy a pedal or two...

[analogika]

Add a Moog.

[David Emm]

Tube preamp.

Probably this, although each person has their own idea of what "warm" means. Either you need to process the output externally with the hardware fuzzbox/EQ/whatever of your choice or dig into the Korg itself. The -logue line models all offer major lushness if you want it, so I'd advise starting out by editing in the box. You may find a filter/effect combo that you can tweeze at will for that warmth where it feels lacking. Give this editor a look and consider doing some woodshedding with it. One of my earliest epiphanies came when I realized how much I could synthesize before adding any effects at all and you're already ahead in that department. It never hurts to have a handle on the second/third/fourth layers of options under a synth's panel.

 

Minilogue editor

 

[Doerfler]

Tube preamp.

Probably this, although each person has their own idea of what "warm" means.

In addition, any decent tube pre amp would cost more than the Minilogue itself.

 

Hey Dexter, have you seen this video? Daniel Fisher gets more out of a synth than most people. See if there is anything here that can help you.

[video:youtube]

[J. Dan]

[Ledbetter]

Use an analog delay and analog reverb. Cheers.

[KenElevenShadows]

You're probably not referring to recording, but if you were, a great if admittedly time-consuming way to do this is to record it on to a cassette multi-track or other analog multi-track tape and then fly it back in. It will make all but the most brittle digital synth sound blatantly analog. You can blend it in with the old one to taste, or simply use the new one.

 

But since it's doubtful you meant that, perhaps some sort of tape emulation device and some well-placed notch EQ.

[JB Sherry]

Those under $100 tube pres with the starved-plate design arent going to get you what you want. Someone suggested an expensive MoogetFooget low-pass, but for less then half that you can buy a Behringer Model D and use the Ext Input. Now, I know that the Model D doesnt get you what the MoogerFooger does.

 

1. The MF filter may be based on a Moog Modular design or its own thing, rather than a D-style filter

2. I believe the MF has an envelope follower built-in, which the D doesnt have.

 

That said, I think you could get a eurorack Envelope Follower Module to use with the BD. And you could also just use the D for some things and Minilogue for other things.

 

 

[Doerfler]

Those under $100 tube pres with the starved-plate design arent going to get you what you want.

100% correct.

Someone suggested an expensive MoogetFooget low-pass, but for less then half that you can buy a Behringer Model D and use the Ext Input. Now, I know that the Model D doesnt get you what the MoogerFooger does.

 

1. The MF filter may be based on a Moog Modular design or its own thing, rather than a D-style filter

2. I believe the MF has an envelope follower built-in, which the D doesnt have.

 

also correct. The Boog was mentioned earlier in the thread as a solution.

 

 

[Dextroze]

Hello guys,

 

That's a real treat to read all your answers.

I've checked into all of your advices and the first thing true : I don't know my minilogue enough.

I'll practice it until I can really say, this are the limitations of the sound the Minilogue as in terms of warmnmess, if I want more, either buy a good Chorus pedal (I have TC electronics reverb and delay which are very good !), and either buy a Moog or a DSI to supplement (I think I really like the rev2, even if i'd prefer a Moog One but to damn expensive).

Thank you really for your objectivity and your sincerity

 

 

[Spider76]

The Moog Moogerfooger Low Pass Filter (MF-101) might be a great option for you here. They are now discontinued though and are starting to get a bit pricy.

 

An even cheaper and user-friendly option is the Moog Minifooger (MF) Drive pedal.

You get an analog overdrive, together with a Moog ladder filter with resonance and boost.

Great value for money, and incidentally it sounds amazing.

 

It's one of the most used pieces of gear in my rig, I connect it more or less to anything and it never fails to deliver.

[Rusty Mike]

The Moog Moogerfooger Low Pass Filter (MF-101) might be a great option for you here. They are now discontinued though and are starting to get a bit pricy.

 

An even cheaper and user-friendly option is the Moog Minifooger (MF) Drive pedal.

You get an analog overdrive, together with a Moog ladder filter with resonance and boost.

Great value for money, and incidentally it sounds amazing.

 

It's one of the most used pieces of gear in my rig, I connect it more or less to anything and it never fails to deliver.

 

Agreed. It does a great job of warming and fattening up your synth. I use mine on the synth output of my Nord Stage.

 

Sweetwater did a pedal comparison video some time back. It was more about distortion pedals, but the MF Drive simply stood out.