Does Anyone Here Play with Modular Synth Software? (Cherry Voltage, Arturia, etc.)

[Anderton]

Just wondering. No doubt it's a good way to learn about synthesis, but if you know the nuts and bolts of synthesizers, is modular synth software still appealing?

[KenElevenShadows]

Sort of. Korg MS-20, which is a patchbay synth. Well, maybe that doesn't count, but it's somewhat closer.

 

I really don't have much of an idea of what to do regarding modular synthesis, to be perfectly up front. I keep forgetting some of the very basic principles and such, but obviously, I don't have any issues replicating a lot of the sounds or making weird sounds nonetheless!!  

 

[Mike Kent]

I own Moog System 15 and Roland System-100 software synths. I used to own the original hardware System 15 and System-100 for 20+ years. I appreciate having software versions, but mostly out of nostalgia, at a fraction of the price.  The Moog System 15 and Roland System-100 are emulations of synths that sound beautiful but are somewhat limited as compared to larger system or particularly to the more widely variable eurorack modular available today.

 

I also own Cherry Audio Voltage. It is more capable like eurorack hardware, with a lot of available modules and more esoteric function choices. I also have a eurorack hardware system with about 30 modules.

 

In terms of software, I tend to enjoy the Moog and Roland more, perhaps out of a combination of simplicity and familiarity because I had the hardware originals for 2-3 decades. I generally don't need the more esoteric functions available in Voltage, just as I find that I use my hardware eurorack modular for pretty simple things.

 

I do like the 3 discussed above. But to be honest, I'm not a big user of softsynths, modular or otherwise. I generally prefer hardware. I also don't record anything very often. So my opinions and experience might not be particularly useful to anyone that lives in a DAW with plugin synths.

 

[RABid]

I use Voltage Modular, VCV Rack Pro 2, and have 100+ modules, mostly Eurorack but a couple cabinets of Synthesizer.com. On the software side, I started with the free version of VCV Rack, then picked up Voltage Modular when I bought the synth bundle from Cherry Audio. I was initially very happy with it but as of late I've been having more and more issues and wonder if they are related to the Apple chips or OS updates. I played with VCV Rack for a while and decided to upgrade to the pro version, and to buy the virtual version of ALM Busy Circuits Pam's Pro Workout. That is my favorite hardware module and it gave me a secure base to work from. VCV has the benefit of having a user that post A LOT of tutorial videos and those videos are good for learning synthesis. What works for me is to separate the user experience into building a rack and using the rack. It made a big difference for me when I started setting aside time just to build the synth I wanted and save it as an "instrument". Then when using it within a song or a jam session I dial in the sound I want and save that as a patch, preserving the original template. Here is a link to a YouTube video by Omri Cohen. He has lots of videos on synth tutorials using VCV rack.

 

 

[Anderton]

That's great info. It seems the main difference from VCV Pro vs. Free (aside from extra processor modules) is being able to use it as a plug-in, right? I wasn't even aware there was a software version available, let alone the Busy Circuits stuff.

 

I have the Voltage Modular Core + Drums and the Arturia Modular V, but haven't used them much in the past. However, lately I've been working on a synthesizer eBook, and part of that is explaining synthesis via software-based modular synthesis. Just doing that has sucked me back in. It can definitely be fun to patch things together and rock out.

 

Your differentiation between creating an instrument and using it rings true. That makes a lot of sense.

[RABid]

1 hour ago, Anderton said:

VCV Pro vs. Free (aside from extra processor modules) is being able to use it as a plug-in, right?

Yes. The big reason I upgraded is I wanted a set of electronic drum modules and there is an upgrade package that includes them. Most of the videos from the link I provided are done with the free version, and using free modules. He does encourage people that find good use for those modules to send the developers a tip for their work which can be done through the software.

[Sundown]

I have little doubt that modulars offer tremendous depth and uniqueness, but I’ve never made much of an effort to delve into them. I do own the Arturia Moog Modular, but I’ve never used it in a track. Reaktor and many others are very powerful synths, but most of the parts I need and want are pretty simple.

 

Todd

[NewImprov]

I have 25ru of MOTM Format 5u modules, and 12ru X 140hp of Euro gear, plus a bunch of semi-modular pieces. I love modular stuff!

 

Here's a photo of my modular setup from about a year ago. It's grown since then. I don't have a problem, I really don't...

 

I've used virtual modulars, I was a heavy Nord Modular user, and I still have their MicroModular, and I have the free versions of VCV and Voltage modular. I keep thinking that I'll dig into the virtual stuff, to try new techniques, play with stuff when I'm not at the studio, try out new modules before committing to the hardware, etc, but I just don't seem to actually do it. 

I think that the deal, at least with me, is that the modular interface really makes sense in hardware, but is just kind of cumbersome in software. I think a matrix patching system makes a lot more sense in software, and not having to deal with the virtual cords. Also, there's something I like about having a fixed set of modules, and having to work within those constraints that appeals to the way my brain works.

 

On the other hand, for the setting that Craig describes, using the virtual modular as a teaching tool to explain synthesis, could be really great. The times I've tried to teach analog synthesis, the modular really makes sense. I can play a raw wave, then patch it through a filter, move the cutoff by hand, then patch an LFO to move the cutoff, etc., and I've seen the lightbulbs go off in my students heads when doing this, they mostly know the sounds of analog synths, but this makes it clear how the sound is created and controlled. I could see a book with downloadable, pre-patched sounds could be a great way to teach.

[Stokely]

I never really got the appeal.  Maybe I like it more than I think I do, not realizing that some cool tune/sound is modular.

I've always been drawn more to the straight-up mono and poly synths (oberheims etc).

I do have Reaktor blocks and iirc some kind of CM versions for a few modular/semi-modular synths (Bazille and one other).  

The fact is I'm more of a preset tweaker--mainly because I rarely know what I'm looking for until I find it    Not sure if that rules me out for modular fun.

[Anderton]

4 hours ago, NewImprov said:

I could see a book with downloadable, pre-patched sounds could be a great way to teach.

 

You may see it sooner than you think - that's the next eBook after the v1.1 update to my Pro Tools book is finished .

 

A Cherry Audio custom modular synth package will be part of the book download (thanks, Dan!!), so readers will have the modules needed to do learn-by-doing. A portion of the book's proceeds will go to the Bob Moog Foundation.

[Bill Heins]

My two weakest points in music are programming modular synths and Kurzweil's VAST. As far as modular goes I understand the modules and what they do, I just can't get anything useable out of the process VAST is another kettle of fish!

 

[Doerfler]

here is something new, Kontakt based, not Reaktor based

 

https://www.native-instruments.com/en/products/nks-partners/10-phantom-rooms/low-end-modular/

[Anderton]

Interesting...but I don't think it's really a modular synth. It looks more like a sample-based playback device, with the samples based on modular synthesizers.

 

[NewImprov]

12 hours ago, Bill Heins said:

My two weakest points in music are programming modular synths and Kurzweil's VAST. As far as modular goes I understand the modules and what they do, I just can't get anything useable out of the process VAST is another kettle of fish!

 

I'm pretty fluent with modular stuff, but I'm totally with you on VAST. I love the Kurzweil sounds, used to have a K2600 and still have an SP4-7, but I was never able to do any significant programming on them. And I used to roll my own DX-7 patches!

[Doerfler]

4 hours ago, Anderton said:

 It looks more like a sample-based playback device, with the samples based on modular synthesizers.

 

Indeed it is.  Anything in Kontakt is sample based

[Anderton]

2 hours ago, Doerfler said:

Indeed it is.  Anything in Kontakt is sample based

 

Oh well. I was hoping they'd figured out a way to make Kontakt a true sampler with audio inputs, not just sample playback, so modules could interconnect with each other in real time 

[Doerfler]

13 hours ago, Anderton said:

 

Oh well. I was hoping they'd figured out a way to make Kontakt a true sampler with audio inputs, not just sample playback, so modules could interconnect with each other in real time 

you have friends at NI in Berlin, I believe.  Possibly submit a suggestion?

 

[Anderton]

13 hours ago, Doerfler said:

you have friends at NI in Berlin, I believe.  Possibly submit a suggestion?

 

I used to, but since they were acquired most of the people I knew are gone.

[RABid]

On 5/20/2024 at 7:39 PM, Stokely said:

I never really got the appeal.

For me it did not start with modular. I had a MiniMoog, a love of physics, and a strong desire to experiment with sound. I spent hours figuring out how to make that Moog sound like a helicopter flying around in the hills. Then it was exploring what happened to sound when using audio rate modulations of osc 3. Noting the differences in the sound when I switched between square, triangle and saw waves for modulation. Emulating the various sirens that I heard. Running that synth through a wah pedal, a voice box, and anything else I could find. I eventually came to a point that I needed more control. More options. The MiniMoog sound great but it is quite limited. When I got into Eurorack I started experimenting with what happens when you blend to different LFOs, using audio rate modulation on a stereo panner, creating patterns by using sycronized LFOs and triggers that are distributed among 4/4, 3/4, 5/4, 7/8, etc... and listening to them swirl.

 

Yes, I'm a nerd.

[YashN]

VCV Rack is very nice if you want to try Modular in a software environment, or code modules for it.

[YashN]

On 5/21/2024 at 6:12 PM, NewImprov said:

I'm pretty fluent with modular stuff, but I'm totally with you on VAST. I love the Kurzweil sounds, used to have a K2600 and still have an SP4-7, but I was never able to do any significant programming on them. And I used to roll my own DX-7 patches!

V.A.S.T. is massively powerful. Learning Synthesis & Modular on this platform is a possibility too.

 

You can discover new things on it 3 decades after launch. Literally what I was doing this morning after having a few ideas that needed validation or invalidation. It is quite a big thing I did, I'll see if I can share it somehow one day.

[Bill Heins]

I've still got the Darwin Grosse V.A.S.T. tutorials here somewhere....and my Kurzweil K2500XS!