Eurorack Modular - July 25 2024

video upload by John L Rice

"It’s been a month since I’ve posted any new modular synth experiments so here’s one to get me back in the saddle! 🤓

Synth Tech: E102 Quad Temporal Shifter and four E330 Multimode VCO
Modcan: Quad LFO
Happy Nerding: 3x MIA
ADDAC: VC Rotator
VPME: T43 Precision Adder
Instruo: Quad Performance Quantizer
Klavis: Quadigy EG
Xaoc Devices: Praga VCA/mixer
Strymon: Magneto delay/reverb
Erica Synths: Black VC Clock v2
2hp: Delay
Doepfer: A-182-1 Switched Multiple (modified)
Circuit Abbey: Unify mixer"

What's better than one Perkons? // Dual Erica Synths Perkons Jam

video upload by Dave Mech

"Courses, presets, samples and more at https://davemech.live/shop

Since I bought a white Perkons, I temporary have two Perkons in the studio before selling the blue one to a new happy owner. So I thought I'd make use of that situation and record a raw dual Perkons Jam. And I'll be damned, It's actually really fun to dual wield these! Enjoy this 160 bpm raw live performance.

Gear used:
2x Perkons
OTO BAM
Dreadbox Raindrops
PlayDifferently Model 1.4
OTO boum + Doctron IMC (from main out of mixer)
Slight post processing with iZotope Ozone"

An Erica trio: LXR-02, Nightverb & Zen delay

video upload by Richard DeHove

"Two related patterns on the LXR-02 with manual playing over the top. The set-up is simple: A single stereo pair out with the left going to the Zen delay (then out in stereo); and the right going to the Nightverb (also out in stereo).

Some of the voices are panned hard left for Zen-only effect; others right-only for the Nightverb; and some have a little of both. Only using a single stereo pair makes things easy to setup and gives the option to blend between the effects per voice with the pan control.

The Nightverb shows preset 2 "The Temple" but in fact every control is in its actual position. I've happily learned how to use the low and high damp since my "first day" Nightverb video :) The Zen of course is always in WYSIWYG mode. Half the LXR-02 voices are programmed, the other I play manually with the auto-roll function on 16ths. In both patterns the Nightverb and Zen stay on the same settings and I concentrate on playing the LXR-02. There is absolutely no post-processing of any kind, not even output limiting, everything is as you see it.

As always let me know if there's anything you want see in upcoming videos.

0:00 Rubberman
2:49 Wet DAF

Lots of downloads for supporters on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/richarddehove
Many thanks to my kind patrons who keep this channel ad-free
My website: https://richarddehove.com/"

Techniques for textural, glitchy beats

video upload by SUTURE SOUND

Bastl Basil
Instruo Arbhar
Instruo Tain
Bela Gliss
Fancyyyyy Rung Divisions
Erica Synths Black Sequencer

Nightverb: First day noodlings (no talk)

video upload by Richard DeHove

"Beware the title: 'First day noodlings'. This isn't a collection of pristine patches or sweetly controlled tone-perfect spaces. It is literally me with the Nightverb on day one twiddling the knobs trying to understand the various interactions and calibrations. But I figure that will be of interest to some. And since my daughter always laughs at how "incredibly niche" my channel is, well, surely it can't hurt.

I'm honored to have Nightverb serial number 0006 sent to me gratis by Erica Synths. Technically that should earn the "paid promotion" tag, and yet, saying that on this random hodge-podge doesn't seem quite right. And since I'm almost qualified as a member of the Erica Synths 10% discount club I think I've earned a pass on this one. Of course the truth is I would have bought this anyway if Erica Synths hadn't sent it to me, so at least this way I didn't have to sell anything - yay!

But about the Nightverb. It's armoured, beautiful and alive with grippy knobs. Reverb has never been so much fun or so fast to program. About halfway through the video I learn that 'late reflections' combined with 'infinite feedback' equals noise - but that's what day one gets you. Give it a few months and I'm sure all this will look painfully awkward. I also had the gain quite high and neglected to touch the low and high damp controls at all, but there's only so many parameters I can deal with fresh at one time. More videos to come of course.

I'm looking forward to pairing the Nightverb with the Zen Delay and Acidbox III though for this first outing I thought it should stay pure. Of course there are absolutely no DAW effects, EQ or limiting. I can certainly see cases in the future where a delay after the reverb could make for some interesting creations. Even so, just with the trusty DB-01 I did enjoy the pseudo poly-synth effect going 100% wet. Likewise the pre-delay with early reflections and feedback gave a good industrial delay. So much more I could say but I'll leave that for a talkie video.

If there's anything specific about the Nightverb I can answer, or a particular sort of audio demo you'd like to hear, let me know and I'll try to cover them in a second video.

0:00 Poly from mono
2:34 Bass riff 1
4:30 Squelchy
6:16 Fairy interlude
6:54 Drummy thing
8:52 Bass riff 2
11:20 Pixie dance
12:43 Bass riff 3
16:04 High arp
18:54 Growler

Lots of downloads for supporters on Patreon: / richarddehove
Many thanks to my kind patrons who keep this channel ad-free
My website: https://richarddehove.com/"

ESK - Frog and Drums

video upload by Metunar

"Simple jamsession with an Erica Synths Bullfrog synthesizer with the sequencer card and drums from the Sonicware Liven XFM groovebox.
All recorded live, with post mastering.

http://www.metunar.ch"

Independence Synth Jam #synth #electronicmusic

video upload by Mutt Retro

Erica Synths x 112db NIGHTVERB sound demo

video upload by Erica Synths

"NIGHTVERB - a new hardware reverb effects unit developed in collaboration with 112dB. We focused on the musical aspect of the effect to create a stereo reverb with a unique and musical algorithm for playing individual notes, chords and creating massive, ambient textures.

Timeline:

00:00 - Take 1 / Chord from Casio played through the Nightverb
01:00 - Take 2 / Yocto-808 with added gain through a "small" room reverb
02:02 - Take 3 / Acoustic guitar send through the Nightverb which is controlled with BCR100 MIDI control pedal
02:50 - Take 4 / 12" record played through the Nightverb
03:46 - Take 5 / Juno-106 through the Nightverb
04:31 - Take 6 / Moog DFAM through the Nightverb with extra gain
05:38 - Take 7 / Acoustic guitar through the Nightverb where footswitch is configured to work as freeze button
06:12 - Take 8 / Bassline DB-01 through the Nightverb
07:28 - Take 9 / Bass guitar through the Nightverb"

Midicake Arp and The One Finger Jam (no talk)

video upload by Richard DeHove

"Something's wrong if you're making music but not having fun. It should all be fun. But writing good, coherent, interesting and long patterns is difficult (for me) and often liable not to be much fun. The usual path is to make a good 16-step pattern, copy it, add some variations, and bump to 32 steps. Then what about little fills and other bits? Now you're talking about "song mode" and other mathematical duties.

So the idea here was: Let's use the Arp to create long patterns, then hit record on the DB-01 and just feed in the result. I did try that and it worked a treat. But as an alternative you can just manually "play" the entire thing on the Arp - which is what I did here.

It took a bit of practice to get the timing right and I wouldn't want to be playing the entire "song" to a live audience with one finger unless there were a few other things running to cover in case of a mistake. Of course in the studio no one can hear you scream after five errors in a row.

Live-playing the DB-01s like this you lose various programmable goodness like the pitch envelopes, filter mod and accents; but on the flipside you can use portamento on the sequence (although I didn't here) and can use the Arp to set and vary the gate lengths. For example the top DB-01 is playing the high blippy theme on the Arp channel 3 and the longer three-note bass prod on channel 4. It can seemingly produce two sounds almost simultaneously because channel 3 has a short gate and high octave, while channel 4 has a long gate and low octave.

When you think about it that is pretty amazing work for an arpeggiator! It's like instant program change on a synth with no programs.

In this piece all the music is coming from the two DB-01s, with a drum track added afterwards in the DAW. I chopped it up a little to make a 90-second jam (instead of the 8-minute director's cut) but it is essentially live-played. There are no DAW effects, no extra layers or EQ.

After all this intricate fun it seems to me that calling the Midicake Arp an "arp" is monstrously understated. I see it more like your synths are big dumb blue-ribbon bovines standing around in a field and the Arp is a supercharged border collie begging to chase them through a Marine bootcamp obstacle course. Make those machines sweat! They cost enough.

Lots of downloads for supporters on Patreon: / richarddehove
Many thanks to my kind patrons who keep this channel ad-free
My website: https://richarddehove.com/"

TouellSkouarn : Distresañ // 3 Bands Stereo Cut/Boost EQ

video upload by TouellSkouarn

"3 Bands Stereo Cut/Boost EQ with cv inputs

Erica Synth Pico Drum loop into TouellSkouarn Sonveskañ and Distresañ."

"3 Bands Stereo Cut/Boost EQ
16HP / Aluminium panel / Black
3 Bands Stereo Cut/Boost EQ
Hi (± 14dB @ 15kHz)
Mid (± 8dB @ 1kHz)
Lo (± 10dB @ 30Hz)

Jacks : Inputs, Outputs, HI CV Inputs, Lo CV inputs
Hand-wired, Boutique quality, Made in Brittany, France (Plougastel-Daoulas, Landerneau).
Not that Stupid Breton name"

Pico Jam #1

video upload by alloutofsync

"Simple jam of Erica synths pico3.

0:23 Patch note

Anyway, I hope you enjoy. Thanks.

Feel free to use these sounds in your own work: / pico-jam-1"

Make Music Day: Erica Synths and Elektron featuring Perkons HD-01, Octatrack and Analog Heat+FX

video upload by Group Technologies Australasia

"Here's our little jam for Make Music Day using the Perkons HD-01 from Erica Synths, along with Elektron Octatrack and Analog Heat+FX. What music are you making?

In this video the Perkons is running into the Octatrack, which is live sampling and re-slicing the Perkons' audio. All audio is being processed by the Analog Heat+FX whilst adding a little reverb too."

ESK - 9x Syntrx Soundscape

video upload by Metunar

"A noisy wild soundscape improvised with 8 recorded and looped Erica Synths Syntrx tracks, played from the Akai MPC X and a live played and looped Syntrx track.
I used a lot of the Syntrx ringmodulation together with an external functiongenerator (Trio AG-203). With mastering.

http://www.metunar.ch"

Another day, another modular synth!

video upload by John L Rice

"Modules from 4ms, Erica Synths, Happy Nerding, 2hp, Doepfer, Synthesis Technology, Bubblesound, Intellijel, Circuit Abbey, Synth-Werks"

Tiny Eurorack Modular Test #2

video upload by John L Rice

Erica Synths Black MIDI-CV (not used)
Modcan Touch-Sequencer
Instruo [1]f
Synthesis Technology E340 Cloud Generator
Erica Synths MODulator
2hp Verb

Erica Synths & Moritz Klein Introduce EDU DIY LABOR prototyping station

video upload by Moritz Klein

"Disclaimer: I actually created Labor together with my friends at Erica Synths and Dr. Shalom D. Ruben, who's a teaching professor for engineering at the University of Colorado. Either way, it's an awesome entry point for anyone looking to get started in circuit design. (Or a great help if you've already disappeared down the rabbit hole.)"

Chapters
00:00 Feature Overview & Bundle Versions
01:32 Prototyping with Labor
03:23 Expansion Modules & Outro"

"Get started in circuit design with MKI x ES Labor! Developed in collaboration with Dr. Shalom D. Ruben teaching professor for engineering at the University of Colorado Labor is a fully-featured circuit design playground and a powerful electronics learning tool all in one. Created with the aim of serving as a universal learning tool for electronics engineering Labor enables users to delve into various aspects of electronics design from fundamental concepts to advanced techniques. Whether you're a beginner exploring the basics or an experienced engineer honing your skills Labor provides a versatile platform for experimentation and learning. Create your own filters oscillators envelopes sequencers – and whatever else you can come up with. Or use it to learn the basics by following along with our series of educational DIY kits.

Features
a built in dual power supply producing eurorack-compatible voltages, with built-in over current protection for safe experimenting
a modular interfacing section with 16 slots for potentiometers, jacks & switches
a pulse/triangle/sine oscillator (audio & LFO range)
a multi mode envelope generator controlled by a premium push button
a buffered variable control voltage source
an output amplifier with variable gain
a dedicated headphone output and a line-level output for recording, processing and analyzing the signal
an expansion slot for installing specialized prototyping tools
a protective lid to cover a breadboard.
EDU DIY Labor Basic Kit includes:

LABOR
Power Supply Unit
jumper cables
array of interfacing elements like potentiometers, jack sockets, switches
EDU DIY Labor Full Kit includes:

LABOR
Power Supply Unit
jumper cables
array of interfacing elements like potentiometers, jack sockets, switches
commonly used components (resistors, capacitors, chips, transistors) to start building circuits straight away


We – Erica Synths and Moritz Klein – have developed a series of educational DIY kits under the brand name mki x es.EDU with one specific goal in mind: to teach people with little-to-no prior experience how to design analog synthesizer circuits from scratch. What you’ll find in the box is not simply meant to be soldered together and then disappear in your rack. Instead, we want to take you through the circuit design process step by step, explaining every choice we’ve made and how it impacts the finished module.

NB! All kits in these series are simple and come with extensive user manuals which can be downloaded separately, therefore we will not provide customer support in case your DIY build fails to function or similar."

The "slot machine" method of random writing with the DB-01

video upload by Richard DeHove

"Slot machines (AKA pokies and speilautomat) supposedly get a lot of their appeal through the fast cycle of anticipation and reward. And if you don't get the reward you wanted then you can instantly run the cycle again. Wins are reinforced by pretty lights and little tunes.

Well, that sounds a lot like small-chunk randomization with the DB-01: Quick randomizations of a few steps and with instant rewards. Except you won't be broke at the end.

I'm always trying to find fun ways to write patterns and this method is, imo, one of the best. Although it's specific to the DB-01 you could just as easily take a MIDI-Out feed and power other machines.

I also think it's very interesting to see the actual process people use to write patterns. If you've got a favorite method please share it in the comments.

0:00 The idea
0:49 Full random?
1:24 The usual way
2:29 Little chunks
4:55 More chunks
7:50 16-steps
8:52 Example 2
15:01 Example 3

Lots of downloads for supporters on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/richarddehove
Many thanks to my kind patrons who keep this channel ad-free
My website: https://richarddehove.com/"

Meet The Pros: Erica Synths founder, Girts Ozolins at SAE

video upload by SAE Athens

"O Girts Ozolins, ιδρυτής της εταιρείας ανάπτυξης και δημιουργίας synthesizer Erica Synths, βρέθηκε στην SAE Athens! Mας μίλησε για τα πρώτα του βήματα στον κόσμο των synthesizers, την δημιουργία της εταιρείας Erica Synths, το Bullfrog synthesizer, κάποιες στιγμές στην καριέρα του που ξεχωρίζει και πολλά άλλα!

Δες τη συνέντευξη!

Ποιον επαγγελματία των creative media θα ήθελες να φέρουμε την επόμενη φορά; Τι ερωτήσεις θα ήθελες να κάνουμε στο μέλλον;

Chapters:
0:00 Girts Ozolins at SAE
0:21 Former Career
1:41 First steps in Synthesizers
4:31 Erica Synths now
5:37 The development of Bullfrog Synthesizer
9:06 Advice for young sound & music professionals"

"Let's Take a 20 Megaton Surface Burst" - a DB-01 solo

video upload by Richard DeHove

"How many parts can a mono synth play in one pass? Here I think the DB-01 does a good job simulating three or four tracks and yet this is all just one live take, plus vocal samples on top for color. Music-wise there are no edits, no automation, no DAW EQ or any other effects. Everything is exactly as you see it.

The DB-01 runs into the Darkglass B3K, then to the Zen delay, and is then output in stereo to the Boss SL-2 Slicer. You'll notice the DB-01's resonance is at 100% with 50% drive. The Zen delay's input is being overdriven slightly and there is again about 50% drive there as well. Filter is set to highpass.

It's always tempting to start adding extra layers to these pieces, especially drums, but I like the simplicity and 'purity' of a DB-01 on its own. Hopefully that also makes it more useful as a demo of the DB-01 and effects.

Quotes and video are from the 1982 documentary 'The Atomic Cafe', an excellent movie which is a compilation of old newsreels and military training clips set to music and news commentary of the times.

Lots of downloads for supporters on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/richarddehove
Many thanks to my kind patrons who keep this channel ad-free
My website: https://richarddehove.com/"

Sound Diary: May 2024 // Dictaphones & Expressive Instruments

video upload by Michael Manning

Performance starts at 8:36.

"This video is something I've been thinking about making for a while, creating a home for the music I write that sits outside of an album or soundtrack. Instead of aimlessly uploading jams and performances, I'm contextualising them with my thoughts and process more directly.

For this episode, I talk about some of the instruments I've been using to write with including the Erica Synths Dada Noise System 2, Haken Continuum Mini, Expressive-E Osmose and Battery Operated Mini Mello.

Link to my album: https://sovnrecords.bandcamp.com/albu..."