NightRider by Ryk Modular

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"Night Rider is a quad resonant filter with a built in sequencer. It has four bandpass filters that can be used in parallel and serial configurations, a mono allpass filter in two flavors and an amazing karplus strong mode.
It works in many configurations, but it has a strong preference for more complex sources and abolutely shines with something big and polyphonic like Vector Wave or Knobula's Poly Cinematic. While this may seem as a 'too many options' module, you can easy find your way after getting lost in a patch or two. Absolutely stunning module."

Eventide Micha | Tone Row Sequencer

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"* Reupload due to a major melodic minor error.
A quick patch for a lazy sunday. I recently got the Eventide Micha and it looks way more complicated than it is, so it's just a matter of applying power, patch gate/CV and off you go. For best results (chords) you may want to get yourself a VCO with polyphonic midi capabilities (Poly Cinematic, BitBox, Vector Wave) but these are rare. So for equally best results is also cool to use the chord outputs to modulate the timbre (or any CV input) of a clever VCO like the Loquelic Iteritas Percido.

Micha is a sequencer, but a weird one. Instead of playing notes, you'll play intervals. Now it may not be obvious how cool that is, but it will exponentially expand your musical vocabulary. For me, storytelling is very important and with Misha you simply press a 'plus' when you want to raise some tension, and a [minus] when you want people to relax. Misha works with tone rows, which basically comes down to moving through notes and chords in a scale. So you simply pick a scale and start improvising.
#jamuary2023 | Day 22 | Sunday"

Error Instruments Loopman

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"I am sure this is not everybody's cup of tea, but I love the exotics of Paul Tas. Even if you never ever contemplate a module like this, I feel this video still has some entertainment value! Loopman is a 'crappy' cassette tape recorder fused with a eurorack panel to provide some level of CV control. It has a built in mic and AM/FM radio but I wasn't able to pick up any sound or music. But even the static had 'cinematic sound design' value. This module also gave me the opportunity to play music I made four decades ago when I still lived at my parent's house. Old cassettes become 'time capsules'. I had great fun creating this video and I hope you like to walk with me down memory lane."

MakeNoise Strega | First Patch | with Todd Barton

video by Cinematic Laboratory

"After waiting for months for Strega to arrive, it finally came to my doorstep yesterday. As you may see, I've been preparing for its arrival creating cool support footage and video stuff to make it a special experience. I've reached 4K subscribers this week and this 'special edition' video is also a way to say thanks to all of you supporting my channel. I 'stole' Walker's high speed explanation of Strega and slowed it down without explicit official permission.
Last, but definitely not least, I'd like to thank mr. Todd Barton for creating a set of really cool Buchla sounds that match the 'submerged' theme of this video very well. I'll definitely revisit Strega so this is part 01 of a series. Have fun, and see you soon!"

XAOC Koszalin | 1964 Stereo VC Frequency Shiftor

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"'Amazing module this is'
- Yoda"

You can find additional Koszalin posts here.

Moog Mother-32 + Mutable Instruments Warps | and some thoughts about Mavis

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"Mavis has been on all significant YouTube channels last week and I've been super impressed by the sounds coming from this little DIY starter synth. I really felt the 'gear aquisition syndrome' hitting hard. But I already own tons of modules, so I wanted to take good old Mother-32, hook it up with Warps and see how 'westcoast' it can get. I decided to skip Mavis and go for the Subharmonicon instead (coming soon) because it's very different from anything I know.

But it was tough (I had it in my shopping cart), because Mavis can add a lot to a bare table, and even more to an existing Moog 60 HP tableltop set. It's a really clever design. To give you and impression I hooked up the M-32 to 0-Coast, the 'other' tabletop westcoast starter synth from MakeNoise. I still think I'd get a Mavis when the hype is over because it adds a lot to the classic Mother and vice versa."

The Legio Platform by Noise Engineering | Episode 01

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"We all know and love the Versio platform. Two years ago Noise Engineering also announced a platform for VCO's and other stuff to complement their Iteritas line-up. Then everything went south for two years. But now, Legio is here, latin for Legion. There are currently three firmwares: Virt Iter (VCO), Tymp ( a mini Basimilus) and Librae (dynamics). As with Versio, there are many more in the pipeline. Legio (or Legion) also reminds me of the possessed man from the Bible (Mark 5:9) who carried 2.000 demons with him. When is name was asked, he replied something like 'My name is Legion, for I am many'. Definitely great food for a horror movie. But rest assured, Legio isn't possessed. It's just many. Let's start at episode 01."

Dual #XPO | Shared System 'X' | Episode 02 | 259 is here again

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"This series is about getting creative within the confinement of the 7U case with black and gold modules which are available in retail. The goal is to build something like the original Shared System B&G where the collection and order of modules deliver a logical and intuitive synthesizer ecosystem.

The heart and soul of the original Shared is the DPO, which is a dual complex VCO, inspired by the Buchla 259 from the '70's. There's 'two five nine was here' printed on the circuitboard. While the DPO is still available, it's only available in silver, and it may not be restocked in the EU because it has a vactrol to strike the wavefolder. Without speculating too much, DPO will either leave the stage, or return as a 'green' revision borrowing a DXG strike. Who knows.

Even though I love Spectraphon, which also has a '259 inspired' design, it doesn't sound like an analog DPO. It doesn't have the raw sound of fresh timber. I've been experimenting with dual XPO's for a while now (there's a link to my XPO vs DPO video) and I've 'discovered' that adding a moddemix as a bus really approximates it, but can also go beyond any complex VCO I've heard. The output count is outrageous, and having the 'FM/MOD bus' on the outside brings you very close to a Serge design. It takes a bit more patching, but it also delivers tons of fun.

I am aware this series is a bit like a buying guide mixed with a MakeNoise ad but I am not affiliated with MakeNoise except that I am a groupie. I make fan films. We all have our favorites and MN was my entry into modular. I am totally biased. But these layouts also work with other brands and they're shared for inspiration. It's not the brand, not the modules, it's the roles, order and interaction of modules that turn a patch blanket into an ecoystem."

80's Rhythm | #Jamuary2023 | Day 04

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"Day 04 and counting. So far it's giving me lots of fun and energy and between you and me, day 05 and 06 are already finished since I have a gig on day 08. In this episode I want to talk about rhythms from the 80's and 90's, where musicians had to use the 808 or 909 and were more or less restricted to 16 steps in a bar. But that still adds up to 65536 possible patterns - per voice - not counting a 'final step' feature to create polyrhythms. Also, I'd like to show you how cool it is to decouple your melodic track from its own gates and use a separate gate track. I hope you'll enjoy!"

Sinc Legio | by Noise Engineering

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"The Sinc Iter was a small 4 HP utility oscillator and the second VCO created by Noise Engineering. It's been discontinued for a while, but now it's back in glorious stereo. One would expect an 'Iter' to return on the Alia platform, but Alia is mono, and can't handle a stereo audiorate CV source.

The Sinc is a modest, civilized VCO in its core. You are supposed to use the Phase Modulation inputs, morphing basic waveforms, the wavefolder and chorus to sculpt our own sonic treasures. Sinc Legio is available as a free firmware for all Legio owners. Personally, I feel this is one of the most versatile and enjoyable firmwares in the NE VCO collection.

Happy flashing!"

Vortex | A Complex Oscillator by Cosmotronic

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"In this video I'll dive a bit deeper into the Vortex. At first glance it's just another '259 inspired' machine, but I feel it goes way beyond the standard features of a complex VCO. You really need to read the manual to get the most from it - which is a lot.

This is a spin-off episode for the '259' series, so it will be in the same playlist. The series doesn't go deep into individual modules but is more about design concepts in general. I'll start with Episode 03 next week and I am planning spin-off's for the Cs-L and the DPO."

You can find additional Cosmotronic Vortex posts here.

Junkyard Strega | feat. 0-Ctrl + Echophon + Erbe-Verb

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"It's always fun to use Strega in a bigger patch, but this time I am staying close to 'home' with 0-ctrl (without the extra quantizer) and effects from the MakeNoise Echophon delay & Erbe-Verb reverb. Modulating Stega's pitch and internal time can create some great metallic 'junkyard' effects, and 'striking' the Absorb CV with 0-ctrl's dynamic gate output is just amazing. At the end of the video I got inspired, wondering how a stereo conversion would sound with two Echophon's and two Erbe-Verbs. You can also try this with any two effect units/pedals and patch them as left/right FX chains."

Buchla / TipTop Audio 200 Series | Episode 01

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"I always dreamed of having a Buchla in my studio. Now Buchla & Tiptop Audio have teamed up to bring real Buchla 200 series modules to eurorack, kicking off with the 281T and 258T. I am really bad with remembering all those numbers, but it's a quad function generator and a dual oscillator and both are super affordable (if not sold out). They don't use bananas, it's all true eurorack. Obviously this series will grow as my collection will grow in the next months, or maybe years."

Monome Teletype | First Patch

video by Cinematic Laboratory

"It's been nine (!) days since my last video and that's because I had to rebuild my production PC - and learn a few Teletype commands. The Teletype may not be for everyone, but if you're not afraid of writing some code, this thing will be able to do some amazing stuff. Highly recommended for generic unpredictable patches. I learned a lot from Zsa Zsa Roboto's channel which provides really useful coding tips and great music and the Monome tutorials are super. This will definitely become a series!"

Jolin Tech Tabor | Quad Avalanche Oscillator

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"This is the archetype of an exotic module. It looks amazing, but it sounds eh... - different - and you may need to be creative to make it sound cool in a patch. I am not sure I succeeded and if it's a keeper. You could find one on a fair or used gear website, so it's always good to have a rough idea of what you're about to buy. It will be love at first audit for noise music, It will serve you well in sound design and maybe even industrial music, but it may be a bit too experimental."

296T mixed outputs and Selective FM | Buchla/Tiptop 200T Series | Episode 8

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"I had a second long session with the 296T after my first patch video. This video tries to justify why the 296T could be worth the big footprint so it can be more than 'just a big equalizer'. This always depends on the type of music you'd like to make on a modular, and for many, a multimode filter would be more than enough. The 296T is like a surgical audio tool, doubling as an EQ or filter. In this video, I'll use the brutal Manis Iteritas as a source and use both the attennuated & program outputs to sculpt something new from it. It's a very rich voice with artifacts and noise because of the 6-operator sawtooth algorithms and it does not have many sweetspots outside it's heavy industry character. The 296T is an ideal tool to help you tame it for different applications and sounds, even ambient.
Also, there's true magic in the technique of 'selective FM', where you can use indivdual band outputs to 'FM' your VCO. It's a trick I've learned with the MakeNoise FxDf fixed filter. The 296T can take it to another level.

I wish you a great New Years Eve and I am looking forward seeing you in 2024. Happy patching!"

#Jamuary2022 | Day 15 | 23:56:04

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"Today is about two things: 1) how can use and sync very long samples (e.g. a stem) to a clock in BitBox and 2) what's a day anyway. In the very long sample, Mike Degrasse Tyson explains how long a 24 hour day really is."

Qu-Bit Data Bender

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"Definitely one of the coolest new modules in my rig that can bring character, complexity and pure chaos to your patch. Big fun and highly recommended.

00:00 Introduction
00:30 Quick walkthrough
03:02 Beats & Rhythms
05:37 Ambient Glitch with Arbhar & Desmodus Versio
08:00 Subtle Glitch with Strega"

Erbe-Verb B&G | Shared System 'X' | Episode 03 | Back in Black

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"Yeah. I made episode 03 before I was able to finish episode 02 so I decided to post them both. There's no need on this channel to manage posts to maximize views, I just want you to be able to find information when you need it and I just LOVE to make content like this. I made a lot of videos about the EV in the past and it's covered in the old Shared System tutorials (link in video). In this video, I am going to try something new.

In this episode, I'll only use Erbe-Verb and DXG in a feedback loop. So no fancy 7U case layout this time, I made this video to find out if it can still be relevant in 2024. Since I am totally biased, you'll need to decide for yourself. Honestly, if you need a regular reverb, maybe a stereo module would serve you better.

Erbe-Verb is going for a limited rerun in black and gold, so this also means it's getting old and possibly moving to retirement. Without speculating too much, it's possible that MakeNoise is working on a successor now they have this amazing new ARM DSP board. But again, I have no idea. What we DO know is, that Erbe-Verb is widely considered as one of the best reverbs in eurorack, even though it's not the best reverb as a reverb. Que? It excels in creative use and abuse. It will never get old and whatever comes next, it will pair well with the EV (it pairs really well with a Mimeophon, StarLab, Sealegs or Desmodus Versio).

Apart from the sound design fun, Erbe-Verb plays a big role in the Shared System signature sound. While it's partly overshadowed by the more recent Mimeophon, the Mime's 'halo' only adds a little space. It's nothing compared to the 'icy sheet metal in deep space' sound from the EV, which can easily double as a classic spring- or plate reverb when 'absorb' and 'tilt' are used to tame the high end. I've never been a fan of the predelay, but it can do amazing things with modulation and gates/triggers.

The Erbe-Verb is 'mono IN' so it needs to be used as a send/return with a stereo voice like XPO or Spectraphon. Here's where a ModDemix comes in handy. You can use CH1 and CH2 to pass on your stereo mix to let's say an X-PAN, and use the Sum out to EV. Then you can patch the EV's stereo out to X-PAN's aux inputs. It's a lot of patching and modules for a verb, but it provides a lot of freedom."

Sound & Vision (Walker & Tony)

video upload by Cinematic Laboratory

"I revisited the conversation between Walker and Tony from MakeNoise and really enjoyed Walker trying to recreate one of the album patches for their 'Tales of two Systems' endeavour [posted here and here]. Whatever they do, it never sounds the same to me. His patch involved two alternating sequences, but the Shared System doesn't have a sequential switch and a basic Rene sequence can have 16 notes. His vision has 2x16 x2 playing after each other. So he had to use clock divisions from Tempi, sequence Rene state changes and clock automated Morphagene dubbing. It's a super interesting concept, but Walker clearly showed it's not an easy patch to direct/orchestrate/arrange. I tried this concept on the Westlicht Performer with Noise Engineering VCO's and the Morphagene. And I had a great time with it."