Expert Sleepers Disting EX Review - Fun and Fumbles

video upload by Molten Music Technology

"Take a dive into the Disting EX with someone who hates this sort of thing. Can I find something awesome behind the complexity and versatility of the Expert Sleepers ultimate multi-module?"

Index:
Intro - 0:00
Sorting out the screen - 10:25
Tiny MIDI Breakout - 15:29
Plugging it all in 17:51
Updating the firmware - 20:47
Enabling the screen - 23:44
Intro to Disting EX menu system - 27:26
SD Multisample - 29:46
SD Card Glitch - 44:40
Taking Chords from the Pianist - 55:44
Presets - 1:1:29
Assigning Modulation - 1:05:40
SD 6 Triggers - 1:08:54
MIDI Input - 1:10:35
Auto Sampling the Taiga - 1:13:14
Conclusions - 1:23:57

Disting EX 1U Screen and Tiny MIDI Breakout DIY Build

video upload by Molten Music Technology

"Want to add MIDI and a larger screen to the Expert Sleepers Disting EX? Here's how you do it. This video is a companion to a larger, full review of the Disting EX which you'll find in the channel."

Nostalgic Lo-Fi Piano Ambient / Hector Chord Machine Rings Mimeophon Beads Voca

video upload by Wac- Lounge

"Thank you for watching!
Here are the simple patch notes, a list of the gear, and more information.

https://wac-lounge.bandcamp.com

Echoed bell voice = Rings processed by Mimeophon(clocked by Steppy) sequenced by Mob of Emus CH3
Granular ambient voice = Mob of Emus CH2 processed by Beads & Disting(Tape delay) sequenced by Mob of Emus CH4 slew limiter A-184-1
Echoed arpeggio voice = Mob of Emus CH1 processed by Hector(Delay) sequenced by Flame Chord Machine clock & program changed by Steppy enveloped by MATHS
Synth lead voice 1 = Hector(Plaits clone) processed by Hector(Delay) sequenced by Hector(Note sequencer triggered by Steppy)
Synth lead voice 2 = Hector(Plaits clone) sequenced by Hector(Note sequencer triggered by Steppy) modulation & enveloped by Hector(ADSR)
Synth lead voice 3 = Ensemble Oscillator modulation from Mob of Emus CH6 & MATHS sequenced by Flame C-3mk2
Piano loop voice = Volca Sample
Master clock = Volca Sample(divided by Steppy)


The list of the gear
——————————

CLICK FOR MORE »

Buchla Music Easel in Eurorack!

video upload by Electrum Modular

"Unveiling of the Easel-esque system! Demonstration includes three patches, with notes on each."

Modules:
ST Modular SHIKENSA (1st post to feature one)
Intellijel Scales
ALM Pip Slope
ALM Pamela's Workout
Intellijel Dixie II+
Shakmat Banshee Reach
Intellijel Bifold
Make Noise Optomix
Synthrotek MIXIV
ART Junction (1st post to feature one)
Mutable Instruments Beads
ALM MFX
Doboz Touch Plate Controller & Gliss
Expert Sleepers Disting

Ambient for Inner Peace /Poly Effects Hector (Plaits Marbles Clone) Beads Echoz Ensemble Oscillator

video upload by Wac- Lounge

"Thank you for watching!
Here are the simple patch notes, a list of the gear, and more information.

https://wac-lounge.bandcamp.com

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/wac_lounge/

Granular ambient voice = Hector(Plaits clone) processed by Beads sequenced by Hector(Marbles clone)
Echoed random sequencing voice = Hector(Plaits) processed by Hector(LP filter+Delay) modulation & sequenced by Hector(Marbles + ADSR)
Percussive voice = Hector(Plaits) processed by Echoz modulation & sequenced by Hector(Marbles+ADSR)
Synth lead voice = Hector(Plaits) processed by Hector(Delay) slew limiter & sequenced by Hector(Note sequencer triggered by Steppy)
Strings synth voice = Ensemble Oscillator modulation & sequenced by MATHS
Reverse piano loop voice = Disting triggered by Steppy
Master clock = Hector(divided by Steppy)

CLICK FOR MORE »

Spring Chill Ambient / Plaits Echoz 2hp Arp Volca Sample Beads Disting Ensemble Oscillator

video upload by Wac- Lounge

"Thank you for watching!
Here are the simple patch notes, a list of the gear, and more information.

https://wac-lounge.bandcamp.com

Instagram

/ wac_lounge

The list of the gear
——————————
Mutable Instruments
Plaits
Beads

Make Noise
MATHS
Mimeophon

CLICK FOR MORE »

Switches + Faders = Power Sequencer!

video upload by Electrum Modular

"I love my main sequencer (Qu-bit Bloom), but it doesn’t have cv control over sequence length, direction, clock rate, glide, etc.
Then I realized that I had two ingredients to build a more patch-programmable sequencer:
Disting’s Multi-Switch mode, which offers up to 6 customizable switches, and a fader bank, Tesseract Modular's Sweet Sixteen...

Further details in the patch notes

Other modules used:

Shakmat's Banshee Reach
Intellijel's Dixie II+
Mutable Instruments’ Beads
Make Noise Maths
Expert Sleepers’ Disting Ex
Pamela's New Workout
Quad VCA
Dnipro Metamorph
Alright Devices' Chronoblob
Doepfer A121-3 filter
ALM's MFX
Behringer Neutron"

Nostalgia Unwound / Reel to Reel + Beads / Ensemble Oscillator Rings Echoz Mob of Emus

video upload by Wac- Lounge

"Thank you for watching!
Here are the simple patch notes, a list of the gear, and more information.

https://wac-lounge.bandcamp.com

Instagram

/ wac_lounge

Reverse piano voice = Reel to reel(SONY TC-4860)
Echoed Piano voice = Reel to reel processed by Beads
Synth lead voice = Ensemble Oscillator modulation & sequenced by Flame C-3mk2
Sine wave lead voice = Mob of Emus CH1 sequenced by Mob of Emus CH3 triggered by Steppy slew limiter = MATHS
Sine wave voice loop = Mob of Emus CH2 processed by Disting(delay clocked by Steppy) sequenced by Mob of Emus CH4 triggered by Steppy
Echoed pitch bending voice = Rings processed by A-120VCF1 & Echoz sequenced by 2hp Arp triggered by Steppy modulation & enveloped by MATHS & Mob of Emus CH5
Master clock = Mob of Emus CH6 (divided by Steppy)

CLICK FOR MORE »

Sonic sculptures (generative modular music)

video upload by Electrum Modular

"(For Paula)

This patch was inspired by hours (weeks?) of listening to Morton Feldman’s exquisite music. It ended up quite different harmonically from Feldman’s pieces, partly due to the limitations of a modular system. The envelope generators and attenuators required some tweaking to get that balance between repetition and divergence, revolving and evolving. In retrospect, I could have left longer silences between notes.
NOTE: no delay effect used here, as it would have reintroduced a pulse.

“Almost all of Feldman’s music is slow and soft. Only at first sight is this a limitation. I see it rather as a narrow door, to whose dimensions one has to adapt oneself (as in Alice in Wonderland) before one can pass through it into a state of being that is expressed in Feldman’s music. Only when one has become accustomed to the dimness of the light can one begin to perceive the richness and variety which is the material of the music...Feldman sees sounds as reverberating endlessly, never getting lost, changing their resonances as they die away, or rather not die away, but recede from our ears, and soft because softness is compelling, because an insidious invasion of our senses is more effective than a frontal attack.”” -- Cornelius Cardew, quoted by John Tilbury in “On Playing Feldman”

Video sequences from Works of Calder (d. Herbert Matter, 1950), an experimental film featuring a soundtrack by John Cage; available at archive.org.

Title image: Tentoonstelling Kinetische Plastiek Am. beeldhouwer Alexander Calder in Stedelij, Bestanddeelnr (October 2, 1969); creative commons.

Modules used:
Expert Sleepers’ Disting EX
Disting mk4
ALM’s Pamela’s New Workout
Behringer Neutron
ALM’s Pip Slope x2
Make Noise Maths
Intellijel Quad VCA
Tesseract’s Sweet Sixteen"

6 ace things a Disting does.

video upload by mylarmelodies

I believe this is the 2014 video: Expert Sleepers Disting 16-in-1 Eurorack Module Demo

"Being a demo of 6 interesting things an Expert Sleepers Disting MK4 can be: A Pulsar VCO (2:57), a Stereo Tape Delay (6:58), a Granular Pitch Shifter (13:45), a Shift Register Sequencer (16:46), a 1V/Oct Sampler (21:46) and a Dual Sampler (26:26).

Signal Sounds hired me to make a new Disting video following my one from 2014: Mega thanks to them for supporting this as ever, this was fun & they are good people. Hat tip to Os at Expert Sleepers for endlessly making this thing useful!! Here's to 10 more years?"

https://www.signalsounds.com/

CHAPTERS
00:00 Intro & Montaaage
02:57 Pulsar VCO
06:58 Stereo Tape Delay
13:45 Granular Pitch Shifter
16:46 Shift Register Sequencer
21:46 1V/Oct Sampler
26:26 Two Voice Sampler

Multi Output Flexible Wobbly Modulation // Expert Sleepers Otterley (Eurorack LFO Demo)

video upload by DivKid

"Here we have the latest in the line of analogue Eurorack modules from Expert Sleepers ... Otterley. It's a multi output (5 to be specific) LFO with a flexible feature set for varied modulation across your patches.

The first 4 outputs can be sines or squares and feature global controls and modulation for speed (frequency) and also the spread of rates between the LFOs. You can scale these from -10V to 0V, -5V to +5V or 0V to +10V outputs. There's then a final fifth LFO that's individually speed controlled and always a sine wave."

Moog Mavis, Prophet 5, AJH Synth large Eurorack modular synth Performance

video upload by DreamsOfWires

"Performance using Eurorack and Sequential Prophet 5. The modular consists mostly of AJH Synth modules (list below), a Doepfer Mini Synthesizer Voice and a Moog Mavis.
This is a slightly simplified section of something I've been recording for Bandcamp. A reflection of the present with an ear to the past. It'll be released on Bandcamp soon if I'm satisfied with it once it's finished, no promises.
I wanted to build a piece around a simple, analogue, un-quantised sequencer. The manual scaling and slowing of the sequence was inspired by Tangerine Dream's 'Phaedra', which begins rather chaotically, before the sequence morphs and slows to become more melodic. A fascinating piece of music and synth tweaking from the early 70's.
The ambient drone sounds and polyphonic Prophet presets (which I also created) are more inspired by the movie and television soundtracks of the past, if anything, or at least in my imagination of them.
This was entirely recorded within the Eurorack modular system - the mix isn't the best, but I like creating something in this way, set in stone, frozen in time, warts and all, perfectly imperfect.
My music: https://tomorrowthecure.bandcamp.com

Modules used:
Sounds - 2 full AJH Synth MiniMod voices (equivalent of a Minimoog), with 1 using a Sonic XV instead of a Transistor Ladder Filter. Additionally, a Fixed Filter Bank 914, Wave Swarm, Tone Science Triple Cross, Precision Voltages, Ring SM and CV Mix (for scaling the sequence), Dual LFO, 2x Muting Mxer. Doepfer A-111-5 (same voice as a Dark Energy), Moog Mavis, and Music Thing Modular Radio Music (Japanese funeral ceremony sample).
Sequencer - Erica Synths Sequential Switch with CV Expander.
Effects - Happy Nerding FX Aid (master reverb), ALM Busy Circuits MFX (Mavis drone reverb), XAOC Devices Sarajewo analog 'bucket brigade' delay.
Mixing - Cosmotronic Cosmix.
Audio recorder - Expert Sleepers Disting Mk4 (as WAV recorder)."

Frap Tools Fumana Part 5: Take It Slow

video upload by Cylob Sonic Research

"Recording the output of the envelope followers analysing speech, then playing this back at a much slower rate modulating a three tone drone, then drenching that in reverb.
00:00 Intro
00:03 Source material
00:25 Recording the band analysis output
00:40 Playback
01:36 Adding reverb
07:32 Freezing playback
09:29 Reversing playback direction
20:45 Changing reverb algorithm

Eurorack modules featured: Frap Tools Fumana, Intellijel Dixie, Cre8 Audio Capt'n BIG-O, Tiptop Audio Z3000 mk.2, Doepfer A-138b mixer. Reverb: Valhalla VintageVerb. CV Control: Expert Sleepers ES3 and ES6 controlled by a custom SuperCollider patch.

Original photo of snail by invisiblepower @ pexels"

Additional posts

Sequencer Jam No. 1 2024

video upload by ranzee

"#jamuary2024 Sequencer Jam

Sequencer Jam: Gear list ... Behringer System 100m modules: 110 (x2), 182 Sequencer, Behringer 2500 modules: 1004 Oscillator (x2), 1006 FiltAmp, 1033 Dual EG, Feedback Modules: Mix BX, Mix CR, 106 Chorus, Intellijel: Metropolis, Planar2, Sealegs, ALM Pamela’s New Workout, Melekko Varigate 8+, Voltage Block, Noise Engineering Basimilus Iteritas, Strymon Magneto, Happy Nerding FX Aid, Erica Synths Black BBD, Roland System 500 modules: 521 Dual VCF, 530 Dual VCA, 540 Dual EG, Expert Sleepers ES-8, FH-2, 2HP Tune, Klavis Quadigy, Mordax Data, Roland SE-02, MX-1, TR-8, Ableton Live Suite 11 - including the following VSTs: Arturia Vocoder V, Cable Guys Shaper Box 2. Recorded audio through RME Digiface, Roland MX-1 and Presonus Studio 192. Oh, and there's also the Waldorf Streichfett going through the Orion from WMD, and the Novation Peak ... phew!"

https://ranzee.com
https://www.patreon.com/ranzee

Flip your arps! Generating complex arpeggios with soft sync

video upload by Electrum Modular

"To begin phasing out my Behringer Neutron (the first piece of electronic gear I ever bought, back in 2018), I’ve just acquired two new oscillators: Intellijel’s Dixie II+ and Shakmat’s Banshee Reach. Both feature a 'soft sync' option, whereas Neutron has only hard sync. Oscillator sync is generally touted for its distinctive timbral effects. I’ve never seen any discussion of its use at lower (sub-audio) frequencies. But looking at its effect on the waveform, I reckoned soft sync might generate some interesting arpeggios. Here are the results of my experiments!

NOTE: the folded shape of these arpeggios led me to also experiment with using a wavefolder (Intellijel’s Bifold). This worked – and has the advantage of preserving the period/frequency of the arpeggio, and thus the time signature. But as you increase the fold, the arpeggio begins to sound too chaotic. I guess there is a sweet spot (or range) between a bog-standard arpeggio and a formless sequence of notes.

Other modules used:
Make Noise's Maths
Intellijel's Scales
Mutable Instruments' Plaits
Expert Sleepers' Disting EX
ALM's Pamela's New Workout
Low Gain's Short Bus
Alright Instruments' Chronoblob"

disting EX - Quad Quantizer

video upload by Expert Sleepers

New in firmware v1.24.

00:00 Introduction
01:25 Triggered quantization
02:44 Parameter run-through
06:22 Microtonal quantization
10:28 Nearest mode vs Mapped mode
14:54 Using a keyboard map to set the root tonality
17:15 Quantization to MIDI notes
19:27 Using an ES-5 expander for trigger outputs
22:11 Automatic VCO calibration

FH-2 Shift Register Random Quantized CVs (2)

video upload by Expert Sleepers

"'Shift Register Random Quantized CVs' from the FH-2.

About three years ago I posted a video on YouTube titled 'disting EX generative piano patch', which used an FH-2 to clock a disting EX running the random CV generation, driving another disting EX playing the multisampled piano.

The random CV generation is now (firmware 1.22) in the FH-2, so we can do the same with one less module. In fact, we can do better, since the FH-2 has more outputs - here there are three random patterns each driving a CV/gate pair on the disting EX.

No human interaction until about 1:30 where I drop out the patterns one at a time. No audio processing - you're hearing the direct output of the disting EX."

Expanding Your Eurorack Setup with the ES9 and VCV Rack Ft. Omri Cohen

video upload by Perfect Circuit

"Bridging between the worlds of software and hardware instruments is a long-standing ideal among electronic musicians. It's easy to imagine why: the precision of control and extensibility of the computer coupled with the tactility of hardware instruments has the potential to open completely new musical dimensions.

Luckily, this type of setup is simpler now than it ever has been. In this video, our pal and hybrid setup aficionado Omri Cohen walks through some ideas for integrating a hardware Eurorack system with the virtual modular synthesizer VCV Rack…focusing on the Expert Sleepers ES-9 Eurorack audio interface as a bridge between the two worlds. In this video, Omri touches on a ton of great patching ideas: using the computer to clock your modular system; using the computer as a processor for hardware audio; and much more.

Read more about what this all can mean for you on our blog, Signal: https://bit.ly/3RwUztA"

Terry Riley, Keyboard Study no.1 (as generative modular patch)

video upload by Electrum Modular

"There are several modular synth renditions of Terry Riley’s 'In C' out there, but none (as far as I know) of his keyboard studies, so here goes…

Although Riley played this piece in 1964-65, he did not write it down until the 1990s, and only published it in 2015: https://www.boosey.com/shop/prod/Rile...

His instructions in this book are pretty cryptic, so I try to explain the piece at the beginning of the movie.

I tend not to use MIDI in my modular (except when connecting it to an iPad or keyboard etc), as it’s less malleable than CV. But Expert Sleepers’ addition of a 'MIDI Player' algorithm to the Disting EX gave me the idea to use multiple MIDI files in a more generative way. Thank you to the tireless Os at Expert Sleepers for solving my technical issues (see Disting EX forum on modwiggler).

Robert Carl’s book, Terry Riley's In C:
https://www.google.com/books/edition/...

FWIW, my favorite piano recording of this piece is John Tilbury’s:
https://anothertimbre.bandcamp.com/al...
Released last year, but recorded 'in Hamburg in the late 1970s or early 80s—full details forgotten.'

Terry RILEY, 1972 photograph credit: © Bernard Perrine. All rights reserved 2023/Bridgeman Images"

„monumental“ | minimal music | buchla tiptop 258t | athra | disting ex - spectral freeze

video upload by Elinch

"simple patch: buchla tiptop 258t / bizarre jezebel athra / expert sleepers disting ex „spectral freeze“

recorded live with tascam dr 100
for the best listening experience listen to the video with headphones or good speakers.

if you want to support me:
https://elinch.bandcamp.com"

'Dark Energy' Mini Synth, AJH Chance Delay, Penrose, Vox Digitalis, Radio Music sample/wav player

video upload by DreamsOfWires

"Melodic Eurorack performance with Doepfer A111-5 Mini Synthesizer Voice, the new AJH Synth Chance Delay probability/gate delay, Sonic Potions Penrose quantizer, Music Thing Modular Radio Music wav/sample player, Doepfer A118-2 Noise Random S&H, Noise Engineering Vox Digitalis sequencer, Happy Nerding FX Aid XL, Cosmotronic Cosmix, Expert Sleepers Disting Mk4 as wav/audio recorder, Happy Nerding Isolator headphone/audio output.

A small 84hp rig in a DIY case with 4MS power. I created the sample loops in Audacity from some choir music. FX Aid algorithm is delay into reverb. LFO2 from the Mini Synth triggers the sample & hold clock, this sends random voltages to the quantiser, which converts them into the chosen notes on it's keyboard.

LFO2 also triggers the Chance Delay, which is using the Length control to convert the incoming LFO pulses (square wave) to very long gates - each gate will be completed before it responds to another incoming pulse, meaning it can be used as a clock divider with continuous control, rather than simple preset divisions.

The Chance function determines the probability of the module outputting a gate signal - here I'm using it as a switch to trigger the Vox Digitalis, so with Chance at zero it won't advance the sequencer, whilst at full/100% it will trigger it on every gate it generates. Since those gates are a division of the incoming pulse rate, this means the sequencer will change samples on the Radio Music at a much slower speed than the notes produced by the Mini Synth, which is runs at the same rate as LFO2 and the sample & hold.

Mini Synthesizer Voice is the Eurorack version of the Dark Energy standalone synth.
More Dark Energy here: [posted here]
Performance using Chance Delay: [posted here]
My music can be found here: https://tomorrowthecure.bandcamp.com"