Soma Synths Pulsar 23 Patch From Scratch: Offbeat Textural Rhythms

video upload by Matt Lowery

"Listen: things get a little weird today. I want to talk about how to make a beat that's hard to dance to. In face, calling it a 'beat' is kind of misleading. More like a big steamy bowl of drum gumbo. Drumbo.

It's also maybe just a chance for you to see the Pulsar 23 in action. Stick around and hang out.

If you want to hear this technique in a musical context, check out my track 'Erstwhile' on the Mapsquest compilation:"

Stillson Hammer Mk ii + Make Noise STO

Matt Lowery

"An initial exploration of the Stillson Hammer mkii. Sound source is Make Noise's STO, filtered by QPAS and extended through time and space by Mimeophon.

Hologram's Microcosm adds secret sauce. And, if you stick around, you can hear one of Olafur Arnolds' pads droning away in the background.

Just a sketch for now. Perhaps more in the future?"

Update:

Make Noise QPAS and the Enigmatic !! Input

Matt Lowery

"One of my first questions about the Make Noise QPAS was the input labeled with exclamation points. What does it do?"

Monome Norns: Cheat Codes 2 + Mannequins Just Friends

Matt Lowery

"Dan released an update to cheat codes 2 that is so cool. Basically, each pad on a cheat codes bank can send notes to a just friends that is connected via crow. That can then come back into cheat codes as material for the live record buffers. Leads to some very fun exploration. Here's a few minutes of this morning's session. I have buttons mapped on the midi fighter twister to generate new patterns within cheat codes."

Sound Sample: Loudest Warning Sing To Me (instrumental drone)

video upload by Matt Lowery

"Hi friends! Today I’m here with a pretty simple, short video showcasing the Loudest Warning Sing to Me panel. It’s a beautiful instrument, and combines a pair of Buchla 258’s with a small selection of serge modules in a single panel. The truth is, this was a video I captured as an Instagram post, but I was having such a nice time that 1 minute turned into 8 minutes pretty quickly! I remember when I was researching this format, there wasn’t a ton of content or sound samples of Sing To Me, so I figured I’d toss this out for posterity. A touch of reverb and delay were added in post. Have a great day."

Note this is the first post to feature a demo of the panel. One was listed for sale back in Nov here.

Some info & pics via Loudest Warning

"There are quite a few version of this around, some have different names.

258 VCO -> Triple Wave Shaper implementation: Above the 258 VCO’s is a Serge Triple Wave Shaper, normally this has three sections, but on panels with the above design the left hand shaper is one section, the right hand is two sections in series with VC 1 input tied to both of teh two sections simultaneously – configuration:

Bonus mixer between SSG and DTG: This is a simple unity gain mixer with two inputs and one output. On the other side of the DTG (between it and the Dual VCA) are two more outputs which might be labelled PEAK/TROUGH, MIN/MAX or AND/OR, these are all different names for the same thing, that is minimum / maximum outputs derived from the two inputs to the bonus mixer. Some mixers also have a Full Wave Rectifier output.

Most / all other modules are stock and info about use of these can be found on the internet, but here are some interesting things here:

https://sergemodularinfo.blogspot.com/

Great information on Serge in general and the Wave Multipliers in particular!"

CLICK FOR MORE »

Coffee and Drones: Soma Lyra-8 and Ornament-8

video upload by Matt Lowery

"I drink a delicious Ethiopian Yirgacheffe while the Lyra-8 rips a hole in the space-time continuum.

Lyra-8 is being sequenced by Ornament-8. What a hoot.

I added a touch of space echo and Valhalla Vintage Verb in post for width."

Sound Study: Frippertronics with Novation Peak, Vongon Polyphrase, Chase Bliss Generation Loss Mk2

video upload by Matt Lowery

"An exploration of frippertronics style looping with the Vongon Polyphrase. Sound source is the Novation Peak, which is also being processed by the Chase Bliss Generation Loss Mk2.

This is one of those videos that started off as a short form idea and turned into a longer piece because, well--because I was having fun."

Hologram Microcosm: Reverb Modes

Hologram Electronics

"Here’s a short video showcasing Microcosm’s 4 distinct stereo reverb modes, each selectable using the “Reverb Time” secondary control.

Video/Sound: Matt Lowery"

Float, by Old Blood Noise Endeavors

video upload by Matt Lowery

"Float is a stereo multimode filter by Old Blood Noise Endeavors. In this video, we briefly explore its features and controls, and then spend a fair amount of time running different instruments through the pedal.

00:00 Intro
01:00 What's a filter, anyway?
02:40 LFO control
03:15 LFO sync
03:40 LFO phase
05:20 with Lyra-8
06:10 Shoegazey Guitar (pt. 1)
06:54 with norns
08:53 with Plumbutter 2
10:20 with Soma Enner
12:18 Shoegazey Guitar (pt. 2)
14:30 with Brenso"

"FLOAT DUAL MOVING FILTER

299.00
Turning our predilection for parallel signals toward the world of filters and widening out to full stereo, we are pleased to unveil OBNE’s first digitally-controlled-analog pedal.

Float boasts two independently controllable filters and copious capabilities for motion. Utilizing the two filters in tandem can create stereo movement, linked reactive elements, and modulations that approach harmonic tremolo and phaser, as well as classic filter sounds.

Float features:

Two independent filters, each with control over filter type, cutoff frequency, LFO rate, envelope sensitivity, LFO shape, resonance, and volume

True stereo, parallel mono, or series mono operation via top-mounted jacks

Min/max toggle for precise sculpting of LFO and envelope range

Sync toggle to link the LFO or envelope elements of Filter 1 to Filter 2

Expression jack to externally control Cutoff or Rate for each filter

Soft touch switching with true relay bypass

Hidden settings for LFO phase and envelope speed

Pedalboard friendly size

Requires at least 100mA 9VDC center negative power"

Patch From Scratch! Qubit Nautilus, Mannequins Just Friends, Monome Teletype

video upload by Matt Lowery

"Hi, hello, good day. Here's a very chill video in which we create a fun generative sequencer with Teletype+Just Friends that is being clocked and processed by the Qubit Nautilus. It's awfully pleasant. I also drink tea, talk about Cormac McCarthy, and almost swallow the dynamic mic that I chose for this informal recording. What's not to love?

00:00 Intro
02:15 WTF Is Teletype?
10:14 Nautilus Overview
27:40 Cormac McCarthy Plug
30:42 Jam with no talking"

Make Noise Tape & Microsound Music Machine Patch From Scratch

video upload by Matt Lowery

"Hi.Over the past few months, I've gotten a lot of requests for a longform exploration of how I like to use the Tape and Microsound Music Machine for ambient music making.

This is less of a tutorial, more of a walkthrough.

Here is the case I'm using: https://blackholecases.com"

Ciat-Lonbarde Sidrax + Cocoquantus: Ambient Dream Team

video upload by Matt Lowery

"An ambient melody I noodled around with from an unpatched Sidrax (an instrument by Ciat-Lonbarde). The sidrax is playing into a Cocoquantus, and I feel like this combo is the ambient dream team.

From there, the chain is Bitmap 2, Tensor, and Ultrasheer."

Hologram Microcosm: Studio Sounds

Hologram Electronics

"Use Microcosm as a toolbox for added creativity in the studio.

Here’s a short video showcasing what you can do with digital, acoustic, and virtual instruments through various presets.

Video/Sound : Matt Lowery"

Cooper FX Generation Loss V2 Demo/Walkthrough

video by Matt Lowery

"The Cooper FX Generation Loss V2 is here. In this video, I'll walk you through the core feature set and sounds of the 2021 Generation Loss.

There will no doubt be longer, deeper videos about this pedal, and we will watch and enjoy them together. My goal here was to introduce you to this wonderful pedal in less than 10 minutes. Hope you enjoy!"

Soma Synths Jam: Lyra-8, Pulsar 23, Enner, and Ornament-8

video upload by Matt Lowery

"A low key jam performed on my collection of Soma equipment. Lyra-8 is sequenced by Ornament-8, and is on drone duty. Pulsar 23's filters are pinging away, and sent into its stereo delay. For the most part, I am performing on Enner using its built in oscillators, piezo, and auxiliary input."

Ambient Modular: Contrast With Sequential Switching

Matt Lowery

"This is a complex patch, with a lot of disparate timbres fed into a sequential switch (The Qu-Bit Synapse). The audible source and its position in the stereo field is always changing.

What I know about contrast as a cinematographer seeps into my music as well: that contrast gives depth and significance. So, I like to wire up voices with large amounts of chill, and then switch to a gnarly wavetable. That’s what I like, you might like something different.

Sources here are Chord, Braids, guitar through Microcosm and Julianna, and a captured loop on the Tyme Sefari. Data Bender is mangling two taps of Chord.

Synapse is so great for this kind of thing, because you’re only ever hearing two of these voices. So it doesn’t overwhelm.

0-ctrl is stepping between different voicing on the Chord so that it’s always slightly different.

I let this run for a long time, purely for your listening pleasure. The footage just repeats after a while."

Spitfire Audio and Blankfor.ms Present: Tape Synths

video upload by Matt Lowery

"What a beauty of an instrument! One of my favorite people/artists (Blankfor.ms) is teaming up with the absolute best in the sample instrument game (Spitfire Audio) to create Tape Synths. It's a remarkably beautiful collection of analog and digital synthesizers, processed through tape machines, modular, and more. It's a sample library just oozing taste, tone, and beauty.

00:00 Intro/Controls
02:12 ADSR controls
03:48 Pads
08:10 Keys
12:39 Arps
14:45 Blankfor.ms Presets"

How your synth would sound in the post-apocalypse [Fairfield Circuitry Roger That]

video upload by Jameson Nathan Jones

"Fairfield Circuitry sent me their new pedal, Roger That to check out, and it's really......something. After the initial shock and urge to burry it in my backyard wore off, I started to think of actual ways I could tame it. The results were surprising (hint: a Moog Matriarch always helps).

FREE Basics of Synthesis Workshop:
https://bit.ly/SubtraciveSynthWorkshop

0:00 - initial excitement/surprise
0:50 - oh ok
1:48 - feature explanation and raw sounds
6:37 - today's setup
8:48 - taming it with Matriarch
10:38 - arps with bad reception
12:57 - stereo filter sweeps with bad reception
13:53 - pad swells with....well, you know"

Fairfield Circuitry Roger That

video upload by Matt Lowery

"An exploration of Fairfield Circuitry's newest release: Roger That. Roger That is a crazy little modulator/demodulator pedal that can be subtle or can tear a hole in the fabric of the universe.

HEALTH DISCLAIMER: This demo gets pretty loud and will expose you to some intense upper-spectrum audio. Please listen at a safe and reasonable volume and take breaks if needed."

See the dealers on the right for availability.

"Fully embracing sputtery and bizarre artifacts, Fairfield Circuitry's Roger That is a distortion pedal inspired by FM radio transmitters and receivers—and all of the noise that comes along with them. The core of Roger That is a simple JFET preamp, but by then including an FM modulator and demodulator circuit, the pedal becomes an interactive sonic playground with a wide range of sounds to be uncovered in every corner. The basic controls include Dry and Wet levels, Drive for the preamp circuit, and a Tune control for dialing in the FM character. Roger That is highly responsive to audio input, so different sources will yield very different results. For more variety you can explore Shift to destablize the tracking of Tune, select between two different Tuning ranges via the R switch, or apply a bandpass filter with F. Tune also features a CV input to be externally controlled by modular synthesizers or other control voltage sources. Get into the noisier side of life with Fairfield's Roger That.

ROGER THAT FEATURES

Distortion pedal inspired by FM radio
Dry and Wet signal level controls
Drive for JFET preamp
Tune control sweeps through frequencies of internal FM modulator/demodulator scheme
Shift modifies the accuracy of tuning
Extended Tune range available via R switch
Voice filter applied with F—bandpass filter from 300Hz-3kHz
CV input for Tune"

optx, injectr, & eqx5 by Boredbrain Music

optx by Boredbrain Music: Overview and Demo
video upload by Matt Lowery

Update: new videos added below.

"Come check out optx- a new ADAT Eurorack module that connects your modular synth to your computer.

In this video I give a brief overview of the module, and a few use cases for how I use it in my studio. I'm a huge fan of what Boredbrain has put together here, and can wholeheartedly recommend the module for those who like working with Eurorack in the DAW."

injectr by Boredbrain Music: Overview and Demo


"Injectr makes it super simple to bring guitar (or any other ¼ inch instrument) into your modular system for processing, and also to derive useful control voltage from your signal via its envelope follower and gate generator.

In this video, I give a brief overview of the module, and then demonstrate its incredible musical value. I really love this thing."

eqx5 by Boredbrain Music: Overview and Demo



"This is eqx5, by Boredbrain music. Eqx5 is a five band equalizer, offering 12 decibels of boost or cut per frequency band, at a slope of 6 db/oct. It features stereo input and output, a handy summing output, as well as control over the master volume level and stereo image.

Eqx5 offers cv control over parameter on the module, and allows the artist to push into deeply creative territory by sending control rate or audio rate modulation into some or all of its cv inputs."

Boredbrain Injectr and EQx5 - Guitar and Modular

video upload by Sound Isles

"New from Boredbrain: the Injectr an instrument interface for eurorack and the EQx5 a 5-band stereo equalizer. Two incredibly powerful tools for sound shaping and creation.

Gear / modules used:
Gretsch electric guitar, Thermae - Chase Bliss Audio, Arturia Microfreak, Injectr, EQx5, Rings, Data Bender - Qu-Bit Electronix, FX Aid XL - Happy Nerding, Instruo - ochd, Intellijel Buff Mult, Monsoon. Happy Nerding OUT.

The two video clips of the falls/cliff with forest and the salmon run were shot by my friend while in B.C. Canada. All other videos were captured by me and were not found online."

Boredbrain OPTX ADAT Interface module review

video upload by Molten Music Technology

"OPTX offers 8 analogue inputs and outputs to and from ADAT. It could be a perfect way of expanding your audio interface into your modular for audio and CV shenanigans provided you have ADAT ports. Want to know more? Then watch this video.

I'll be using Bitwig Studio running on a Microsoft Surface Pro and an Arturia Audiofuse to show what the OPTX can do.

Index - 0:00
Intro - 0:00
Patch breakdown - 6:39
Back to basics - 13:26
Bitwig CV output - 14:23
Getting sound back into Bitwig - 18:51
Modulating from Bitwig - 19:46
This is awesome - 23:05
Sequencing modular from Bitwig - 25:00
Triggering drum modules with the Bitwig Drum Machine - 31:30
Adding software effects over the modular - 36:57
Multitrack recording - 38:30
Modulating synths in Bitwig from your modular - 42:14
PolyGrid to modular - 45:49
Conclusions - 45:49"

Boredbrain Xcelon: Analog Eurorack Mixer Demo

video upload by Matt Lowery

"Today we're spending some time with the Boredbrain Xcelon, a six channel, stereo euro rack mixer. We'll do a quick tour and then a patch from scratch in order to get a feel for Xcelon's feature set and advantages."

00:00 Setup/Overview
07:00 Patch From Scratch

Chase Bliss Habit: Good For Synth?

video upload by Matt Lowery

"This video was not supposed to be about the Chase Bliss Habit. It was supposed to be about CXM 1978. But as I started playing, Habit really took center stage.

Here is the thing: it's amazing on synths as a weird delay. Collect mode opens it up even farther."

With the Vermona Perfourmer MKII.