How to make it sound good

Elektron Gear Monomachine
#1

The most frequent comment I’ve heard about the Monomachine is that it doesn’t sound good out of the box, and you have to learn how to make it sound good. But what does that really mean?

Is this an intuition thing, something that can’t be really be taught? Is it just a matter of spending time with it and learning its nooks and crannies like any other instrument, getting a feel for the right time to use each machine and feature? Maybe this is personal taste, and it means something different to everyone.

Or are there a couple of often-overlooked onboard tools that, when dialed in properly, can make sounds “really shine”? Maybe it’s a matter of literally thinking outside the box and adding some external processing to it?

For example, I’ve heard many suggest turning off filter tracking, usually on the HPF but sometimes on the LPF. But I’ve often found that, much like on the OT, dialing the HPF close to the fundamental frequency turns the resonance into a decent bass boost, and it’s quite handy to have that key-tracked.

I do find the one-band EQ can impart a nice flavor, making layered structures richer and more colorful. I don’t totally understand the distortion yet but there seems to be something to that as well. It’s certainly not your average digital overdrive.

I’m not necessarily looking for concrete answers; I just want to get some thoughts. I’ve had mine for 2 months now and I really like it. It’s like it and my OT are soulmates. I’ve also read through the FAQ and the manual. I just feel like I could be making juicier sounds, and I wonder whether a few words of wisdom from y’all could give me some clues. Thanks :slight_smile:

#2

i expect you’ll get inundated with answers :slight_smile: but have you checked the tips & tricks document? it’s in the files section i expect, and is still available from that section of the old elektron-users forum if not.

the old forum is a treasure trove of information about the silver age elektrons, incidentally. lots of useful threads there from power mnm users. still searchable.

one other thing i’ll mention: i went through what you’re experiencing when i first got the mnm – lots of users do – and i learned a lot from studying the sysex elektron has made available on its own website. even if you have no interest in the sounds themselves, many of the kits and patterns are terrific introductions to the routing possibilities of the bus system, and how it can help turn a thin-sounding wave into something you like. spend a few days exploring them closely and systematically, it may prove enlightening.

1 Like
#3

you are next!

#4

Take your time - the synthesis engines are capable of a lot more sonic range than you’d expect. Unlike may synth’s the slightest turn of a knob can in many instances change a sound drastically.
The filters take a while to get the most out of along with the wrapping your head around the various routing options which are rather comprehensive to say the least.
My advice is to download the Nicholas Lem Sound pack on the Elektron site and reverse engineer a lot of the patches as he uses some very clever tricks (you’ll learn how to use the MnM as a great drum machine after picking these apart also).
I love the MnM.
It can sound superb on its own but it needs talc and much love and affection to get you there and it is not an “immediate gratification box” in many respects.
Perseverance pays though and you’ll be amazed at just how diverse a sound palette you can create with it when you get going.

#5

The monomachine is capable of a vast and beautiful range of sounds but I’ve heard a lot of people having lack luster initial impressions I think what a lot of people don’t realize is that the MNM has perfectly set up gain staging so the initial raw square or saw may sound a little thin and/or too low but the gain staging is set up so you can take full control of the EQ you have plenty of places to boost the EQ without clipping.
In that sense (and only that sense) it reminds me of the access virus series where the initial waveforms sound a little thin but the EQ allows you to make it sound huge.
I believe that’s a huge plus because it gives you the ability to make anything from razor thin cutting leads to fat and juicy bass lines unlike say a lot of analog gear where just a raw OSC sounds so fat that it can limit the sound scape (which obviously has its place as well)
But that’s my take on it, Dig deep into the various synth engines and don’t over look the EQ and gain staging and you’ll be making all kinds of great sounds.

#6

I will be seen like a very bad synthetist, but your explanation about the Virus EQ gave me the key to fat sounds. Thanks a lot Mattewsavant. It was my last unknown part about this nice synth.

:+1: thanks for having cure my ignorance. I had a good last night with my Virus C. :slight_smile:

#7

elenacortes,
Glad I could help:)

The only bad synthesists are the ones who use presets!

When a synth as an EQ section built in (Which I think is a bit of a rarity) then it’s always a good idea to turn the volume down and get crazy with the EQs.

I personally think the MNM sounds great without heavy use of the EQ section but ‘great’ depends on what you’re going for. If I want my MNM to have more balls or maybe sound more “analog” or maybe even more harsher and digital then I go for the EQ right away.

#8

i ll try to put volume down as the distortion and up for the eq thanks! any tips for the reverb?

#9

I’d like to hear more about this. I felt like this idea of gain staging deserved its own thread, and I hope the mods agree: Gain staging?

#10

I believe the ARP is one of the most fun and intuitive section on the MNM. Explore the trig tracks, and turning off the trigs in the arp screen for amp, filter and lfo.

#11

as above the arps are fun

1 note playing all the arps at once

theres a few other MnM tracks there to.

lots to explore in the MnM

its a true instrument, not much instant gratification but very rewarding if you persevere

#12

I’ve actually got enough exposure in time (more than 2 years) to say it is an incredible piece of instrument. There is no way of getting proper sounds out of it without being determined enough to reveal your full potential and spend at least a coupe of hours per day. The extent to which you would like to develop your skills needs to be measured in advance. Why?
HIGH QUALITY OUTPUT= SKILLS. Good skills require great dedication and time that are inevitably related to what goal you’ve set for yourself. The MnM is not a “USER MANUAL - operated gear”. Explore, explore, explore… MnM is unique:

  1. A fully capable drum machine
  2. FX processor
  3. Brilliant sequencer
  4. Arranging a whole song
    (impro, semi-automatised or fully automatised in song mode)
  5. Last, but not least, all the conveniences of a digital synth.

You probably see I regularly post video demos. I’m not very much into writing in-depth tutorials and would rather prefer doing some sort of “USEFUL TIPS”. Mastering requires additional equipment - that’s a real pain in the ass. My opinion is that MnM should be explored personally - that’s the best way of producing unique stuff. Good advice is always welcome, but such a complex machine goes far beyond the term “instrument”. That’s why I’d get disappointed if one day see it ‘discontinued’.

Love the reverb FX and that is what makes me get +1 MnM unit. For example, adding reverb FX to your percussion tracks makes them generally more natural and spacious. I treat the MnM as my techno monster. :slight_smile:

https://www.youtube.com/user/radoslavvalkov

1 Like
#13

Some nice music there

Umm, why are you using the headphone outputs?

not what i’d call masterclass but good work

guess you never listen to my links,

not unusual,

i dont think the op did either lol

#14

I’ll definitely listen to your tracks and give some feedback! :+1: I call it “Masterclass” because I find my patterns quite good (though not polished, as expected, that will take some time). Furthermore, many YouTube MnM demos do not have any significant impact on me when it comes to getting inspired and demos that deserve attention seem to become rare (probably because I’m choosy :wink: ). The current lack of any recording equipment / good computer leaves me with no option, but to connect the headphone input to my netbook’s MIC input and use some kind of basic sound capture software (used to have some other equipment, but that was in the past). I have just one mono speaker. That is all I have and am quite focused on synthesis and shaping sounds I like.

#15

inspirational thread … all very true … must expolore the MM more! … but, what keeps me from really enjoying myself is … too many options … would like to say, today is only the SID machine with 1 chorus machine … but when imminent sound design success fails, combined with shit patterns, lack of melody, … then it is sooooo often, back to square 1 …

felt exactly the same (well not exactly but almost) with the other elektron toys… and in the end I feld like I belonged to some sort of elite who mastered their babies … guess with the mono … here is my difficutly chart:

MM
OT
A4 (AR)
MD

#16

Some nice music there

Umm, why are you using the headphone outputs?

not what i’d call masterclass but good work

guess you never listen to my links,

not unusual,

i dont think the op did either lol

[/quote]
just bought a MnM, expecting it next week some time.

dude, your youtube stuff is rad. i just clicked the first track that popped up and sat back. dang, cant wait. i already have an AK. the pairing ought to be amazing.

#17

I finally got mine yesterday, and I thought I’d have a hard time with sound design, but I haven’t had much trouble getting my usual sounds out of it… to be fair they’re pretty simple but I think it’s sounding good for only a few hours of experience with the machine…

https://soundcloud.com/pselodux/pselodux-theme-early

#18

Don’t try to get the MnM to sound like some other synthesizer. The sounds it does well are all its own. I’ll be shot for saying it - the sounds are thin, but the movement and energy from LFOs, arp and sequencing gives it something nothing else can do. It’s great.

I like turning the eq gain up with the freq around 50-55 and turn the distortion down. I think this gives the sounds some more warmth when you want that.

Also, think about an external delay/reverb box for the major sounds, this lifts the sounds while the simpler parts can use the built in MnM delay and reverb.

B

#19

When I owned a MnM, I loved how it sounded through the RNLA compressor with high settings! Highly recommended!

#20

Okay cool, you’re doing great with 1 speaker and the comp audio in

Hard work though, you should get a half decent secondhand audio-usb box pretty cheap
I recently got a Boss GS 10, very nice unit with all the effects and on screen editing.

I’m severely and stupidly lazy with music at the moment and have been for sometime
even worse I have way way to much gear!

Wish I could loan you some !

Keep it up