2019 Gear Purchase: Hits & Misses

The Lounge General Discussion
#1

So as we close in on wrapping up 2019, let’s reflect on our purchases throughout the year. (it’s therapeutic lol)

Name your top (one) purchase of 2019 you clicked with that added value to your set-up,
or,
if you purchased a dud, you felt was a bad decision, list that instead.

Well my top purchase of 2019, as basic as it may seem, would have to be Ableton Live lol.

-I have always been the one to use what I already have as long as I could get by, even with limitations.
-went from FruitLoops> Maschine> Logic> Ableton Into> and now finally Ableton Live 10.
-Started back in the day with Fruit Loops (the piano roll was the strength for me) but then moved to Apple and don’t think FL was supported then.
-Maschines gripe was mostly the arrangement view (the way they structured songs and the limitations).
-Never clicked with Logic as it always seemed like I was writing in song mode and I couldn’t sketch out various ideas easily.
-So finally bought Ableton. seems very easy to write my ideas and structure them. I feel like I have a good understanding with my project now. And also routing seems easier for me compared to the others.

Anyways enough with the rambles, anyone care to share their hit or miss from 2019?

I know some of you be making some wild purchases haha. Always fun to hear what everyone has going on.

Happy holidays

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#2

Digitone is the big hit for me. Also reconnected with the OT thanks to MK2. Owning a grandmother finally made me accept the fact that I’m an MS20 guy.

Ableton is really really good though, planning on reconnecting with it while I’m travelling this year.

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#3

#1 for me is the Digitone as well.

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#4

Analog Keys.

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#5

Mine would have to be the Mood from Chase Bliss. Although it can get a bit “samey”, as you can hear when listening to demos, I’ve been able to coax ridiculous sounding things from it. Esp using the dip switches to modulate things. When you put musical things into it you get that samey sound, those beautiful pads or pitched up shimmers, but when you put beats or atonal sounds into it you’d be surprised what can come out of it. I try to sample it when I can, but it’s become crucial for playing live, since you can just futz with it and get something great.

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#6

Sipario has been the hit.
Peak has been the miss, it just flew to another ‘naut a few days ago.

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#7

The Eloquencer for me, and it actually is what made me leave modular.

First and foremost the buttons were so god awful. Recessed behind the faceplate, and sometimes unresponsive.

Otherwise it was great but the physical interface was so bad I couldnt stand it. If it had soft buttons like on the circadian rhythm Id probably still have my eurorack. But happy with what I have now

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#8

I went a bit crazy lately looking for a new magical box.
Bought the rytm, was overwhelmed with having four elektrons again, sold it after 4 weeks. Kinda thought A4 drums sound better.
Bought the MPC live. Didn’t like the workflow and interface. Have it on sale after 4 weeks.

Sold the moog dfam, got a bit bored of the sound.

My hit was the OPz cause I love the workflow. Have about 20 tracks on it that I really like. But the sound… I have to admit… not too mindblowing. Not sure if I keep it.

OT and A4 are the only boxes I have for 5 years now. Many others went in and out

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#9

,my top purchase was the qu pac…allen&heath faderless rack digital mixing backend…
class compliant usb interface but also a proper stand alone multitrack recorder…that worx like an old school tape deck…
my missing link between studio and stage…
needed that desperately…and here we go now…

too old for bad gear and bad decisions…so, no…nothing i could think of, when it comes to dissapointments…

with elektron gear i’m pretty much first adopter since ages…so only only elektron gadget this year was the ugly model from sweden…like it a lot…used it in my live sets this summer…and now i gonna refresh it and gonna make it become my sons first truu electronic instrument for x mas…

and hope that this little gimmick, that control all for chance, is also available on the takt soonish…
because, apart from the direct hands on approach of the model:samples, this little trick is an outstanding feature that separates it still from it’s bigger brother takt…but that’s soon to come…
merry x mas everybody…keep on rockin’ and have a great new years eve…
2020…here we come…

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#10

MC707 all day. It’s what I was looking for. Super fun.

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#11

I bought a Roland MC-707. Since I really like the TR-8S I thought it would be a good idea. It was not. Sold it quickly. I got a Digitone instead. Lovin’ it !

In Eurorack-land, the Metropolis sequencer was certainly my best buy.

Software-wise, I switched from Ableton to Bitwig. I love the grid.

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#12

MIDI Fighter Twister.

Really made using the Octatrack on stage much more enjoyable. Amazing how much immediacy and functionality it packs into a small square. Great for travel and studio too.

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#13

Does that one work with hardware too? I thought it was a software-only controller. Asking for a friend😊who has a Blackbox😊

#14

I keep going back and forth between the Octatrack and the Analog Four Mk2.

I bought the OT earlier in the year and I absolutely love working with it. I haven’t gotten to a place where I’m creating full tracks or recording things to my DAW for further editing, but I feel so much freer and can create way more quickly with it. There are a few things I wish it did better, but to be able to do what it does in hardware and not be connected to a computer is totally worth it.

The A4 I just got recently and it’s been a bit more difficult to figure out, but being able to work with a proper synth again has made me really miss having knobs to tweak and dial in and create sounds. It doesn’t sound quite as huge as some of the demos, so that was a little underwhelming, but I think that may be what I’m listening on more than anything else. Still, creating sounds with it has been a breeze and I’m really anxious to make more time to work with it.

Those were my only two gear purchases for the year, as I’ve been actually selling off most of my other gear. These are also my first Elektron boxes. I’ve wanted an Elektron since probably around '06 or '07 with the Machinedrum and Monomachine. I still hope to score a Machinedrum one day, but for now I’m happy with what I’ve got.

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#15

Otmk2 :+1:t3:

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#16

Biggest miss: spending too much time talking about gear instead of playing with it :slight_smile:
Biggest hit ever: getting a Machinedrum UW! Almost our 1 year anniversary (January 22) and it still feels like we’re in our honeymoon phase. It has got me looking at a Monomachine… maybe in 2020!

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#17

OG OT :heart_eyes:

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image4032×3024 2.76 MB

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#18

I got an Ensoniq MR76!? still not sure why (it was cheap). rompling the 16 tracks in sync to recent machines is definitely fun! It’s a beast, heaviest thing i own.

I was gonna start a thread about this but hopefully someone’ll pick this up here:
I’m after a no frills midi sequencer for mac osx (mojave or beyond). explored a few open source things but i’m just after something bare bones, akin to notator or cubase atari style, for importing/editing/exporting midi files. any suggestions?
i also have a powerbook G4 12" running Tiger if there’s some abandonware that fits.

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#19

I go through so much gear… :blush:
A few hits: Ensoniq EPS 16+, Korg Wavestation A/D, Yamaha TX7, Yamaha CS40M (both of which I’d owned in one form or another previously, so I already knew they’d be hits). Eventide H9 Max. iConnectivity MiO 10. Digitone. Jaspers 6-tier stand. Polyend Percs.

Misses include Arturia MicroFreak (offered me nothing new), Audiothingies MicroMonsta (ditto). T-Rex Replicator (splice was too obvious. Sound was not for me).

Still undecided: Akai MPC Live, Blofeld (second try with this one).

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#20

Digitone for sure. Runner up, EHX Mel9

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