<3 model:cycles thread

Elektron Gear Model:Cycles
#61

I have just received it; nice groove box, will sale like hot cakes but I guess lots of people will end up selling it as the synth engine is very simple.

Complements volca drum very well, completely different machines. Volca drum sound editing has way more depth, Cycles sequencer is way more powerful plus reverb makes a difference with no individual outs.

I wish Cycles had a polyphonic midi track to sequence the Volca Drum from it, would make a very powerful couple.

As a drum/noise machine is very nice, as a synth the volca FM is in another league. It needs a proper ENV attack control, as there is evident clicking most of the time, as most machines have a percussive nature. Having to use the LFO just to fix this seems too much.

#62

Just a few hours with it and I do not know whether to keep it or return it :sweat_smile: …for me no amp attack is a big no :face_with_symbols_over_mouth:. Some machines would benefit a lot even from a simple fast/slow attack setting, most really… I understand Model:samples lacks it as samples can be loaded with slow attacks, even different versions of same sample but the lack of it in the Model:Cycles seems like a big mistake IMHO.

Then I play with it a little bit and the truth is that some of the machines sound fantastic, no matter how limited they are…

A fantastic sketchbook for travelling and/or live performances but either Digitone or even Volca FM will allow you to go deeper on FM synthesis if that is what your are really looking for.

Edit: Dammmnnnn… this thing is funnnnnn…:crazy_face:

1 Like
#63

@seta from favorite to least, what would you rank the hi-hat machine at from 1-6?
(1 being best/first place)

asking because I’ve been hearing mixed reviews about that machine and it’s making me a bit skeptical as I’m relying on :cycles strictly for drum tracks and I usually use 4 hihat tracks.

#64

I literally had like 15 minutes playing with mine, loving the BD, as a few others mentioned navigation will take a little getting used to, gnarly sounds, kind of reminds me a bit of Korg ER-1 if it was made by Drexciya. :rofl:

5 Likes
#65

If you are strictly looking for more traditional TR like hihats a TR-like drum machine (or just use samples) may be a better choice, but the metal machine as it is called is one of the best machines inside Cycles…and one that would benefit a lot from having amp env attack…capable of really weird metallic sounds. To me the chord machine is the least interesting one, but that may be because I am not good at music theory/melodies and such…can say which one is my favorite yet. The Kick machine reminds me the Volca Kick a lot.

The “only metal track” in Elektron Model:Cycles site does not make it justice in my opinion, there are lots of nice presets inside, not just hihats but rides, crash, fx… some of very good quality. Much better that Volca drum at getting this kind of sound.

I was considering a TR8S myself before but I decided I would only get hardware that gives me something new and/or special. Lots of classic TR sounds sources available everywhere, either as VST, samples etc; but I do prefer things like DFAM, 0-coast, Lyra 8 and even Volca Drum

2 Likes
#66

I loved the stream btw dude you flowed through some awesome beats! I agree that the M:C is a legitimately magical machine (from all I’ve heard and watched), so well designed.

2 Likes
#67

I won’t have enough time in with my M:C for a couple more days, but I can say one of the things that attracted me to it was that the sounds don’t easily lend themselves to the tried and true Roland vibe. Huge love for Roland, but I’m looking for sounds I can make my own. Trying to avoid terms like ‘kick,’ ‘claps’ or whatever because for me it conjures up notions of what those things should sound like. I’d rather be open to new possibilities for percussive elements for my own music. Just my two cents on the subject :slight_smile:

6 Likes
#68

Used the m:c first time with my main monitors, sounds brilliant!

Very refined & firm somehow

1 Like
#69

just picked up one @musicstore. i have ordered it last week.

what can i say…i love this little baby. load some of the presets and start to mangle them…then the thing awakes and starts sounding amazing.

well done. i think this will be my jam-instrument for the next whole time. i also have DT/DN/M:S. but when it comes to an jam i will take the M:C/M:S-combo. it is super immediate.

for me DT/DN sounding a little bit better. but for now, the DT/DN is for working @home. without carrying the masterpieces to jams.

1 Like
#70

The machine is very very jammable. I love interacting with the CTL-ALL, you can have a pattern and almost make a new song by, say, CTL-alling the decay to minimum, reverb and delay to maximum, and then just tweaking parameters on different tracks and opening the decay to do dub-style fader throws to send stuff to the reverb and delay.

2 Likes
#71

Yeah, the beauty of CTL-ALL on this machine is that no matter how much you ruin things with it, it’s easy to bring things back into order on a per-track basis without having to resort to reloading the pattern… which makes it a great transition tool.

I’ve been playing 2x nanoloop2 sets with a friend recently, part of the reason why I want to get a second Cycles is so we can both use one live and just mash patterns up on the fly. I think we’ll try M:C vs. M:S first though :fist:

2 Likes
#72

I’ve been feeling that my MonoMachine has been sounding a bit stale recently. Playing the M:C through it seems to have revitalised it.

#73

They sound very good together!

#74

Man, I can’t understand how you’re doing this on a per track basis? That would be a neat trick tho!

1 Like
#75

Manually! I meant that it’s not that difficult to bring things back to how they were, or to new individual sounds :slight_smile:

3 Likes
#76

Haha ahh that makes then! Thought you were somehow reloading each track - that would be a pretty cool tool tho!

#77

You could do it by saving each sound to a preset, and then loading the preset for each track individually.

1 Like
#78

not mine obviously. Pretty sick tune

6 Likes
#79

Haha dude I already played this jam four times this morning after seeing it in my feed. So good!

1 Like
#80

Did my first technoid DNB pattern with the m:c

DAYUM

1 Like