Analog Four MK1 - Meh....?

Elektron Gear
#41

Also for the OP here’s a tip of my own: Explore making whole compositions with just the A4. Have one track be for a melodic line (or you can use the chord tip above for a four-note progression, and use track scale to extend that beyond four bars) and the other three tracks just for percussive sounds. Put your favorite drum patches in the sound pool and p-lock different ones on various step per track, plus send amounts to delay and reverb to make sounds on the same track appear to overlap. Try using different track lengths and probability on some steps to make the drum pattern ever-changing. Then go into performance mode and set the knob destinations to useful and performative parameters on all four tracks. Lastly use the FX track and sequence/modulate some parameters there as well.

Forcing yourself to use only the A4 as an exercise makes you realize how far it can be pushed. As a “drum machine” I consider it to be superior to all other Elektrons, and indeed one of the best in the world.

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#42

That’s a good tip! If I understand the architecture of the synth, each voice will go through its own overdrive circuit – is that correct, or does this actually change the routing?

I really like the Analog Four’s distortion/drive! It took me a while to get a feel for it… I find gain staging and headroom to be significant factors for the character of the distortion. And I think I like the one on the mk1 more than the mk2, even though the negative values on the mk2 are supposedly equivalent to the mk1 circuit! It’s also possible that I’m crazy and there’s no difference at all :grin:

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#43

Honestly not sure about the signal path it sound like that’s what it should be doing, also….
MK1 TILL I DIE!!!
:slight_smile: :star_struck:

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#44

Yeah! And this doesn’t really matter, but I think it looks cooler too

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#45

Guys, let’s be clear again, like @Octagonist said : there’s no master distorsion on the A4. So each track is sent to its own overdrive when you set up your performance macros, @Bitsnbobs.

The only way to send multiple tracks to one overdrive would be to set up neighbour tracks.

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#46

It does matter!!! And mk1 looks beastly - I’ve seen someone on here with a white skin for it that looks fab too, soooo nearly bought that!!

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#47

I also noticed that a while back and the image of it really stuck in my head! It might have been @DonovanDwyer’s: Best looking Elektrons - #30 by DonovanDwyer

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#48

Yup that’s the guy!!

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#49

I bought a TR-6S from Donovan, and it came with a white skin. I actually think I prefer the original look, but it’s still striking, and I’m treating it like a screen protector for the whole device surface.

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#50

Nice purchase :heart_eyes:

#51

Re the original premise (a4 mk1 MEHNESS):

I want to acknowledge the negative side of the instrument. I’m a recent buyer, I like it—but I knew it was a midrangey, Curtis-ish kind of synth; I wouldn’t expect an Analog4 to be a Moog, or a Sequential, or [fill in the coveted VCO polysynth of your choice].

I wonder if people form a fantasy of what the A4 will be (Elektron sequencer + multitimbrality + great, flexible analog engine] and expect to do all the classic analog bass-pad-lead stuff at once with an A4.

And it isn’t that. It has a very definite character, which generous updates (FM, etc.) and smart programmers have pretty much pushed to the limit of good sound at this point.

I’m glad I bought an old A4. But is it the best at any of the classic analog roles (Moogy bass, Roland or Prophet pad, Arpish lead)? No, it’s not those things. It’s just its humble, wonderful self.

And that carries limitations, as with any analog synth; no one instrument does it all because the core sound of different synths is better for different orchestral duties—I wouldn’t expect a Prophet 6 to do better bass than a Minitaur. “Nothing is perfect, sighed the fox…”

I’m drunkposting, hope this makes sense, lol…

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#53

2 posts were merged into an existing topic: Wow that doesnt sound the same!

#54

It seems to me that you define as negative/“meh” the fact that A4 mk1 doesn’t sound like a Moog, though.

If we focus solely on the subject of the sound of A4 mk1, I’d agree that the raw sound is indeed not as wild.

I would say A4 as plenty of options and modulations for the patient synthesist to bring the sound in many directions, including some wild sound.
It just doesn’t have a simple switch that enables the Moog sound.

Analog is not a synonym of Moog though. Maybe that’s where the fantasy lies.
SH101 is not known for its screaming overdrive.

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#56

Well, let’s clarify here. In other parts of the post you quoted, I described the A4 mk1 as “wonderful” and said “I like it.” I don’t think it’s a bad or “meh” synth, taken for what it is.

What I was trying to say before (and maybe not saying it very well) was that I think the “negative/meh” reactions come when buyers bring expectations of their own when they buy—the A4 is “analog” and “multitimbral” so it somehow is expected to be well-suited to all the typical analog timbres for lead/pad/bass/drums.

Some of those roles the a4 can fill pretty well, especially with programming skill—you can get a nice big pad from the a4 mk1. Other duties, like big bass (101 or Moog) the mk1 doesn’t really do.

The “meh” happens when expectations are disappointed. If you go into the mk1 with your eyes open about what it does well: Pleasure. No meh. But it’s a different flavor of synth.

Hopefully this is clearer now…

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