i meant – anything i had to this point, that’s a closet full of gear.
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Wow, nice!
Have you ever considered using a looper, like the Roland RC-505? I think it would be perfect for your style/setup.
I’ll still stick with ‘right-sizing’. Got the gear I wanted (save for one left), now I made the deal with myself to stick with this for years to come. It should cover what I need.
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Hey I created two setups I want to spend my time this year with:
Desktop:
Push 3 SA
TR8-S
Torso T-1
LaunchControl XL mk2
Couch:
iPad
Move
Wireless midi dongle + cables so I can sample via usb C and audio out (still got to find the cleanest way to connect them both)
No more gear for now, only thing I am lusting over is the new Studiologic keyboards that should be out very very soon™.
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Because we were discussing Synthtubers once again on that other thread and somebody mentioned “they tell you a module is the greatest thing and you never see it in their case again”, I thought of something positive we can conclude from that:
a lot of Youtubers actually have quite stable and reduced core setups. I can say that at least for Ricky Tinez, whose content features a DT (II) and/or OT 95% of the time. Sometimes it’s replaced by a TE sampler like KO or XY. These are always at the core, with a few synths coming in and out to sample a bass line or lead (Nord Lead, Teo 5, 3rd Wave).
So if people who constantly get new gear and often for free stick to a select choice of main pieces, it should be a clear sign that this is basically all you need.
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Ricky’s channel is a especially great for combatting GAS. Yeah he covers new stuff, but he’ll always bring it back to the basics, and will have videos going back to older MPC or Circuit workflows. Super inspiring stuff, and a great representation of “hey, new gear is fun and exciting! But let’s remember what this is about, and that we already have some phenomenal tools at our disposal”.
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I’ve not spent much time on this thread as I have a tendency to keep my set up small anyways. I hate owning things and it weighs on me when I do.
Here’s where I’m at currently for a few years now.
SP-404MKII
PO-33
OG Digitone
A couple preamps and mics
Genelec 8010a pair
6ish pedals (delay, reverb, looper, comp, guitar sim)
1 Electric guitar
1 bass
1 acoustic guitar
Uke
Zoom H1n
More cables than I know what to do with!
Funny how when you write out the list it still feels like I have too much!
I have a few other items in the eBay pile that I’ll sell when I have time!
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You know it’s funny, seeing your list my first thought was that it’s a small relatively focused set up at that sounding incredibly creative!
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Nice piano-voice skills!
I’m curious to hear what it will end being when the extra layers are there 
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When you list it at that level of detail, almost any setup feels large to me. 
My current list:
- Syntakt & Digitone 2 - the dawless fun in my setup. I must say I gravitate more and more to the DN2 so there may be a point in time where I feel the ST is just collecting dust but I’m definitely not there yet.
- MPC Live 2 - the production-based groovebox where I can do full songs in standalone if I want. Will probably sell/upgrade if an MPC Live 3 is announced.
- Push 3 Standalone - not using it enough to justify keeping it, so it’ll go on sale at some point this year.
- Arturia MiniFreak - my only standalone synth. It integrates so neatly into the DAW that it’s a no-brainer synth to me. I use it in nearly all productions these days.
- Ableton Move - love this little thing but it’s in a bit of a weird space: not a groovebox, not a synth. More of a sketchpad and Ableton controller.
- Korg Microkey 37 - almost never use it now that I have the Minifreak, but it’s nice to have a small midi keyboard handy when needed.
Then the foundational stuff around that:
- Genelec 8030A - I’ll only part with these the day they break, basically. Love them.
- Steinberg UR-22 - this is all I need in an audio interface and I’ve been happy with it since 2017.
- Zoom H1n - I got this thinking I’d walk around and sample nature sounds, but in all honesty I haven’t used it much. But it’s so cheap that I probably will just keep it just in case.
- Audio Technica ATH-MX50 - got these cans second hand for a bargain price.
- Birdcord 12V and 20V and powerbanks for Digitone 2, Syntakt and the MPC Live 2.
Then there’s stuff that I need to run the YouTube channel:
- Various LED lights, arms and tripods - needed for jam and tutorial videos
- Olympus E-M5 with lots of lenses - I bought these around 2012-2015 when photography was my main hobby and they’re still going strong
- Olympus E-M10 mk2 - I got this a few months ago second hand for a ridiculously small amount. Perfect for the other camera angle.
- HyperX Quadcast microphone - I don’t love this thing and it looks ridiculous, but my friend let me borrow it so it’s what I use for now.
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Ive finally sold my Octatrack, after 6 years it was time. it was standing in the cupboard just waiting for that moment when i needed it for live duties and when that moment arrived i found that it really didn’t fill the “live” shoes that i needed to be filled, everything i did with it felt uninspired, the 127 levels of sample manipulation per encoder felt to little, i wanted to get more granular in my manipulation, scoping out bits and pieces of the audio which OT just could´nt do.
In the end, im not sure i squeezed every bit out of it, but it sure got a lot of mileage and its that one piece of gear which felt really good to sit with. Gone but not forgotten!
i guess its not really downsizing since im still on the prowl for a really deep sampler. GR-Mega sitting on top of the list, but currently being unobtanium.
i did downzise my Eurorack now sitting outside my main case is a 34hp with Teletype and Attowatts I2C2MIDI, which im contemplating if im gonna sell or dive into… Diving in feel seriously monumental since its basically trying to learn to code and will take several 100 hours to scratch the surface it feels like.
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the GR-1, is also very cool - I had a chance to try one 2 years ago and it was very powerful, but buggy at that time - since then they have done a lot of firmware releases and it is more stable. Mega is a big step up, but there is a long waiting list - if you order today, you might receive it in 2026.
Surprised you sold the OT - but I am like you when something is in the box or cupboards for too long, it needs to go.
have you tried the Torso S4?
Sorry about that @azzarole
Yeah GR-1 looks impressive as well, i love that it has 2 CV inputs, which will add a lot of value for me. the down side is the USB input only shenanigan. But also i really am lusting for that Spectral engine on the GR-Mega.
I have tried the S-4 and it was to buggy and had some things missing that i found to be crucial for me. You cant for instance trigger the tape sampler from external midi and that was the straw that broke the camels back. Plus it isn’t really a granular sampler, its a sampler which has a granular effect and that small detail make a huge difference.
Friends, please try to keep this thread from devolving into yet another GAS-inducing thread about “should I get A or B”?
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After finishing a video project, I wanted to get back to tunes. I put together a quick and compact setup from stuff I had laying around with:
(1) a sampling drum machine
(2) a vintage polysynth
(3) a controller
(4) a MIDI patcher
Playing the polysynth, I realized voice 1 has some extra “fizz” to it, missing from the other voices. Just had this serviced last year; time to take it apart again? When do I give up on it? Do I just live with it?
Playing the drum machine, I went to load a kit and saw garbled text on the screen. Not confidence-boosting. Tried to record a pattern, notes weren’t landing in the groove and I realized I’d forgotten how to use this drum machine after months of disuse. Some of it came back to me, but didn’t end up with anything usable. Started playing with the panning of the tracks, and realized that it seems the headphone jack is wired incorrectly for Left vs Right.
At least the controller worked fine.
I never got to the point of actually patching all of it together using the patch bay, because I spent that time trying to diagnose the voice 1 fizz on the polysynth.
All this to say: having a small and reliable setup you know intimately & have the space to keep set up for yourself to play whenever is a noble goal & achievement.
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One voice with extra fizz sounds like the synth has a cool special character which could be some kind of trademark sound that nobody else has.
I have a Yamaha CS-15d and the mod wheel is very fiddly. It goes from no modulation to a lot and it’s hard to dial in the right amount. It annoys me about once every year but i’ve accepted it.
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- Digitakt
- TX16W
- Pro 800
- Keystep 32
- Scarlett 18i20
- Turntable
- Macbook
My current setup, and loving it! Thinking about switching the TX16W for an SP202 for an even smaller footprint, and eventually switching to a DTII. Also would like to change to a more portable turntable, but not sure if I could live with the soundquality of lets say a Numark PT01
took the DNII ad down, no need to act hastily
i was driven more by space, which is now way better as I’ve got a new standing desk which can be a music or work space with ease now.
i have a lot yet to explore with this synth so it stays
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I whittled it down to dn2 m:s and nd3p. The drum might go too though. M:c still hanging around (and i consider it pointless to sell).
I did get a kick lancet for a ripping nice price. i need something analog.
Dn2 is kind of a blessing for those recovering from GAS
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It really, really is.
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