Introducing Analog Heat +FX

would love to pick one up or the Eventide H90 as my next effects processing box. I do have enough right now in modular eurorack effects and synth gear so no rush as I need to pass the No Gear challenge this year and so far have not bought any new synths!

Sooo. Am I the only one who would want a heat+fx with P-lock sequencer??

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All you need in another Elektron box next to your AH+ :wink:

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how coincidental, and smart from elektron :wink:

Have two. (And no AH due to the lack of sequencer. )

Question is, how would another elektron box help? I think you seriously overestimate the possibilities and underestimate the extra setup, non-directness, lag and timing issues of midi control. Have no octatrack, so guess the MDUW would be the best at midi control, and it would still be very cumbersome compared to an onboard sequencer.

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Think about it from Elektron’s perspective.

Adding a sequencer to the heat is going to add maybe 20% to the price, pushing the +FX up well over a grand. Added to that, putting the Elektron sequencer on the Heat would likely require the user to already have experience of the Elektron sequencer, as a sequencer on an effects box won’t be as immediately obvious to use as on a synth or drum machine, so most people who would use the sequencer on it probably already have an elektron sequencer knocking about somewhere they could use.

I used to control a Heat mk2 (and a quadraverb too) with a Digitakt. Was a piece of piss to set up, opened up a huge amount of possibilities and didn’t really have any issues with lag or timing.

Also, the Heat has always been sold as kind of a studio/live processing workhorse. Adding a sequencer pushes it slightly more into the world of esoteric gear, which might put off quite a few potential buyers. Sucks for people that want a sequencer on it, but I’d suspect you’re a fairly small group in the larger scheme of things.

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I think there’s no way you would get even close to the pretty sample-accurate sync of overbridge running two units with midi between them.

I would have agreed for the heat without effects. Adding the sequencer now would turn it into the Elektron sequence:able FX unit, which I know ppl have been dreaming about since the octatrack was teased. Sure, it wouldn’t be for everyone perhaps, but it could bet two different units, with resp without sequencer. (Just like A4/Digitone is available in versions with and without keyboard…)

Yeah, it’ll probably never happen. But sure would be nice…

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Both the Octatrack and A4 work really well as sequenceable FX boxes, but I get your point.

A4? Really? Wasn’t aware it had good FX. That’s interesting, since I’ve actually considered getting a mk1 for cheapo to pretty much only use as CV sequencer. (Since it beats a lot of equally expensive eurorack sequencers at sequencing CV. And then you kind of get an A4 as bonus! =) ). If I get a FX sequencer aswell, that’s even better! :smile:

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Actually, I really think they should port all the FX from the Heat +FX to the Syntakt. They’re all pretty basic anyhow.

Yep.

Obviously it doesn’t have quite as many different effects or distortion circuits as an AH+FX, but the delay and reverb are probably exactly the same algorithm and the chorus is excellent. Also, as well as having the two LFOs, two envelopes (with two destinations each) and sequencer to modulate the effects, you’ve also got four tracks that you can route the audio input through as oscillators, giving you up to eight filters, four overdrives and a whole bunch of extra LFOs and envelopes to set up as a filterbank, EQs, phasers…the possibilities are huge, even without using it as a synth at all, definitely worth the price of a MK1.

Obviously it’s a very different thing to an AH+FX, but it can be a very powerful way to add sequenced and heavily modulatable effects to your setup.

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That’s one of my favorite features of the A4. And that filter feedback… And you can chain all 4 A4 mono synths, with one becoming the input of the next. I have the A4 on an aux send, just to use it as a sequencer-driven FX processor.

If the +FX had a sequencer I would definitely love to play with one, but it’s a good point that the OT and A4 are already totally badass in that area.

absolutely !

I’ve ordered an AH+FX to be my EOC with A4+OT, and I’ve a feeling I might love it more just on the A4 like you say, and keep OT’s drums clean, rather than an EOC on everything. (I’d like the FX on the A4 and the Heat circuit on everything lol, but it still ticks boxes so it went for it)

I’m wondering will I want to return it an get something like a Deco for the A4 and a AH or RNLA as EOC.

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I received today the Analog Heat +FX. After half an hour of playing with it, it became very clear to me that this unit is not for me. For context, I had the mk1 years ago and I kind of liked it - ended up selling it but didn’t remember exactly why. Today I remembered. To my taste, it makes everything sound kind of flat. I don’t like the filters and the EQ, the distortion circuits are alright, and I don’t like (almost) any of the digital FX. There is something about the AD/DA conversion that puts me off. I tested it with a Prophet Rev2 and a Take5.
To me, this is a box for playing live, not for studio use. Which is also kind of how Elektron is marketing it, so no problems there. For studio (which is what I would use it), the sound quality doesn’t cut it (for me). So, it is sadly going back. I really wanted to like it; on paper, it’s a sound design paradise, kind of an FX-synth (thanks to the LFOs and envelopes and the routing options).

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Did you happen to try the Analog Heat in full analog mode before coming to that conclusion?

I do find when the digital effects are turned in something seems to be happening to the signal. But it’s very lively when turned off.

That said, I’m thinking of selling mine too. I don’t think I’m really getting much difference compared to my distortion plugins on my computer.

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Yes, I did. I also noticed a difference (an improvement) when the digital FX are turned off. However, it seems in my case I don’t like part of the analog chain either, namely the EQ and the filter. So clearly, this is not the box for me. I have ordered an OTO Boum instead, though it’s in a totally different ballpark as the Boum is mainly a compressor/saturator/filter without any modulation or FX. But with the Boum, as soon as I turned it on, I immediately felt a rich and powerful texture, very different from the Heat (to my ears). So, I think I’ve found the box for me. It has no digital FX or modulation (envelopes/LFOs), but that wasn’t my main need anyway.

I do like the distortion circuits on the Boum as well, though they have to be used wisely, I think, but that can probably be said about any distortion devices. I do think it feels more alive than plugins. For reference, the only two saturation/distortion plugins I use are Decapitator and Goodhertz Tupe/Tupe Wow, which I also like a lot (more Tupe than Decapitator).

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Yeah the Boum definitely has a lively character to it. It doesn’t do as much as Heat does but it might actually add more where Heat at this point doesn’t feel like it does much more than a plug-in does. It does sound good, but I can use an eq and a saturater plugin, like you mentioned from GoodHertz, and get close to the same effect.

Kinda wish I didn’t sell my Boum but I’m also just kinda reverting back to being in the box at this point. I’m definitely at the stage where I feel I’ve wasted money on a bunch of things my computer can do and all these things take way more time for little gain lol. But that’s just me.

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I just checked out Tupe and yeah thats a pretty lovely sound that one makes! Thanks for the suggestion!

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What FX are in this machine also Flanger, Chorus? I need FX.