I do this all the time as well! OP-Z is a handy little composition tool.
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Please compare this to Division Department 01/IV
From the sound pallet and how immediate is it?
Looks like it was inspired somehow by Division Department 01/IV …
Say, anyone checked the encoder caps yet? Are they standard D-shafts? Thinking of getting my caps blacked out with the DJTT chroma caps…
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the most fun I know for this task
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Can’t wait to go through the more recent videos in this thread! Perfect for my work soundtrack.
Here’s my contribution. I like the Model:Cycles, and I think it makes nice sounds that I don’t make easily otherwise (yes, I could do much of this with Digitone, but I usually don’t):
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I’ve been ill today but my gf picked up my m:c for me 
Ok, so initial feelings are mixed, I like the sound but dont like the handling. Encoders feel a tad stiff, and playing on the pads is tolerable at best. The sequencer also seems to interpret unquantized finger drummed flams very poorly, much worse than on my rytm or A4.
Its going to take a while to get used to the lack of cursor keys and YES/NO.
One thing I also hate is the trig LED indicators. Its very hard to differentiate between a regular trig vs trigless lock right now. I hope this will be improved somehow, perhaps elektron could do something to the blinking rate of trigless lock trig LED indicators?
And one big WTF with the models: - Y no tempo nudge!!!111 this is a big, big omission… Feature request No 1!
TL;DR - I think DN is way better than the m:c, but its early days… First elektron box I consider returning tbh
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I don‘t understand why people still compare it to a DN. Sounds not like the DN at all. Alone the bass you get out of the MC… Impossible with the DN.
Missing a lot of features from the DN as you though…
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I can understand the comparison to DN in the sense that they are both “FM groovebox” products. But they do sound different. The m:c sound reminds me more of the soundblaster OPL sound.
However, even ess says he prefers the DN… And I kinda see now why
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This.
Don’t like the pads’ feeling so much neither.
Also, when you set track length to “tracks”, it sets it for all tracks, maybe they could stay at 16 ?
I should read the manual better, but another thing is I don’t really get if I need to save patterns or not, if saving the project saves the patterns, etc… Lost my first pattern, I know it’s a classic, but still.
The sound design sounds quite limited at first. Very few sound parameters in the end.
So yeah, very mixed feelings for now.
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I prefer it as well… the MC is pretty limited - but wasn‘t limitation the key to good music? Nonetheless I have a hard time getting warm with the lack of control / sounds you get out of it… still thinking about returning it… but the bassssss you can create … try it!
The patterns are saved when you power down the m:c correctly (holding down the master vol), at least according to elektron.
I don’t really mind the bar lenghts changing, as they are so fast to resize anyways.
Yeah… from what Ess said: It has no auto save like the Digis - so always use the powerbutton - don‘t just rip out the powercord - that‘s how you lose everything afair …
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I know. The gnarly bass music side of m:c is what made me get one in the first place! Was thinking of combining it with a x0xb0x and RD-8 just to piss off @darenager 
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I have a feeling back in 1981, when aspiring guitarists went in to get their backup bass player for practice, the th-303, a lot of units got returned as the 303 was an absolute failure at the time.
Cycles has only just come out. Find it’s groove. Don’t be hasty. A bunch of posts about people returning DT, only regretting, then rebuying.
You can’t drink whiskey after it’s poured into the barrel. You gotta let it ferment. 
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Yeah I’ve been finding most of the sound design side of it in the LFO, but luckily you can lock that per step easily and get some pretty interesting things going on. Design wise it reminds me of the gameboy nanoloops which isn’t a bad thing.
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I’m kind of on the fence about getting the Model:Cycles, and it is a little odd, lots of factors tugging me in different directions
Things tugging more toward it:
- I really like the model: format, have been very prolific with the M:S
- The Price
- The flexibility (curious to layer 3-4 chord machines for pads)
- The punch button accent/compressor (my M:S is jealous)
- Appreciate the design philosophy that went into the latest “machines” based Elektron
- Another Elektron that can do whole tracks in one box.
Things making me think twice:
- I got a Volca Drum less than 2 months ago and yea, a little bit of overlap there. Should probably utilize it more.
- Don’t want to disrupt my streak of M:S only productivity, the well is not yet dry.
- Don’t want to disrupt my M:S+OT live setup (which has taken some considerable time and work), should i fall in love with the thing.
- Let go of my Digitone, prefer my A4 to it. I’m not the #1 FM fan (but can make anything work)
- I’d be encouraged to do whole tracks with it, and that might be more sonically limiting than my M:S
Just thinking out loud, really.
Maybe I wait much longer than I initially planned to. I didn’t have the M:S for the first 10 or 11 months it was available.
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Can‘t check right now - but maybe someone has found out: Are step trigs from the sequencer sent out as MIDI as well?
yes, and when you are ready to check it out, it’s all in the manual
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I couldn‘t really find it clearly in the manual - it was more about the pads etc.