Modular - why bother?

Think about it like the ultimate synth designed to your specifications and routings as perfect sample fodder. While not fully modular, I now have an ideal folder of samples taken from a 0-Coast that just sounds amazing when put through Tracker’s various sample shaping features. You don’t have to have modular running everything from start to finish in a track, though that is possible too.

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This is the exact purpose of this thread tho

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No!

You have to take a closer look then. There are plenty of examples imho.

To me this seems you have some kind of GAS or curiosity for it, and want us to confirm it’s not worth it and that it’s only bleeps and bloops :wink: Which is a often stated prejudice

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Made entirely with modular.

Just an outstanding album, in support of what’s possible with modular…

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I went down the modular rabbit hole myself and while it costs a lot (and it can) it is actually quite fun. Good exercise to pull all the cables out and start fresh sometimes or you will just memory patch the same shit.

I kind of got bored of it and taking my minimalist approach to life I sold the lot. I don’t miss it.

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Then you should probably start paying attention or listen to more than a track or two… :wink:

An example of an area where modular really shines: The generative side of electronic music. Hardware synths are ridiculously limited in this area. Many slightly generative features that synth reviewers rave about are common old practice in the modular world and nothing anybody would get excited about. Just take Elektron’s parameter locks – coming from modular originally, I had a hard time understanding why everybody considers them so special… modular thinking is: of course you can sequence over any parameter – it’s just CV – why the excitement? And why can’t I control this on a different track with different length, tempo,…? I’m still smiling when synth reviews mention the size of the “modulation matrix” of a machine – ridiculous from a modular perspective! So nice the manufacturer would actually allow me to connect X and Y – surprised I don’t have to ask for permission first… To be fair, my impression is that “box synth” builders seem to take quite some inspiration from modular these days.

Whether this complete freedom or generative stuff in general is something that interests you musically is a different question. It’s a valid point to ask where the artist is in there; I think the artist still is in there, but in a much more indirect way. Personally, I’m moving away from modular at the moment because I am looking for a different kind of connection. (And I’m probably moving away from synths altogether in the process.)

And: Go for that Matriarch! I have one. It’s awesome, event without a single patch cable.

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Synths… which can be modular.

So educate yourself.

Enjoy.

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Moot point. People choose their instruments according to what they want to sound like. If I want to sound like ME, I might as well clap my hands and do the beatbox with my mouth.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yh1ersHfwWc

you can do this all with elektron boxes or whatever synths as well.
Does it mean nobody has finished music with those machines?
I heard tons of finished music on modulars.
In different styles, different genres.
Open your minds.

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I’m not a huge modular fan (despite using it myself) and I agree with the OP that a lot of music made with it is pretty boring. But then, a lot of music made with Ableton is pretty boring too.

Modular is a tool. If it’s a tool you want or need, great, crack on, if it’s not, crack on.

If you judge a tool by the amount of knobheads playing with them on Instagram, you’d never use anything. I use modular and semi modular gear because it makes the noises I want to make within a workflow I can use, neither of which were as easy to find in a non-modular setup, which would have been my preference.

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that’s the point.
Or better: a lot of music made with modular or ableton might be not of one’s taste

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No offense but the same applies to many elektron users as well, the issue is not specific to the type of synthesis. You can have the “dark trinity”, post it to instagram, defend your gear and how smart the UI is in forums for days without making music, and still make tunes out of them that sounds like Sean Paul on ketamine.

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I got a dfam a couple of years ago and that’s already almost too complex for me, I don’t understand how modular folks can keep track of the signal paths, but I am sure that’s part of the fun! to each their own

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I don’t, and I hate it. But there are just things I could not do otherwise.

Going from semi-modular to full fat is kind of a different mindset. With semi-modular, there’s a tendency to muck about with patches a lot more, whereas bigger modular setups tend to be more conservative regarding repatching once a patch has been set up, so once you figure out your patch, you’re pretty much set.

Obviously there’s people who constantly shift and repatch all the time.

These people are mad lads.

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I don’t think this is true. Sure some people do, especially those who play live but lots of people start from scratch every single time. I do that and I know from discussion on modwiggler that many others do too.

Personally I almost always use most of my roughly 70 cables in my patches and I have no problem remembering the signal flow. After all, I build the patch trying to accomplish some goal. Granted I don’t have a massive setup, but my approach would still be the same.

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You are a mad lad

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There’s definitely an element of this in my thinking… trying to cut through that IG noise is part of it… and I suppose it’s the same with regular synths on that front.

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That’s what I’ve seen too, it’s in fact all I have seen. Fact is it’s a backwards step, harnessing that sound to computer control like Elektron does opens up far more truly new areas to explore.