Dieter says delete.
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Paraphony vs. polyphony has implications for sequencing and arpeggiator usage too, not just live playing on the keys.
Here somebody attempts to explain the difference between sounds you can expect with Matriarch paraphony, compared to a polyphonic synth (Prophet 6 in this case). I agree with him that Matriarch paraphony - for the right kind of user - is not inferior to true polyphony - itās got itās own cool thing.
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Very interesting thanks!
I just got the Matriarch and after twisting a few knobs Iām already in love with a lush bell esque soundā¦ insane. But the paraphony did not make sense right away. So thanks!
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I agree that they should advertise if itās a floor demo or whatever. And lower the price a bit too.
I have no idea if mine was floor model. They have one left in stock. I could exchange for it, but I also saw a social media post from them (3 weeks ago) with one on display/demo. I worry that I would actually be receiving the floor model, but who knowsā¦
I also think the turn around on all this wouldnāt be worth it for how minor it is.
I could try the exchange, but I am just going to live with it. Itās mostly minty.
Lesson learned: buy in store and check it out before you leave.
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I am about to pull the trigger with this one and went to shop to try it out. I found it pretty hard to play so that you play 3 note chord with left hand and 1 note melody above it (like traditional piano) with right hand, because of way the paraphony works with the oscilators, so that the osc keep changing everytime i press the key.
Is there any work around of it? For example can i lock oscilator 4 for the highest note or something like that? Tried to google it and found out that you can change behaviour of paraphony mode in global settings, but that didnt clear things out for me.
And second question: can I run arp or seq with only one oscilator and play keys with the other oscilators at the same time?
Thanks for your help!
Thereās a setting that decouples the sequencer from the keys. Normal behavior is for the keyboard to transpose the currently-playing sequence. With this setting, the sequence always plays as recorded, and you can play over the top.
You can also live record into the sequencer as itās playing.
And forget about changing global settings on the Matriarch. Thereās a web-midi tool that does it all much better:
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Thank you for posting the midi editor!
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The midi editor is super helpful lol!
Anyone using the Matriarch with the Grandmother? Iāve listed the GM for sale the moment i Got the matriarch, but thinkingā¦ Why not keep both for a while.
Volume on the Matriarch is pretty low compared to the Grandmother. Find a couple of threads about it. Is that due to the Oscilators being able to go quite heavy?
I usually just turn up the oscillator volumes in the Mixer section when I want more volume.
Certain settings/patch connections can really boost the loudness, as noted in the last post here:
https://forum.moogmusic.com/viewtopic.php?t=32716
The Matriarch gain staging/output level is one thing I keep forgetting to mention whenever a would-be buyer comes here to ask about it. Thereās been at least one person here who bought a Matriarch expecting cleaner sounds like on modern analog synths designs, and then being disappointed that some degree of distortion is unavoidable in a synth that is based on vintage designs.
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Yeah just the comparison with the Grandmother makes it really noticeable. Still gets clean sounds tho but for sure the paraphonic mode gets a bunch of buzzes
You simply canāt have four oscillators feeding into the same amp and filter without saturation, unless one is willing to curb the gain staging and suffer a lower overall output.
To that end, I personally think the character of the Matriarch is found in that saturation. 
Cheers!
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When I was setting up the Matriarch and Subharmonicon for recording, I too found I could plug the SubH into one of the line inputs of my Focusrite Scarlett, but I had to plug the Matriarch into preamp inputs to get more control over the signal level.
i tend to assume that nobody who may want to buy a Matriarch, will care about the overdrive inherent in the vintage-style design. Because, well, I also assume the prospective buyer is not looking for the high headroom clean sound. Thatās why I keep forgetting to mention the gain staging.
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Yeah Iāve got it in Line ins as well, plenty of ways to up the signal where needed via compression, utility etc.
Itās a wonderful beast. Iām considering keeping the GM for now to use when Iām feeling overwhelmed by the matriarch.
I also printed the manual (prev owner lost it) and holy shit it makes the GM manual look so tiny!
I recall some patches incorporating FM made the Matriarch sound loud AF. They can be found in the free patchbooks that Moog uploaded for Matriarch.
That guy on the other forum is right about parallel filter mode being loud too.
As you progress in your patching journey, you too will discover other ways to make it louder.
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I really love the saturation and think itās a big part of its character.
The way the triangle waves sound in the paraphonic mode with the osc levels set around 12 oāclock is just glorious.
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Yeah and donāt get me wrong! Louder is not the goal. An instance of utility does the job!
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The fact that the Matriarch has balanced outputs means the lower output can be cranked in your mixer/interface without getting noisy.
Tbh, the quiet output surprised me at the beginning, but after I adjusted the mixer gain, I forgot about it.
I do get annoyed when I turn up the delay mix, and the dry signal gets quieter, though.
(edited for spelling)
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Dieter says delete.
Peeps keep on coming up with cool patch ideas
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