No display … again … 
“Other features include an RGB LED, microSD storage, USB-C, USB Host mode and a machined aluminium body.”
Meh
Oh, absolutely there are reasons to respec any item when you’re already needing to re-up for months.
Definitely the best policy with all vendors (and why we encourage people to discuss feature requests directly with Elektron over posting them where employees are mostly hanging out and not actively seeking improvements/bug reports.)
There’s some good opportunities for exchanging tips/tricks and helping to work out bugs, but for the most part forums should rarely to never be the first point of contact.
I think that probably hurt them more with the Euro module than the Mono, at least.
Also the sort of thing that’s good for setting expectations!
Firmware 2 added a ton, refactored the entire shebang.
That said, I don’t think any of your complaints are ungrounded or petty.
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What a display for?
I don’t miss it honestly.
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I’m sorry to hear that, but maybe you can recover that feeling again. At some point I just disengaged from the 2.0 firmware. It’s a great synth with 1.x. I now have 2.0 installed but I’m not in a rush to explore the new features.
I have the QuNexus Red, which has similar keys. It’s supposed to have a decent MPE implementation, and I have an MM2 which supports MPE. I tried it with just pitch bend and aftertouch. My conclusion was that if I wanted to use these features expressively, I would either use my Digitone Keys, or get an Osmose, Continuum, Linnstrument, or something equally capable. A little plastic two-octave keyboard is just not going to cut it. And I feel the same about the Mono mk2 keys. I don’t think there are any shortcuts to expressivity. An ergonomic instrument is important, and one must be prepared to pay a lot (and have it take up a lot of space).
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I am on record (on the Norand forum) as approving refactoring even though there may not be any immediately visible benefit to end users.
Let me contrast this with another French developer, of the Micromonsta 2. Somewhat similar in not being fully engaged with forums, not apologizing at every turn, preferring their own vision to the demands of others, also a tiny shop severely affected by external circumstances. And yet somehow it has worked, and has not made a dent in the fierce loyalty of users. Of course every case is different. But I can’t help but think that a slight shift in tactics might have avoided the disillusionment that @Omar and I faced.
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Oh so this is mainly a hardware upgrade and it seemingly wont function all that different from the mk1? Part of me just assumes it’ll be a much upgraded beast in many ways!
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I hope we’re not in the “complicated girlfriend” metaphor any more…
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Manic pixie dream synth.
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There was something in the GN article about increased sequencer resolution, which suggests microtiming? But I can’t quote it, as the article itself has now disappeared, at least for my browser and laptop (both of which have been acting up today, so that may mean nothing…).
… but to take up again on the complicated girlfriend thing, I think it was good to have some time off our relationship to get to rediscover each other and have some fun again.
It’s just that in the meantime I met new girls (Razzmatazz and BlastBeats) and we’re having fun as well, but I’ll be glad to come back to the Mono one of these days and say “hey, you look well - what have you been up to?”
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Def, I did see an apology and some directed attention towards any discussion they may have missed, better engagement and less assumptions on design expectations.
Yeah, beyond shared codebase I’m sure it was necessary for proper implementation of the new features. Hopefully my response wasn’t taken as any dismissal of your frustration over optimism that they took them to heart.
It looks mostly interface / playability changes, beyond that I don’t see any unique features.
That post as a direct response to OP’s worry about no Morphos response is dated Feb 10 (those are the only two posts in that thread). The post on MW referred to is the last mention there that is not a for-sale ad (I deleted mine, having managed a local trade in March). The linked post claims a module firmware update “by the end of the month”. Three months later, no such update, but instead there is a Mono revision bringing features from the in-limbo Morphos to Mono. Definitely a lack of transparency here.
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Yes, I noted that. But since I do not own a Morphos I haven’t exchanged any more recent emails with them to check up on anything.
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Ah I’ve literally just bought a MK1 that I love but such a shame in a way because I’d have held out and grabbed the MK2 instead. Don’t get me wrong I’m still so glad for the MK1 but I’d been following Norand’s movements for a while and seen their focus being on a new firmware with loads of delays so thought there’s no chance of them having the capacity to develop a new unit any time soon and jumping in with a MK1 would be risk free. Gutted.
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Same. TBH I haven’t even used 1.x to its fullest potential and I’m fine with that.
I see it going like this:
- Some will dump their MK1 on the cheap before MK2 is out in the wild
- MK2 is out in the wild
- People don’t like the squishy buttons and desperately want an MK1
- Prices of used MK1’s skyrocket
- I’m still not selling my MK1
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Still having trouble updating my mk1 but I don’t see anything on the mk2 that makes me want it, I have expressive controllers I can plug in. If they added a wave folder or a way to mix LFOs for more complex modulation, I’d be into it but that would also be a different product.
Hard to tell from that one picture whether it looks good, is providing anything superior and not just a bunch of bright rubber coated Christmas lights.
I really liked the original version’s reduced design approach. Big question for me is how long will they be dedicating resources to continue supporting the old Mono in parallel?
I’ve been interested in a Mono for a long time, and will grab one if the Mk1 prices drop.
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My interest in the MK2 would be that the keyboard would enable very quick note input to the sequencer for live programming
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