Well, since you went for the Circuit, I’d advise you not to get anything else until you’ve given that a go. It’s not perhaps as deep as a synth, but as a tool for writing tracks, it has a lot to offer. The sequencer is very inspiring and you really don’t want to get distracted from making the most of it, with a brand new Volca Keys around as well. Especially since you’re pairing it with an Octatack, which is a lifetime of opportunities all on its own.
I think so but LiquidAgua said he wouldn’t use the Circuit’s sequencer.
D-4 before A4 !
Only for a short period of time…
The irony. I like the Circuit, but plastic is plastic. Won’t shine like metal, no matter the polish.
Not people from Poland, but like wax polish.
Don’t think the citizens of Poland can do much about the Circuit’s sounds either, tho.
I personally think Circuit was a good choice. I’ve got a Volca Bass and Volca Keys, but I find they get dull pretty quick (not to mention the outputs on Volcas are a bit noisy). My Circuit however is pretty inspiring though - I love using it with the Octatrack.
Circuit has a really deep synth engine. Not quite the depth of the Nova engine in the Ultranova, but for the price, nothing touches it. There are some neat performance tricks with Circuit, and combined with the OT, it’s a lot of fun. Be sure to grab the Circuit MIDI implementation chart from the Novation site… All the synth parameters can be controlled by MIDI (and mostly CC), so you will be able to do some cool automation.
Enjoy your purchase!
Actually, just on the subject of affordable synths with little or no menu diving, the Roland Boutiques are really good. I have the JP08 and JX03 (and am awaiting delivery of an A-01, which is really interesting!) I love both Boutiques that I’ve got so far, and they are great to use with the OT - total WYSIWYG sound crafting, with more depth than the Volcas offer (though at a higher price of course). 4 voice polyphony sucks, but they sound so good to my ears. Actually, if I borrowed Cher’s god awful time machine so I could turn back time, I’d choose to not buy the Volca Bass or Volca Keys, and I’d use the money to buy one other boutique (JU06 seeing as I don’t have it!)
Im with you. I have the bass, keys, circuit, JP, JU and JX. The boutiques are great for on hands synthesis sequenced from the OT. Circuit is also great. I dislike the editor, but it is powerful if you can find the time to dive into it. I also like Bass and Keys. Keys is really excellent for the sound it produces.
My circuit, bass and keys are what I hand to my son when he wants to play. Low cost, if it breaks not a huge loss.
I would take the boutiques first, then circuit, then volcas in order of preference.
I think though a blofeld desktop is a great choice if you are in Europe as they are really cheap here. Probably a better selection due to the multi timbral aspect of it, and can probably cover most boutique like sounds, for less money. There is always a question mark over reliability however.
Yeah the Blofeld!! I’ve been considering a Blofeld for some time now… They seem really versatile. More knobs would be nice though, but hey… They seem to have a well considered interface from what I’ve seen.
I’ve got a dead Virus TI KB, which was an incredible VA… Unfortunately it never got to meet the OT. So sad. I just can’t find anywhere here (I’m in Australia) that does repairs on Virus synths.
I think I have to do three things…
- Get the Virus fixed
- Buy a Blofeld
- Lock myself in my studio for a month
Unfortunately blofelds are pricy in aus. 350.00 CHF here.
Back to the Blo ! There is menu diving but, for the Circuit, you need the editor or a midi controller, otherwise you have to use macros.
Sometimes I use Blofelder Editor to edit the sounds deeper, everything is accessible with only 2 pages. Very clear and efficient !
But they aren’t toys !
I thought about something like that for my 4 years old son.
More like learning tools My son is a natural with music it seems so why not encourage it
Luky you are, mine is lazy but, before 3 years old…
Still not too bad though. Even the cheapest Virus TI Snow is over a grand, so the old Bloey doesn’t seem too pricey (I saw one for about AU$480 second hand which is ok)
It’s hard to find a cheap multitimbral synth (other than Blofeld). It’s a pity because I love how the Blo is made, but it’s pretty hard to program for me, and I don’t love too much its sound. The only real alternatives are other old gear like Electribe M/MX, Virus A, novation Nova, etc, which are more capable to work without a computer.