4 ms·

Thanks for mentioning that, I was not aware of Eurorack and when I looked it up I found the Synth DIY Wiki, which is a treasure trove for this topic, super cool

Thanks for mentioning that, I was not aware of Eurorack and when I looked it up I found the Synth DIY Wiki, which is a treasure trove for this topic, super cool (https://sdiy.info/wiki/Main_Page https://sdiy.info/wiki/Main_Page ). BTW, some friends and I build the Box of Boom, which is an interactive digital + analog drum kit that uses actuators to play real drums with a video game console ( see https://www.boxofboom.com https://www.boxofboom.com ). We're exploring doing a new version that integrates more synth-y sounds and signal modifiers.

smoldesu 5y ago
That's neat! I forgot to mention VCV Rack [1] which is a great way to get started with Eurorack for free. [1] https://vcvrack.com/ https://vcvrack.com/
- PaulDavisThe1st 5y ago
  Rack is awesome, and I use it almost every day. But it's not a way to get started with Eurorack. It's a (great) way to get started with modular synthesis. Eurorack is specific term for a particular hardware format (physical dimensions, power supply specifications, electrical standards). In general, most of the modules are analog, though there's no requirement for this to be true. Hardware modular synthesis existed before the emergence of Eurorack (perhaps most famously the Moog modulars, but also Buchla and perhaps 6-12 other companies making modular systems). Eurorack is an industry-wide specification that allows many different module makers to create modules that will all fully interoperate with each other.
  - smoldesu 5y ago
    My distinction is that it's to get you used to the standard, not the hardware. VCV Rack still uses 1V/Octave and CV just like a real Eurorack synth, so calling it "modular" is a bit of a disservice. VCV Rack is an emulation of the hardware, so much so that you can actually mix and match the two if you have the proper interface.
    - PaulDavisThe1st 5y ago
      The lessons you learn from using Rack are lessons about modular synthesis, not Eurorack. These are valuable lessons, and because Eurorack is also a modular synthesis environment, most of those lessons will carry over to a hardware environment. The same lessons will also help when using an older pre-eurorack hardware modular (e.g. Moog or Buchla) or a different software modular environment (e.g. Reaktor). I don't think that it is accurate to call Rack an emulation of the hardware. Rack itself doesn't emulate anything at all. Some of the modules emulate specific hardware modules. Many do not. There's also no actual voltage in Rack, just a nomenclature consensus on "1V/Octave", despite there being no volts anywhere. ps. I love Rack.
      - smoldesu 5y ago
        I'm not accusing you of not loving Rack, I'm not sure why we're coming back around to this point again. In any case, Rack markets itself as a "Eurorack simulator", not a modular synthesizer. The predominant vision has always been to onboard preexisting physical modules to create an experience that is as similarly robust as hardware. There are plenty of software modular synthesizers: Uhe's Zebra is a bit of a classic in that regard. It's a wholly original digital modular synthesizer, and bared very little resemblance to physical Eurorack. > There's also no actual voltage in Rack, just a nomenclature consensus on "1V/Octave", despite there being no volts anywhere. Sure, just like there isn't a cartridge reader in bsnes. That doesn't mean it's not an emulator: it's just arranging the data in a manner that makes it viable to compute. It's not outside the realm of possibility to also simulate those voltages, but what's the point? The same discussion has been had every time the phrase "virtual analog" was used, and nobody ever agrees on it. In any case, VCV Rack is still emulation, even if it's only HLE.
        PaulDavisThe1st 5y ago
        Calling Zebra a modular synth is a bit of a stretch. The hallmark of modular is the ability to connect any output to any input, plus the ability to modulate most controls via an input (there modules in both Rack and hardware that don't adhere to the second part). You can't do that with Zebra. I would say that it's U-he that is using (slightly) misleading marketing by calling Zebra modular, which it is in only a rather weak sense. It's no more modular than an Oberheim Matrix (6 or 12), which nobody would have ever called "modular". "Highly modulatable" would be fair, but that's really a little different. Eurorack is modular synthesis. Rack uses the term "eurorack" simply because it is more familiar to most people at this point in time. I'm aware of two debates about the term "virtual analog". The most common one has to do with how (or if) to simulate the non-linearities present in actual analog circuits. The second has been created by a few synth companies that try to use "virtual analog" to describe their synths. What they really mean is "same workflow, same controls, same modulation options as you'd expect in an analog synth from the period 1980-1995".
  - mastazi 5y ago
    Several VCV Rack modules are software renditions of hardware Eurorack modules, e.g. the Befaco or Expert Sleepers ones. I'm sure there are some VCV modules inspired to other systems like Buchla or Serge but they are not official software reproductions of hardware products, like the examples mentioned above.
munificent 5y ago
If you search for "eurorack kit", you can find a ton of module kits where you get all the parts and solder them yourself. It's a really enjoyable hobby and a nice way to ease into electronics.
- squarefoot 5y ago
  Also worth mentioning the fully Open Source and Open Hardware TSynth by ElectroTechnique, which is very cheap and sounds great for what it costs. https://electrotechnique.cc/ https://electrotechnique.cc/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCA2L7CeWSE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCA2L7CeWSE

smoldesu 5y ago

That's neat! I forgot to mention VCV Rack [1] which is a great way to get started with Eurorack for free. [1] https://vcvrack.com/ https://vcvrack.com/

PaulDavisThe1st 5y ago
Rack is awesome, and I use it almost every day. But it's not a way to get started with Eurorack. It's a (great) way to get started with modular synthesis. Eurorack is specific term for a particular hardware format (physical dimensions, power supply specifications, electrical standards). In general, most of the modules are analog, though there's no requirement for this to be true. Hardware modular synthesis existed before the emergence of Eurorack (perhaps most famously the Moog modulars, but also Buchla and perhaps 6-12 other companies making modular systems). Eurorack is an industry-wide specification that allows many different module makers to create modules that will all fully interoperate with each other.
- smoldesu 5y ago
  My distinction is that it's to get you used to the standard, not the hardware. VCV Rack still uses 1V/Octave and CV just like a real Eurorack synth, so calling it "modular" is a bit of a disservice. VCV Rack is an emulation of the hardware, so much so that you can actually mix and match the two if you have the proper interface.
  - PaulDavisThe1st 5y ago
    The lessons you learn from using Rack are lessons about modular synthesis, not Eurorack. These are valuable lessons, and because Eurorack is also a modular synthesis environment, most of those lessons will carry over to a hardware environment. The same lessons will also help when using an older pre-eurorack hardware modular (e.g. Moog or Buchla) or a different software modular environment (e.g. Reaktor). I don't think that it is accurate to call Rack an emulation of the hardware. Rack itself doesn't emulate anything at all. Some of the modules emulate specific hardware modules. Many do not. There's also no actual voltage in Rack, just a nomenclature consensus on "1V/Octave", despite there being no volts anywhere. ps. I love Rack.
    - smoldesu 5y ago
      I'm not accusing you of not loving Rack, I'm not sure why we're coming back around to this point again. In any case, Rack markets itself as a "Eurorack simulator", not a modular synthesizer. The predominant vision has always been to onboard preexisting physical modules to create an experience that is as similarly robust as hardware. There are plenty of software modular synthesizers: Uhe's Zebra is a bit of a classic in that regard. It's a wholly original digital modular synthesizer, and bared very little resemblance to physical Eurorack. > There's also no actual voltage in Rack, just a nomenclature consensus on "1V/Octave", despite there being no volts anywhere. Sure, just like there isn't a cartridge reader in bsnes. That doesn't mean it's not an emulator: it's just arranging the data in a manner that makes it viable to compute. It's not outside the realm of possibility to also simulate those voltages, but what's the point? The same discussion has been had every time the phrase "virtual analog" was used, and nobody ever agrees on it. In any case, VCV Rack is still emulation, even if it's only HLE.
      - PaulDavisThe1st 5y ago
        Calling Zebra a modular synth is a bit of a stretch. The hallmark of modular is the ability to connect any output to any input, plus the ability to modulate most controls via an input (there modules in both Rack and hardware that don't adhere to the second part). You can't do that with Zebra. I would say that it's U-he that is using (slightly) misleading marketing by calling Zebra modular, which it is in only a rather weak sense. It's no more modular than an Oberheim Matrix (6 or 12), which nobody would have ever called "modular". "Highly modulatable" would be fair, but that's really a little different. Eurorack is modular synthesis. Rack uses the term "eurorack" simply because it is more familiar to most people at this point in time. I'm aware of two debates about the term "virtual analog". The most common one has to do with how (or if) to simulate the non-linearities present in actual analog circuits. The second has been created by a few synth companies that try to use "virtual analog" to describe their synths. What they really mean is "same workflow, same controls, same modulation options as you'd expect in an analog synth from the period 1980-1995".
- mastazi 5y ago
  Several VCV Rack modules are software renditions of hardware Eurorack modules, e.g. the Befaco or Expert Sleepers ones. I'm sure there are some VCV modules inspired to other systems like Buchla or Serge but they are not official software reproductions of hardware products, like the examples mentioned above.

munificent 5y ago

If you search for "eurorack kit", you can find a ton of module kits where you get all the parts and solder them yourself. It's a really enjoyable hobby and a nice way to ease into electronics.

squarefoot 5y ago
Also worth mentioning the fully Open Source and Open Hardware TSynth by ElectroTechnique, which is very cheap and sounds great for what it costs. https://electrotechnique.cc/ https://electrotechnique.cc/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCA2L7CeWSE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uCA2L7CeWSE