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Comment by glimshe

15 hours ago

Modular synths are very cool, but it's a bit like a swimming pool: it's great when someone close to you deals with the grind so you can just enjoy it.

I talked myself out investing in modulars because I know I'll never have the patience to deal with the wires when all I want is to play. Big respect for those who can do it!

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glimshe

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udbhavs  13 hours ago

For me, the "wires" are the play! I go into VCV rack when the intention-oriented workflows in a DAW like Ableton feel too much "on the rails". The large exploration space of a virtual modular setup is tedious if you're trying to do a straightforward DAW task but wonderful if you are itching to have something unexpected and inspiring thrown at you within the action space of one or two knob or wiring changes.

TheOtherHobbes  7 hours ago

The worst thing about them is the lack of patch memories. This is sold as some kind of creative limitation, but really it just means you can't park an interesting patch and keep refining and exploring it.

I prefer virtual modulars like Reaktor and Cherry Modular. Especially Cherry because there's a nice Java dev system which allows custom development with some ready-made UI and I/O options.

import  14 hours ago

Once you can start to visualize the voltage flow in your brain its so much fun to deal with the cables.

  • Slow_Hand  14 hours ago

    Yeah. Having a model of the signal flow in your mind and being creative with the structure is half the fun of synthesizers for me. And even if you don't comprehend everything in the moment, happy accidents are a big part of the fun.

    Some modular performers like Keith Fullerton Whitman have a very dynamic approach to patching. I've seen shows where he was aggressively re-patching throughout the performance and hot-swapping connections on the fly. I'm talking several patches in a minute. It wasn't subtle, either. It was a nice contrast to many performers who tend to design their system as a fixed structure and then play from there.

stuart78  11 hours ago

Some people have more or less fixed-patch instruments which might be up your alley. Definitely not that type myself (things are always changing and getting swapped in and out), but there are a lot of fun ways to use them.

Slow_Hand  14 hours ago

No shame in that. I find modulars a bit too expansive for my taste. It sounds like you'd benefit from a more traditional hardware synth where the signal flow is mostly locked down.