the watmm GAS thread

My obsession du jour is an MPC that is smaller than my beloved MPC One, for couch and travelling.

The sensible option is Koala Sampler on an iPad mini with Garageband for effects (and maybe an effects plugin or two). I already have this.

The stupid option is an MPC 500. I watched some video's like https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjzGIl8b_ls&pp=ygUTbWFybG93IGRpZ3MgbXBjIDUwMA%3D%3D and it really didn't seem that bad (if you're already familiar with the MPC workflow, the menus are not cryptic at all).

So of course I just bought an MPC 500 on our local Craigslist-like site facepalm

  On 5/28/2023 at 11:13 AM, Limo said:

My obsession du jour is an MPC that is smaller than my beloved MPC One, for couch and travelling.

The sensible option is Koala Sampler on an iPad mini with Garageband for effects (and maybe an effects plugin or two). I already have this.

The stupid option is an MPC 500. I watched some video's like https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjzGIl8b_ls&pp=ygUTbWFybG93IGRpZ3MgbXBjIDUwMA%3D%3D and it really didn't seem that bad (if you're already familiar with the MPC workflow, the menus are not cryptic at all).

So of course I just bought an MPC 500 on our local Craigslist-like site facepalm

 

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the form factor of the 500 made it the only one i ever looked at seriously. it’s like a straight beats machine, no fluff. pads for beats, a few buttons and dials to help workflow. 

i imagine you got it for a good price locally, and if it’s in good condition then hey, make some beats.

  On 5/28/2023 at 2:10 PM, auxien said:

the form factor of the 500 made it the only one i ever looked at seriously. it’s like a straight beats machine, no fluff. pads for beats, a few buttons and dials to help workflow. 

i imagine you got it for a good price locally, and if it’s in good condition then hey, make some beats.

MPC One matches that description as well. Don't be fooled by the 7" touch screen. It makes chopping a bit (ok, a lot) easier and I also find it's helpful, but not essential, when engaging in my favorite pastime, adjusting the microtiming of individual hits. It's bigger (about twice the size) than a 500 but not annoyingly so.

The main excuse for triggering my GAS was that the One does not take power banks well. Internet is rife with stories of people who had crashes and overheating issues because on occasion the thing draws more power than most common power banks are willing to provide.

So if you're still interested in "a straight beats machine, no fluff. pads for beats, a few buttons and dials to help workflow", give the MPC One a look. It's also tremendous bang for buck.

Anyone got a Novation Peak? What's it like?

  On 5/29/2023 at 2:42 PM, dcom said:

Anyone got a Novation Peak? What's it like?

best synth i have. strong base sounds, great analog filter, very good effects. the standout for me is the interface of most controls being on the face of it for quick and easy manipulation and sound design. it ain’t the most unique sound out there, the wavetable aspect of it underwhelms many who are expecting more, but it makes for useable sounds and a heck of a variety. the mod matrix is endlessly interesting and offers plenty of performance mod routings of course.

not as ‘wow impressive!’ as some other synths, but after really getting used to it i really enjoy it. it’s a big synth because of that interface, but that is the secret sauce to it imo.

glad to answer any specifics if i know them if you have questions

  On 5/29/2023 at 3:27 PM, auxien said:

not as ‘wow impressive!’ as some other synths, but after really getting used to it i really enjoy it. it’s a big synth because of that interface, but that is the secret sauce to it imo.

I've got a Deepmind 12D and a Hydrasynth desktop which can probably compare somewhat, but of course I'd love to get my hands on a Peak before making any decisions. I've watched some video reviews and tutorials and Peak would be really nice, but the price point seems a bit high to me - is it worth it, or should I try to find a second hand unit?

i would think second hand units would be just fine in most cases, the build quality of everything on the Peak is great. it is pricey first hand or second hand, no doubt...there's plenty of stuff comparable in pricing and ability out there, 2 of which you've already listed in the Deepmind and the Hydrasynth. Prophet 12 would be right there as well. i've not tried the others but i've looked in depth at the P12, some at the Hydra, and a little at the Deepmind, never touched any of the others except a brief few minutes with someone's P12 years ago. all are good as far as i'm aware, i believe it mostly comes down to personal preference. 

asically, if you're just going to get it to compare sounds next to a Hydra, it might be neck and neck (there's a video from RMR or someone else doing this, i believe) but if you're looking to grab it and just use it regularly and consistently, then sure. rewards and proof of its value only comes with time invested into it, imo. but that said, there's a fair few free patches available on the Components app from dozens of artists/sound designers, and a good bit of packs from some pro sound designers available for it. the stock patches are okay, a few are standouts but most are kind of bread and butter. i'd say listen to some of the GEOSynths videos for a good overview of the depth of the Peak: https://www.geosynths.com/novation-peak

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  On 5/29/2023 at 9:34 PM, auxien said:

it is pricey first hand or second hand, no doubt...

There is a second hand unit available for 850 € from someone I've already bough a Modal Argon from, so I guess I'll have jump on it.

  On 5/30/2023 at 10:25 AM, dcom said:

There is a second hand unit available for 850 € from someone I've already bough a Modal Argon from, so I guess I'll have jump on it.

Just how much gear do you have? I see you on every page, talking about a different synth you have to get now No hard feelings, just admiring your budget

  On 5/30/2023 at 10:38 AM, chronical said:

Just how much gear do you have? I see you on every page, talking about a different synth you have to get now No hard feelings, just admiring your budget

A lot, and way, way more than I need to actually make music.

I promised myself a couple of decades ago that if I ever got disposable liquidity, I would spend it on music hardware - and a couple of years ago I got a small inheritance I've been using to do just that. I'm also aggressively teaching myself the ins and outs of different types of synthesis, sound design etc. so I'm hoarding all types of boxes to find out about these things and how I want/prefer to work with them. I'm going to start culling the hoard at some point and leave just the units I like to work with, but I'm still in hard in the GAS phase. I'm also a tech person, so I love figuring things out and learning how to work the units, so whenever I have time I'm always hands on with some piece of equipment - having a full-time job and a family doesn't give a lot of time to do that, but I manage.

I'm still on the market for a mixing desk, I think I'm going to go for an Alto Live 2024 at some point (I'm currently using smaller ones like Bastl Dude, Roland MX-1, 1010music Bluebox ad hoc when I'm learning or trying out things).

I finally caved and got couple of second hand Arturia Rackbrute 6Us to minimise the number of wall warts and other power cabling.

There's all of my desktop semimodulars and effects in one place using just two power cords (instead of 10), I added a couple of utility mixers and a mult for good measure. The Roland modular effects are power hungry AF (450 mA each) so I had to design a layout that the Rackbrutes cand handle. I might have to get a separate SYR-E84 that's designed just for them, but I'm quite satisfied with this setup for now.

  On 5/30/2023 at 10:56 AM, dcom said:

I'm also a tech person, so I love figuring things out and learning how to work the units, so whenever I have time I'm always hands on with some piece of equipment - having a full-time job and a family doesn't give a lot of time to do that, but I manage.

A perfectly valid hobby, IMHO.

Sure, if it's making music you're into, getting new gear all the time and learning how it works is a distraction, but there's nothing wrong with figuring out musical toys as a hobby in and of itself. It's just a bit expensive is all.

In aggregate. Individually, electronic music instruments are dirt cheap. A good oboe will set you back €8000, for example and an entry level bassoon is easy €5000. Even a relatively common instrument like an entry level saxophone is €1600. You can buy a *lot* of Eurorack for that kind of money.

  On 5/30/2023 at 11:31 AM, Limo said:

In aggregate. Individually, electronic music instruments are dirt cheap.

Yeah, currently my most expensive musical instrument is still an Ibanez Universe UV70P, all of my synth gear have been no more than half of that per unit. I have a classical musical education (10 years of violin, some classical guitar, a lot of self-taught piano, drums etc.) so it's not just about the tech or collecting, I have a metric F-ton of musical ideas I would need to realize, but I still need to learn quite a bit of synth sound design, audio engineering etc. to get to where I want to go. I have also been DJing for 30+ years, so I have very specific (although varied) musical targets I'm after - techno, electro, IDM, maybe ambient, classic synth stuff etc.

  On 5/30/2023 at 10:25 AM, dcom said:

There is a second hand unit available for 850 € from someone I've already bough a Modal Argon from, so I guess I'll have jump on it.

those pair together well imo, i've had both for about 2 years together and they've been constant companions on the majority of tracks i've written in that time. price sounds good for trying the Peak out, i imagine you can flip it for around that price again if it doesn't gel with you.

  On 5/30/2023 at 1:29 PM, auxien said:

i've had both for about 2 years together and they've been constant companions on the majority of tracks i've written in that time.

I also have a Cobalt, and they're both the 8M desktop versions, I avoid extra keyboards due to lack of placement real estate. The Modals are fun, true dat.

  On 5/30/2023 at 11:43 AM, dcom said:

it's not just about the tech or collecting

Knowing how to make music helps when playing with musical toys

  On 5/30/2023 at 11:43 AM, dcom said:

Ibanez Universe UV70P,

That's a pretty top of the line electric guitar, no? And even that is still cheaper than a small student tuba

  On 5/30/2023 at 2:28 PM, Limo said:

That's a pretty top of the line electric guitar, no?

The high-end Steve Vai signature Ibanez guitars, i.e. the JEM series, go up to 3500 €, the UV70P is the most expensive of the cheaper Universe series at about 1500 €.

  On 5/30/2023 at 2:37 PM, dcom said:

The high-end Steve Vai signature Ibanez guitars, i.e. the JEM series, go up to 3500 €, the UV70P is the most expensive of the cheaper Universe series at about 1500 €.

Nice. Seven strings, too

For me, basically every string above the top three was a waste. You know, punk rock and stuff.

During COVID I tried to learn jazz guitar on a very nice entry level Ibanez jazz guitar but it turns out my hands are way, way too small  (had sore finger joints for a year until I wisely gave it up).

  On 5/30/2023 at 3:12 PM, Limo said:

Nice. Seven strings, too

For me, basically every string above the top three was a waste. You know, punk rock and stuff.

Yeah, the UV70P was something that fulfilled a teenage daydream: I've been a long-time guitar hero fan, Steve Vai being the top one (but also Yngwie Malmsteen, Joe Satriani, Tony Macalpine, Eddie Van Halen...) so getting my hands on a Vai signature seven string was really cool. I've had a Tokai AST-'62 sunburst (a simple Fender Stratocaster clone, but a good one at that) since I was 14, it's a more of a workhorse type instrument, the UV70P is a flashy performance piece. I'm mostly a blues/rock/heavy kind of player when on the guitar, so yeah, also top three on the rhythm guitar, but then all over the frets with soloing; not a virtuoso, though, too lazy to practice that much.

Screw it, I tried to be nice...nah

That Nopia controller and the aesthetic-over-information video for it is one of the more irritating things I've ever seen in this new hipster gear influencer culture wasteful copycat silliness.

Ugly. Built like shit. Any original ideas on it are lame.

The biggest offense is being so lazy they wouldn't even put a cap on the fader. Lazy is the the nicest thing I could say.

A voice that feels like McSweeney's became sentient.

I'll take some of this back if they do a better release/support of this than the Kordbot. I'll be perfectly honest with you, I don't think this developer can even do that after that abomination. The Zach Braff of MIDI gear.

edit:  Forgot to mention the voice going straight-asmr for a GEAR DEMO! Fuck right off with that.

THE TRIAD SHALL BE COMPLETE.

Behringer SPICE, the Moog Subharmonicon clone.

It would be so cool if you, you know, could actually buy these.

  On 5/30/2023 at 6:58 PM, Limo said:

It would be so cool if you, you know, could actually buy these.

Spice was just announced, so that'll take a while to become available; but as for Edge, I just got word today that my order will be sent out on June 9th. Edges have been available for purchase from Thomann since yesterday, at least in Europe, with a delivery time of 1-2 weeks.

re: gear worth

it's relative ofc!

i've played many thousands of monies for synths ppl wouldn't touch lol