Got this because it’s the most minimal and sleek keyboard around. The idea was that I only need an easy way to punch in notes. In that sense this is the perfect tool. Suits my playing skills perfectly. And if I need more control, I would just need to get my ass up from the chair and move closer to a real synth.
Was thinking about getting the wireless version for couch use. Let’s see about that.
My subwoofer of choice to complement my monitors. I’m not entirely sure how neighbour-friendly this is in a block of flats. To be on the safe side, I made a timer trigged script on my Mac to change the bass EQ settings at night. And again in the morning. Viva l’automation!
Got these babies with some Frank money. These appear to be not for everyone, but they sound pretty solid to me.
This is one of those synths that I’ve bought and then criminally underused. It’s a quality piece of gear with a great sound, but I just haven’t gotten around to use it that much. It is also currently my most complex analog synth, so that might have something to do with it, as I’ve lately cherished simplicity. Interestingly (or not), after I bought this, I did not buy another synth for more than four years. Not blaming this one, though. Solid Moog sound, cool sequencer/arpeggiator, all in all extremely capable, but not as immediate as the simpler Moog stuff.
Time to ditch some gear! In the end, I did not sell nearly as much as I initially thought I would, but still a substantial amount. I used some of the money to get a new Eurorack going. I also made what was to be the last synth purchase for several years and got the Moog Sub 37. Once I noticed that immediately when I had placed the order I started thinking about what synth I should get next, I realized I was on the wrong path. Didn’t buy another synth during this period, and I’m proud of it. I have been interested in many new synths, but I haven’t given in to the craving. It is really a fantastic time to be a synth fan, as everybody is releasing affordable analog synths nowadays, and the Euro format is thriving.
Once Frank The Modular was out of the way, I could rebuild the studio room’s floor, ceiling and walls. Out with the huge black Muurame bookshelf and in with a wide white desk instead. The keyboards would be in two different keyboard stands behind my back, out of reach, so I got a slim CME XKey 37 MIDI keyboard to punch in notes with. The modular (Frank Junior) would be on my right. Quite a different studio compared to pre-Judgment day. Also got a pair of Genelecs (including subwoofer).
One notable thing I did was get another 27″ iMac to use as a second screen (if my gf wasn’t at the table, in which case it would be her workstation). Two of those screens combined with the Mac’s way of handling virtual desktops is just pure bliss to work with.
I replaced the CME with an Arturia KeyLab 49 with sliders and stuff, but it did not make much of a difference. At some point I traded something to an Arturia BeatStep, but I haven’t really used it for anything. So, a pretty quiet period, hardware wise.
Except that I upgraded my 2013 iMac to the 10-core iMac Pro model in the summer of 2018. It’s clearly overkill for music making, but for 3D animation it’s totally appropriate.
In the same instant my head hit the pillow when I went to bed at 1 am on February 20:th 2015, a thought came to me from out of the blue: What if I sold everything?
I was so shocked that I lay awake the entire night thinking about letting everything go, the pros and the cons of it all, and what I would possibly keep (I hadn’t given up on making music, just considered a fresh start). When my gf got out of bed in the morning at 7 o’clock, I did the same, went downstairs to the studio and had a long look at my gear, and nodded. Yeah, I could sell almost everything.
I documented my original plan in an email to the trusted Music Bar mailing list like this:
Hi guys!
I didn’t sleep one single minute last night. When my head hit the pillow some 7 hours ago I for some inexplicable reason decided I would sell pretty much everything in my studio except:
Kurzweil PC-88 keyboard (for the kids to practise their stuff)Nord Modular G2 (just can’t let that one go)Waldorf Pulse (so much balls that it simply won’t fit out the door)Oberkorn sequencerOberheim SEM Patch Bay9U of empty Doepfer casesAnd:
Moog Sub 37 (going to buy)Prophet 6 (will probably buy)Korg MS-20, the kit thingy (may buy)alternatively I won’t sell the original MS-20Then I’ll slowly expand the Euro stuff focusing on sequencing and interesting stuff, and otherwise go soft / iPad. And try to keep it simple.
A strange but somewhat liberating feeling…
Cheers,
Me
A discussion took place. I had something more to say:
Well, I’m actually quite happy with all my stuff, and I am sure I will miss some of it, but there’s definitely some redundancy. Also, as an example, I probably only use 5% of the Andromeda’s capabilities, so a Prophet 6 simply makes more sense to me. I don’t like menus on synths. My current modular is extremely basic, and for all practical purposes the Kurz 2600R is just a preset box. It’s quite the chore to program. I don’t like menus on synths. Also have a couple of other ones which I like but really haven’t used for anything (MEK, Blofeld). The Jomox is also way underused.
The Pro One I think is similar enough to the Prophet 6 (well, it covers similar ground, I guess), the Voyager must have something in common with the Sub 37, and the Odyssey is being resurrected, so I don’t feel I’m losing anything neither completely nor for forever.
This really feels like a new beginning :-)
Sold the MEK and Monotribe today, so it has started. Wish me luck :-)
Funny how things change!
Once I had properly settled in, it was time to arrange some hardware. I built a ceiling-high and wall-wide monster out of my Muurame modular bookshelf and filled it with everything rackmountable. It was a sight to behold. Every single person who entered the room had something to say about it. Also, if one kept jumping just ever so lightly on the floor in front of it, it would make quite a dangerous-feeling wavelike movement. I don’t think it actually could have tipped over, though, as it was so close to the ceiling. Given its size, it was pretty stationary, but everything else I moved around the room several times during this period, depending on locations of stacks of floorboards and such.
I was now seriously into analog sequencing and modular synthesis. It was so much fun, and had literally endless possibilities. I could patch all night long just for the fun of it. Did get something recorded occasionally as well. There were quite interesting analog sequencers available, and I envisioned having an entire rack of just analog sequencers. All those blinking lights were so soothing…
Most of my acquisitions during this period would fit into either of two categories: anything that could be patched into the modular, and then everything else. Korg were releasing a bunch of small devices, so I just had to try those out. Korg would follow up and put out quite interesting products during the following years.
I constantly thought I had too few synths. Stuff I bought during these years were the wonderful Nord Modular G2 (I got the last one in Europe!), Nord Drum + pads, Oberheim SEM Patch Panel, loads of Euro- and Dotcom-compatible modules, Arturia Minibrute, Oberkorn analog sequencer, Korg Wavedrum, Waldorf Blofeld, Korg Monotribe, Korg Volca Sampler and the MonoEvolver Keys. Insane, really.
To be fair, I also sold some stuff, like the JD-800. Didn’t really use it at all, so it just had to go.
I also expanded beyond electronics and got an electric violin, as I was making a cover of Ultravox’ Mr X. You can’t do a Mr X cover without a violin.
Again I ran out of audio ports. I got myself another RME FireFace 800 plus one additional Behringer ADA8000. With what I already had, that’s a shitload of audio channels. Interestingly, when I was shopping for another audio interface I tried the cheaper ones first, as the FF800 was far from cheap, but Windows couldn’t handle multiple audio interfaces! You could just have one ASIO device at a time. Uhhhhh…. The only reason I could have two FF800’s was that they themselves could be chained together, and their driver could handle the situation.
Also, my trusted 8×8 MIDI interface broke down, and I had to get 2 new interfaces to cover everything. Things sure were simpler before.
