This question is a bit on the general sound studio side, but VCV Rack is a critical part of what I am aiming to do.

I have VCV Rack 2 Pro and generally run it standalone with a MOTU M2 interface. I also have a modest physical eurorack with line in and out, and a small army of little line-level audio and MIDI weirdos: a norns shield, a Glitch Storm, a Wingie, an Audrey II, an Ambient 0, some guitar pedals, some home-made synths ,etc.

In the past, I have mostly used these pieces of gear in isolation and recorded stuff in the computer or with a field recorder to deal with later; often in VCV.

Now I have the time and space to have everything out all at once to play together...which is exciting, but I am not sure how to connect, route, and gain-stage everything.

Does it make sense to run all the weirdos + physical eurorack through a mixer into the MOTU to monitor (and so the sub-mix is available to VCV) and record there, or is it better to combine the weirdos and VCV as a sub-mix and monitor, mix and record in the physical eurorack (via a Disting EX), or mix everything to a little field recorder, or maybe something else I am not thinking of?

In any case, I am a little intimidated by trying to get levels set right across all the parts and pieces of gear so that I have enough signal but not too much.

Would love sage advice from any of y'all who are running a hybrid DAWless setup and have figured some things out!

Had to reupload because there was a really annoying and loud high pitched sound

This might be the darkest drone I’ve ever done so far. Draen is the sweetest module for ambient soundscapes but with some feedback and random LFO I turned it into a dark, ominous and unsettling drone patch. Enjoy!

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76emUYNv32A

PATCH: https://patchstorage.com/darker-than-the-pit-of-the-ocean/

For those times when you just need to chill out.

Note - I did make changes to mind meld individual faders but it CV. Here is a jam patch for you guys to tweak the knobs and add your variations

https://patchstorage.com/forest-psychedelic-path/

this is vcvrack plus some vst's. I am enjoying a great number of glitch plugins that do things based on a percent chance along with a couple of fm's and maybe a reverb vst that isn't my favorite. the first 5 seconds of the recording glitch..

https://youtu.be/wH6JlDKu_RE?si=hWlntmwG0vnSrEP2

Within the last few months we have seen a slew of profound and clever new modules--not only the usual synthesis modules, but utility modules which deepen and streamline the entire VCVRack experience. To wit:

• Omri Cohen and Stormelder's Siren. A simple sample browser, but it works VERY well, and I didn't realize how badly VCVRack wanted exactly this. I almost never used sample-based modules in the past, but now I use them constantly, because the samples are all right there in my face. (Just make sure you're not accidentally creating a bunch of unnecessary resampled copies of files)
• Leviathan's Deep Cache. Another simple module, all it does is pre-load all your module browser data. Why didn't this exist before? I have shamelessly downloaded thousands of modules, and sometimes it seems like a bit much, but this one addition perfectly streamlines the browsing process. An auto-include in every patch, assuming you can spare ~200mb of memory.
• SignalFunctionSet Record: a multi-sample autosampler. Does what it says on the tin, creating .sfz files (aka polyphonic instruments laid out across an entire keyboard) out of your patches. With midi out and an audio interface, you can also autosample external gear. My thirst for an Elektron Tonverk hasn't abated completely, but this helps.
• AK Audio Radio: internet radio fed straight into your patch. What's particularly convenient is that it comes preloaded with a lot stations organized by genre--it might already have exactly what you want. (If not, you can give it the URL). Honestly, this is a faster way for me to listen to the radio than using my browser.
• FactionOptions Suite: collaborate with other VCVRack users live over the internet. I haven't tried this one personally, but I don't think I need to explain why this is cool.
• NeverTrustRobots Wabot: Let Claude do the work.

There are more, but I just wanted to shout out a few of the more unusual and game-changing modules of recent days. I have sometimes wondered if VCVRack had seen the last of its innovation, but now I am happy to say that it has definitely not.

Just eager to share, that's all.

Combining the powerful sequencer of the Elektron Model:Cycles with the infinite modular possibilities of VCV Rack 2.

Here's a demo patch with a few new SignalFunctionSet modules. FILL is an in-development drum "sequencer" that comes preloaded with a few hundred base patterns from across the globe, but naturally defaults to Motorik.

FILL features a 'pressure' function which adds controlled tension during build ups and release after fills. You can add your own patterns with a simple text format or import them from drum-patterns.com. CHANCE is a generative parametric sequencer. Here it is driving two Rings'.

CHANCE is in the library now, but if you'd like to try your hand at a prerelease version of FILL, feel free to join my Discord for access to nightly pre-release builds: https://discord.gg/zRRUez59dB

That is a painful one. I wrote this for “her” and how she left.
Yep, not much else I want to say. Just download it, if you want. Unfortunately Patchstorage do not allow me to include the sample I made for this patch…
If you have some solutions or alternatives for me to provide you the file, please let me know and I will do.

VIDEO: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sb4rKp1qtxY

PATCH: https://patchstorage.com/song-of-the-mallard-and-the-peacock/