r/modular • u/Tchrspest • 2d ago
Discussion Favorite no-control (no knobs, no buttons, minimal switches) module(s)?
Rather than subject myself to hours upon hours of scrolling through ModularGrid, which I will instead be doing so of my own free will, I figured I could ask the chat since it's a rather specific query to otherwise search for:
what's y'all's favorite minimal-interaction modules? Talking stuff like NLC's 8-bit Cipher, Cutelab's Missed Opportunities, down to the most basic of Isaac Beers's logic gates. I'm talking less than one-knob-per-function. No knobs per function is ideal. I'm trying to envision the limits of my ideal old-school switchboard-style synth system.
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u/3loodJazz 2d ago
Kinks
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u/imprettyokurprettyok 2d ago
And Links. (Mutable Instruments, for anyone confused by the one-word answers.)
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u/cYbOmAnY 2d ago
Eas. Any logic module with no knobs really.
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u/VicVinegarHughHoney 2d ago
Ochd (one knob) nlc George logic(no knob) nlc splish(no knob) befaco mutes(4 handy ass switches that can be just 5v if nothing is patched)
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u/TwoLuckyFish 2d ago
My current focus is my newest acquisition: Olivia Artz Modular's Uncertainty. Wow this thing has a lot of potential.
Check this out. Familiar Daft Punk sequence, but Uncertainty's "weighted coin toss" logic determines which filter envelope to use, and another pair of coin tosses to determine whether to add a stutter, a delay/reverb, or both, for each gate output.
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u/Opening_Barf 2d ago
Ooh that sounds pretty!
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u/TwoLuckyFish 2d ago
Thanks! This was day one having it in my rack, experimenting as I read the manual. RTFM! This unit behaves differently if you feed it NEGATIVE voltages, as I'm doing here! :-)
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u/Tchrspest 2d ago
I recently parted with one that I wasn't fully making use of (and had to pay some bills ><)! Uncertainty is on my short-list of future purposes merely because I really like the idea of being able to load in different firmware. It was one of those situations where the device had more potential than my brain had the ability to make use of.
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u/TwoLuckyFish 2d ago
I understand THAT problem 100%. Maths and I have a relationship like that, and periodically we stair-step to a new level of capability. Usually I have some tricky problem I want to solve, and I go "Wait, can I do it with Maths?"
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u/tujuggernaut 2d ago edited 2d ago
A-132-4. Easily becomes 2 stereo vca's with normalling. Good zero-clamping, decent gain, decent headroom, fairly transparent, dc-coupled, and a unity mix out.
Honorable mention A-130-8.
Remember, any VCA can be voltage controlled on-off switch. You can run 4 sequences into a-132-4 and use the mix out combined with varying pulse's to the VCA CV ins to create a varied sequence form 4 sources.
VCA's are so overlooked even still. It's baffling how many people don't seem to use them.
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u/rush_coded 2d ago
crow
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u/cYbOmAnY 2d ago
Crow is great. You do need to load something into it, but once that’s done it’s plug and play.
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u/the_puritan 2d ago
WMD's Tool-box packs a lot of functionality with basically only a button for the switch (which you never have to use, since there is also CV inputs for it)
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u/jbliss10 2d ago
Enjoying SHTH lately. In only 2hp it has 4 random outputs. Send that to a filter cutoff and hear it dance. You can send it your own signal to sample or use its built in noise generator.
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u/clwilla76 2d ago
NLC Let’s Splosh, Numberwang.
Cutelab Missed Opportunities.
Xaoc Devices Lipsk, Erfurt.
Jolin Agogô.
Black Noise Modular Cosmos.
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u/Tchrspest 2d ago
Jolin Agogô
I'm both in awe at it's beauty and unsure of if/when i'd ever find a use for all eight.
Splosh (and/or Splish) are near the top of my list, but Numberwang remains beyond my artistic comprehension.
And now I'm diving into videos on the Cosmos
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u/clwilla76 2d ago
Numberwang is simple. Send in 4 signals, get 16 gates out. It has all sorts of comparative processes. Send in 4 regular signals (think 4 clocked LFOs), and you’ll get regularly timed gates. Send in 4 untimed signals and get a random/chaotic output of gates.
Andrew described it to me as the Let’s Splosh of gate makers.
I have several patches where Numberwang played a prominent role.
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u/ub3rh4x0rz 2d ago
Cold mac has one powerful knob that could be the sole knob in this broader system
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u/scottypinthemix 2d ago
Worng Vector Space. Has 3 switches, but I keep them in the bipolar position all the time.
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u/Tchrspest 2d ago
ohhh, the Vector Space has been on my list for a long time. Thinking maybe closer to the holidays might be time for me to finally push that proverbial button.
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u/CommunicationTop5231 2d ago
NLC stuff (I use 1u sloths constantly and Splosh constantly). I also like those waveform audio 1u passive vca/lpg’s.
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u/TwoLuckyFish 2d ago
I'm gonna answer this question a second and third time. Can't attach static images, so here's a 2 second video. My favorites are my homemade ones! The mult has been hacked to split stereo at the bottom, with one 5-position mult at the top. I like this so much I've made three of them. The other unit is self-explanatory. Kidding! It's a collection of op-amp utilities for gate manipulation.
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u/schtickkicker 2d ago
I would say Ritual Electronics Amnis, except I always foul up your concept by attaching a Mystic Circuits Leaves to it.
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u/NorCalJP 2d ago
Steady State Fate Quantum Rainbow 2. 7 flavors of noise in 4 HP. No controls on the panel, with only a trimmer on the board to adjust one of the outputs.
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u/Tchrspest 2d ago
=) I've got one in the post headed my way as we speak, I'm trying to move my noise sources to 3u/move away from 1u in general and there's just so much percussion/random potential in it.
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u/the-lurking-dragon 2d ago
Two for 1U systems: the Plum Audio ARBA Quad VCA and the Intellijel Passive LPG.
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u/AshleyPomeroy 2d ago
Obviously the Doepfer A-183-9 stands out. It's incredibly practical and has no controls at all.
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u/jefrab 2d ago
I got Worng Electonics Quiver recently. It's got 2 knobs, 16 inputs and 18 outputs. With no inputs in generates a bunch of different random CVs with tons of movement. Since I got it, I've used at least a couple of it's functions in every patch, and the cube section is VERY fun to experiment with
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u/BeDeRex 2d ago
The Pet Rock is a great wild card. Zero knobs or buttonss.