Al has a Monomachine (a journal)

[modey]

Ha, yeah I think a good challenge would be to use the monomachine to make music that *doesn't* sound like autechre :D

[psn]

On the contrary, getting it to sound as nice and creamy as that is very hard. The range on the synth parameters is vast, so there's a lot of searching for sweet spots needed to get there.

[modey]

Ah, true. Maybe I should have rephrased it, and said the challenge should be to not try to rip off Ae, much like getting the volcas and avoiding the temptation to make Analord clones

[psn]

Yeah, the MnM is in no way an insta-ae, neither sound wise nor structure wise. But trying to emulate some of their stuff is probably a very good and effective way of getting to know the machine.

 

Edit: Except for maybe this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aendgWvxtsk

[Guest]

 

but personally the Rytm is my fav, can be used for great synthie sounds as well using samples in a kind of wavetable way..

 

never considered it could be used like that, but thats a really goddam good idea.

Yeah, just make some single cycle oscillator samples.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CP0URLe2pz

doing some experimentation with this right now...

 

Basically what works exceptionally well is to make chains of single cycle waveforms.

I.e. the sample start/stop param's range is 0-120, so if you concatenate 120 cycles of different waveforms into a single sample, you can use the start/stop param to select the cycle cleanly (set stop to +-1 relative to start). with parameter slides, you can then sweep between waves in a crude way which sounds awesome... unfortunately the LFO has only one target, so you can't really use the LFO for sweeps, because you'd want to modulate start/stop in parallel. but parameter slides do the trick. messing with the start/stop stuff will also yield pretty nice stutter/glitch sounds..

 

now... a single sample holds 120 waves. you could create a ton of such chains, load up to 127 of them into the project... so you would have 127x120 = 15420 waveforms. changing the sample slot would effectively scan the y axis, start/stop would scan the x axis. Boom.

[Guest]

there is no interpolation on the y axis of course, and y (sample slot) can only be changed with a trig. still, tons of possibilities.

 

Another idea:

the y axis could hold chains with different pitches. I.e. a number of samples with different pitches representing a tonal scale could be loaded, and e.g. the LFO could be used to select notes by modulating the sample slot, playing a chancey melody which is still constrained to exactly the frequencies which are defined in the sample chains...

[Guest bitroast]

Ah, true. Maybe I should have rephrased it, and said the challenge should be to not try to rip off Ae, much like getting the volcas and avoiding the temptation to make Analord clones

A4 would probably be better suited for analord clones (or, avoiding temptafion of making analord clones with)

[modey]

Amazing demo video:

 

Probably the closest to the kind of music I want to produce with it!

[psn]

But why oh why does he go out of his way to include his dopey face in every single video? I can't stand it.

[Guest bitroast]

But why oh why does he go out of his way to include his dopey face in every single video? I can't stand it.

 

its a good endorsement for elektron. you can literally see the jamming face in action.

[modey]

So is the monomachine supposedly so hard to figure out because the parameters have different names and slightly different functions to traditional synth params, so people generally just fiddle around untile they get the sound they want? I've been reading over the manual and some forums and am starting to get the hang of how the filters work, and the damn thing hasn't even arrived yet!

 

 

edit: still impatient. If it's not in my hands by mid-march I'm getting the A4 instead, fuck it.

[Food]

Been following this thread.. don't give up, wait for the monomachine if you love it's sound. It really is much more unique sound than the A4. Vastly different machines. If you already have analog bass and don't lust for analog poly you don't really need an A4 (unless you love its sound too) .

 

Plus in terms of a fun piece of gear to jam on solo or with just one or 2 other synths mm is fuuuuun and that is probably the main thing. I find the Mono and machinedrum super fun and unique and immediate. A4, not so much imo (mainly cos of the sound, but it also more complex UI), also personally not fond of the sound of the AnalogRytm either (from demos).

[modey]

Yeah the rytm doesn't really do anything for me. And yeah, I already have 3 analog synths so I probably don't need any more. It's just so hard to know if the monomachine is even going to arrive because I ordered it from a store, and they went through elektron's Australian distributor, it's all such a clusterfuck. I've been continually stalled since mid-jan. ARGH

[Guest bitroast]

soon matey

 

[modey]

fuuuuuuck

[psn]

So is the monomachine supposedly so hard to figure out because the parameters have different names and slightly different functions to traditional synth params

 

Yeah parts of the architecture is kinda weird, but still founded on reasonable design considerations. The filter setup is slightly unconventional, but very powerful -- in essence a variable width bandpass filter with two resonance peaks and two AR envelopes. Getting normal ADSR behaviour is slightly convoluted, you need to set the length for each note to set the sustain part, and I don't even remember if there is any control on the decay part. The envelopes on the FM machines are operated with one knob (the envelope shape goes gradually steeper as you turn the knob, and it starts linear then goes logarithmic after 12 o clock). And so on. A lot of power condensed down to a few knobs.

 

But I think more importantly, like I already mentioned, most of the synthesis models ("machines" in Elektron lingo) have such a vast range in their parameters that a quarter turn of a knob often yields a completely different sound. Unlike say a Moog filter where the entire range is within the same characteristic. In my ears the MnM tends to sound harsh, and a lot of work is needed to tame it into those softer sounding sweet spots. There is a reason why there aren't very many youtube clips that sound as nice as the Nilspils ones.

[modey]

To be honest I haven't really heard much that I didn't like from all of the monomachine demos I've heard. Everything sounds like something I'd end up using in some way. Even the 'thin' super digital stuff.

[psn]

Yeah, I think it'll be right up your driveway. :)

[modey]

It's just gonna be such pain waiting for it! Maybe I'll put a post on elektronauts looking for one to buy in aus for the same price I paid in december, heh

[Guest yikes]

it goes bleep and plop in it's own very special way

YOU HAVE TO HAVE ONE

you will be an idm king/queen with this unit!

[sweepstakes]

I have not been paying mine nearly enough attention. Have had this stupid head cold and not felt like working on music. I need to reconfigure my stuff this weekend so that playing with the monomachine is the path of least resistance.

 

After this break, I'm feeling like the Elektrons, at least the 2 I have, are all about NOT chasing a dragon. You get the best results when you change methods often and explore different avenues whenever you get frustrated. They can do SO MUCH. When they start to feel limited or awkward, you can just approach them in a totally different way and they're just like "OK, cool, let's do this."

 

The other cool thing is once you get a feel for the architecture, you can think of things to try when you're away from the machines and just daydreaming. I've been doing a lot of this lately and have a list of things I want to try.

[auxien]

I only had about 2-3 weeks borrowing a friend's Monomachine (I posted a demo a while back in this thread I think) and thoroughly enjoyed it.

 

However, I'm not heavy into the synthesis options it offers; at least, not at that price. I'd gladly pay $300-400 (USD) for it, but it's going for about twice that, even used. The workflow is just a bit too cumbersome, and loop/track creation tools are the same, and limited in my view (someone who comes from a DAW world almost exclusively).

 

The other Elektron machines, well...that's a different story. I still think they're a bit steep in price, but I won't mind paying for a quality drum machine when I can afford to throw over $1000 around. The Rytm has my attention, but damn would I love ALL their machines . . .

[Al N Aafiysh]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BJfUm6JQzYs

[YEK]

modey, good things come to those who wait

[modey]

god damn