hey, looking for some advice. I'm attempting to make a generative ambient synth with a bell, drone, white noise, and drums (kick for sure, plus snare for good measure). This particular set up seems to be a balance of being able to be both "generate" rhythms and be random in melody output while still able to, when needed, be planned out enough and be played live.
The Disting MK4 is likely to be either an effects mod that I haven't thought of or a very expensive quantizer. The Quadrant 1U is mainly going to be a mixer because I could not fit the 2hp quad-channel mixer and the Clep Diaz sequenced LFO. I do not know where my drone is coming from at this point, I know the 2hp LFO can reach audible levels however I am thinking about switching the VCA for the 2hp sine module, my current idea is that the VCA would modulate the rainmaker, I am not sure which is more important.
It is important that I can have multiple separate sequences to trigger each of the voices and in order for it to be generative/random, I went with the Pamela's New Work out instead of the Steppy it also allowed me set a percentage that any beat would be skipped. It also allows me to put in the Noise Tools 1U for the White Noise along with a Sample and Hold. The idea of this synth is to take a set triggered Bell sound and use the rainmaker to "make" it into a melody. Please inform me if I am missing something obvious, like MORE VCAs instead of switching it for a sine wave or other effects for the kick and snare, by using stackable cables I am wondering how the rainmaker would react to having multiple voices input into it. I did not link the modules because I do not know the syntax yet.


Don't do this. You're majorly painting yourself into a corner by using a cab that's FAR too small to accommodate all of the functionality you're aiming for. For one thing, if you have to jam ALL of one function's voicing into a bunch of 2hp modules (which are a pain to adjust in the configuration your actual build has), you're doing something wrong.

Generative ambient...besides not really being very percussion-centric...really requires a lot of control manipulation subsystems that you don't have room for here. Think more along the lines of a machine that has a nonrepeating patch program, and once it's set into motion, it continues to create without performer interaction. THAT is "generative ambient".

I would stop right now if I were you, and go and get a copy of VCV Rack. You need to see firsthand how this should work, and what it really requires, and without the intermediary of VCV Rack, it's going to be far more difficult to pick up on this. Right now, you're building a money hole. You don't want to do that. LEARN the proper functionality requirements, THEN move to hardware...otherwise, this sort of thing gets real spendy real fast.


Thank you for the sanity check! that's why this site is so good!