saxophone , a minibrute 2s and a 3U rackbrute

So I have a saxophone that i've been playing since 6yo. and have the crazy idea to put it through eurorack in combination with synthesizers. I also play bass guitar and have twin yamaha heads so could put out stereo with my stacks even put my pedalchain in my effects loop since my 12 ch mixer is a 6.3 mm vintage studio beaut. The idea is top create somethin in between doom, synth-wave and dark soundscaping these are some of my ideas. I already own a minibrute 2s and rackbrute 3U . Thoughts???

EDITED Jun 11th, 22:22

copy & paste the urls of your public racks... much easier for us to help you with than fuzzy jpgs...

mouseover infomatics & clickthrough really help when there are 12k of modules to choose from

then these two together

OK better... so what's the question?

So I am quite new to modular synthesizers. And was wondering if these are viable options to start having fun. Or do you think i've overlooked some things?

OK

Generally I think you're trying to do too much in too little space in the 3u racks... by that I mean not enough support modules per voice - & rememeber your inputs are also a voice..

general thoughts on micro versions of mutable modules - poor ergonomics kill enjoyment + trying to tune modules with trimmers is a hopeless and horrible task...

O&C - what do you think you will use this for? I'm not a big fan of these all in one multifunction modules - you can only use 1 or 2 functions at once and the UIs are compromised - simple functional modules are better everytime imo - although using htem as I method for working out what modules you actually need and then replacing that functionality is a valid method of learning - but then I would recommend having the free space in the rack to allow for that - which you haben't - & yes I do own a disting mk4 - it's almost always been used as a tape delay

notes from 1st rack (starting at the top):

Not convinced about the ADDAC input module... you mention both sax and bass... you'll need a mic for the sax, won't you? in which case I'd look at the befcao instrument interface... it can handle mic (including +48v phantom power), line and instrument level & has useful functionality like envelope following and gate extraction... disting ex is also useful here as it has one of the better pitch extractoin algos...

erica black output is way too big (and possibly completely unnecessary) for this size case - takes up way too much valuable rack space - but then so does the rack wart (a pet hate)

in a rack this size, if you want to use things like overdrives and compressors - I'd get a pedal interface (AI synthesis for example) and guitar pedals - potentially cheaper and don't waste rack sppace that'd be better used for more modulation, more filters, and most importantly utilities!!!

notes from 2nd rack:

as above where relevant plus - no envelope follower in disting mk4 iirc, maths - great module but rack too small for it imo, mixer also takes way too much space... other modules are too small on average... remember 1hp =0.58mm or 1/5" of an inch!!!

notes on 3rd rack:

as above where relevant plus - I really don't like these digital modular in a module modules - they're the absolute antithesis of modular synthesis to me - which tends towards knob per function & discrete modules that you patch together with patch cables etc - if you want something like this a laptop and vcv rack is a much better option in my opinion - even if it is connected up to the modular via something like an es9

notes on 4th rack:

same as above where relevant plus - kind of better in that it's bigger - but way too many sound sources!!!! see my signature!! read it, think about it for a considerable period of time... then apply what you have learnt to this rack...

and seriously consider your options when buying modules - you can give your money to known bigots (I believe the modern american term is edgelords - but I'm old and British) or you can give it to people who aren't - one modukle in this rack is from a company owned by a known bigot, infamous for making rape jokes in online forums... but it's your choice... most modular manufacturers are not in this category - as far as I know it's just 2 manufacturers...

also experience with fx aids - great modules - but imo the xl (or regular versionl) isn;t very practical without a cheat sheet - the pro is usable without a cheat sheet and if you set them up correctly the pro can be used as a cheat sheet for one or more of the other fx aid modules... screens are far better than leds for determining what algo you are using!!!

notes on 5th rack:

same as above where relevant plus - nothing that makes sense in terms of an actual modular synthesizer - all of this could be done cheaper and probably better in pedal form... nothing that leverages what modular is good at - modulation and utilities - or in terms of the effects - not a lot of modules that take modulation well or are that interesting... modulatable granular, delay reverb etc...

again see my signature: read it and think about it until you understand it... then apply to building a rack...

as a start: a sound source (instrument interface), a sound modifier, a modulation source (maths is great, see below), a quad cascading vca (you can never have too many vcas & the above racks are bereft of them) & some utilities - at a minimum something like a happy nerdiong 3 * MIA and some patch cables - buy no more than this to start! and add very slowly and with careful consideration

maths: download the 'maths illustrated supplement' work your way through it multiple times paying specific attention to how what and why it is doing what it's doing - as well as just using it as a dual function generator - it'll really help with your patching in general - not just self patching maths!!

There seems to be three goals going on here at once:

1. Play saxophone through modular tools and effects to alter its sound.
2. Play saxophone and have it trigger samples and synth sounds in the rack.
3. Play saxophone alongside synths and samples being triggered/played by the rack itself.

If your goal is to do all three of these, I would focus the first row (at least) that you try to put together entirely on goal 1. The Minibrute 2S can cover sounds for now, and I can't imagine you not having another easier way to do samples for now. For now, think about a) getting the sax sound into the modular in a way that sounds acceptable to you and b) modulation. The last one is the main thing missing here: the main reason to do this instead of pedals is the way modulation moves and shapes the sounds in unque ways. I would save extra synth voices and samplers for later and just focus on getting the sax and Minibrute 2S to play together. As for input, also think about emvelope following - turning the amplitude of your sax signal into modulation is a huge part of the potential fun here.

This one has some promising elements. The Barback and Knit are probably unnecessary, but could come in handy for later. Instead, that space might be better served by a Maths, a quad/multi VCA and attenuator, some logic stuff, a mult - the stuff that sounds boring but kind of makes systems workable and flexible. You also may want to look into something to convert modular voltages so they're safe for pedal expression inputs - if you already have pedals, there are many ways to bring them in on the fun here.

I saw you put the Meta-Module in there. Have you tried this concept in VCV Rack yet? Or even with an Empress Zoia or Poly Effects Beebo? Not necessarily as an alternative, but even just as a place to demo patches/module concepts, experiment with them, and potentially cover some ground that would be difficult and expensive in modular (that met. Especially since you'll be busy playing saxophone and not turning knobs as much. I had a Beebo and not only does it have a lot of ports of Mutable Instruments stuff like Plaits, Rings, Marbles (all stuff you have here), but you can use it as a MIDI controller to send Eurorack-style modulations to different MIDI CCs on stuff you may already have.

Thanks for the tips been playing around a bit more with your advice in consideration and came up with the following. Maybe still doubting abit between uRings and uO_C

Also shoud've mentioned that the sax will go through a boss RC20XL loopstation so i will have time to play with knobs . Not all the time but quite often and could probably set up an aby pedal so i could switch my pedaltrain of doom from my bass rig to the eurorack.
And once I fill out the rackbrute I was considering ordering a Caixa 104 case to fill at a slower pace. especially because it comesz with quite the nice package of built in utilty.

1 more question there was mention of some unethical companies, could you maybe elaborate a bit? new to this world as you'd expect by now and not completely up to speed here.

Greetings F

EDITED Jun 12th, 22:27