And it looks like the patchcords I bought are perhaps still a bit on the short side.
Really sweet instrument with lots of possibilities. Although it appears (by the video) that its completely out of synch and style with the poor singer, who seems to be looking back towards him like, WTF? Was it too much?
I could be wrong. Maybe its because the keys were brought so far forward for the demonstration. If not, he really stole the show!!
Still alive and well...
https://bakullama1.bandcamp.com/
Interesting. Not sure you need that much extra control as you can do a shit-ton with it already.
I haven't spent much time with my Rise 2, but its tough to play. My real complaint is that they didn't put any bright key markers on the white keys, only the black. I have a hard time hitting the notes so i have to tone down the sensitivity.
JG
"MARKLAR!"
All I have going is a Yamaha piano and an AKAI Mini with Hybrid. A couple of guitars. I squeeze sounds out of them for all they're worth, alter some sounds with my DAW. I know I should get with the times, but I'm a caveman.
Still alive and well...
https://bakullama1.bandcamp.com/
If you're actually reading this then chances are you already have my last album but if NOT and you're curious:
https://battema.bandcamp.com/
Also, Ephemeral Sun: it's a thing and we like making things that might be your thing: https://ephemeralsun.bandcamp.com
It's fun to play with and I like using it with the bundled software. There's an electric slide guitar in Equator that's pretty fun to play, and I dig the response on that and the few presets I've played it on. I honestly don't use it with other software synths enough to know everything it can do. Also, I don't know how it compares to Rise 2 or anything else for that matter.....I've not played those yet.
It's prob the most "out there" device I own, from a controller standpoint, and I really need to explore it's capabilities more deeply. I'm admittedly not the most adventurous guy when it comes to devices like this, so I need to carve out some time and really test it's limits. But I'm with you on the "hotel controller" thing!
So one of the cool/interesting things about most MPE controllers is the light touch. With a typical piano or even electric piano, if you just lightly touch the key nothing will happen. Even with a plastic synth keyboard, it'll just trigger the minimum velocity at some predetermined threshold. With a good MPE controller, even the lightest touch should trigger something. Paired with a good MPE-capable engine, this can result in some surprisingly expressive nuances. With the Continuum for example, call up a percussive patch and then just lightly tap on the surface to get a sound very similar to what you'd expect from gently tapping on an actual drum! While I do like the Seaboard Block, I find it doesn't really register my lightest touches in the same way the Rise 2 does, or even other devices like Osmose or Continuum. But it's intentionally a little sibling so perhaps that's not really a defect as much as just a reality of the different price points.
Several of the earlier Cherry Audio synths have MPE modes including Dreamsynth and Sines, and both even have a MPE patch category you can explore. Also, the GX-80 isn't MPE capable but it can do polyphonic aftertouch, so it can be fun to put the Seaboard in polyAT mode and play with those sounds Oh and if you have the Arturia V-Collection, the most recent Mini V4 is MPE capable and turns the legendary monophonic synth into a really expressive polyphonic synth...so that can be fun as well
If you're actually reading this then chances are you already have my last album but if NOT and you're curious:
https://battema.bandcamp.com/
Also, Ephemeral Sun: it's a thing and we like making things that might be your thing: https://ephemeralsun.bandcamp.com
The thing looks interesting, but it's something I really would like to try before I buy it. I mean, with a normal keyboard I know more or less what to expect, it might be weighted, semi-weighted, have aftertouch, or polyphonic aftertouch, but it's still a keyboard. But the Roli is a completely different animal. The diffence between this and a normal keyboard is bigger than that between a Chapman stick and a bass-guitar.
Still very happy with my Behringer MS-5. Love to just turn it on, put my headphones on and fiddle around with the keys and experimenting with sounds. Created a sound I likes, so I took a picture of the settings. It's easier than writing everything down on a patch-sheet.
I've been trying to do the same thing with the Wasp and the Monopoly (taking patch pictures) but I usually forgot to. But it seems every time I manage to find something new when I have to start from scratch (sort of).
So, a couple weeks ago, I noticed that there was a used Make Noise Morphagene on Reverb, going for about $100 below the usual price for a new one. I had been thinking about what I wanted to get for myself for Xmas, so I decided to pull the trigger a couple months early. It's really really cool, I'm still learning to use it. But I've made a few recordings, doing stuff like sampling bits off of existing recordings. It arrived a couple days before, I think, Phil Lesh passed away, and I've been trying to figure out how to create something musical using the Morphagene, by feeding some Grateful Dead improvs into (and especially at the moment, Phil's bass solos) and trying to create something with that. Like I said, I'm still learning to use it, but I've gotten some interesting results so far. It's certainly been a lot of fun.
Make Noise products are generally really, really exceptional. A bit on the pricey side, so great job snagging one on Reverb!
If you're actually reading this then chances are you already have my last album but if NOT and you're curious:
https://battema.bandcamp.com/
Also, Ephemeral Sun: it's a thing and we like making things that might be your thing: https://ephemeralsun.bandcamp.com
Behringer just had a price drop on a bunch of stuff for anyone interested.
JG
"MARKLAR!"
Yeah, I already had an STO, and the videos I've watched on Youtube makes me wish I had the money to buy a lot of their modules (or even one of their full systems they sell, but I can't afford that either). I think I was interested in the predecessor to the Morphagene, I think it was called the Phonogene, when it was available, but they discontinued it before I really had the funds to get one. Then the Morphagene came out, and I saw the demo videos for THAT, and I said "I want one". So I've wanted one, I think probably, since it came out.
Anyway, I do a lot of window shopping on Reverb (and for awhile, I was doing way too much actual shopping on there, buying several guitars, and a mandolin, and a couple synth modules), and I guess it occurred to me check on Morphagene prices, and saw there was one available. I hesitated about a week or two, but finally pulled the trigger, because I knew if I didn't, someone else would.
It's a neat little module. One thing I was doing for awhile was patching random voltage sources into all the CV inputs, and that produced some interesting results, but it was a little too..."stuttery" at times, for my tastes. As much as I like the "never the same twice" aspect of using random voltages, I think I'm getting better results by operating the controls by hand. And anyway, I somehow doubt I'd be able to reproduce the exact same results a second time, even this way, anyway.
Just for kicks. an experiment.
I'm working on a song using only a KORG monotron analog ribbon synth. 40 dollars new on ebay... I ran it through a Vox amp and managed to get some Wiley sounds, especially on the low end. should be interesting.
Still alive and well...
https://bakullama1.bandcamp.com/
That's a good idea. I rather like the limitations more than endless choices especially as I am not a keyboard player.
Today I played with my old Yamaha CS-5 and ran it through an Ibanez Smash Box distortion. With that on ten and LFO and noise I could get a pretty nasty lo-fi techno beat going on..and on and on.
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