8 patch ideas for 8-step sequencers feat. Glasgow Synth Guild Oct Tone

[@______BS______]

thank you for sharing your knowledge, tom

[@intafon]

Some really fun patching ideas in this video! (though this is often the case with your videos). I also find it interesting that although you often feature a particular module, your patch ideas are generally applicable to any module that can be used similarly. Kudos!

[@TomChurchill]

Cheers!

[@chitlun]

Such elegant, simple patches. I’m beginning to think I don’t have the right sort of brain for modular because I would never, in a million years, think of such techniques. Fantastic video man, cheers!

[@richarquis]

The final segment is my favourite. I have MI Ears which I really don't use much, but this gives me some ideas for taking it off the shelf and putting it back in the rack.

[@seanbechhofer3714]

Absolutely! I patched up my Rings, Mikrophonie, O_C and Clouds last night and spent a lovely couple of hours. This is definitely going into next week's live set.

[@briangardner5053]

Wow man! You bring great musicality to eurorack, sequencing, modulating. Really nice work 🌄🍻

[@TomChurchill]

Thanks! Glad you like it 🍻

[@countspankulus]

Thanks for another great video. Moskwa II is my favorite sequencer, and I'll be adding Oct Tone to the wish list for the small case given the overlapping functionality and compact footprint.

[@Gmartin4049]

Great video Tom. This is why we love modular. x

[@fo76]

I shouldn't have sold the Octone when I bought the Moskwa. It just such a damn nice and small sequencer. Glad to hear it's available again...

[@ishkaiam6532]

you give me so many ideas mate hands down i still think you do the best reviews

[@TomChurchill]

Thank you!

[@ondraJams]

Brilliant pack of hints. As a still newbie in modular, THANK YOU 🙏

[@TomChurchill]

Glad it was helpful!

[@GeorgeLocke]

Note that if you're not using the "zero" (knob fully CCW) of the sequencer, there isn't really a difference between major and minor scales. Major and minor pentatonic are defined by the same intervals in the same order; the only difference is the root note. Same with major and minor scales (and all other diatonic modes).

[@pimath_314]

Last patch is fantastic

[@funkl0314]

Fantastic. Looking forward to try these techniques with my Doepfer A-155/A-154

[@chonbaquer]

Thank you, sir. Excellent as always

[@TomChurchill]

Cheers!

[@GlasgowSynthGuild]

Super Demonstration Tom! Very melodic and informative. Keep creating Inspiring videos👌

[@benlawrence4096]

This is very informative and inspiring. thanks!

[@motoboy6666]

Lovely, nice work 👍

[@Probbie]

Fascinating; thanks so much Tom.. 😊

[@000aleph]

You deserve a comment!

[@ohchateau]

Hi Tom great video, at 5:35 you casually say you are using an offset from Pams to transpose it up... what exactly are the Pams settings for that? I see on the screen that its at 9% level, so at a guess is it simply a divided square wave at 100% width and 9% level? Do you use the offset level? Can you kindly pass on the settings for that? Thanks for all of your videos ! Mike

[@TomChurchill]

Hi - I was asked the same question in another comment so I'll just copy and paste my response from that (apologies for laziness!) I just have a Pam's channel set to the default gate at 50% width, with its modifier set to /16, so it's on for 8 beats (2 bars), then off for 8 beats. The level is set to 9%, and I've set the internal quantiser to semitones/chromatic, so that level results in a voltage equivalent to 5 semitones (i.e. a perfect 4th) which I'm just adding to the sequence CV using a precision adder. Pam's outputs range from 0 to 5V, which means a 20% output level =. 1 volt = 1 octave, so you can work down from there to get specific intervals. Using the quantiser in Pam's means it will always snap to a musical interval. (And you can extend this idea using multiple channels of Pam's, set to different modifiers, levels, widths and phases, summed internally using the ADD cross op, to create more complex transposition patterns...)

[@andrewnancarrow]

Great video as always. Thanks for all the great ideas and information. Here’s a very basic question I’m hoping you wouldn’t mind answering. In the 2nd patch when you transposed the pitch sequence using Pam’s, how was that done exactly? Was Pam’s giving it a long gate at a certain voltage, for 8 steps? I’m trying to figure out the Pam’s settings for that.

[@TomChurchill]

Yep, I just have a Pam's channel set to the default gate at 50% width, with its modifier set to /16, so it's on for 8 beats (2 bars), then off for 8 beats. The level is set to 9%, and I've set the internal quantiser to semitones/chromatic, so that level results in a voltage equivalent to 5 semitones (i.e. a perfect 4th) which I'm just adding to the sequence CV using a precision adder. Pam's outputs range from 0 to 5V, which means a 20% output level =. 1 volt = 1 octave, so you can work down from there to get specific intervals. Using the quantiser in Pam's means it will always snap to a musical interval. (And you can extend this idea using multiple channels of Pam's, set to different modifiers, levels, widths and phases, summed internally using the ADD cross op, to create more complex transposition patterns...)

[@andrewnancarrow]

Thanks for the in-depth reply! Very helpful indeed. One question- is a precision adder needed or could the Pams voltage go directly into the OctTone CV where it will sum with the set voltages?

[@TomChurchill]

@@andrewnancarrow you’d need a separate adder - Oct Tone doesn’t have an input that works like that

[@studio48nl]

@6:20 so it doesn't matter of the button is turned on or off, it will always send the CV out of that step, right?

[@TomChurchill]

Correct. The button just determines if a gate is sent from the Pulse output on that step.

[@benlawrence4096]

Hey what are you using for S&H duties here? I have two, but neither seem to hold their pitch very well. I would assume that if it’s sampling a pitch, the pitch that comes out should be the same as the one that went in. Am I being naïve!

[@TomChurchill]

I’m actually using the Scale Duet quantiser in Ornament & Crime to perform the S&H function here. I find analogue S&H units usually have some pitch droop - the most accurate I’ve used is probably Joranalogue Step 8 and that’s really overkill for basic stuff like this - so if pitch is crucial I tend to just use a quantiser with a trigger input.

[@benlawrence4096]

Thanks Tom!!

[@audiencemember]

Is there an overview of the modules you use in your synthesizer somewhere?

[@TomChurchill]

The rack for this video is here: modulargrid.net/e/racks/view/2633257 Happy to try and answer any questions you might have!

[@budfoon]

Can it do ratcheting?

[@TomChurchill]

Not exactly… you can set a pulse count for each step, but this extends the duration of the step (as opposed to ratchets which are a burst of pulses at a multiple of the main clock and take place within the duration of a single step)

[@budfoon]

@@TomChurchill Thanks for the response. That's unfortunate! Like the Qu-Bit Bloom then (who similarly repeat the steps, but mislabel it as ratcheting). You had me sold otherwise on this solid little unit. I appreciate your videos! Cheers!

[@TomChurchill]

@@budfoon Yeah, that's one area where the Moskwa has the edge really - it offers a choice of either behaviour for each step, and you can program the ratchet pattern (i.e. it's not just a set number of repeats). There are a few button combos to get there but it's easy enough to pick up. Thanks for the kind words on the videos!