Exploring Modular Synths - Beginner's Mind - Episode 1 - Using a CV Keyboard (Arturia Keystep)

This series is for beginners specifically, and this is the second episode in the Beginner's Mind series. Watch Episode 0 first if you haven't already. This episode shows how to set up a simple modular synth with a CV (control voltage) keyboard. In this case, I use the Arturia Keystep.
** Patreon Info**
/ modularlanding
For those interested, I also have an experimental album made entirely of live, improvised modular performances made with my set-up available here:
modularlanding.bandcamp.com/
I also do non-modular music:
www.brendanoz.com/
Thank you for your interest!

[@Boris_Chang]

And thus the subtle distinction between keyboardist who plays piano, organ, and of course synthesizers with MIDI keyboards, and a synthesist who uses multiple controllers (touch pads, ribbons, and of course an ebony-and-ivory keyboard-probably with cv outs. I am of the latter stripe. I will never win a Chopin piano competition. I am fascinated with sound design using modular synthesizers, but have so-so keyboard skills.

[@bex--]

Not only did I learn about the keystep, but i finally know what stops the oscillator from buzzing constantly. A VCA is next on my list.

[@Larry30102]

As a relative newbie to modular this was most helpful. Great tutorial on hooking up the gear and showing the potential of modular. Many thanks!

[@dystopianvisions]

it's great to see your channel growing!

[@theweekendrecordist9040]

Thanks a lot, im a beginner and i was here to learn about the keystep but I also learned a whole lot more about CVs! Thank you!

[@brianreilly6545]

Hey big thx for these two beginner videos. Huge help and explained perfectly! 👍🏼

[@ModularLanding]

Thanks for the kind words! I hope to make more when I have time.

[@peterpwn4311]

dear sir, it was just the video i needed, thank you for your kind work, appreciated !

[@ModularLanding]

Thanks so much for the kind comment!

[@Fatal_Jinx]

This was the most helpful vid I’ve found on modular. Thank you 🙏

[@ModularLanding]

Thanks for the kind comment!

[@wackenthaljef]

i needed such an explanation..tks a loooot!

[@thecyrussales]

Top tier content right here!

[@alexandrosroussos]

Very nice video, finally removed my confusion on that when trying to start a patch on miRack ! Liked/subbed.

[@wajobu]

This is an excellent and clear explanation--thanks!

[@ModularLanding]

Thank you!

[@ys521wow]

You r my time saver, thank you so much!!!

[@yvngd88]

Keep doing these videos i love them

[@ModularLanding]

Thank you, I really appreciate that. It encourages me to make more. I just need to find time and also ideas for new videos!

[@ModularLanding]

@Papas Heaven Wow, thank you!I hope to do more soon.

[@seek4truth]

Best beginners video thanks a lot

[@LayneNguyen]

This is very helpful! Thanksf or posting this.

[@christopherrusch]

thank you so much for this video

[@riamiwovideos]

nice exploring :)

[@rayderrich]

Enjoyed -> subscribed.

[@raavenstark5905]

Really great ! I want do the same, it's so fascinating *__* Thanks for this channel!

[@ModularLanding]

Great. You will have a blast, I am sure. It's hard to describe how fun this is :-)

[@stefanhansen5882]

This was awesome! I think I will get the Keystep and the Behringer Neutron to begin my adventures in modular.

[@ModularLanding]

Awesome choices! The Keystep is very useful, and the Neutron has a really lovely sound -- very smooth and tons of possibilities. I think they're both super high-value buys.

[@stefanhansen5882]

@@ModularLanding Glad to hear!

[@24nikita]

Thanks Loopop.

[@ModularLanding]

I'm not Loopop! Although I love his videos.

[@WizardBalls29]

trying to wrap my head around this .. looking at different doepfer VCA's and all i see are cv ins and outs no control ?? i do see an input that says selected not sure where to plug the gate from the keystep on those ones so i can play it

[@SpiritMoleculeManiacPsychoPro]

yes i enjoyed watching lot , would like some stuff with the stillson hammer mk2

[@ModularLanding]

Thanks. I removed the Stillson Hammer mk2 though -- I'm selling it -- so I'm sorry that I can't do a demo of it for you. I find the Rene more fun as a sequencer.

[@SpiritMoleculeManiacPsychoPro]

@@ModularLanding well i thought also if i add another sequencer .. great videos

[@consbeats7894]

Im so cheap, i gonna sample this kakaka Great video !

[@edwardkenworthy7013]

Useful video. thank you. As an aside, Clouds didn't add anything in the first ~13 minutes except noise to obscure the points you were making though, would have been better without.

[@lazeavlad]

so i m at start with electronic music and i m sry for sounding noobie but on the far right up the patches are used just for the sound to go in your speakers? and if i have an arturia beatstep pro that s connected to the pc and from the pc i have my earphones do i need the far right top module anymore? aaand what modules do i need to start the basic thing besides the oscilator?

[@brendan3518]

Yes, that's correct. The last set of cables connects the modular to a pair of powered monitor speakers. You do not need the top right module, but you may need some way of attenuating your signal (making it weaker) since modular signals are very loud. Besides an oscillator, you may want a VCA (amplifier/attenuator to weaken your signal and change volume), LFO's (for modulation), a filter, and you already have a sequencer in the beatstep pro.

[@jdssurf]

What controller would I want to pair with the keystep I already have to record and make beats on multiple tracks with a euro rack like yours.............something under a few hundred bucks for now

[@thelibraryofmusiclandria7731]

When you re-route your mod out from the keystep, are the 2 LFO outs still actively altering your sound when you adjust your mod wheel?

[@ModularLanding]

Buddy Hale what segment of the video are you referring to? I believe the answer is yes depending on what moment you’re asking about. For example when I plugged the mod wheel CV out from the Keystep into the frequency input of the Batumi (which is generating LFO’s that go into the Dixie oscillator) then from that point on the mod wheel changes the speed of the LFO as if I were pushing that slider up and down on the Batumi. So the LFO is still on and active, we are just changing its speed.

[@yorganyog]

Nice video. Thank you. One question. If I just connect CV from The keyboard, without VCA and gate, the note is continuous. If I press that keyboard twice in the same note, nothing happens right?

[@ModularLanding]

yep, that's right

[@kekdonalds8127]

Is a patch cable the same as a cinch cable? 😅

[@xorthontech]

How do you hook up the keystep gate to Mutable Instruments Plaits or Braids since they have a built in vca ( I Think!). Would you send the gate to the trigger input?

[@xorthontech]

I have several seperate vca modules. Would I have to patch the gate to the vca then the vca too plaits or braids somehow?

[@scottm8685]

Your videos are absolutely awesome. Extremely educational. Do you mind if I share them in my facebook group, Love Your Keyboardist?

[@ModularLanding]

Thank you very much for the kind words. And yes of course please share them anywhere! That sounds like a great FB group!

[@imakestuff1994]

if your vca has a cv in, will that work as the control port on your optimix?

[@ModularLanding]

It depends on the module, but generally yes, it should.

[@catswalkfdingdang1553]

Hi there, I have a korg MS20. Would I be able to hook modular synths into it? It already has two oscillators and a keyboard so wouldn't that be possible? Really enjoying learning about modular synths, these videos have helped me a lot. Thanks!

[@ModularLanding]

Yes but it uses a different voltage, so you'll need some kind of voltage converter. www.gearslutz.com/board/electronic-music-instruments-electronic-music-production/944212-korg-ms20-modular-gear-pain.html

[@PulledPurk]

In order to make it polyphonic would you have to add multiple oscillators?

[@ModularLanding]

Yep, that's right. However, note that in modular almost anything can be made to go fast enough to "become" an oscillator and then used in that way. In another video, I show using the Batumi (LFO's) as an oscillator, using the Echophon delay to be an oscillator, and you could do the same with envelops. You can use Maths as a set of oscillators. You can use a filter as a sound source and play it, etc., etc. So you don't have to necessarily buy more oscillators (VCO's) to have more voices.

[@PulledPurk]

That's awesome, thanks! I'm just getting started. I don't have a synth yet. I just ordered speakers.

[@ModularLanding]

Cool. You're in for some fun times!

[@jacksonkerr2095]

Awesome sound! I have a question- If I get a 1/4 to 1/8 adapter, can I use a keyboard which has 1/4" outputs? Or do I need a keyboard with just the 1/8" outputs to hook directly to my synth?

[@jacksonkerr2095]

I have a Mikrostation keyboard which I'm looking to connect to my synth.

[@TripleTSingt]

you need a keyboard with a VC Out or Pitch Out, which are 1V/Oct. And these are always 1/8". Most likely your keyboard has 1/4" audio outputs which will not help you. There are keyboards with MIDI Out, which you can use with a MIDI to CV module to control your eurorack gear.

[@jacksonkerr2095]

@@TripleTSingt Sorry for the late reply, thank you! It looks like I may have to invest in something more specifically geared toward Eurorack. I appreciate your input.

[@wallywutsizface6346]

How would you do more than one voice?

[@ModularLanding]

You would use multiple oscillators. Do you mean multiple voices controlled by a single keyboard or controlled by different sources?

[@imakestuff1994]

can you use a Envelope generator instead of a vac in this set up

[@ModularLanding]

You could send an envelope generator into the VCA to shape the VCA -- that will give the VCA an envelope that allows you to set attack, decay, sustain, release (ADSR), giving you more control.

[@imakestuff1994]

@@ModularLanding thx!

[@FunkTree]

Oh, you've changed to black Arturia:) it used to be white in your older videos:)

[@ModularLanding]

Yes you're very observant!

[@avsystem3142]

Rather than buying a specialized keyboard with CV outputs it would make more sense to use an existing MIDI keyboard and instead install a MIDI (USB and/or DIN) to CV Eurorack module. There are many of them on the market. Many have additional functions, e.g., clock, gate, etc., that you might want in your modular rack anyway.

[@ModularLanding]

If you already have a MIDI keyboard then this is indeed a good option, albeit more expensive, as most of the MIDI to CV modules are $350+. For what it is (both a MIDI and CV keyboard) the Arturia is still a really great value. It's also quite portable, which is nice.

[@NeonArtifact]

@@ModularLanding what about the korg sq-1? I am using it with my keystep. Not sure what the best synth would be for using the 2 cv and gate inputs to drive external gear. I only have a volca keys and korg nts-1 at the moment. Any idea how to set up the pitch cv and mod outputs from keystep? Thx so much

[@ModularLanding]

@@NeonArtifact the Keystep and Korg SQ1 are awesome for controlling modular synths or anything that can take CV input. The Volcas are awesome but aren’t really modular synths so they don’t have true CV inputs. Most small synths dont. So you’d be looking for a synth like the Moog Mother 32 or the Make Noise 0-Coast or Moog Grandmother or Matriarch, or the Behringer Neutron. These are all fantastic semimodular synths that can be used with the CV controllers you have, and can be linked together with other modular gear!

[@imakestuff1994]

I mean VCA

[@RobinPM100]

the problem of modular synths are that they are hard to listen to 😁 ear bending sounds 🤣 don't expect modular songs to be played on the radio 😁

[@ModularLanding]

Modular does have the power to make ear-bending sounds, often more easily than commercially constructed synthesizers that are kind of "tamed" by the manufacturer to sound good all the time. But modular synths can be tamed in the same way, and can sound just as beautiful as conventional synths. Check out Ann Annie's channel for beautiful modular music. Also my recent video "Sheep sheep sheep."

[@RobinPM100]

@@ModularLanding Yeah, that one in Sheep Sheep video sounds better - but you know, it is still far from classic synth sound I like. I am composing music myself and I use only soft-synths made by U-HE, Hive, Diva and Bazille mostly. Listen to my cover of James Bond song - All time high - everything there are sounds from U-HE soft synths (with the exception of the beat of course) - and as you can hear, the sounds are very pleasent to listen to :-) I can´t imagine you can achieve these sounds with modular :-) kzbin.info/www/bejne/iaeuY3mLh5aHjrM

[@ModularLanding]

@@RobinPM100 Very nice track -- I listened to it. You can certainly create those sounds with modular. It's just that most people wouldn't use modular to create sounds like that, because they can be created easily with soft synths or standard (non-modular) synths. A lot of the sounds you're using are FM style synthesis sounds. These can of course also be created in modular. Modular just means that the parts of the synthesizer are not pre-patched.