The module that makes complex modulation easy - Xaoc Zadar

Interesting modulation is what makes eurorack patches come to live. I have been using Zadar from Xaoc devices for some time now, and really enjoy it for the interesting and complex modulation signals it can create. Today we take a look at how the module works, and of course I give a series of patch examples and ideas along the way.
Patreon: / monotrail
Zadar/Affiliate links:
Perfect Circuit - US - bit.ly/3XHSBrt
Sound of You - EU bit.ly/3DzdFYi
Clockface - AS - bit.ly/3YkDJ1B
Follow my channel ‪@Monotrailmusic‬ if you are interested in my music!
Timetable:
00:00 - Intro
01:09 - Zadar overview
04:11 - Zadar menu
06:13 - Envelopes
12:37 - Complex voltages
17:11 - Audio rate
19:55 - Expander
Special thanks to Legendary & Crazy Patrons:
Michael Rutchik
Wayne Cowan
Steve Williams
Glnds
Kickroot
Christoph von der Heyden
Giorgio Festa
Sebastijan Semiz
James thompson
Redheart/Freak Nasty
Quinn Fahey
Let’s connect!:
Instagram: / monotrail
Facebook: / monotrailmusic
Soundcloud: / monotrailmusic
Bandcamp: monotrail.bandcamp.com
KZbin: / monotrailmusic
#eurorack #xaocdevices #zadar

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Hello everyone! After quite some people asked, here's my overview of Zadar : ) Zadar/Affiliate links: Perfect Circuit - US - bit.ly/3XHSBrt Sound of You - EU bit.ly/3DzdFYi Clockface - AS - bit.ly/3YkDJ1B

[@Probbie]

Thanks so much. I've owned Zadar for ages, but learned a lot here! 👌

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Great to hear! Enjoy the module!

[@aviolentpurple9925]

Great video man! I like your voice, very calming.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Hey, that's nice to hear. Thanks for watching! :)

[@digital_crickets]

This is why I subscribe! Thanks for "taking me to school" on Zadar.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Happy to help, all the best!

[@waveland58]

Thanks for all the patching ideas, and great timing on this video. I just ordered a Zadar this week.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Very welcome, and enjoy the module!

[@dennisrochat7747]

This is very great! Never really knew what it did nor had the interest to really dive into the module but this video opened my eyes. It’s on my wishlist now! 😊

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Hey, thanks! Glad to hear the video brought some clarity :)

[@Nuin373]

I have zadar recently. Thank you for this video, and these graphics so clear, informative and inspiring, as usual in your channel.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Hey, thanks for letting me know! Really helps to keep motivated :) Enjoy your module!

[@LarsBjerregaard]

Excellent overview! I think I understand Zadar now. Really deep with the self patching opportunities.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Thanks! And glad the video helped out :)

[@gracecore]

Another great video from a great channel!

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Wow, thanks! :)

[@gesslr]

Fantastic and informative video! Thank you.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Glad it was helpful! cheers :)

[@TheMachinesWon]

That example using envelopes through a quantizer was incredible. Great stuff, I have so much to learn about this module and experiment with. Thank you!

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Glad you liked it! I did a video on quantizers a while ago, that has some more detailed examples in case you are interested :) Cheers!

[@TheMachinesWon]

Yes, I'll check it out. I have a Disting MK4 so I'm sure I can use it as a quantizer with my zadar. Love the options in modular and your videos for making sense of it all! @@MonotrailTechTalk

[@RubenSainiuc]

I use Zadar for a couple of months now, but I still learned today about how the looping works. Thank you very much!

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Glad I added something. And enjoy the module! :)

[@collectionofsensations]

Thank you, excellent and interesting introduction to Zadar.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@TomChurchill]

Great video as usual! I’ve been considering Zadar for a while and think this has finally tipped the balance 😀

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Seems like we share some Xaoc love :)

[@SimoneDMarques]

Very interesting video, it seems to be a module that gives you a lot of possibilities!

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Thanks for watching! And it does. It's a lot of flexible modulation in a compact package :)

[@SimoneDMarques]

@@MonotrailTechTalk but what about live performing? Is it possible to change manully the decay in a easy way for example?

[@mutantmanfred]

Great tech talk as always! Cheers!

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Much appreciated! :)

[@cyclikwavezofficial]

Thanks for this very interesting video ! I have Batumi & Zadar. I think these two modules are the bests lfo’s and envelopes (in 10te size of course..). Your exemples are simple to do at home, even for novices (who can understood differents behaviours when you trigger a VCO, a filter etc..)… Good job my friend ! 10/10

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Thanks for sharing! Glad to hear it's appreciated :)

[@apeirogonmusic]

This Video Convinced me i needed this in my system Thank You

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

You're very welcome, glad it helped out! :)

[@jimspectre]

Excellent 👍🏽

[@tomnaustin1]

Very good video!

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Glad you liked it!

[@BrewsterBee]

this is fantastic... Xaoc should get you to do all there demo's , i think there profile would be greater in module world.!

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Hi there! Really like the guys at Xaoc, they have been super friendly. I basically have the offer to review anything I want :) Did a couple already, and will do more for sure, but also want to keep my videos about a variety of things, and have quite some plans for my own generic topics. But very happy with the contact, and for sure more to come! :)

[@nystada]

Thanks for featuring this awesome module. Really like the fact that you can change the output level in a precise way. Compared to Batumi that’s a real bonus imho.

[@lukaramishvili]

Batumi alt firmware allows attenuation per channel, and is in many ways superior.

[@nystada]

@@lukaramishvili okay, thanx. Will have a closer look into the alt firmware

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Hi there! Output level attenuation (and cv control over it) is very powerful indeed, esp in a compact setup. I think Batumi is a different beast completely, focused on LFOs. The envelopes (with sustain), and many complex and experimental shapes put Zadar often in different uses. That's why they made both I guess :)

[@lukaramishvili]

@@MonotrailTechTalk Thanks for featuring Zadar! It was very useful looking at it from your angle, both technical and approachable. BTW I meant alt firmware (with summed sines, attenuation and parameter access, stepped/biased random, etc) is superior to Batumi's own stock firmware, not to Zadar of course :)

[@Chris-qq7mt]

Thanks for the idea of cv modulating the number of repeats. Sounds like it can be used for some type of ratcheting effect.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Very true! Glad you got something out of it :)

[@chonbaquer]

love xaoc.

[@Waldemar_la_Tendresse]

Yeah, what shall I say. You are my "modular guy" number one now. Divkid's channel is the more analytical one, you channel has less content, but it's way better from a musical standpoint IMHO.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Hi there, and thanks! Divkid is a king :) But always looking to see what others do/have done, and how to add something else. Different people, different approaches :) Thanks for watching!

[@zoran68]

@@MonotrailTechTalk Thank You for great content - if Divkid is King You are King of the Kings.

[@NEVERSLEEPmovies]

Thanks so much for the video. I really love the module, especially in my my live system due to its variability and form factor. The downside of it is that it is not playable that good live. I combined it with my faderbank for a more intuitive direct control.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Hi there! Yes, that's a perfect idea! Some offset controls or faders will give you clean hands on control over multiple channels at once :)

[@apeirogonmusic]

When you modulate the Warp The Screen looks like a real life alien creature in movement................ its so cool ( I have bought many modules through your extraordinary videos through Moog Audio in MTL )

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Haha, yeah, happy they have it show a live rendering of the shape :) And glad you get some use out of the videos, cheers!

[@funkl0314]

Excellent video as usual! Impressed by the quantizer patch variations! A curiosity: what scale have you used in the patch? Thanks!

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Minor scale, but for these demo's I never 'tune' the oscillator. So could be any kind of half-tuned in-between root note :)

[@mikegeary8056]

The NIN is an absolute must have. That way you can modulate time and warp.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Really powerful for sure, exactly what I mention in the last chapter as well :)

[@j.thorgard]

I'm adding this to the cart as I watch.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Haha, sorry :)

[@j.thorgard]

The Zadar arrived. Been really enjoying it.

[@doverbeachxyz]

9.40 W O W.

[@toumbas]

Hi! great video again! Wanted to ask, the second to last patch where you tweak bloom by hand, whats the parameter changing? it sound so nice and quantized? never used bloom but now I am interested on this hands on change of harmonic notes! thanks

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Hi there, thanks! I just tweak one step of the sequence. Bloom (like many other digital sequencers) is a quantized sequencer with preset scales, so tweaking knobs of the sequence live always stays within the selected scale.

[@kipropmusic]

Thanks for the video! :) could you tell as what are you using in the paches as "folder"??? thanks again! :)))))

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Thanks for watching! I'm afraid I don't understand the question, can you rephrase?

[@joseph.nicolaus]

great

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Thanks for watching! :)

[@rayderrich]

This module would fit my rack very well, but do I go this route or DROID, that is honestly my question. Great video Sir.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Glad you liked the video! And that sounds like a choice for you. I'd say they cover some different grounds! All the best :)

[@rayderrich]

I will try to think it through and then close my eyes and push a Buy Now button somewhere ;-)

[@simonpalframan6534]

Superb video! In the example at 9min30, what module are you using as clock divider? Thanks

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Glad to hear it! I'm cheating a bit there. I put the divider in the graph to make clear what's happening, but in reality I am using two channels of the QuBit Bloom. It's a dual channel sequencer, and one sequence is running at a division of the other :)

[@simonpalframan6534]

@@MonotrailTechTalk Ahh makes sense, got it, thank you!

[@hedorius]

Amazing presentation. You will make me a very poor guy one day. Poor but fulfilled with modules. You know if it’s possible to sync a looping env (/lfo) to a clock? Maybe if I calculate the time parameter to the bpm of the patch/track and reset it, if not possible to clock it via trig input.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Thanks! And sorry about that :) There is no option to sync, in the sense that the module auto-adjust the time to an incoming clock. But you can easily trigger an envelope with a steady clock or division and create steady tempo synced modulation. You can set the time of a shape manually to match the speed of the clock, or actually use different settings and or modulation to the shape to create subtle tempo synced variations!

[@walrtbstudios5430]

It’s nice for Ornament and Crime users that the input/output jacks are identical. Although that’s not why it’s on my wishlist…

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

That's another module I still have to check out properly sometime! :)

[@luinnar]

I bought Zadar because somebody recommended it as a great envelope source for my small setup. But damn, this module is so powerful! I'm using it in all my patches

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Hey, glad to hear you like it! I have a secret plan to do a few videos with a small setup, so far Zadar will be part of that for sure! Works great in a compact setup indeed :)

[@luinnar]

​@@MonotrailTechTalkI'm looking forward to see this video. Creative possibilities of Zadar are endless and you always show me some new tricks and ideas :)

[@ThMntnst]

I never got around to buy a Zadar, because I was held off by "Trig", because the presentation of the module never shouted "It also works with gates and a sustainpoint!" at me. (Also, I did not read the manual because I lost interest beforehand). I ended up with a Klavis Quadigy instead, which at the time suited my classical understanding of controlshapes. What I'd really love to see is a revision of the Zadar with a Vector-designer-software to design and upload some shapes yourself. Even better: Fitting an expander as "Vector-designer" to have control to do it away from a computer. Since Xaoc has quite a history with dedicated expanders, this would be a good evolution of a widely beloved module.

[@pe00000001]

This sounds like a huge investment of time and resources into a feature only you (and maybe few other users) will use few times. Knowing how vast is the selection of shapes offered in Zadar and how much you can twist and warp them I see no need to meticulously draw my own. There are other modules on the market who offer this kind of shape editing, and they are not very popular. It shows that the ability to deeply modulate and animate shapes is much more important, as it offers instant gratification and is more consistent with the overall philosophy of modular synthesis than sitting down and designing them.

[@cloudfan420]

Xaoc have shot that idea down somewhere in the long MW thread, back when firmware 2.0 came out, which added sustain. The firmware is optimised to such a degree that the ability to add user shapes would not be possible. In any case, the comment above mine is correct, there really is no need considering the ability to alter and modulate the shapes.

[@ThMntnst]

@@pe00000001 First: You may be right that not everyone is liking the idea and would grab on to it, but chances are, there is much more people developing the urge to get deeper into it even more. - In the end, the manufacturer evaluates sales and interest and if it's not going to happen, there's nothing against that. You surely don't need a feature like this to make exciting music that suits your taste. There is many fanfare for Wavetabledesign for Eurorack-Oscillators which is - in essence - about the same philosophy to make the output your own. But if you are about those modules offering that feature, I am honestly happy to be pointed in that direction, maybe I missed out on some models! With modules like these, it's surely important that a well-established manufacturer offers them because the results of certain kickstartercampaigns have proven to be lackluster in performance as well as support. Second: I am not so sure if I can fully support your subtle claim that presets are more consistent in the modular philosophy, although I'm totally on board with you that the Zadar features so much options in the shapes it offers you to morph and modulate. I don't need modular in the beginning if I just look at the great options of "pre-set" synthesizers with digital routing and all, but I still love to expand on things that might or might not be to great effect for a composition. And third: With Xaoc designing a really quirky set of modules around the "Leibniz Binary Subsystem" (and currently expanding on that) which is essentially a brave endeavour in a direction where consumerinterest starts to decline, the idea of adding your own shapes to something does not feel so farfetched.

[@ThMntnst]

@@cloudfan420 Hey, thanks for clearing that up! - And now I also understand of my perception of the module not having the sustain...maybe it was at the time this wasn't implemented yet. Great addition. And if something is not possible, that's understandable. I would not speak about "needs" concerning modular overall. Eliminating options to only keep needs fulfilled leads to a desktop- or keyboardsynthesizer, or a vst, for example....which historically spoken is the exact thing that happened.

[@pe00000001]

@@ThMntnst One of the examples of function generators allowing you to design shapes from the module screen is Control Forge by Rossum. Also, there are several wavetable generators that can load wavetables from SD cards, for example E352 by Synthesis Technology, and there is a popular WaveEdit program that allows you to draw your own shapes on a computer. You call the catalogue of shapes in Zadar presets, and it shows that you do not understand the module. It offers presets, you can create your own combinations of settings and store them as user presets, but the shapes it offers as starters are exactly like the basic waveforms you get from your typical VCO. Wound you call a VCO with sine, saw, triangle and pulse - a preset oscillator? I hope not. These are starting points with plenty of deform options, and deforming is the whole philosophy of Zadar. Regarding the Leibniz system - I don't know the sales figures of Xaoc, and agree this is a brave move to release these modules, but I can see they are quickly growing in popularity. This is not something obscure now, there are hundreds of videos on youtube with people showing their patches with Leibniz, and I guess there are thousands of users enjoying them in their system. I would not call this a decline. The fact Xaoc are releasing new modules in this series is a living proof they sell well.

[@pttvgesoif]

I recently purchased Zadar, is it normal that the menu and channel buttons do wobble ?

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Yes.

[@lenylecointre3304]

don't you use VCA ? It seem like you only use the filter. It make me question the need of vca in my setup

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Hi there! VCA's are crucial in a flexible setup. In a single voice, with lots of attenuators on destinations or output modules you can get away with not using a VCA. I do it a lot in my demos. For complex modulation a VCA is key though. And also for a 'balanced mix' when you record synths to be part of more busy track. When just modulating a low pass filter there's often a lot of base remaining in a voice, even when it sounds muffled. When using a filter and VCA, the volume of the low frequencies can be controlled better. Hope that makes some sense :)

[@vertigev]

This is one of my favorite modules but man, the way the knobs work is unpredictable and straight up annoying... They really need to tweak the algorithm or give people additional options.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

Hi there! Glad you like the module. There's a bit of a 'slow move slow respond, fast move fast respond' going on that takes some getting used to indeed. Some parameters like shape select and warp work fine imo. But output level and sustain for example, have to agree. That over or under shoots a bit.

[@vertigev]

@@MonotrailTechTalk Yea I've had it for a year and use it every day so I have a lot of practice. The slow/fast thing works well on paper (or other modules) but not here. As you said, warp and shape work fine but output level and decay are the ones that drive me nuts haha.. Thanks for the video!

[@Chris-qq7mt]

I have this module and totally agree! Still love it though.

[@Necrobutcher777]

Did you mention that the knobs get totally fucked up after awhile and fail to respond and need to be sent in for repair? Well documented on MW

[@RPGould3]

This is a very unfortunate issue with an otherwise great module.

[@MonotrailTechTalk]

I didn't, because I have been using it for a while (other Xaoc modules with the same knobs even longer) and never had any issues. But sorry you did.

[@snorrevonflake]

I know i would love it but hesitate because of this, also heard that the display fails. Could get a used one locally but don't dare to buy it because of that.

[@RPGould3]

@@snorrevonflake in my experience it is still usable and I would think in most case scenarios you set it up beforehand and not so much on the fly changes. What has happened in mine is that I have to give it a good turn and a half with some kind of crazy wrist acrobatics to engage the coarse changes… annoying but not a super deal breaker

[@glnnk_art]

Plus it‘s fixable if you can DIY or know anyone who does ;)