Moog DFAM: The Mutant Drum Synthesizer

Everything you wanted to know about the Drummer From Another Mother.
BTW, in a rage to crank this video out, I did something really dumb and careless. I searched "synth expert" and used someone's image/likeness in a derogatory and completely unwarranted way. It turns out the "synth expert" is Das Ding, a very nice fellow with great tunes. He absolutely is a synth expert, but in the good way!
(time to sign up for Adobe Stock, I reckon)
Links:
Moog VIP Workshop: www.moogmusic.com/news/build-...
The Flashbulb on tour: www.theflashbulb.net

[@allisonwatling9565]

proud to be a part of that 0.2% !

[@codesymphony]

girl alert. everyone act normal

[@Trovarsi]

Yess! I’m with you😎

[@yamnaken1156]

0.1%* - according to Internet law half of those females are actually dudes.

[@Towly263]

:))

[@girlinagale]

I beg your pardon!

[@BeniRoseMusic]

I'm here from the future! We now have ModWiggler and GearSpace! Hooray progress!

[@justinwilliam4644]

I'm here from your futures future and we now have the behringer edge. Way cheaper does same thing

[@Zillius_YT]

No way! You are The Flashbulb! I've been listening to your music for roughly a decade now and I never knew you had an active KZbin Channel! Now I've got a whole bunch of videos I've got to watch.

[@wickeddubz]

You are not the one. I feel myself stupid :)

[@suzanneaston2206]

The patch, that starts at about 17 minutes in , is incredibly beautiful ! Thank you for sharing , and inspiring !

[@8thlvlMage]

Very melancholic, but that's part of the charm I would say.

[@Phillibos]

always super excited when you bring something new out ! huge fan here

[@ElectronicazMusic]

Such beautiful demos. I could listen to them on loop for ever. Tremendous review. Totally sold me. Thank you.

[@pedalplayer8482]

I was actually waiting for your DFAM review before buying one.Your vids are really great!

[@DBPawlan]

The best demo of the DFAM sounds that I've found. Thanks!

[@MilesAwayOfficial]

Amazing work ! I just got a DFAM and this is so inspiring. Also that patch around 14:42 when the reverb comes in is so sublime.

[@mw7851]

I love your reviews so much. Comedy and great on point information that's highly relevant.

[@unslept_em]

hi, it's ya 0.2% here. I definitely agree with your ideas on why women aren't more common in the synth community. also awesome synth :)

[@tombrews]

I respectfully disagree. Nothing is stopping anyone from going out and buying a synth to play with and asking questions on forums. As typically forums are anonymous/gender-neutral anyways. Just cause the demographic isn't 50/50 doesn't imply some kind of inequality

[@tomwatson7626]

He makes a solid point about Muff Wiggler and Gear Slutz though.

[@thamessinclair2010]

There is no reason (other than resorting to stereotypes) to believe women should generally be more appalled by this than men.

[@unslept_em]

y'all need to chill the fuck out, jesus. I make a comment saying I agree with benn and suddenly guys are in my notifications falling over themselves to argue about it

[@brianobush]

Women could make their own forums if they felt so shunned in the usual locations. I call bullshit to the idea that they are, but to make the feminists happy maybe we can hire some Russians to make fake female accounts so we can get to 50/50 ratio. In the meantime, let's make some music.

[@hide_seq5333]

Every time I watch another of your videos I'm so happy i did

[@michaelkonomos]

LOVE the NIN reference. I am a huge fan of them, and I also thought the same thing when I was watching another video on the DFAM. I really need to get one of these. I just love the timbres coming out of it. Thanks for this helpful video!

[@drfluffy3983]

I love the dfam, next month i can finally go for one. I was testing that monster in a musicstore and after a few seconds the dfam earned my love. Very nice video, like allways XD

[@MeatyController]

Laurie Spiegel! She was an innovator in the realm of FM synthesis. One of the loveliest demonstrations of any synth is here on KZbin, her performance on the Alles synthesizer she helped develop at Bell labs. Very dreamy, like Tangerine Dream.

[@rochefsky]

Late too the DFAM party and happy to discover you were on it... Love your video and creator style! Thank you Benn!

[@christopherpederson1021]

best DFAM video to date. Thanks

[@flannsixtyseven7489]

Thank you, nice video, liked the solo stuff in the beginning much more than the rest of the stuff with all the external modulation

[@Kaeilios]

Love the humor touch you put into these, nice vid !

[@kellymerrill5294]

Thanks for the opinions, I agree. I can’t visit gearslutz, as superficial as it sounds I just feel weird.

[@YomYestreen]

Well, that's no one's loss but yours. Best of luck to you.

[@patientswim6888]

@@YomYestreen omg you are just such a fucken idiot arent you. So skillful how you make that 100% clear in so few words. World needs less of you pal. I would swap you out for a kilogram of fruit. What a proper little wanker.

[@balloonmusicable]

There's a big muff fuzz, what's the problem?

[@clarkrogers7789]

wow I never even considered that "slutz" was....a word used primarily against women. this never even occurred to me. yikes. probably can't visit them now either tbh. but would rather go on being aware. so thanks for bringing my awareness to this.

[@InnerPeaceSounds]

@@clarkrogers7789 they are Gearspace now, though... Good for them that they have followed the community advice to change the name.

[@BookooZenny]

I appreciate what you had to say at the beginning and fully agree. The culture is lousy with unpleasant dude energy, which can be alienating

[@chrisolley2762]

Yes I agree. I was a man for many years. Synthesizers taught me everything I know. Now I’m happy. I make machine go blink and boing all the time. I don’t care if it’s musical because it doesn’t have to be. I like filming myself playing with stuff and making it so it sounds like a headache. It’s important to me to do this because someone out there will love it. I’ll get loads of comments, without even having to show a single shred of musical ability. But musical ability is not what’s important here, it’s all about Moog making stuff so we can wank on the KZbin. It’s been so well made. My arse has wooden end cheeks. Let’s have some fun and make sounds that Stockhausen made but with a bit of groove. My living habit are assignable. I know what day it is but I need an extra cable to help me get my LFO in ouch. I think that’s all there is too it. Let me create something truly ugly and pretend I’m a 70’s German. The DFAM is going into a quantumater. It’s all about multi dividers. That’s what makes this sound good. It’s fun! I could have this on stage! Imagine that.

[@SyntheticFuture]

I don't know... I have never noticed this "dude energy" on Instagram. Just a great community that cares about making stuff. Heck if anything as a non-dude you probably have a great advantage in that scene 😅 Gear forums are always toxic, I avoid those as well.

[@delta-9969]

"unpleasant dude energy" lol -- compared to what? The NFL? I'm not sure what homogenous synthesizer "culture" you're talking about -- you mean, like, forum posts? KZbin videos? People you've met in person? My experience of synth "culture" is I watch gear reviews on youtube and occasionally search answers to specific questions on muffs, and I've honestly never noticed any "unpleasant dude energy." I mean, like what? a bunch of guys in stained wifebeaters scratching their guts and crunching beer cans? Be more specific please

[@darrenringer9811]

Seriously, I get that the name "gearslutz" is meant as humorous, but it's sure creepy A.F. enough that I don't ever plan on making an account there. I guess it sort of self-selects for a mix of creepy dudes and the apathetic. "Muffwiggler" is a little more ambiguous and basically terms of art in the world of guitar tone but ... well yeah. Unfortunate name nevertheless.

[@zbsfm]

hello from your 0.00000001% nonbinary subscriber base! love your content!

[@lit2021]

same here! 😁😁

[@molliemicrobe]

That reddit roast was amazing. What an amazing first bit of content to see from your channel.

[@Anarchosyn]

Refreshing approach. Honestly, this video started automatically following a Make Noise clip. If I had been closer to my transport controls, I'd have killed it immediately. However, I like how you addressed the gender disparity. It kept me on for the rest (and once I really started listening I was hooked). Right on.

[@ChernobogStudio]

I just ordered one to go with my M32. Super stoked! Great video!

[@EarthnikNews]

BEST “bleep bloops” I’ve heard for a very long time!

[@infinitonica2362]

LOVE your videos. Keep it up! It is so great to see demos/reviews that really have inspiring musical components. Hearing just noodling around, as in most other videos, does not much of anything. I also love how your personality shines through it what you do. Brings a lot of life to what you are talking about, and gives me also a feeling of being able to trust what you say.

[@davidgoode7416]

Excellent video, thanks 👊

[@THR-zf6ti]

Unbelievable - I was also not aware of your stage name "The Flashbulb" and I'm following your synth reviews for some time now.... Just bought your gorgious album "Nothing is Real" from Bandcamp - good luck to finally make it to MOOGFEST! 🙂 - regards from Germany - Thomas

[@Keiuna]

Thanks for doing this video Benn. I've been looking for more in-depth info on the DFAM. Cheers to the great video a congrats on the house! BTW, you should play some shows in Canada ;)

[@DoctorRevers]

Love this. Thanks for the moog vids. Recently bought a studio 3 :)

[@cobenaut]

awesome video, best dfam review yet :)

[@OrdoCorvus]

Benn, you're funny and knowledgeable and I really appreciate your vids. Also, we both have that vitiligo eyebrow thing going on, so hooray for autoimmune self-destruction!

[@kozmicstreamz417]

This is a great video! Shared with facebook group Moog Semi-Modular Soundscapes.

[@InvertedPopesMusic]

All very good points and I am just as bambozzalled as everyone with the way things developed over the years. Great demo/review I am teetering on the brink of getting one to add to the two M32's I already have.

[@Individual_two]

Great review of the DFAM. I've had one for several weeks and can't stop using it! It works really well with the Mothers (I have 2).

[@JuanAMatos-zx4ub]

Have you checked out the Vermona Perfourmer MKII? It's an amazing sounding and special synth.

[@deathtrips]

great vid. this thing is really unique side note i'd love to see an analog rytm video because i'm neglecting mine

[@nostalgia_junkie]

woah hey jess

[@deathtrips]

sup

[@_EightySix]

MKII?

[@tomoflis5338]

beautiful track, love the dfam

[@matthewforsee5092]

Great video! Cool musical creations! Makes me want to buy stuff!

[@chrisolley2762]

Great video thanks. Love the sounds so blinky and so blonky, ordered mine to day to go with my MS SQ 1.

[@skendermakota2381]

Awesome review and jam, love the tracks and can't wait to see you live! Lastly, loved the little digression at 26:08 haha... btw, get a used sliding door and kitchen cabs, spray paint that shit in the colors your wife likes, put a candle here and there, some Marvin Gaye and dimmers installed... and she won\t know a dif and will love you, as you use the majority of the renoivation budget to get more Moog stuff and rack space ;) Worked with me, though she did leave me in the end, but for other reasons hihi.. and took my dog, that got me... ANyway keep em coming subscribed!

[@Hallkardia]

I wish it had full sized jacks and would be in a bigger formfactor, but the price needs to come from somewhere, I guess. A really great synthesizer, maybe I'll buy one. Your intro was very nice, too. Synthesizers are awesome and creative instruments for everyone - I'm glad Moog picking on on this.

[@robertsyrett1992]

A weird thing happened. I finally looked up The Flashbulb and I was listening to it in the car on my way to a meeting at CSMA and they told me you will be having a concert there. It was one of the more striking synchronicities I can recall. I really enjoyed the patching in this video, there was a lot of techniques to absorb. I especially liked the sonorous melodic interlude around 17:00 of the demo.

[@RussRogers]

Totally agree!

[@moognificat]

Cool video! I look forward to exploring your channel some more!

[@josehaya6362]

Amazing video. I already have a unique drum synth, the Nord Drum 3p which I love. Do you think the DFAM is a good first semi modular synth? Since you say it’s full potential is unleashed with it being connected to other modules or the M32. Thx!!

[@mikeypaynter3933]

That little bit in the middle near 15mins30secs with just the 2... beautiful😊

[@NickSuda]

Fuck, these demos are so killer. Great work dude.

[@mynameismynameis666]

this is what i would recommend to strive for in a project studio, everything easily available on the 2nd hand market and still the beest options. octatrack, drummachine, qu-16, 8x8 A/D (f.e. UAD), qu-16 and a choice of synthesizers according to your taste. outboard rackwise i'd choose either a solid combo of 2 master bus effects (portico, mmmhh...), or just in the box UAD stuff and then use a remote studio solution for the endmastering

[@mikehydropneumatic2583]

The M32 got me to buy the Subsequent37, what a blessing. Nice review. Respektos from another country.

[@turretstudios9907]

Cool i actually learned some things here. Didn't know about pitch quantization. Thanks for the vid!

[@annother3350]

Gorgeous demo songs

[@beegeorge1727]

just thinking...any chance for The Flashbulb Library Bundle on groupees in 2018?...cheeeerrrss.

[@Chozal]

Still reeling from the fact that a legend like you makes these approachable, useful videos. Thanks a ton. New album is absolutely lush.

[@fo76]

great video, great music! thank you...

[@alexwray6530]

Great stuff! Cheers!

[@johnrichardson3297]

Benn and Gear can the Moog One do exactly as you have going on here... w/ quantize, multiplier and (x4)LFO in succession?

[@yogesvaradas5480]

I keep coming back to this video over and over and I think I'm finally just getting that Dfam and calling it a day

[@joelkulesha8284]

Did you get it?

[@yogesvaradas5480]

@@joelkulesha8284 I did. I got a Moog Sound Studio, subharmonicon+DFAM. Absolutely worth it.

[@ElectronicazMusic]

Well that took long.... Less than an hour after watching this my email confirmation of my order comes through. Kerching.

[@nym053]

I've just ordered the knob upgrade from Thonk in the hope that it'll make it easier for me to get sounds in tune. Except for that, I don't have any other problems with the small knobs :)

[@R3DICE]

This is juast so great !

[@VincentBurkardt]

Great job! Fun stuff

[@Genghis_Sean_]

Moogfest is epic. I've gone the past 2 years since they moved it to Durham. You should definitely go, the patio door can wait lol.

[@chatolars]

Great video 👍

[@justinwilliam4644]

Sound reall good man!!!😮

[@w4shep]

This is like magic. Wow.

[@johnnyboy0g460]

I have racked up a decent amount of modulars and semi-modulars at this point; I've hit a roadblock though (that I should've thought about before I started) How am I supposed to record 10 different synths simultaneously? I have no optical I/O on my audio interface .-.

[@Radar23]

Nice vid.. Just picked up the Dfam.. These examples are great

[@mikebrodhead]

Lots of good food for thought here. I can't wait to try my DFAM through a quantizer.

[@kunalpareek8321]

Man your channel is so damn addictive.

[@torond6908]

Any chance you're gonna be at the Superbooth synthesizer convention this year in Berlin?

[@BiologicalDataScientist]

Very inspiring!

[@chatolars]

That track is lovely indeed

[@seanspartan2023]

I love the Moog sound

[@davidkellymitchell4747]

I like the Moog bass sound. That hit record sound!

[@mauchkimberly]

@17:06, love that. Very nice hearing someone use dfam for something other than that single pounding beat.

[@triplebacon1]

Nicely done! ;-)

[@Dea_Decay]

Also part of that 0.2% which isn't unusual for me. Learning about Wendy Carlos from a friend of mine who also plays synths inspired me to take up synths and honestly it feels like there are a lot of women like us in the community, though we might be a tad more reclusive given all the toxicity out there.

[@TUTOSANDROIDtutorialesymas]

👍

[@ricardojmestre]

That's sad. One would expect that the synth tribe would be a bit more enlightened than the guitar tribe.

[@LousyFacelift]

3:48 Oh, that's a Garrahand drum in the background! Any chance for a video on that? The DFAM seems really cool but why only eight steps?! Why not 16?

[@kierenmoore3236]

I, for one, think you're beautiful.

[@nostalgia_junkie]

yeah, p rugged guy

[@MeatyController]

He's fucking gorgeous! I have such a crush on this guy

[@falazarte]

I agree.

[@zbsfm]

Um fucking yes lmao

[@homeslice1479]

Modular Grid is down at the moment and this video is calming my nerves.

[@papertarrasque]

Great video. I still don't know if this thing is right for me as I don't have a drum machine but I feel like I have a good idea about this machine thanks to you.

[@Mattelica]

When I first heard about the dfams last year when they were part of that Moog workshop build, I immediately was interested because I was more interested in unique, "organic" type analog drums less typical and less like the normal drum machine sounds. So when it came out, I ended up getting two, just on a whim. No regrets. I love the dfams, and they're unique and inspiring. They're great at basslines too...

[@tradewhales9170]

Mattelica any videos of it synced together?

[@LeeCzere]

Mattelica I would love to hear some dfam x 2 music. Any videos up?

[@NorfolkTraveller]

Great video. I really wanted a DFAM (have a Mother 32) but mostly that was for synth percussion. I've now bought MicroTonic instead and am very happy with that. The 8 step of the DFAM and lack of midi was leaving me wondering how I'd integrate it adequately with my DAW setup. I still think it would be lovely to add to a Mother 32 setup, but with limited space and money I'd glad I went with MicroTonic. Still think DFAM is great though...

[@TheRhomb]

Wow, I've been following you since Arboreal but I just discovered your channel. What the heck?! Great vid though. Mine's coming in today 😁

[@jedgould5531]

Thanks for making music. There are lots of synthie nerds who do not. I’m restraining myself.

[@phillytee9106]

I think the DFAM is definitely a unique sounding synth, Moog definitely made an original choice. This years Moogfest 2018 engineers synth is also another oddity, at least one manufacturer isn't churning out the same old synths over and over again, unlike at least 2 or 3 of the other big names out there. P.S. typical of KZbin comments that a lot of the things people commented on had nothing to do with the subject of the actual video but hey-ho that's the kinda world we live in.

[@oneonetwothreefiveeight]

The DFAM is awesome, was playing it in the store, need to get one of these Bad boys

[@lollern1234567]

awesome as usual. Not really relevant to this clip, but I've always wanted to learn how you make fast paced drums that flip and change all the time. How? Like, the way you program drums, how venetian snares, aphex twin and others do it. You know, the breakcore/drill n bass or what ever kinda way. It boggles my mind but I love that way of doing drums. Much love from a long time fan

[@lesterbarnes2010]

Really great man! I felt so familiar with the sound at around 18:00... Could have been longer ... just to stay in the mood...

[@wildaudiosociety]

this vid has convinced me into getting one

[@exitritual]

Nice demo. This thing sounds incredible. I could fiddle for hours and hours and come up with a crapload of useable stuff... or not!

[@leadenstride]

you look like a hunkier Jamie Stewart from Xiu Xiu.

[@alanensalanens]

I have a M32 - and Im toying with adding the DFAM or a 0-coast.

[@station2station544]

I agree on all counts. DFAM can be had for $550/most joints. fast FAST filter envelopes. hopefully Moog releases the subharmonicon so I don't have to use my MATHs.

[@dscapes1]

I have pretty decent headphones and in that bleeps and bops section at the end there were some amazing multi reverbs happening ive ever heared before.

[@saxmidiman]

Does this mean you LIKE the DFAM?...Sounds Fantastic!!!

[@jonponsford3814]

Who's the artist in the PiP clip near the beginning with the caption "ULTRAVIOLET CURE"?

[@chbuschmann]

Would you mind walking trough your modular rig, as shown here?

[@anulannen]

Excellent.