Moog Grandmother synthesizer Tutorial Lesson 1: Overview

[@MrEcted]

This is perfect! I bought a Grandmother a few months back and it was hard to find really good tutorials, so thanks for posting these! Super helpful.

[@EthanJamesMusic1]

happy to help!

[@fischek]

what a treasure, I am so glad I found your tutorials - great work, thanks!

[@EthanJamesMusic1]

thank you so much!

[@chuckpadgettmusic]

I’ve had my Grandmother Dark for a year now and only just plugged it in for the first time since the day it arrived. I messed around for a few minutes when I first got it but really spent some time with it today and I love it. The sustain is loose-feeling as everyone else has noted but if that bothers you, you can apply downward pressure when you slide it and it feels a lot more normal. I’m fairly new to synthesis but I’m learning all the ins and outs thanks to turorials like yours. I’ve bought quite a few of the Behringer clones in the last couple of years and I’m in analog heaven. Behringer’s Systenm 55 clone is supposed to be delivered in October or November. That’s the one I’m really going to need a tutorial for!

[@EthanJamesMusic1]

awesome! I'm happy to help. I have a playlist on my channel for "eurorack A to Z," which will help you learn the system 55. Once you learn the signal flow, the the possibilities become endless

[@chuckpadgettmusic]

@@EthanJamesMusic1 Got my System 55 on Thursday. I’ll check out your tutorials for sure. This is going to be fun!

[@EthanJamesMusic1]

@@chuckpadgettmusic enjoy! welcome to the most expensive and joyful way to make music. lol

[@chuckpadgettmusic]

@@EthanJamesMusic1 Thanks to Behringer, not TOO expensive. I’ve been buying stringed instruments for years, now it’s time to build a respectable keyboard collection. Ten Behringers, a Moog and a Mellotron Micro are enough to keep me happy for a while! 😄

[@InvertedPopesMusic]

When I got mine I said it was the Moog I have been waiting for and I have had 3 Minimoogs in my time. It is a fantastic synth and yes the Sustain slider is really really lose but I believe that is deliberate. Look forward to more videos on this amazing instrument.

[@EthanJamesMusic1]

thanks for watching! good to know that mine isn't a defective slider. I really love mine for its versatility.

[@aaronbarrett9894]

Ethan, Yes the sustain is very smooth like a pioneer crossfader

[@DJDoubleEdge]

Hey now!!! I know it’s 2yrs later, but have you learned of a way to tighten up the sustain slider??? Thanks for the time and efforts on this and your other videos 🫡💯

[@EthanJamesMusic1]

Hi! Sorry for the late reply here. The loose slide is "normal," and there's no way to tighten it, other than replacing the component

[@ChrisTopheRaz]

I just got mine today and the sustain is really loose. Doesn’t seem to do much either. I don’t know, maybe it requires a patch as well?

[@EthanJamesMusic1]

The sustain doesn't require a patch, but everyone so far has said that the slider feels very loose. If you turn the decay all the way down, does the sustain still do nothing?

[@ChrisTopheRaz]

@@EthanJamesMusic1 I’ll have to try that but I’m not sure why it would matter. Maybe I don’t understand the concept yet but I just came from using the Korg Minilogue xd where the sustain knob made a substantial difference when you used it no matter what. Noticeable at the slightest turn.

[@jasonbarton9352]

great vid!- yes I have a mildly loose sustain as well

[@alailama]

This is neat. Sustain is loose as well.

[@alexeversbusch1154]

This is awesome thanks so much for the video! Just picked mine up and the sustain is quite loose for me as well ☺

[@EthanJamesMusic1]

happy to help! There is quite a big series for the grandmother here at this point, so let me know if you have any questions

[@finerband123]

Great explanation

[@E_Da_SoundGod]

Thanks for the tutorial

[@EthanJamesMusic1]

happy to help!

[@mikevanderheiden]

My sustain is loose as well. It's frustratingly loose. Edit: thank you for this series.

[@erniecf]

Yes !

[@jacksonbarone8947]

the envelope AMT knob on mine is looser in feeling than all the other knobs. is that the case for yours too?

[@EthanJamesMusic1]

I hadn't thought about it until now, but yes, it does feel loose comparatively

[@jacksonbarone8947]

Ok great lol. Just wanted to make sure. Thanks! Also - if you're in LA and looking for an engineer or assistant, Lmk! I love your vids and work! @@EthanJamesMusic1

[@jeffg4686]

The Sustain lever is like that one mine as well. It's definitely "free", but not 'loose' - just the way it's designed. Feels a little weird at first. Was wondering, have you ever tried the MIDI/USB cables. Only way I can get my GM working on mac (without an audio interface) is direct connect into the mic from the analog output. THE MIDI USB adapters show up in hardware, but never as an "audio input" - maybe midi is different (not an audio input). Do I just basically need an audio interface to record (well) on Mac? Thanks

[@EthanJamesMusic1]

Hi, Yes, you can control the Grandmother over MIDI or USB, but to get the audio, you have to use the audio output of the Grandmother into an interface. That's how mine is hooked up for these videos.

[@jeffg4686]

@@EthanJamesMusic1 - thanks, definitely helps - have to pick up one soon. New to electronic instruments in general, so still clueless for the most part.

[@EthanJamesMusic1]

@@jeffg4686 we all start clueless, so try not to worry too much. You'll learn everything you need to know

[@thezzach]

I appreciate your attempt to making this a good video, but a very important thing is missing when you can only use one hand at a time. It would be much better if you had something holding the camera so that you could be playing a note and then play with the Adjustments so that viewers could hear the changes in real time.

[@roripoppu097]

Would you recommend Moog Grandmother for a total beginner to learn everything from scratch and get into this world?

[@EthanJamesMusic1]

I think you should start with the thing that's most inspiring for you. if you love the Grandmother, then it will be great! Truly, you can pick anything as a place to start, and you will learn everything you need to know. I'm here to help, so let me know if there's anything I can do for you.

[@tc71]

@@EthanJamesMusic1 That's the best answer/advise that anyone could give. I just bought a Grandmother Dark and Minilogue XD at the same time to start my synthesis journey. I like them both very much (but honestly, I always seem to pull off the dust cover to the Moog first).

[@EthanJamesMusic1]

@@tc71 Happy to help! I have both too. Each synth has very specific things that they're good at, so you'll discover them as you learn

[@localhost4460]

I walked up to a Grandmother in a music store. The first thing I did was touch the sustain fader, said "eww" and decided I didn't want one. I do not understand how that made into what is otherwise a very nice instrument.

[@EthanJamesMusic1]

I'm glad to hear that it's intentional. In all fairness, I don't love the way the fader feels, but it has been completely roadworthy. I live in NYC, and my grandmother has been in and out of cabs and on subway trains with no issues.

[@rareform6747]

All the sustain is loose ..