Review and tutorial: VRL (Voltage Research Lab) from Pittsburgh Modular

[@vaspers]

When I want in-depth, meticulous, intelligent reviews of new synthesizer products, Loopop is the best. This one is in my top 3 on my synth shopping list. Thanks!

[@JubileeGiggles]

Man, your overviews are really solid, thorough, and professional. I know if i'm looking into a synth and you have a review of it, i'm gonna learn everything I want to know before I buy it, and have a reference for how to use the thing once I get it. Awesome, awesome channel

[@paradiddle16]

Everything I heard so far from Pittsburgh modular sounds great!

[@mariorobles87]

What I like most here is that the design is very different compared to so many synths out there. It has all those nice features that I use so often on my modular system but now they are all in here super compact in this little machine. Perfect for live and to jam with a band etc.

[@slowblack3947]

This is a beautiful synth! The exact opposite of sitting in front of a computer clicking away or lcd menu-diving. Tactile interaction and real time sound shaping, like a "real instrument to make music". Just wishing to have $1,500 of disposable income to throw at it now... : ) Great review as usual Mr. Loopop!

[@SorchaSublime]

@Divinital A lot of people really enjoy getting away from the computer. But regardless of how you feel about that, objectively hardware like this is more expressive. You cant twist two knobs at once and jam on a pc.

[@JRoecker]

This is something I am actually looking forward to picking up! Thank you for another great review!

[@onkelberra3166]

Holy sheet that was a good review. I got goosebumps the first 30sec. That slide and arp!

[@astrophonix]

It's like a Donald Buchla-designed VCS3!

[@bitspacemusic]

I have almost all of the first line of PGH modules, like Timetable, Generator, Gen Exp and the original filter. Love this.

[@evilkillbot9414]

As always, very nice content sir, I can't imagine how you could have made a better review.. Aside from your quantizer and DC couple issues aside (nice that you did have negatives rather than a rosie rah rah promo for a product) is hard to see how Pittsburgh could have made a better product either. The compatibility u get with using one manufacturer makes me and my much bigger and pricier system a little jealous...I don't see much need for it myself but for friends considering modular or if I had my time over...those that buy this will probably have no idea the cost and significance to rackers of the little corners of sample and hold, noise and random. I bet the Wigglers who don't have them that just watched this sure do. Not sure on the asking price but I can assure anyone new to synth they would be appalled to know what it would cost to build a system like this with separate modules. Nice work to you and the makers. Kudos and thanks. Keep up the good work. Ps extra points for the inclusion of the end eor and eoc gates on the function generators, great feature, I wonder where they got that idea from?

[@busch028]

Great Video As Always!!!! Pittsburgh Modular has been around for quite a bit now. Their stuff in the eurorack world was good but for me, they never really grabbed my attention. This is actually something that is really nice in a complete and comprehensive package. Sounds great too.

[@onebitmind854]

I have a little tip for doing vibrato on this synth. With the modulation destination turned off (no leds lit up) but the mod attenuator turned up, there is a very small amount of bleed of Osc 2 FM to Osc 1, that you can dial in with much greater control. With the pot all the way up, it's still a useable amount of vibrato.

[@dr.getter7118]

That sound from 9:24 to 9:29 in the video.. makes me feel all good inside :)

[@cardboardmusic]

Pittsburgh Modular produce some really interesting pieces. I love how they keep releasing these combination pieces - the SV-1 and the KB-1 in a case, and now this. However, the sad bit is that they tend to be limited editions (in the cases). I know that's it's possible to find these things as individual modules, but it's very user friendly to have the possibility to get them as one unit. So, if PM read these comments, please think of keeping some of these combi pieces in production, i'm sure there's a small but dedicated market.

[@FrankManhands]

The Voltage Research Laboratory 2 (being released late 2021) will be mass produced. Pittsburgh mentioned it in one of their recent livestreams :).

[@cardboardmusic]

@@FrankManhands Brilliant, I love their stuff. Shame they don't look into redoing the sequencer they did, I think it was called the KB-1. They did a limited edition with a complete box including the SV-1, which was a great idea.

[@gunnarwaage4343]

This is such an amazing instrument, I can't help but assume they intended it to be used without a quantizer, they are marketing it more as an environmental sound sculpturing device.

[@mariorobles87]

Did you listen totheir sound demos on youtube? There are super nice classic examples of tunes (beside the experimental ones). In fact I only ordered the upper part and Im planning to play it in my band as a rhythm guitar and some lead synths...

[@gunnarwaage4343]

@@mariorobles87 yes I have watched hours of it and I think this is the best work they have done.

[@gunnarwaage4343]

@@mariorobles87 although I may have missed those you are referring to :)

[@mariorobles87]

@@gunnarwaage4343 the newer ones: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eZ7QgmBsft2neM0

[@FarrellMcGovern]

The colour and knobs are very reminiscent of 70's Roland stuff. I would swear that some of the knobs are exactly like those on my Roland SH-3!

[@AndyVonal]

Thanks Mr Loopop for the first vid I have seen about this since it was announced at Superbooth. really interesting and informative. Great job. Sounds fantastic, too!

[@mattsynth]

Very nice how they placed all the patch points at the bottom or top of the modules.

[@johnpalmermusic]

great looking and sounding machine ! awesome review and jam!

[@loopop]

Thanks very much!

[@dualtrx]

this one sounds realy nice. so compact. nice design. good job.

[@hofmann_25]

Great vid as always. This thing sounds amazing!

[@DavidDeLuge]

That jam sounded awesome.

[@julianhigginson5946]

I like the Pittsburgh vibe nice things to own but if you not got 1500 then you can get lots of those tones from a neutron - I had an SV1 and dreadbox to go with the neutron - my semi modular set up but - after 6 months I sort of exhausted it. amazingly I kept the neutron because it had the most to offer.

[@Bananskuden]

I switched the top and bottom row modules and it makes it so much better to operate. Try it!

[@thesynthblog3743]

thanks SO much for this. finally, I'm able to get the most out of my voltage lab

[@robhoyt188]

I know what I want for Christmas now!!!

[@ravytheturtle7895]

Just the looks are sooooooooo satisfying

[@jsleeio]

Thanks for the review, it was great to see (hear) more detail on the VCOs. Can't wait for my VRL to arrive! I expect mine will end up transplanted into a pair of 4ms Pod64X so that it fits in a backpack. I had the same thoughts about the quantizer, and 64hp leaves room for Ornament & Crime and also Pittsburgh's Verbtronic, which I think will be a very good fit for the VRL.

[@cablevamp3163]

This think puts out good bass tones

[@spybloodjr]

Soooo frickin dope. Pittsburg put out a really neat-o release vid for this lil monster.

[@Dogboy73]

Sounds fantastic. Love the outro jam. Was this just this device or with external FX? Sounded very full.

[@loopop]

Dogboy73 thanks very much. I added reverb

[@tkexit]

Great explanation of the synth - thanks!

[@Sonakinesis]

Thanks for this review! I've been very interested in the Voltage Lab since it was 1st announced.

[@PlumpPoetry]

I might switch out the 10HP "Output Utilities Module" for an 8HP Make Noise Rosie + a 2HP Tune to get a lil quantizer in there! Only downside is I'd lose out on the buffered mult... and the total package appearance designed by PGH.

[@josecortez5213]

Wow it looks as good as it sounds.

[@wurlinnawurl]

This is so unfair... Oh it sounds oh so good.. that first part was heavenly, and I have only watched the first minute or two so far!! I need this thing!! I wish I had the money so bad!!

[@loopop]

Thanks!

[@MrPINKFL0YD]

Build it. All the module blueprints are online. It's basic soldering

[@D.Z.A.-kp8lf]

Man.. this is a beast.. wish I wasn't poor

[@mcstando]

take the power! like srsly, we all should revolt

[@sneakyfatcat]

feelsbadman =(

[@OmniTorch]

This thing is dope! Still got my fingers crossed that you will review the UDO Super 6 and Moog ONE.

[@loopop]

ONE of them will happen soon...

[@OmniTorch]

@@loopop woooooooo!

[@jonaseggen2230]

Learned a lot here : )

[@SuperBillNYC]

Good lord, I love this thing.

[@rdean150]

This looks awesome. Interestingly, one of my main issues with the SV-1 was the free-wheeling pitch of the oscillators. But that is a problem I know they've resolved, because their standalone Primary Oscillator has been a vital part of my live rig for months. Nowadays, I fully believe these guys make some of the most interesting and impressive analog oscillators on the market, and this sounds like it's raising the bar even further. That MIDI > CV module looks just as tricky as the SV-1's though... do you still have to count LED blinks in order to change the MIDI channel? And no pitch CV output? Odd but perhaps understandable if VRL is viewed as a fully standalone synth. Regardless, this is extremely tempting, especially after your wonderful demo. That little case makes it look as sexy as it sounds.

[@loopop]

Thanks for the kind words about the demo, and indeed no CV out from the MIDI module - manuals are now available for download I saw, so maybe I missed something...

[@zamplify]

This is so sick.

[@wajobu]

Waiting patiently...sort of!

[@eternalvoid2678]

It sounds really good, and looks amazing too. That angled case though... nice for in the studio, but is a pain to bring along when travelling, especially on public transport/when flying.

[@loopop]

You can always take the modules out and put them in a regular travel case for the road

[@mariorobles87]

I only ordered the upper part, this together with a launchpad pro or a Beatsstepro is super comfortable imho. I mean it has proper midi, no need for the fancy touch controller...

[@markofthenorth9512]

This looks and sounds great!

[@friendlynoise]

Mine is already coming. 😀

[@CommunityGuidelines]

What a beautiful machine.

[@jackpijjin4088]

I can't believe I'm actually GASing over a monosynth. ô.ô

[@georgeredpath5394]

Jack Pijjin that is almost exclusively what I GAS over

[@SorchaSublime]

@ digital synths are good for pads generally. The Microfreak is a great example of this

[@djmikio]

@@SorchaSublime Only because of the modulation possibilities in a digital wavetable-capable synth. If you get down to musicality and how those oscillators and filters actually sound then analogue wins every time.

[@williamolsen20]

I have been wanting to get into eurorack, and I am thinking about getting the eurorack version of this, I like the sounds, and I want to expand this with some drums, and other things to do some generative stuff.

[@Jamesjimjimmy]

Its beautiful in every sense of the word. Do want.

[@christoroppolo8742]

Its gorgeous sounding! And look at the interface very ergonomic can you say? Peace Christo 🎶👽🐕🛸☮️

[@loopop]

very well thought out, obviously packed tightly. More specific opinions in the video

[@radpix]

It’s beautiful and sounds good but after having used I wonder at how many points a greater potential was missed, as there are : no individual output of the VCO waveforms (just one per VCO) 2 filters or sort of the functions which sometimes poorly audible = 3/4 of the dynamic knobs don’t really change the sound??? what is this ? and if there is a pot for the 2 ins why not cv for it ? delay in mono

[@orangenotviolet]

radpix , shortcuts can become chances! The grearest syths were far from perfect. And tell the guys from P.M. I bed they'll have an open ear for your complaints....

[@frankschneider7190]

Excellent. thx

[@freewheelinghorn]

Great demo, thanks Loopop! My only gripe is that voice-over level is obscuring and over-powering the sound of the synth. I'd appreciate it if the levels were more evenly balanced. Currently, in order to perceive the tonal quality of the synth, playback volume has to be set such that the v-o is overbearing in contrast to the synth's level. Perhaps ducking would be the method you'd want to go for to preserve intelligibility of both sound sources - I believe this is the method used by other notable gear reviewers like Divkid. Other than that, great overview, and thanks for including oscilloscope & spectrum analyzer!

[@loopop]

Thanks - I indeed set voice levels to slightly higher than the instrument as others have said they can’t hear me over the music...

[@AceHardy]

Taking notes 📝

[@andrewfishdog3813]

This is not helping my stoke level for the VRL...cant wait!

PM makes very good modular synths. Even my system 10+ .better deep basses,arps,super fast lfos. Than my moog's,korg monolougue etc. Can't see my aelf getting rid of it

[@DoctorRevers]

Hey you’re very good at these demos. And I appreciate your efforts. Keep it up and I will smile for you :)

[@iamgeorgesears]

I love this channel... always gives me GAS.

[@Rollur1234]

Woww Pittsburgh modular rule❤❤

[@immersiveworlds]

Exciting!

[@DDONNRICARTUR]

This thing is just A MA ZING O.O

[@Tazmanian_Ninja]

That, is beautiful. Looks like Moog.

[@oshinai]

What size tendrils should I get for the VRL? Looks like 30cm? My VRL is in the mail and thanks for clearing up whether Ndlr would pair well too (that is also in the mail sometime in the near future)!

[@loopop]

I'd get some shorter ones too

[@oldschoolebm666]

Is this related to the microvolt 3900? The core osc, wavefolder etc.? Thanks for another pristine review :)

[@loopop]

Thanks! I don't know, I've not reviewed the 3900

[@stephopalopal]

My love and Respect ◇ StephopalOpal aka Big Mama ◇ New Orleans Louisiana

[@themadkraken1912]

It looks really, really cool and sounds amazing. Too bad I can't afford anything more than the orange cat synth :( Anyone know of a beginner synth setup for $250 total? Like keyboard, synth, cables, speakers?

[@CommunityGuidelines]

Beginner synth setup... you can buy a used Arturia Microbrute for about $200 these days... plug in a pair of headphones and you're ready to go.

[@agauerm]

The clock generator tempo can be only set by tapping? Why not add a 3 digit cheap display just to tell you the BMP it´s at?

[@michaeltristan]

The midi clock can be controlled in three ways. All of this is covered in the manual. 1. Via midi. Like your daw, or midi controller. Two very popular options would be an Arturia Keystep or Beatstep Pro- both output midi clock and are very affordable. 2. The internal midi clock can be controlled via tap tempo. Simply tap it it. 3. Analog clock input- like an lfo square wave.

[@7177YT]

I wish I got that kind of tour when I saw it @superbooth

[@indyslide8641]

Woooow

[@dmomcilovic9185]

more beard stroking electronic equipment

[@LimGiong]

Thanks.

[@m.abrill.7407]

Wow

[@n0tett]

Has this ever come to market? I've seen one black box available used, whats the deal?

[@loopop]

it did for a while, not sure about plans for the future

[@n0tett]

@@loopop any idea what the reason for this would be? I'd imagine low demand but what do you think this would be a result of? This is the only PM system that interests me, confused as to why they seemingly scrapped it?

[@loopop]

@@n0tett I have no idea, my guess is that despite how much it's interesting, it was indeed priced quite high

[@circuitousvibes5226]

Question about the midi/arp module: this can receive clock triggers in the jack next to the midi input jack? I see an "i" next to clock, which makes me think it can receive triggers that way. Thanks for this overview!

[@loopop]

Yes it can!

[@circuitousvibes5226]

@@loopop thanks for the confirmation. The VRL is so many kinds of awesome. Can't hardly wait.

[@mariorobles87]

There is a manual up as well...

[@circuitousvibes5226]

@@mariorobles87 Located, downloaded and ready to be studied. Thanks so much!

[@lunargarden]

I REALLY like this synth, sounds great, compact and looks nice. But for $1599 I think it's a bit overpriced. I mean, for $1999 I can buy the Matriarch instead, which sounds great too and I get 4 oscillators, paraphony, a stereo filter, a stereo delay, a keyboard, 90 patch points and so on. I know they are different, but the Matriarch seems a better bang for the buck in this price range.

[@steveread7081]

I think that's apples and oranges. The Moog is riffing on the 'east cost' subtractive synthesis they do so well. And it's a delicisous piece of kit. THIS little monster is more Buchla than anything. It took me a while to find one actually, but once you start divesting your brain of the whole OSC->MOD->FILTER->VCA pathway, this is an amazing synth. What I cannot suss out is how Richard at P.M. got that whole 'randomness of nature' thing going. Once I got onto that I was in heaven. It reminds me of a quote that I cannot attribute, becasue I have forgoten its' origin, but it goes something like "East Coast synthesis is proof that aliens exist. West Coast synthesis is the language that they speak".

[@PspiralifeTutorials]

A wonder if you are going to review the voltage lab 2??

[@loopop]

No current plans

[@PspiralifeTutorials]

@@loopop please ask them!

[@loopop]

@@PspiralifeTutorials oh they were kind enough to offer! I just have a lot planned I can only do so much :/

[@PspiralifeTutorials]

@@loopop I understand, thank you for what you do!

[@bob-rogers]

Sold out before lunch :-(

[@rdean150]

Any chance Sustain + Cycle enables a gated looping mode?

[@loopop]

You can't currently lock in both sustain and cycle

[@christdolphin69]

oh wow i never realized the behringer neutron was a rip off of the VRL

[@hot2warm]

Pittsburgh is so frustrating because they discontinue models and modules left and right. If you all want this, better snatch it up quick

[@edgarm6017]

can confirm, they are discontinued. im here 11 months later because i just randomly found one :)

[@Brain4Zombie]

Damn, I should have entered the kickstarter, but money was tight back then :(

[@VJFranzK]

American Beauty!

[@varde6965]

Are you gonna do a review of the novation summit?

[@loopop]

Not any time soon

[@varde6965]

@@loopop aww, okay. ill keep an eye out annyway. your review's are the best :)

[@loopop]

Varde thank you!

[@varde6965]

the reason i was wondering is, because i plan on buying my first synth rather soon. and i'm really thorn between DSI rev 2 and Summit.

[@Pictus_Invictus]

@@varde6965 , choose the one that sounds better for you, for me the Summit wins in the sounds and also features...

[@index7787]

this thing sounds nasty, iwantit

[@blipblip88]

My Moog Sub 37 is giving me dirty looks...

[@frankschneider7190]

whats west cost style?

[@kgreggbruce1552]

Frank Schneider it’s pretty much exactly like east coast style, but 3000 miles away.

[@robertsyrett1992]

I wonder if Mystic Circuits could whip up a 0HP quantizer XD

[@loopop]

YES PLEASE

[@EspenFrafalne]

Cool... But WHY does these things have to be so expensive!?! Do they really have THAT many expensive components??? Think id rather try to get a service manual for these things, and make it myself...

[@wurlinnawurl]

I'm honestly broken hearted that the function generators don't go up that fast.. I was hoping this was gonna be the West coast matriarch, but no of course not.. who need a three minute long lfo? Especially since the one in the Microvolt goes way up to about middle "c" or so.. all they had to do was use that same one... I really wanted four oscillators, now it's just a really cool duophonic synth.. but so what? I feel like they really dropped the ball there.. I was super excited for this.. is pretty much my dream synth, as soon as I heard them go up my heart sank.. I'm confused and angry and I really don't want this anymore, I love my Microvolt but I guess I'll just get a o-coast and a stylophone r8 and have what I really want.. I hope make noise will answer this with a sick system at this price point.

[@gothajpg]

It s amazing but, why it s so clicky?!

[@loopop]

As I mentioned it's because I used the MIDI gate as an envelope; it can be smoothed out with the function generators (envelopes)

[@AllenDavisWV]

Any word on price yet?

[@loopop]

There’s pricing on their site

[@designator7402]

suggested retail price is 1599$

[@eternalvoid2678]

1599 suggest retail price. Not unjustified, but at that price point I'd rather just get a case and some modules.

[@hanzvolt]

Your the best synth reviewer!! Nick Batt was my go to but sorry Nick😥 Sounds like a yak is giving birth at 13:00😂

[@TheScreamingFrog916]

it is very very small in size. 9x6 inches. if it were 12x9 inches or larger, and $650, I would get it.

[@al.cavalu]

Taiga?

[@TheScreamingFrog916]

@@al.cavalu My friend got the Tiaga. mixed reviews. I ended up getting the MOOG trio. DFAM, Mother 32, Subharmonicon. and some Make noise toys. Fun stuff.

[@BlueSB017]

They missed a trick with the lack of a quantiser but still looks mighty fine (EDIT, just heard you say that at the end of the video!)

[@yodice]

You got one already? The rest of us have to wait :( haha

[@dnch]

yep.. almost half a year.. at least

[@loopop]

it's a prototype, so, not quite the final product though I'm told it looks and sounds the same

[@yodice]

@@loopop (having internet issues so still trying to watch the video so I don't know if you mentioned it) Did they send you the pre-production version with the small manufacturing error for review? I also read on the kickstarter updates that they just squeezed some extra functionality into it at the last minute.

[@loopop]

yes, this is the prototype with some issues that aren't relevant for the production run

[@yodice]

@@loopop Love that outro jam! How long do you get to hang on to it? I'd love to see it patched up and interact with a bigger eurorack system.

[@randydarklight]

Nice design but 1600,-- $ is too expensive.

[@Pulse2AM]

Nice review as always. I don't know why I watch these modular synth reviews, I'll never buy one! It's a sickness, synth sickness.

[@loopop]

Probably for the same reason I make them - there’s something to be learned from practically every synth - Figuring out what drove the person who made it to do so, and a quick jam doesn’t hurt...

[@Pulse2AM]

@@loopop I just don't have the patience at my age to mess with cables, patch design just to get one sound. Give me good presets I can tweak and I'm fine.

[@gordonbennett7931]

@@loopop Hi, fantastic demo. Thanks for that. Quick question, what size right angle patch cables are using in your demo?

[@loopop]

Gordon Bennett thanks. 15cm and 20cm tendrils

[@gordonbennett7931]

@@loopop Thanks for the reply. Again, great demo.

[@TheOldgeezah]

£1600 is a lot for a relatively limited device

[@evilkillbot9414]

I'm curious who down votes content like this. Im guessing they don't like the product? Maybe upset the algorithm put it in their suggested? Grrrr NO, dislike, bad, me no like.

[@loopop]

Looks like we found at least one (Kelly...). I don’t mind constructive comments but the big question is why do you keep watching as I see your recurring negative comments on quite a few videos now. Why keep doing this to yourself? Plenty of other channels with less hand waving and a better voices, no? Of course if you find value in the content I’d love for you to stick around, but the voice and waving aren’t going to change so how about changing the attitude?

[@evilkillbot9414]

loopop personally I love mylar style magic hands and yours help the explanation imo but maybe the synth community is ready to be taken by storm by a reviewer with a quality vocoder ;) . Just kidding and not trying to be a fanboy but #whovoicesnegativestoanyonescreativeoutputanyway?