Modal 002 MPE

[musicmaker]

Dreaming if this was a Prophet 12 instead. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=20&v=_tZuOvNW7XY

[DavidDever]

Just bought a used 002R-8, arrived today.

It's remarkably good, and sounds killer in stereo, no effects at all!

[Sacred Synthesis]

How's the interface?  It looks a bit frustrating to me.

[DavidDever]

How's the interface?  It looks a bit frustrating to me.

I bought the 002R-8 rack (used), which cost about the same $$ at eight voices as the two-voice 001, so that's a given (limited number of knobs), though the unit also has a browser-based interface that can be accessed from an iPad, for example.

The interface does take some time getting used to, but the sound–in hard-panned stereo!–it's exactly the thing I was after.

The lack of stereo voices on the Prophet-12* (which does make sense on the Pro-2) / multitimbrality was the motivating factor; I wanted a hybrid unit (digital tone generation, analogue filter) after living with the Waldorf Q for the better part of fifteen or so years. Having lived with a mono Evolver desktop, I was pretty certain that a Poly Evolver (although stereo) would have driven me nuts.

* - no stereo voices on the 002 either, though the voices can be panned 4+4

[Sacred Synthesis]

I'd say the Evolver Desktop's interface is far superior to that of the Poly Evolver Rack, so your right about that.  But why not get a PEK and PER pair and then have the former's superb interface for programming both?

I've many times considered going Modal Instruments, but their exorbitant prices always turn me back.  Plus, their rack version control panels seem anything but user-friendly, and they look like 1960's American kitchen appliances.  I expect ice cubes to come out of the side.  Regardless, they're all magnificent instruments, so I certainly respect your good taste.

I suppose you can adapt to anything if the sound is worth the trouble, but It's ideal if you can also enjoy the process of designing sounds.

[DavidDever]

I'd say the Evolver Desktop's interface is far superior to that of the Poly Evolver Rack, so your right about that.  But why not get a PEK and PER pair and then have the former's superb interface for programming both?

I've many times considered going Modal Instruments, but their exorbitant prices always turn me back.  Plus, their rack version control panels seem anything but user-friendly, and they look like 1960's American kitchen appliances.  I expect ice cubes to come out of the side.  Regardless, they're all magnificent instruments, so I certainly respect your good taste.

I suppose you can adapt to anything if the sound is worth the trouble, but It's ideal if you can also enjoy the process of designing sounds.

I hadn't planned on this, but Perfect Circle Audio had a used 8-voice unit, the price of which I could not ignore; I've been looking for a wavetable + analog filter hybrid for a while, but could not spring for an 002 keyboard (had contemplated the 2-voice 001, adding the 002R later if the sound was any good).

The cosmetics are definitely an acquired taste , though I still have an SEM (in off-white), so I'll manage. The Waldorf Blofeld keyboard (which I recently sold) had large swaths of un-knobbed white panel that stood out like a sore thumb.

The filter, by the way, is continuously variable from 4-pole low-pass -> low-shelving -> bandpass -> 1-pole lowpass, which is pretty interesting, all said and done, and strangely intuitive from a sonic perspective.

I'm also looking forward to trying out the MPE capabilities at some point.