Comments on Micro x MicroHeavy

Wow, that thing has some great sounds. Do you run synths through it via midi or 1/4 inch?

Technically you could run any sound through it, no?

You can run them in via 1/4 inch. Yes you can run anything through it. I have a Monotonic U-73 that I run into it when I play live, just to add a little more analog to the sound. I have also used it as an effect processor for guitar. I have some great ring modulator patches.

How much it set you back?

I got mine for $350 off craigslist. I don't see them for sale all the time, but usually around that price.

I'm confusionized.

So it acts like a synth? What does it do if you're not feeding anything into it? Just put out a steady pitch that you tweak various parameters of? And if you run an analog signal in it affects that sound with its various parameters?

When I said it works like a modular synth, I mean you patch together the different modules like you would in an analog modular synth, only with this it has a software program that allows you to program the patches in a GUI. Example of a very simple patch would be a oscillator - a filter - a envelope into the output. Now ot change the pitch of this patch I would have to control the Nord with a midi keyboard, or yes it would just be a simple tone unchanged, but I have choices of other control modules and sequencers, or lfo's to change pitch and modulate. Complex patches can be built that I use as loops, and three of the knobs can be programmed to control multiple changes, depending on how complicated you want to program.

The analog signal being run into it can be used as sound source, modulation, or changed into control signal. in the instance of the Monotonic synth I use it as another sound source. But as I said before the Nord can be used as a effect like ring modulator or envelope filter, bit crusher, so on.

There are several software programs that are like this Max/msp, Reaktor, various Moog Modular emulations and Plogue Bidule. I just chose this because I had my computer crash one too many times during a performance and thought I would try something else. Its a real cool tool in a small package.

thanks, doc.