The Elektron Model:Cycles Thread

[Kent]

Folks, please just report trolls. This user is making a sport of getting attention. Just report him every time he raises a new alias. He's doing this on purpose. Give him no oxygen.

[Gribs]

Given I have a Digitone already is there any real reason to buy one of these other than it looks fun and is inexpensive? Simpler, faster, more fun, less futzing around with menus, etc?

[AdamJay]

Given I have a Digitone already is there any real reason to buy one of these other than it looks fun and is inexpensive? Simpler, faster, more fun, less futzing around with menus, etc?

It has all of those things, certainly, but the thing I dig the most is you got 6 tracks to work with.
If the four tracks on the DN have you feeling limited, MC is good for offloading percussion and bass sounds for sure.

[soon_come]

Great question. I don't have a Digitone (only a DT and A4), so I got it for more casual FM. I'm not sure it makes sense if you have the Digitone already, unless you want something which can also do drums quite well and is even more portable / easy to power, with more voices (and chords!). I think the Model:Cycles may prove to be one of the best mobile grooveboxes there is in 2020 after the dust settles.

[Gribs]

I have an A4 mk1, a Digitakt, and a Digitone. I also have a large number of other things that I just lump into the “Groovebox” category. I definitely don’t need a Model Cycles at all. It is a bright, shiny, new thing that looks fun, though. I think I am just going to install the new OS updates and enjoy those for a while.

[RickKleffel]

I have a Digitone, etc, and to my mind, the Model:Cycles is very different in sound and programming. What I know about sound programming the Digitone is of no use when it comes to programming the M:C. The sounds are also very different. The lovely layered ambience of the Digitone is thus far on vacation [for me, you may find differently]. It took me a while to cotton up to the M:C so that I might exercise an intention to create a sort of sound and end up nearly, sort of there. It's still both obtuse and obscure to me. That said, I am enjoying the results. I am likely to use it for a bit of drums and percussion. For those familiar with Electron sequencing, that remains largely the same. Once I tased the "This is. not at all like the Digitone realization, I began to relax and have fun. In my hands, it's more of a StumbleBox than a groovebox, but I imagine someone of greater talent could easily groove the night away. Nice laptop box when then get the funky handle out there.

The main upshot for me is, having recently acquired a Digitakt, I am now interested in the M:S. Until now, I thought it to be uninteresting. Now, I suspect it may be different enough from the "big brother" to be both fun and useful.

[lisa]

Sent a couple of Model:Cycles beats through Metasonix RK2 and Synthrotek DIRT Filter. Smutty result!

[electricfence]

Sent a couple of Model:Cycles beats through Metasonix RK2 and Synthrotek DIRT Filter. Smutty result!

So, for about the first 90 seconds of that video, I thought, She'd better be careful or she's going to wake up the baby.

[lisa]

Sent a couple of Model:Cycles beats through Metasonix RK2 and Synthrotek DIRT Filter. Smutty result!

So, for about the first 90 seconds of that video, I thought, She'd better be careful or she's going to wake up the baby.

Yeah, life has changed a lot since we got kids. At the same time it hasn’t, not really. We are still doing what we used to do.

[wuff_miggler]

well - that was fkn ridiculous. Nice one Lisa. should cross post in the metasonix thread great example !!

[lisa]

well - that was fkn ridiculous. Nice one Lisa. should cross post in the metasonix thread great example !!

Thanks! Perhaps I will. I’m not shy about pushing my recordings to the limit of awkward.

[wuff_miggler]

^ well i specifically mention it - as Metasonix demos aren't that popular...and this one was heavy as shit, im surprised you could keep a generally straight face with that kinda sound going on - i'd be screwfaced on 10

[lisa]

^ well i specifically mention it - as Metasonix demos aren't that popular...

Yeah. Metasonix seems to have had more appeal a decade ago. All of the most watched Mexasonix videos on YT are 10-13 years old, I've noticed.

and this one was heavy as shit, im surprised you could keep a generally straight face with that kinda sound going on - i'd be screwfaced on 10

Thanks. The Model:Cycles is very good as a drum machine. Quite flexible drum synthesis but still easy to use. It doesn't feel very limited to me at all and it's fun to use. Highly recommended.

[soon_come]

Thanks. The Model:Cycles is very good as a drum machine. Quite flexible drum synthesis but still easy to use. It doesn't feel very limited to me at all and it's fun to use. Highly recommended.

It's incredible how much of a chameleon it is, but still very immediate. This might be a spicy take, but if it had existed when I tried so hard to track down the Nord Drum 2 used a few years back, I probably never would have bothered going for the ND2. Although now I'm having thoughts about wiring up the 6 ND2 pads to the Cycles...

[AdamJay]

Sent a couple of Model:Cycles beats through Metasonix RK2 and Synthrotek DIRT Filter. Smutty result!

There is definitely something about the cycles that invites gnarly processing.


This one is M:C into Elektron A4 which has all OSCs off. Just running the M:C into the A4 filters and heavily modulating them with pitch tracking LFOs, various pitches, arps, and conditionals sequenced on the A4.

some A4 shakers and strings added:

https://soundcloud.com/inoperabledata/m ... DDUlaTcZAF

[soon_come]

This one is M:C into Elektron A4 which has all OSCs off. Just running the M:C into the A4 filters and heavily modulating them with pitch tracking LFOs, various pitches, arps, and conditionals sequenced on the A4.

some A4 shakers and strings added:

https://soundcloud.com/inoperabledata/m ... DDUlaTcZAF

I got excited thinking that was a new demo, AdamJay. Isn't this the same one you posted earlier in the thread? More please!

I'm one week into ownership, and I'm having a ton of fun. Here's another session:



I'm sorry, but IG summed this to mono. Otherwise it's totally unprocessed. Itching to try this thing through the Micro Limiter on AdamJay's suggestion.

[AdamJay]

This one is M:C into Elektron A4 which has all OSCs off. Just running the M:C into the A4 filters and heavily modulating them with pitch tracking LFOs, various pitches, arps, and conditionals sequenced on the A4.

some A4 shakers and strings added:

https://soundcloud.com/inoperabledata/m ... DDUlaTcZAF

I got excited thinking that was a new demo, AdamJay. Isn't this the same one you posted earlier in the thread?

Oh, how embarrassing. That I did.
Thought I had only posted it to Elektronauts.
Apologies.

[Gribs]

Sent a couple of Model:Cycles beats through Metasonix RK2 and Synthrotek DIRT Filter. Smutty result!

So, for about the first 90 seconds of that video, I thought, She'd better be careful or she's going to wake up the baby.

Yeah, life has changed a lot since we got kids. At the same time it hasn’t, not really. We are still doing what we used to do.

The Metasonix VCA sounds excellent. It has been a while since I looked into his stuff.

You have a very cute little helper.

[umberman]

model: cycles, some tests:

[lisa]

Sent a couple of Model:Cycles beats through Metasonix RK2 and Synthrotek DIRT Filter. Smutty result!

So, for about the first 90 seconds of that video, I thought, She'd better be careful or she's going to wake up the baby.

Yeah, life has changed a lot since we got kids. At the same time it hasn’t, not really. We are still doing what we used to do.

The Metasonix VCA sounds excellent. It has been a while since I looked into his stuff.

Yeah, the Metasonix stuff felt ludicrous to me until I actually tried them out. I mean, the bang/buck ratio can be debated but they truly are different from anything else and I'm really glad that I got them (RK2, RK3 and R56). You should also check out Synthrotek DIRT Filter. Cheap, cheerful and absolutely deranged.

You have a very cute little helper.

Yeah, he's cute when he's happy and/or sleeping.

[Liddlepud]

My Model Cycles was delivered yesterday and I used it to add drums to a patch I've been messing around with using the Instruo Harmonaig to feed an Intellijel Shifty. I only bought it as I sold my Nord Drum last year because of the menu diving and wanted something to plug my Drumkid into. The beats on this track are just a preset loop but I really like the sound of this thing, so much better than the Machinedrum which I never really got along with. After listening to Lisa's Metasonix/Synthrotek patch above I'm going to see what's in my rack to make it sound dirty.

[SnipeCatcher]

My Model Cycles was delivered yesterday and I used it to add drums to a patch I've been messing around with using the Instruo Harmonaig to feed an Intellijel Shifty. I only bought it as I sold my Nord Drum last year because of the menu diving and wanted something to plug my Drumkid into. The beats on this track are just a preset loop but I really like the sound of this thing, so much better than the Machinedrum which I never really got along with. After listening to Lisa's Metasonix/Synthrotek patch above I'm going to see what's in my rack to make it sound dirty.

That sounded fantastic! Great job
The M:C is worth the price as just a drum machine, but I’ve made several tracks where it does almost everything. Maybe add a track or two on the modular or Octatrack. It sounds shockingly good and is dirt cheap for what it is, I think.

On my new record, the first track is mostly the M:C and tracks 8 and 9 are all M:C

[Liddlepud]

Thanks Snipecatcher, I like those tracks, I'll definitely be using the Cycles for more than just drums.

[wuff_miggler]

sure you're using the modular on that sc example? Sounds like music to me Really great job!

[Gribs]

I decided to pull the trigger on one of these. I was trying not to, but then they came back into stock at Perfect Circuit and we cancelled a fairly expensive summer vacation to avoid people.