How much have you spent on EuroRack gear!

[Abyssinianloop]

4. Lots of people recommend acquiring a case to accommodate future module purchases, which is good advice...except that those empty spaces just beg to be filled. I have a much easier time not buying more when my case is already full. Therefore, I conclude that it is wise to get a reasonably sized case for your situation. For me the perfect size is 2 rows of 104.

[Dcramer]

1. Haven't reached 20 large quite yet.

2. Ya can't hang yer self on these dinky euro cables.

3. Stopped eating, living off the remnants of the wine cellar, everyone has left me.

4. I only buy modules whose functions I don't have yet and I never sell any, ever. Keep em all and learn to patch!

[Futuresound]

1) around 9k, if you count the BSP and the pedals...

2) Well, the hours on modulargrid are long, and the pay isn't great, but other than that I can't complain.

3) but see #4

4) I didn't for a while. But having a kid helps a lot. And remembering what my initial goals were (t's so easy to lose sight of that!). And at some point i started realizing that just because New Module XYZ is in fact really cool, doesn't mean it's what i need to do what I want. Rainmaker looks like one of the most amazing processors I've ever seen, and I totally don't need one... I think...

[FadingCanvas]

(1) How much have you spent on your Euro-Rack to date ($k)
I do not want to know, I'm in denial, 5 rows of 84hp until now.

(2) Are you still happy you made the decision to get into modular?


(3) How do you manage the cost so it's within your budget to sustain?
Don't buy a lot of modules at once, go slow, learn a new module first, and figure out what you need next.

(4) How do you manage the constant urge to want new modules to play with (HAHA!).
A few dilemmas keep me from buying modules: my cases are full. There isn't many room for a new case, where would I put the next case in my room ? What case should I buy ? Should I buy a skiff, my very last case ? Having something to eat each day would also be nice

[x2mirko]

(1) How much have you spent on your Euro-Rack to date ($k)

Bit tricky to say since i've sold/traded a lot of modules as well. If i'd just sum up everything i've spent, it would be a much larger sum than if i just considered how much money i have put into it from "outside" sources. For the latter (i.e. money i put in that i didn't get from selling other modules or gear), i'd say i'm at around 14-15k Euro currently

(2) Are you still happy you made the decision to get into modular?

Yes. It's been a long time and i'd be long gone if i wasn't happy.

(3) How do you manage the cost so it's within your budget to sustain?

I do have a separate account for gear that all my sales go into and that i send some money to from my normal account every month. All purchases are made from that account, so i basically never have to worry about overspending and negatively influencing the rest of my finances. If i do want to spend something extra, i make sure to first move it to that account and check whether or not it's okay to do right now. Works well enough for me.

(4) How do you manage the constant urge to want new modules to play with (HAHA!).

I don't. I just get new modules to play with

[brianobush]

(1) How much have you spent on your Euro-Rack to date ($k)

2k USD

(2) Are you still happy you made the decision to get into modular?

Yep, my music still sucks but at least it looks cool, right?

(3) How do you manage the cost so it's within your budget to sustain?

Budget? Uh, no.

(4) How do you manage the constant urge to want new modules to play with (HAHA!).

I have been at this for a year now. So still acquiring, but slowly. Acquire necessary modules one at a time.

[bemushroomed]

4. Lots of people recommend acquiring a case to accommodate future module purchases, which is good advice...except that those empty spaces just beg to be filled.

yeah i could not stand having empty spaces in my racks, it looks terrible + they're just begging to be filled.. I always bought smaller (2 rows) Doepfer cases, when i had 4 i converted them into a large case. Perfect size imo, i dont feel like i need to go larger anymore, there's always something i can sell if i really want something. I will most likely stick with this size (672HP).

On the whole i can't say i regret buying smaller cases instead of a large 600HP+ case directly.. if i had done that i would have bought modules a lot faster and with many more regrets.

[Avjr]

This is the sort of thread i shall never answer to in fear that my wife finds about it and reads it. That would get me a divorce and i can't bear the thought of her keeping the kids (cats) AND half of my modules!

[St0rMl0rD]

(1) How much have you spent on your Euro-Rack to date ($k)

3, started it in late January this year, so about 9 months into it.

(2) Are you still happy you made the decision to get into modular?

Extremely. Allows me to learn more about music and sound and get the sound in my head out out into my DAW faster than ever before.

(3) How do you manage the cost so it's within your budget to sustain?

I have a monthly budget of around 200-250 €. If I buy a module for 500, I am done for two months (like now with DPO). I will keep this up until my rig is finished (12U 104hp, mostly Make Noise).

(4) How do you manage the constant urge to want new modules to play with (HAHA!).

Plan, plan, plan. I spend a lot of time on ModularGrid.

[a773]

1) modular grid thinks 9k

2) yes, opened everything so much up for me

3+4) monthly budget (cleared with the wife) that I'm very strict about staying within.

[Hallmar]

1) About 6k i think, or even more, shipping and customs are always included(started a 14 months ago)

2) Of course!! Started with guitar pedals, drone machines, basic drum machines and always felt limited. Now i don't. Finally been making electronic music that i'm proud of.

3) Well, currently i'm working. I deposit 900$ into a savings account, then i make sure that i have enough money to eat something(altough food at work pretty much covers it). And the rest i spend on MODULES.
And i'm going back to school in March(Electronic Engineering) so i'm just staying for free(in the garage to be exact) at my grandparents house.

4) Browse muffwiggler and modulargrid religously and PLAN my next purchase. And i always try to 'break in' my current system and try to figure out what would be the best purchase.

[calaveras]

1) Well modular grid says $4k. But most of my modules are DIY. So maybe about half that.
(2) I wish I had gotten into modular a long time ago. But then I've always been into unusual music, and unusual production techniques.
(3) I try and buy as many of my modules as possible as kits, or PCB/Panel. This makes a $120 module cost $30. A $300 module cost $80. There are a few things like Waldorf wavetablers, and Makenoise LPGs that are not as easy to get in DIY form though. So I make an exception.
I also try and only buy modules (or kits) with money from other music gear I've sold. I bought most of my current modular with funds from selling a couple guitars and pedals.

(4) I go to Control in Brooklyn almost every week. I only buy stuff cash. So if a coveted module is out of my price range. It is out of my price range.
Also, there are not a lot of things that I can't find a DIY equivalent for. Well there are a few, but I'm trying hard to improve my soldering so I can pull off SMT and build even digital modules.

One thing I really like about modular as opposed to my previous gear obsessions is that all of the modules bring something different to the table. When I owned 5 basses and 2 guitars there really was little difference between my Stingray and my Sterling. They just looked very different. But I still was only plugging in one at a time!

I'm probably going to get further stupid in modular. I'll certainly dabble in 4u and 5u as well to get some of the neat things unique to those formats.
But just one row of each.

[franman69]

Way too much

Way happy

No budget restraint at all..(just using my kids college savings.. that's cool, right?)

I can't stop!! (help me)

[shredsickgnar]

1) ~2,000 CAD to fill 6U x 84hp, including case and BSP. I made some good trades and DIYed a lot of stuff. But I think of the synth I could have got with 2k.....

2) Yes I'm very happy with it. Euro combines to things I really enjoy. Electronics(DIY) and making music.

3) My wife was very generous and started me out with 3 DIY modules, case and power for Christmas last year. Since then I've made a few good trades, bought used, sold a Fender AM Strat and a DSI evolver. That has paid for most of it. From now on I maybe spend $100 a month or less on DIY parts.

4) I try to stay offline and either make some music or work on my DIY builds.

[dirtbudda]

$3000 in 4 months
Euro changed my life
no money constraints at ali
I am hooked on the euro crack

---------

[phase ghost]

(1) How much have you spent on your Euro-Rack to date ($k)
(2) Are you still happy you made the decision to get into modular?
(3) How do you manage the cost so it's within your budget to sustain?
(4) How do you manage the constant urge to want new modules to play with (HAHA!).

1) Good question! I'm guessing around 5-6k. But that's since I've started in 2010, and that includes selling stuff off (and loosing some money). For reference, I have a 9u case, with a handful of modules without a home.

2) Absolutely. Unparalleled sound, flexibility (regular synth sounds, filter station, mega guitar pedal), and loads of fun.

3) By starting small, and adding stuff here and there. It's been over a year since I've bought anything. But, that's mostly due to a new found guitar fetish

4) You don't.

[captjrab]

Getting started was the hardest part for me money wise, but after that it's a little here and there. We all need to treat ourselves to something nice every now and then, so whats the big deal, right? I mean, how much did I spend on laundry or the phone bill or rent over the last few years?
Musicians are used to putting out money for their music habit. Euro is just another manifestation of this. You could've put down 5k on an lp release and now have a large stack of boxes of records in your closet or drove 2 hours spent $50 in gas to play a 45 min set and got paid $25 and it would be a similar financial fiasco.
Once u have all your basic funtionalities covered, it's all you, not the gear.

So, I'm very happy with all of it, the creativity, the friendships, community, scoring gigs....in fact, this is my retirement plan.

[Tago Mago]

1) How much have you spent on your Euro-Rack to date ($k)
Around 6 $k

(2) Are you still happy you made the decision to get into modular?
Absolutely. I've never been so excited by any other instrument. I wish I had discovered modular synths before.

(3) How do you manage the cost so it's within your budget to sustain?
Selling synths, drum machines, a Mackie 24 mixer, a guitar, FXs.
Buying second hand, second hand DIY, Doepfer.

(4) How do you manage the constant urge to want new modules to play with (HAHA!).
I didn't.
But now, after 18 months, I don't feel the necessity to go beyond my 18U.

[pieter]

(1) How much have you spent on your Euro-Rack to date ($k)
(2) Are you still happy you made the decision to get into modular?
(3) How do you manage the cost so it's within your budget to sustain?
(4) How do you manage the constant urge to want new modules to play with (HAHA!).

(1) You can look it up on modular grid in the link in my signature.

(2) Absolutely! Between the wiggling, reading up on gear and techniques on Muffs, and endlessly tweaking my MG racks, I am having a blast of a time. I do this purely as a hobby, so there is no pressure to produce anything; any music that comes out is purely a bonus.

(3) Never buy anything that you cannot afford (credit cards are the work of the devil). Go slow, so you have time to learn your new module. I set myself the target of no more than one new module per month, and that helps a lot.

(4) If you have an addictive personality, stay away from Eurocrack!

[Funkydroid]

What is "MFG"?

[rustyjaw]

(1) How much have you spent on your Euro-Rack to date ($k)
(2) Are you still happy you made the decision to get into modular?
(3) How do you manage the cost so it's within your budget to sustain?
(4) How do you manage the constant urge to want new modules to play with

1. About $8k USD over about a year, both new and used modules and new and used cases

2. Definitely

3. One thing I resolved to do was never put things on a credit card. This helps keep the spending constrained by what I have on hand. That said, many months over the last year, I've spent all my 'free' cash on modules, and lived very frugally to make it through. Sometimes I feel foolish for living his way.

4. This "problem" has sort of taken care of itself. Initially, when I had a small system, I wanted everything all the time. I was constantly faced with limitations in what I could do with a few modules (especiallly when watching Youtube videos or coming here!). These days, I do still want a lot more, but I now have enough modules that I could probably never explore all of the possibilities. That helps me feel satisfied with what I have. And that constant urge is easier to suppress because I can look at what I have and still see lots of unexplored potential.

Also, I have filled my cases (a 9u and a 3u), so it's a natural point at which to take a deep breath and experiment more.

[Ashe]

1. 2.6k (minus the $270 case)
2. YES
3. I try my best to hold out for holidays, and am currently selling modules to get others
4. I literally have no $ to buy more unless I sell something so I can't exactly go "over budget" when there is not a budget ^_^'''

[nickbaba]

1. I never want to find out. Most likely about three-to-four times what I told my girlfriend it was all worth.

2. On the Good Days when the Patch Gods smile upon me, yes.

3. Say what now?

4. All the modules are belong to us.

[matttech]

i spent about £12,000 on my persona modular before I started the shop. My original budget was £2,500 MAX!

[Spartacus]

I'm scared to add it up!