adding a sequencer to the minibrute

[ccristoo]

Hi, i have a minibrute, I was wondering whether there are any sequencers I can add to it. I was thinking of trying to use a korg sq-1 step sequencer?

If anyone has any recommendations, that would be great.

[megamarkd]

I have a Beatstep Pro I use with my Minibrute.  It's easy to use but might be over-kill if you only have one synth.  The BSP is a three channel sequencer with one of them designed for drums.  It would a good choice for if you see yourself getting more synths or a drum machine in the future.

I also have a Keystep which is a good sequencer for the Minibrute too.  It's only a single channel and has a keyboard, which may feel redundant in use with a Minibrute, but it does sequence chords, so you can send a chord progression to your Minibrute while it's in arpeggio mode.

There is also always the option of loading the Minibrute SE firmware, which has a simple step-sequencer in it.  You basically replace the Minibrute's arpeggiator with a pattern player.  I've not done it myself, I have a thing about wanting an argeggiator on all synths my synths.  I blame Frank Zappa and his early composing (create a theme that revolves around arpeggios and have everyone play it in detuned unison).

[ccristoo]

Thanks heaps for your feedback. It's nice to get some insight. Otherwise I could waste so much time going down fruitless roads. It's an old song and maybe simple, but I really like the sound I think is sequenced at 00:49.

[megamarkd]

Thanks heaps for your feedback. It's nice to get some insight. Otherwise I could waste so much time going down fruitless roads. It's an old song and maybe simple, but I really like the sound I think is sequenced at 00:49.

You forgot the link, oops!

[ccristoo]

Ha, it's here. Just the bit around 40 seconds in. I'm sort of hypnotised in a cyber punk way.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvo6WkpU-KE

[megamarkd]

Ooh some Skinny Puppy.  Not heard them for a few years.
Sounds like a sequencer but not sure which one.  A loop I think as I can't hear any tell-tale sounds of an arpeggiator being played like late changes.  Though it could well be an Arp 2600 that they are using.  I used to hate industrial musicians.  Often they were rich kids living poor and their folk paid for all the tech they owned.  Stuff like samplers in the mid-80's were still super expensive, especially the ones Skinny Puppy used.

You can pull off that style of sequence with a Beatstep (Pro or not) or even the Minibrute SE sequence should be able to do it.  I've not tried to program a sound like that really, I'll have to give it a go.  LPF most definitely in there for a start.  A rather high level of noise and a fast attack envelope.  Makes the synth noise generator sound like a hihat.

[ccristoo]

Thanks for the feedback. All the best. I think I will fork out for a beat step pro. I have a minilogue and minibrute. I might get a bass station and a drum brute. I'm basically buying the cheap best stuff I can. 

[megamarkd]

You are most welcome.
The BSP an awesome little sequencer.  Since I got it, I've bought two more sequencers including a Pyramid, but it's the BSP that does the most work.
The Bass Station II is a great sounding synth, my cousin has one.  Different to the MiniBrute, but that is what you want. No point in owning a bunch of synths that sound the same.  It also has a few functions that make it a little more usable than the MiniBrute, simple things like a note hold button for holding a note after you have taken your finger off the key.
I'd own a DrumBrute by now if I didn't have a bunch of analogue drum machines already (VBeats, VKick, Rhythm Wolf and ADX1), but if I can make the space, there is a good chance I'll get one still.
There are a lot of great products at the "cheap" end of the scale today that I'd rank up with the "high-end" products from the likes of Moog and DSI.  The Minilogue for example, it's cheap in comparison to a Mopho 4x, but I like it's filter better than the Mopho 4x and would buy the Minilogue over the Mopho 4x.  And as far as analogue drum machines go, the Drumbrute really has no competition.  Again DSI has a similar product, but it's not 100% analogue (although they claim it is, then in the same paragraph mention it uses samples), has a 6 note polyphony and is super expensive.  The DrumBrute isn't as complex for creating drum sounds but it's great as far as being a complete analogue drum kit with a sequencer.  Nobody is doing anything like it.  The Volca Beats isn't anywhere close (it's kick sounds great but using it make the rest of sounds disappear unless it's turned almost completely down, making it sound more like a kid with a paint tin and a wooden ruler).

[ccristoo]

Thanks. I did buy a Monologue. Maybe I shouldve gotten a Minilogue instead but I didn't even know about it.

[megamarkd]

Nah, the Monologue is a great machine and has better reports on it's firmware being complete (huge issue these days it seems).  I have an original MS-20 which has a bit of a different sound due to it's filters, but essentially the Monologue is like owning an MS-20 and an SQ-10.  The MS-20 is a little more experimental due to it's patch bay, but unless you are aiming to make experimental music, the Monologue is a great monosynth to own.  It's got a Korg filter on it for one, which doesn't sound like a Roland (steppy) or a Moog (loses all it's bottom-end with resonance turn up).
Minilogue is something I was dead set on getting when it was released, but I ended up with a Tetra 2nd hand for about the same price, then went and spend another $200 on a box with 32 knobs and 8 sliders on it to program it.  Hopefully the bugs will be ironed out of the Minilogue's firmware and I may look into one again towards December.  I'm actually hoping Arturia will put out a analogue polysynth soon!

[ccristoo]

Thanks for the info!

Also I was wondering whether, say if you're playing two synths and a drum machine through the beat step, what about if you want to master and mix each sound separately? Can they be separated into stems or do you switch off the layers you don't want to hear when recording into a DAW? 

Also, I don't really know much about it, but when I finally upgrade to a new computer and everything, I was thinking of buying a dedicated sound processing card, like an ASIO DAC PCI card from RME.

 

[megamarkd]

The BSP is purely a sequencer, it has no audio mixing facility.  The outputs of your instruments will need to be mixed using a mixer or in your DAW via an audio card/interface.  Decent mixing desks will have direct outputs for each channel for you to run them into a recording device like a stand-alone multitrack recorder (like I do it) or a DAW (via the audio interface).
I don't use computers for recording or anything other than uploading it youtube or soundcloud (which I am actually discontinuing use of as my music needs visuals to be interesting).  So unfortunately I can't give knowledgeable advice on using computers for music, sorry...
I do know that RME have been making high quality audio interfaces since way before Emagic was taken over by Apple and E-MU was still the name in samplers.  Back then if you didn't have an RME or a MOTU interface, you were compromising on sound quality for price.

[ccristoo]

Thanks for all your advice. You saved me six months of a music production course. All the best.