April 2022 Eurorack module round-up
This month’s best new modules include an eclectic mixture of granular samplers, 3D mixers, signal generators and stereo compressors.
Miso Cornflakes
It’s an eclectic selection of new modules in the Juno warehouse this month, kicking things off with the enticing Cornflakes granular sampler from Miso Modular. Miso describe it as a sampler but it straddles the line between sample playback and full-blown granular synthesis, encouraging you to warp and twist your stereo samples in real time. What’s particularly nice about the Cornflakes is how the emphasis is on hands-on control rather than modulation, menu-diving and automation. You can trigger your samples in melodic sequences using the 1V/oct CV input, but the real fun comes from grabbing the eight knobs which correspond to all the major parameters and exploring the sound. All those parameters can also be modulated via CV inputs, but the Cornflakes is one of the most tactile granular modules you’ll find, rewarding the hands-on approach.
Cosmotronic Messor
Cosmotronic’s Messor is, coincidentally, another stereo module, a high-quality VCA-based compressor in a fairly compact 8hp format. The most obvious application here is that classic SSL-style glue compression on the master output of a mixed stereo signal, but the Messor can work nicely on individual sounds too, delivering everything from subtle punch to aggressive slam with the ‘Warm’ valve-style overdrive switch engaged. There’s plenty of control over the internal sidechain thanks to a switchable high-pass/low-pass filter, but an external sidechain input and envelope output expand the options substantially. Quality stuff at a very reasonable price.
Metabolic Devices Moonwalker
Metabolic Devices’s Moonwalker is the kind of versatile signal generator that works so well for those who like versatility. The Moonwalker generates envelopes, LFOs or audio-rate oscillator signals like most signal generators, but its USP is the way it allows you to modulate the phase of the signal. It’s a slightly tricky concept to get your head around at first (especially as the front panel design isn’t immediately intuitive), but the manual does a very good job of explaining things and you’ll soon get to grips with how it can add unique movement to LFO signals used to modulate things like VCO pulse width. Not the most immediate module, but one which has a lot of depth.
AJH Synth MiniMod Muting Mixer
AJH Synth’s MiniMod Muting Mixer is a far more straightforward prospect but no less impressive for it. A five-channel mixer with mutes, built-in VCA, switchable overdrive and LED level meter, the MiniMod mixer doesn’t really offer up any big surprises, it just does the basics well. Tactile LED switches on each channel mute the incoming signal from the mix, giving good visual feedback of what each channel’s doing. The built-in overdrive is a nice addition to the basic mixer format, giving a nice hint of smooth, creamy distortion that works well to glue elements together.
Neuzeit Quasar
Finally, Neuzeit’s Quasar has already proven so popular that it sold out in the time between arriving in stock and publishing this round-up. The Quasar takes one or two mono inputs and generates 3D stereo information via ‘quasars’ which include a combination of position (i.e. height, angle and distance), room reverb and modulation from a built-in LFO. There are two CV inputs to modulate parameters, but most of the tweaking comes via the two main quasar controls, which prove to be fairly intuitive when it comes to placing sounds around the 3D space. It’s wrong to say the Quasar is a simple module per se, but it simplifies a complex process and proves incredibly effective at generating a sense of space and ambience. A neat little touch is its own dedicated headphone output, allowing you to monitor the signal directly in situations where your main monitoring might be compromised (such as live settings). Out of stock for now, but sign up for email alerts or add it to your wishlist to make sure you don’t miss out when it’s restocked.