Overstayer Modular Channel - Who has one?

Hi5 · Post by **Hi5** » Wed Apr 04, 2018 2:06 pm

Anyone have one of these? Not that I need convincing but would love to hear about anyone's experience with it.

I already have all the first wave of their black boxes and outside of swapping the Instrument Driver for the new expanded saturator none of the newer boxes seem to add enough to warrant the upgrade. Modular Channel however, seems like everything I'd want in a color box. Filters, EQ, VCA comp, harmonics section and the ability to mix in parallel/serial.

scrumbo mcgrumbo · Post by **scrumbo mcgrumbo** » Wed Apr 04, 2018 2:21 pm

I have one. The non preamp, line level version. I had the black box instrument driver and vca compressor before, but this thing is on a whole new level. I've only had it for about two months, but so far I don't have any kind of complaints. I run everything through it and it's just really versatile. Any questions you have let me know

Hi5 · Post by **Hi5** » Wed Apr 04, 2018 2:48 pm

Good to hear and if I'm honest with myself I already know I'm going to get one. It seems the sections are very interactive with each other when going into the harmonics section.

scrumbo mcgrumbo · Post by **scrumbo mcgrumbo** » Wed Apr 04, 2018 3:13 pm

Yeah the routing is crazy and I love how the filters sound. Seems like you're pretty convinced on it, but if you want to try it out before you pull the trigger let me know. Looks like we're both in Chicago.

dogoftears · Post by **dogoftears** » Wed Apr 04, 2018 3:20 pm

that thing looks awesome, would love to hear some a/b's of stuff if any one feels like posting, or more experiences in general.

based on my experience with os stuff i don't think you can really go wrong with that piece... haven't used it though.

Hi5 · Post by **Hi5** » Wed Apr 04, 2018 3:29 pm

scrumbo mcgrumbo wrote:Yeah the routing is crazy and I love how the filters sound. Seems like you're pretty convinced on it, but if you want to try it out before you pull the trigger let me know. Looks like we're both in Chicago.

Thanks for the offer. Still a couple weeks before work bonus so I don't want to drive myself crazy just yet but will holler.

Futuresound · Post by **Futuresound** » Wed Apr 04, 2018 3:59 pm

I've been drooling over this for a while.

scrumbo mcgrumbo do you think this would do well as the only dedicated saturation/harmonics/dirt in a small studio? I'd love to add this and a Silver Bullet and a Culture Vulture and so on, but time, space and budget are limited.

BugBrand · Post by **BugBrand** » Wed Apr 04, 2018 4:50 pm

dogoftears wrote:that thing looks awesome

I concur! That looks really nice & all in stereo too.

scrumbo mcgrumbo · Post by **scrumbo mcgrumbo** » Wed Apr 04, 2018 6:45 pm

Futuresound

That's pretty much why I got it. I don't have all that much room for gear. I just wanted something that would be the best bang for my buck and the modular channel seemed to fit everything that I wanted in 2u. It's the only hardware processing gear I have other than effects.

Gringo Starr · Post by **Gringo Starr** » Fri Apr 06, 2018 5:34 pm

If anyone cares to share some sounds I would love to hear them. I’ve been wanting one of these to use for sound design and for processing stems as well. This piece is certainly intriguing.

VanEck · Post by **VanEck** » Mon Apr 16, 2018 12:59 pm

scrumbo mcgrumbo wrote:I have one. The non preamp, line level version. I had the black box instrument driver and vca compressor before, but this thing is on a whole new level. I've only had it for about two months, but so far I don't have any kind of complaints. I run everything through it and it's just really versatile. Any questions you have let me know

if i understand the difference between the 2 versions, they both have preamps available at line level right? the one version just has a mic input with it's own dedicated transformer pre?

Futuresound · Post by **Futuresound** » Mon Apr 16, 2018 1:17 pm

Gringo Starr wrote:If anyone cares to share some sounds I would love to hear them. I’ve been wanting one of these to use for sound design and for processing stems as well. This piece is certainly intriguing.

Yes please!

That Youtube video of him destroying an 808 beat is pretty amazing, but I would love to hear more.

PrimateSynthesis · Post by **PrimateSynthesis** » Mon Apr 16, 2018 2:01 pm

VanEck wrote: if i understand the difference between the 2 versions, they both have preamps available at line level right? the one version just has a mic input with it's own dedicated transformer pre?

It seems that way. Although their website says it only has 40 dB of gain, which is low for a mic pre.

VanEck · Post by **VanEck** » Thu Aug 09, 2018 9:55 am

i've had my modular channel for about 2 months now. absolutely love it. one of the elements i enjoy the most, which i originally thought would just be an afterthought, are the filters. most definitely my favorite filters i've ever experimented with. it's a shame i can't CV them, or that there's no envelope follower. a little bit of modulation ala "sherman" style would be incredible.

from what i've read, they are ms20 inspired. i've used plenty of other filters in gear and in eurorack that were also ms20 inspired, but never any that sounded quite like this. does anyone know what filters out there are comparable? i've never owned a real ms20... does it sound as good as these filters?

Futuresound · Post by **Futuresound** » Wed Sep 12, 2018 2:32 pm

Anyone want to post examples of this thing in use?

At this point, it's not a question of 'if', it's a question of 'when' I will get it, but I'd still like to hear some to tide me over.

johnnywoods · Post by **johnnywoods** » Wed Sep 12, 2018 2:45 pm

Another happy user here. I dont have time to post demos unfortunately, but the best thing about it is how insanely versatile it can be. It's the only real "color" box I have, and I was pleasantly surprised by the range of tones it can achieve. The EQ and Comp can be very subtle or completely devastating... there's a really great variety of saturation options, which is super useful in a small studio like mine. The greatest thing, in my opinion, is that it is really well tuned. It's like the whole unit is one giant sweet spot. Imo, that's a rare quality for a box with this many options, and it shows a great attention to detail on the part of the designer.

VanEck · Post by **VanEck** » Thu Sep 13, 2018 9:03 am

Futuresound wrote:Anyone want to post examples of this thing in use?

At this point, it's not a question of 'if', it's a question of 'when' I will get it, but I'd still like to hear some to tide me over.

The intro music of SysEx Dumpster episode 14 was all done through the modular channel, and we also discuss it a bunch toward the end of the episode:

https://sysexdumpster.com/

laserpalace · Post by **laserpalace** » Sat Sep 15, 2018 10:10 am

johnnywoods wrote:I was pleasantly surprised by the range of tones it can achieve. The EQ and Comp can be very subtle or completely devastating... there's a really great variety of saturation options, which is super useful in a small studio like mine ... It's like the whole unit is one giant sweet spot

Couldn't have said it better. It's a perfect tone shaping companion for just about anything you throw at it. I thought Serge sounded perfect on it's own but there's no looking back after processing it through the Modular Channel. It's also a perfect tool for warming up digital sounds. Coming from a modular synth user it's a very approachable box that encourages exploration, I haven't come across anything quite like it.

scrumbo mcgrumbo · Post by **scrumbo mcgrumbo** » Sun Sep 16, 2018 1:32 pm

VanEck wrote:
scrumbo mcgrumbo wrote:I have one. The non preamp, line level version. I had the black box instrument driver and vca compressor before, but this thing is on a whole new level. I've only had it for about two months, but so far I don't have any kind of complaints. I run everything through it and it's just really versatile. Any questions you have let me know
if i understand the difference between the 2 versions, they both have preamps available at line level right? the one version just has a mic input with it's own dedicated transformer pre?

Yes they both have the ability to drive the preamps. I should have said the non mic input version with phantom power. Bother versions have preamps

scrumbo mcgrumbo · Post by **scrumbo mcgrumbo** » Sun Sep 16, 2018 1:38 pm

I uploaded 5 Wave 24 bit examples of things being processed by the Modular Channel to my google drive

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/ ... sp=sharing

Sorry if the levels are all over the place, but it's hard to keep even when dramatically tweaking.

Let me know if you have more requests.

Futuresound · Post by **Futuresound** » Tue Sep 18, 2018 12:11 pm

Thanks, those are fantastic. The saturation and filters sound great. The interaction with the filter modulate on the Prophet is pretty special.

And that made me want a k1r again

visible cow · Post by **visible cow** » Tue Sep 18, 2018 12:58 pm

I'm pretty close to placing an order for one of these. I've been offloading a lot of outboard in an attempt to reduce clutter but I really want a versatile character piece. I think someone over on gearslutz mentioned that it can act almost like a tape simulator when used subtly. I used to own the instrument driver which was fantastic.

Do owners find themselves getting to the sound they're after quickly? I'm guessing a lot of us are coming from the modular synth world and the controls start to feel like second nature.

laserpalace · Post by **laserpalace** » Wed Sep 19, 2018 10:28 pm

visible cow
I had an ID4 before this which I used in tandem with the BugBrand PEQ/Stereo Compress. Another great combination but I also wanted to pair down a bit. The Modular Channel was the perfect replacement for me.

If you dig the instrument driver you will really love the versatility the Modular Channel offers. At times it can be very nuanced adding subtle character to the sound (similar to the tape effect you mention). Other settings can completely alter and transform whatever's going into it. I find it to be very musical and engaging.

As far as finding that sound quickly I would say yes, once you get over the learning curve it's fairly easy to dial in a good go to setting for your setup. But I also end up using it as another musical tool. It might just be my practice but the design really lends itself to interactivity, especially the filter. I usually find the sound I was after fairly quickly but then end up evolving it further with the Modular Channel.

visible cow · Post by **visible cow** » Thu Sep 20, 2018 7:23 pm

Thanks laserplace, your post (as well as scrumbo mcgrumbo's demos) pushed me over the edge. I placed an order for the mic pre version this morning. Now I just need to be patient for three to four weeks.

khyber · Post by **khyber** » Fri Sep 21, 2018 9:50 am

I've only recently dipped my toe in with the Overstayer stuff. I'd been searching for an ID4 and FET Compressor since I first learned about them in 2012. Now that I have them racked up in the studio I've become very well acquainted with the ID4 and have been messing about with the FET Compressor. Great pieces to be sure.

Now in 2018 the Overstayer Modular Channel is my next step up most definitely. It just looks perfect for warming up/destroying synths and drum machines. I'm sure it has a million other lighter touch uses in the studio, but as a synth person with little room for outboard, this just really fits the bill. Hope to hear more sound demonstrations, cheers to those who have posted sounds so far!

MUFF WIGGLER

MUFF WIGGLER

Overstayer Modular Channel - Who has one?

Overstayer Modular Channel - Who has one?