SOMA Pulsar-23 // Hauntingly Beautiful (not only as a drum!)
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- Опубліковано 3 гру 2024
- I finally did it!
I've never waited so long for a video to come out since I bought an instrument, the turnaround is usually one week, I think for this we're closer to 6 months.
But a lot of stuff happened, I moved, I've left many instruments behind, but I decided to take with me this, probably the most obscure and the one I have least confidence with.
Finally, I cracked the (very personal) code, of using the Pulsar like a very different and powerful Lyra, instead of a drum machine.
I made many previous attempts, but I was always ending up with trip-hop borderline eurorack farts and bubbles, and it wasn't quite video material.
Now, that's mine, that's what I like from my instruments, and I love the Pulsar even more for being able to get me *THERE*.
For any discussion about the process or the gear, I'll wait for you in the comments :)
Enjoy ✨
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#soma #pulsar23 #cxm1978 #synth
I wish more people were thinking outside the box to demonstrate the Pulsar's depth like you are here. This is the first time I've actually considered adding it to my kit.
Humbled! 🧡
And I have to admit, it was the first time for me too I thought I was finally clicking with the instrument.
I bought it as a quirky drum machine, I liked the sound, but with what I do I am not using a lot of drums anyway, so after the first period I stopped using it and now I am using it in almost every occasion (actually, new video coming soon with Pulsar & piano!)
Still, I wished I had a second one, to expand the capabilities even further, but this thing is expensive af.
This was amazing. This side of the Pulsar 23 is seldom seen on UA-cam. The Pulsar 23 is capable of some serious beauty. It is incredible.
Thank you so much!
I almost never used it as a drum machine (even though I bought it for that), and when I moved to a different country bringing almost only the Pulsar with me... I really had to get creative, and I am very pleased with the result of those explorations!
This is refreshing. My ears are tired of hearing the P23 playing endlessly dull 4/4 techno. Thank you for the new direction.
Humbled 🧡
I admit I didn't use it much as a drum machine, but way more as an interesting portable modular canvas, and I'd say it is working!
@@Dexba I think you're nailing it. Looking forward to hearing some more.
👏🏽Nice isn't it.
Appreciate you taking the time to read each comment. I have been looking for a way to design some experimental sounds without starting at a screen all day. And I love how you demonstrated it can be used like a "pseudo-polyphonic" synth. This might just be the right tool for the job.
Yes, engaging with other enthusiasts is the only reason why I upload these videos! 🧡
And yes, the Pulsar is great as a sort of "confined modular sketchbook", even more than just a drum machine.
Nowadays I mostly use it as a "bigger Lyra", for the moment when I need more complex soundscapes :)
You really have to do a patch breakdown on this, I'd love to know more about your process, method and technique.
It sounds amazing 👏
You're not the first nor the second person to tell me that, and I think it's now time to do a patch/workflow breakdown on both the Pulsar and the Lyra for these both soothing and spooky soundscapes 🧡
I will start working on that, thank you again ✨
@@Dexba is the Digitakt sending midi notes to the pulsar for the melody or is that a pulsar loop ? Sounds great
It is just sending midi notes to the Bass!
I intended to get the Digitakt more involved in the patch, but I was pretty satisfied with was going on already, so I went with that :)@@indiefilmcomposer
@@Dexba good stuff thx.
Dream trio. That reverb takes the Pulsar to another level- if that’s possible 🤯 💥
I agree! Believe it or not, the CXM1978 is not so "general purpose" as its transparency would let you think, but I've found that it works really really well opening the soundscape of the Pulsar!
Sounds amazing! Really refreshing to hear such different sounds coming from the Pulsar
Thank you a lot! 🧡
I bought it to chase the sonorities of Massive Attack and actually use it as a drum, but given my... ehm, "music studio" situation, or the lack of one, I tend to use instruments by themselves.
So yeah, I had to get creative with the usage and the patching, and I am so glad it resonated with so many people ☺️
Love the soundscapes ❤
Thank you, I find the Pulsar way more capable at this than simple drum duties, and I love the tactility of it!
This is really beautiful, and a super creative use of the Pulsar!
Thank you so much! 🧡
Now I reach out to the Pulsar even before than the Lyra, especially since when I started using it like that :)
Haunting and beautiful indeed! Thanks much for this gem.
And thank you so much for checking it out!
Very beautiful and inspiring. Now I have to buy a pulsar🥲
And I have to buy a SECOND one!
When you start patching and fiddling you always want more and more.
But as always, money is the issue 😭
Tremendous execution of the idea!
Thank you so much, I tried to find my way with the machine 🙌🏻
sounds great!
Thank you a lot!
I was rehearsing something completely different, then I found this sweet area of sounds, and I decided to record :)
Thank you for this beautiful musical moment in time you created :) A tutorial on this patch would be glorious and greatly appreciated!
Wow, thank you so much for your kind words 🧡
There is sort of a tutorial on a quite similar patch on my channel already > ua-cam.com/video/8hKpi3PDDNU/v-deo.html
In that video I also play a tuned BD, plucks from the filters, and the only major difference is that in this video I sequenced the Bass via Digitakt.
Apart from that, if you have any other questions, I will gladly discuss anything with you :)
Very innovative and expressive way to use the pulsar 23. Very much a solid demo of less is more.
Thank you so much 🧡
I think I almost never used the Pulsar as a drum machine, and when I moved and brought with me very few instruments (including Pulsar), I decided it was time to deep dive into what I could get out of it.
I am glad you liked it! 🙏🏻
Absolutely awesome🎉, beatiful performance👏👏👏
Thank you so much!
Humbled 🙏🏻
Simply beautiful💫
Thank you so much 🧡
Hauntingly beautiful, indeed!! Thanks for the vibe! Of course you’re also on UA-cam, with your creative and inspiring vibes! Nice to stumble upon your channel! 🕊🎶🎧✨🎛🙏🏼🌀
Oh hi! I am glad you found me here too, I actually enjoy more the slower pace and longer form of content here on YT 🧡
Right on!! Happy to be here! 🙏🏼
Awesome !
Thank you so much 🧡
The Pulsar is always an experience!
Nice setup. Beautiful piece 👏👍🙏
Thank you so much 🧡
Can't wait to keep exploring these different sides of Pulsar!
Totally unexpected to hear this from Pulsar-23 - 10 thumbs up: GREAT WORK ❤️
Thank you so SO much :)
Now I've found this side of Pulsar, I think we're gonna hear it many times in the future: there is a lot to cover/discover 🧡
Amazing!! Very inspiring to hear this side of the Pulsar.
Thank you so much! I am working on a new video, with also some tips & tricks for this mellower side of the Pulsar 🧡
Awesome, ill follow (:
Excellent performance, Dexba. I am stoked to add the P23 to my rig.
Honoured, and you will have a lot of fun for sure.
Pulsar has so many faces to explore 🧡
Well, you did it! So beautiful passage
Thank you so much 🧡
Got my way with it, I'm so happy.
BTW, one of the best username I've seen around 😄
@@Dexba hahaha, thank you! It is my art-music project name
Wonderful.
Thank you so much 🧡
Absolutely amazing!
I was surprised too by the result! If only there was a way to finely tune the pitch knobs... you can't imagine how many takes I threw away because of imprecise landing on notes :)
@@Dexba I can imagine that it's kinda hard to hit the notes...I bet it's like trying to get a precisely tuned tone out of the Bastl Kastle stuff😂
@@CNTRRNDM Ahaha exactly, and that's also why I am always a bit scared of changing the tune on the Lyra while performing: I need a sort of reduction gear, so I can have another know I need to turn 10x before the main tune know turns of a semitone.
God, I wish I had the courage to drill a hole in the Lyra to do that
so sick!
Thank you so much! I am so satisfied with this result 🧡
@@Dexba I just ordered mine, should be here in a week !
Dude, this is amazing.
Thank you so so much 🧡
@@Dexba Out of curiosity, how is the learning curve for this instrument? cheers.
@@thomas.moerman I'd say rather steep. Not like you won't get any sound out of it, but any part of the process is quite unforgiving (especially the sequencer), and if you don't get something right or you make some mistakes, it's very difficult to troubleshoot the situation you put yourself into.
I would compare it a bit to the Octatrack, where you need a certain level of setup first, study later, and enjoyment comes after you are comfortable with the process; or if you cheat like me and use external sequencing :)
I think the pulsar is a better drone synthesizer and ambient noise box than it is a drum machine. Very mystical sounds, me likey!
It definitely is, especially with its quirky onboard FX and semi-random patterns, especially because with "only" 4 voices, as a drum I always felt it was lacking more and some more controls. But used this way, it's a drone dream
It’s got a thumping kick though
@@lockyp204 It sounds decent but has only 1 sweet spot. As a techno kick it is useless tho. Unless you like volume swings of 10dB on your kick drum and a transient that comes and goes randomly. It's honestly very sad for the price. How hard can it be to make triggers sync the OSC??
@@finnt252 There’s plenty of specialist kick modules if you were searching for kick “nirvana” I suppose
Bravo!!!
Grazie mille!
Or if you're not Italian, thank you so much ✨
(how did that happened to become an international word? I always wondered)
Amazing. I was this close to getting one. Please do a vid talking through the set up and process. Great stuff
I am trying to lay down a script for a video like that just right now 🧡
How close was that, exactly?
@@NachtSchreck13 what do you mean? :)
Wow ! very nice. Thank you
I have to thank you for stopping by 🧡
Love it!!
Thank you so much ✨
Beautiful ambient music, it's very inspiring 👌And i just got my Lyra-8 pink edition ! 😍
Incontrovertibly the best color: good choice!
And thank you so much 🧡
I love it
Thank you so much, it's a labour of love, so I am glad you got it 💝
Bit of CXM never hurt, either. 🙂 Beautiful explorations!
I really love the transparency of the CXM. I used to have a BigSky, and everything in the end always sounded like BigSky.
Now I just have the big reverb space I always wanted :)
Thank you so much!
amazing bro. I haven't got mine to sound that mellow yet hahah. that is an amazing soundscape..
Good shii ✨🪄🎛️📡🔊🎵🛰️🎚️🛸 🔊 🎵
Wow, thank you so much!
Some people asked me about a small tutorial for this kind of mellow stuff, and I am working on it right now 🧡
Really beautiful! Can the lyra come out and play along? :)
Can't wait to do that! But I need to prepare carefully: 8 oscillators + a whole Pulsar it's a LOT to manage, but I am working on it 🧡
It will be amazing for sure :)
I came here looking for a drum machine and I found a super esoteric synthetizer and a master player. And I love it.
I'm looking for a drum machine for a drone-ambient rock project. But I hate those techno dance-y sounds. I need a device with an organic flavor which let me produce from traditional slow beats to mystical sounds. I guess you can help. I hope so!
You have a new subscriber! Greetings from Mendoza, Argentina. 🙏🙏🙏
Thank you so much, I am glad it resonated with you!
The Pulsar-23 can be what you're describing, with some caveats, for example the fact that in a rock live situation it could quickly become A LOT to manage all the cables and knobs to switch behaviour from scene to scene.
But it is undoubtedly very capable of both mystical sounds and proper beats.
And thank you for joining me! Greetings back from Italy 🫱🏻🫲🏼 🧡
This is absolutely stunning! Really nicely done. Is the Digitakt sending Midi to the Pulsar? Man, I'm so tempted with that thing 🤣 Q- does it have individual outputs for each voice or does it just have a mix out?
As with anything from SOMA, it has individual outputs IN ITS WAY.
On the back you can see it has 6x 6.3mm jacks that are connected to 6 pins in the lower left of the front panel (if you search for a pic).
From there, you just connect what you want and it goes both ways, if I am not mistaken.
I think that's a cool possibility, but in practice I am not sure how frequently I'd use them, since each of the (only) 4 voices has it's Wet FX knob, and you can always route the voices bypassing FX, other modulation, volume, etc.
I think the best use case would be a dedicated chain of pedals supporting each voice, and I am all for it, but I'd love to find a way to use for an improved stereo image: all for the next video 🧡
The Digitakt is only sending midi, to the Bass voice, since there is no "precise" way of creating a melody within the Pulsar!
Thank you so much, btw 💝
@@Dexba Sounds amazing! Really nice work. Are there 3 distinct pitches going on in this piece? Drone, bass, & high wailing vibes? How are you sequencing all three? Love to understand more about what's going on in this piece. Thank you & best wishes always
@@briangardner5053 Thank you so much 🧡
In this piece all the 4 voices are being used:
1. BD is droning down below, no sequencing
2. Bass is being sequenced
3. SD I am trying my best to play the pitch by hand 😄
4. HHT is sparkling
Unfortunately the BD doesn't respond directly to midi notes, so you would have to find your alternative way to send pitch to it, and since I am playing the filters of #3 and #4, those too wouldn't respond to midi (unless you send modulation via the 4 pins on the left to the filters, but in my experience it's not that accurate to be really usable)
Pulsar is the best device ever built if you asked me..🖤
I have to agree: thinking outside the box is definitely something that comes naturally to SOMA
Russian synths reminds me of listening to Spy Stations. I sold my Murom Aelita, but it had a similar tone. ❤
Dark times, but I love that eerie vibe. Never thought it could have played a role in me liking the SOMA stuff, interesting
Great video! Did you sequence it with the digitakt?
Thank you a lot!
Only the Bass module.
My intention was to get super deep with the MIDI integration, but I ended up preferring the manual approach, and after a bit of fiddling around I decided to record the session 😁
@@Dexba thanks for the feedback. Great piece of music (I am really tempted by the pulsar…)
@@giorgiofesta3928 Thank you so much again!
The Pulsar is... peculiar.
I wouldn't buy it for what I am doing, and I probably wouldn't buy it as a drum either, but at the same time it puts you in the position of finding ways to make it work, and that stimulus is probably what leads to so many creative results we see around.
That said, I am now back into eurorack, so we'll see how long it will take me to kinda... replace it with a bunch of modules, more integrated into a coherent system :)
more please!
Can wait to share more, especially since I just ordered a Microcosm, and I've heard incredible things with it on drums!
@@Dexba Exciting! I'll stay tuned :)
this would make some great high tension game music.
An artist named DTowncat already used some bits of my Lyra jams for some animated videos, and I admit the result is indeed super cool!
Excellent work. What is the Digitakt doing in this performance?
Thank you so much!
The Digitakt is only providing the notes to the Bass module of the Pulsar :)
I connected it thinking I would sample a bit, but ended up with the jam before realising 😁
@@Dexba thanks. One of the challenges in electronic music performance is not being able to correlate what you hear with what you see.
What interface do you use? Sounds great.
Thank you so much! 🧡
I use a Zoom F6. I love the ultra-compact form factor and I find the XLR cables a plus since they lock in place and are sturdier than jack.
I also like to go completely overkill and record stuff in 32bit/192kHz, so I know I have the best quality for archive.
Is the DT just sequencing there? I find myself using the pulsar with a sequencer constantly because I just don't have the technique to use the touch plates precisely enough
Sorry for the late reply! Yes, the DT is only sequencing the Bass line.
I intended to do more with it, but I ended up using it just for that, enjoying the moment :)
Amazing track.
I'm seriously thinking to sell a large part of my modular equipment to self-financing a P-23...
Selling modular for non-modular, in my opinion, is always a great idea: you quickly realise how much more you can get from a single instrument instead of, let's say, two new modules in your rack.
When I sold my rack, I managed to buy a Sequential PRO3, a Lyra, and a Matriarch, and the PRO3 alone was pretty close to what my modular system was.
But at the same time, when I had to sell my OB6 to fund the P-23, I felt like the trade in my heart wasn't completely fair, and I would have gladly kept both.
What I mean is: choose mostly with your heart, not too much with the "business mind" 🧡
@@Dexba Thank you very much for your opinion which I really appreciated. I agree with you about to choose with something that feel you good but unluckily i must self financing everything and P23 is a bit expensive too me. Anyway I'm convinced to start this new creative path and hope to realize it in the short time possible. ;-)
@@rossmotus669 The best luck to you and your new creative path!
@@Dexba Thank you very much. All the Best ;-)
@@Dexba Hi, sorry for disturbance (and also for my bad english of course), purchased P23, some initial difficult. In your opinion, what is the best "companion" for the P23, about tempo subdivsions? I'm a bit frustrated about the issues to create an irregular tempo (for instance, 5/8) with the Pulsar... Can you help me? Thanks in advance
Ok this is fucking sick ❤
Just waiting for the acid mothers temple vocals to cut in🔎💎🔍
Ooooh I'd love some sort of remix
Hey are you still planning to do a tutorial? Would love to know how to do this with mine
Check out Dexba's Pulsar filter tutorial for how to work this way 🙂
Great suggestion! Unfortunately, life got in the middle, and I had to sell the Pulsar, so that filter tutorial will (probably) be the last one I make on this beautiful instrument, but never say never 🧡
Needs more farts and bubbles, tbh.
Totally agree with you.
That's why I am working on a new video with 200% more farts & bubbles :)
The question remains: BLACK or WHITE unit???
I wanted it pink like my Lyra :(
Black has a menacing aura, but the new blue color is gorgeous and I would have probably bought it if it was available when I got the black one ;)
Id love a green one hehe but blue indeed!
@@TheJackJulian SOMA US has a light green one in-stock , and pink!
Hope you will get famous soon.. You are missing out on potential viewers by not using a service such as Promo-SM!
Not sure if very friendly and helpful comment or high level scam bot 🤔🤔🤔
I dont really get this, you can get the same result from a decent keyboard synth... is it simply that you people like to turn these wheels, press fancy little buttons and get entangled in wires? i guess this set up must also cost a fortune
Yes, exactly.
But that’s okay, it’s okay not to get something, not to have something, to have something different (both ideas and pieces of gear) or dislike something.
And again, yes, we people like these kind of things, and yes, it costs a fortune.
My only question is: were you looking for something else than just confirmation?
@@Dexba Well, quite the contrary. I was expecting someone to articulate to me why they use this medium instead of something a lot cheaper and more simple and what distinct possibilities this tech affords in musical terms... so far I see this only as an expensive toy to mark oneself as somehow distinct on the artistic scene.. and conversely, claim an in-group belonging .. but what else is there except for this social signaling?
@@batmanonholiday4477 In that case, I already replied then! ☺
Since, again, it is way too clear, by the way you write, that you're just looking for confirmation, I will go a bit further and elaborate on something different than what I already confirmed to you.
Music as a whole is completely useless. It serves no real purpose, and it is only a welcome filler to everyday life; every single day more music is being produced than we will be ever able to experience, and it is for that reason (I personally think) many people are resorting to physical instruments more and more for the "approach", for the "experience" and any other buzzword you would like to use; there is no other trick: appreciation.
A computer can already match and surpass any other piece of gear that existed or will ever exist, other pieces of gear have little to no excuse to exist, if we're talking capabilities, and not only other electronic instruments, but acoustic instruments too (why resort to the fallacy of a piano player on a Steinway, when we can program a perfectly fine piece in a DAW in a setup that costed less than the bench the pianist would be sitting on) and it can only get better so yeah, again: we people like these things, they cost more than it would be sensible to spend on something useful "to produce" and obviously "turn a profit" on all the "producing" being made, but that point is so empty that in all honesty I don't think it really requires me to address it, am I right?
Why good food? Why nice clothes? Why a bigger house than a prison cell? Why jewels?
Sorry if I may come out a little bitter, but it hurts me that someone out there could be so blind to not realize things don't need to serve a *purpose* just to be appreciated, and I didn't explain more only because it is way too easy to recognize when someone is, again, just looking for confirmation, and not looking for extra knowledge or insights, but if you're curious about the functionalities of the Pulsar-23 here shown, I will be more than glad to explain more to you, like I did in every other comment ever on this channel 🧡