Birdkids ”Raven” ?

Fleuw · Post by **Fleuw** » Sun Sep 23, 2018 10:21 am

Hi! Just went to the Birdkids HomePage and they have updated the front page with a picture of a module called ”Raven”

Anyone with any sort of info or rumour about this module ?

I really love the Bateleur 42HP system and really looking forward whats coming next from Birdkids

Birdkids Homepage

insoul8 · Post by **insoul8** » Sun Sep 23, 2018 11:54 am

http://www.synthanatomy.com/2018/09/bir ... coast.html

bgcriswell · Post by **bgcriswell** » Sun Sep 23, 2018 12:44 pm

This looks pretty cool, if it comes out. I love my Bateleur system and their other designs look awesome but I'm really disappointed that nothing they show at trade shows is ever actually released.

hawkfuzz · Post by **hawkfuzz** » Sun Sep 23, 2018 2:52 pm

Is synthesis gendered? I never thought so...

Looks cool. They make good stuff.

huffnPuff · Post by **huffnPuff** » Sun Sep 23, 2018 3:36 pm

hawkfuzz wrote:Is synthesis gendered? I never thought so...

Looks cool. They make good stuff.

Synthesis can make the world a better place.

peripatitis · Post by **peripatitis** » Sun Sep 23, 2018 6:43 pm

They clearly need to eliminate the the patch-cabling paradigm which is already a very male view of the world..

j_dowe · Post by **j_dowe** » Wed Nov 14, 2018 2:45 pm

this is available to order now on kickstarter:

i have the bateleur... and i'm trying to figure out what's so special about the Raven?

j_dowe · Post by **j_dowe** » Wed Nov 14, 2018 2:58 pm

j_dowe wrote:what's so special about the Raven?

looking at it in more detail, i think what separates it from the Bateleur and also competing semi-modulars (Mother 32), is that it has two voices that can function independently.

brickman · Post by **brickman** » Thu Nov 15, 2018 6:56 am

Man this thing sounds delicious...

[video][/video]

7C · Post by 7C » Fri Nov 16, 2018 5:12 am

slightly overpriced?

birdkid · Post by **birdkid** » Sat Nov 17, 2018 4:48 am

7C wrote:slightly overpriced?

How exactly is it overpriced, Felix?

birdkid · Post by **birdkid** » Sat Nov 17, 2018 4:57 am

j_dowe wrote:
j_dowe wrote:what's so special about the Raven?
looking at it in more detail, i think what separates it from the Bateleur and also competing semi-modulars (Mother 32), is that it has two voices that can function independently.

Dear j_dowe, we're not really trying to compete with mass marketed (within the segment that is) semi-modular solutions.

Influx of budget-line solutions that flooded the market recently brought with it not only potential good, such as young talent that can finally afford getting into modular, but also false expectations regarding pricing threshold.

As a small, don’t-call-it-boutique manufacturer, we cannot, nor try to compete in that price range. Our batches usually run between 50-100 pieces for such a production set.
Instead we opt for quality in both build and sound.
Track record and clientele clearly shows where we’re positioned over the years, however it’s not a reason to be snobby about it, hence we thought this campaign would be a fair proposal to lower the mutual cost.

Here is a short feature list of i/o's

Input

1V/Oct (Pitch tracking) relative and absolute options for both oscillators and VCF.
FM (Linear Frequency Modulation) per VCO.
PWM (Pulse Width Modulation) per VCO.
SYNC per VCO.
Crossfader between VCO’s.
External Audio Signal Input.
VCF Cutoff.
VCF CV Input.
VCF Resonance.
VCA CV Input.

Output

Individual Waveform outs for each VCO (Saw, Triangle, Pulse / Square).
Noise Output.
Filter Output.
Clean Out (Linear THAT2162 BlackmerⓇ VCA).
Opto Out (Optocoupler VCA, West-Coast style response).

Controls

Waveform selection toggle per VCO.
PW position for VCO II.
PWM amount either individually for VCO I or normalized for both.
FM amount either individually for VCO I or normalized for both.
Coarse Tune for VCO I (relative or absolute via jumper).
Fine Tune for VCO II (relative).
Crossfader position VCOs I/II.
External Audio Signal Input Amount.
VCA CV Amount / Initial VCA Gain.
VCF Cutoff position.
VCF Mode switch*
VCF CV Amount.
VCF Resonance position / CV Amount.

*VCF Modes
subtractive = VCO (I+II Sum) > VCF > VCA
bypass = VCO (I+II Sum) > VCA, VCF standalone
bypass & tracking = VCO (I+II Sum) > VCA, VCF Standalone and tracking 1V/Oct.

Panel (no-nonsense front facing pic)

Signal-flow diagram

Wavefolding-like results using just the VCF in self-osc:
https://soundcloud.com/birdkids/raven-filter-wet

It looks very simple on the surface, but once you dive in, the possibilities go far beyond the expected two VCO configuration.

7C · Post by 7C » Sat Nov 17, 2018 5:27 am

birdkid wrote:
7C wrote:slightly overpriced?
How exactly is it overpriced, Felix?

hey mike, just my first thought and reaction - apart from "wow it looks and sounds nice", a few seconds later. i'm sure this is pure quality work, as always! on the other hand, compared to what i could buy for the money, it does seem a bit much. though as you mentioned it here in a reply: you dont want or intend to compete with the semimodular (or any other market), which is a clear statement. i very much do like it (yet it seems pricey to me) and i probably should have said this before critisising the pricepoint

birdkid · Post by **birdkid** » Sat Nov 17, 2018 5:53 am

7C wrote:
birdkid wrote:
7C wrote:slightly overpriced?
How exactly is it overpriced, Felix?
hey mike, just my first thought and reaction - apart from "wow it looks and sounds nice", a few seconds later. i'm sure this is pure quality work, as always! on the other hand, compared to what i could buy for the money, it does seem a bit much. though as you mentioned it here in a reply: you dont want or intend to compete with the semimodular (or any other market), which is a clear statement. i very much do like it (yet it seems pricey to me) and i probably should have said this before critisising the pricepoint

Hey Felix, and first of all I did not mean to sound sharp or anything, it's just that for the last 3-days since we've launched, the first feedback, before people even clicked on the campaign link and I imagine checked out the concept/sound behind it, would be smth. like "I can buy three Uli boxes and fly around the world for that price" reaction.
I'll be honest I'm ticked off by now, so forgive my directness.

We've spent over 10k+ hours designing and perfecting this one here, and naturally being thrown into the budget-line, clone-a-park and derivatives of Bob Moog's legendary design is not something that we find thrilling.
Seeing as our clients (and you were there in the very very beginning, which is something that we cannot be more grateful for) know what we're about and what we're able to deliver sound and build-wise usually plays in the 2k+ range.

Actually I'm gonna quote an anonymous responses source: (synthtopia) from one of the conversations yesterday:

I don’t really understand why this is seen as expensive? I mean, in Euroland you would easily pay £150+ for each one of those VCO’s, and another £150 for the VCF and the VCA. That’s £600 – pretty much bang on the retail price – for just pretty much run-of-the-mill modules. If Birdkids have really made something as high quality as they suggest, then you could easily add another £50 or £100 to each one of those prices, which would make this pretty competitive.

And that's precisely how we, and our distribution network sees it, also the fact that we're offering it over 50% Off MSRP, bypassing distribution (who have full support for this) and retail just to be able to give people who deserve, but cannot afford the MSRP tag a chance at quality.

Our keypoints that have crystalized over the last 4 years are:

Make it sound amazing, make it an instrument.
Design it so that it can be used intuitively.
Design it as accessible and inclusive as possible.
Make it as affordable as possible without compromising the above points.

Fleuw · Post by **Fleuw** » Sat Nov 17, 2018 6:04 am

May i ask what the case and power solution i for a raven?
As in does it come in a case with power?

birdkid · Post by **birdkid** » Sat Nov 17, 2018 6:15 am

Fleuw wrote:May i ask what the case and power solution i for a raven?
As in does it come in a case with power?

Dear Andreas,

as with any module, we've found that most people prefer to have their own casing and it's very hard to predict in which context it will be used.
Additionally to that, seeing as we've added CV possibilities at (almost) every point in the design, we're expecting to see a lot of integration into racks as opposed to simply standalone.

Having said that, it works perfectly with our TheBateleur POWER/MIDI, and we're also bundling it with those as can be seen at the campaign page:
RAVEN, a 100% analog, synthesizer voice

[/img]

7C · Post by 7C » Sat Nov 17, 2018 6:27 am

absolutely understandable and you've proved your point.
and i really didnt intend to come of naggy, which i probably did

it's funny, people who buy cheap stuff critisise the expensive gear and vice versa, in the end it doesnt matter, to each his own and the results count, nothing else (imo). to each his own, i'm sure there are enough people who dig your work! best of luck from my side (and i want to see it in action, combined with a coffee maybe?

)

Fayette · Post by **Fayette** » Sat Nov 17, 2018 7:01 am

I think this looks and sounds amazing, strongly considering getting on board, I really hope this gets funded.

j_dowe · Post by **j_dowe** » Sat Nov 17, 2018 10:25 am

birdkid wrote:... also the fact that we're offering it over 50% Off MSRP, bypassing distribution (who have full support for this) and retail just to be able to give people who deserve, but cannot afford the MSRP tag a chance at quality.

Our keypoints that have crystalized over the last 4 years are:
Make it sound amazing, make it an instrument.
Design it so that it can be used intuitively.
Design it as accessible and inclusive as possible.
Make it as affordable as possible without compromising the above points.

much respect for the above.

AntonWoldhek · Post by **AntonWoldhek** » Sat Nov 17, 2018 12:07 pm

Instant pre-order for me. Terrific Sound AND such high end product is insane for this price.

peripatitis · Post by **peripatitis** » Sat Nov 17, 2018 2:26 pm

It would interesting to know what the developers see as accessible and intuitive regarding the design. At a 40% early adopters price it is something I would consider but as with the bateleur having the filter included stopped me from buying one. (not a shot at the filter, I just have too many of them).

MaartenV · Post by **MaartenV** » Sat Nov 17, 2018 2:39 pm

Getting to try out and demo the raven, it really sounds amazing, also as an owner of the bataleur, i must say, it sounds quiet different, even more expressive and musical, it has his own character (crunchy organic sounding) compared to other high end dual oscillators i played with, really worth it.

birdkid · Post by **birdkid** » Sat Nov 17, 2018 3:50 pm

peripatitis wrote:It would interesting to know what the developers see as accessible and intuitive regarding the design. At a 40% early adopters price it is something I would consider but as with the bateleur having the filter included stopped me from buying one. (not a shot at the filter, I just have too many of them).

Dear Peripatitis,

Some design rules I live by:

Keep it simple.
Ornament is crime.
Legible signifiers.
S P A C E to breath.
Clear flow of functionality, read like a book - know by heart after repeated use.

With TheBateleur, it's not just about the VCO(s), it's about the combination, there is a deep concept behind the components playing together, definitely not a mix'n'match concept - as for the modifiers, that's always fair game

Of course same goes for RAVEN, different concept, different combinations of components.

The general idea is always, if the essentials sound good, there is in principle no need to *uck with too many outside parameters, if a sound needs 3 layers of additional stuff on top and 2 lfos to come alive, it's not good to begin with and never will be.

birdkid · Post by **birdkid** » Sat Nov 17, 2018 3:52 pm

MaartenV wrote:Getting to try out and demo the raven, it really sounds amazing, also as an owner of the bataleur, i must say, it sounds quiet different, even more expressive and musical, it has his own character (crunchy organic sounding) compared to other high end dual oscillators i played with, really worth it.

Maarten made it sing..

[video][/video]

https://soundcloud.com/birdkids/sets/ra ... ht-kytopia
https://soundcloud.com/birdkids/maarten-vos-x-raven

j_dowe · Post by **j_dowe** » Sat Nov 17, 2018 3:56 pm

MaartenV wrote:Getting to try out and demo the raven, it really sounds amazing, also as an owner of the bataleur, i must say, it sounds quiet different, even more expressive and musical, it has his own character (crunchy organic sounding) compared to other high end dual oscillators i played with, really worth it.

i would love to hear more on how it's different sounding from the bateleur? i like the bateleur, but trying to figure out if i'd like this even better. i probably can't afford to own both ($$ & hp), but i could potentially sell the bateleur+expansion to fund a raven.

MUFF WIGGLER

MUFF WIGGLER

Birdkids ”Raven” ?

Birdkids ”Raven” ?