Is there a sampler(File Player) that you would consider a 'voice' ?

[theplummer]

I'm looking for a self sufficient voice module that uses files to generate sound.

I'm building a small unit: Maths, Pam's New Workout, <Full Voice File Player>, Mutant Brain.

-Mutant brain to receive midi from octatrack for sequencing purposes.
-If there isn't a 'full voice' file playing module that manipulates files, maybe just a standard sampler then get a simple utility module i.e. mixer out?

Hope this makes sense and thanks in advance for any information. I'm really excited to build this.

[Arneb]

Hm, ER-301, or Rossum Assimil8tor?

Edit: Morphagene can also be a file player IIUC, maybe that's worth exploring.

[novim]

It depends how you would define ‘voice and how you plan to use it, but you might consider the 4MS STS too. Lots of manual and CV control over two channels, with the option of recording at the same time (and recording is also CV controllable). File management on the SD card is also more flexible and forgiving than on other samplers I’ve tried.

[tirikita]

I second 4MS STS. I just got one recently, and wow did I sleep on this module (4ms mods always catch my eye, not sure why this didn't earlier). I think with it's on-board looper, length knob that can also serve as an eg, and 1v/oct, it definitely can fit most definitions of a "full voice." +1 to file management, plus if you happened upon the world of electronic music via vinyl and turntables (as I did), you'll get a kick out of trying to match beats between the two channels (a fun and challenging little exercise... Gate controlled "play" + sample adjustment makes the sync a lot easier

[mdoudoroff]

The samplers and sample players are all organized here for the 10,000 ft view:
https://doudoroff.com/samplers/

Samplers are the first table, players are the second table. The ones that have the type “file player” are the most probable candidates, although some will obviously not be good fits.

[nios]

Squid Salmple is basically 3 voices in that three of its 8 samples per bank have v/oct built-in. It's also overall a far far more advanced module than STS (and is only 1hp larger) as well but can just play a sample for you if that's all you need.

I mean, if just "something that plays a sample" is literally all you need period, nothing else, then maybe something like the Tiptop One will do the job.

[flashheart]

Not sure what it is you're building with the modules you've mentioned. You have MIDI -> so not sure where PNW fits in, nor Maths. If all you're doing is playing back a sample then a sample player module and MIDI -> CV is all you need.

[novim]

I recently re-purchased the STS having been very interested in the Squid. The important difference for me was that the 4MS can record for minutes/hours per file, whereas the ALM will do I believe 16 seconds, which is in-keeping with the style of sampler they wanted to build. But again, depends on uses/needs.

Both have end-of-sample triggering abilities, which can be nice for generative applications.

[Funky40]

i most often would consider the Nebulae2 to be a voice *for me*, YMMV

what is a voice ? .....guess thats debattable, finally

i can go with nearly any sample into a state where i can *play" it "as my synthvoice in place".
......talking here manual manipulation and "playing", and NOT: playing it 1V/oct "as a voice".......which should be doable too, finally.

[MuadMusic]

What about the Orgone Accumulator. It can do users 8bit samples (a la wavetable). If you want sample drums or strings you may want something else, but it's a pretty cool, very flexible module. You would want to follow it with a VCA.

If you want to program your own voice, check out the Daisy Patch, which could be programmed as a stereo sample player with memory card for user samples. You could also include a filter, VCA and an envelope.
https://www.perfectcircuit.com/electros ... 2zEALw_wcB

[mazzyboy]

Erica sample drum is also nice for this. You can assign cv inputs as filters, vcas, etc to create whole voice setups and save them as presets.

[scragz]

Bitbox can do a lot with samples if you put a cell on its own MIDI channel and be controlled with MIDI directly so you might not need the Mutant Brain.

[slaverevoltinaesthetics]

Morphagene.

Latest Make Noise videos shows how to coax it into tracking 1V/Oct

[ersatzplanet]

I have recently gotten rid of all but two VCOs from my rig and replaced them all with Wav players/Granular modules. I have two Nebulae 2, 2 4ms STS, and a Tesseract Nutella. I have pulled from the rack a couple of Nebulae v1 (have one left to sell) and a pair of ADDAC101's (which started me on this journey).

Suffice to say that the way I play my rig has changed. I do a mix of ambient, thematic, and some "classical" TD inspired synth music and the Players all fit different roles in the music.

The Nebulae are the most "playable" of them all - you can change pitch without changing timing, and visa versa. You can strip the sound down to small clusters of grains so it acts like a VCO. You can reverse and time stretch all by CV. You can load Pure Data and other programs into it and make it a custom instrument.

The STS is great for a clean sound and file playback and access. You can have hundreds of sounds on the microSD cards and they can be as long as you want them to be because they are read off the card (unlike the Nebulae which loads the sounds into local 75mb of memory). You can record and playback at the same time. The playback is restricted to pitch change (with associated time change), file start location, length, and direction, all via CV control (a Programmer is GREAT for this - I of course have dedicated PGM-4X4's). The sound quality is excellent. The file structure is great, even being able to make a HTML page of sample listings for you. It can be setup as a dual stereo player sharing the left and right outs, or as separate left and right mono players. I tend to use them in that mode. I use them for background sounds and for sequences that have been recorded. Longer sequences can be recorded and parts within them can be selected by programming the start and length CV inputs. Or you can just select the files in a bank via CV. The files can be played in looping or triggered modes.

The Tesseract Nutella is a separate beast of its own. I consider it Ableton in a module. It has 8 separate outs that can be programmed as stereo pairs, 8 mono outs, or linked to do all the surround configurations. It also plays off the card, so file length is determined by card size. It has 16 gate ins (with manual push buttons) and up to 16 files can be played at one time or triggered to play individually. I think of it as Session mode in Ableton. I have even dumped files straight from Live onto a card for this use. The are CD bandwidth/bitrate files BTW. It also has a MIDI input and the files can be played that way. You can easily make a Mellotron out of it if you have the files. Pitch bend and more are supported via MIDI. File can be played in looping, one shot, only on gate high etc, and each file can be programmed individually via a .ini file that is read on boot up.

I basically make the sounds with what's left of my analogue modular, a pair of Nords, and my computer (Reason and Live) and turn them to media and play them on these modules. I have amassed a tone of modifier modules (filters, VCA, Phasors, RM, and more) to process them though in a live manner, all using lots of controllers. I guess I have become a sort of DJ that jams with the sounds I have made earlier. It is a very freeing experience. Whenever you make a collage or soundscape you like, you can record it and have it ready to play along with.

I have a lot of these modules, more like an obsession. You don't need many in a rig though. Basically think of them as a track in your daw. One module can double the sound your rig can make at one time. This was more important back when playing live was more of a thing, but I have done some live streaming using this setup and I enjoyed every minute of it.

[brandonlogic]

ER301.
Perhaps the most flexible option for this and the possibilities are only limited by your imagination (and the cpu).

[hirnlego]

Please, stop praising the ER-301, it's like pouring salt in the wound of unattainability

[megarat]

So far I haven’t seen any mention of what I regard as the lowest-common denominator of file players: the 2hp Play. It tracks 1V/oct, has a loop mode, can hold 32 files on its microSD card, and there’s no file-length limit. You do need to be very mindful of the format and names of the sound files, but once you get your microSD card properly mastered up, it totally does the job as advertised.

[Phitar]

Yeah if we're talking file players I use TiP Top One, disting and Radio Music as voices all the time. Sometimes with recordings of voices too.

[erwincoumans]

I created a sample player (up to 20 samples in parallel, from sd card), granular synth inspired by arbhar and cloudseed reverb, for the Daisy Patch (videos/photos):

https://forum.electro-smith.com/t/daisygranular/732
https://forum.electro-smith.com/t/sampl ... atch/709/7
https://forum.electro-smith.com/t/daisy ... erb/522/12

It is a nice module, especially if you can tweak the code to tweak its behavior.

[theplummer]

I have recently gotten rid of all but two VCOs from my rig and replaced them all with Wav players/Granular modules. I have two Nebulae 2, 2 4ms STS, and a Tesseract Nutella. I have pulled from the rack a couple of Nebulae v1 (have one left to sell) and a pair of ADDAC101's (which started me on this journey).

Suffice to say that the way I play my rig has changed. I do a mix of ambient, thematic, and some "classical" TD inspired synth music and the Players all fit different roles in the music.
.............

wow thank you so much for taking the time to write this... was super super helpful..

[tdallas]

Hi. Might the VPME QD be an option? It‘s a quad „drum“ module, but each voice could also be used with files and it tracks 1V/oct -> https://vpme.de/qd/ or https://www.muffwiggler.com/forum/view ... 6&t=218528

[ATW]

Yeah if we're talking file players I use TiP Top One, disting and Radio Music as voices all the time. Sometimes with recordings of voices too.

Also using TipTop One + the Disting as wav players. Tip Tip is being used primarily in looping playback mode with seamless loops of chords, acoustic instrument tails, ambient pad stuff, atmospherics, field recording, etc. The Disting mk4 does pretty well as a dual drum module, among others.

Sample Drum is also in my rig, acting as an Ableton-style loop player w/ transient markers. For breakbeats + rhythmic/perc loops recorded from the modular. Also melodic loops where I can get chopped up and/or mangled results if there are and markers set in the file.

Assimil8or + ER-301 are definitely high on the list if I go in the sampler direction, with the OP's notion of a complete voice in mind. The Rample, Nutella, Nebulae, Bitbox have all caught my attention. And the NerdSeq—very curious to learn more about that one.

[MuadMusic]

I recently got the 2hp Play. I've been very pleased with it. Now I've gotta get come original content together!

[ersatzplanet]

If you want a "classic" sampler that can also function in a modular, take a look at the Tesseract Nutella. It has 16 Gate ins (with pushbuttons) and 8 outs to work with the modular (much like a trigger able drum machine), but also a MIDI in. With the MIDI in you can do more, basically making a Mellotron or and sample playing instrument with a different sample under every key. The drawback? It doesn't RECORD. It only plays back from the card. It can playback a ton of samples though. you can have MIDI Velocity-sensitive triggering of up to 4096 tracks (bank selected), with adjustable attack and release times. Polyphonic you to 32 mono voices (18 stereo). If you have another way to record and edit samples, it is a module to check out.

[adg672]

ER301.
Perhaps the most flexible option for this and the possibilities are only limited by your imagination (and the cpu).

If you want a full voice (sample playback, filtering, amp/filter modulation etc), this is the way to go. Or maybe the Percussa SSP. Otherwise a sample player that does what you want (Assimil8tor/squid) plus other modules to compliment it.