There is something called Superbooth which seems to involve a competition for how many cables you can shove into a box full of sockets without the marbles falling down a chute or something like that. I really don’t get into that bit but I do like that vendors seem to discount their stuff to get extra marbles.
The modular thing works better when cables aren’t in the way and that often translates to ‘semi-modular’ design – like the MS20 or Phase Plant 2 just updated by Kilohearts. I didn’t know they had a synthesiser, which seems to have mutated from their oddly named Snap Heap effects rack (which is currently free).
Phase Plant has Generator, Modulator and Effects sections. Only certain modules can be placed in each – in the Generator section these are ‘analogue’ oscillators, wavetables, samples and noise grouped with other modules that modify the sound signal – filters, envelopes, mixers etc. A limit of 32 modules in this section allows a full orchestra of sound sources per voice if your CPU is willing.
None of the oscillators are, by themselves, profoundly different to other software synthesisers. Wavetables are now my bottom expectation in any half decent modern synthesiser. The magic starts here with the Modulator section where you can rack up 32 modules of LFOs, envelopes, sample and hold et al. These apply to everything everywhere, so for example you could modulate a modulator modulating an effect setting, as well perhaps a filter, or wavetable position. Modulation goes up into the audible regions as of software version 2 so here is some serious robot fart opportunity. It all sounds very lively and there’s an enormous freedom of design on offer. This is the main point of Phase Plant – it does that modular sound without needing all that modular fluff.
More detail on wavetables – they have a similar spec to Serum and you can load those if you can solve the browser’s initial bug – you need to save a custom wavetable from Phase Plant into your preferred wavetable folder before that folder will be visible in the browser. There’s a full blown wavetable editor included, I will need more time to test it. Phase Plant can save tables as FLAC files which is nice.
More details on samples – the player has all the required loops, cross fades and doodads. Each module is a single sample and so multisamples require stacking up modules in the Generator section.
The Effect section is divided into three lanes although you can use their Snap Heap to expand on that. It only allows Kilohearts ‘snap ins’, no external processes. The included effects are decent, not thrilling – some are a bit bare bones and some require more money to be unlocked. Generators can be directed to a single lane at a time, so for example a sample through chorus on one, an oscillator through compression and EQ on another, and the third lane left un-effected for some wavetable detailing all on one voice.
Comparisons – it looked a bit like Melda’s MSoundFactory for a while, but it’s not nearly as complex – maybe a bit more like UHe Zebra with a more youthful interface. It’s not as lumbering as Falcon. It visually reminds me of Pigments – but Pigments has Granular and Harmonic Oscillation. You would make your more wafty sounds in Pigments, and perhaps let Phase Plant do the yelling. But essentially if you like to have lots and lots and lots of control voltages but hate bits of wire everywhere you probably are me and bought this.