CV, Gate and Triggers

To harness the power of these semi-modular synths, you’ll need to become fluent in the languages these musical devices use to communicate. A standalone analog synthesizer’s individual sections will be prewired under the hood: turn a knob to alter a particular voltage and change the resulting sound. The individual modules that make up a modular system, however, must be patched together with cables, in order to make those electrical connections manually. These analog signals are known as control voltages, or CV.

Again, a semi-modular synth is the middleman between standalone synths and an all-out modular rig. On the face of it, one can act as a ‘regular’ standalone synth: all of its connections are ‘normalled’ by default, meaning that you can fire it up and make sounds immediately, no patching required. It’s the inclusion of a patchbay that sways the instrument towards the modular world. Grab a fistful of patch cables, make new connections in