Hi Rich
> I would like to be able to utilize the arpeggiator and poly modes, I
> think it might depend on how much it costs to buy a unit that does it.
> I also own a Polysix! That would be nice to find a solution for
> both. I'm writing some dance music for a project and am unhappy with
> many softsynths and vst plugins (i'm using cubase), to be able to
> control my analog synths via midi and record the output would be ideal
> for many parts i'm envisioning. I could most possibly use the
> midijack and just layer parts multitrack style.
All you said is valid for me (with the exception, that I am using
Ableton Live and/or Logic).
It would be perfect to have the five octaves as notes. Higher (or lower)
notes should be used to switch the keyboard mode: Imagine you could
press four notes by MIDI and the switch by MIDI to chordmemory; then you
could play the memorized chord again by MIDI; then switch by MIDI to
arpeggiator and then give the arpeggio notes by MIDI.... endless games)
> The Harms unit you are using is no longer in production
No itis no longer in production. The company was a one man show from
Hamburg. The guy did programming for theater and TV lighting. The
interface originally was inspired by a performance, where a musician
coupled CV-controlled dimmers to an analogue modular synth. Harms
thought, that it is cool to have the same, but having a MIDI-keyboard
instead of the analog synth keyboard: The envelopes and the LFO (with
modulation amount by MIDI-events!) are calculated in the interface. So
in the first run he did not intend to use it for synths!
In fact: If you have a VCO/VCF/VCA you can do the rest (programmable!)
in the interface. A very nice aspect is, that you can assign several
gates in different retrigger modes to one "voice" (which is defined by
the channel, which produces the keyboard CV). Example given: you play
legato and every new key triggers a VCA-envelope, but only the notes
after a pause cause a VCF-Envelope.
The complete project died, when Hauke lost his complete computer gear -
computer with harddisk, all backup tapes, everything (don't know the
exact circumstances).
Florian