Monotribe CV control

[foodeater]

This'll be very cool with the MiniMS20! I'd wire up a cable with 1 jack and 2 plugs. You might even be able to find some already made iPod cables because it uses trrs.

Now they just need to make version 2s of the trons that take CV and spit it out. Original does ribbon, delay does "clock" and the duo does quantization. Awesome little battery powered modular.

[Solyaris]

I was blown away when I read about this and immediately regretted selling mine. I really liked the little box but I never wanted to open it up (don't have the skills) nor pay for a midi kit. I had no idea that this kind of thing would have popped up. Totally a surprise!

[Re-Member]

This'll be very cool with the MiniMS20! I'd wire up a cable with 1 jack and 2 plugs. You might even be able to find some already made iPod cables because it uses trrs.

I have an MS-20 Mini preordered, so I'm considering getting the Monotribe to go along with it. Can anyone here confirm that all will be required is a single cable from the MS-20 CV Out to control the Monotribe? Someone posted about needing a CV/Hz converter to link the MS-20 to the Minibrute on another thread, so I'm hoping the MS-20/Monotribe connection doesn't become as complicated.

[JayEm]

With the ms-20 you'll need a special cable as with any other analog gear. No conversion box is necessary, however only the king korg seems to have a single cable operation. Others will need a not standard Y cable.

[Re-Member]

Thanks for the info. If you could point me toward the exact cable I'll need, that would be great as well. I want to get one of these Monotribes soon since Amazon has them on sale. I know MIDI inside out, but CV is all new to me. The only CV instrument I've had in my possession was the SH-101, but it had a MIDI jack installed. Since the MS-20 Mini has MIDI IN, CV in/out and sync in/out, I'm hoping to work both it and the Monotribe into my MIDI sequencing rig without any kind of modifications.

[Mattew96]

For CV it all depends on whatever jacks you have to connect...
The general standard is two unbalanced (TS) 1/4 inch jacks, one for pitch CV and one for gate (some can use banana or 1/8 inch jacks as examples). There are different standards for the voltages and corresponding pitch (and gate response) which you normally have to be aware of, however the monotribe can be set to respond to the two main types of each appropriately, so at worst if it doesn't work at first, just toggle the setting and you're good to go!
The cable you'll be using will have to have one end with an eighth inch TRRS plug for the monotribe, and the other end with a compatible end(s) to connect to the CV output of your control keyboard. The general rule is two 1/4 inch TS plugs however, and that's the Y cable JayEm was talking about.
If you need to know more about CV, the site has a good glossary with some simple explanations, however if this is your first analog synth, the price you're going to spend on a CV control keyboard will likely be the same as (excluding the cost of the monotribe itself) just buying a new ms20 mini or minibrute. I suggest that route, and both of those will have cv outputs to control your monotribe anyways, thicken up their sound a bit

[JayEm]

Yeah, i can't really point to a cable as since its not standard, it doesn't exist. Currently im unsuccessfully attempting to make one to use with my minibrute. Considering im failing hard, im probably not the best source of info

[masstronaut]

Allegedly, as a nice bonus, if have a MIDI mod fitted it will work as a CV -> MIDI converter too.

[Re-Member]

For CV it all depends on whatever jacks you have to connect...
The general standard is two unbalanced (TS) 1/4 inch jacks, one for pitch CV and one for gate (some can use banana or 1/8 inch jacks as examples). There are different standards for the voltages and corresponding pitch (and gate response) which you normally have to be aware of, however the monotribe can be set to respond to the two main types of each appropriately, so at worst if it doesn't work at first, just toggle the setting and you're good to go!
The cable you'll be using will have to have one end with an eighth inch TRRS plug for the monotribe, and the other end with a compatible end(s) to connect to the CV output of your control keyboard. The general rule is two 1/4 inch TS plugs however, and that's the Y cable JayEm was talking about.
If you need to know more about CV, the site has a good glossary with some simple explanations, however if this is your first analog synth, the price you're going to spend on a CV control keyboard will likely be the same as (excluding the cost of the monotribe itself) just buying a new ms20 mini or minibrute. I suggest that route, and both of those will have cv outputs to control your monotribe anyways, thicken up their sound a bit

Thanks for the info! The MS-20 Mini is supposed to have CV output that's the size of a headphone jack, and from what I understand, the Monotribe update toggles the SYNC IN jack (also headphone sized) into CV IN. I've owned a couple of analog synths in the past, but all were equipped with MIDI. Never really had to link things together via CV before. I know there's a MIDI mod for the Monotribe, but if buying a cable will be cheaper and not void the warranty, it'd be a better option in case I want to return it or sell it "like new" used later.

[JayEm]

Its not just cv you need to worry about, its gate as well. Cv determines the pitch, gate turns it on or off.
Thats where the special Y cable comes into play.

[Altitude]

Its actually pretty slick, you feed it whatever scale you want and simply calibrate the MT accordingly by setting the octave span

I'll have break out boxes for sale this week if anyone needs one



What I am curious about is when this was all planned. Its not like the 3.5MM TRRS jack was used there accidentally..

[Mattew96]

Never really had to link things together via CV before. I know there's a MIDI mod for the Monotribe, but if buying a cable will be cheaper and not void the warranty, it'd be a better option in case I want to return it or sell it "like new" used later.

My old hesitation and new reason to midify the monotribe, exactly! Though the midi benefits would be nice. I'm pretty sure the midi kit from South America is plug and play on some unsused serial connectors inside the monotribe though... No soldering required. It's about $80.

[Mattew96]

What I am curious about is when this was all planned. Its not like the 3.5MM TRRS jack was used there accidentally..

Thank you, that video is SO helpful!!!
I'm getting a feeling Korg may try to expand into Eurorack territory possibly, and are maybe trying to start a new CV standard before they do, that or they are just going to release a shitton of analog or pseudo anaog gear with "genuine cv connectivity!"
Either way I'm happy, but this was definitely planned

[Altitude]

Allegedly, as a nice bonus, if have a MIDI mod fitted it will work as a CV -> MIDI converter too.

That's confirmed (and crazy), you dont see many CV to midi devices out there. The fact that you can calibrate the MT to whatever CV scale you feed it makes this a no brainer though if you look through it through the eyes of a programmer.

The addition of CV is cool but I don't think it trumps the midi mod (and I'm not just saying that because I sell midi kits). What I actually find most useful about the midi is the ability to back up patterns to my sequencer and have those available whenever

[GoodwillFalcon]

Never really had to link things together via CV before. I know there's a MIDI mod for the Monotribe, but if buying a cable will be cheaper and not void the warranty, it'd be a better option in case I want to return it or sell it "like new" used later.

My old hesitation and new reason to midify the monotribe, exactly! Though the midi benefits would be nice. I'm pretty sure the midi kit from South America is plug and play on some unsused serial connectors inside the monotribe though... No soldering required. It's about $80.

Firstly, I recommend Altitude (the post above) for Monotribe midi kits, his is only 40, and its easier to install IMO. It is seriously difficult to mess it up, you just plug in one cable and its done, no knowledge required.

I actually saw adding midi as a plus for resale value, a pre-midified Monotribe has better value and desireability than a stock one as far as I'm concerned.