Bad Gear - Modal Skulpt - Plastic Toy???

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Welcome to Bad Gear, the show about the world's most hated audio tools. Today we are going to talk about the Modal Skulpt. Is this virtual analog synthesizer a sound designers dream or nothing but a plastic toy?

[ChrisLeeW]

This channel is ticking all the boxes: Regular uploads, a knowledgeable host, fair assessments, and a good dose of comedy.

[xxxSupahskillzz]

You should do the OP-Z next. Bend like a banana out of the box, double trigs, popping encoders, perfect for this show.

[PaulvanEgmond]

Proud Skulpt owner here. Will now attend to crying Skulpt's hurt feelings... No baby, it's allright... I KNOW you have never crashed once on me... there there

[bobbysnaxx]

Puting weird videos on the screen in the jam around 6:45 to id what machines do what is a really nice touch. Big like!

[dougsteel]

Having spent 20 years designing UIs (which means absolutely nothing) I reckon this layout is actually really strong for pattern- muscle memory learning, it's rare to see a composition that has path following. As long as the knobs aren't too flimsy

[tonywharton]

I absolutely love this synth when used with the keystep and Modal App. So many amazing presets too.

[theepicredstoner]

The tragic day has come that my first hardware synth gets put on bad gear.

[tomblaze]

Channel is so good I come back and watch these videos multiple times. These videos are amazing for music inspiration, gear inspiration, fun/laughs -

[kabood]

man, how much I love the bookshelf behind you, I often catch myself reading the titles subconsciously 😂, nice stuff in there, today my eyes were fixed on the Kafka collection 😉😊✌

[MatthewHendersonn]

I can't decide if you're better at video editing or making sick tracks. I'll keep watching for further analysis.

[KezzieCoyote]

That awkward moment when Bad Gear is where you find the next synth you /really/ wanna buy

[foxholeartist]

Proud Craftsynth 2.0 owner here. Bought mine as a mono/bass line accessory for Beatstep pro, messed with sound design a little, and now it's one of my favorite tool for about any genre I experiment with. Thing looks like a toy, but sounds absolutely massive. Modal products are amazing, and no one can change my mind. If you're into somewhat deep sound tinkering, you'd be satisfied. But yeah- computer/phone interface is must have

[rarsn]

The Skulpt is a very fine synth engine packed inside a small, cheap housing. There's obviously going to be some downsides because of that. But I think that a lot of people don't give it the credit it deserves for what it actually is.

I know Stimming didn't care for it, and I generally agree with his assessments. It's definitely a bit confusing in its layout and those "keys" are not great. Most people will want to use the software to get the most out of it, which is a bit of a shame because what this really is is a powerful polyphonic synth with loads of oscillators and other features packed inside a compact, portable device. The portability is both its strength and its weakness, the compact nature making it necessary to cram everything onto it in a "somewhat logical" way. This is a backpack synth, you don't get the luxury of a million knobs spaced out in an easy-to-use way. That said, the reliance of unlocking everything via an app or program on another device kind of sours the "backpack synth" nature of it, although if you have an iPad I guess you're still pretty portable.

It sounds really good, too, although like Stimming, I rather preferred the sounds of the Craftsynth's wavetables. I believe I saw it on sale for $149 a while back, and was very close to buying one. For less than $200, it's probably the best synth available. What else is there? The IK Uno? No thanks!

[EarmonkeyMusic]

I did support this Kickstarter, and the follow up as well. It's true that the UI is one of those things that makes you want to throw it across the room. Fortunately, the Modal App is really good. If you're doing sound design on it, you really need the app. So in that regard, it reminds me of my Venom where you need software to make the most of it. It works better as a sound module in the end, because the sound is where it really shines.

[callummacdonald]

You work so hard mane. I hope you’re proud of your content!

[pheargoth]

PMSL at your reflection in the keyboard.
Those glasses look...different.

Great video, as per usual!

[BuddhaPhi]

Thanks for reviewing at least 15 pieces of gear I've owned. haha. I bought one of these last year after watching YouTube reviews I'm impressed with the sounds. Despite the cheapness of the build (man, the quality is toy like) I haven't regretted getting it. In fact I recently bought an MPE controller to explore some of the MPE functionality.

[edgeof]

I was actually thinking of getting one of these. Nothing like the "Bad Gear" treatment for instant GAS relief. Really it's a public service, thanks!.

[BOUZOUKI_PETE]

anyone else get the feeling that when he says his show is about the worlds most hated audio tools that he’s talking about us

[roonpl]

Yaaas! I remember I pitched it to you at some point and with all my hate to this thing, I’m dying you actually did this one.