! If you happen to get a nice jam going on, shoot a cellphone video or something VF 
…and share it on FB
I need to spend time in the editor. I think there’s some stuff to be unleashed in there. Many of the default patches are a bit too clean and shiny for my tastes (although some can go quite chaotic, and some make for lovely ambient noodlings). I want to play with that distortion setting a bit!
But when I’m presented with a blank/plain vanilla patch, I’m reminded of why I like the OP-1 and Monomachine so much: the different engines provide much more useful starting points for sound exploration than ‘unfiltered triangle wave’.
I need to spend time in the editor. I think there's some stuff to be unleashed in there. Many of the default patches are a bit too clean and shiny for my tastes (although some can go quite chaotic, and some make for lovely ambient noodlings). I want to play with that distortion setting a bit!But when I'm presented with a blank/plain vanilla patch, I'm reminded of why I like the OP-1 and Monomachine so much: the different engines provide much more useful starting points for sound exploration than 'unfiltered triangle wave'.
It’s really fun mapping out the macro knobs and recording your movements.
Can anyone give me an idea of synths or sequencers that function similarly to the Circuit in how you lay out music? One of the things that has disappointed me the most about the OP-1 is the fact that laying down a tune means recording it and not being able to go back in and edit a note or easily adjust a sequence. Sequencers like the Circuit and the POs are perfect for my workflow, but it’s been difficult finding similar standalone synths. Any suggestions?
@keppeco The Elektron boxes certainly have that kind of sequencing. I love my OP-1 but after I got the Monomachine I had a bit of a hard time going back to it as I liked the MM’s sequencing. It’s part of the reason I talked myself into the Circuit as a portable step-sequencable groove box. It’s too bad the Monomachine’s moment at $799 was so brief - it’s a great synth and sequencer (newer Elektrons have more powerful and flexible sequencers but Monomachine’s is still good). That leaves the Analog 4 and Keys.
I’m excited to learn more about the OP-Z. I think it will have PO style sequencing with a deeper engine than the POs and more fun TE style quirks that the Circuit doesn’t have (Circuit can be a little too squeaky-clean).
im thinking about buying the circuit primarily as an external drum sequencer while playing synths on my OP-1 but i was wondering if i could sequence drums directly from the OP-1 with the circuit or if i had to use circuits own sounds.
Is it possible? It’s because i want to have more control over my drums but sadly it doesnt work that well on the tape recorder
Here, have an ios editor(TB MIDI Stùff):
Here, have an ios editor(TB MIDI Stùff):https://www.dropbox.com/s/lvmx2vg8s3afpz9/New%20Circuit%20Editor.tbms?dl=0
What does this allow you to do? I don’t have Midi Stuff yet…
Allows you to edit all synth parameters except the macro assignments (I sold mine before I finished it). TBMS only let’s you send data to the Circuit it doesnt provide feedback on what you do on the Circuit. You can save patches on TBMS that you can recall by sending CC / NRPN values, but you can’t save the patches on the Circuit itself.
I based it on a Blofeld editor so has similar form factor to this:
Question for folks who own the circuit and op1. How easy is it to sync the two up with the op1 as master or slave? Can you simply connect them using USB and clock them? I have an op1 and thinking of getting the circuit.
@afta8 No, you need a device that acts as USB host and that can route the MIDI clock messages between OP-1 and Circuit. Like “Kenton MIDI USB Host” or “iConnectivity iConnectMIDI 4” (the smaller iConnectMIDI models 1 and 2 don’t have the host capability, except for the very first now discontinued model). Or just connect them via your DAW computer.
Ah, ok… thanks
Sorry to revive this old thread but can any of the Circuit owners tell me if the firmware update can be done without a Facebook or Google+ account? I've not bought one yet but wanted to see if I can download the firmware and am greeted by a Login page giving me only the option of using social media accounts... https://components.novationmusic.com/login
i also don’t have a google acc and no fb acc so i contacted them via email support they sended me the update v1.2 and also 2weeks after the release of v1.3 i wrote them again and asked for the fw-update they sended me the update (so i have 2 fw-updates that can be used in windows to update v1.2&v1.3) after they released v1.4 i wrote the support again asking for the fw BUT
from sup:
I’m
very sorry, the firmware update is only currently available via the
components page using either a Facebook or Google account.
That said, we don´t have an installer for Mac or Windows.
--------------------------------------------------------------
i wrote this:
I don’t have a Google nor facebook Acc.
I’m not planning on getting one of those !
I allready registered on Novation-Site
ffs, is it so hard to use the novation acc, comon guys srsly !
this is a gamebreaker for me, it made me so sad that i allmost stopped using it.
I use it very rarely now and eveytime i do i get a sad feeling while useing it.
+1 for the suckage of Facebook and massive thumbs down to Novation for closing their forum and insisting that support and discussion is now done via Facebook, has put me off of them as a company and had it been this way when I bought the Circuit I’d have passed.
i will not buy a product from this company again till they change this !
I've seen this ranting about Circuit's update countless times.
I don't get it why you wouldn't create a free Google account only for Circuit updates. It takes 2 minutes tops.
The way I see this, either you think the upgrade is worth using a ghost Google account, or you just forget about it. It shouldn't prevent you to appreciate the hardware as it was before the upgrade pops up.
Now the discussion/support part, I totally agree.
And I fail to really see the aim behind this move, from Novation POV I mean.
To anyone on the level, this is not the answer for a sketchpad. Their in-house sound designers are hacks who can’t envision and/or program synth patches better than the average Joe and the drum samples are boring, hence the desire for anyone with a producer-ear wanting to import their own samples. What about licensed sample libraries? Do samples uploaded to their server break a copyright law or future one? Do I want my best samples residing on anyone’s property other than my own? These are questions that actually matter to some people. Until they release a piece of software where the user can import samples directly to circuit from a laptop, it’s completely uninspiring to many users. Of course Focusrite(Novation) only cares about the newbies who probably make up 95% of their customer base. It’s just good business for them and the 5% don’t matter. Really though, it’s not capable of much anyway. OP-1 CLOBBERS it 10 times over-without being ten times the price:)
@josker same here, I don't see the pb with creating a trash FB account just for these nonsense. It's not like you have to pay for it.FB wouldn't let me use any of the trash, non-traceable email addresses I could come up with when signing in. Google has even more domains and services to track you across, even if you're not logged in.
I've decided to put the money I saved on the Circuit into my OT piggy bank. Now I only need to manage to not buy the Circuit 3 more times...
I made a fake facebook account and a random gmail with no issues, and not even my real name just to update the firmware and change the sounds when I needed to.
It’s a fun machine and super easy to make some beats fast but I got bored of it pretty quickly. I returned it about a month later and got the OP1 instead.
I have had a circuit since its release. It certainly is a lot more capable now (albeit more confusing too) that it was at v1.0. I’m impressed that they have kept adding to it. A great concept that I’d been anticipating.
However, to reiterate what @oponeuser said above, this is no OP-1. I can be much more creative, much faster, anywhere with the OP-1 and I get a lot more from it. The OP-1 is so much deeper than the circuit.
My circuit is ok. I like it. I might sell it sometime. I LOVE my OP-1.
Perhaps a “circuit pro” in the future with a nice OLED display and sampling would start to get more interesting.
I have to say, the circuit appeals. (Nearly sold op1 to get one and a Roland boutique). I’m currently waiting to see what the deluge ends up like as I still think it could be the king of groovebox/sequencers.