Cinematic Laboratory has produced two films that are so beautiful, you can almost put them on as a soundtrack and visual atmosphere. Meet VHIKK X by FORGE TME / Glasgow Synth Guild, and kHarper from ERROR Instruments.
Life is short, and money, like all material possessions, is transitory. Fear not for your wallet. Look instead to the spiritual plane, accessed through the portal that is Eurorack and gear. Let us not stigmatize or pathologize GAS, but lean into it. So come, watch two beautiful films with two transcendent, timely modules/devices.
Look, part of the business of me running this site for 20 years is I am easily bored. I am not excited by every Eurorack module. I don’t think you are, either. And I don’t necessarily want to sit back and watch a video manual for every new piece of gear, either.
Each of these modules is a showstopper. They’re full of wonderful ideas.
And the films are perfect — musically engaging for those of us who love experimentalism, beautifully shot, and with subtitles that are artworks on their own. (Some are self-referentially funny; some border on creative philosophy.)
First up, VHIKK X by Forge TME – a combined synth voice/effect, built as a Eurorack module, but practically an instrument all its own:
Robert writes:
VHIKK X? Everything I say about it will only give you GAS.
It’s one of the finest modules Eurorack has to offer, and currently my #1 module.
So maybe don’t watch this video if you’re on a tight budget.
Or… maybe watch it very carefully.
Because you might just build the ultimate tiny case with it.All you need is VHIKK and Pam Pro.
Don’t forget power, but you won’t even need an output module.
VHIKK X can run on USB power.
Build a tiny wooden case. Maybe I will too.We modular people are still a niche.
A tiny community moving upstream and uphill — while the world flows downward.
And it’s an honor to be part of it.
VHIKK X is available for preorder at Perfect Circuit:
If you buy something from a CDM link, we may earn a commission.
Vhikk X Experimental Stereo Synth Voice + FX
Product page:
And then there’s kHarper, a wonderful cross-bred fish between touch controller and physical-modeled sound explorer. Regulars will know they’re interested right from the mention of Dutch experimental gear makers and workshop purveyors Error Instruments (Paul Tas) and This is not Rocket Science (Stijn Haring-Kuipers/Priscilla Haring-Kuipers).
I can’t just tell you what Kharper is. You need to fish it out yourself. ERROR calls it the best eurorack module ever – which translates to ‘this is the best thing we made so far’. In this perspective, I completely agree. This is not an error.
Find kHarper (and more information) at Error Instruments. They’re on holiday, but you can always line up a present for yourself for “back to school”
Specs:
- OUTPUTS
- Control output Gate and CV
- Left/Right audio output
- INPUTS
- MIDI in
- STRUM is a gate in that will strum all four strings
- Pond/River/Ocean choice of sound engine
- Herring/Koikarp/Dolphin choice of sound engine
- Tone and Decay of the selected sound engine you can tweak with a knob or CV.
- All strings have a knob and CV in for tone and a trigger gate input to pluck the string
Devices aside, this is the kind of gear film I love to watch. It’s like being invited for a performance, with layered information about the instrument on top.
I’m sure I’m not alone with that. Keep them coming.