Hello hello, here’s my second eurorack module øchd or ochd. It’s pronounced “oct” as in octave or octuplet and as if by magic there’s eight outputs on this module, an octuplet of analogue LFOs if you will. I often find I need more modulation, simple sources that will keep things moving and stop things getting repetitive. That’s why ochd was brought to life, to keep patches organically drifting and moving… and as it’s modular, we wanted an intuitive easy to use module with plenty of patchable tricks up it’s sleeves too!
ochd is a 4HP Eurorack module with eight analogue triangle LFOs. The outputs go from fast on the top output to slow on the bottom output. The default ranges are deliberate NOT synced. These are free running LFOs that were tuned by ear to be musical useful for a range of fast to slow modulations in a patch. Organic animation, drifting and musical phasing is the intention of the module. The rate control controls the rate of all LFOs globally and takes this into lower audio rates right down to 25 minute cycles on the lowest output. This can be extended even slower with CV, with the CV input and attenuverter on board and we can also track and hold the outputs with a negative CV, interrupting and holding modulation values with external gates of CVs. Another trick to take this from simple triangle shapes is to patch a spare output into the CV input and wave shape with feedback. Exponential curves, odd squares, stepped waveforms and more are available with some adjustment of the attenuverter and using different outputs to voltage control itself.
While patching a prototype at DivKid HQ Richard Devine said this was “the most organic little modulator ever” – lovely stuff!
This module is made in collaboration with Instruo and I’m very proud to be part of their amazing line up of modules. https://www.instruomodular.com
Find the module on Modular Grid to add to your rack here – http://bit.ly/ochdMODULARGRID
Description
Designed in collaboration with Ben “DivKid” Wilson, the Instruō øchd packs 8 all analogue LFO’s into a convenient 4HP package.
Each independent core is free running with rates con gured from fastest to slowest arranged from top to bottom. Each frequency range was tuned by ear during development to give the optimum spread of control frequencies running in parallel. Being 100% analogue, the LFO’s will phase organically with the ability to ebb and ow together with their global frequency control.
Modulation breathes life into otherwise static patches, but CV sources can often run out quickly. Even in larger systems. øchd adds a lot of movement without hogging a lot of space. Both small lunch box cases and larger set ups can be made to drift, move and organically change over time. With either subtle use of øchd to keep things alive or wider ranging use that drives a whole patch that drifts around itself.
Features
• 8 independent, un-synced free running analogue triangle LFO’s • Wide frequency range across the oscillators
(160Hz to 25 minute cycle time, this goes much lower with CV)
• CV controllable global rate with attenuverter
• Track and Hold capabilities using negative CV to stall oscillator cores • Bipolar LED display for each LFO
• Self patchable for complex wave shaping
Specs
4hp
32mm depth
Power consumption // +12V 80mA, -12V 80mA
STORES STOCKING OCHD
… either in stock or in transit to the follow stores worldwide …
UK
Cymru Beats (Bristol, England)
Elevator Sound (Bristol, England)
Matttech Modular (Manchester, England)
Signal Sounds (Glasgow, Scotland)
EU
Escape From Noise (Stockholm, Sweden)
MIDI Amsterdam (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
Schneidersladen (Berlin, Germany
USA
Patchwerks (Seattle, Washington)
Perfect Circuit (Burbank, California)
CANADA
FURTHER EAST
What’s the output voltage range? Bipolar/unipolar?
-5 volts to +5 volts, standard LFO/VCO levels for Eurorack.
Hi
Just got my Øchd but I can’t see any indication of what way to connect the cable to the module. My guess is that it’s red down on the module, but I’m not going to take a chance on frying anything so..
Yours Sincerely
Jonas Eggen
Hello, top header (there’s only one power connector the standard 10 pin one, the others are 8 pins NOT for power, maybe for something in the future …) and the thick white line indicates -12V location and red stripe down.
Ah tnx Ben, that was amazingly fast response : )
Also I forgot, tell your Instruo friend that there is an error on his page regarding the verification/I’m not a bot thing. This is what internet has to say about it:
“If you are using reCAPTCHA on your site and you see the error ‘ERROR for site owner: Invalid domain for site key’, this means your site key is no longer valid. Please register a new key to resolve this issue. If you cannot resolve your issue, feel free to open a help desk ticket for further assistance.”
Have a great weekend and jamuary.
Jonas
Hi, is there a way to re-calibrate the LFO rates on ones liking or are they fixed?
Thanks,
Ilias
Hello Ilias, there’s no way to calibrate the LFOs. They are fixed and then globally controlled by the rate knob and the CV input. Try using one of the LFOs feeding back into the LFOs to bend and shape their shapes and rates around, you’ll find some interesting shapes and relationships that way.
What is the range of CV for the cv frequency input? Killer little modulation source, definitely punches above its weight. I can see having a second one in the future.
Thanks.
Hi Brian, glad you’re liking ochd cheers! As there’s an attenuverter involved it’s really easy to scale whatever you’re doing and the CV input through the attenuverter will sum with the knob position. But here’s a more thought through answer as I spoke with Jason from Instruo about it…
“It’s roughly a 5V range if the attenuverter is fully + or –. And CV sums with rate pot which is conceptually 0-5V. There’s a maximum frequency ceiling and lowest freq will of course stall the cores. But I could also argue that the input range is 0-1V and that the attenuverter inverts, scales and amplifies… So in that instance the unity point is somewhere arbitrary and the range extends up to full (anti)/clockwise.”
September 2020, it seems to be out of stock everywhere in the Uk.
Any idea when it’ll be in production again ?
Cheers
Hi Roy,
these have never left production and a lot goes out each month from Instruo through the distribution to the stores. Do you have a pre-order in with anyone? Looking to use a specific shop? I’d get in touch and ask them when they’re expecting shop as they’re going to be actively involved with that (I’m not). I’ll chase anything up that needs it though so if you’re having trouble getting hold of one (or anyone to pre-order etc) then I can chase that for you.
thanks,
Ben.
Elevator Sound in Bristol have ’em, so ordered 🙂
Hello ben,
Do I assume correctly that by plugging a clock in the input I could get a clock Lfo in the first output and divisions of said clock in the subsequent ones?
Will this be available in a white panel?
Also, would you consider stocking it to a supplier such as Sweetwater?
I’ve watched your module demo videos for a while now; great stuff keep up the good work!
Hi Steve, we have no current plans to offer a different panel. Thanks RE the demos too! There’s stock on ochd at lots of stores around the world, I’ve no experience with Sweetwater (I hear good things) what makes you ask about them specifically?
Mine is winging its way here – while I wait, can you let me know if you released a more detailed demo for this module? I’ve been able to find your announcement video but nothing more. Thanks for the guidance!
Hi Bob, I hope you’ve enjoyed the module so far. Just seeing your comment now and there’s only the announcement video. A video with more patch examples may follow in the future as originally planned but the first video hopefully covers all the functionality for you.
Hello over there!
Love the module, helps me a lot already. 🙂
I remember that you said at some point, that the rates are “tuned” to musical intervals, but I couldn’t find more on the relation between the lfo rates and I’d love to know.
Are they tuned exactly or more or less and in which relation to each other?
Maybe you can help me out 🙂
All best
HI Paulina, hope you’re well and thanks for getting in touch.
I think people have likely taken the idea of “musical relationships” a bit far when discussing it on forums as I do occasionally get messages where it’s made a big deal of. That said I do find it to be extremely musical.
So we tuned the rates by ear to what sounded good across a patch. This was literally swapping about capacitors (or combinations of) and listening to them. This was me and Jason at the old Instruo HQ in Glasgow (they’ve since moved). One change would require us to change others and went just took our time to define rates that felt inspiring and musical in use.
It’s not a set mathematical formule, or the harmonic series or tempo divisions. Just tuned by ear for musical use (to use a buzz word to feel “organic”) and to meet the objective of non-synchronous drifting modulation.
Hope that helps, all the best.