Build a Remote Trigger for Your Eurorack CV Gear

I use a Strymon Magneto delay unit and recently had need to trigger it from across the room. It uses a CV input that looks for ± 5V to cycle through it’s loop record start, stop, and reset functions. I ended up building a remote trigger from purchased parts that was inexpensive, easy to build, and worked great. So, in case you find yourself in a similar situation, here is my solution.

What you’ll need:

• (1) tap tempo box (NO, or “normally open”). You can get these for less than $20. I wanted a metal unit so bought a used MXR version for $30. It’s built like a tank and should last forever.

• (1) guitar cable you don’t mind dedicating to the project. Any cheap one will do.

• (1) shortish eurorack patch cable you also don’t mind dedicating to the project.

• Soldering iron.

• Voltmeter.

• Any eurorack module that outputs a DC voltage. I used one of the attenuverters that is part of Make Noise Maths.

How to build:

Cut the jack off one end of the guitar cable and strip/expose the wires. Cut the eurorack patch cable in half and strip/expose the wires.

You’re essentially making a regular patch cord, but with a momentary switch spliced in the middle of it. And that switch is at the end of a long cable which means that you can place it wherever you need. Tap the switch and it will allow the voltage to get from the attenuverter output to whatever module input you need to trigger (in my case, the tap function on the Magneto). Using your voltmeter, check the eurorack patch cables to see which wires correspond to the jacks’ tip and sleeve (TS), then wire the cables together as follows:

• Eurorack cable #1 tip (T) -> One side of the 1/4” cable

• Eurorack cable #2 tip (T) -> The other side of the 1/4” cable

• Eurorack cable sleeves (S) -> To each other

If your eurorack cables have a third wire, you can solder them both to the shield wire of the guitar cable. If not, you can cut off the shield that’s exposed at the end of the guitar cable.

In this photo, red is the tip (T), white is the sleeve (S), and yellow is the common/ground.

Tape or heat shrink the connections so they don’t short.

To use, plug either eurorack jack into the attenuverter (or other voltage supply module) and the other eurorack jack into your voltage input jack. That’s it!

Tips & Tricks: The CORRECT Guitar Tuning for Norma Tanega's "You're Dead"

If you’re both a guitar player and a fan of the FX series “What We Do In the Shadows”, you’ve no doubt tried to pick out the great Norma Tanega tune “You’re Dead” which is used as the series theme song. It’s not too difficult to get close using an open-G tuning, but try to execute some of the riffs that Tanega plays between verses and you’ll soon realize that open-G tuning is not quite right. Here is the tuning I am 99% certain that she uses: D2-G2-F3-A3-B3-D4. One of the riffs that clinched this for me is this one that she plays right after the first verse:

There really is no other way she would have played this. Of course this means you can’t just strum the open strings to get your G chord like you can if you use open-G. You’ll have to play one of these two chords (Tanega plays both at various times) and do that hammer on using your ring finger:

It should also be mentioned that Tanega does not flatpick - she plays fingerstyle and is likely using a thumb pick.

-Michael

Music Orange Library Online Tips #4

Here's a final tip for getting the perfect track from MOLO (Music Orange Library Online):

Sometimes you might not find the exact, perfect, ideal, just-right track you're looking for. Maybe there's one you kinda like, if only it were slower...and had glockenspiel. No problem.

We're a working music house with full-time composers, lots of instruments, and big studios. In fact, we wrote all the tracks on MOLO. So we can rework, edit, and tweak any track in the library, and if you just can't find the perfect track, we can create it from scratch. That's what we do.

Thanks for reading, and happy hunting for great tracks. If you need any help don't hesitate to contact us.

Cheers,
The Music Orange Team

Music Orange Library Online Tips #3

Here's a great tip for saving and sharing tracks on MOLO (Music Orange Library Online). At times you may want to store and pass along your favorites, and here is how you do it:

• To add a track to a playlist, click the "+" icon in the bottom left of the player. Create as many playlists as you like. You can view all your playlists by clicking the "PLAYLISTS" link in the bottom orange bar.

• You can share an individual track or an entire playlist with anyone you like. Just click the "share track" icon in the bottom left of the player. To share a playlist, open that playlist and click the "share playlist" link.

Thanks for reading, and happy hunting for great tracks. If you need any help don't hesitate to contact us.

Cheers,
The Music Orange Team

Music Orange Library Online Tips #2

Here's a new tip for finding the perfect track on MOLO (Music Orange Library Online). MOLO is pretty intuitive already, but this can speed things up even more:

• You can search MOLO by keywords, like 'friendly,' 'energetic,' 'piano,' 'rock'—almost anything. Use as many terms as you like and MOLO will narrow down its results to match your keywords.

• You can also use quotes to search for phrases, like "electric piano", and the minus sign to exclude keywords from your search.

• And MOLO is smart. Don't worry if you only see a few results at first; MOLO is learning how you search and will become more accurate as you use it—including on return visits. MOLO is listening.

Thanks for reading, and happy hunting for great tracks. If you need any help don't hesitate to contact us.

Cheers,
The Music Orange Team

Music Orange Library Online Tips #1

Here are some quick tips to help you find the perfect tracks for your projects faster when using MOLO (Music Orange Library Online).

It's pretty intuitive already, but these simple tricks will speed things up even more:

• Your space bar is your PAUSE/PLAY button. You can use it to stop and resume playback.

• Use your up and down arrows to quickly navigate through the tracks in any genre.

• When you're ready to download a track, just click on the download icon in the bottom left of the player.

Thanks for reading, and happy hunting for great tracks. If you need any help don't hesitate to contact us.

Cheers,
The Music Orange Team

A Handy Guide to Stringed Instrument Tunings

BARITONE GUITAR

Common: B-E-A-D-F#-B

Also: A-D-G-C-E-A and C-F-A#-D#-G-C

BASS

4-string: E-A-D-G

5-string: B-E-A-D-G

6-string: B-E-A-D-G-C

DOBRO, LAPSTEEL

G-B-D-G-B-D

GUITAR: STANDARD TUNINGS

6-string: E-A-D-G-B-E

7-string: B-E-A-D-G-B-E

GUITAR: OPEN TUNINGS

Open A: E-A-C#-E-A-E or E-A-E-A-C♯-E

Open B: B-F♯-B-F♯-B-D♯

Open C: C-G-C-G-C-E

Open C6: C-A-C-G-C-E

Open D: D-A-D-F♯-A-D. To make playing minor chords easier, tune the F# to F instead.

Open E: Use open D tuning and capo the second fret

Open F: F-A-C-F-C-F

Open G: D-G-D-G-B-D - To sound like Keith Richards, remove the lowest string or tune to G–G–D–G–B–D

GUITAR: DROP TUNINGS

Drop B: B-F#-B-E-G#-C#

Drop D: D-A-D-G-B-E

Drop C: C-G-C-F-A-D

Double Drop D: D-A-D-G-B-D

GUITAR: SOME OTHER TUNINGS

DADGAD or Celtic: D-A-D-G-A-D

DADADD: D-A-D-A-D-D

Standard D: D-G-C-F-A-D

Nashville: This is just standard tuning, but replace the E-A-D-G strings with lighter gauges (you can get them from a 12-string set) and tune these strings an octave up.

Nick Drake: C-G-C-F-C-E - Capo on the second fret

MANDOLIN

G-D-A-E

TENOR GUITAR

Standard: C-G-D-A

Chicago Tuning: D-G-B-E

Guitar Tuning: A-D-G-B

Irish: G-D-A-E 

UKULELE

Soprano or concert: G-C-E-A, usually with the 4th string G tuned an octave higher so that it’s a major second below the A string.

Tenor: G-C-E-A, usually with the 4th string G tuned so that it’s a major ninth below the A string.

Baritone: D-G-B-E