@dukeorock based on your dive, what do you think about a system like the Make Noise System Cartesian? I'm hesitant to jump right in and those aren't all the modules I'd want, but it seems like a decent start for a "reasonable" price. I think the Black and Gold is bigger and more expensive than I want to go out of the gate, but the extra rack space seems like a nice idea.
I certainly get the temptation and they’re right at $2k, correct? Pretty good bang for the buck. It’s also everything you’d need to get cracking. Make Noise stuff tends to hold its value very well.
There’s several good reasons to do that, but here are some reasons I wouldn’t, personally.
1. Experienced eurorack folks will pretty much always advise starting with a bigger case and fewer modules. They’re absolutely right and I wish I would’ve taken that advice more seriously as I wasted a few hundred bucks the way I went about it.
2. I have that same Make Noise 3U 104HP case and it works fine, but for some applications, MN cases have a reputation for being a bit underpowered.
3. Intellijel makes an awesome 7U 104HP case for $650, new. Way more connectivity and power. 28 internal power plugs as opposed to the 10 in my MN case. Also has a lid that allows you to transport the case with everything still patched. Search out used modules or sales and you’d get a great starter rig for the same price or less than the Cartesian system and still have 4U left over to grow.
4. As much as I love MN (and I really do), their stuff can be so frustratingly cryptic to use. I tend to prefer as much knobs per function as possible and like labels that say what each knob actually does. MN love making up new words and terms. Morphagene is just one example. Cryptic layout, gotta remember a fair amount of button combos that aren’t explained anywhere! Even their manuals are kinda vague and weird

All that said, every module in the Cartesian system is a slam dunk, I think. Rene is by far the most popular sequencer in eurorack. I doubt I’d ever get one, but it’s appeal is obvious.
I may hang onto my MN 3U case because my 7U is filling up fast
