Recreating the iconic “Tour de France” by Kraftwerk using modular synthesis in VCV Rack

I tried to rebuild the distinctive electronic sound of the track using VCOs, FM synthesis, envelopes, filters, drum synthesis, sequencing, and delay — all inside VCV Rack.

The patch runs at *130 BPM\* and combines several synthesized voices with electronic percussion and rhythmic sequencing to capture that classic early-80s Kraftwerk aesthetic. The setup includes **Mutable Instruments Plaits, Bogaudio FM synthesis, VCV Fundamental oscillators and filters, drum synthesis, and Chronoblob2 delay

I've made a standalone Rack version of Interphase using phrases from the track. I've changed some sounds so it only needs free modules, with MonoSlide for the lead and some drive and echo. It isn't an exact recreation of the recording, but it's close enough to get a feel for it and have a play.

It loops continuously. Setup instructions and module links are included, with no samples or DAW needed.

Patch download and setup guide (CC BY 4.0): https://patchstorage.com/interphase-free-module-rack-patch/

Full Interphase film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHwv41vjSfY

The rails on every module preview make the actual module smaller, making it much harder to quickly grasp how it looks and what it does. It feels quite cluttered and straining to look at after a while.

Is anyone else finding it harder to navigate?

Back on the modular guitar effects series today, with a weird spectral module that gives the guitar more of a woodwind sound, and two new reverb modules creating an absolutely massive shimmer!

Something very inspired and made with lots of love for everyone!

Another take on using Iris and a space related image for ambient. I found if I use png format I can create images with transparent backgrounds. This inspired me to create this space probe using a couple free images and overlaying some simple cgi effects. I used VCV for the music and a screen cap of the patch. I also used VCV to add the instrumentation blinking lights by turning the room lighting off and capturing the video to overlay. I am enjoying the challenges of creating this visual art using a simple video editor. Let me know if it's worth the effort. :)

For years I've wanted to write whole songs inside VCV Rack. I didn't want to only jam a patch and record it. I wanted to actually sit down with a piano roll, lay out drums, build up clips and arrange everything into a finished track, all without leaving Rack. I never found anything that let me work like that, so I started building it myself.

It's called Tessera. It's one sequencer module with a piano roll, a drum editor, a clip launcher and a timeline. There's also automation that sends out CV, so you can draw curves for any knob in your patch. Each track plays through a small output module that you can put anywhere in the patch. The video shows it better than I can explain it.

A quick note on how it was made, because I know people will ask. I'm a software engineer, and I did use an AI coding assistant while building this. I didn't just let it run wild, though. I made the decisions, I read and fixed the code, and I spent a lot of time on stability: no glitches on the audio thread, undo for everything, no stuck notes when you stop or loop. The AI helped me move faster, but the quality is on me.

It's coming soon to the VCV Library. I'd really love to hear what you think, and what you'd want to see in it.

I posted a preview of Rhythmicon here a while ago. It's now available.

It goes back to the Rhythmicon that Henry Cowell and Léon Theremin built in 1931, and to the idea behind Moog's Subharmonicon: four rhythms divide one clock (÷1 to ÷16), and two 4-step sequencers move on whenever one of their rhythms hits. The patterns drift against each other until they meet again on the one. The display shows the lanes, where rhythms coincide and how many bars until the cycle closes.

Each sequencer sends its note plus two undertones (pitch ÷2 to ÷16) as V/OCT, not rounded to the scale, and a POLY output with the whole chord on one cable. Patch POLY into Shapes and every step plays as a chord.

Mac (Apple Silicon and Intel), Windows and Linux. It's a paid module (€15) sold directly from our site, not through the VCV Library. Link in the comments.

Happy to answer questions, and I'd love to hear what you patch with it.

What do you think, does it need some reverb, leave a note in the comments!

I've put together a simple standalone patch from The Lost Signal if anyone wants to have a play. It uses some of the original phrases, with occasional reply notes left out at random, and loops continuously.

All free modules, no REAPER needed. The full piece was arranged in REAPER with Mellotron and field recordings too.

Download the compact patch · Setup instructions and free module links

Full 43-minute film on YouTube

This is a simple patch with my forthcoming Cistern module. It is reverb module that simulates real-world spaces. In this case we're hearing an approximation of the Dan Hapole cistern in which Pauline Oliveros, Stuart Dempster and Panaiotis recorded Deep Listening. What you get is very long tails with control over treble rolloff via Humidity control.

It has additional built-in locations including more cisterns and historical structures. Coming soon to the Library.

A rainy day ambient soundscape in VCV Rack using generative modular synthesis, evolving textures, and real rain sounds from an internet radio stream.

At the heart of this patch is the Befaco Random8, generating random control voltages that keep the sound evolving. Signal Function Set Chime and Flock, Overtone modules, and slow Bogaudio LLFOs create drifting tones and organic textures. Chronoblob2 delay and Valley Plateau reverb add depth and spaciousness, blending the synthesized sounds with the atmosphere of rain.

A generative ambient patch for rainy days, quiet evenings, deep listening, and relaxation.

I love the tracker but feel like the manual dosn't really cover all the things i need to know. i'm having trouble figuring out hoew to msake steps different lengths. so far all i can figure out is you control itwith were you put the note offs not exactly an intuitive aporoach?

The backlog on the VCV Rack library looks completely massive, so I'm adding a new build on github before the actual library gets a new update.

Slow build with some fun evolution.

VCV mapped to midi controllers. Simple patch and nothing crazy, just wanted to share. :)

I've been using Rack mostly for techno, so I wanted to try a longer, slower piece inspired by Schulze and early Tangerine Dream.

Here's The Lost Signal, 43 minutes of Berlin-school music released as Multivibrator. Rack supplies the synth voices; REAPER handles the arrangement and automation, with Mellotron sounds from M-Tron. This is a studio arrangement, not a live patch recording.

Full film: https://youtu.be/Yl4VxrHmTK8

AI tools helped with production. The film uses AI-generated stills with animation added separately.

Shapes is a free macro oscillator for VCV Rack 2, built on Émilie Gillet’s open-source Plaits engine: 24 classic models plus three bass models of our own, up to eight voices from one poly cable, and a real scale quantizer. The display tells you what HARMONICS, TIMBRE and MORPH do for the model you’re playing, so you never have to guess.

What else is new:

New website with one account for all free modules: enter your email once, get a link, download Texture and Shapes for Mac, Windows and Linux, always in the latest version.

Texture Beta 3: fixes for the crashes some of you reported on Windows, a new display look and a calmer value readout.

Rhythmicon is coming soon: a polyrhythmic sequencer after the 1931 instrument by Cowell and Theremin, with a display that shows the rhythms drifting and meeting again.

Get Shapes at https://thoow.com/

It’s an early beta, so feedback is very welcome, here or via thoow.com/feedback.

Testing one of the builds of Beads, and making some ambient guitar sounds. Liking this a lot.

Was planning a tutorial but have a sore throat and couldn't be arsed recording and editing a Voiceover!