This has been my favorite pedal I own for the last year. You did a great job of explaining it. Such a beautiful concept and fairly priced - and true stereo! I’ve read through the comments and they’re illuminating. My main issue with the microcosm is how hard it is to blend in with other existing elements in a song. The fx are almost TOO random with too much going on - I find myself using it with the filter closed down and at 25% mix most of the time. It’s great at generating the unexpected, but what I always want it to do is something a bit more subtle…like “just do what I played but better!” Instead I get lots of granulation and octave shifts and I can no longer recognize what I sent through it. I wish I could use it more in my production, but it’s so random at times it becomes non-musical. However, you’ve inspired me to go in and make some of my own presets, which I think the creators would want me to do. Criticizing is easy. Making my own presets will take work! Cheers to the team at Hologram. This is truly the most special pedal I own and I love the innovation and genius. You guys all make making music SO MUCH FUN!!!
The Microcosm needs to be used in a less-structured context; i pair IT with the Soma Labs Lyra-8 analog synth, already a beast of few rules, and the results are absolutely cosmic 🤙🌌
@@darkuniversesound Exactly. This box is not made to fit into your pop song. This is meant to create universes of sound to explore. It makes a bit more sense with guitar as the source, synths are extremely full range (from lowest lows to highest highs and quite thick) and you end up with something overwhelming unless you’re careful about playing more minimally.
I thought the same and only reached for it when i wanted that then I found out about the “looper only” function which allows you to use it for 4 different reverbs, modulation, filter etc… it saved me from buying extra modulation, reverb, delay pedals and I use it mostly in that mode now.
Best review of this product that I've seen... ever..! You've actually helped me NOT to pull the trigger on this product , because I now know what I don't want as well as what I do. Too much time needed for unplanned exploration and hoping for serendipity for my needs, So I won't be diving down this particular rabbit hole You've saved me a lot of time and frustration and money Thanks Subscribed
Have had this pedal for 6 months and have struggled to make sense of it. I’m bad at learning from manuals so have watched many hours of explanations and demos but this is the first one that clicked with me. Awesome job!
While some may use the Microcosm pedal sparingly, this pedal should be lumped in with the Chase Bliss Bloopers, Mood, Habit, etc...pedals that just mangle the sound to death. I see so many people buy a Moog Grandmother or "other", strategically position some succulent plants in the video frame, and plug in a string of Bloopers and Microcosm and hold a note and hit record. There are thousands of these "Ambient" videos on YT. Play your instrument and then season to taste.
Great video Jorb. I’ve been using mine for adding texture to my drums especially percussion elements. It really can push things into interesting rhythms that you wouldn’t normally get with a drum machine and the mpc. Try that out it really does add some character 👍
My drummer asked me to play the last thing I just did with this pedal. I explained we will experience the heat death of the universe before that happens.
A short, auto-bio tale: Me, prior to October 2020: “Microcosm looks great, but I’m not sure it would play nice with the rest of my expanding pedal chain. Microcosm is like a pedal chain unto itself!” Me relenting, ordering a Microcosm in Oct. 2020: “I’m building pedal chains that effectively do what Microcosm does in one box-gating and ducking based on volume/amplitude input-so it will be perfect for me.” Me, after getting a Microcosm in Oct. 2020: “It takes some effort, and I’m still scratching my head a lot, but this makes for a great end-or-near-the-end-of-effects-chain device! It helps if I have a volume pedal before it, so I can shape and mute the sounds going to Microcosm, giving it more ‘envelope to follow’, etc., etc.” Me, now: “Microcosm is sensitive to transients and the amplitude envelope of the input source, which typically means an effect will benefit most from being at the front of the chain. But, it also reigns as a great, end-of-chain-worthy, ambient, glitch, etc. beast. So, basically, Microcosm is a pedal chain unto itself!” 😅
I just got an ehx tri parallel mixer exactly for this reason! I have attack decay/mel9 on one channel, fuzz and pog on another/ microcosm by itself and compressor before the input and delverb on the output. Just got the Sheeran loop plus pedal (which is really good- not the expensive one) and then mic up my cab to Tascam 12 where I play synth and drum machines and jam with. The loop pedal was just more convenient to get what I wanted before printing it in. I haven’t really figured out the cosm yet. Still learning it - but i might move it from guitar to synth and drums as sound scapes. It’s such a strange pedal. But I do want to get my head around it because it can be beautiful
After many jaw-dropping videos of Microcosm I popped for this esoteric beauty about nine months ago. I love the thing but I've gotten lost and frustrated at times. This video really starts to clarify it's functions in the way no other person has done. One revelation here is using the envelope, filter, mix and space functions to create cohesive blends with the original signal! Props to you for your malleable methodology. Possible follow-up demo video idea is using it's looping function to demonstrate Microcosm's functions using your methodology in various note-density situations. Subbed and hit that bell just to see that one! Thanks for this!
My thoughts exactly. I bought it as a live looper that would add depth to my phrases. I cannot find a single video on using it as what it says it is right there on the box......L_O_O_P_E_R
What cables are you using? BTW i dont think there is a wrong way to use Microcosm. One of my favourite pedals in years. I use it on drum buss for a bit of glitch. I use it on deep synth bass to interrupt, but also stay perfectly locked via MIDI, I use it for drones. nominally yes, transient sounds will give you more to work with than long sustained sounds, but even that is not mandatory. Sustained notes work well with seq, multidelay and tunnel. So its just a matter of figuring the pedal out (you did that very methodically) and to choose appropriate settings, with a bit of luck, you will stummble into something you will want to loop forever. Another HUGE pro signal routing options, and pre-post looper fx. totally mental, quantizing the looped recoding and then mixing it with effected signal, then adding something else on top.
I’ve had the Microcosm for a few months and each time I discover something by error and trial rather than definition. This video has done an excellent job of explaining each knob 👌 It’s an intriguing machine and quite a few of us cannot define how to use it for a specific purpose and I think that’s because the results are subtle unlike any other pedals where you know each preset purpose. Hologram could have given prompts at when to use drums or synth or arps or single notes with which preset among the 40 plus available. I’ve used drums kick snare and got excellent variations with the time knob Yet when I take an Amen break the gratification is not the same I expected A tabla loop to do surprising variations with time and repeat knobs which did not. I also noticed the lower and louder the drum percussion the better the results Yet with synths the higher the notes the response is more definite. The microcosm is like chewing gum, you can’t swallow it neither can you spit it out and yet want it 😂😂😂 I love the Microcosm because it’s a challenge and on any day you may end with Agony or Ecstasy Thanks 🙏 for the video ❤❤. It’s my second viewing
I own one and love it. I definitely agree on taking notes and using the manual. I’m a hardware person and I play synths, guitars, acoustic instruments etc. Its one of the best things I’ve ever owned but definitely I’m still learning it. I definitely would not sell it. Give it a chance. It’s not something to be taken lightly. It’s very powerful. It’s a weird pedal. There’s a reason why it’s so popular. One thing that’s interesting is that depending on how you use it one might be able to tell your using it but if you go deeper nobody would ever know.
Thank you for this honest take on the Microcosm. You've saved me $459+ dollars today. That's not to say that it's not a great effects device. Just that it's probably not a great effects device for me. Cheers!
I so appreciate this comment! I love mine but that’s exactly why I watch these videos! So many pedals I decided not to buy because of great demos and reviews
There's no point reading the manual for it, every signal in changes the outcome completely! I've had a whole song come from an Rick and Morty sample from a Pocket Operator and it sounded like filthy techno.
I appreciate you making this vid Jorb cuz I love the microcosm but I've really struggled with developing any familiarity with it to where I know when and where to use it in the context of a mix. It's so fun in a solo noodling setting but outside using the microcosm as an initial idea sparker I've have a lot of trouble figuring out when, where, and how to use the microcosm in the context of the mix. Even with using the manual Its been tough to get a consistent read on this thing since it really kind of does whatever it wants with your input lol.
Interesting video! I've never been especially interested in the Microcosm because it seems a bit too macro-controlled and black-box-ish, but this is the first video that gives me a sense of its organisation and potential to be used (more) predictably.
I really like playing the microcosm alone with a synthesizer, but I find it really takes over a track and is hard to mix in with other instruments. Would love to see some videos / music with the microcosm mixed in.
I've found the same is true of a lot of modern heavily modulated effects. Sounds great with a single sound source, carving out space in a mix is challenging. We need more emphasis on bandpass filters and carving out frequencies for specific parts. Did I just rant? Woops 😅
@@jammystraub488 nah not too ranty at all - this is a great point. Makes me think of separating the effect using a bus track, and on that track an EQ (or a couple) is used that can be automated to the song structure. But if nothing else, any clashing frequencies can be subtracted so that that the effects frequencies are dominant pre it’s given range. But yeah, this is the challenge of most all effects it seems! They get lost, for a couple reasons.
Yep or even completely free plugins like Soundhack Bubbler or Emergence can make very similar sounds. I don't understand why people want the hardware (for studio use, playing live is fair enough). I made a Microcosm patch in VCV with free plugins, although I do have Silo and Arturia's EFX. Both are great and probably easier to use....
@@VirtualModular Hi, not only do I play live... I'm primarily a guitar player, so I kind of need the hardware version to place between my instrument and amplifiers (& other effects). But your suggestions piqued my curiosity about VST plugins (I do mess around on an old Yamaha electric piano w/ midi capability) so thanks. Cheers!
Good review. I get the feeling with these kinds of pedals of which we are seeing in increasing amounts , is that there are two schools of thought when approaching them. The first is the classic control position as in ' what will this do FOR me?' , and the second ' what will this do TO me? Of course there is a certain amount of overlap but the majority of reviews I have seen are often slightly disappointed with devices like these because the reviewer is not comfortable or happy with not being in total control ( and I emphasize TOTAL CONTROL) of the device. This review has a bit of both but its very refreshing that it emphasizes the abstraction/ exploration side of hologram microcosm. Its clearly not going to behave like a completely predictably programmable pedal and on the contrary, will create many unexpected moments . Surely its those moments which cannot be micromanaged which often the most magical. Not for the join the dots approach to pedals I suspect.
I'm seeing so many negative comments about this pedal. However, I'm planning on getting it because I want to get into doing ambient synthesizer music. This pedal may not be the right pedal for everyone. But I would suggest that those who are saying it's no good and a waste of money should make it more of a fun toy. What I do with some of my older vintage Moogs is I like to randomly twirl knobs,flip switches, move sliders, and press buttons blindly not knowing or even caring what parameters I'm tweaking. And honestly, what comes out of my speakers is sometimes amazing sounding. So if you got a Microcosm and think it's no good, just start randomly twiddling the knobs and buttons and see what surprising sounds you get. I love synthesizers and I currently own 24 of them. There's never a dull moment in working with electronic music. So if you have one, don't be critical of it. Just have fun with it and enjoy.
Negative commenters are void of creativity and vision and are likely too busy amplifying their own interests while trying to sound like someone else. I see endless possibilities with this gadget.
@@rharris0820rh when listening to the radio nowadays, that seems to be so true. Everyone wants to sound like everyone else. Hence, music in the last 30 years has gone to the dogs and is boring to listen to.
Right i see a lot of people saying that it’s a “one trick pony” which is funny to me because i think is that not every pedal? If they can’t get something “good” out of it that’s fine but it’s like don’t blame the pedal lol
The way you explain things really clicks with my brain, and I really appreciate it because I have autism and some of this stuff is super hard for me to wrap my mind around.
I absolutely love the way you describe things. I love my Microcosm pedal but now I understand a little more about it. I dig how your brain works and your thought process. Keep up the amazing work Jorb of unraveling the things certain of us creators and sound explorers miss in our process. I enjoy your content immensely.
I’ve had mine since the first batch of pre orders. I’m still learning how things work. Hence why I’m here. Didn’t realize that it had forward and reverse! Thanks for that one. One of the topics I didn’t see in this video is about the secondary shift options. I’d be curious to hear what your (Jorb or anyone) point of view would be on the secondary shift options. They give ya so much more control over things. Like the effect volume. That was actually an issue that had me wanting to possibly sell my microcosm one time. Once I know I could control it, I stopped thinking about selling it and dove deeper into the manual. Hope to see a part two of this amazing pedal.
Love it. Understand one thing, it takes time actually putting in many hours. It an effects box of sorts yet one with a mental disorder. Only thing to do is get crazy with it.
Very nice job - it’s really a world unto itself (almost to the point of being a pedal that plays the user, rather than the usual case.). And you didn’t even have time to get to the shift key (eg the LFO which took me a year to discover, and is now one of my favorite things…)
Great vid, Jorb 👍Interestingly, I divided the controls like you so some of it must make sense 😄 It definitely takes some work and you need to reference the manual as the same controls have different results according to the mode. Try inputting a sequence and setting the mix to fully wet then play the Microcosm as an instrument... 😊
@blissfulhumanoid9356 No, but there’s a pretty neat alternative as a plugin. Unfiltered audio SILO. or even completely free plugins like Soundhack Bubbler or Emergence can make very similar sounds. I just got this info by reading some comments below. Hope it helps.
Thank you very much. I will definitely explore these other alternatives for sure. I totally love the way this pedal sounds for sure. Just can’t afford to pay that amount right now.
I must admit at the end of this I felt like I had been on a journey and also felt that I had learned very little! It was a fun ride though. At one point it appeared that you were struggling to make it sing and I noticed that you had left the space and loop level at zero. I did wonder if you need to tweak them a bit with nearly all the different defaults to make them sing a little. Great delivery though thanks.
I bought this as an ambient guitar pedal, and haven't been crazy about it when I played around with it. I might have returned it but for their no return policy. I have to admit, it 's a pretty nice looking piece of gear. After watching your video, it seems to be much better suited for synthesizer use. Time to break out the Minilogue. Thanks for the video!
The Microcosm is my favorite effect among many. The only thing I miss is a switch to put the reverb "before" the delay algorithms, it does only affects the processed signal as far as I know, not the incoming one. That said, it is a world of infinite explorations.
Lol yo Jorb i just watched “Alien” for the first time last night and finally ordered a used MC today. So the reference to the “Nostromo” was very fitting lol
Thank you Jorb! Really appreciate this video and subbed. Have been working with the microcosm fairly unsuccessfully until now. I had my routing all wrong and once that was figured out the sound got so much better. Someone already said - you’re a born teacher and I concur 👍🏻.
So many possibilities, but way too complex for most people to operate without immense frustration. And if just twiddling about for fun sounds, you sure better have them saved or know how you got them. When really good digital guitar effects came out in the early '80s, I would spend countless nights twiddling knobs and experimenting - but much of it wasn't terribly useful in a band context and those explorations were so addictive that it kept me away from composing music. This could be a frustrating time-waster - even if incredible. The real problem is, it's way too expensive to just play around with.
I wish I had seen this video 2 weeks ago, it could've convinced me NOT to buy this pedal. I haven't been able to make anything apart from crazy random noises, interesting but absolutely useless for what I do. I'm now trying to find something, some purpose for it, before I have to sell it...It seems like sampling some of that craziness and then chopping everything might be the only way I could use it.
Thanks so much for this video. I get that it's really hard to describe the features......having just bought and received one. I'll probably watch this 10 times in the next few days :)
I think the 4 lights in the middle are way to bright. I emailed them when I got mine and requested a dim setting. I cover mine with a small paper towel as it hurts my eyes.
Great vid. Your explanation of the shape control is the first explanation I've understood - that it is a 4x switch rather than continuous and to dial it in full wet and listen :)
@@Frozirra What exactly is meant by 'dotted' timings as I'm in the market for a looper that's as comprehensive as possible right now so I'd like to know whether that's worth wanting whatever it is?
@@paulbrocklehurst3639 Dotted is basically a beat plus a half. So a Dotted 1/8th note (the most popular) is an 1/8th + 1/16th. In this case he's talking about the delay. Think any U2 song, and that's a dotted 1/8th note delay. (sounds like a galloping type thing). As far as an easy to use looper, this ain't it lol I would look more towards the Ditto+ or normal Ditto looper. The loop station by boss is pretty easy to use too.
Wasn't expecting this, thanks for the info. I like exploring polyrhythm timesignatures so this is kind of a deal breaker, but it is indeed a great piece of gear. Has this been addressed already as a request for a future firmware upgrade? Anyone aware of it? Thanks and btw awesome review! 👊
After checking out so many videos on the Microcosm over the past 2 years or so, this is the best one by far!!! You nailed it when you said that you like to be impressed more than be surprised. :) Anyone who owns a MC or is thinking about purchasing one needs to view this video. Thanks for your concise explanations of this effects unit. As I'm primarily a guitarist who loves improvisation, the Microcosm could be a way of giving me just the right amount of the element of surprise to spur me on.... especially when playing in solo situations where there's no other musicians to bounce ideas off of. Thanks again for a great video! (Now I'll be perusing your RU-vid channel for more gems!)
does anyone know why the LED's on my microcosm in the hologram always are red light? on every video they got 1 orange colour and the other 3 bulbs are blue but my are always red. is there anything wierd? when i try to change the setup like you do in the begin, my lights never change... they lways red. your lights flash different if you chose from mono to stereo or if you change some with the mixer knob it turns yellow. but my not
I’m working on my first DeeoHouse and Ambient album. Notmally effects are super important in my work. Everyone is talking about the Microcosm and all those wishy washy glitchy effects. Well, ok. Microcosm can do that but the question is how to use all these glitchy wishy washy effects in real productions in a practical way. Of course I can sit there for hours and screw those effects endless but I miss somehow the practical usage. This is probably why some people sell it again after buying it. It is maybe to granular. By the was the Microcosm‘s firmware is the most buggy firmware on this planet. That makes Microcosm Almosen useless. Just chrck out Microcosm groups on social media. Thanks god I never jumped on the Microcosm‘s hype train.
I absolutely love my microcosm! I have only had mine for a couple weeks and I am having soooo much fun playing with it and learning it.. it is a instant sound design machine. Very inspiring but can be very daunting for some
it’s a very cool pedal but it took me years to intuitively learn clouds. the microcosm was giving me the same “is this on, why can’t I hear anything” problems and I can’t go through that again lol
so mine works then, right? cause most times i run a sequence through it and its just mud or nothing happens. i watch videos where everything sounds so magical but mine is only working like half the time. and it makes me wonder if i got a faulty pedal but on the other hand i have a feeling i just havent understood it yet
Nice video! I have two issues with this pedal. First one is the filter - a HPF or BPF would be so much more useful. I always have to run the FX full wet and on a specific channel to EQ out the lower frequencies (think of mixing and clarity). Second is more beefy: I wish that there is a way to fade out the algos. Besides the delay stuff all modes have the tendency to stop just like a abrupt full stop. If you listen and look closely you can hear it in the video. The reverb is a trick to wash this up but I would prefer a fade out option - I maybe just don't want to add reverb to the sound (think again of mixing and clarity and overall sounddesign of a song and space). I have the Cooper FX Outwards pedal which does this kinda different. Also I'd like to try a Thermae for the pitch shifting effect fading out (what I guess would be feedback in the terms of a delay).
I've been playing my microfreak through my microcosm for a while now. Sometimes it's beautiful and sometimes it's a mess. Sometimes I would struggle to find the right balance between slightly caressing the microcosm into something great and just letting it do it's thing. After watching this video, I have this pedal sounding the best I've ever had it! Thank you!
Excellent timing on this one - nicely explained! After watching every notable Microcosm video on the YToobz for the past year or so, I finally pulled the trigger. This will be my first pedal. Like, ever. So. Should be fun - it arrives in a couple days!
Great choice. Master it. You can do so much with the looper and all of the effects. I feel like I could literally get rid of all the pedals on my board keep this pedal and my night sky and I’m good.
@@LoVeAmBiEnT I'll bet! The Night Sky, from what I've seen, seems like it would cover all the functional reverb in most use cases, yeah? I have had the Microcosm for a week now, every night after work I've been diving into it, and before you know it, should have been in bed a few hours ago. It's a beast!
Another person looking for their first pedal here. My use case is making my synth sound interesting to mess around with alongside 🥃. The night sky and microcosm are top competitors in this case. Any help in deciding between them, or suggesting something else? It could be nice to record some tracks with the pedal, but I know it gives you back something different every time, and I figure that like raw photography, you may want to do most of that processing in software so you can change it up later. Am I right? Is a pedal best for self exploration and performance more than recording?
@@jspiro Hey, Jono - so, I'm pretty new with this pedal, so I will answer the best I can, but certainly take my newness with a grain of salt. In my couple weeks experience, I have had a great deal of fun exploring, as you mentioned. It would be hard to replicate a sound from a previous session, unless I was videoing my setting. I could see coming up with something great, saving to DAW, and editing that sound further, if you like, for sure. I don't have many other suggestions for other pedals, I was toying with saving for GFI System Synesthesia dual modulator and Specular Tempus reverb pedals, which have the ability to save settings from previous jams. Red Means Recording does a pretty good review of them, but in the end, I decided the Microcosm would keep me more actively engaged and playing actual music, rather than fiddling with settings and losing myself to nuance, if that makes sense. Good luck with your quest! :) RMR video on GFI System Synesthesia dual modulator and Specular Tempus reverb pedals - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-1TESmBALpvU.html
Just stumbled upon your channel. Great video! The “systematic” approach (or as systematic as you can be with this pedal) in exploring the microcosm is really helpful. In the beginning, I found a lot of modes usable but didn’t really have a deeper understanding of what’s going on. Starting with the wet effects and filter off is great idea. How would you define the “filter resonance”? I find it kind of hard to wrap my head around without visually seeing what it’s doing the filter and the manual was kind of vague. Thanks!
Cheers, thanks! Resonance emphasizes the cut off point, so around the same frequency that starts to lower the high end, those frequencies are fedback through the filter, making them louder. I think I cover this with visuals in the minilogue video!
best breakdown i have seen so far. most others have hopped directly into demos that sound interesting, but lack context. thanks for making this. im saving up to buy.
Have not tried the microcosm yet but the infinite jets is utter junk. Have never regretted spending 500 bucks more and i have bought uselless gear before[ most notably meris enzo, subdecay m3, marshmallow Alexander pedals, subdecay vitruvian mod]
