Issues with newly purchased MatrixBrute

[Rixcom]

 
Hello,
I ordered this unit back in April last year and just received it this week. I concur with many of the complaints I've been reading on this forum. I also have several dozen analog synthesizers, most of which are vintage. However, purchasing a new design, I would expect much less noise, oscillations and clicking from the outputs, both master and headphone. There is also a very long delay when switching patches from when a sound is heard. Some patches are noisier than others. There is a quite loud thump/click when selecting patches from the Matrix itself, something that would be a problem playing live though a high wattage sound system. Some of the buttons have to be pressed 2 or 3 times before being recognized.  The unit is beautiful in itself and it is very difficult for me to make the decision to send it back for a refund. I'm not using MIDI or programming it. I will just be using it as a straight forward playable board to record direct to the DAW. I may be able to overcome the oscillations and noise with equalization but the thumping/clicking of all the buttons may be a deal breaker. I have spent $10's of thousands with Sweetwater and I am usually very satisfied with their recommendations. This one though is becoming very disappointing. A small note on the MiniBrute I own, this is a much quieter synthesizer.
Cheers

[Thierry -Arturia]

Hi Rixcom,
Very sorry to hear that your MatrixBrute does not seem to fit your expectations.

The click that occurs when switching patches is to disapear in the next firmware update to come (no release date yet, but a matter of weeks). Preset loading time will also be significantly reduced.

For the noise and oscillations, I am not sure what you are referring to; noise can indeed happen in case of a ground loop and this can be overcome (see http://forum.arturia.com/index.php?topic=90189.0).
If you are referring to background noise, it is true that with such a huge dynamic (9 waveforms + noise can be mixed into each filter, actually 14 waveforms counting the ultrasaw), one has to take more care of gain staging than with much simpler architectures such as a MiniBrute's. Also compared to the MiniBrute (or other synths which VCO level can be high enough to drive the filter),  note that some of the VCO level gain has been "transfered" to the drive feature of each filter so they wouldn't drive that much when Drive is 0, even with a VCO in at full level.
You probably already know that, but just in case, to minimize background noise you might want to follow this rule: the closer to the sound source, the higher the level, up to the limit of distorting the next stage too much to your taste. This way the later gain stages (e.g.  phones level) shouldn't be too high in level -and noise sould be reduced. Also if you are not using one of the filters you might want to set its level to 0!

Oscillations.. are you talking about the small VCO bleed in the Steiner filter ? The good news is that this bleed is actually being filtered by the filter, so if you are using the SP filter you should be feeding it with sound sources that should be way louder than this bleed and not be bothered by it. If you are using it with external-in only, you might want to set the VCO pitches to extreme settings so you don't hear the bleed anymore. If you are using it for self oscillation playing only... you must be a masochist as the Steiner filter inherently does not track well at all. Finally if you are not using it, it might again be a good idea to set its level to 0.

For the buttons not being recognized, I don't think we have ever been reported such an issue. You might want to contact our customer support for this.
Any other issue still not covered, please don't hesitate to come back to us, the more precise the description, the more likely we will be able to come back with a solution/an explaination, or at least learn something!

Hope this helps,

Thierry

[Rixcom]

Hello,
Thank you for your response. The oscillations and digital sounding low level noise almost sounds like an ungrounded FPGA, something foating maybe and only on certain patches. This may also be just the way the amplifiers are cascaded creating a huge amount of gain. The multiple button pressing looks to be resolved by just using them or how hard they are pressed. The firmware update is definitely a plus, which I figured would be. Just to throw it out there, I am an EE and design microwave oscillators, so I know my way around a schematic or two. Not to compare Arturia to other new brands, but I did have similar issues with the new Deepmind 12, which was also resolved with firmware updates. The Matrixbrute's sound it quite remarkable and I will compare it to my OB-8, Voyager and A6 as far as oscillators and filters go. It is a well constructed instrument and has saved me a huge amount of space and money diving into some modular technology. I will keep you informed on any other issues I may come across. Please keep me informed on the firmware update slated to resolve the button issue. I appreciate the support and will not be returning the unit. It is a very overwhelming impressive piece of equipment that sits in nicely with the rest of the beasts I own.
Thanks again Rick

[BobTheDog]

Hi,

I just tested mine by turning the gain on my Apollo preamp up to +65 db to listen to the noise, I hear absolutely no digital type artefacts at all.

My hearing only goes up to around 17K, is the noise you are hearing above that?

Or is it only on certain patches or after doing certain things?

[Rixcom]

Hello,
The hiss is always there coming from either the phones or the main. There are audible oscillations and clicking on quite a few of the patches, some louder than others. I went through each of the patches, most are clean. Some of the oscillations sound like they are bleeding through the effects circuitry as well. I have not moved or adjusted any of the knobs or functions. It is set as received from the factory. I am waiting to hear back from Sweetwater, the vender I ordered the unit from. Trying still to make up my mind if I want to wait for firmware updates and how to deal with the oscillations bleeding through. I may be sending the unit back anyway. I figured I give it a few more days after deciding to keep it, to see if I can live with the hiss and other noise. There is a time limit on getting a full refund. 
Rick

[Rixcom]

Here are more issues...Notes are held on certain patches and only way to cut off is to cycle power. There is more clicking on certain patches when playing keyed notes than others. The unit goes into other weird modes when moving either of the tuning/mod wheels. Notes drop out when playing and switching patches. Too much for me. Still in the 30 day period for a full refund. Sending the unit back and will wait until the bugs are worked out...may buy again, who knows...
-Rick

[BobTheDog]

Sounds to me like there is something wrong with your one.

I don't have any of these issues.

[PXPT]

@Rixcom - I have to agree with @BobTheDog that there is something wrong with your MB. I have had a careful listen at high gain on my monitor speakers and can only hear a slight hiss but no artifacts. The noise floor is very good on my rig and anything untoward would immediately become apparent. I have tried out about half the patches and have not noticed anything untoward on any of them. The patch switching, I agree with you that there is a definite thump when you switch which is not a problem for me as I am pure studio but the speed of switching patches and the thump would definitely be a problem playing live.

[Rixcom]

Hi Gents!
Thanks for the feedback! Trust me, sending this unit back was not my intention. I was willing to wait out the Firmware updates, as I did with my new Deepmind 12, that had similar latency issues. I am also using it to record but I record using several keyboards on one track. I have gotten inquiries to do some gigs but have always hesitated for reasons of equipment expense and just the quantities of equipment I would need to move and set up. This unit just wants to stay put in the rig. It was insane just getting it boxed up to return without damaging it. I spoke with several support people at Sweetwater before making the decision to return the unit. Most of the forum issues people are having I haven't even gotten to the point check them out, such as USB noise and tuning stability. Part of this recording hobby, is the ability I have to repair vintage analog synths. I agree the MB I received definitely has issues. This must be one of the first to roll of the assy line. My order went in almost a year ago and I believe I was the 1st on the list at Sweetwater to receive one. Really sad to send it back. It's sitting in my SUV waiting to go to FedEx at lunch. I very rarely send back instruments and have little, if no issues with new purchases. I'm hoping to repurchase this unit after the Firmware update is completed to resolve the latency issues and any other issues they find.
Good luck with yours!!
-Rick