Your Synth Rig Isn't Complete Without a Step Sequencer
Doepfer's Dark Time step sequencer makes a great addition to the company's modular synth gear, but you can use it in any type of vintage or modern setup, thanks to its USB port, MIDI sockets, and jacks for analog control voltages and gate signals. In spite of its digital circuitry, the Dark Time is very much an intuitive analog-style 16-step sequencer housed in a rugged sheet metal chassis with attractive wooden end cheeks, fitted with high-quality potentiometers with metal shafts throughout. Sweetwater modular geeks know that your system isn't complete without a step sequencer like the Doepfer Dark Time.
The step sequencer and its relevance in your music
Your DAW already has a sophisticated, full-featured sequencer. Why would you want another one with severe limitations? Well, because it's those limitations that let you, with minimal effort, produce the hypnotic, repetitive note patterns that are intrinsic to electronic music. In addition to pitch and time, the Doepfer Dark Time lets you easily control, for instance, external synth parameters like filter cutoff frequency. The Dark Time's Range switch produces the voltage ranges that are useful for controlling all aspects of analog synthesizers.
Configuration flexibility to suit your needs
Whether you're using the Dark Time with your vintage synths, in your modern DAW-based setup, or in your live rig, you need flexibility — and with its onboard MIDI interface, USB port, and CV/Gate jacks, the Doepfer Dark Time delivers. With its two rows of eight steps, the Dark Time gives you the flexibility to set it up in three different configurations. As a 1 x 16 sequencer, the two rows are daisy chained. In a 2 x 8 config, both rows run in parallel. And set up as a 1–8 Combi, the lower row sets the individual gate lengths for the upper row.
Using Dark Time as a MIDI clock-to-sync interface
When running as a slave sync'd to an external master MIDI clock, Dark Time sends a clock signal from its Clk-Out socket according to how you've set its clock divider setting. You can route this signal to another, non-MIDI device such as a vintage drum machine in order to synchronize it with your master MIDI device. Start/stop and reset signals coming in through the Dark Time's analog interface jacks are also available as MIDI signals at its MIDI-out socket and USB port. Incoming MIDI data start, stop, and continue commands are also available as voltages from Dark Time's St/St Out and Reset-out ports.
Doepfer Dark Time Step Sequencer Features:
- Analog-style step sequencer with digital circuitry
- 16 steps (arranged in two rows of eight)
- Each step features pitch/gate-length knob and two step-status switches
- Ideal for modular synth systems
- Can easily be connected to modern computer-based setups or live rigs
- Intuitive user interface and operation
- Includes USB port, MIDI sockets, CV/Gate jacks
- Rugged sheet metal chassis with attractive wooden end cheeks
- High-quality potentiometers with metal shafts used throughout
- Knob caps have a classy vintage look and feel
- Powered via external power supply (included)
