Doepfer

> Since I try to use the A-100 more and more as a live instrument I know what
> you mean. The other side is, that it is very easy to build such modules on
> your own. 

Just because something is easy for some people to DIY doesn't mean it has 
no value as an idea for a module.  The simplest things are often overlooked in 
the areas of design, playability, and ergonomics.  

If a simple manual gate pushbutton is so easy to build, why not get creative 
and come up with a more complex module with several buttons that can 
output more complex, musically useful triggers (rapid-fire strings of triggers, 
simple envelopes, a percussive transient, etc.).  Or how about a row of 
pressure sensitive buttons that output a gate as well as a pressure signal. I 
could go on and on with different useful ways to configure a manual gate 
module. The impulse behind the request for a manual gate is the desire for 
more and better manual control not simply to stick a couple of buttons and 
jacks onto a front panel.

The preliminary design offered on the Doepfer site offers a simple and 
predictable two gate, two toggle layout.  Certainly a useful module but not 
really showing any sensitivity to the underlying problem of how to make a 
Doepfer modular more of a playable instrument.  For example, why is the 
knob at the bottom where presumably you would want to rest your hand while  
playing?

I say this all not to be overly critical but hopefully in a constructive spirit.