Squarp CORE: bring the sequencer you know into Eurorack
By Matthew Piecora, AKA, EZBOT
I've spent years learning Elektron sequencers and the M8. I know how to get a pattern moving on those instruments. Put a different sequencer in my rack, though, and suddenly I'm spending time learning how to do things I already know how to do somewhere else.
That's what makes Squarp CORE interesting to me. It lets me bring those skills into Eurorack. My rack has some really cool voices in it, but they weren't getting enough use. With CORE and XP32 handling the translation from MIDI to control voltage, the M8 can be my way into those sounds.
I want this rack ready to play, with a sequencer I already enjoy using. The less time I spend figuring out how to write a pattern, the more attention I can give to the sounds in front of me.
The sequencer is already in my hands
CORE needs an XP32 expander for its CV outputs. Together, they let incoming MIDI notes and controls drive a modular patch. CORE handles the control signals, while the modules still make the sound.
That distinction is pretty important. I can write a bass line, edit its steps, and build an arrangement in an environment I know well, while the sound still comes from the modules in front of me. I don't have to give up the weirdness of modular to get the sequencing workflow I want.
I've used Hermod+ and NerdSEQ in this role before. Those are capable sequencers in their own right, the Nerseq is the sequencer I’ve used the most in Euroack, but I don’t use my modular as much as I use my M8 or Elektron gear. For this particular rack, I kept coming back to a much more basic question: what if I just used the sequencer I'm already good at?
More than notes and gates
The envelope and LFO engines are a big part of why this is cool. An XP32 output can do more than send pitch or trigger a note. I can assign it an AHDSR envelope, an LFO, a MIDI CC, or one of CORE's other engines, depending on what the patch needs.
An envelope has a lot to do with how a voice feels to play. The same sound can hit immediately or swell in with a slower attack. Having that shaping available alongside the sequence is a big part of the appeal for me. It gives the notes from the M8 more expression when they reach the rack.
I still want to grab a knob while a pattern plays. Having envelopes and LFOs available is useful, but being able to control how much they affect the sound is what makes them playable for me. I want that control close at hand so I can listen and react while the sequence runs.
There is a real space-saving possibility here, especially when several voices need their own envelopes and modulation. But CORE is not a 6HP replacement for an entire rack. CORE plus one XP32 occupies 20HP and gives you 32 outputs in total. Pitch, gates, envelopes, LFOs, and other duties all come out of that same pool.
It can save buying and fitting separate modules for some of those jobs. It doesn't replace a VCA or a filter, and an envelope still needs somewhere useful to go. Plaits has a LEVEL input for this purpose; another voice might need an external VCA. Whether the cost makes sense depends on what you already own and what you actually need to control.
The sequence can shape the sound
A voice like Basimilus Iteritas Alter makes this especially interesting. Changes to its mode and Fold amount can give individual steps a different character. Velocity and MIDI CCs let those changes become part of the sequence, right alongside the notes.
This is the part that really kicks ass. The same sequencer I use to write the pattern can make decisions about the sound on individual steps. I can keep working in the M8 while the patch answers with something that feels very different from an internal synth.
Saving the CORE preset keeps those output assignments ready for another session. It doesn't remember where every cable went or restore the knobs on the other modules, but it takes one layer of setup out of the way.
A patch I can get to know
One voice and a short pattern can already give me plenty to work with. I can hear what the instrument does, where it feels good, and which changes actually make the music more interesting. That's the kind of familiarity I want with my rack.
A filter moving against a repeating bass line, or a timbre change on a particular step, can be enough to keep a pattern interesting. I don't need a cable in every input. I want a few useful controls that I understand well enough to play without stopping to think about the setup.
CORE can also map incoming CCs to its own engine parameters, which leaves room for envelope and LFO controls on a MIDI controller. That possibility interests me because I already have ways I like to sequence and perform. I want the rack to fit into that workflow.
A rack I want to come back to
I'm tired of rebuilding this case just to figure out what I want it to be. I'd rather keep a selection of voices I like, have the routing ready, and make music with them. CORE makes that feel much more practical for me.
If you already love sequencing on Hermod+ with XP32, CORE is not automatically an upgrade you need. For me, the draw is getting the control I want without asking another sequencer to become the center of the setup. My M8 skills are already there. Now I can use them to get more out of the rack.
That's why this feels like a game changer for my workflow. I'm spending less time trying to find my way around a different sequencer and more time playing the instruments I bought the rack for in the first place.
For another approach to making a focused modular instrument, read my modular dub techno groovebox article.
Explore the setup
Squarp CORE and CORE + XP32 options at Squarp
Already choosing an XP32? Shop the exact expander at Perfect Circuit or Thomann. XP32 is the expander, not CORE itself. Check the bundle contents before ordering so you have both parts.
Want help making your own hardware setup feel more playable? Book a one-on-one lesson. We can work with the instruments you already have.
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Disclosure: Squarp sent me CORE for this session. I already owned XP32, and Squarp had no say in what I said about CORE. Some retailer links above are affiliate links. If you buy through them, I may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.