If you’re curious about modular synthesis and are just starting out with VCV Rack, you may appreciate the links in this post. VCV Rack is cross-platform-compatible with Windows, MacOS, and Linux, and it’s free (though there are a few paid modules, and you’re also encouraged to donate voluntarily to the developers).

There are some great video tutorials on YouTube, but the written documentation is a bit sparse. So I figured I ought to write a free book to introduce newcomers to VCV Rack. If you’re already a power user, How to Rack may not have much to offer you; it’s not a complete manual to the 1,000-plus available modules! I’m not quite that ambitious. It’s a large file, and will take a few seconds to download.

If you find any mistakes in the book, or if you have suggestions on how to enhance it, please feel free to email me at midiguru23 [at] gmail [dot] com.

Also free to download are a couple of tutorial patches. More may be added soon. To download these patches, don’t just click on the link: right-click, choose a Save option, and save the patch to wherever you keep your VCV patches.

The tutorial polyphonic patch demonstrates how to build a two-oscillator analog-type synth with velocity response, a vibrato LFO, and a delay effect. This patch uses only the default VCV modules. It’s a sort of amalgam of two of the patches in Chapter 3 of the book.

The randomizing patch is based on the tutorial in the final chapter in the book. It demonstrates several ways to use controlled randomization to make a complex sonority. It requires modules from AS, Valley, mscHack, Nysthi, Bogaudio, Impromptu Modular, Holonic Systems, Vult, Stellare Modular, ML Modules, Geodesics, Hora, and Audible Instruments.