I’m happy with mine.
Can anybody who owns both comment on the sound difference between mother32 and the se02? Only regarding oscillator and filter sound.
I’m pretty convinced that the mother has one of my favorite sounds that I ever heard from demos. But the se02 has 3 oscillators, a delay and patch memory … hmm.
The se02 seems to be more on the powerful, aggressive side, while the mother always sounds so sweet and brassy. How is the se02 with softer tones?
I don’t have a Mother32 but I’m fairly familiar with its sound. It is quite a sweet sounding synth.
The thing with the SE-02, like a lot of synths recently, is that it allows for quite a lot of aggressive overdrive / distortion, in more than one place. It’s quite easy to overdrive the mixer section, into the filter, even without using the “feedback” knob. The filter resonance can get very aggro as well but on paper it’s a very similar filter in both synths, a classic Moog-style 24db ladder filter.
So essentially, it’s very easy to make the SE-02 sound big and angry. But if you restrain yourself a bit, and maybe even only use one oscillator, I should think you can get pretty close to most M32 tones, notwithstanding any modulation patching or HPF use.
Here’s a softer sounding patch I made (osc 3 is detached from the keyboard tracking to make a drone note):
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Thanks for your comment.
Yes, that’s what I’m wondering, if I you can get this sweet quality when you don’t use all vco’s, don’t drive the mixer and don’t use the feedback… It’s great to have all these options on the other hand, that’s for sure
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IIRC you can also tame down the output by using MIDI CC volume to the synth. Going to lower values is reported to cause mellower sound…?
Anyone know if the knobs on the se-02 are as bad as some claim? It’s a tossup for me between this and the boog D. I know the advantages of the se-02 over the D already. It’s only the build quality I’m looking at. Also, did the software update on the se-02 fix the cutoff stepping?
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Bad in what way? Too small? Or wobbly? They are small but usable IMO. I think it bothers some people more than others. I appreciate the small size so I can live with it.
The knob caps on the switchable controls don’t fit as snugly as the ones on the pots. The pots are rock solid. Anything that’s a switchable control wobbles a bit. But it’s the knob caps, it’s not the shafts. They’re solid. Build quality in general is very good IMO.
The cutoff stepping is a midi control issue that’s a tradeoff for midi CC control and recallable presets. You can CV control the cutoff frequency via a dedicated input, and e.g. SE’s own Ext Box provides a nice big knob that controls the cutoff via CV for nice smooth / fine changes. That comes at an extra cost though, obviously.
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I have an SE-02. Use it a lot. I have no issues with the knobs. The ones that switch the wave type that click into place a little squishy, but i don’t find it irritating at all.
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Yeah, I was concerned about the wobble. I love the 3 Osc synths. I’ve watched all kinds of comparison videos of it against the boog d. I’m actually glad it doesn’t sound like the boog exactly. I like things that are original to themselves. SE have always been a great company with their boomstars. I haven’t got to put my hands on the se-02 or the behringer but I want one or the other. Having a sequencer onboard isn’t important to me but saving the patches would be really nice. If the cutoff can be cv controlled that’s an easy fix even without the se expansion box. Hmmm, my only issue with it is Roland having their name on it. It feels like they put stuff out and forget about it shortly after.
I still dig my SE02
The only gripe I have with it is the relatively coarse tuning parameters of the indiv oscs, a pity there’s no osc specific CVs…
Does anyone use the SE-02 with their DAW? I’ve got a new iMac with Logic Pro coming and I’m wondering if I’ll be able to just connect it to the computer with the one USB cable for audio and midi, this would be nice as I would be able to record it without cabling it up to my audio interface.
Yes, that’s possible.
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Thanks for the confirmation.
Santa is bringing me one of these (there was a crazy sale price at Rub-a-dub a few weeks ago). Cannot wait 
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I think they’re about 400 in a few stores , 2nd hand 300 or near .
Which seems very reasonable ,usb audio , digital control (presets ) , sequencer.
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I hope you enjoy it. I’ve downsized my hardware synths to just this one because I want to learn it really well. I have one of those EXT Boxes on the way, which adds a bit more control to the filter and some more distortion (and more inputs).
If you use a computer at all in your setup I recommend the editor from SE. It is good for understanding the patches, and apparently they are working on an update for DAW integration.
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I managed to snag one for £300 new – a pretty sweet deal, too sweet to resist anyway.
It does seem like a great price for the functionality it offers and the small knobs don’t bother me in the slightest
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Thanks dude, looking forward to it. The EXT box does look intriguing and I’ll definitely check out the SE editor – thanks for the tip.
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£300 is a total bargain, it’s a beast of a synth.
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