ADDAC 301C (2014)

A minimalist, no-power solution to switching CV or audio paths with your foot—like a stompbox for your modular, but quieter than a mouse in a recording studio.

Overview

You know that moment when you’re elbows-deep in a patch, both hands twisting knobs, cables draped like vines, and you just need to flip a gate or mute a sequence—but your feet are just… hanging there, useless? The ADDAC 301C answers that with surgical simplicity: two passive switches, each triggered by a standard sustain pedal, letting you toggle any CV or audio signal on or off without touching a single module. No power, no fuss, no signal degradation—just pure mechanical switching. It’s the kind of module you don’t realize you need until you’ve used it once, and then you wonder how you ever performed without it.

Part of ADDAC’s 300 Series of expressive control modules introduced in early 2014, the 301C sits at the quiet end of the spectrum—no LEDs, no voltage generation, no offset adjustments. Where its sibling, the ADDAC301 Floor Control, brings expression pedals and gate outputs into the system with active circuitry, the 301C is the silent workhorse: plug in a standard piano-style sustain pedal, patch your signal through the jacks, and stomp. That’s it. It doesn’t color your sound, doesn’t require calibration, doesn’t draw current. It’s so simple it borders on invisible—which is exactly why it works so well.

At 4 HP wide and only 3 cm deep, it slips into even the tightest skiff or travel case without complaint. The build is typical ADDAC: clean, functional, with recessed jacks to avoid cable strain and a sturdy aluminum faceplate. You won’t find any knobs or switches on the front—just four 3.5mm jacks (two input, two output) and a tiny label marking the dual channels. It’s the module equivalent of a pocket knife: unassuming, always ready, and unexpectedly essential when the moment calls.

Specifications

Key Features

Passive Switching, Zero Noise

The 301C doesn’t just avoid adding noise—it can’t. With no powered circuitry, there’s no hum, no crosstalk, no voltage sag. When you route a delicate LFO or a quiet audio signal through it, what goes in is exactly what comes out, just switchable by foot. This makes it ideal for live performance, where reliability and silence are non-negotiable. Unlike active switching modules that might introduce slight latency or require calibration, the 301C is literally a set-and-forget solution: patch it, plug in a pedal, and forget it’s there until you need it.

Dual Independent Channels

Two completely isolated signal paths mean you can mute a sequence while latching a drone, or switch between two different filter CV sources mid-phrase. Each channel has its own dedicated 6.3mm sustain pedal input, so you can use two pedals for independent control or daisy-chain a single pedal to toggle both channels simultaneously (if your pedal supports dual switching). The jacks are arranged in pairs—Input A to Output A, Input B to Output B—so routing is intuitive, even in low light. No normalization, no jumpers, no hidden modes: what you see is what you get.

Skiff-Friendly and Tour-Ready

At just 3 cm deep, the 301C clears even the shallowest Eurorack cases. It doesn’t require a power cable, so it doesn’t clutter your bus board or draw current from an already taxed power supply. That makes it a favorite among modular travelers and performers who need reliability without bulk. It’s also one of the few modules that feels equally at home in a studio rack and a gig bag—no fear of damaging sensitive circuitry during transport, since there’s nothing to damage.

Historical Context

The ADDAC 301C emerged in 2014 as part of a broader wave of expressive control modules aimed at bridging the gap between traditional instrument performance and modular synthesis. At the time, Eurorack was rapidly expanding beyond academic and experimental niches into live performance, and players were demanding more intuitive, physical ways to interact with their systems. While many manufacturers focused on touch plates, ribbon controllers, or complex MIDI interfaces, ADDAC took a minimalist approach—offering tools that repurposed existing gear, like expression pedals and sustain switches, rather than requiring new learning curves.

The 301C was introduced alongside four other 300 Series modules, including the muscle-sensing ADDAC303 and the power-starving ADDAC300, positioning ADDAC as a brand that valued both innovation and practicality. In a market increasingly crowded with complex, feature-heavy modules, the 301C stood out for doing one thing exceptionally well: letting you use your foot like a guitarist uses a stompbox. It wasn’t flashy, but it solved a real problem with elegant simplicity.

Collectibility & Value

The ADDAC 301C has never been rare—ADDAC produced it in steady supply since 2014—but it’s also never been common. It’s the kind of module that gets bought, installed, and stays put. As a result, used units appear infrequently on the secondhand market, usually priced between $80 and $120 depending on condition and region. New old stock, if found, typically sells for around $130, reflecting its original €60 price point and modest demand.

Since it’s passive and contains no electronics beyond switches and jacks, failure points are minimal. The most common issue reported is worn-out sustain pedal jacks, usually from repeated plugging and unplugging or using pedals with slightly oversized connectors. These can be replaced, but given the module’s low profile and recessed jacks, soldering requires patience and a steady hand. The 3.5mm signal jacks are standard Eurorack size and robust, but like all small-format jacks, they can loosen over time with heavy cable use.

For buyers, the main advice is to test both channels with a pedal before purchasing. Some users report that older units may have slightly stiff switches that don’t fully engage unless the pedal is pressed firmly—this isn’t a defect, just a characteristic of the mechanical switch design. If you’re using it for critical live switching, test it with your actual pedal to ensure reliable actuation. Otherwise, the 301C is about as low-risk a modular purchase as you can make: no power concerns, no firmware, no calibration. It either works or it doesn’t—and when it works, it works forever.

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