>i've got a complete four voice architecture waiting for a

polyphonic interface :(

To me at least, just adding polyphonic MIDI to CV interface is not
enough of an answer because you get such (imho) basic polyphony. It
gives you a basic polysynth out of your well equipped modular. While
perhaps what you do get can be quite usable at times, it really has a
lot more disadvantages in terms of lack expression, speed, high price
and sometimes even timbre. Some of the other alternative polyphonic
options like a decent polysynth, or sampling your modular, or a
virtual modular do seem to have a lot of major advantages, not just
minor ones

Compared to working with a mono modular it is very limiting imho
unless you have something very rare and customized going on. You
might have something like an aux voltage for velocity but that just
means there is a single parameter that is sent with the CV. Tasks
like changing the envelope or resonance means you have to go over to
each voice and change it for each voice, usually impossible in real
time though I guess basically possible with a lot of aux channels.

It's fair enough to say some people like a polyphonic sound where the
voices don't match. Just want to get that out, though some
multitimbral polyphonic synths have that, (sometimes not even
intentionally ;-)

But looking at a polyphonic modular where you can't quickly and
uniformly change the timbre realtime reminds me that multi-sampling a
modular patch not only may get you practically the same playable
result but it leaves you far more modules to work with per voice (=
a more complex voice) since you don't need duplicates and then the
sampler gives you far more voices of polyphony. I'd say the only
thing you aren't getting with sampling is any randomization you might
be patching in somehow. If you could add all that extra expressive
and timbre changing playability you have with a mono modular sound
and make it poly then you'd have a clear advantage with hardware
modules. But it's not so clear an advantage if your poly modular just
has a very basic sound and no good way to change the timbre in realtime

nick