"Step back to 1978 and discover the iconic Roland CR-78, the first programmable drum machine that changed the way artists approached rhythm. Before the 808 and modern drum machines, the CR-78 gave musicians the power to create and store their own drum patterns. In the hands of artists like Phil Collins, Peter Gabriel, and Blondie, it became iconic. For this Vault, we’ve preserved the much-loved character of the CR-78 and expanded its sonic potential with some tasteful effects."
The Crow Hill Company creates …RHYTHM MACHINE as latest free VAULTS… VI, preserving vintage classic’s character while expanding its sonic potential
EDINBURGH, UK: The Crow Hill Company is proud to announce availability of VAULTS - RHYTHM MACHINE as its latest VI (Virtual Instrument) release ready for all to download and make music with for free for the rest of their lives — literally preserving Roland’s 1978-vintage CR-78 CompuRhythm’s classic character as the Japanese giant of electronic musical instrument manufacturing’s first programmable drum machine (that changed the way artists approached rhythm and, in doing so, stamped its musical mark on a number of notable hit records that subsequently secured its iconic status in the annals of music technology history for all eternity), effectively expanding its sonic potential with some tasteful effects as a result — as of October 1…
Far from stretching the boundaries of truth, it is fair to say that the introduction of Roland’s CR-78 CompuRhythm changed the course of history as the first computer-controlled programmable drum machine. Most rhythm machines before its late-1978 introduction were preset-only affairs, forcing their users to pick from the likes of ‘Bossa Nova’, ‘Rock’, and ‘Waltz’ — more in keeping with the home organ-orientated terminology of the time. The CR-78, however, offered something new — namely, an ability to program rhythm patterns and store them in memory using the external WS-1 programmer optionally offered by Roland. Indeed, its 14 onboard instruments include bass drum, cymbals, hi-hats, rimshot, snare drum, and tambourine alongside several Latin-type sounds, such as bongos, claves, and cowbell — all generated using analogue circuits, giving it a distinctly warm, punchy character. Thanks to the CR-78’s analogue nature, though, the tempo control is not exactly surgical, but this foible only adds to its charm. And, as history has borne out, when placed in the creative musical hands of Blondie, Phil Collins, Peter Gabriel, and others, it became an iconic instrument in its own right.
"It one of storytelling's oldest tricks, the bad guy that turn out to be the good guy. From Dickens’ Ebeneezer Scrooge to Jane Austen‘s Mr Darcy, from J.K Rowling‘s Snape to (who ever came up with him!?) Jonny Lawrence from Corbra Kai, the tough guys aren‘t as tough in the end and often the bad reputation they carry isn‘t really their own fault.
So, will a synth that is both notorious for being little more than a dub step noise machine and a cheaply built and quickly abandoned piece of glossy white plastic actually turn out to be the hero of the story?
It very much depends on who tells the story here, as M-Audio‘s Venom clearly has it‘s strengths if you can overlook the questionable design decisions made during it‘s inception. Like the hard to read grey on grey lettering or the fact that M-Audio thinks it totally ok for a stand alone hardware synth to heavily rely on a software editor that requires a PCor Mac to be able to utilize most of its extensive set synth engine features. Even the Virtual Analog Synthesizer claim that is prominently featured on the synth itself, it a bit of a hoax, as the Venom basically is just a souped up Rompler running on Amtel‘s Dream series ICs that were also found in PC sound cards and Karaoke Machines in the late 90s and early 2000s.
If you ignore these shortcomings and manage to get the editor running, you might be surprised of what the Venom can actually do. Apart from all the obvious dirty and distorted stuff, a lot can be achieved with the synth engine. Also as it was designed as an all in one solution for music beginners, you can even use it to record and process other instruments and even your own voice (vocoder anyone?).
Last but not least, the Venom might be pretty much the only synth whose price tag doesn‘t seem to have skyrocketed during the pandemic, here in Europe, you can still regularity find one for around 100€!
Curious? Then go ahead and press play!"
0:00 Intro
0:46 Introduction
1:29 The ugly parts
2:10 The bad parts
3:12 The good parts
4:35 Controls and connectivity
6:07 'Sick and Nasty' Patches
8:40 'Mad FX' Patches
9:29 'Whirling Pad' Patches
13:19 'Clean Keys' Patches
14:54 'Stained Keys' Patches
18:12 'Amazing Arp' Patches
20:46 'Traditional' Patch
21:13 Some Drumkits
22:39 Multi Mode Demo
25:31 Conclusion
26:10 Outro
RS042.1 M-Audio Venom: 'No Talking Edition'
"This is a shorter 'No Talking' edit of my video about the M-Audio Venom for those who prefer 'pure' demos without comments."
"The BEATS FM is a project that started in 2020 and has gone through 4 revisions. Built out of pure passion by our team in Italy, it’s an experimental all-in-one stereo synthesizer and audio processor, with a warm analog sound and many sync options. Designed for exploring and designing new sounds and noise textures for studio or for live performance. Packed with modulating, sync and processing power. Complete analog audio path, with the addition of a digital delay. The equivalent of 8 modules enclosed in an elegant, high-quality beech/aluminum case with an antenna.
We want to give everybody the possibility to participate in the creation of this unique machine. We feel that the world needs new options when it come to music production and sound exploration. The spontaneous and versatile nature of the BEATS FM, together with it's warm analog sound is designed to be a center piece to a number of music studios worldwide.
This is the first ever production run of this unit, and nobody knows if there will be further developments in the future. It all depends on the support that all the backers will bring to this project. Our goal is to produce as many units as possible. Satisfaction of every backers is our main priority. Thanks to you, this project is already a reality! Every backer will receive a one-of-a-kind, hand-assembled, individually numbered, limited edition BEATS FM with power supply, antenna and user's manual."
MAIN FEATURES
1 x stereo wide-band FM/AM/SW radio with LFO modulated tuner knob 2 x analog 4-pole low-pass filters (clones of CEM3320, the chip used in the Prophet 5) with self-oscillating resonance and LFO modulation 4 seconds of stereo digital delay with time control, feedback, tone, sync and panning with LFO modulation 1 x LFO with 16 different “bendable” waveforms with rate, multiplier and polarity 1 x Sync unit to lock the LFO to: 1-audio click track, 2-analog clock, 3-tap tempo 2 x analog 2-pole high-pass filters 1 x effects mixer 2 x external audio inputs with overdrive
"It's been Superbooth 2020 Home Edition and there's too much stuff. Not all of it was new but we had unprecedented detail in awesome live streams about a load of modules and synth. Including my own live stream interviews with synth related people who fascinate me. There are lots to get through and this is just the stuff that I liked in particular - there are loads of things I didn't have space for.
Erica Synths goes nuclear, ST Modular releases 1000 DIY modules, Ritual Modular gets into 1U, 1010music gives us a mini sampler, Befaco does a mini VCMC, Expert Sleepers gives us double the trouble, Bastl loops MIDI, Liquid Foam is a very cool box, Tangible Waves lets us all build modules, Strokes 2 is a mad software groove machine, TiNRS has a Covid kick drum module, Future Sound Systems has a complex VCO, Noodlebox is a thing, Critter and Guitaris does video, There's a whole synth in KOSMO format, Elk Audio OS does something interesting, and there's a shed load of stereo filters. But first, Distrokid.
"A quick demo of a patch inspired by one of Caitlin's topics at the Secondary (High) school she now attends.
Here Make Noise René 2 is sequencing the 4ms Spherical Wavetable Navigator, Synthesis Technology E352 & E370 (with VCA controlled by Doepfer A-178 Theremin). Voice Samples are controlled by the 4MS Stereo Triggered Sampler (further pitch-shifted by the QU-Bit Nebulae). Drones via the Mother32. Keys via Behringer K2. Drums via Mutant Bass and Snare.
A tiny bit of reverb via Soundcraft Lexicon unit."
"Caitlin was invited to a special backstage tour at the National Music Centre in Calgary.
This included the chance to try out some unique and historic instruments, the highlight for her was undoubtedly creating and playing a simple patch on TONTO."
"We were excited to add a Qu-Bit Nebulae to the Mad Music Machine, especially as it is powered by a Raspberry Pi and the Mad Music Machine began it's life as a small network of Raspberry Pis.
Our last Raspberry Pi project used our Astro Pi code (which ran on the International Space Station) to make music, so we thought we should follow up with another space-based project for this video.
We downloaded the raw 'Martian Winds' sounds from the NASA website and loaded them onto the Qu-Bit Nebulae. The Nebulae has independent control of (playback) speed and pitch which allowed us to bring the 'wind' sounds up more into the audible range.
We created an 'industrial' rhythm by using a 'sample and hold' LFO within Bitwig (via our Expert Sleepers ES8) matched to our Make Noise Tempi clock. This modulation signal was used to 'Freeze' the output of the Nebulae.
We also created wavetables for our E352 by loading the downloaded 'Martian Winds' into the Synthesis Technology WaveEdit program. We sequenced the E352 with our Make Noise René 2 to create the "Touchdown Confirmed" bass line / melody.
We loaded the NASA commentary of the landing into our 4MS Stereo Triggered Sample which was sequenced and synchronised with the rest of the patch using our Tip Top Circadian Rhythms.
All sounds within the patch were generated from the InSight mission with the exception of the Hexinverter Kick, Snare and Clap.
We recorded the audio using Bitwig Studio with our Nektar Panorama P6 controlling the Mixer.
And finally, following previous feedback, Caitlin's voice was recorded using a RØDE Smartlav+ Lavalier Microphone.
We are aware the video focusing is not great in this video so that is the next thing we need to work on!"
"Here we test the latest E352 firmware which (among other things) adds a 'Morph + Detune' mode.
We detuned the 2nd output to be an octave higher than the first. One theremin modulated the E352 FM input, The second theremin modulated the 'Crush CV' on the Erica Synths Black Hole DPS2, theremins 3 & 4 were connected to the crossfade on the Morgasmatron to allow modulation between 'dry' and 'distorted' waveforms.
Caitlin then jammed using the Mother-32 sequencer and mixer to control the E352.
Other than the Mutant Bass Drum and Snare, all sounds in this video are from the E352"
Published on Oct 16, 2018 Rob Papen
Update: New Video Published on Jun 20, 2019
"This inspirational bundle holds 20 RP products if you include the amazing Prisma! which you can request after registering your bundle.
Go2: The power of limitations.
RAW-Kick: Edgy Kicks for comtemporary music.
MasterMagic: Adds a touch of magic for your Mix or Master.
SubBoomBass 2: Ultimate bass synthesizer.
Predator 2: The Synth that hunts your tracks!
BLUE-II: Cross-fusion synthesis at its finest.
RG: Electric and acoustic guitar grooves.
RP-Verb 2: Most intriguing in RP-VERB 2 – alongside the to a great sound – is the new ‘Reverser’ section!
RP-EQ: Silky smooth sounding channel and mastering EQ.
Blade: The cutting edge of today's synthesizers!
Punch: Speaker busting and body rattling drum machine.
Punch-BD: Based around the BD module of the multi award winning Punch virtual drum synth,
RP-Delay: Delay insanity. Reverser, 6 lines, 8 filters, 4 LFOs and more.
RP-Distort: Wicked FX unit that will distort or alter your tracks.
RP-Amod: Spice up your vocal track, liven an instrument and even beef up your drums.
RAW: Cutting edge EDM synthesizer with the focus on 'distorted sounds'
SubBoomBass: Ultra-deep groove bass synth with built-in step sequencer.
Predator: Phat analogue style synth with killer presets and first class features.
PredatorFX: Filter, modulation, vocoder and effects plug-in.
Prisma: Get creative using Rob Papen's take on instrument layering."
Update: and the press release:
"ECHT, THE NETHERLANDS: virtual instrument and effect plug-in developer Rob Papen Inspiration Soundware is proud to announce availability of eXplorer 5 — furthering the creative scope of its inspirational plug-in bundle by adding Go2, MasterMagic, and RAW-Kick to the all-encompassing musical mix — as of October 16…
Now numbering no fewer than 20 highly-versatile virtual instruments and extraordinary effects, eXplorer 5 pushes Rob Papen’s plug-in bundle beyond belief by including three new additions that more than live up to its Inspiration Soundware slogan.
MasterMagic is an aptly-named effect plug-in with which to improve mixes or final masters alike. Anyone placing MasterMagic at the very end of their virtual master effects chain can easily experience how much it can help improve their tracks. The MONO/STEREO SPLIT FILTER section will make the low end much tighter while the AIR function — even applied at a liberal level — is sheer magic. Make no mistake: there’s no mystery about this magical musical tool!
The name maybe gives the game away, as RAW-Kick represents Rob Papen’s cutting-edge kick drum-creation tool! The perfect weapon of choice for those hard-sounding electronic dance music styles — such as Hardcore, Hardstyle (mixing influences from Techno and Hardcore), and Industrial — and also EDM and House. Here RAW-Kick creatively enables the use of three layers, each of which can be either modelled or sample-based at source. Rob Papen being Rob Papen, RAW-Kick has some refreshingly resourceful features with which to create unique-sounding kicks up its virtual sleeve! Still better, RAW-Kick comes complete with a varied selection of original presets from a long list of respected DnB, Hardcore, and Hardstyle producers, including Caine, DJ Mad Dog, DJ Promo, Orphidian, Sinister Souls, Tha Playah, The Outside Agency, and Wavolizer, to name but a notable few.
Finally, Go2 is an appropriately-named, go-to synthesizer, set apart from its award-winning software siblings by virtue of all its controls and features always being in plain sight and always available to access onscreen, so simplifying usage for the average user. Ultimately, though, this is far from being a simple-sounding virtual instrument. Its Morph feature and XY section serve to make for a powerful software synthesizer, one with which users — average or otherwise — can create unique sounds speedily and easily! End game? Go2 surely shows that there is power to be had in the ‘less is more' maxim... and all without sacrificing audio quality!
Quality, of course, shines brightly through all 20 of eXplorer 5’s highly-versatile virtual instruments and extraordinary effects. Established Rob Papen classics such as Blade (quite literally a cutting-edge software synthesizer), BLUE-II (self-styled ‘Crossfusion Synthesis’), Predator2 (software synthesizer to die for), Punch (speaker-busting, body-rattling virtual drum synth), Punch-BD (Punch- based bass drum module), RAW (software synthesizer specialising in ‘distorted’ sounds specifically suited to EDM and beyond), RG (unique electric and acoustic guitar groove virtual instrument), and SubBoomBass 2 (groove bass software synthesizer) — not forgetting an array of effects, including RP-AMOD (uses modulators to alter audio in different ways), RP-Delay (six delay lines, eight filters, four LFOs, a reverser, and more), RP-Distort (designed to destroy, distort, or more subtly alter any audio), RP-EQ (silky smooth- sounding channel and mastering EQ), and RP-VERB 2 (advanced, transparent, and musical-sounding algorithmic reverb) — sit comfortably and creatively alongside those three additions to collectively push Rob Papen’s prized plug-in bundle beyond belief.
But hearing is believing; best put this way, eXplorer 5 is the all-encompassing best that you can get from Rob Papen — all the more so since it also includes PRISMA, easily enabling users to layer multiple Rob Papen virtual instruments into a creatively stacked sound like no other!
eXplorer 5 can be purchased in a boxed edition — featuring 20 AAX (32-/64-bit), AU (32-/64-bit), VST (32-/64-bit) compatible audio software plug-ins for Mac OS X (10.6 or higher) and Windows (Vista, 7, 8, and 10) — from authorised Rob Papen dealers worldwide or as a download directly from Rob Papen for €499.00 EUR/$499.00 USD from here: http://www.robpapen.com/eXplorer5-buy.html
Several options to upgrade to eXplorer 5 are also available, attractively priced as follows: €299.00 EUR/$299.00 USD (available to owners of one purchased Rob Papen product); €199.00 EUR/$199.00 USD (available to owners of two purchased Rob Papen products); €149.00 EUR/ $149.00 USD (available to owners of three purchased Rob Papen products); €99.00 EUR/$99.00 USD (available to owners of eXplorer4); €49.00 EUR/$49.00 USD (available to owners of eXplorer4 + Go2); and €149.00 EUR/$149.00 USD (available to owners of eXplorer III)."
"We took the Mad Music Machine to Horsham AmeriCARna and invited the public to interact with it via our Thermins.
Caitlin and her friend recorded some samples, setup some rhythms on Circadian Rhythms, and Jammed away on the Theremins to generate uScale quantized notes for the E352 and E370.
A Thermin controlled Disting produced the effects.
We had a great day with the public and are looking forward to coming back to Horsham AmeriCARna again!"
"A very quick test of the setup we will be taking to Horsham Americarna.
4 Theremins that the public will be encourage to try out. One pair control the E352 (Frequency and Waveshape) and the other the E370 Frequency & Delay."
"This one's a bit experimental! We use the CV and gates of the Theremins to control E352 and E370 audio envelopes connected to the inputs of the Distings. The Theremin CVs also control the feedback to the B4 algorithm which is configured to output only the delayed signal.
We are planning to build another of these 'Double Disiting Theremin Instruments' to allow groups of children to jam together at our events.
Caitlin has had some great fun jamming with this and along the way has invented the 'crossed- theremin' technique :)"
'We were thrilled to be invited to run a demonstration of the Mad Music Machine at the Brighton Modular Meet.
We thought it would be a good idea to create a patch using waveforms generated from our Astro Pi data with samples we created from the European Space Agency commentary of Tim Peakes flight from Earth to the International Space Station.
We used the Synthesis Technology WaveeEdit programme to create the wavetables which on the E370 are taken from the pattern formed by the humidity data recorded in our experiment. The E352 uses a sample of the engine noise of the Soyuz TMA-19M which on which Tim Peake travelled - this is modulated in cloud mode to give the 'engine' sounds.
As the data was generated on a Raspberry Pi so we thought it would be appropriate to use Sonic Pi for for the sequencing :)
Her Caitlin jams with that patch :)"
Update:
Caitlin's live performance at the Brighton Modular Meet 2018
Published on Jul 2, 2018 The Mad Music Machine
"We had a fantastic time at the Brighton Modular Meet and met some wonderful people.
Caitlin enjoyed performing this and was very happy with the audience's reaction at the end!"
"Addictive TV have released to the public samples from their amazing 'Orchestra of Samples' project. The samples were collected over a 4 year period and involve over 300 musicians from 30 countries.
Here Caitlin live jams with a few off those samples that we have loaded into the 4ms STS. Caitlin mixes those samples with our own sounds & sequences generated in the Mad Music Machine."
"Last weekend we took the Mad Music Machine to Horsham Piazza Italia. We showed young children how we could sample their voices and gave them the microphone and told them to say anything they liked.
We had some interesting results from the many children (and adults) that took part!
Our favourite moment was when a family with 3 young children created a tune involving 'Peppa Pig' sounds - including of course, some 'oinks'.
Next time we do this we will ensure we can record their creations for them but here Caitlin is recreating their tune with the original voice samples, together with the beats as best as she can remember them.
For a bit of fun I have also added the Peppa Pig melody to the Mother-32 sequencer."
