RS042 M-Audio Venom: The Bad Guy

video upload by rejected synths

"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."

Molten Music Monthly - April 2020 - Superbooth Special

Published on Apr 30, 2020 Molten Music Technology

"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.

Intro - 0:14
Distokid - 2:25
Erica Synths Fusion II - 6:11
ST Modular - 9.51
Ritual Electronics - 11:51
1010music - 13:15
Befaco CV Thing - 15:18
Expert Sleepers Disting EX - 17:46
Bastl Instruments MIDI Looper - 20:07
Herbs and Stones Liquid Foam - 22:31
Tangible Waves DIY - 24:01
Strokes 2.0 - 25:58
TiNRS Circular Thing - 27:17
Future Sound Systems Recombination Engine - 29:04
64 Pixels Noodlebox - 30:23
Critter & Guitari - 31:42
ELK Audio OS Blackboard - 33:25
Look Mum No Computer Kosmo - 37:44
Stereo Filter Bonanza - 40:07
Finishing off and coming soon - 44:40"

1066 - on a Modular Synth

Published on Mar 1, 2020 The Mad Music Machine

"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."

Haven't seen her in a while. You can find additional posts featuring Caitlin here. Here she is with TONTO.

Synth Kid Caitlin back with TONTO

Published on Aug 1, 2019 The Mad Music Machine

"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."

You can find previous posts featuring Caitlin here. See the label below for more posts featuring TONTO.

Qu-Bit Nebulae, InSight lander and the Martian Winds

Published on Jan 20, 2019 The Mad Music Machine

"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!"

Caitlin demonstrates the Make Noise René 2 sequencer

Published on Nov 28, 2018 The Mad Music Machine

"Caitlin has been learning about René Descartes at school which inspired us to add a Make Noise René 2 and Tempi to the Mad Music Machine.

This a simple patch: René X channel to E370, Channel 1, René Y channel to the E352, René C channel to the System 1.

No other sounds sources or effects were used but we have a few extra patch cables to feed the audio to Bitwig for Analysis."

E352 Morph + Detune Mode with Quadruple Theremin Jam

Published on Nov 3, 2018 The Mad Music Machine

"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"

Rob Papen Explorer-5 Introduction

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)."

Jamming with Theremins at Horsham AmeriCARna

Published on Sep 30, 2018 The Mad Music Machine

"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!"

Quadruple theremin test for Horsham Americarna

Published on Sep 28, 2018 The Mad Music Machine

"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."

Double Disting Theremin Jam!

Published on Sep 6, 2018 The Mad Music Machine

"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 :)"

---
Xymox's "A Day" meets Kraftwerk at 1:54.

Theremin & Disting triggered E352 & E370 Bongos and Chords

Published on Aug 22, 2018 The Mad Music Machine

"Caitlin uses the Doepfer Theremin (via the Expert Sleepers Disting) to trigger the E352 and E370 to produce 'Bongo' sounds and Chords.

She ends with a little jam on the Roland System-1m.

The Moog Mother-32 & Hexinverter Mutant Drums help with the rhythms.

Bitwig Studio provides the sequencing via the Sixty Four Pixels Banana Split"

Bitwig Studio, Modular Synths & a Flute play No Limits.

Published on Aug 7, 2018 The Mad Music Machine

"Caitlin uses the Sixty Four Pixels Banana Split to connect Bitwig Studio to the Mad Music Machine.

She sequences the Mother-32, E352, Roland System-1m and the Hexinverter Drums from Bitwig and plays her flute over the top!"

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!"

Follow-up to this post.

Astro Pi / Tim Peake inspired piece created for the Brighton Modular Meet

Published on Jun 30, 2018 The Mad Music Machine

'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!"

4ms STS and Addictive TV Samples

Published on May 13, 2018 The Mad Music Machine

"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."

E352 Cloud Mode 'World' Drums

Published on Apr 15, 2018 The Mad Music Machine

"We use the E352 & E370 in Cloud Mode to create some rhythms inspired by some of the sounds we heard at the WOMAD Festival.

The only sound sources in the patch are the E352 and voice 3 of the E370.

We use the pico sequencers to 'tune' the voices but the gates and the patterns are set by the Circadian Rhythms."

Update:

CLICK FOR MORE »

4MS STS Peppa Pig tribute! - samples recorded at Horsham Piazza Italia 2018

Published on Apr 10, 2018 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."

Rebel Technology Introduces the Magus, Wizard, & Alchemist on Kickstarter

Magus Modular Synthesizer Toolkit 2018 Published on Apr 5, 2018

"Algorithms are modern day magic spells. Add magic to your music with the Magus, a patchable, programmable synthesizer toolkit."


Magus KickBox Demo Published on Apr 4, 2018 Rebel Technology

"KickBox is a groovebox patch running on the Magus synthesizer toolkit. It makes a beat with hats and a kick, and adds a virtual analogue subtractive synth voice with a killer 8-pole resonant low pass filter.

Realtime parameter tweaking and 24 analogue patch points give you complete creative control over how the sound is produced."


Wizard PolySub Demo Published on Apr 4, 2018 Rebel Technology

"PolySub is a polyphonic subtractive synth patch running on the Wizard. PolySub has 8 voices true polyphony with virtual analogue oscillators, waveshape and PWM morph, 8-pole resonant filter and ADSR envelopes.
In this demo it is sequenced with the CV and gate outputs of a Korg SQ-1 but it can also be played by connecting a MIDI device."


Alchemist Ping Pong Delay Demo Published on Apr 4, 2018 Rebel Technology

"Ping Pong Delay running on Alchemist, synchronised to the trigger output of a TR808 drum machine. The trigger keeps all the beats tight and allows the delay to bounce anything from 16th notes and triplets to full bars around the stereo space."

Check out the KickStarter here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/...

"The Magus, Wizard and Alchemist are all built on the Rebel Technology OpenWare firmware and can run the same patch programs as two of our existing products: the OWL Pedal and OWL Modular. This means that our entire library of more than 200 patch programs is ready to use right now!"

Magus Synthesizer Toolkit Prototype

"Algorithms are the magic potions and spells of the modern day. In electronic music, they make the wooshes, booms, squeals, screams and bops that might have us contemplate the universe, reach personal insight, or dance like mad for days on end. Join us on a journey to create ever more powerful algorithms, and to make them open and available to everyone. We already have a community of hundreds of talented synthesists sharing their work. Let's make it bigger, let's make it better, let's do it together!

The Magus is like having a compact modular synthesizer without being limited by the modules you've got in it.

Unlike traditional synthesizers, the Magus doesn't confine itself to a fixed function or paradigm. Whether you want granular, additive, FM, subtractive, spectral, chaotic or stochastic synthesis, Magus gives you the freedom to pick the right algorithm for the job and then lets you loose to patch up a storm.

Enjoy the creative power of a hardware synthesizer with the flexibility of audio plugins.

If our existing library of algorithms doesn't do it for you, you can even create your own, for truly unbounded creative freedom. And you can use any one of more than two hundred patches from our library as a starting point. Patches can be authored in Max Gen, Pure data, FAUST or C++, giving you an impressive range of powerful musical programming tools to choose from."

Wizard Minisynth Prototype

"The Magus' little brother is the Wizard. It runs the same patches and is also patchable as well as programmable. This means that you can change the signal flow on the fly and connect it to other kit. It is incredibly compact but still sports five assignable control knobs and four buttons, and a total of six patch points. Like the Magus it has both USB MIDI device and host connections so that you can plug your favourite controller straight in - be it keyboard, drum pads, sequencer, grid, or multidimensional controller. It makes an excellent stand-alone synth or effects unit and has huge integration capabilities."

Alchemist Microsynth Prototype

"The Alchemist is the baby of the family, but it packs a powerful punch. With four knobs, two trigger buttons, one mode button and trigger and CV inputs it amazingly still fits in your hand.

All three devices have a USB socket and can be powered by USB or by an external DC supply."

Horsham Piazza Italia 2018

Published on Mar 30, 2018 The Mad Music Machine

"We have been invited to take the Mad Music Machine to Horsham Piazza Italia - Caitlin is set up and ready to go!"