Friday, June 12, 2009
Yamaha Sy22 Vector Synth (Wavestation Korg - D50 Roland) demostration by S4K
YouTube via Space4Keys. Note the Yamaha TG33 is the rack version of the SY22.
"Demostration
Keyboard: Yamaha Sy22
Performed by S4K
www.space4keys.com www.keyboardsolo.com"
TIM 1037 - Alan Parker - Without Shadows A
YouTube via Sketchboxx
"must be that old oberheim drum machine on that early 80s library. enjoy"
It does sound like the Oberheim DX. Anyone confirm? Curious what the synths might be as well.
Wolfram Franke Interview on Sonik Matter
Note this is an old interview from 2001. I just never posted it before. Thanks goes to Mark Pulver for sending this over to the Waldorf mailing list. Wolfram Franke is the product specialist and a coder for Waldorf, the old Waldorf and new. He is one of the core influentials at Waldorf.
According to the interview, the first synthesizer he programmed on was the Wersi MK1 in 1986: "Wersi and it is called MK1 (Series III). It was a 20 voice, 8 part multitimbral additive synth with up to 32 harmonics, an integrated chorus/ensemble effect and only one VCF, but that one was a copy of the Moog 24dB VCF plus a good-sounding overdrive."
Some interesting snips on his time with Waldorf:
"The Pulse was the first synthesizer where I helped working on the basic concept, i.e. sound parameters, UI layout and overall sound character.
The concept of the Microwave II was done almost completely by me and half a year later, I started to write down the controls I would like to see on an extended version of the Microwave II. You know the result, it became the Microwave XT!"
Regarding the Q being modeled after the Pulse:
"Oscillators - those are real models of analog oscillators, resulting in a very fat bass sound even when you listen to them without filters or effects. They behave exactly like their analog counterparts and they were modelled after the analog oscillators of our Waldorf Pulse synthesizer.
Filters - those are also real models, not only algorithms as found in almost all other VAs. This means that they can self-oscillate and allow FM. They are modelled after something in-between the Curtis filters from the Microwave 1 and our discretely built Waldorf Pulse four-pole filter."
Note the above is just a small fraction of what you will find the full interview. Do check it out. It is fascinating and it is one of the rare interviews that primarily focuses on synthesis.
Note you can find all interviews featuring Wolfram Franke here.
According to the interview, the first synthesizer he programmed on was the Wersi MK1 in 1986: "Wersi and it is called MK1 (Series III). It was a 20 voice, 8 part multitimbral additive synth with up to 32 harmonics, an integrated chorus/ensemble effect and only one VCF, but that one was a copy of the Moog 24dB VCF plus a good-sounding overdrive."
Some interesting snips on his time with Waldorf:
"The Pulse was the first synthesizer where I helped working on the basic concept, i.e. sound parameters, UI layout and overall sound character.
The concept of the Microwave II was done almost completely by me and half a year later, I started to write down the controls I would like to see on an extended version of the Microwave II. You know the result, it became the Microwave XT!"
Regarding the Q being modeled after the Pulse:
"Oscillators - those are real models of analog oscillators, resulting in a very fat bass sound even when you listen to them without filters or effects. They behave exactly like their analog counterparts and they were modelled after the analog oscillators of our Waldorf Pulse synthesizer.
Filters - those are also real models, not only algorithms as found in almost all other VAs. This means that they can self-oscillate and allow FM. They are modelled after something in-between the Curtis filters from the Microwave 1 and our discretely built Waldorf Pulse four-pole filter."
Note the above is just a small fraction of what you will find the full interview. Do check it out. It is fascinating and it is one of the rare interviews that primarily focuses on synthesis.
Note you can find all interviews featuring Wolfram Franke here.
RMI Harmonic Synthesizer vs. RMI Keyboard Computer
via Wavecomputer360 on the AH list:
"both machines are totally different beasts, and even the two different versions of the KCs differ considerably from each other. I can only speak for the KC-2 (which I hated to see go a couple of years ago but then again, it was worth a couple of months´ rent for my flat...). The KC-1 is a totally different cup of tea. I have never used, let alone owned one (I think I had one out of nine KC-2s ever sold to owners in Germany).
A common trait of both instruments -- the Harmonic as well as the KC -- is that they both tend to sound a little static and not really rich and animated, very digital. Their digital nature (oops, there´s that word again) keeps them a bit too much in tune so you´d need some external effects to make it sound a bit more animated. It´s great as a source of samplefodder and really unusual overtone spectrums. The Harmonic of course allows you to change overtones while playing it which is something you can´t perform on a KC (a trick commonly used by many Harmonic Synthesizer players... insert the wooden wedges into the keyboard in order to keep a set of keys pressed, let the arpeggiator noodle on and on, and change overtones as it goes). Also, the Harmonic has a built-in analogue VCF (here´s that word which makes the whole affair come back on topic again...) plus the arpeggiator which allows for rudimentary realtime sequencing. You can´t do that on a KC.
What the KC can do, though, is to sound a bit like a proto-PPG of sorts -- although a lot more polite and well-behaved than a PPG 360 --, or a Prophet VS, for that matter. Its "Bells" preset was absolutely striking (no pun intended), and so was the "Pipe Organ". It has a very interesting raw sound which is ideal for further processing. One feature of the KC I was particularly fond was holding down a chord while inserting punchcards and hear the sound transform from one into another. That was definitely proto-PPGish. You could also do that when setting up two completely different sounds in each channel and use the pedals to let them fade into each other seamlessly.
Being a bit blatant, I´d recommend listening to the ['ramp] album "ceasing to exist" which was recorded in collaboration with touch guitar player Markus Reuter. I used mainly the RMI KC-2 Keyboard Computer for the electronic sounds and drones, plus a couple of loop devices. You can find the album as legal download on www.musiczeit.com (check for the label "Extended Moment"), there should be some audio to try out. There´s also a download-only album out called "drones and shimmers" by the humble writer of these lines (click here). I used the KC, plus a Jamman, for the tracks "working the soil" and "cultivating the sky". On a different note, I used the Harmonic and its built-in arpeggiator a lot on a track called "Cosmic Caravan" off a limited-edition CDR album called "blasters of the universe". You might be able to find a copy somewhere...
Hope that helps,
Stephen."
"both machines are totally different beasts, and even the two different versions of the KCs differ considerably from each other. I can only speak for the KC-2 (which I hated to see go a couple of years ago but then again, it was worth a couple of months´ rent for my flat...). The KC-1 is a totally different cup of tea. I have never used, let alone owned one (I think I had one out of nine KC-2s ever sold to owners in Germany).
A common trait of both instruments -- the Harmonic as well as the KC -- is that they both tend to sound a little static and not really rich and animated, very digital. Their digital nature (oops, there´s that word again) keeps them a bit too much in tune so you´d need some external effects to make it sound a bit more animated. It´s great as a source of samplefodder and really unusual overtone spectrums. The Harmonic of course allows you to change overtones while playing it which is something you can´t perform on a KC (a trick commonly used by many Harmonic Synthesizer players... insert the wooden wedges into the keyboard in order to keep a set of keys pressed, let the arpeggiator noodle on and on, and change overtones as it goes). Also, the Harmonic has a built-in analogue VCF (here´s that word which makes the whole affair come back on topic again...) plus the arpeggiator which allows for rudimentary realtime sequencing. You can´t do that on a KC.
What the KC can do, though, is to sound a bit like a proto-PPG of sorts -- although a lot more polite and well-behaved than a PPG 360 --, or a Prophet VS, for that matter. Its "Bells" preset was absolutely striking (no pun intended), and so was the "Pipe Organ". It has a very interesting raw sound which is ideal for further processing. One feature of the KC I was particularly fond was holding down a chord while inserting punchcards and hear the sound transform from one into another. That was definitely proto-PPGish. You could also do that when setting up two completely different sounds in each channel and use the pedals to let them fade into each other seamlessly.
Being a bit blatant, I´d recommend listening to the ['ramp] album "ceasing to exist" which was recorded in collaboration with touch guitar player Markus Reuter. I used mainly the RMI KC-2 Keyboard Computer for the electronic sounds and drones, plus a couple of loop devices. You can find the album as legal download on www.musiczeit.com (check for the label "Extended Moment"), there should be some audio to try out. There´s also a download-only album out called "drones and shimmers" by the humble writer of these lines (click here). I used the KC, plus a Jamman, for the tracks "working the soil" and "cultivating the sky". On a different note, I used the Harmonic and its built-in arpeggiator a lot on a track called "Cosmic Caravan" off a limited-edition CDR album called "blasters of the universe". You might be able to find a copy somewhere...
Hope that helps,
Stephen."
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Serge TKB patch twiddled
YouTube via b3nsf
"I set this up to do drums, then modded it for this touch mayhem.... some mellow nice craziness, enjoy!"
ROLAND CR-78 RHYTHM DRUM MACHINE
images via this auction
I never noticed the sliders on the SH-32 are similar until now.
Auction description via wikipedia:
"The Roland CompuRhythm CR-78 is a drum machine launched in 1978.
Although primitive by today's standards, the CR-78 represented an important advance in drum machine technology at the time. The wood effect cabinet and preset rhythms of the CR-78 such as Waltz, Bossa Nova and Rhumba suggest that it was seen by its designers as primarily an accompaniment for an electric organ, but the CR-78 became one of the favorite instruments of New Wave and electronic musicians in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Songs that make prominent use of the Roland CR-78 include Heart of Glass by Blondie and In the Air Tonight by Phil Collins. [2]
The machine and its controls
The CR-78 used analog drum voices, which sounded very little like real percussion instruments, but they instead had their own distinctive sounds. The unit also incorporated an early Intel microprocessor to provide digital control of its functions.[3]
Previous Roland drum machines had offered only a selection of preset rhythms. The CR-78's key new feature was that in addition to offering 34 preset rhythms, it provided four programmable memory locations for storing patterns created by the user. These could be created by using step programming with the WS-1 box, which was available as an optional extra. [4]EMS RANDOM VOLTAGE GENERATOR
images via this auction"The EMS Range of Ancillary Studio Modules EMS Modules are designed not only for use with Synthi synthesisers but with any complex of voltage controlled equipment, of whatever manufacture. They are supplied in handsome afrormosia cases, but can be removed and mounted in standard 19" racks, occupying only 1.7" (44mm) of vertical space. They contain their own mains power unit with a very wide range of stabilisation to cope with poor mains line conditions, being operable at anything from +10% to more than—23% of nominal line voltage. Connections to and from the modules can be made either from the jack sockets on the front panel or via the multi-way socket at the back. [auction description via Old Tech Synth Site - click for more]
TWO VOLTAGE RANDOM GENERATOR [via tripod - click for more]
The EMS Random Voltage Generator produces a staircase type of output, the 'steps' of which occur randomly, but whose voltage range and time variance are controllable in the following ways:
Time: The internal clock which decides the mean rate of events can be (a) freerunning and subject only to manual control, (b) inhibited so that the next random voltage depends on a manual push button or an external pulse (equivalent to external clock control); (c) free-running but voltage controlled so that an external voltage influences the mean rate. In this state the device becomes a voltage/time converter.
If the time variance control is at zero, the mean rate is constant (though subject to change of steady rate if influenced by a control voltage). As the time variance control is tuned clockwise, the mean time random variance becomes greater, and when this control is at maximum the rate will randomly vary in a ratio of more than 100:1. The distribution of chances is rectangular, not Gaussian, so that no part of the variance range is particularly favoured.
Voltage: Two voltage outputs are available and separately adjustable, but both are subject to the same time control — i.e. the steps of the staircase occur at the same time from both outputs. At zero, there is no voltage variance at all, and as the setting is increased the variance about the mean voltage (set at the device being controlled) becomes greater, excursions being both positive and negative of the mean voltage. In addition, a trigger pulse is sent whenever a random selection is made, and a lamp on the panel glows at the same time.The random voltage generator can be used for quasi-melodic purposes, for interesting timbre and other parametric changes, or at high speeds for randomly varying vibrato or tremolo (very near simulation of natural, performed vibrato), or for producing very dense textures of rapidly changing notes. A very versatile instrument, essential for any well-equipped electronic music studio.
SPECIFICATIONPower Supply:
240 or 115VAC 50/60Hz + 10% to —23%
Control Outputs:
+/- 2.5V max. (this excursion can be offset to accommodate non-EMS products).
Trigger Output:
+4V
Mean Time Range:
0.2 - 20 events per second.
Time Variance:Max. approx. 100:1 (at mid-settings of mean rate — limited by possible clock range).
Select Input and Inhibit/Free Run Switch:
+ 5V at select input or manual push button operates and inhibits after one event if switch at INHIBIT. +5V will run clock at mean rate set while present at select input, if switch is to FREE RUN.
Voltage Controlled Mean Input:
0.5V/octave ( = doubling or halving rate) limited by possible clock range."
E.M.S. DIY Modular
via satamile on this electro-music.com thread where you'll find more links including a digital release."E.M.S. was a NY based Electro producer who actually made his own Modular, Drum Machines, Vocoder and a few other odds and ends. Out of this so far he has produced four Records on Satamile Records to world wide acclaim, being played by the likes of the late and great John Peel and Dave Clarke."
PREVIOUS PAGE
NEXT PAGE
HOME
© Matrixsynth - All posts are presented here for informative, historical and educative purposes as applicable within fair use.
MATRIXSYNTH is supported by affiliate links that use cookies to track clickthroughs and sales. See the privacy policy for details.
MATRIXSYNTH - EVERYTHING SYNTH
© Matrixsynth - All posts are presented here for informative, historical and educative purposes as applicable within fair use.
MATRIXSYNTH is supported by affiliate links that use cookies to track clickthroughs and sales. See the privacy policy for details.
MATRIXSYNTH - EVERYTHING SYNTH
