"A regular SCI RAM card and internal VS RAM has 100 programs and 32 User waveforms.
Our new SYNTHTASTE VSC-16 Card has 16 banks: thats 1600 Programs and 512 User waveforms in total! Developed and designed in Germany
This card can be used on your PROPHET VS keyboard AND your PROPHET VS rack, it is fully compatible and the display is easy readable on both.
The new VSC-16 SYNTHTASTE card includes:
- a tested and preformatted cardridge
- the original SCI PROPHET VS factory bank
- PLUS 4 extra banks fully loaded with SYNTHTASTE customer programmed sounds (that’s 500 preinstalled sounds in total you can start with
- space for up to 1100 personal sounds
- 2 digit bank display
- 2 bank buttons"
"Summit is Novation’s latest synth and takes their Peak 8 voice poly, adds a 61 key keyboard and doubles up the voice count. Effectively Summit is like two Peaks but with more features.
With a 61 key keybed (yes it has aftertouch) Summit has more real estate to add extra controls, and thats the first thing that we get. With Peak, although we have a lot of front panel controls, there’s still a lot of stuff accessed by the section menus.
Summit adds - voice control, FM controls per oscillator, arpeggiator controls, global LFO 3+4 control and envelope looping buttons. This all helps bring more parameters to the fore and is most welcome.
Summit works in four basic modes - single - with up to 16 voices - each with three of the Oxford Oscillators,
Multi: Split - one layer for either side of the split (up to 8 voices)
Multi: Layer - two sounds played as one, with A/B layer
Multi: Dual - Bi-timbral mode each layer can be addressed via a separate MIDI channel
Layers are selected with the A/B buttons - somewhat similar to the way the Sequential the Rev 2 handles it, but with a more positive indication - the pitch and mod wheels, animate buttons all change colour (orange/blue)
Additionally you have an AUX stereo output so layers can be routed to their own stereo pair. Remember, each layer is basically a self-contained Peak - with 8 voices and those lush FX engines (chorus, delay, reverb and distortion).
Another major change to the actual voice is the inclusion of a Dual mode filter - something those familiar with the Oscar (Chris Hugget also designed this) - the 24dB filter can be split into two 12dB filters with a separation controlling the distance between the peaks. It's a fairly unique and interesting sound.
Audio Inputs - we have a stereo input to the engine which can be routed to the mixer/filter/VCA etc, but also now can be routed directly to either FX engine - without the need to for key-down or VCA getting involved. In practice, that means you can run one of the FX engines as a purely external FX processor, which is actually pretty cool. One thing, the settings for this are not stored in the Multi but rather globally.
Speaking of memory - you get 512 single patches (four banks of 128) and 512 multi patches. These are completely independent and dedicated to multis and store the full settings for both engines.
How does is sound?
As with the Peak, there are many, many complex patches available - it's a lovely synth to program, still a little menu-ey, but a synth of this complexity, you have to expect that, but essentially, it's hard to run out of routings, we have the same 16 slot mod matrix, and also a four slot FX mod matrix for modulating FX parameters (level, speed, delay time etc)
For a full review of the Peak - check out our videos.
On the whole, I really like this instrument, it's priced at around £1899/$1999 so it's comparable in price with the 16 voice REV 2, but with three fully featured oscillators per voice, you get more oscillators and therefore more synthesis.
The FX engine speaks to my more ambient leanings, but it's fully capable of a wide range of sounds, with all that extra drive of the original it can get ugly too - if that’s what you want.
A good instrument that follows up on the Peak’s philosophy. Hard to fault.
"This quick tip is about how to make a granular sample sound on a Korg Volca Sample.
You will need:
- A Volca Sample (you could try this on other samplers as well)
Instructions:
- Pick your sample (this works better on a longer sample)
- Set the tempo to max (240BPM)
- Go into step mode and put triggers on all 16 steps of the sequence
- Push play to start the sequence
- Adjust “Start” to change which part of the sample you hear
- Adjust “Length” to change how big the grains are
- Adjust “Speed” to change the pitch
- Add some attack to make the sound less clicks and glitchy
- Add reverb to smooth the sound out more
This trick adds something almost like granular synthesis to a sampler that doesn’t have a granular mode. In granular synthesis playback speed, direction and pitch are all independent of one another.
Every time the sample is triggered a "grain" is heard. The start setting sets where in the sample the grain is from, the length adjusts how big the grains are and speed adjusts the pitch. The envelopes adjust the grain window shape.
"Ok, I've only had these for less than 36 hours but am excited to share some of my quick, off-the-cuff explorations with these very cool modules! I'll also be further exploring these at https://knobcon.com September 6-8 at the Buchla booth.
More info of course at https://buchla.com -- it will be a few more days before the Red Panel info posts there.
Also, checkout and join my Patreon page for more tutorials, tips and tricks: https://www.patreon.com/synthtodd"
"Acclaimed electronic producer #MatthewHodson presents his exciting new project, #MATTHS.
With his debut performance at the #Superbooth Festival 2019, the Brighton-based artist presented two stunning performances, providing a solo heavy dark modular Techno set at the C-Base party and this special performance which enlists drummer Scott Rowe to provide a dynamically charged and captivating performance.
MATTHS new releases ‘Velocet’ and ‘Loop’ which both immediately provide the listener with their masterful, brooding beats, uses a bespoke modular synthesiser setup, that MATTHS has designed and compiled, enabling the creation of textures and tones specific to personal creative concepts.
Recent MATTHS performances include opening for Wire; supporting Alex Banks (Monkeytown Records), Ulrich Schnauss and Rival Consoles (Erased Tapes). MATTHS has worked with the original BBC Radiophonic Workshop on their new material at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios.
"A live synth jam. Fairly simple because I limited myself to one drum beat and one fill, and a basic chord sequence.
Tanzbar drum machine sends gate signal to Pro~One (CV not connected so I can change bass notes with the Pro~One keyboard) and MIDI clock to the Q+, which in turn sends arp MIDI to PolyEvolver."
"A regular SCI RAM card and internal VS RAM has 100 programs and 32 User waveforms.
