How To Make FM Formant Growl Bass Sounds on Sonicware Liven XFM - Accessible Tutorial

video upload by ChrisLody ChrisLody

"I was planning a different tutorial today but after being asked if this was possible I got a bit obsessed with working it out last night so thanks to Dino Goldie for prompting me to make this video. I find pretty much all aspects of sound design interesting and I've always wondered how these FM bass sounds were synthesized so I'm glad I looked into it, the XFM is pretty good at them!

As I say in the video this is designed to be an accessible tutorial as the Liven series has attracted a few visually impaired users. Let me know if this was clear and easy to understand or I totally messed it up :)"

ChrisLody Sonicware Liven posts

How To Edit Korg NTS-1 'WAVES' Oscillator - Korg NTS1 Tutorial

Published on Apr 21, 2020 ChrisLody

"Just a quick tutorial video on how to edit the Korg NTS-1 'WAVES' oscillator. The WAVES oscillator is a custom oscillator for the NTS-1 that comes pre-installed. It's got a lot more depth than the other oscillator settings but unfortunately the details aren't really covered properly in the manual or anywhere on the net that I can find. So here is my exploration of it. It can be an extremely gritty sounding oscillator, or layered set of waveforms when pushed."

ChrisLody NTS-1 posts

100% Korg Ds-10 - Neighbourhood Watch by ChrisLody

YouTube via ChrisLody
"This was a bit of an experiment in minimalism for me. All the audio was sequenced on korg Ds-10. I tried to change the patterns as little as possible throughout the sequence while still trying to keep it interesting.

The video was filmed from my studio window on my cameras low light setting for the smear effect. I thought I was going mad when after a few minutes of watching the playback the bushes seemed to spell a word that seemed quite fitting...."

Sonicware Lofi-12 XT Now Shipping w/ "Try Now, Intro Deal!"

Playlist:
Lofi-12 XT [Basic Workflow] - Sonicware
Lofi-12 XT [Post-Apoc. / Cyberpunk Jam] - Sonicware
Sonicware Lofi-12 XT Sound Demo (no talking) Ambient, IDM and Dub Techno - Limbic Bits
Sonicware Lofi-12 XT - Drill n Bass Preset Patterns - ChrisLody
Sonicware Lofi-12 XT Full Tutorial - Portable Sampler Groovebox - ChrisLody

"Lofi-12 XT, announced on Kickstarter in '23, is now proudly completed!
https://sonicware.jp/pages/lofi12xt

・12/24kHz Early-Digital Sound Sampling
　with 12BIT Sampler mode

・Intuitive & Non-stop Beat Making
　with 8-Track Sequencer

・Powerful Signal Processing :
　8 x Insert FX, Delay, Reverb and Master FX

・Effortless Background Mix-Tape Recording

・Versatile Connectivity with Other Devices

・Extensive sample library of over 2,500 samples"

"Try Now, Intro Deal!" details:

"The MSRP for Standard Black is $499 (Limited Retro color $559), but we want as many people as possible to use it and spread the word about its fascination. So we are launching our 'Try Now, Intro Deal!' campaign at our dealers. [check with dealers on the right]

"Try Now, Intro Deal!" campaign prices:
Standard Black color: $399
Limited Retro color: $429

[Standard Black €469 (Limited Retro €499) in Germany, Standard Black £399 (Limited Retro £429) in UK]"

Noise Hero Kit Now Available

YouTube Uploaded by ChrisLody on Mar 18, 2011

"Noise Hero kits are now available to buy from http://www.symetricolour.etsy.com in USD and http://www.folksy.com/shops/ChrisDodsworthDesign in the GBP. There is also a pre built version for sale.

The Noise Hero is a lofi noise maker with a lot of routing options built onto a piece of stripboard using a 4093 quad nand chip. This video shows some of the example sounds that are located on the CD rom that comes with the noise hero.

For more about the Noise Hero see this youtube video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gd9QBBueroA"


Uploaded by ChrisLody on Feb 16, 2010

"First build test of my Noise Hero (previously known as ill logic)

Noise hero is a little 4093 based noise maker which is available to buy from http://www.symetricolour.etsy.com in USD and http://www.folksy.com/shops/ChrisDodsworthDesign in the GBP. There is also a kit version available. I may also produce a boxed version depending on demand.

It is controlled by 5 knobs, 8 switches and one push button.

It has 3 oscillators (Yellow, Green and Blue knobs). Osc 1 produces audio frequency ranges whilst osc 2 and 3 produce LFO and audio freqencies.

Osc 1 goes to the output through a simple passive filter (Red knob) while osc 3 can be switched to the output but bypasses the filter.

Osc 3 modulates osc 1's pitch by the ammount set by the orange knob. This modulation can be shaped by 2 shapers which can be switched on and off. Osc 3 can also gate osc 2.

Osc 2 can gate osc 1 and passes through an inverter after which it can gate osc 3.

There is also a push button to trigger the unit (actually a power button), a switch to lock the power on, a power led indicator and a battery cap switch which lets the unit run for a short time after power off for springy type noises.

A certain configuration can even produce sounds that stop after a time determined by osc 3 which is good for maker sound effects. (see 4:44 onward)

The knobs all go backward as you may have noticed. This is because I'm using logarithmic knobs which make the oscillators easier to contol when wired up the wrong way round.

This is my first build. Everything works perfectly but I found I'd barely alloed myself enough room to fit everything on the stripboard. I'll make the next one bigger.

I'm keeping this one!"

90s (ish) Ambient DnB - Nord Lead 12 Voice, Zoom 1201, FAB Echo, SmplTrek

video upload by ChrisLody

"In the spirit of trying something new here's an attempt at a genre I've never tried before, Ambient DnB. This is something I've always admired when it's pulled off well, frantic background beats with smooth foreground sounds. Not bad for a first go this I think

The SmplTrek is doing most of the heavy lifting here. I used it's 'chop to drumkit' feature to chop up one of my own drum breaks, pitch it up and sequence it into a few variations.

I'm running the output in a kind of parallel processing sort of set up with two channels of the drum breaks hard panned, one high pass filtered and routed to my external reverb on the Zoom 1201 to give me tweaking control of the high frequencies and the other left drum and low pass filtered. Bass and strings also come from the output that is not routed to reverb but these use the internal reverb.

I then play some occasionally successful staccato lead sounds from the Nord Lead through a modded Fab Echo and that's about it."

https://chrislody.bandcamp.com

Clavia Nord Lead 1(1995-97) Retro Review and Tutorial

Published on Feb 18, 2019 ChrisLody

"This is my Clavia Nord Lead 1, an early virtual analog synthesizer from 1996. The first Nord Lead was manufactured between 1995-1997 and originally came in a 4 voice version which was later supplemented with an expansion and an updated 12 voice version that had the same functionality as the expanded synth. I'll show you how to use most of the functions, showing how the oscillators and filters sound and talking about some of it's strengths and weaknesses."

ChrisLody Nord Lead videos

SONICWARE Liven XFM Shifting Ambient Textures Tutorial

video upload by ChrisLody

"Just a quickie this one while I get into the swing of making regular tutorials again, in fact it took me much longer to decide what to record today than it did to actually record it. This video shows how you can make shifting ambient textures on a Soniware Liven XFM using it's X-LFO feature with an attempt at showing how the Color setting affects morphing."

ChrisLody Liven posts

Retro Review & Demo - Waddington's Compute-A-Tune Toy Sequencer

Published on Feb 3, 2019 ChrisLody

"This is the Waddington's Compute-A-Tune which is a tiny toy sequencer and keyboard that was released, at my best guest, in the late 1970's or early 1980's. Cool little thing I hope you'll agree :D

Here's the song I made with it:"

#Jamuary Day 21 - Waddingtons Compute-A-Tone Toy Sequencer

Published on Jan 21, 2019 ChrisLody

"Day 21 of Jamuary

I have to confess that I made this back on the 5th of Jan as part of Jamuary but made a better tune immediately after. Time is short today though. This was made using only the 1970s maybe 1980s Waddigtons Compute-A-Tune toy sequencer and a 4 track. For me it invokes the sound of cold war number stations, the little musical bits in between all the code. Like something from The Lincolnshire Poacher broadcast."

Legacy Tapes - Golden Error

YouTube Published on Apr 15, 2012 by ChrisLody

"Part of the Legacy Tapes series.

In this track i used a Yamaha Pss-780, a Korg poly-800, a Korg MS10, a Yamaha QX-5 sequencer, an Inkel mixer and an Akai HX-M11 tape recorder. All equipment dates from 1991 or earlier.

A modern computer was used to emulate an Atari ST running PSSED to edit sounds in the Pss780."

Update: SoundCloud here: http://soundcloud.com/chrislody/sets/legacy-tapes/

Super Lazy Sci Fi Soundtrack 3 - SmplTrek Liven MEGA Korg Volca Keys NTS1

video upload by ChrisLody

https://chrislody.bandcamp.com
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/SymetriC...

"The Synth Tray 2 saga continues. It's now grown a little to include a battery bank to power the NTS-1 that you can see tucked under the cables behind the SmlpTrek. This has 2 outputs so it's also able to power my handmade midi thru box now I've made a cable for it, you can see it at the top right. I've also added a Little Bear MC5 mixer which is sat behind the ELZ_1 play. This is really just a temporary fix because I plan to replace it with a Bastl Bestie when I can justify dropping £200 on one.

So a bit about how this is all setup. The SmplTrek is controlling all the midi in this setup with multiple midi tracks set to different channels. The midi out goes to the midi thru splitter box which then connects into the Liven MEGA and Korg Volca Keys. The SmplTrek is also playing the deep pad from the beginning which was sampled out of the ELZ_1 play into it, and the drum loop. When I'm using this in a sofa session I mix the external gear on the Little Bear MC5 and monitor all the audio through the SmplTrek and usually add a little of my send effect to the output, but this time when I recorded it for this video I connected all the separate instrument outputs to my audio interface instead to give me a greater level of control over the final mix.

The Korg Volca connects through the NTS1 in this jam and I'm using the Hammond Eggs Music - Haze reverb. It contains a high pass filter so it's great for making top end pad/string type sounds. I checked this list of available plugins for the NTS1 recently and found loads of new stuff I didn't know about. Mine is absolutely full now :)

I'm using the ELZ_1 play to play the Liven MEGA here and using the LFO set to a speed of zero as a upward pitch bend. The current firmware of the ELZ_1 play has no 'local control off' function which makes it hard to use as a controller and sound module while composing in a setup like this as playing external midi channels also triggers the internal sound engine. I've suggested adding 'local control off' as an option, so fingers crossed for that one.

The MiniDisc player isn't really part of the setup I've been using, but it was nice to see it fit neatly with everything else :) I was planning to record the output down a global track on the SmplTrek, but they're mono so the ambience lost something when I did that, so I resorted to just playing it live and looping the track. The ambient recording is of my home town of Boston, Lincolnshire, UK.

The NTS1 is being used as an insert effect here (the Volca Keys is passing straight through) but once I buy a Bastl Bestie there is a way to use that in a send/return configuration which will be very useful from such a smaller mixer."

Nord Lead Synth Pads & Field Recording - Epic Sci-Fi Ambient Music

Published on Mar 21, 2020 ChrisLody

"I'm not sure that 'Epic Sci-Fi Ambient' is a thing but this is definitely sci-fi and somewhere between epic and ambient, so I'm sticking with it.

So with this one I pretty much made what I actually set out to, which was a Blade Runner ish inspired soundscape 'nice' ambient thing. I'm using the Clavia Nord Lead 12 Voice for pads and lead/bass (I made the pad sound this morning, not sure if the lead/bass is one of mine or a preset tbh), Sony MiniDisc MZ-N710 with a field recording I made of passing cars in the rain back in the early 2000's, both with a boat load of Zoom 1201 reverb. I chose to most random bunch of chords ever but somehow it hangs together.

Absolutely the kind of soothing music I'm looking for at the moment!"

http://chrislody.bandcamp.com

Technic SX-K350 - Cheesy Home Keyboard Synthy Pop Stuff

Published on Mar 16, 2019 ChrisLody

"This Technics SX-K350 has been languishing in my attic for a couple of years because it was faulty when I first connected it up after purchasing it and hauling it home. It's volume control had malfunctioned so it was playing well over it's maximum volume and making tons of noise. I assumed it would be more difficult that the 30 minutes it took me to remove, disassemble, clean and re-solder the volume slider or I would have done it much sooner. It's still a bit on the wonk, the audio is panned over about 50% and one of the outputs doesn't work so I’m using the headphone socket, but I think that may be more trouble to fix that it's worth. It weighs an absolute tone btw.

It's got a few usable sounds on it, especially if you like making utter cheese! Here I have the String Ensemble sound set up as a left hand split with Brass and Cosmic layered in the right hand. Interestingly it has midi with multi channel support for different layers and sync for it's drums and sequencer so I'll have to have a go at that at some point. This is just the output of the SX-K350 with a pinch of reverb to tie it all together."

Technics SX-350 via Midi - Synthwave Horror Theme

Published on Mar 16, 2019 ChrisLody

"I had a quick go with the Technics SX-350 via midi just to test it functions. I was disappointed to find to that the drums can't be sequenced which is a shame, but then thrilled to discover that all the 'poly' sounds can be played over a seven octave range! Not only that but it sounds pretty damn nice over that seven octaves too. So here is some John Carpenter inspired synthwave horror soundtrack stuff on the Guitar setting with Celeste turned on and plenty of Zoom 1201 reverb."

Sonicware LIVEN MEGA Synthesis User Demos

video upload by Limbic Bits

Two demos - audio only demo from Limbic Bits above, and an overview from ChrisLody below. See the announcement post here (directly below if you are coming off the main page)

Sonicware Liven TextureLab Sound Demo (no talking)

0:00 Stage 5-1
1:10 Club
1:47 Soil
3:00 Void
4:23 Cammy's Impro
5:08 Ambient
6:13 Sea
7:35 PADS
11:58 BASS / LEAD
14:37 Mallets / Bells
17:03 EFX / Drones / Percussion
18:58 Some Drum Samples

Liven MEGA SYNTHESIS - Retro Game Music Production Machine

video upload by ChrisLody

Sonicware Liven XFM Prototype - Demo 3 - Bass and Strings

video by ChrisLody

ChrisLody Sonicware Liven demos

FM Editing Tutorial 2 - Feedback Pad - SONICWARE Liven XFM - Accessible Tutorial

video upload by ChrisLody

"This is part 2 of my XFM deep editing tutorials. This time we're looking at making a feedback pad which is something fairly unique to the XFM. The theory behind it is that each operator becomes a square and then they are all routed into each other to create a chaotic sound."

ChrisLody Liven XFM Tutorials

(Music Only) Rescoring an Action Sequence - Behind the Scenes - Spitfire Audio Competition 2020

Published on May 20, 2020 ChrisLody

"You can find the original completion entry with the action scene footage here: [below]

So I entered the recent Spitfire Audio rescore competition with a crazy idea, 'I'll do a picture in picture thing to show what I'm doing and submit that I though'. Not only is that a stupid amount of work but it goes against the rules of the competition so I decided so split that idea off into another video so I can show it in more detail and without the sound effects and copyright problems from my submission. So here it be. Enjoy"

Punching Metal - Westworld Scene Rescore #westworldscoringcompetition2020

Published on May 20, 2020 ChrisLody

100% Korg Ds-10 - Parallax by ChrisLody

YouTube via ChrisLody
"This track was written entirely on Korg Ds-10 by using a few techniques I have found. It uses the 4 note chord trick from my first video, I knicked one of the drum tracks for the bass, plus I'm running the sequencer at half speed with double triggered drum sounds, which is something I plan to do a how-to on later.

My wife came up with the idea for the video which is a stretch of road between Boston and Wrangle in Lincolnshire which is famously very flat as you can see. It reminded me of many early nineties video games, so I finished off the track on my Ds-10 as they seem to go together nicely. The first attempt at the video was a bit shakey so the second time we duck taped a Fuji Z20fd to the inside of our car for a more steady shot. I think it worked well.

There is a special prize for anyone who can count all the crops in the fields!"

Protolody - Song-a-day 2024 - SmplTrek Liven MEGA ELZ_1 play Volca Keys NTS1

video upload by ChrisLody

"Full Disclosure: I occasionally take on freelance work at Sonicware on an hourly rate producing synth & sample sound design, beta testing, checking English text, video manuals etc. This video wasn't paid for directly but as a result of my work with Sonicware it is marked as Paid Promotion

So just recently I've been a down about my musical output to be honest, mostly the quality of my jams that I've been putting up on YouTube. This came to a head last weekend when I got talking to someone about my 2014 album, listened to some of it and had the realisation that the contents of that album is better than my work now. I imagined I'd grown as an artist but that was not the case. The main culprit was that I was actually making decent arrangement back then, taking my time to build something over at least a few day. Here's the album in question: https://chrislody.bandcamp.com/album/...

Due to my recent workload I've been favouring making jams, recording them and uploading them immediately. Don't get me wrong, there's a lot that can be learned from this approach, but carry on too long and it's like eating a bag a crisps everyday for your main meal, not satisfying.

A lot of the album above was created on the Nintendo DS and PSP using Nitrotracker, Korg Ds10 and Beaterator. These are nice little closed systems and have the benefit of running on something you can sit with on the sofa and really dig in to get the most from the software and finesse your work. I don't really want to return to using those though as I've just about rinsed them and they're not easy to integrate with other gear as they have no midi capability.

So my thoughts turned to something I kind of made as a joke video but actually turned out to be really useful, the Synth Tray. My original one of these was made from a bit of scrap ply so it wasn't very big and I want to cram on my gear so now I've made a new one, 'Synth Tray 2 - Dawless Evolved'"

Song-A-Day & #RPM Challenge 14 - 'End Credits' Synthwave on PO-20 Po-28 & Blofeld

Published on Feb 15, 2019 ChrisLody

"So here's a bit of chip tune inspired music on the Pocket Operator PO-20 Arcade and PO-28 Robot, which are a match made in heaven in my opinion, joined eventually by a C64 style pwm lead sound on the Waldorf Blofeld. It has a really nice wavetable called Micro PWM which sounds like it must have been sampled from a SID chip to me as it's very close to the authentic sound of 8 bit hardware. The whole thing sounds like some sort of synthwave end credits to me."