Motor Synth - a brief look at the synth engine

Floyd Steinberg

"Here's a short look at the Motor Synth's engine as it is at the moment (this is a prerelease machine and some features will be added in future firmware updates). This video doesn't show all the features available, but I think it's fairly good impression on what's possible. If you want to know specific things, please post them in the comments and I'll feature them in upcoming videos.

Table of contents:

00:00 introduction
00:29 hardware overview
01:52 musical interface
02:22 volume, tuning and cross modulation
02:38 oscillator waveshapes
03:08 octave switch
03:23 amp envelope
04:11 acceleration / brake
04:41 tone
04:58 filter overview
05:27 filter resonance
05:36 filter drive
05:45 filter envelope
06:05 filter types
06:32 sequencer (not implemented), latch
07:28 LFO / modulation overview
08:05 filter lfo
08:31 pitch modulation
09:00 lfo shape control
09:22 adding the second oscillator
10:12 using the sound picked up directly from the motors as oscillators
10:48 outtro

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Digitone / PC stick improvisation: Ambient Piano

Floyd Steinberg

"A quick video outside my normal release schedule. Here's the Digitone sequencing a PC stick which is running SoniVox 'Eighty-Eight' and Valhalla Shimmer. (I was curious if the PC stick can run this rather huge plugin and the it's definitely at it's limit running this)."

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Kasser Synths Arcade YM2151 overview + Strymon NightSky

video by Floyd Steinberg

Kasser Synths also brought us the DAFM based on the YM2612 or YM3438 FM SEGA Genesis soundchip.

"Here's an overview of the Kasser Synths Arcade YM2151, the successor of the "Genesis YM3438" DIY synth with vastly superior sound quality and 8 voices of polyphony AND multitimbrality. This synth is based on the Yamaha 2151 integrated FM soundchip which was used in early 90s arcade cabinets (hence the name).
In this video, I take a brief look at the synth's features, create an evolving pad sound, pair it with a Strymon Nightsky pedal and last but not least create a short demo track making use of the machine's multitimbratility and polyphony.

Table of contents:

00:00 hello
00:43 hardware overview
02:48 loading and playing some sounds from sd card
03:04 creating an evolving pad sound: choosing an algorithm
03:39 velocity sensitivity on/off
03:51 setting up amplitude envelopes
05:20 lfo setup
06:12 saving the sound to sd card
06:30 adding superawesome reverb with nightsky
10:22 reverb demo (continued)
11:01 multitimbral demo track using an external sequencer
13:08 conclusion

Relevant links:
Kasser Synths Arcade: https://www.tindie.com/products/kasse...
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DONNER N-25: portable MIDI keyboard

video upload by Floyd Steinberg

"DONNER sent my their N-25 mini MIDI keyboard for review. Here's what I found.

Code 'Floyd’ for 15%OFF sitewide!
Donner N-25 MIDI Keyboard Controller: https://datasink.rantion-admin.com/t/HB"

HÄLP ZIS CHANNEL
https://www.patreon.com/floyd_steinberg
https://floydsteinberg.gumroad.com/
https://floydsteinberg.bandcamp.com/

Yamaha EX5 - 4 track arpeggiator

video by Floyd Steinberg

"Here's a short demo of the EX5's 4 track arpeggiator, recording a custom 4 bar pattern on 2 tracks and using that on an external MIDI device (Novation PEAK, in this case). There's a short jam starting at 6:16."



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Using a MIDI guitar pickup to create 90s alt rock on a 90s synthesiser workstation

video by Floyd Steinberg

"For some reason, there are a lot of guitar sound presets on the Yamaha #EX5​ (a #synthesiser​ keyboard workstation from the late 90s). So why not use a MIDI guitar #hexaphonic​ pickup like the Fishman Triple Play connect to create 90s alt rock using these sounds? Sounds like in "interesting" idea...

In this video, I try to show some typical guitar moves like strumming, picking, bending and sliding and how the controller translates them to MIDI. Spoiler: it works quite well, bit bends and slides have to be articulated precisely (I'm not a good enough guitar player)."

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How to use the Yamaha EX5 as the controller keyboard in your studio - pattern and song sequencer

Floyd Steinberg

'Table of contents below! One of my viewers asked for a video showing how to use the Yamaha EX5 as a controller keyboard, controlling external MIDI hardware, producing a complete song. Video takeaway: Press "edit" in song mode and then [F3] to arrange your patterns into a song.

00:00 Introduction
00:42 hardware setup (cables)
01:42 MIDI setup
02:40 song structure, pattern- and song sequencer
03:21 setting up a performance/patch overview (see [this post])
05:07 pattern sequencer (see [below])
06:59 recording modes (step, overwrite, replace...)
08:42 song sequencer
10:58 demo
11:20 conclusion/bye-bye"

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Yamaha EX5: Using the sequencer to create a loop


"In answer to a viewer request, I'm using the EX5's built-in sequencer to record a small drum/string loop.

Contents:
0:00 bla bla
0:34 creating a new performance
2:54 song mode
3:13 recording in step mode
4:14 changing the tempo
4:35 copying measures / bars
6:15 recording a second track
7:29 quantizing
8:00 adding a third track
8:20 adjusting the volume of an instrument/track
10:13 conclusion
"

Metallic sounds on subtractive synths (Yamaha EX5)

video by Floyd Steinberg

"I got some comments and mails recently asking how to create metallic sounds. As I've already done a video on how to do that on an FM synth, here's an attempt at doing something similar on a subtractive synth. Table of contents below. If you want to know more on this subject, please read https://www.soundonsound.com/techniqu...​ and it's follow-ups. The more oscillators and filter types your synth can throw at you, the better the result!

00:00​ hello
01:16​ oscillator setup (square waves)
01:47​ tuning oscillators
02:34​ applying high pass filters
04:16​ applying band pass filters
06:27​ amp envelopes for higher frequency oscillators
08:10​ amp envelopes for lower frequency oscillators
09:24​ resulting sound 1
09:50​ adjusting the overall sound by adjusting the volume of the oscillators
10:50​ combining two patches to create a metallic sounding pad
11:35​ resulting sound 2
12:09​ bye-bye"

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Hardware jams: "Engulfed" (Yamaha EX5, PEAK, Guitar)

Floyd Steinberg

"My entry for this week's hardware jams challenge (soundtrack for an underwater adventure). The EX5 is playing some sequences in song mode while I play the EP sound over that. Guitar was added later."

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DIY spill-proof dust cover for your hardware synthesisers

video by Floyd Steinberg

"If you've got an hour or so of time, some old shirts and a plastic bag and a #sewing​ kit, why not try to create some #DIY​ dust covers for your precious hardware #synthesisers​, pardon me, clothware #sewnthesisers​ ? (if you have a sewing machine at hand, this might take even less time). I think this cover doesn't look too bad and it's definitely less expensive and more eco-friendly than the plastic covers you can buy in stores."

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How to create that DX7 harmonica patch on any FM synthesiser (Elektron Digitone)

Floyd Steinberg

"Here's how to create the DX7's "Harmonica" patch on a 4-operator synth like the Elektron #Digitone. Table of contents:

00:00 bla bla
00:38 choosing an algorithm
01:02 X|Y ratio
01:12 FM amount
01:41 operator ratios
02:32 amp envelope
03:06 modulator envelopes
03:52 low pass filter / envelope
04:43 band pass filter
05:00 lfo setup
06:03 operator tuning
06:20 harmonics
06:45 controls setup (pitch bend, aftertouch)
07:46 some ideas on further tweaking and fine-tuning
08:19 overview / demo
08:42 conclusion"

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Shimmer-like reverb on a Yamaha QY70 (following @Avrilcadabra 's recipe), plus update on LMN-3

video upload by Floyd Steinberg

"A few days ago, @Avrilcadabra posted a rather ingenious video showing how to "fake" a shimmer reverb on the Dirtywave M8. You should watch it, it's short and to-the-point and it really deserves more views: [below]
In this video, I'm testing if the same ideas work on a Yamaha QY70 as well.
No table of contents today, but there's a demo at 4:36, and a short update on the LMN3 video at 6:00"

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How to make lush Shimmer reverb on M8

video upload by Avrilcadabra

"If there's a will there's a way.

#m8tracker #dirtywave

Sorry this video is fast, I tried to make it slow, but not slow enough, I zoom around the M8 so quick from using it so much. , so I'll explain here.

If you have the current firmware you can quickly render any bit of a song.
Hold shift and option to select what you want to render then press Edit 3 times, select OK to render, M8 will auto load a sampler instrument and add the render (how neat)

My pattern was 4 phrases long, so I make a new chain on the song screen, add new phrase, in that phrase add a c-4 note, it will be the new rendered sample.

then I add three empty FE phrases to the chain, to pad it out, so the sample plays uninterrupted for 4 phrases long.

Next we apply the time stretch method to our instrument, set LENGTH to 00, PLAY to FWD LOOP, set LFO to LOOPST, set OSC to Ramp UP, TRG to RETRIG,and finally FRQ to whatever length your sample is, mine was 4 phrases so I select 40 (help text says this is 4 phrases), if your pattern you rendered was 1 phrase long, then set FRQ to 10 for example,

Tweak LENGTH till it sounds less crap, between 2-4 usually.

Now adjust your C-4 to be C-5, shimmers are pitch shifted reverb an octave higher than the original sound. Because we have applied the time stretch technique our render will still be in time an octave higher. (if you want to make submarine reverb set it to C-3, or add another chain on song screen and have submarine and shimmer together!?) Now turn the DRY to 00 on the render, turn the reverb to A0, now we will only hear the octave up reverb tail, now to delay the reverb tail we use the FX command DEL02, to delay the render by 2 ticks. Now it will sound pretty good.

The final step is to add reverb on your original pattern, it will then blend into the octave up render reverb to create a full sounding Shimmer. I own a strymon reverb pedal, so I've made this to sound as close to that as I can."

10 reasons why the Akai MPC One might be the synthesiser workstation you were looking for

video by Floyd Steinberg

"I had the Akai MPC One for 2 months now, and I'm quite happy with this groovebox (better: synthesiser workstation), so here's list of things I really like about it, that you could like, too (if you're into hardware synths). Table of contents:

00:00​ quick jam (midi loop)
00:20​ hi
01:00​ #1
01:29​ #2
01:58​ #3
03:35​ #4
04:43​ #5
05:29​ #6
06:15​ #7
06:51​ #8
07:55​ #9
08:28​ #10
09:16​ bye-bye
09:38​ rest of the intro jam

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Sampling and processing a church organ on an AKAI MPC One

Floyd Steinberg

"Here are some long-drawn major and minor chords and inversions played on a church organ for you to sample. :-) Jump to 3:36 to see me creating a layered multisample with filter envelopes on the MPC One and to 12:05 for a quick jam."



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How to set up a Yamaha EX5 for a YouTube synth jam (sound design)

video upload by Floyd Steinberg

"You are in possession of a #Yamaha #EX5 and you want to create a typical YouTube synth improvisation without breaking the synth community guidelines? This video walks you through all the steps necessary from sound design to key mapping, so you'll set up your machine for filter tweaking, arpeggiating and huge reverb in no time. ;-)

00:00 intro
00:24 hello
00:46 turn off all the internal effects
01:17 selecting a proper wave form
01:35 adjusting the amp envelope
02:00 filter setup
02:49 naming and storing the sound
02:57 setting up a control matrix: filter cutoff frequency
03:50 ... filter resonance
04:18 ... amp attack time
04:40 ... decay time
04:59 ... release time
05:25 stereo panning
06:16 oscillator fine tuning
06:34 controlled tuning
06:52 setting up insert effects: amp sim
07:13 setting up realtime control for the amp
07:49 important considerations
08:12 setting up a performance (multi mode)
08:25 choosing sounds
08:47 insert effects
08:57 note ranges (keyboard split), transposing
09:20 global effect setup
10:34 recording some patterns (instead of arpeggiating)
11:06 keymapping (assigning patterns to keys)
11:45 demo
15:48 bye-bye

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Play The Novation Peak on YouTube

video by Floyd Steinberg

Here's an interesting one. Launch the video and press any number 1 - 8 on your keyboard.

Chords tiggered: 1 - Am (00:30​) 2 - F (01:00​) 3 - C (01:30​) 4 - G (02:00​) 5 - Em (02:30​) 6 - Dm (03:00​) 7 - G# (03:30​) 8 - F# (04:00​) ORIGINAL IDEA BY PlayWithKeyboard (https://www.youtube.com/c/PlayWithKeyboard/videos)

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This trick unlocks more LFOs on your FM synth (Reface DX)

video upload by Floyd Steinberg

"Here's an idea for using fixed frequency operators in sound design - as a makeshift LFO of sorts.

00:00 short demo
00:16 introduction
00:41 create a new patch
01:01 choosing an algorithm
01:28 setting the modulator's level
01:55 setting the operator's mode to fixed frequency
03:05 shaping the tone using the remaining operators
04:21 applying a pitch envelope on the fixed frequency
05:21 using the amp envelopes for further sound shaping
06:42 adding effects
07:02 longer demo
07:32 conclusion"

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Floyd's videos on FM synthesis:

DAFM DIY "SEGA Genesis" YM3438 Synth + Nemesis Delay Pedal improvisation

video by Floyd Steinberg

"The DAFM synth is a DIY project by KASSER SYNTHS based on the YM2612 or YM3438 FM soundchip which was also built into the SEGA Genesis game consoles (that was in the early 90s). It has 6 four-operator FM voices that can be used polyphonic and multitimbral.
The NEMESIS delay is a guitar pedal featuring a wide range of delay effects (tape, analog, digital, pitch-shifting, reverse, you name it). It has even more effects on offer when used with Source Audios "Neuro Desktop" app on Windows, Mac or Android.

More info on the DAFM synth:" [posted here]

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FM synthesis on the Novation PEAK

Floyd Steinberg

"Table of contents below. Novation PEAK is a great sounding hybrid synth with digital oscillators and an analog filter. One of the features of it's powerful mod matrix is frequency modulation. So it should be possible to create that DX7 electric piano patch, right? :-)

00:00 Intro
00:45 beginning with a saw wave...
01:16 fm uses sine waves, so do we
01:26 frequency and loudness adjustments
01:38 amp envelope
02:00 mod matrix: FM O1-O2
03:08 mod envelope on OSC 2
04:27 velocity sensitivity for OSC 3
05:04 adjusting mod envelope
05:18 some effects
05:52 finished sound
06:44 hmmmm....

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AKAI MPC One: Creating music from everyday noises with sample keygroups

video by Floyd Steinberg

"The keygroups (aka multisamples) are one of the reasons I bought the MPC one. Basically, you can assign samples to keys on your keyboard and also to velocity layers, and then apply subtractive synthesis (filters, lfo, envelopes) to them. In this video, I'm using this feature to create music from everyday noises. I just let the camera roll while doing things, so you are free to use the index below to skip the boring parts (i.e. everything). :-)

Table of contents:

00:00​ hello

00:39​ creating a pad sound from a ship's whistle
01:09​ loading the sound from sd card
01:20​ sample editor, trimming
01:54​ normalizing
02:23​ looping & loop locking
02:51​ cross-fading
03:22​ assign sample to keygroup
03:48​ band pass filter
04:19​ filter envelope
05:26​ amp envelope
05:58​ lfo modulation
06:18​ effects (chorus, delay)

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