Sonicsmith - ACS Improvement announcement

Published on Mar 17, 2018 Sonicsmith

"Both our Squaver P1 and our ConVertor audio controlled synthesizers got a little face lift when we decided to increase their ACO's gate threshold by 18db to -36dBu.
This significantly decreased the chance of random noises.
All our existing stock is now upgraded and is still offered for 40% discount until stock lasts.
If you are an existing user you can receive this upgrade for free.
Just write us an email at info@sonicsmith.com and we will guide you through the rest.
Our + versions of those synth is still expected to ship early April and is going to be pretty similar to the upgraded current generation only with an addition of a variable gate threshold knob."

Roland D-05 Sequencer Demo and D-50 Slideshow

Published on Mar 17, 2018 Woody Piano Shack

"Let's enjoy the factory sequencer patterns on the Roland D-05 synthesizer module. Recorded direct from the unit via the built-in USB audio interface.

We'll include a slideshow of my original Roland D-50 linear synthesizer for the nostalgic memories.

The Roland D05 Boutique module is the recreation of the Roland D-50 Linear Synthesizer from 1987, an iconic vintage synth that we have featured a lot on the channel."

Tricks for the Dreadbox Nyx - Synched Oscillators

Published on Mar 17, 2018 ProckGnosis

Playlist:

1. Tricks for the Dreadbox Nyx - Pulse-Width Modulation

"Yeah, it's not so much a trick, as it is a mini-tutorial on how to patch Mod 2 to modulate the pulse-width on oscillator 1. Skip to 03:00 to jump the explanation.

The Dreadbox Nyx can be a bit intimidating and take a little time to figure things out, so I thought I'd throw this out to assist folks with a starting point at least. I would suggest going back to my previous "Dreadbox Nyx Routing Examples" video as well to help get a better understanding of the synth layout as a whole.

The Nyx is still probably my favorite "less-than-a-$1000" mono synth right now (with the Korg ARP Odyssey being a close second). I know I'm a broken record on this, but it bears repeating. This is a uniquely designed and unique sounding synth in the field of "a lot of the same" analog monosynths, and fun as hell to play with once you get your head around it a bit."

2. Tricks for the Dreadbox Nyx - Synched Oscillators

"And here's Nyx "Trick #2" or a mini-tutorial on how to synchronize Osc 2 to Osc 1 and use Mod 2 to enhance the effect. Jump to 01:30 to skip the intro.

For a much more thorough explanation on how synchronizing oscillators works, check out:
"Murmux Semi-Modular - Tidbits and Tips for Creating a Good Synched Oscillator Patch" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yH-bD...)

Though I love a good synched oscillator patch, I would have to say this sounds best towards the end of the video, where I've mixed in the remaining saw wave (Osc 1), and used Mod 1 as a little AD envelope to modulate the filter.

Another point not mentioned in the video is I could have used the Modulator II "LVL" setting to also alter the amount of the Mod 2. It is actually additive to the amount of the "M2" value set by the "Depth" trim knob.

Lastly, this is only an example/tutorial of the most common way to get a standard, synched-oscillator sound (IMO). The Nyx being semi-modular gives you LOTS of other options and ways to produce and screw around with the synched sounds. The Nyx routings could be set to let Mod 2 modulate the HP or LP filter while it's also modulating the Osc 2 pitch."

3. Tricks for the Dreadbox Nyx - Making an ADSR Envelope

"And here's Nyx 'Trick #3' or "some info how to create an ADSR or 4 or 5 stage envelope using MOD 1 and MOD 2." If you like math, but are newer to synths, I would watch "Part 2" at 07:07 first and THEN go back to Part 1 at 02:14.

Part 1 - The Examples (02:14)
Part 2 - The ADSR Academics (07:07)

This is likely my last "Tricks for the Nyx" video for a while. The video is split into 2 parts: part 1 gives a worked through example of setting up a 4 or 5 stage envelope, and part 2 gets a bit more basic (the academic part), explaining how envelopes are usually shaped and how different envelopes can be shaped on the Nyx by adding the smaller MOD 1 and MOD 2 envelopes together.

I'm probably turning off some newbs by showing how the Nyx is a bit more complicated than most normal synths, but for me, that's a large part of what makes it cool. If you're a newb and you bought a Nyx, be patient...it is WORTH the investment of time to learn. Cheers!"

40 Digitone Keyboard Patches - Cuckoo Pack 1

Published on Mar 17, 2018 cuckoomusic

Buy this Digitone preset pack here: http://store.truecuckoo.com
Supporting my work at Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/cuckoomusic

It's ALIVE .... Yocto TR808 Clone #TR808 #TR08 #Yocto #Yocto808 #Roland #DIY

Published on Mar 17, 2018 Danny Greggorio

"It's ALIVE .... Yocto TR808 Clone #TR808 #TR08 #Yocto #Yocto808 #Roland #DIY"

ROLAND TR-8S Demos

Published on Mar 17, 2018 Sunshine Jones

Playlist:

1. ROLAND TR-8S BASIC KIT DEMOS

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First let me say that there is a lot going on under the hood here on the Roland AIRA TR-8S. There are many kits, and many ways to include sounds, add effects, samples and more.

My general approach is to answer my most fundamental questions - how does it sound, how does it work, can I make use of it, and does it delight me? - before I dig down too deep.
This is a set of clips featuring the most basic kits and effects to let you see and hear what the @rolandaira TR-8S sounds like fundamentally.

1. TR-909
2. TR-808
3. TR-707
4. TR-727
5. TR-606

There is also a TR-626 kit which is great 80's fun, and many more sounds.

Next I'm going to explore adding my own samples and try to apply a sample loop as well.

2. Roland TR-8S Sampling Experiments

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Late into the night last night I explored the idea of importing my own collection of samples into the Roland AIRA TR-8S. Much of the exploration was in headphones and I couldn't wait for the sun to come up so I could listen and document the experiments for us to dig together.

1. A loop of my darling Geraldine Hunt with a -12db filter, accompanied by internal 909 sounds.

2. 100% Roger Linn samples taken by me from my old Linn Drum, sequenced and tuned to make your Camero go faster and match your tri-level nylon jacked.

3. The SP-1200 Congas translated from floppy to WAV files, and loaded into the TR-8S with reverb and a kick added.

I still have some functional questions (like how to assign things like kick attack to the CTRL knob, can one step edit the motion recordings, and other basic stuff...) as well as a real desire for some kind of time/pitch compression and expansion.

Perhaps that could be solved with using slices of a loop, or perhaps the inclusion of a particular file format with beat markers - I don't know - but tempo based samples will not automatically sync. They must be either worked out to a tempo ahead of time, or pitched to be in sync on the TR-8S. However you work it out, one is then working at a fixed tempo (provided pitch is essential) and that can be tricky live. In any given performance I may play at 110 if the audience is forward thinking and with me, but in more ordinary and adverse circumstances I will be forced to play the same material at 122-125 depending on how hostile they are. That's a huge leap in tempo, and getting that perfect on the fly can be tough.

But I'm undaunted, deeply inspired, and I'm going to dig in deeper still and answer my questions and come up with workarounds.

It's only been about a day, but I already just LOVE this thing and can barely remember not having it around.

3. ROLAND TR-8S LOOP SYNCOPATION EXAMPLES

ROLAND TR-8S LOOP SYNCOPATION EXAMPLES
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I talked about the fact that the Roland AIRA TR-8S doesn't have any time compression/expansion for loops, and here are three examples of ways to work with time based loops:

1. PITCH
The whole loop is imported into one instrument and pitch is adjusted to accommodate timing between 105 bpm and 125 bpm
This technique works great as the old school use of loops. Sometimes a loop gets really interesting when you slow it way down, or speed it way up. But for pitch crucial loops this isn't practical at all. For example in a live performance if you really must play faster or slower, this means your looped material will end up being pitched higher or lower, and if it's meant to play with other instruments the whole composition will be out of whack and potentially sound a tonal, or just wrong (or wonderful!)

2. FOUR SLICES (the one-and technique)
The same loop is chopped into 4 parts. Every beat is trimmed (import the sample loop 4 times and edit each one) and then placed on 4 instruments and the beats are programmed in sequence across the grid.
This allows for tempo adjustment between 125 bpm and 117 bpm without adjusting the pitch.

NOTE: It sounds better as you go faster, than it does as you go slower, so it would be best to begin with a slower loop than you need, so that as you increase tempo the timing feels better, and it sounds tighter than if you had to slow way down.

3. EIGHT SLICES
The same loop is cut into 8 parts and placed into 8 instruments. The decay of each slice is cut in half, and the tempo may be adjusted between 105 bpm and 140 bpm without adjusting the pitch one bit.
NOTE: There's no reason we have to use a unique kick and snare for this size of slice, so this could be done with fewer slices, and using up fewer instruments.

TIP:
When using a uniform grid solution, you can do some pretty interesting things. For example - chop up 4 different loops at the same grid (8) and then use program changes to switch between kits for crazy, far out glitch beats, or dynamic pattern changes at random. It's pretty sick.

Conclusion:
It seems there are many ways to accomplish timing without feeling that the device truly needs to import ReCycle files, or contain a time compression/expansion feature. But it does take us away from the device, and ask us to think it through before we get to it.

I grabbed this loop for fun and explored it on the device itself, without going back to the computer or another device for additional editing. It all happened right here in the TR-8S with a single loop. Naturally this would have gone faster, and possibly been a better result if I'd done the editing on the computer, but I am really not taking my inspiration from computers anymore, and want to work with the device I'm working with when I'm working with it. So taking the slow road, and doing it "stupid" style is all right with me, and seems to produce worthy results I can get behind.

Hope this helps with your adventures.

VERMONA Fourmulator Prototype Video from 2012

VERMONA*modular - something we are working on

Published on May 11, 2012 Thomas Haller

via @Vermona

"Check out the first demonstration of the #fourMulator prototype back in 2012."

Video description:
"This is something for the eurorack that we are currently working on. It's a first prototype and quickly filmed with the cam in the right hand while tweaking the module with the left hand."

Little bits of synth history...

PhonoPaper + PixiTracker

Published on Mar 17, 2018 Alexander Zolotov

"In this video, I convert the hand-drawn spectrograms to sound using PhonoPaper (http://warmplace.ru/soft/phonopaper). And then I use the generated sounds when writing music in PixiTracker (http://warmplace.ru/soft/pixitracker)."

iTunes:
PhonoPaper - Alexander Zolotov
PixiTracker - Alexander Zolotov

016//Cave Dwellers - 20 minutes of modular ambience

Published on Mar 17, 2018 Alastair Wilson

"A self-generating modular patch using a small Eurorack setup sent through an Eventide Space hall reverb and an Eventide Timefactor on moddelay setting. No other processing has been applied.

This patch is based around glitches - the oscillators' frequencies are well below audio rate, and so the square waves cause clicks. To filter these clicks, the random stepped voltages from the Assign outputs are slewed by Maths and then patched to the filter cutoffs, with the filter on the brink of self-resonating. I got an unexpected effect - I hadn't judged the resonance well enough and so the filter was self-resonating very quietly, giving the background noises you can hear between clicks. It worked great for the ambience of the patch!

If you want to recreate this patch, you can find it here:
https://www.modulargrid.net/e/patches/view/37612"

0-coast ambient: rain.paths

Published on Mar 17, 2018 C Nich0lls

"Multitrack ambient recording featuring Makenoise 0-Coast analogue synth. It’s been raining here in LA and I think it’s the absent sound on all of my tracks. I sometimes add washes of noise or tones to the background, so this time decided to add a recording of the rain that I made late one night.

In the rain, find your path.

On this track the synthesis goes a bit more macro from the micro. I built up a patch on the 0-coast that allowed me to have a lot of flexibility to the harmonic content of the output. I think the o-Coast excels at this so I wanted to explore that more specifically. There is quite a bit of modulation going on, but the synth is self-patched.

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Patch/Recording notes

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