Things Might Be Quieter Than Usual

What a Monday I had. I'll spare you the long list of things that went wrong all at once and stick to the one that may have some effect on this blog for a little while. Basically, my studio computer died. I'm pretty sure it's just a power supply that needs to be replaced. My single and what I have finished of my next album is backed up, so that's not a big deal, but unfortunately, the repair place is so swamped with work that it might be two weeks before I get it back. That is a great big bag of suck.

Anyway, I hope to keep things up with the blog on my laptop, but since it isn't set up the same as my studio computer, tutorials and stuff aren't quite as easily done, so things may not be as updated as often as usual. I do have some reviews I need to get to and hope not to miss too many days, but just so you know, it might be a possibility. I'm sure you'll all live. ; )

Here's hoping the rest of the week is a bit less... eventful.

Crumar Bit One on Ebay

"This is the one and only vintage Bit One analog synthesizer from Crumar, similar to Roland's Juno 106 in that it uses digitally controlled analog oscillators. Produced from 1984-86 it includes MIDI so is compatible with modern studio set ups! Great as a sound module for sequencing as well as performance."

More info at the listing...

Flashback Friday: Monday Edition

I found this little gem on a political blog I read of all places. I've never heard of Silent Circle, and there's nothing especially memorable about the music, but holy crap their singer has some of the most 80's-tastic hair I've ever seen. I wonder how many cans of Aquanet it took to make it do that? You can spot some Simmons drums and a PPG 2.3 in there too.

A Good Resource for Simmons Fans

In the 80's it was damn near impossible to find a band who wasn't making use of Simmons infamous hexagonal drum pads. The synthy drum sounds were just as ubiquitous on the records of the day. Although they are certainly dated-sounding by today's standards, I know a few people who hold the Simmons name in very high regard, if only for the nostalgia of it. So if you're one of those people, you might want to check out this site. In addition to pictures and profiles of most of the Simmons line-up, it contains links, manual, service documents, and some audio demos.

I was kind of surprised to find out that Simmons is still around. Has anyone run into any of their new products? In years of touring all over the world, I can't say I've ever seen any of the new units in use.

Arp 2600 on Ebay

Info at the listing...

Cool Hexagonal Modular Synth at Musicmesse

(Picture by Sequencer.de)

As you may or may not know, Musicmesse (the European equivalent of NAMM) has been going on this week. There hasn't been too much announced that has really set my socks on fire, but this innovative approach to modular synthesis from Klangwabe looks promising. Info is pretty hard to come by, though. Anyone have any details?

Review: D16 Group Silverline Bundle

Product: The Silverline Collection
Manufacturer: D16 Group Audio Software
Type: AU/VST plug-in effects
Support: http://www.d16.pl/faq, online user forum
Platforms: VST for Windows 2000/XP or later, VST & AU for OSX 10.4.3 or later.
Price: €119 (equivalent to a 15% savings on each plug-in if you bought them separately).
Demo: Available at http://www.d16.pl/index.php?menu=6

While the world awaits Nithonat, D16’s upcoming TR-606 emulator, they asked me if I might be interested in having a look at their Silverline Collection, a suite of 4 plug-ins consisting of the Devastor Multi-band Distortion Unit, the Fazortan Controllable Space Phaser, the Decimort High Quality Bit Crusher, and the Redoptor High Quality Vintage Tube Distortion. Knowing D16’s reputation, I gladly took them up on it. Each of the four plug-ins is available separately if only one of them is what you need, but by buying them together, you can save yourself about €20.

INSTALLATION
Installation is pretty much your run of the mill installation procedure. You download the files, click on the installer and it takes care of the rest. Copy protection comes in the form of a downloadable key file, which you can install anywhere on your computer you like. When you run each plug-in for the first time, it will ask you to point out the location of the key file, and you’re good to go.

DECIMORT

DECIMORT bills itself as a ‘high quality’ bit crusher, and even a quick glance at the interface reveals that this is clearly more than just your bog standard decimator. For one thing, bit depth and sample frequency have independent settings for left and right channels (the left channel settings are used if you are using the plug-in in mono). But before I get ahead of myself, let me explain what DECIMORT is about.

In the early days of sampling, technological and cost limits meant that audio fidelity couldn’t be as pristine as what we are used to today. Although the realism of sampled instruments was heavily heralded at this time, it was undeniable that the lower bit depths and sampling rates also imparted them with a certain lo-fi aesthetic. While everyone railed against this at the time and strove to avoid things like aliasing and bit noise, as often becomes the case, these types of artifacts actually become desirable by users of the newer, higher-fidelity soft samplers of today as a special effect. There was a certain beauty to the character these older machines imparted to sounds, so now electronic musicians have a variety of different bit-crushers and sonic decimators at their disposal to relive that sound of the old days. DCIMORT is one such plug-in, but as I mentioned before, it affords a level of control not often seen on this type of effect.

Starting at the top, is a PREAMP setting that allows you to adjust the input level to the plug-in. As you might expect, this can be abused and driven hard to add more balls if you like. Next to this, is the OPTIONS button which features various options for loading and saving presets, as well as settings for MIDI Learn functions so you can control DECIMORT’s settings with your MIDI controller of your choice. The very straightforward preset browser is next to that with a display for the preset name and buttons to select previous or next presets, copy and paste functions, and a BROWSER button that opens up a menu of all the presets for selection instead of cycling through them with the previous and next buttons.

Beneath that is where all the fun stuff resides. As I mentioned before, independent settings are available for the left and right channels of a stereo signal. (There is also a LINK PARAMS button you can select if you want to use the same settings on both sides.) Like most bit-crushers, there are setting for bit-depth (16-bits all the way down to 1-bit) and sampling frequency (44.1k all the way down to 0Hz!) A button here can also turn the FREQUENCY control into the CUTOFF level of a lowpass filter if you need to get rid of undesired frequencies.

To the right of these parameters, we find individual multimode resonant filters for further altering your sound. These are available in Lowpass, Bandpass, Highpass, and Band Reject flavors with cutoff ranging from 20Hz all the way up to 12k, The filters sound very nice, but truly shine when you drive the preamp setting to dirty things up.

Finally, there is a WET/DRY knob that lets you select how much of your signal will be effected. I wish more distortion and compression effects offered one of these. While it’s true that these are most often used as insert effects, adding a wet/dry knob allows you to balance between both the original and effects sound, much as you might when using parallel compression. This is really useful for dialing in just the perfect amount of dirt without over-doing it.

So how does DECIMORT sound? In a word: great. It’ll spit at you, shred your drums into aliased shrieks, transform your synth lines into Justice-style bit-crunched nightmares, give your vocals a robotic crackle, and just generally make anything you feed into sound wonderfully lo-fi. It really has a lot of character to it that I don’t hear in most other effects like this. Although it’s a purely digital effect, I dare say Decimort sounds more ‘analog’ if that makes sense. It really sounds like it’s coming out of a piece of hardware and not just the plug-in slot on your DAW. Of course, it can do much more than that as well and you may find yourself twiddling knobs for hours exploring its effect on different types of sounds. Anyone seeking out this sort of effect should really give this one a look.

DEVASTOR

Next up, we have DEVASTOR, which is a multiband distortion unit that expands on the one built in to d16’s 303 emulation PHOSYCON. The basic overall design is consistent between the plug-ins in this collection, so I won’t bother to talk about the preset browser and OPTIONS menu that I already covered on DECIMORT.

The first stage your signal goes through is the DYNAMICS section, which is governed by a single knob. Think of this as an ultra-simplistic compressor that can go from adding a little weight and consistency to pure dynamic smashing. This can have a big impact on what the final tone of the distortion sounds like, so it is not to be overlooked.

This is followed by the DIODE CLIPPER section, which is controlled by three knobs in charge of PREAMP LEVEL (clippable), THRESHOLD (the level at which the distortion kicks in), and KNEE (soft knee settings yield more subtle tones, while hard knee is harsher).

From here, the signal is sent through 3 independent filters running in parallel. According to D16, these filters are different from the peaking filters normally found in multiband distortion units and more closely resemble those of a synthesizer, which lends a unique character to the effects obtainable through DEVASTOR. Each of the three filters offers Lowpass, Highpass, Bandpass, and Band Reject varieties. Cutoff, resonance, and volume controls are also available for each filter separately. Different configurations of the filters are available by using different combinations of the PRE/POST switches that precede each filter.

Like DECIMORT, there is something very special about the sound of DEVASTOR. This is one of those plug-ins that you will find yourself tweaking for hours on end because it offers such a wide range of tones. You can get really subtle tube/tape saturations or absolute bone crushing, in your face sonic mayhem and everything in between. And the best part is, it sounds great on damn near everything. Another winner.

FAZORTAN

Compared to the previous two, FAZORTAN (D16’s take on vintage phaser effects) is relatively simple. As one might expect, the available controls begin with FEEDBACK and STAGES controls for adjusting the basic character of the phase shifting.

It’s this next part that is what makes FAZORTAN stand out from other phasers. Unlike a normal phaser, which typically features a single LFO to control the sweeping effect, FAZORTAN has two. This, plus a selection of 6 waveform types (most phasers only have one) to use on the LFOs, allows for much more complex phaser modulations than just the standard sine or triangle sweep. In addition to the waveform selection control, each LFO has independent controls for RATE, DEPTH, and OFFSET. STEREO PHASE and WET/DRY controls are available as well.

Phasers are pretty specialized effects, so this probably won’t appeal or be useful to everyone, but if you need the effect, you’d be hard pressed to found one that sounds much better than this. It’s great on synth strings, guitar, bass, electric piano, and percussive synth parts. The extra LFO and LFO waveshapes gives it a much more organic quality than standard phasers and really adds depth to anything it’s used on. Great!

REDOPTER

We round things up with another distortion device, REDOPTER. REDOPTER emulates tube distortion, which many people find has a more pleasant warmth when compared to other types.

The available controls begin with the pre-amp section consisting of PREAMP GAIN, LO CUT, and HI CUT controls to allow you some basic sculpting of the tone before it goes to the other sections. As with the other plug-ins, the PREAMP can be overdriven to give you more oomph if you want it.

The next section of controls is labeled TUBE CONTROL and consists of knobs for TUBE BIAS, TONE, and BRIGHTNESS. These all more or less control the number and type of harmonics produced by the tube distortion and gives you still further options for shaping the exact distortion sound you need.

But if that still isn’t enough control over your tone, this is followed by a 4 band parametric equalizer, each with its own settings for FREQUENCY, GAIN, and BANDWIDTH. The equalizer is very flexible and ensures that if you are after a particular tonal balance, you can get it with a little tweaking.

The sound quality of this plug-in is consistent with the rest of the suite of effects – excellent. What’s most striking is just how flexible it is. You can add some gentle warmth, you can shred your signal into a noisy wall of sound, and anything in between. Like the other Silverline plug-ins, REDOPTER lends itself to hours of tweaking and experimentation. This isn’t to be underestimated, as it seems a lot of plug-ins don’t invite this quite as readily, at least for me.

D16 have clearly done their homework and have made sure that there is something unique about their approach to separate them from other takes on the same sorts of plug-ins. The differences are usually subtle ones, but they’re ones that go a long way towards making the effects sound as good as they do. FAZORTAN is the only one I can’t see myself using too regularly in the future, but that’s more a reflection on the types of effects I tend to use than on the quality of the plug-in. If you’re looking for a variety of ways to distort your audio with a very organic, hardware-type sound, this suite should be in your collection. Period.

Analogue Solutions Vostok on Ebay

Info at the listing...

Ensoniq ESQ1 | demo (1 of 2) by syntezatory.prv.pl

I love this guy's demos. He actually programs decent sounds, the riffs he plays are catchy, and the video editing is really clever and well done (may be disturbing to the wimpier among you out there...). The ESQ-1 is a really underrated synth. I see them going for $150 and less on eBay all the time and I think it's just because people don't know about it...

A Quick and Easy Way to "Embiggen" Your Drums

Musicians and producers probably all have a handful of tricks they tend to use a lot in their songs. One of mine is that when I'm looking to make a chorus pop out and sort of up the "oomph" level, I like to add a special type of sound behind my snare.

Start out with a mono sample of a more electronic-sounding clap or snare. Load up your reverb of choice and add a nice-sounding room reverb. When you're setting your wet/dry level, go a little wetter than you usually would - this isn't your main sound, it's to suppliment the main sound. Now bounce this sound down with the effects on it and import it into your sampler of choice. Copy the sample so that it is on two different layers. Pan one of those layers hard right, and one of them hard left and detune ONE of the layers by a semi-tone or two.

Now, no matter what your 'real' snare is doing, just play the roomy clap sound on the backbeats (the two and the four). Set the level of this track so it is sitting 'behind' the main snare and isn't on the same level or louder. The result you're looking for is that the snare drum suddenly gains a little width, depth, and texture that wasn't there before. I like to do this on choruses mainly in order to boost the energy and the 'power' and lift it out of the verse sections. It can take awhile to find the source sound you think works the best, but as a good starting point, give a try to the easily-sampled reverbed 808 clap sound in the breakdown of Yaz's "Situation".

I've Been a BAD Widdle Boy

Apparently my little April Fool's prank yesterday reeled quite a few people in! We actually got over 350 hits from Depeche Mode-related websites and forums yesterday! Here's hoping everyone got as much of a chuckle out of it as I did and that some of you Modies stick around and check the site out once in awhile!

(On an unrelated note, am I the only one who saw the above picture and thought the kid had been huffing paint?! haha)

Circuit Bent "Freakenspeak" Speak & Spell on Ebay

Definitely one of the more creative LOOKING circuit bent Speak & Spell's I've seen!

Info and specs at the listing...

Check out the guy's other auctions here...

Depeche Mode's U.S. Tour to Be Entirely Acoustic?

Although rumors had been swirling on the magical internet tubes for awhile, I sort of dismissed them as typical internet rubbish. However, at a press conference in London today, the three members of Depeche Mode announced that their upcoming U.S. tour in support of their new album "Sounds of the Universe" would be performed entirely on acoustic instruments.

When asked what prompted such an unconventional approach for a band known for electronic music, Martin Gore replied that it was sort of a counterbalance to the band's approach in the studio. "I had a pretty bad eBay problem for awhile," laughed Gore, "I was buying these old, vintage synthesizers - antiques, really - and we'd just plug in and add them to whatever track we were working on at the time. In a way, I think I burned myself out on electronic sounds and the idea to do the tour acoustically came up."

Apparently Gore's bandmates weren't entirely on-board with the idea at first, but after some friendly debate, they finally agreed to give it a try. "The thing is, it's all about the songs," explained singer Dave Gahan. "You take a track like Enjoy the Silence and it sounds great whether it's played on synths or an acoustic guitar, some bongos, an alpine horn, and a gamelan orchestra, which we intend to do, by the way."

The announcement was met with mixed reaction on the various Depeche Mode fan groups around the net. "I don't know, man," posted a user with the handle ChrsHnsnLittle15, "I love Depeche, but frankly the idea of hearing Somebody played on an acoustic instrument just turns my stomach."

Vermona Perfourmer on Ebay

More info at the listing...