cl516

Healing Drum Pattern

2012-02-01T16:51:00.003-05:00

I just recorded this after watching this video. Although the pattern may have been used in a famous song, my WAV file is free for you to download and manipulate. 96 BPM.

Accidental Movie Cue

2012-01-30T12:20:00.000-05:00

While playing on a certain grey keyboard this past Saturday evening, I accidentally created a bit of music that's reminiscent of a hotel I stayed at a few months ago. My room key was the ace of diamonds.

Omega in OP-1

2012-01-27T16:29:00.001-05:00

Today I'm going to erase everything from my OP-1 and start fresh. Now that I have a slightly better grasp of what it can do, I thought a brand new start would be good. If you don't have songs or complex projects already going on in your unit, join me on this new beginning. Have a listen to the demo and then download the free chopped up mono 16bit 44.1khz AIF files if you like them.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD ZIP FILE!!

Basic OP-1 Sounds

2012-01-24T16:32:00.002-05:00

I happened to pass by a car show room recently, so I thought I'd dream a bit and snap a pic. Sorry for the long absence, but I've been finishing up some tracks, and an album is on the horizon. In the meantime, I've been learning the OP-1. Here are some basic sounds, running on the latest OS 12470 with "finger" sequencer.

My 92% Analog Remix of Vaetxh's Mass

2011-12-01T11:52:00.000-05:00

Here's a remix I did for the King Deluxe label. The track is called Mass by Vaetxh. Have a listen!

Hey Baby Merry Christmas!

2011-12-01T11:40:00.000-05:00

December 1st! Christmas is just around the corner. Seasons Greetings and Happy Holidays to you!

U-he DIVA Sounds Like The Real Deal to Me

2011-11-18T17:40:00.001-05:00

U-he Diva Patches They Sound Like the Real Deal to Me 1 by Calvin Cardioid

Don't mind me, dunno what I'm doing here. It's just my 2nd day playing with U-he's DIVA Beta 360, and my goodness does it ever sound good. It really does have moments that sound completely convincing as analog. I can only get 4 voices max at a time, running at 96k and 'great' accuracy. No major loud pops or crackles except: low CPU will obviously get some crackling, and changing presets once or twice involving the sallen filters kinda popped loud. Here's a couple of simple patches, try to listen for the different timbres and tones.

U-he Diva Patches They Sound Like the Real Deal to Me 2 by Calvin Cardioid

Playing with U-he ACE

2011-11-14T17:32:00.002-05:00

Playing around with U-he ACE softsynth. Although it eats a bit of CPU if set to accurate quality while playing at 96k, just choose fewer voices or primarily do mono-type sounds and you're in for a treat. It's capable of audio-rate modulation with oscillators, filter FM, and even on PWM! Here's a couple minutes of fun presets and playing.

Beats from a Voyager

2011-10-26T06:57:00.000-04:00

Beats from a Voyager! Download the WAV files and chop'em up. I need coffee.

Beats from a Voyager 126 by Calvin Cardioid
Beats from a Voyager 118 by Calvin Cardioid
Beats from a Voyager 102 by Calvin Cardioid

Loudness

2011-10-17T15:50:00.001-04:00

Smartphone by Calvin Cardioid
Dark Bells by Calvin Cardioid

I assume if you visit my blog, you're at least somewhat interested in making your own tracks. How much of a role does loudness play in your process? In other words, if you weren't concerned about loudness at all, how different would you be working in terms of EQ, compression, and brickwall limiting? Unfortunately, I find myself just as caught up about loudness as before. Sometimes, it feels as though simply being loud enough will validate any and all creative / composing decisions no matter how bad they are. On the other hand, a piece that's not loud enough always seems to be missing something no matter how creative its melodies & arrangements. I suppose the smart thing to do would be to bring a complete finished album to a mastering engineer and let them worry about loudness. But I can't possibly take every track out to someone else, so I end up agonizing about the volume of these mini-tracks as I constantly compare audio files in iTunes.

Happy Friday

2011-09-30T15:07:00.000-04:00

Round Robin Tape TR-909 Samples

2011-09-12T15:16:00.001-04:00

Are TR-909 samples still relevant these days? I know I've posted 909 samples before, but this set's more complete: 456 mono 24bit 44.1khz WAV files, each containing about 8 hits - just enough so you can "round robin" them. That's over 3600 hits.

I know they're not chopped up perfectly, but I'm giving these away free and I don't wanna spend anymore time on them. Maybe you guys could help out and click on an Ad or Facebook "LIKE". I ask that you only use them for your own music, and not in any commercial products such as iOS apps.

The 909 was recorded directly to tape first, then converted to digital at 24/96 using a Mytek converter, then software SRC. They're not the thickest samples out there compared to many commercial products, but it's a fairly complete starting point where you can further compress / EQ to your liking in your own music.

Files names, here's an example: T09SDT3S10T10.wav means tape 909, snare drum, tuning 3, snap 10, tone 10. Hope everyone can open these even with a long file name.

Please don't distribute these elsewhere on the internet - I'm using Mediafire and it's already free for everyone. There are 5 zip files in total.

P.S. If my file-hosting arrangement gets messed up at some point, I'll find another way to host the file. Let's just keep an eye on it for now. Yes the photo is old.

Off-topic: Sept. 11th, 2001

2011-09-10T18:49:00.000-04:00

If I remember correctly, it rained hard in Manhattan the night before. I got a haircut and was drenched by the time I got home to Water St. In the morning, I ate some toast but didn't even have time to let my green tea cool, and then I was off. With my books and a sandwich in my knapsack, I'd prepared for a long day of classes at NYU.

Standing in front of where I lived on Water St., I tried to line-up for the campus shuttle bus, but it was too packed as usual. Papers flew in the air, and although that seemed odd, I thought maybe some sort of parade or march was going on. What did I know? I'd only just moved to New York two weeks before.

Whispers, murmurs, bits of phrases started to come through about a plane hitting a building earlier. I thought perhaps a small two-person jet might have just clipped an office building. By the time my friends and I reached the subway on foot a few blocks away, we started to realize something big happened.

I heard and felt the impact of the second plane hitting the towers while standing underground inside Fulton St. station. Do we get on the train or not? What if we got stuck? Would it even affect the train? What exactly was going on? The A train delivered us to West 4th St. and by the time we were above ground, both towers had already been struck.

People just stood on the street staring at the buildings. Huge amounts of smoke coming from them. I kept thinking about how difficult it would be to repair such damage. I made it to my first class (and I still can't believe it wasn't cancelled). After sitting almost an hour inside wondering what the hell was going on, class ended, we all came outside, and both towers were already gone.

I went to my next class. It was around Astor Place, and this one was officially cancelled. The mood around me was getting really tense, and people were now genuinely concerned and freaked. Campus TV's were showing bits of news and ticker tape stuff at the bottom of the screen. In the washroom, I saw a slightly older man staring into the mirror at the sink. He was half crying and half dazed, but he was fully covered in white dust from head to toe.

The first week afterwards, I moved around staying at different friends' dorms. We'd sit on the street and play cards since no cars were allowed at certain areas. I was still trying to learn my way around, as a newcomer to New York. Sometimes we saw armed troops using mirrors to check under cars, or riding in groups. Where did they come from? Where were they going?

And that's it. I can't remember details of the weeks and months afterwards, it's like a blur. Just tried to focus on classes, and count the days until lower Manhattan dwellers wouldn't be evacuated anymore. When I did eventually get back to my dorm weeks later, my cup of tea wasn't there anymore from that morning. I think they went in and cleaned everything up, sort of like a fresh reset indoors. But every time I went outdoors down there, there was no reset that cleaned up the mountains of debris at the site.

10 years later, I still remember the burnt-rubber-metal-chemical smell that drowned the entire area while walking home from class at night. I don't really know how to articulate what I feel, but I always see 9/11 as something really huge and dark. Weren't we pointing in a certain direction before the 11th? Coming from the Y2K bug, new millennium thing, future, etc. etc. But then this happened, and things changed. Thanks for letting me share, folks. Back to somewhat regular stuff next post.

Writing Station Pieces

2011-09-08T16:17:00.001-04:00

First bits of music made at my new "writing station" since losing my studio. Basically all in-the-box and the only piece of hardware used is the Virus TI2 Polar. No speakers, only headphones! Definitely not as loud as my older pieces, so just turn up your volume!

Quick Update

2011-09-01T00:27:00.000-04:00

Here's hoping your September begins on a good note.

Over the past month, I've met some really nice folks who have decided to share their downtown Toronto studio space with me, and as a result, I've been able to set up a small "writing station" to at least get some ideas down. Gone are the days of recording + mixing while writing (which I probably shouldn't have been doing anyway), but at least now I can concentrate more on the creative / melodies / arrangement side of things. Hope to start posting again soon!

End of an Era

2011-07-25T11:23:00.002-04:00

To My Dear Readers,

Since March 2009, our adventures together have been fun. Many of you have even taken time to write either through blog comments, Youtube comments, or private email, and I'm glad to hear your thoughts throughout this time.

Over the past month, some crazy stuff has gone down, and now due to circumstances beyond my control, I've officially lost my studio space. (I've settled in quite comfortably for a few years, so this is indeed devastating for me.) Although I'll try to continue and post like before, it looks like it might be some time before CL516 BLOG is restored to full strength. In the meantime, all the existing content will remain online, and once I sort out my studio situation, I'll be back.

I'd like to mark this end of an era with the last song that I recorded and mixed in my studio. Thanks for listening!

come on here and tell me your name cause i am tired of playing these games
i wish the two of us were together in a pretty little house we could stay
won't you fix us something to eat but please don't make me turn off this beat
if we could pick the colour together i'll wash your hair and cut it for free
but then we'll fight all through the night we'll just get on each other's nerves
you're always right i'm never wrong if you pretend then sure i'll play along
back to the beginning again is this what they describe as romance
fluctuates just like stormy weather but for you i'll take a chance

© 2011 Calvin Cardioid

The Warmest Moog Voyager

2011-06-10T14:35:00.000-04:00

Tried to post this earlier, but my darned internet's been down for a total of over 25 hours past day and half. Anyway, this is the Warmest Moog Voyager playing a little summer tune. All sounds 100% Moog Voyager, enjoy!

Korg iElectribe on iPad2

2011-06-05T15:35:00.001-04:00

Here are some rudimentary drum patterns I recorded from the standard Korg iElectribe on iPad2. The patterns and patches might be a bit basic in this one, but I tried to make the sound quality beefy and useful. (More limited use if it gets too sci-fi.) Sample away!

Korg iElectribe Drums by Calvin Cardioid

Omega in Blackhole Not Space

2011-05-13T13:35:00.003-04:00

Lots of reverb tails here. I've been checking out a lot of the Eventide Space demos online. While going through the Space manual, I noticed they refer back to some of the presets in the H8000. So here are some audio clips of the Omega 8 going through a few presets, some loud, some soft. Sample away!

Omega in Blackhole not Space by Calvin Cardioid

iPad2: Simple Sound Sources

2011-05-03T14:34:00.000-04:00

Just a quick video showing some simple sound sources available on the iPad2. Apps used include Snowdrift, Polychord, Pulsate, NodeBeat HD, Thicket, Slewpi, and SoundPrism. I wanted this video to show the fun and visual apps that are really easy to get into, rather than the deeper and technical ones. Not to say that the apps here can't get deep but I just find these ones a bit more inviting. Anyone can touch, swipe, and tap along. (P.S. Snowdrift doesn't make sound, I just thought it'd make a cool opening image.)

Pure Omega 8: That Stuff on the Phoneline

2011-04-18T01:23:00.000-04:00

Cable company, cell phone company, gas bill, electrical bill, Native Instrument support… I don't know who you have to call. But sometimes you just do, right? And they keep you holding on the phone, minute after minute… Other than my voice here processed by Sonic Charge Bitspeek, this is a 100% pure Omega 8 track titled, "That Stuff on the Phoneline". It received the full treatment, so proper headphones or speakers please! Enjoy!

That Stuff on the Phoneline (Pure Omega 8) by Calvin Cardioid

Generic Virtual Analog Sounds

2011-04-12T17:20:00.001-04:00

Generic Virtual Analog Sounds by Calvin Cardioid

Here are some very generic virtual analog sounds from a hardware synth. Correction: what I meant to say was, here are some sounds of a VA trying to do generic analog tones.

Vermona ReTubeVerb

2011-04-05T23:06:00.004-04:00

With Vermona about to release a whole bunch of cool new products at Musikmesse, I thought it'd be nice to take one last look at the older "mark one" stuff. This isn't the Retroverb. Here's what the Vermona ReTubeVerb sounds like.

Octatrack: Quick Scene Fun 1

2011-03-24T18:19:00.002-04:00

Approximately 100 seconds of video here. Remember the 3 minute audio file of Virus Multi's from the previous blog post? All I did was load up that single WAV into the Octatrack, plus an additional 909 kick sample. Then I programmed in 4 separate parts over 4 patterns using a lot of Flex machines, with a whole bunch of scenes.

Virus Polar Multi's

2011-03-21T23:13:00.015-04:00

About 3 minutes of audio here, just playing around with some multi patches on the Polar.

virus-ti2-polar-multis-march by Calvin Cardioid

The Versatile Virus TI2 Polar

2011-02-25T09:44:00.000-05:00

The Virus TI2 Polar is certainly a versatile instrument, and as much as I wanted these 6 minutes to show what this synth can do, this video's more about potentially sparking new ideas that have yet to form in the viewer's mind. The scenes here range from very playable patches to heavy modulations to multi-mode. There's even a small section in the middle showing how to route the distortion effects into the filter. I tried my best to make the display viewable at all times for everyone to follow. Last but not least, this video doesn't include the upcoming OS 4.5 which promises further interesting chorus and subtle modulation source options.

Omega 8 Logo

2011-02-08T00:10:00.001-05:00

Is this really what the Omega 8 logo looks like... I never notice. But now that it got my attention, I find it... hard to believe. 70 seconds of somewhat diverse samples from the Omega 8 here.

Omega 8 November Presets by Calvin Cardioid

Raw Analog Materials for Octatrack

2011-01-20T19:22:00.003-05:00

To celebrate everyone's soon-to-be arriving Octatrack units, I put together some raw analog sounds which might be useful as source materials. These crazy modulations originate from either the Analogue Solutions Tereshkova or the Moog Voyager, with no additional pedals in the signal chain. The waveforms were then recorded to tape at 15 ips before being dumped into the computer. No brickwall limiting applied during the realtime bounce.

Raw Analog Materials for Octatrack by Calvin Cardioid

In other words, these sounds are meant to be shaped in every which way, and because the Octatrack should be able to handle rather large audio files (from what I've read), hopefully some of you might find these 7 WAV files useful as a starting point that's different from the factory pre-loaded content. They're definitely not great to just sit and listen to, but load them up into the Octatrack and maybe you'll make something new!

P.S. Although this post was created specifically because people are getting their Octatracks soon, these files can obviously be loaded into any sampler.

Perfourmer Multi Track Demo

2011-01-17T21:50:00.001-05:00

Vermona Perfourmer Multi-Track Demo by Calvin Cardioid

Several layers of Vermona Perfourmer stitched together. Downloadable WAV file. I dunno, it was really cold today, alright? Minus TWENTY celsius.

Tereshkova Multi Track Demo

2011-01-09T23:53:00.002-05:00

Tereshkova Synth Multi-Track Demo by Calvin Cardioid

Here's another completely "in-the-box" multi-track demo for my first post of 2011. Every sound in this quick 2-minute piece originated from the Analogue Solutions Tereshkova synth. Scrappy visual accompaniment served via Vimeo, but this post is really about the audio track. (Previous video here.)

Pure Voyager Demo: Last Days of 2010

2010-12-29T01:54:00.001-05:00

Last Days of 2010: Pure Moog Voyager Demo by Calvin Cardioid

New Year's Eve is coming up, festive celebrations for some. Made me think about parties and lights... loud music, and champagne. With that in mind, I made this track tonight and it is 100% Moog Voyager, even the drums. DI straight into Logic, all ITB. The photos are meant to be the visual accompaniment.

Nice Fake Piano

2010-12-09T16:08:00.004-05:00

Not a synth, I know, but still worth sharing I feel. I was fiddling around in Logic and came up with a nice fake piano sound from Synthogy Ivory's Steinway. I didn't even upload to Soundcloud because most of the musical ideas here aren't my own. I'm just blown away by such an inspiring piano sound originating almost completely from the computer (yes the actual samples are real, but everything was kept ITB) - you could play anything and it would sound like it's got emotional depth! Can you name some of the melodies? :)

Korg Legacy Collection Mono/Poly

2010-12-01T01:37:00.003-05:00

While I might not be a vintage Korg expert (and I probably won't be getting a retro t-shirt), I have personally owned the Trident Mk1 (VIDEO), VC-10, and the Mono/Poly. In my opinion, and based on my experience, I can truly say this Korg Legacy Edition Mono/Poly is an amazing soft synth. Running it at 96k as an audiounit in Logic, it doesn't really take that much CPU even with polyphony at 16 voices. Very stable. It's got a patch-saving system that I don't use, and also 2 FX slots that can load up stuff like a 4 band EQ, "mastering limiter", "talking modulator", "dynamic compressor", etc. I really enjoy the little details they thought about. In addition to the "analog" knob similar to other synths that allow for slight detuning, there's also a "detune" knob, plus an overall tuning parameter and a scale type on the rear global panel. Oh, and did I mention the super-easy chord memory function?

Korg Legacy Mono/Poly Demo by Calvin Cardioid

No, I haven't used any of the other Korg Legacy soft synths, not even the MS-20. I'm not sure how authentic the other ones are, but I can say this Mono/Poly is certainly in the same realm. Crank up the oscillator levels and when the resonance is high up, you will indeed hear some sort of crackling as though things are kind of overdriven. It's subtle yes, but my point is that this isn't just a GUI slapped on the same-old soft synth engine. They've done something to make it sound Korg-ish. What this soft synth can't do is the "turn the knob in between parameters" thing, but I certainly welcome the modern features like the extra polyphony. And I didn't even talk about the mod matrix or the arpeggiator.

My Christmas Song

2010-12-01T01:07:00.005-05:00

Well, the holiday season is upon us, and I just wanted to share my Christmas song again, since this year I think I have slightly more readers than before. It's not really a track meant for the synth crowd, but oh what the heck, it's Christmas! (The Soundcloud version has compromised sound quality compared to version on iTunes.) Share with friends & family if you think they might enjoy it, thanks for listening!

Hey Baby, Merry Christmas! (It's Not About The Presents)

Omega 8 November Presets

2010-11-27T19:22:00.000-05:00

Just playing through some presets...

Oh, Europa!

2010-11-14T01:08:00.001-05:00

Quick video showing the Analogue Solutions Europa sequencing the Omega 8 and Perfourmer. I really wanted the groove to be kept constant in this video. It's pretty much just the two synths, Machinedrum providing tempo and drums, and a little bit of Waves H-Delay. The Europa certainly wasn't pickup and use right away, but after reading the manual, I'm starting to get the hang of it. Those keys on the left make it so simple to transpose or tap out a small melody. It's also very easy to mute tracks and switch patterns on the fly. As for the synths, both the Omega and Perfourmer are quite handy for this type of use: Omega can have each of its 8 voices on a different MIDI channel in multi-mode, and same with Perfourmer and its 4 voices.

Quick Virus TI2 Preset Sampler

2010-11-03T23:39:00.000-04:00

I've got a loaner Virus TI2 Desktop Whiteout Edition in the studio right now. (Click here for a really early Virus TI2 post.) Brought it here because I want to test whether the new OS 4.1.0.16 beta has gotten rid of the crazy random noises and sneezes that the TI2 used to produce. Those glitches were not reproducible, and it certainly made it feel like the unit was a bit unreliable.

But after pushing this unit to the limit for over 3 hours, using multi-mode with pretty complex patches, voices were cancelling each other all over the place, I'm happy to say that this new beta seems to have gotten rid of the bugs. However, I can only speak for using the unit in standalone mode and not via USB and Virus Control. I recorded this quick clip with the analog outs, and it's just a quick sampler of presets I made.

Traktor S4 First Glimpse

2010-10-29T18:29:00.010-04:00

Photos only. Traktor S4 in the house! 4 decks of control in one controller. What an awesome way to create crazy soundscapes with a hands-on feel. Some folks use it to mix tunes, but I see it as a 4-track looper that can playback at varispeed, scratch to your heart's content, browse what files you're loading in, has incredible sync function, etc. etc. No more burning CD's to my Numark CDX just to get some scratch sounds. And there's a record button right there waiting to collect whatever spontaneous creation that just materialized. At one point, I was going to get the Vestax TR-1 instead, but this is even better. The S4 has its own audio outs too, so for example, I could load up samples from CL516 Blog, come up with some weird soundscapes, feed the S4 into a Biscuit or Sherman, etc. treat it like an instrument, you get the idea. Very exciting stuff!

Free Synth Bass Saturday

2010-10-23T16:24:00.001-04:00

Free synth bass Saturday! Just add water! Ok maybe not water, but here are 8 synth bass grooves just waiting for you to add drums, melodies, other parts, etc. Give them a shot, you might find they'll fit into your mix nicely. Or build up something brand new around them! If you make something cool with it, share it with me if possible. No rights reserved on these samples. The number in the track title indicates the BPM. PLEASE DOWNLOAD the WAV files to use them properly! The Soundcloud player might garbage-ize the sound.

Quick Trip to Hong Kong

2010-10-08T15:47:00.005-04:00

So I've been away for a bit, I was invited to Hong Kong for about 2 weeks. I took footage sporadically and decided to edit it to some music. (An original tune that features a lot of Machinedrum Userwave MkII. Other synths include the Voyager and Omega 8.) It was a good trip overall - visited a variety of places, and met some interesting people along the way. The hotel in the video is the W Hong Kong, the very nice place where I stayed.

The Commute Home by Calvin Cardioid

Moog Voyager: Low Oscillator Volume + FX

2010-09-17T11:07:00.000-04:00

With all the recent talk about the upcoming Moog Voyager XL, I thought I'd take the Voyager out for a spin. I've already made a video trying to thicken up the Voyager's sound, so this one's a bit different. Everything played here exited the Voyager's left mono output only, making use of the dual filters and spacing knob. I also made sure that the oscillator volume levels were as low as possible, and by doing this, I managed to coax out a different tone from my usual way of using the Moog Voyager. No extra modules such as the Freqbox, VX-351 or the CP-251 were involved.

Six Delays in September

2010-09-10T19:37:00.000-04:00

Six Delays in September. In light of all the recent hoopla about the Eventide Timefactor and the Strymon El Capistan, I thought I'd do a quick video with a few other delay pedals that might have been overlooked. (For the record, I used to have the Timefactor, and with the El Capistan, I'll probably wait for a few more reviews before I decide... though the demos do sound awesome.)

There's a little bit of variety here, ranging from such sounds as the simple Boss DD-3, to the heavier thick tone of the Moog MF104SD, to the craziness of the Eowave Spacebug, and even to the crispy digital artifact sounding OTO Biscuit. Throughout the video, I'm just playing common synth patches in mono with one hand, while the other tweaks the pedals.

Perfourmer as a Drum Machine

2010-08-23T16:49:00.001-04:00

Vermona Perfourmer as a drum machine. Although I've seen many clips and demos of Vermona's DRM1 MK3 out there, I don't personally have access to one. So I thought I'd crank out 3 quick drum loops pretending the Perfourmer is a drum machine. From the Soundcloud player, grab the downloadable WAV with no rights reserved as usual.

Modular Sequence Moments

2010-08-01T22:14:00.001-04:00

So I finally racked up the Sherman, Moroco and Oberkorn together. Much better than having them sitting individually on a tabletop. This is my little modular setup now - not quite the conventional modular that most folks have, but still experimental enough to get me some weirder sounds. For your listening and sampling pleasure, I put together a few of the moments from the sequences that were beeping from my studio earlier today. As usual, please find the Soundcloud player below:

From Many Years Ago

2010-07-26T23:35:00.001-04:00

I usually try not to post old stuff - I like to keep the blog fresh, and almost all the posts have been that way. But I was going through old bits of audio and photos on the computer, and I really wanted to share this. The photo was taken from an LCA+ Lomo camera, and the music was from about 5 years ago for some student project. I think they kinda go well together.

Simple Filtered Loops

2010-07-22T08:57:00.014-04:00

Here are 4 free mono simple filtered loops going from a Machinedrum into a Resonator. No Rights Reserved. No reverbs or delays used - background space kept clear so you can add your own. All are 105 BPM except the 2nd one, which is 110 BPM.

Simple Machinedrum to Resonator by Calvin Cardioid

I kept the Resonator balance just under 50%, because I wanted the end result to be smooth and generally free of any audible distortion. Not much variation in the actual grooves themselves, but that's for you guys to chop up and mess with.

Excerpts from a Noisy Suitcase: Tereshkova

2010-07-12T00:31:00.007-04:00

Here's a short video after spending some quality time with the Analogue Solutions Tereshkova. I wanted to show both a melodic and noisy side to the instrument. I also wanted to give curious eyes a closer look at the front panel, as well as show a few of the features.

Tereshkova Sequences

2010-07-06T11:50:00.018-04:00

Here are some clips of the Tereshkova being sequenced as I slowly become more familiar with the unit. The more time I spend with it, the more I wish it had an additional mixer onboard. Because of this, 99% of the time I've got a Moog CP-251 hanging out with the 1/8 to 1/4 inch adapters near the bottom right of the Tereshkova. Much easier to do simple stuff like vibrato, etc. Download the WAV files for a better listen.

Intro to Tereshkova

2010-06-30T17:25:00.016-04:00

Please note this is just a short intro to the Analogue Solutions Tereshkova. The demos barely scratch the surface. I've spent very little time with it so far, but already I've gotten some crazy sounds! It's similar to their Vostok unit, but instead of VU meter and pin matrix, there's 1 extra LFO and 2 extra VCA's. Yes, MIDI pitch bend does go to CV and I was able to make pitch bend 2 semitones. No, oscillator 3 is not digital.

Click that downward arrow to download WAV file.

The overall tone is generally aggressive, although it can definitely be tamed if you watch your levels. It's obviously not as comprehensive as a full-blown modular, but I really love the suitcase vibe, and it's compact which is important because space is a factor in my studio. You know what else is awesome about it? It has loopable envelopes, onboard 8-step sequencer, 2 adapters to 1/4 inch, and a sweet X-Y joystick that feels substantial. Overall build quality is pretty good, everything seems solid. But even though it's supposedly a "suitcase", it's clearly not meant to be transported without outside protection. I should get a proper case for it. More posts to follow.

Sounds from the Oberheim DX

2010-06-26T16:28:00.009-04:00

One year ago I posted some loops from the Oberheim DX drum machine. Now I present some more. Build something of your own on top or add them to an existing mix. Tempo is clearly labelled in each track name. I really like the 5th one here, I can imagine some happy Ska tune on top.

This is the Korg Trident Mark 1

2010-06-16T09:53:00.004-04:00

Click here for more photos and downloadable clips from previous post.

Vintage Korg Trident Mk1

2010-06-14T16:00:00.021-04:00

Vintage Korg Trident Mark 1. This unit has the black MS-20 style knobs, and the previous owner also fitted it with a MIDI IN port. It's an instrument that's strange and wonderful at the same time. The moment I got it, I started playing the notes from Phoenix's 1901. I love that song, and I think this is what they used! Be sure to download the free WAV files for full audio quality.

3 sections of sounds: synth, brass and string. They can all be used simultaneously, creating huge epic pads and other monstrous sounds. Mine's got 1 ADSR for the synth, 1 ADSR for the brass, and 1 AR for the strings. Synth and brass seem to have their own filters, while the string section has a knob that reads "filter KBD balance" which can make it bright or soft.

I'm particularly fond of the joystick, which does pitch bend left to right, vibrato going up, and tremolo going down. Very expressive! Of course, no written material about the Trident would be complete without mentioning the onboard flanger, which can go from subtle to "way too much feedback." Splitting up the keyboard is also pretty easy, with dedicated switches that let you do stuff like play synth on lower keyboard, while only brass and strings play on the higher notes.

For those who care, I think the Mark 2 Trident has an additional envelope on the synth to control the filter. The Mark 1, however, has 50% pulse, variable pulse width, as well as pulse width modulation on oscillator 1 of the synth.

Moog Source Magic

2010-06-10T09:59:00.004-04:00

Moog Source Magic. A simple video just for hearing the sounds. Obviously, a monophonic synth with no onboard effects would not normally sound like this, and that's where the "magic" part comes in. Just a few simple effects including delays, reverbs, and pitchshifting. Headphones ON!

Thickening Up the Moog Voyager

2010-06-08T20:19:00.011-04:00

Thickening up the Moog Voyager. I should mention 2 things right away though. First, I don't think the Voyager needs its tone altered in any way, it's just that the mixer out jack makes it easy. Second, and more obvious, this is clearly not the only way to thicken up the sound of this instrument, and I don't claim to be an expert by any means at all.

So what's really happening here? As you can see and hear in the video, I've routed the oscillators out of the Voyager and into a Malekko B:assmaster Germanium. Then the signal goes into one of the Macbeth Moroco's voltage controlled filters and voltage controlled amplifiers. The Voyager's MIDI OUT signals when the Moroco's envelope will trigger. This setup removes the Voyager's own dual filters and VCA out of the equation. I think it sounds very good and provides a nice contrast from the Voyager alone. I tried to keep the sound as authentic as possible, but unfortunately we're still at the mercy of streaming video compression.

Now on Facebook

2010-06-04T11:50:00.003-04:00

CL516 Blog now has a Facebook page, hooray! (Check the button on the right) I'm in the process of getting it up to speed and updated with all the info from here. I think it's cool because on the posts section, you can view literally every single post in order. There are photos and videos too, but that will take a bit of time to get everything uploaded. The only problem now: I only have 5 fans. So please, if you're among the hundreds of listens and downloads, and you use Facebook, please click the LIKE button! Thank you!

Vintage Moog Source

2010-06-03T00:07:00.011-04:00

Vintage Moog Source. One knob to rule them all - fine by me. The digital display reads from 0-99 for the incremental control but there's definitely no zippering to be heard here. Just pure analog awesome sound. The tone is very different from the new analogs in my opinion, and also sounds a bit brighter and more aggressive than the Moog Prodigy. When I say "different", I don't mean "better" or "worse". It's just so different there's no point comparing. The sound of the Source, in my opinion, leans slightly towards the Studio Electronics stuff.

Yes it can save presets. I love that the LFO can take modulations somewhat into audio rate. Also, I really love the envelopes - enough click to punch the daylights out of anyone. I dare say the envelopes on this Source rival the click of the Jupiter 4 I used to own. Also, the arpeggiator / sequencer is very charming! You can play in the notes you want and it will remember. (I'm just starting to figure that part out.) Anyway, have a listen to all 5 of the demos because I only put reverb on the later ones. Reminder: Download the clip if you like the demo, because the streaming mp3 player can't handle the oomph of the Source and makes it sound grainy.

Arturia Origin Firmware 1.2.1

2010-05-30T23:24:00.021-04:00

Arturia Origin Firmware 1.2.1. This will probably be my last post on this unit. It's not mine, and I don't intend on acquiring it permanently for the studio. The store Moog Audio in Toronto was nice enough to let me have it for the weekend. Their machine was only on 1.0.7, so I did the update in my studio which took quite awhile.

So what's new? Couple things I noticed. First, there's a tonewheel oscillator now. Why organ? I have no idea. But it does allow for easy access to cool house/club type sounds I guess. (I'm not sure if the tonewheel can do stuff like receive CV to "pitch") They've also added a new CS80 envelope that includes parameters like initial level and attack level.

On the effects side, I believe the parametric EQ and the bitcrusher are new. You can see all of this in the photos. I'm still OK with the sound quality of this machine - I think with careful programming and use of multis, huge expansive soundscapes can be created. Be sure to make use of more than one output / VCA if you really want to make sounds that aren't bland. (Post 1, Post 2.)

Arturia Prophet Hybrid Mode

2010-05-27T18:47:00.020-04:00

I've been playing with Arturia's Prophet V recently, particularly the hybrid mode. If we can ignore whether its tone is authentic for a moment, this is actually a pretty interesting soft synth. By using hybrid mode, we actually get 4 oscillators, 4 envelopes, 3 LFO's, 2 filters, and I guess 2 VCA's depending on the routing.

I like the joystick mixer and its envelope, but I don't know if it's possible to map that to MIDI control. All the envelopes on the VS side are loopable. Yes it's still kind of a CPU hog, yes it crashes a bit, yes it needs a dongle, but I think this is a nice instrument that can give some quick results.

5 things I like about Vermona Perfourmer

2010-05-12T11:55:00.004-04:00

Moogerfoogers, Memory Lane and Resonator

2010-05-07T10:33:00.009-04:00

Moogerfoogers, Memory Lane and Resonator. A fun afternoon with some pedals. Not a melody in sight. This video is probably more for noise folks rather than melody people. Editing was a fine line between balancing whether the shots were too long versus letting the sounds develop and play out. I tried to give each different moment of sound their own sections, and when it ran long, I did indeed crossfade to another section. All the audio was recorded direct - so if you can stand listening to this on headphones (or huge monitors), you'll be getting analog goodness in your ears without any background distractions.

Quick Moog Taurus 3 Video

2010-05-05T15:32:00.001-04:00

Moog Taurus 3 Bass Pedals

2010-05-04T19:13:00.027-04:00

Moog Taurus 3 Bass Pedals. While they are in my temporary possession, I decided to put some clips together for all you folks. Yes, it's 2 sawtooth waves only, and they don't go much higher than an octave above middle C. (Using EP-2 expression pedal didn't make oscillator pitch go higher.)

I tried to vary the tone of the clips I made, to show every possible side of this beast. Some parts I played by hand via MIDI, and some parts I actually used my feet. I did try once or twice to use the oscillator out of the Freqbox to do some FM: filter FM sounded great, but FM on the pitch was a bit limited because of the oscillator. This thing is pretty freaking fat sounding even in the recordings, but hearing it live is really something else. (Download the clips for better quality, the 128kbps streaming can't handle the Taurus.)

Amped Moog Voyager and Freqbox

2010-05-02T19:52:00.017-04:00

After spending time with the Moog Taurus 3 in the store, I returned home and tried to make outrageously huge sounding patches from my own synths. Although the results are obviously different without an actual Taurus 3, I still managed some great sounds by hooking up the Freqbox to the Voyager and running it through an Ampeg bass amp.

The Freqbox oscillator sounds a bit less refined than the Voyager, and combine that with the fact it was blasting out of the amp and rattling everything in my studio, I'd say lots of these sounds are more than huge enough to use in any song that requires such energy. Some clips you'll hear 4-oscillator chords, while others will be the Freqbox alone.

The Coles is a mono mic (I only setup 1 mic) so everything was captured in mono. I hooked up the Voyager output expander pitch CV to control the Freqbox's pitch, and put the Freqbox's oscillator into the Voyager's external IN. Then I put the Voyager's LEFT audio out through the MF-104SD delay to give it some more life. The audio clips are in stereo because I added just a tiny bit of reverb underneath to give it some depth - it sounds ever so 3D I think.

Visited Music Store Today

2010-05-01T19:13:00.007-04:00

I visited the music store earlier today, and spent a half hour annoying everyone with loud tones from the new Moog Taurus 3 pedals. ~~Sorry, no demos here folks.~~ (Check May 4/10 Post) This thing sounded incredibly fat, even through a simple and small keyboard amp. The pitches could dive down real low, but you could still hear the actual pitch. It took a couple minutes to figure out how to get around the unit, and then I got the hang of it.

There seem to be 4 presets for every bank, and each foot pedal itself selects a bank, going from A-L or something like that. I noticed that when you played with the right control wheel for a parameter such as filter cutoff, the LCD screen visually displays the parameter value, and cutoff went from 0 to 4000 ish. (So no 0-127 nonsense here.)

The oscillators / pitches didn't go as high as I thought they would, which I guess is no surprise considering this is a bass instrument. But I could still get some simple yet great lead sound out of it. Those were definitely super creamy sounding and different from my Voyager. I really enjoyed playing those higher melodic lines.

But unless I missed something, sawtooth is the only available wave. 2 oscillators, 2 envelopes, 1 LFO, 1 filter, VCA, and that's about it. It's pretty limited, but I think the whole point of this thing is pure tone, and it certainly has a maximum amount of that. With this Taurus 3, you wouldn't need anything else - just grab any old beat and start stepping on those pedals - instant huge sounding track!

Pretty Moog Sounds

2010-04-27T20:01:00.019-04:00

It's been awhile since I did a Moog Voyager post, and there's nothing that quite sounds like one. It's pretty cool how a certain feel of a keyboard combined with very spacious reverbs can really have an effect on the musical parts that surface. I don't spend nearly enough time writing music with the FX on... I really should try to do that more. Pretty sounding audio clips available here, all downloadable. Clean Voyager signal direct and then some FX sends to multiple reverbs. So put some headphones on, close your eyes, and enjoy!

Random Soundscapes

2010-04-22T20:26:00.022-04:00

3 random soundscapes here. I took some audio files lying around in the computer, and started doing some looping and pitchshifting, etc. Then I drenched them in layers of reverb and effects. Each audio clip has about 2 or 3 different loops that I just crossfaded with each other. Beware if you sample: a tiny number of clips may have originated from radio-friendly pop hits. (~~Update: For some reason, the Soundcloud player isn't loading up the files. Please click the link/set name below to listen.)~~

Random Soundscapes by Calvin Cardioid

Omega 8 into Roland SDD-320 Dimension D

2010-04-18T17:59:00.019-04:00

Fired up the ol' Roland Dimension D today, because I was working on a track that needed something different. It's the Omega 8 that you're hearing here - more specifically - I've selected certain patches that I think work well with any sort of chorus. No particular order here in terms of the SDD-320's setting. I used every combination possible, going from each individual number all the way to 1+2, 1+3, etc. etc.

It's a pretty subtle effect overall, and I'm not always sure how well it's mono-friendly. Also, my Dimension D had a hard time playing well with the Omega 8's levels. It overloaded pretty easily, and I had to bring it down using a low level output from another outboard piece.

Manley Massive Passive

2010-04-17T16:01:00.015-04:00

Well, it's been in my rack for 6 years, so it's about time my Massive Passive got some new tubes. It was sounding more hissy and not like it used to. I did NOT go the expensive route with any crazy Mullards or anything. Just a simple "retube kit" from Manley themselves, which is good because they know exactly what tubes my particular serial number needs, and they test the tubes before they go out.

Even though it's a relatively simple task of replacing the tubes inside the unit, I still always get nervous when opening up outboard. Extremely sweaty hands and caffeine shakes are not the best for handling expensive equipment. I took my time and kept wiping my hands dry - powered it on, no smoke, everything's good to go.

Electro Harmonix V256 Vocoder

2010-04-11T17:57:00.010-04:00

Electro Harmonix V256 Vocoder. Simple setup with a Shure 55SH and the V256 set to HI gain. Segments alternate from internal synth to Vermona Perfourmer as the carrier. I didn't play around too much with the "reflex-tune" or other features. I just like the vocoder part. The audio file has more detailed narration.

Direct Contact with the Omega 8

2010-03-30T10:47:00.002-04:00

1 Year Anniversary

2010-03-28T20:39:00.005-04:00

CL516 Blog is officially 1 year old today! Thanks for continuing to visit! Lots of fun posts this past year, and there will be plenty more to come.

OTO Biscuit

2010-03-24T22:07:00.016-04:00

OTO Biscuit. With Musikmesse currently going on, it's a good time to check out a new effect. Hands down one of the most pretty looking pedals I've ever seen. Packaging is beautiful too, a bit similar to Elektron's stuff in terms of effort. This baby is basically a bit crusher and sample rate reducer mixed with waveshaping and an analog filter. It also offers a delay and pitch-shifter which are both based around messing with the sampling frequency.

I used to have the Frostwave Sonic Alienator, but I think the Biscuit takes the idea even further. I love how there's a "naked" and "dressed" knob, allowing you to decide how much dry/wet you want. The 8 bits can be either inverted or muted, and when you combine that with the waveshaping and the sample rate reduction, it was surprising the amount of fruitful results that slammed out of my speakers. Stereo IN, Stereo OUT. Step filter allows you to record your own steps. 8 types of waveshaping. Biscuit can even save presets!

The filter sounds nice but does not self-oscillate. Also, unlike the Frostwave unit, the order of effects cannot be changed. In other words, crunchiness always goes into filter, and not the other way around. I think I read somewhere that units might be able to be modded so that only the filter is used without the signal being sent to 8 bit. Last but not least, if you do demo one, watch out when loading the factory presets: some are LOUDER than others, so have that "Dressed" knob handy. I love the lights, I love the sound, this thing is made in France and it's absolutely wonderful. Bonjour Biscuit!

Machinedrum into Sherman into Culture Vulture

2010-03-17T14:56:00.020-04:00

So there's been a few gear malfunctions lately, including a broken pot on a relatively new and non-vintage synth, some broken circuits, damaged and mismatched tubes, and screwy firmware on a firewire card. Not very fun, to say the least. Grrr. Fortunately, all manufacturers/companies involved have been as quick as they can to help me remedy my situation.

As a result, here are some clips where I just try to make a mess by shoving the Machinedrum into the Sherman Filterbank and into the now-repaired Thermionic Culture Vulture. Not really a sample collection post, more like "best-of" clips.

ProLoop iPhone App by Trapcode

2010-02-26T18:23:00.022-05:00

I've been searching a long time for something like this. It's not on OSX, and it's not an audiounit plugin. It's called ProLoop and I got it for $5 on the iTunes store. It's a very hands-on loop player capable of handling 6 loops at a time. My usual audio clips didn't feel like it was fully explaining what's going on, so be sure to check out the video above for a slightly more in-depth look.

So this thing plays up to 6 loops at a time. Each loop can be pitchshifted up or down, and the user can select whether the pitchshift is locked / quantized to tones or not. I prefer smooth pitchshift, kinda like a digital tape varispeed. Each loop has forward or reverse, but it can also freeze in whatever position you're holding down on the screen. All of this is already enough for me, but they add a bonus: there's FM between the loops! Loop 1 can modulate 2 can modulate 3, etc. etc. Plus the user gets to choose between FM, PM or Ring modulation. Sweet.

The app comes with a bunch of its own loops, but I didn't use them in this post. I used some existing audio from previous posts on here. Currently, there's no way of trimming the loop size in the app, but no big deal, I just prepped them beforehand. Uploading my own loops to this app was super easy: all I had to do was type in some http address using Safari and I could upload directly from a 10.6.2 macbook. (The upload did not work from my 10.5.8 mac pro however.)

Be sure to check this one out, because I've barely scratched the surface here. This looks like a wonderful tool for creating some crazy sounds. My Soundcloud clips are probably gonna sound a bit more creative than what I came up with in the video. For the video I had to deal with sweaty hands, a tripod in my way, and trying not to bump into everything. Not too shabby for an iPhone that's been dropped into the toilet.

Quick Update

2010-02-14T12:09:00.004-05:00

Happy Chinese New Year everyone! Happy Valentine's Day too. Quick update: yesterday Soundcloud had a major service disruption, so if you happened to visit a short time ago, my apologies if you were greeted with broken applets or missing players. My blog relies heavily on Soundcloud and they're pretty awesome most of the time - everyone has an off day, right? I think normal service has resumed.

1 Track Machinedrum into Ring Mod

2010-02-12T15:14:00.006-05:00

I'm keeping it simple with this one. Here are four drum sequences from the Elektron Machinedrum being fed into the Moog Ring Modulator. Instead of over-programming the drum machine, I stuck with one track and one machine for each sequence. Then I just let it play while I tweaked the frequency, rate, wave etc. on the ring modulator. So basically all you're hearing is parameter locks + the pedal. I didn't use any reverb so that people can sample these easier. The BPM's are labelled. Oh and is it just me, or does the 130 bpm sequence have something that sounds like when Mario crushes that skeleton Koopa? Sample away, and have a good weekend!

Vermona Perfourmer Sequences

2010-01-29T16:38:00.017-05:00

As a result of discussions over on elektron-users.com, and because I got inspired by the fast LFO demos from Filter Env, here are 4 sequences that I tweaked live on the Vermona Perfourmer. The synth was mostly set to polyphonic mode, with each voice sequenced on a separate MIDI channel.

Once a basic melody/arrangement was setup and grooving, then I started messing with "LFO speed", "LFO -> OSC", and "LFO -> Filter." There was 1 sequence that only used 2 voices, where the remaining 2 voices served as modulation sources. Each sequence done in a single take. As usual, the downloadable WAV files will sound much better than the embedded Soundcloud player. Thanks for checking it out, sample away!

Vember Audio Surge

2010-01-19T18:02:00.016-05:00

Vember Audio's Surge. I was actually going to post this earlier, but somehow my "library, application support, vemberaudio" folder got deleted, and I had to re-program most of my presets over again from scratch.

This soft synth has been out a long time, but because it doesn't always get updated, I feel like it often gets overlooked. It really is a good one though. 3 oscillators, 2 multi-mode filters, tons of LFO's, lots of FM, wavetable, 2 envelopes, envelopes attached with the LFO's, lot of FX, the list goes on. It's certainly a synth that always makes me feel like I haven't even scratched the surface.

Vember Audio Surge by Calvin Cardioid

I enjoy the interface very much. I find it's very easy to setup certain modulations. For example, if you want to modulate pitch from LFO 1, then just click on LFO 1, and every parameter that you can modulate will then turn blue and you can tweak away. Also, the amount of options available in the oscillator section alone is pretty crazy. You can setup basic FM (i.e oscillator 3 modulates 2 modulates 1) with regular oscillators, but Vember Audio also offers special dedicated FM oscillators as a single oscillator. Then you can even FM between those if you like. The sound of this thing is very versatile, going from harsh to crazy to smooth. I think the price has gone down from when I first bought the license.

The sounds here are 100% Surge, even the FX. I really tried to make as many types of sounds as possible. Some patches I really hit the filter hard by making the oscillators loud. Other patches I completely backed them off and did not drive the filters. I played with different types of routing, feedback, and also subtle modulations. (Demo #6 even has a cool organ patch.) All sounds were sent out of Logic and re-recorded through outboard.

Waldorf Largo Slow Motion

2010-01-13T18:12:00.005-05:00

Happy new year folks. First post of 2010. This is just a quick track featuring 100% Waldorf Largo sounds only. Feels a bit slow motion to me.

Waldorf Largo Slow Motion by Calvin Cardioid

Free Omega 8 Chords

2009-12-29T15:52:00.015-05:00

This is probably the last post of 2009. Here are some free chords from the discrete output modified Omega 8. A quick word about what you're hearing here.

I took some of my favorite simple patches and I layered them up in multi-mode. This means that almost every chord is using all 16 VCO's if I'm doing my math right. (2 oscillators per voice, 8 voices in the machine.) Then I played 4-note chords that were layered / doubled, and recorded them chromatically ascending for about 2 octaves. Oh, and I also made sure to do all of them both major and minor.

They'll probably be too boring if you just listen to them. (I did - I sat there and actually listened as they bounced in realtime. Made me feel a bit strange.) The purpose is so that YOU can download, chop, sequence, reverse, pitch-shift, granulate, etc. etc. and use them in your own music. These chords were recorded through some outboard (EQ yes, compression no) and captured at 96k. They are prepared for you as 16-bit 44.1khz mono WAV's.

I wish you all a Happy New Year, and please share with me any tunes you make with these sounds!

Macbeth Studio Systems Moroco Filter

2009-12-07T20:13:00.017-05:00

Macbeth Studio System's Moroco Stereo Filter. I've actually done one previous post on this unit before, but in that post I only sent ambient sound through it. This time I made the filter process simple sawtooth and square waves instead. Just to recap, this is a stereo filter that Macbeth once made. Each filter can be LP, BP, or HP. There are four LFO's onboard - two for each filter. Some cool modulation sources include sample & hold, and red noise!

If you click for a close-up on the third photo, you can see there are various individual input and output connections such as LFO outputs and CV inputs. I think the filters are supposed to be some sort of variable SEM 12db, but I can't really remember the specs anymore. All I know is it still sounds superb - syrupy, thick, old. It's a pretty different game from the Sherman. I've never had a chance to check out Carsten Schippmann's Ebbe Und Flut, so I can't compare. But I'm sad to hear that might now also be discontinued? The world needs more filter boxes in my opinion. Sample away! P.S. It's interesting to hear what's going on with the Soundcloud encoding in the 'Sweeps' audio file. That's what 128kbps will do. I've made the original WAV's downloadable.

UPDATE: someone asked about the source oscillators - they are Omega 8, with filter wide open set to the 12db. But check out my previous Moroco post on here, there are some clips with the Virus as source oscillator. IMO, once I use the Moroco, it's less about the source. Its tone is always prevalent.

Hey Baby, Merry Christmas! (It's Not About The Presents)

2009-11-30T19:58:00.002-05:00

"Hey Baby, Merry Christmas! (It's Not About The Presents)"

This is my new Christmas song! It is currently available for sale on iTunes and CDBaby. Please click and purchase the track! The Vimeo clip above is a large preview of the song - the full audio version is the one that's available from iTunes.

Although it doesn't sound like there's a lot of synths in it, there's actually the Omega, Prodigy and a Nord Electro 3. We handmade the penguin, snowman, and Christmas tree, and then put it on a turntable so that there'd be some fun stuff to watch.

The track is currently trying to make the rounds on radio. Just a couple of smaller Canadian stations have picked it up so far. Stay tuned for more updates. Enjoy the song, and Happy Holidays!

Please visit: heybabymerrychristmas.com

Sherman Filterbank 2

2009-11-19T21:06:00.008-05:00

Sherman Filterbank 2. This is the dual rack version. Here are more simple sounding samples of what the filter sounds like. The only sound at the input is just a single oscillator coming from the Voyager. I also used the Moog VX-351 expander and the CP-251 to add some extra LFO's in the action. I don't remember exactly what was going on in the patches, but I mixed it up all over. Sometimes it was 2 parallel BP filters going into 2 parallel BP filters. Sometimes it was 2 filters in serial going into another 2 filters in serial. One of the clips didn't even have an oscillator - it was just the resonance cranked up and feedback. Download and enjoy using the clips!

Trying to Capture Autumn

2009-11-07T22:05:00.013-05:00

This little piece of music first began as a synth demo clip. But I kept hearing it in my head, so I took out the again Vermona Perfourmer and recorded a slightly longer version. Then I added a snare with brushes, and also some slapping (my hands on my legs) for the rhythm. Top it all off with some reverb and that's about it. By the time I was done, I realized this loop has a very hollow and empty feel - so I shot some simple Autumn footage to help convey what I feel this music might look like.

Extra thoughts: the snare drum with brushes makes me think of crunchy leaves. Also, I like the fact that as I played the melody on the Vermona Perfourmer, it has to cycle through each voice from 1-4. Since each voice is tuned slightly different, it's rare that any 2 chords sound exactly the same even if they are indeed the same notes.

Novation V-Station

2009-10-28T18:01:00.012-04:00

Novation V-Station audiounit soft synth. I think it sounds pretty good, and when I compare it to other virtual-analog synths such as a Nord Lead or Access Virus, I've always found that Novation instruments have a unique sound of their own. If I just add some clicking noises of old keys and a dusty old vintage smell, I'm sure I could fool myself into thinking it's some kind of hardware instrument.

Novation V-Station Demo by Calvin Cardioid

It's got three oscillators going into a mixer that feeds a 12db or 24db filter. Only one filter here, no band pass or high pass, and certainly no filter FM. There is oscillator FM where OSC2 modulates OSC3. Two LFO's, two envelopes, ring mod, noise, usual suspects. There's nothing really that special going on with this instrument. But it does have that "plasticky" sound which, to me, is very much Novation-sounding, and I find this can be very useful for certain types of music.

I've had this one for a long time - it wasn't even a boxed version. Just a manual with a code and an old disc. Anytime I change anything on my computer, it always asks me or the code again. While making these sounds, it crashed on me twice, but no big deal. The presets finally save properly in Logic now. Before, it would still save my presets, but it would always load at sound number 293 and I'd have to scroll through a whole bunch to get to my own.

After-Dinner Walk. NYC October '09

2009-10-20T17:52:00.016-04:00

This is just footage I shot while taking an after-dinner walk. Since I had no method of stabilization whatsoever, everything was super-shaky. But I think it looks OK at the increased speed even at 1600 ISO, despite some noise. It's not supposed to mean anything - I like all the sparkly lights in the evening through the Canon EFS 10-22mm lens. For the music, there are looped snippets from audio I've posted on this blog, as well as the Omega 8 playing on top of a snare drum rhythm. Try watching the whole thing without blinking, enjoy!

Quick AES NYC Photos

2009-10-13T22:28:00.004-04:00

I happen to be in NYC at the same time, so here's a few quick AES '09 photos. The show seemed a bit smaller than I remember, but it still has some very cool stuff. New goodies include that Lexicon plugin reverb, Great River Harrison EQ, Korg SV-1, etc. I didn't take photos of everything - just whatever I felt like.

Omega 8 as a Drum Machine.

2009-10-06T00:42:00.018-04:00

Studio Electronics Omega 8 as a drum machine. Rather than play the usual handful of musical hooks, I thought wouldn't it be useful if it was drum loop time. Well, long gone are my TR-909, TR-808, Xbase09, MFB-502, and I haven't picked up those D16 plugins yet. So I decided, why not use the Omega 8?

Because it's an 8-voice VCO synth, I can use its multi-mode and sequence it as 8 separate drum voices. I did this in Logic, very simple. AMT-8 sent the MIDI OUT to the Omega with port 8, and then MIDI channels 1-8 controlled the 8 voices. The multi mode has several options including Layer 4+4, 1+7, etc. I used the multi channel option to make this happen. Take note: when changing this option, you have to save the patch before it becomes active.

Omega 8 as a Drum Machine by Calvin Cardioid

Half of the sounds are from the onboard presets, and the other rhythmic percussive sounds I programmed them in for this post. Then I ran the Omega 8 out into some good outboard, including the Culture Vulture for a nice subtle warm blanket. No tape this time though.

The key to making it work: make sure you have a bunch of normal patches saved already as mono. (Then write the names down, 'cause the multi-mode edit only shows patch numbers and no names.) This way, each part won't cut into each other when you're programming crazy beats. It's all worth it too, because it's 8 VCO's going at the same time, so it's always gonna sound a tiny tiny bit different. Very alive.

Downloadable clips as usual. Make a cool song! Starting from Loop A, the tempo is 82, 126, 135, amd 78 BPM. "B" is my favorite, I'm totally gonna make something with it!

Arturia Prophet V

2009-09-20T18:18:00.014-04:00

Arturia Prophet V - Demo 1 by Calvin Cardioid

Arturia Prophet V. Strictly focusing on the Prophet 5 section and not the VS: is it just me, or does this just sort of sound similar to other Arturia soft synths? It seems overly dynamic which is not necessary, and its crazy modulation sounds are a bit cloudy sounding. I've tried lowering the oscillator level into the mixer and turning up the volume instead, and that seems less grainy than overloading the mixer. I've also had some issues with this synth going nuts on me in the past, so I really have to tweak with caution these days, and turn my monitors way down. (I tried using pulse wave OSC B at high frequency to modulate PWM A and then manually tweak OSC A's width. When the width reaches the outer edges, sometimes I get a really loud POP.) With its crazy CPU consumption, need for a dongle, and scary potential loud outbursts, this baby gets less use these days other than the rare patch.

Arturia Prophet V - Demo 2 by Calvin Cardioid

The Beatles in Mono

2009-09-09T11:43:00.007-04:00

Hooray, I have them! Obviously, I haven't gone through them all yet. Check out what the waveforms look like between the stereo and mono versions. One does look louder indeed, but neither seems terribly crushed.

I think they do sound different, even though it's subtle. The Mono is full of energy and sounds more wholesome. The Stereo is a little bit louder, and sounds a bit more like 'today'. If you really nitpick, you can hear small differences in certain performances between the Stereo and Mono versions. Both packaging jobs are superb but the Mono is really outstanding with the LP miniature replica.

Bottom line: I think they sound phenomenal. Listening to them on a proper setup, they don't sound overcompressed. I'll let the audiophiles describe how sweet it sounds.

Happy 090909

2009-09-09T00:01:00.004-04:00

FREE TR-909 SAMPLES HERE

Happy 090909! Get out your TR-909's and jam!

Happy 090909 by Calvin Cardioid

Should be an interesting day - Beatles Remasters are coming out, and I'm very excited about them. I wonder if they'll release the whole catalogue on iTunes? I also think it's great that even more people will now be exposed to their songs through the new Beatles Rock Band game.

Moog Prodigy

2009-09-07T02:50:00.015-04:00

Vintage Moog Prodigy. Pretty simple mono synth, with two oscillators, one 24db filter, glide, sync, two envelopes (filter and "loudness"), one extra LFO that only goes up to 30hz it says, main tune knob, and two wheels. I used to have a Little Phatty when it first came out, and this Prodigy sort of reminds me of that. This thing is simpler but the sound / tone is a bit sweeter. Maybe because it's old? I don't know the electrical stuff, but perhaps a lot of the parts inside are no longer up to spec...

Vintage Moog Prodigy Demo by Calvin Cardioid

The Little Phatty sounded quite thick also, but this Prodigy is even more heavy and dark. It actually sounds similar to the SE-1X. I also used to own a Roland SH-2 - pretty different sounding from the Prodigy. This synth is more...coarse, yet smoother.

The clips: two of them play single "patches" only, while another two have a couple tracks layered. The 5th clip has the OSC OUT of my Freqbox plugged into first the OSC IN on the Prodigy and then the VCF IN. For best results, please download the clips before listening. The encoded Soundcloud waveforms have a hard time handling the heavier patches.

Start A Song with Voyager

2009-09-02T00:34:00.011-04:00

This seems like a cool way to start some new tracks. Going opposite direction of the splashy reverbs from the previous post, I used delays and built up some drone-like rhythmic patterns from the Voyager. One note at a time, playing into some sort of polyrhythmic delay that helps to build everything up. (Is it called "drone" or should I say "ambient melodic loop" or "rhythmic loop"?) I tried not to change keys too much within each loop, which probably makes it easier for you to sample. Other than the delay, no other FX going on here, and I kept the clips in mono so they don't have too much of one person's signature on them. Some of them fall apart by the end, but there are still plenty of great moments in the middle. Perhaps start a new track with some of these? Have fun!

Moog Voyager Loops - Start a Song! by calvincardioid

Omega 8 with FX

2009-09-01T01:49:00.006-04:00

Here's a couple sounds from the Omega 8 drenched with over-the-top FX. Obviously, in a song setting I'd tone it way down, but since this is all in good fun... I cranked it up. Crazy reverbs, reverse delays, panning around stereo field, all courtesy of the Eventide. If you like the clips, please sample away, just let me know.

Omega 8 with FX by Calvin Cardioid

New Rhodes Photos

2009-08-23T15:06:00.005-04:00

Here are some photos I took of the new Rhodes at the PAL / MIAC show in Toronto. Sorry, no sound clips, but from what I could hear on the noisy show floor (and also from checking it out at a store) it sounds pretty nice. The gentleman overseeing that section told me that there are 3 models: active, passive, and a soon-to-be MIDI version. Only the red one was plugged in, so I played a little bit. The keys felt very loose - fairly different from the Mark I Suitcase I used to personally own. This red new Rhodes even felt different than a similar black model I demo'ed in a store. He told me they didn't get a chance to let a tech work on it after bringing it to the show. Very cool nonetheless.

Random Moog Sounds

2009-08-13T16:47:00.007-04:00

Just some free random Moog sounds for you to download and use. Voyager with a little help from Frostwave Resonator and the Moog Ring Modulator. No reverb or delay. Initial plans for this post sort of failed, that's why it's just this small bit of random sounds instead. Still, there are some great "analog" moments buried in the clips, so please download away. This one resembles the very first post ever done here on CL516 Blog. Sample away!

Random Moog Sounds by calvincardioid

Yellow Omega 8

2009-08-01T21:01:00.048-04:00

Studio Electronics Omega 8. CL516 Edition. Polyphonic analog synth. Although there are 2 to 3 other yellow panel units in existence, it's confirmed this is the only Omega 8 with all the lighted switches changed to yellow. The folks at Studio Electronics are great and were so kind to tell me about this panel when I called in. I'm not much of a photographer - the display is less green in real life. This one has the discrete op amp mod on the stereo outputs. Standard MINI and SEM filters only.

Sound: absolute dream. 8 discrete voices. Analog and fat, yet tight and precise and articulate. None of that "carelessly eating up too much sonic space" stuff. It gets to the point and delivers sonic oomph very efficiently. I've yet to perform the auto-tune on it so far. I give it enough time to warm up, and all 8 voices are well-behaved. Sounds alive.

Inspiring to play! It was easy to come up with 12 demo clips. They're in no particular order, so download away and try to give them all a listen. Recorded in stereo because many of the patches use panned voices. No FX - completely dry so you can hear the pure character of the synth. Now, turn up the volume!

Yellow OMEGA 8 Demo by Calvin Cardioid

It's got oscillator and my all-important filter FM inside, which sounds great. Multi-mode is a simple affair - I can do stuff like Split 1+7 or Layer 4+4, more than enough for me. I've been told that the envelopes and LFO's are software. I heard some people complain about it sounding metallic. Sorry to disappoint, but aside from intentional programming efforts, this machine is warm, sweet, and most of all, smooth. I can write my parts in any octave I want now, no more avoiding the high end because of sounding nasty. The bass, though not 100% exactly as creamy and dirty as the SE-1X, is still super deep and punchy. Tight and efficient. Overall, extremely easy to use. Most menu items are just 1 or 2 steps away.

I didn't go for the CODE because (a) I happen to like the triangle wave, (b) I don't want a built-in onboard overdrive and (c) I like the arpeggiator. I look forward to trying out the 8 external inputs located on the back of the synth.

Hope you enjoy my Omega version of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" which sounds like a couple of past-their-prime funky dudes who've had too much to drink. It wasn't mixed at all, no panning, no EQ, nothing. Just a couple of quick takes.

"Farewell to a Great Idea"

2009-07-25T01:12:00.022-04:00

Farewell to a Great Idea by Calvin Cardioid

New track I just put together. It started merely as a bunch of rhythms and hooks while I was exploring the Arturia Origin. But after many emails and hardware units exchanged and returned, it was clear that the Arturia Origin was not meant to be... as least for me. By then, I felt enough stuff was recorded to put a small track together.

The blurry pad at the start, the sequence starting at 0:09, and the bass are all from the Origin. For the main drums I decided to just use the most generic ones I could find - the 'paris house remix' kit (if I remember correctly) in Logic's Ultrabeat. They just sounded right! Some other instruments include the Virus TI2, and the demo version of Jupiter 8V. The string sound is a sample within the Nord Electro 3. Normally when I build a new tune I put together all brand new sounds... so I guess this is really half demo half real piece. But hey, nothing wrong with stock Ultrabeat drums and demo soft synths!

Farewell to that machine, and farewell to what its potential could have meant for me. Now, turn up the volume! :)

Interstellar Overdriver Supreme and Voyager

2009-07-20T18:18:00.011-04:00

Here's a post on my own personal Interstellar Overdriver Supreme from Death by Audio. My apologies to those who aren't into distortion and crunchy sounds. For those interested, apparently it's now been replaced by their Interstellar Overdriver Deluxe instead. The instrument here is the Moog Voyager once again - it's better this way, nobody needs to hear me play guitar. These clips are multitracked in Logic, but they're all straight from the Voyager into the Overdriver then DI'ed into the computer. No other effects used at all.

Death By Audio Pedal + Moog Voyager by calvincardioid

This pedal is supreme because it sounds awesome. It's actually two of their smaller pedals put into one unit. The Interstellar Overdriver Supreme has different settings for the "left pedal", and the Death By Audio describes them as 1 thin drive, 2 normal interstellar overdriver, 3 bass overdrive, 4 octafuzz, 5 oscillating fuzz, and 6 voltage controlled tremolo fuzz. The clips I've recorded use most of these settings except 5 and 6.

LinnDrum

2009-07-16T22:39:00.017-04:00

LinnDrum. Couple of quick loops recorded through some outboard. A sample kit is available for download as usual. I use this machine fairly often, and you can also hear it in on my track, "I Can Make U Dance", located on the right side of this page. Although I've included single-shot hits for you, I gotta say there's nothing quite like recording a full drum pattern straight from the machine into the gear. Sounds much better that way.

LinnDrum Loops Demo by calvincardioid

Which brings me to something slightly off-topic: speaking of drum machines, I've got to mention those D16 plugins: Drumazon, Nepheton, and Nithonat. Now that they're finally out as audiounits, I managed to check them out recently. I think they're incredible! As soon as I pick them up, I'll do a couple of loops and put them on here.

But anyway getting back on track, my LinnDrum is a bit wonky at times. Knobs and sliders are scratchy, and sometimes I need to hold certain parts down just to get a sound. The tempo always fluctuates a number or two when I press to read it on the display. I really should grab a MIDI kit for this thing. No matter, maybe I'll get it fixed down the road. I love the punchiness! Enjoy the loops & samples and happy friday!

Please CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD SAMPLES.