Omega in OP-1

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!!

Omega in Blackhole Not Space

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

Pure Omega 8: That Stuff on the Phoneline

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

Omega 8 Logo

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

Omega 8 November Presets

Just playing through some presets...

Omega 8 into Roland SDD-320 Dimension D

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.

Direct Contact with the Omega 8

Free Omega 8 Chords

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!

Omega 8 as a Drum Machine.

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!

Omega 8 with FX

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

Yellow Omega 8

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.

Moog Voyager vs Studio Electronics SE-1X

  
  

Moog Voyager vs Studio Electronics SE-1X. Well, maybe not quite "vs" like "Spy vs. Spy". Just another happy Friday side-by-side comparison: this time between these analog 3-oscillator monophonic synthesizers.

This post was inspired by numerous forum messages.  It seems like every so often someone will start asking again about the difference between these two synths.  I'm sure there's enough technical info online already, so I thought I'd contribute another way.

I recorded these 12 audio clips in an attempt to capture what I feel is each unit's strengths.  This is not a scientific test - no sawtooth waves shall be compared or viewed by an oscilloscope.  Instead, I simply played 6 clips in realtime on each instrument - no effects, straight into Logic.  The original WAV files sound much better than the streaming mp3's here, and they are available for download provided you can view the Soundcloud player.

Moog Voyager vs. Studio Electronics SE-1X by Calvin Cardioid

Here's what's happening in the clips.

SE-1X #1: 24db filter used here.  Saw and triangle wave ON for all oscillators.  

SE-1X #2: Bank 1, preset 1 of this unit.  Simple.  One of my absolute faves!

SE-1X #3: 24db filter.  Pulse, pulse and saw.  Used the multiple LFO's and envelopes.

SE-1X #4: 12db filter.  Saw and pulse waves ON for all oscillators.

SE-1X #5: 24db filter.  Oscillators 1 & 2 are triangle, sync ON.  Oscillator 3 is pulse.

SE-1X Sweep: The all important, "how does the filter sweep sound like?" preset.

Moog 1: I'm trying to make a simpler sound here.  I love how aftertouch controls vibrato.

Moog 2: IMO, this is a very wholesome Voyager patch.  Large and gooey.

Moog 3: My preset "Pensive Pad". Very hands-on.  I'm manually adjusting LFO rate.

Moog 4: Simple sound, very short and rhythmic.

Moog 5: I called this one the Spacebug - it sounds great through a delay. FM in middle of clip.

Moog 6: My preset "Mindchanger".  Rhythmic.  Definitely can make a song with this.

  

The Studio Electronics SE-1X is more of a thick sounding tone-module for me.  It doesn't have audio-rate modulation of anything, but its craaazy intense bass sound rules. The Voyager has many more modulation possibilities: even without the expanders, I can get oscillator 2 to modulate 3 to modulate 1 all within the unit.  Also, the Voyager is incredibly hands-on and feels like a true instrument.  Tweaking the SE-1X is sometimes a bit tedious, especially when its parameters have a tendency to jump to nearby values.  All in all, both sound fantastic!