Indholdsfortegnelse for July 2016 i Computer Music

“Subscribe and get a D16 effects plugin!” Last month, we introduced D16 Group’s debut cm Plugin, the astonishing Frontier, and we also dropped hints of a very special offer that could net you another free D16 plugin. So here it is: simply subscribe – or renew, if you’re already a subscriber – to cm between 18 May and 15 June and get any D16 SilverLine effects plugin, worth $49/€39/£32, absolutely free! With subs starting at just £27 a year, you’d be barmy not to take advantage of this history-making deal. Deciding which of the seven SilverLine effects to go for could be tough, though – so flip to p65 for our in-depth guide to the creative talents of these superb studio essentials, and read the full offer details on p71.…

Tutorial videos High-quality videos to guide you through our tutorials. Wherever you see the icon on the left, there’s a video version to watch See this issue’s entire video content on the next pages Tutorial files A folder full of audio examples, synth patches and project files to help you follow our tutorials This digital content has been thoroughly scanned and tested at all stages of production, but as with all new software, we still recommend that you run a virus checker before use. We also recommend that you have an up-to-date backup of your hard drive before using the content. Future cannot accept responsibility for any disruption, damage and/or loss to your data or computer system that may occur while using this magazine’s programs and/or data. Consult your network…

EASY GUIDE JAZZ/FUNK CHORDS Move beyond basic triads and create soulful chord progressions Read the full article on p80 DESIGNER SOUNDS STRETCH AND SHIFT Get the retro sound of classic pitchshifted and timestretched sounds Read Read the the full full article article on on p pxx 82 GEEK TECHNIQUE UPWARD COMPRESSION Turn your dynamics processors on their heads with this process Read the full article on p84 DR BEAT PUSH AND PULL Manipulate groove and tension with these expert timing tweaks Read Read the the full full article article on on p86 pxx…

Controller keyboards seem to be getting cheaper all the time, as evidenced by these two new additions to Nektar’s range. The Impact GX49 (£75) and GX61 (£83) feature full-sized velocity-sensitive keys, pitch and mod wheels, and a smattering of buttons for essential tasks, managing to fit the whole lot together into their slimline designs. Nektar’s usual level of DAW integration is included as standard, too, with transport controls, mixer/track/instrument selection and more ready to rock with Logic, Cubase, Studio One, Sonar, Reason, FL Studio and more major DAWs. URL www.nektar.com…

“The objective is to create plugins that encompass years and years of the engineer’s experience” cm Many of your plugins emulate classic audio gear. Does this pigeonhole them into being used for ‘classic’ music production? What do they have to offer people in other fields of audio? MO “We’ve found that these emulations are used by a very broad spectrum of users, from beginners to high-end engineers in every field of audio, be it Studio, Live, Broadcast etc. Our recently released Abbey Road Reverb Plates plugin is one of the strongest sellers ever and is being used in every musical genre out there.” cm We’ve seen a bunch of one-knob ‘do-it-all’ plugins from you. What’s the appeal of these processors in the days of the command-console compressor and the flight-deck…

Sinevibes are aiming to turn the traditional monosynth on its head in their own unique way. Alternator contains square, saw, waveshaped sine and FM sine waveforms, sent through filtering and effects. But there’s more to it than that: the whole thing is step sequenced, from the oscillators and the notes played, through pitch modulation, filter type and cutoff, to FM envelope and a choice of four effects. It’s all accompanied by Sinevibes’ Snapshot setup system. Alternator (AU) should be available by the time you read this, for $69. URL www.sinevib.es…

POWER TO THE PEOPLE What do you do if you’re a developer who can’t decide which filter to use in your new soft synth? If you’re u-he, you let people download a free Alpha version featuring five filter types and let people vote for their favourite. The customer is always right, after all. DAVE SMITH MEETS PIONEER Speaking of filters, who expected Dave Smith to provide two of the analogue variety for Pioneer DJ’s new standalone Toraiz SP-16 pad sampler/groovebox? In fact, who expected Pioneer DJ to announce that kind of product at all? KEY SWITCHING It’s easy to change the sound that you’re playing with your controller keyboard, but how about changing the weighting of the keys to feel like a grand piano, organ or synth? That’s the premise…

Anatomy of a kick drum A physical kick drum – or bass drum – is made up of a wooden shell with a typical diameter of between 22 and 26 inches, and a stretched head (or skin) that is struck by a beater held in a foot pedal. Depending on the musical style, there may also be a front head, the skin on which you’ll see a band’s name. This skin is commonly punctured with a small hole for a couple of reasons: it allows air to escape and reduces the tail of the sound, and it allows the engineer to insert a microphone and damping materials. The tone of the drum is dependent on many things, most obviously the construction, the diameter, the tuning of the skin, the type…

Just as you’d add salt and pepper to a meal, seasoning a bass with distortion or saturation can give your mix a much-needed final sprinkle of flavour. A good place to start is by using drive to add extra midrange harmonics or excite those that are already present, which can have a variety of mix benefits: you’ll add low-mid crunch to clean bass, which will improve audibility over smaller speakers; plus, you’ll also level out your bass’s dynamic range a touch, reducing the need for as much compression. Although you can insert saturation or distortion on a track directly, you’ll probably need to keep settings subtle, as powerful sub frequencies can easily push distortion too far, messing up transient detail and dynamics. In this case, processing on a send provides…

Complementary kick and bass While processing can make a huge difference to your mixes, choosing the right kick and bass sounds in the first place is key to crafting a truly professional low end. So start by using sounds that complement rather than collide with each other – for example, a sustained, sub-heavy kick drum will clash with a huge, sub-heavy bassline, giving a muddy feel to your low frequencies. To combat this, it’s helpful to pick one sound to occupy the lowest frequencies before making the other one fit around it. If you’ll be using a heavy, low bassline in your track, then try using a lighter, higher-pitched kick drum to complement it. Similarly, if you’re making a piece with a powerful, deep kick, then writing a bass part…

“It was confusing having so many musical influences. It’s this big confusion of ‘What do I want to make?’” Selected kit list HARDWARE Apple MacBook Pro Focusrite Saffire 6 KRK Rokit 5 KRK 10S M-Audio Axiom 49 SOFTWARE Windows 7 Image-Line FL Studio 10 AAS Lounge Lizard EP-3 Camel Audio CamelSpace D16 Group Decimort 2 Korg M1 Xfer Records LFOTool Kjaerhus Audio plugins Nomad Factory plugins Sonalksis plugins Like his gun-toting namesake from GTA: Vice City , young Tommy Vercetti has quickly risen to infamy thanks to his Eton Messy- and Hed Kandi-endorsed uplifting house sounds. We caught up with Tommy in his Walsall bedroom studio to find out how he gets his Ibiza-inspired vibes, and to learn more about his efforts to create a unique sonic…

Although each SilverLine effect has its own distinct personality, there are several common features across the range. All of the effects (with the exception of Frontier, Syntorus and Fazortan) house an input Preamp dial. If you thought this was some kind of input drive algorithm, you’d be wrong: this parameter only pushes the input signal into other stages, as D16 Group’s Sebastian Bachlinski explains. “The Preamp parameter in all SilverLine plugins is just signal gain, nothing more – the magic happens in subsequent modules. For example, it’s Devastor 2’s clipper that cuts everything above 0dB; in Decimort 2, it’s the quantiser; and in Antresol, it’s the feedback loop that saturates the signal when it exceeds 0dB.” Another notable uniform feature is the FX knob, which allows you to blend between…

Programming drums with adherence to the limitations of a real drummer and their drum kit is a subject we’ve covered a few times before in , and it’s every bit as important in relation to fills as it is beats. First and foremost, with only four limbs, a drummer can only hit a maximum four things at a time, and with two of those limbs being their feet, two of said things have to be the kick drum and hi-hat pedal. So, if you ever hear more than two drums (excluding the kick) and/or cymbals being struck at the same time in your fill, you need to delete all but two of them. Although a skilled drummer might sound as temporally tight as a drum machine, in actuality, their strokes…

In a studio career spanning almost 25 years, Dave has engineered, programmed and played keyboards on records for a string of artists including George Michael, Kylie Minogue, Tina Turner and Estelle. These days, in between writing articles for and other magazines, he collaborates on occasional songs and videos with singer/songwriter Lucy Hirst, aka Polkadothaze. www.daveclews.com RECOMMENDED LISTENING MR FINGERS, CAN YOU FEEL IT This house classic may not have many chords in it, but the ones that are there are certainly flavoursome – mainly Am9, Fmaj7 and G9 bit.ly/MrFingersCYFI DETROIT SWINDLE, THE WRAP AROUND A simple yet effective example of jazz/funk chords in use, this track is allb about the minor b ninths – E m9, Fm9 and D m9 to be exact bit.ly/DetSwinTWA PRO TIPS…

Compressors are really naughty devices. I don’t use compression much to control dynamics in a vanilla, utilitarian way – forget that! I want compression to achieve the right blend of power, sex and violence. Once you’re getting this energy from your compressors in abundance, it’s hard to look back. At some point, you get into really kinky configurations of sidechained parallel upward multiband compression, just to get your fix. This month, without shame, I’d like to explore upward compression with you. If you haven’t dabbled in upward compression yet, you’re in for a real treat. The basic concept is simply to raise the level of material below the threshold, instead of compressing the signal above it. Don’t worry if the benefits of this aren’t immediately obvious – we’ll get there.…

“All versions offer in-app purchases via the integrated Auria Store” MIX/EDIT Switch between Auria’s two main screens ICON TOOLBAR Access a range of context-dependent tools here GRID Set the edit window snap grid FX Open and edit the Channel Strip plugin and MIDI Control panel FADER GROUPING Set up fader grouping for the level, Solo and Mute controls MASTER METER Drag the floating peak and RMS meter to a convenient position AUXILIARIES Auria’s six auxiliaries are switched globally in pairs at the Master returns FADES Start adjusting a fade, and a choice of shapes appear in a pop-up window TRANSIENT Transient mode lets you adjust warp markers, Warp mode lets you adjust audio timing MULTI SELECT Select multiple non-adjacent parts in the edit window Upon its initial launch in 2012,…

To make the most of GPO5, you need to get into its real-time controls and performance features. MIDI CC assignments are fixed and instrument-specific, common examples including volume (mod wheel, CC1), legato (sustain pedal) and auto-legato on/off for sustain instruments (CC64). Dig a bit deeper and you’ll find CC controls for things like bass drum fundamental level, vibraphone tremolo level/speed, and string bow noise. For keyswitching, typical articulations are augmented with useful options like roll on MIDI note release for snares and timpani, and trill on release for solo violins. New GPO5 instruments take things a stage further with CC-assigned ADSR envelopes for many of them, and clever use of CCs for the pedal settings on the new Concert Grand Harp. The most complex set of MIDI CC assignments is…

Each of the Studio 192’s eight analogue inputs and the first eight ADAT inputs feature a virtual channel strip that can be called up in the Universal Control software, comprising expander/gate, compressor/limiter and fully parametric four-band EQ with high-pass filter. You can bypass each processor, and all the controls you’d expect are in place: Threshold, Range, Key Filter, Attack and Release for the Gate; Threshold, Ratio, Gain, Attack, Release (with Auto option) and Soft/Hard Knee for the Compressor; and Frequency, Gain and Q on all four bands for the EQ, each with independent bypass. The EQ even has two ‘slots’, for A/B comparison. It’s all good stuff, the only drawback being that you can’t monitor the Fat Channel without also recording it, which is rarely going to be ideal, particularly…

Step 1 On your PC or Mac, go to vault.computermusic.co.uk, then either register for a new Vault account, or log in if you already have one. Step 2 Click ‘add a magazine’ in the top bar, select the issue you want to add to your Vault (eg, this issue is 231), and answer a few simple security questions. Step 3 Go to ‘my vault’ to see all your mags – click a cover and use the links to download! You can download as much or as little as you like.…

KICK & BASS POWER Get them as powerful as possible while still grooving together using the advice in our huge guide Read the full article on p36 SINEVIBES CLUSTER 2 This Mac AU sequencer-driven effects plugin is yours for free, with this issue only Read the full article on p10 DOTEC-AUDIO DEEMONITOR Simulate monitors and take control of your signal’s channels with this indispensable software utility Read the full article on p14 GET CREATIVE WITH D16 EFFECTS Take these pro plugins for a ride, and claim one for free when you subscribe or renew! Read the full article on p65 TOMMY VERCETTI Watch as he deconstructs one of his Ibiza-inspired tunes in this in-studio video session Read the full article on p59 Grab this issue’s…

SEQUENCER Adjust sequencer duration, division and swing via the top strip FILTER FREQUENCY Draw in custom stepped filter frequency values FILTER MODES Switch between four filter types (band-reject, band-pass, high-pass and low-pass) on a per-step basis ENVELOPE POLARITY Horizontally flip a step by toggling its + or - button GLOBAL ENVELOPE & FILTER SETTINGS Adjust global envelope shape, lag (smoothness), filter frequency offset, resonance, dry/wet and filter type ENVELOPE SHAPE Switch each step’s shape between Pulse, Ramp, 2x and 3x Ramp, and Triangle SNAPSHOTS Set up and tweak up to eight individual plugin setups ENVELOPE Draw in filter envelope modulation amount per step INPUT See the input waveform appear on the sequencer display Ukranian developers Sinevibes are well respected throughout the plugin community thanks to their extensive range of colourful,…

Coming this summer, this new synth totes “3D Wavetable Synthesis”, presumably taking the sound of wavetable morphing to another dimension, making Tone2 confident of its ability to both create unique sounds and replace your existing go-to synths. Other than the oscillators, the rest of Icarus appears to be relatively traditional: filtering, envelopes, modulation and effects (selectable choices as well as EQ and Limiter modules) add to the sound. Icarus should be taking flight this summer, priced at €149, and it’ll be available as a VST/AU plugin for Mac and PC. We’ll review it in due course. URL www.tone2.com…

This new VST/AU/AAX delay plugin from the master plugin developers places itself firmly on the creative end of the spectrum, promising “a wide range of sounds, from lush analog tape delays through vibrant loops, from classic ping-pong to scratchy pitch shifts”. Alongside the usual delay controls – Time and Feedback, plus modulation from a tweakable LFO – you get control over filtering, width, limiting and saturation amounts, with Dry/Wet mix control over the whole thing. There’s also a guitarist-style infinite looper mode. PSP StompDelay is available now for $83. URL www.pspaudioware.com…

This VST/AU/AAX reverb plugin is “inspired by early hardware digital reverbs of the late 1970s”. Eight Early Reflections signals are controllable in four groups of two, and the entire early stage of the reverb can be balanced to your preference. The single Diffusion knob selects between 16 setups of modulated delay, before the Echo panel gives rise to the reverb tail through a series of late reflections, controllable for their Time, Feedback, Smoothing and LFO modulation. There are also low- and high-frequency cuts on the way into the plugin, plus separate Dry and Wet levels. It’s available now for €45. URL www.audiority.com…

It was a crazy time back in June 2006, as cm 101 saw us exploring the idea of running Windows on a Mac. Thanks to Intel power and the launch of Boot Camp, it finally became possible to install the OS on one of Apple’s machines, a major innovation that all of 12 people had been crying out for. OK, we’re being facetious – it was groundbreaking stuff – but if you want a PC, why buy a Mac? “If you want a PC, why buy a Mac?” When we spoke to UK hip-hop artist Sway, meanwhile, he was of the opinion that music-making on a computer was getting “too easy now – disturbingly easy”, so we dread to think what he’d think about all the ‘driver aids’ in the…

Rob Papen “It doesn’t take much brainpower to figure that a range of good presets is important. They reflect the possibilities and sound quality of a synthesiser. They help people to make music, since not everybody has the time to make presets or has the skills and talent for it. They can be a starting point, for making another sound, and they can inspire someone to compose a new song. “In the early age of synthesisers, artists like Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream, Jean Michel Jarre and Giorgio Moroder had no presets, so they had to learn how the synthesiser worked before any music could be played! Hence the unique sounds they had. “Anyhow, the cool thing is that music and its magic still has the last word. You can buy a…

Sonic Academy Kick cm201 » 8/10 » £50 Sculpt a synthetic sub kick, layer one of the hundreds of preset click samples (or load your own), then shape pitch, click amplitude and sub amplitude via the three breakpoint envelopes, and apply onboard distortion and limiting. Version 2 has recently been announced, and we’re looking forward to reviewing it soon! www.sonicacademy.com Plugin Boutique BigKick cm205 » 9/10 » £40 Combine a synth sub layer with a click/top/character kick layer, tune the layers to fit, then sculpt the results with built-in EQ, overdrive, hard clipper and “Punch” control. You can drag and drop between BigKick and your DAW to import and export audio to and from your projects. www.pluginboutique.com Vengeance-Sound Metrum cm152 » 9/10 » £89 Metrum features a low-end kick synth,…

Spectrasonics Trilian cm147 » 8/10 » £160 This monster ROMpler features 34GB of content alongside lifelike emulations of over 60 electric bass guitars, plus oodles of synth-based patches sampled from revered hardware, and great-sounding filters and effects processing from Omnisphere. The ace of bass! spectrasonics.net Native Instruments Monark cm191 » 8/10 » £89 Painstakingly modelled on the Minimoog, Monark features three fat oscillators alongside a rich filter and convincingly emulated envelopes – ideal for creating rich bass and lead tones in the box, and a great introduction to analogue-style synthesis for less experienced users. bit.ly/NImonark Native Instruments Scarbee-MM Bass cm189 » 9/10 » £59 Looking for a more lifelike bass guitar tone? Scarbee-MM is inspired by the sound of Chic bassist Bernard Edwards, with realistic player profiles. Set it to…

We’ve looked at ways to dynamically control plugins in real-time using audio as a trigger, but in the age of DAWs, this might seem a little old-fashioned. Why spend ages calibrating plugins when you can simply draw in what you want, either destructively with an audio editor or non-destructively using with automation? There are advantages to the old-school method, not least of which is that it doesn’t require copying and pasting small sections of automation throughout a whole track, and you can always make arrangement and other compositional changes later, without having to redo the work. That said, there is something to be said for the precision that audio editing, or at least automation, can bring. For example, you can manually draw in EQ cuts where kicks and bass interact,…

In the decade since launching their first product, the TB-303-emulating Phoscyon, Polish software scientists D16 Group have become one of the most revered brands in plugin land. They’re probably best known for their all-star lineup of virtual Roland replicas Nepheton, Drumazon, Nithonat and LuSH-101, but it’s their SilverLine Collection – an, easy-to-use range of eight effects plugins – which arguably has the greatest potential when it comes to creative sound design and mixing. Before we go any further, we should draw your attention to a couple of SilverLine-related points of relevance. Firstly, the most recent addition to the suite – Frontier, a flavoursome ‘self-adaptive’ limiter – is yours for free with this magazine: head to the Plugins folder (download it from vault.computermusic.co.uk or find it on the DVD with the…

D16’s SilverLine Collection covers practically all creative needs, but you may be wondering why there’s no delay device on offer. It’s because there’s a far more powerful sibling in the D16 family: Sigmund (9/10, 198, €69), a colossal delay plugin named after a mythological Norse warrior. While the silver-clad collection’s modus operandi is streamlined simplicity, Sigmund offers a breadth of features to rival any delay plugin currently on the market. It’s comprised of four discrete delay lines, each of which features its own multimode filter, overdrive and amplitude modulator, independent of the feedback loop. There are also two global modulators for hands-free movement of the delay lines’ internal parameters, both of which can be switched between an LFO, transient-detecting envelope and peak follower. The routing section is also extremely powerful:…

The placement of drum fills within a track should be quite intuitive. Assuming the track in question fits the standard template of eight-and 16-bar sections, you’ll likely know instinctively where they should go – one leading out of the first verse into the chorus, another leading out of the chorus into the second verse, etc. Fills at these ‘anchor points’ can be up to a bar long, depending on how the rest of the instrumentation ramps up alongside them. If, for example, the transition from verse to chorus is an uneventful one in terms of arrangement and buildup, you might only want your fill to occupy the last beat or two; or if there’s a bar-long synth riser at the end of the chorus, a fill of the same length…

One of the reasons many of us love electronic music is the use of crazy effects that we’d never normally hear in the real world. This was one of the main elements that drew me to jungle in the 90s: the use of samplers and other effects units to mangle natural sounds such as vocals and drums into something never heard before. The fact that these capabilities have been around for 25 years and were exploited so well at the time sometimes leaves us forgetting the creative joys of such techniques. Often these days, timestretching and pitchshifting are used as functional repair methods to get a vocal in time or to pitch a drum hit to the correct key. Since software has become so advanced, you usually can’t tell that…

As an in-demand dance music engineer, Owen’s worked with a slew of outstanding underground artists behind the scenes from his London studio. After years of meticulously studying what makes a great production tick, he’s promised to share his most coveted techniques each month exclusively in . You can sign up for Owen’s free email course on making mixdowns easy at… www.owenthegeek.com/cm PRO TIPS UPWARD CONFUSION Many cite parallel compression as a form of upward compression – some even claiming that they’re the exact same thing. In my opinion, parallel compression can produce similar results to upward compression, but it’s a different beast. Upward compression in its truest form does nothing to the signal above the threshold, just as downward compression in its truest form does nothing to the signal below…

Our promise We bring you honest, unbiased appraisals of the latest computer music products. Our experts apply the same stringent testing methods to all gear, no matter how much hype or expectation surrounds it. What the ratings mean 1-4 A seriously flawed product that should be avoided 5 This product’s problems outweigh its merits 6 A decent product that’s only held back by a few flaws 7 Solid. Well worth considering 8 Very good. A well-conceived and executed product 9 Excellent. First-rate and among the best you can buy 10 Exceptional. It just doesn’t get any better than this! See and hear the latest software in action in our ‘2 Minutes With…’ videos! Wherever you see the icon, head straight to your DVD, the Vault download area, or our YouTube…

“The key to the Rise’s expressive control is that it interprets a total of five playing gestures (or ‘dimensions of touch’)” Replacing conventional piano-style keys with a continuous, rubbery playing surface of ridged ‘keywaves’, ROLI’s Seaboard concept is designed to bring the control and expressiveness of acoustic instruments to their software counterparts. Their first and flagship venture, the Seaboard Grand, comes in 37-, 61-and 88-note sizes with built-in sound generation courtesy of the Equator synth engine, and the Rise series delivers the same expressive capabilities in more compact 25- and 49-key USB MIDI controller form, with the Equator synth supplied as a software plugin for OS X and Windows. Rise and shine The very first thing that strikes you about the Rise 49 is the sheer weight of the thing.…

Best known for their superb Curve 2 synth (9/10, 186), German developers Cableguys also produce a range of modulation-based effects plugins, the latest of which, PanShaper (VST/AU), is a stereo panner. The focus of the main window is the waveform display on the left-hand side, which runs a timeline from top to bottom, with the left and right channels represented literally. A white audio waveform display is overlaid with an orange line, which describes the shape of the panning movement. The amount of time represented by the window from top to bottom is determined by the LFO fields to the right. These can be set to sync to host tempo from 1/128 up to 32 bars (including dotted but not triplet options), run free in Hertz, or be triggered via…

Included in many of their plugins, Melda’s standard array of four mod sources, each independently assignable to just about any and all parameters, feels more at home with the streamlined MMorph than it does with any of its stablemates. The first modulator is Normal, a feature-packed LFO with a step-sequencer-style mode. Next is an audio envelope follower called Follower (powered by an algorithm lifted from Melda’s MDynamics plugin), which proves particularly handy when using a drum loop as the sidechain source. Envelope is a standard ADSR envelope, while Random spits out semi-random modulation signals. That is to say, while they don’t run in cycles like an LFO or an envelope follower, they are still synced to the host tempo and so will always plays the same thing at the same…

In 1998, German manufacturers SPL wowed the music production industry with their Transient Designer. Using just two knobs, it could transform flabby, punchless percussion into sharp, focused drum tracks, and badly recorded bass into smooth, usable low end. But it was expensive… and hardware. In the intervening years, though, the meteoric rise in computer-based music-making has brought not just two software versions of Transient Designer itself, but a large number of plugin clones and many inspired evolutions of the concept, so Audiority’s take on the idea has plenty of competition. TS-1 (VST/AU/AAX) has a straightforward layout. Up to+ /-6dB of input gain is available, after which the signal is processed via two main controls: Gain A (Attack) and Gain S (Sustain). Each of these offers up to+ /-24dB of gain…

We’re blown away by the range of sampler formats that SampleRobot can export to. You’ll find options for a slew of SoundFontsupporting samplers such as Dimension Pro, EXS24, Alchemy and more. Then you’ll find bespoke formats for more popular software and hardware samplers, including Kontakt, HALion, Tascam Gigastudio, NN-XT, E-mu Emulator X, WusikStation, MachFive, Waldorf Blofeld, Korg Kronos/ Volca Sample/microSAMPLER, and even drum sample export for Teenage Engineering’s OP-1! You can specify the output sample rate, bit depth and mono/stereo configuration, so it’s possible to save out multiple versions of a high-res master project at various quality settings. We tested a handful of formats and they all worked really well, with the automatic loop detection proving particularly helpful in producing outstanding sampler patches that loop well.…

Sinevibes Cluster 2 The full version of this Mac AU effects plugin worth $29 is yours to download, p10 Dotec-Audio DeeMonitor Emulate monitors, and tweak mid, side, left and right channels with this utility plugin, p14 Sample Essentials Part 2 INSTANT FILLS Punctuate your tracks in no time with this talented pack of 914 ready-baked drum fills, p16 ULTIMATE PERCUSSION & CITY NIGHTS 3672 more samples also free to download with this issue! CM Plugins Our exclusive collection of free plugins for Mac and PC. See what’s available on p18…

Our fantastic software, samples, videos and tutorial files are now available to download! To get access to this content, go to vault.computermusic.co.uk on your PC or Mac’s web browser. You’ll be asked to register and answer a few simple questions to prove that you’ve got the mag. You’ll then be given access to our content! You can sign in any time to register new issues and download more content. For more info, see our Vault FAQ: bit.ly/cmvaultfaq * Please note that the Producer Masterclass video is not available as a download via our Vault. See page 60 for viewing instructions, or watch on Apple Newsstand via built-in internet streaming.…

Three new modelled effects have been released by the respected company. All are out now, and function as VST/AU plugins. SPL’s EQ Ranger hardware is the first model. While this studio hardware contained eight bands of fixed frequencies and adjustable gain, brainworx’ SPL EQ Ranger Plus ($199) retains the sound of the device but increases the flexibility of the centre frequencies, allowing you to select from a list of predetermined band setups based on the material you’re processing – ‘Guitar Riffs B’, ‘HiHat 3’, and ‘808 Clap’, for example. bx_panEQ is a parametric EQ with a twist: in addition to the usual Gain, Q, Frequency and Bandwidth controls, it allows you to select a pan position for each filter and a corresponding width of operation. The company reckon this is…

“Chipmachine kicks in with the correct music player for your choice, from SID to Mod to MP3” Demoscene music comes in many shapes and sizes, with formats spanning myriad software on various hardware platforms, which can make finding and listening to your favourite tunes quite the chore. But now there’s a new kid in town called Chipmachine. Described by the developer as “Spotify for scene/chip/game music”, Chipmachine aims to simplify the process by letting you search and play music directly from just the one interface. Connected to various scene data sources, simply start typing on the main screen and you’re presented, in real time, with a list matching your search criteria of artists, songs and playlists. Hit Enter and Chipmachine seamlessly kicks in with the correct music player for your…

The name may have given the game away, but in case you haven’t twigged, Hats is, quite elegantly, a hi-hat and cymbal synth. Select a sample (one of 55) or load your own, then pitch and time it; select your noise type (‘Grain’), apply enveloping and an optional LFO, and you’re off. If you fancy going deeper (and whyever not?), there are re-orderable Ring Modulation, Crusher, Filter and Reverb modules, as well as a global Randomness function (whatever that one does is down to fate). Hats includes 80 presets to satisfy your cymbalistic desires, it’s out now for €49, and it’s available in VST, AU and AAX formats. URL www.audiothing.net…

Anatomy of a bass sound The idea that sound waves can be experienced not just through hearing but other bodily sensations too is not new – just standing in a club will tell you that. In fact, it’s likely that our ears have evolved from our fish ancestors’ lateral line, which is an organ used to sense water pressure changes. Further, there’s a belief that you sense low frequencies at different points on your body: the trouser-rattling ultra-lows, going up to the more sensual lower abdomen sounds of the 50-80Hz range, through the sometimes nausea-inducing 80-100Hz in the belly, to the hard 100-140Hz of a punching kick drum to the chest. In today’s music, the bassline overwhelmingly originates from either a bass guitar or a synth. There are a huge…

Waves MaxxBass / Renaissance Bass cm67 » 9/10 » $99/79 A true classic of low-end processing, MaxxBass generates harmonics from existing notes to help accentuate bass and make it more translatable to smaller speakers. Renaissance Bass offers the same core algorithm with simplified controls. www.waves.com Apple SubBass N/A » N/A » FREE with Logic Pro This excellent but oft-overlooked bass plugin resides in Logic’s Specialized Audio Unit folder and is similar to Octaver guitar pedals such as the Boss OC-2. It splits incoming audio into two analysis ranges then generates two sets of lower harmonics. You can then blend the results back in with your dry signal (or play them alone).. www.apple.com Waves LoAir N/A » N/A » $79 This subharmonic generator was originally designed with sound design and post-production…

James Wiltshire (Freemasons, F9 Audio) “When you find a kick that sounds great, resample it from that project and use it again. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel every single time you produce, no matter what gets said on forums. “Check your sub end carefully. Is there a ton of sub happening beneath 30Hz? Do you really need it all? So many synths kick out tons of sub (Massive can be a real culprit), and it just builds up and swamps everything. If your speakers don’t reproduce this, then all you will hear is the swampy aftermath. Headphones are the only real answer for monitoring the really difficult area of sub, as even a cheap pair will go down way further than average monitors. James’ resonance trick “Most recently,…

BITCRUSHER Decimort 2 cm229 » 10/10 When it comes to emulating the digital crunch and artifacts imparted by early hardware samplers and DA/AD converters, nothing in the box comes close to Decimort 2, a bitcrusher and sample rate reducer that offers far more features than your DAW’s stock ’crusher. Aside from the ability to crush bits and downsample, there are a trio of filters onboard, including two anti-aliasing filters and a flexible multimode resonant offering that can be placed at the start or end of the plugin’s signal path. Other cool features include a Jitter dial for authentic sample rate randomisation, two quantisation methods, flexible dithering and a raft of sampler-emulating presets. DISTORTION Devastor 2 cm230 » 9/10 Originally the inaugural member of the SilverLine squad upon version 1’s release…

There are occasions, when writing in a certain style, where simple triad chords don’t really cut it. There is, after all, only so much you can do with a three-note chord made up of a root note, a third and a fifth, even when you bring inversions into play, as discussed in 217’s Easy Guide . If you’re looking for a jazz/funk-influenced sound, for example, basic triads don’t quite fit the bill, so how do you set about creating chords that sound right for this particular genre? Don’t worry, help is at hand, because in this month’s Easy Guide , I’m going to turn the spotlight on some simple ways to voice the kind of extended chords that Jamiroquai would jam with, that the…

Touted as ‘the DnB producer’s DnB producer’, Break – aka Charlie Bierman – has released tracks on a plethora of labels, including Metalheadz, RAM, Critical and Shogun, as well as his own imprint, Symmetry. His latest album, Simpler Times, was released last year to rave reviews. www.symmetryrecordings.co.uk RECOMMENDED LISTENING BRIAN ENO, WINDOWS 95 STARTUP (STRETCHED) There are many examples of stretched music online, and they often sound like Eno. Amusingly, he actually made this iconic sound for Windows using a Mac. bit.ly/EnoWindowsStretch RUFIGE KRU, TERMINATOR One of the classic jungle tracks featuring the use of timestretching/pitchshifting. The renowned drum edits happen at 2:30. bit.ly/RufigeKruTerminator PRO TIPS QUALITY CONTROL Programs that perform timestretching or pitch correction often let you choose from a range of quality settings. The…

Ronan Macdonald Having previously served as Editor of drummer’s bible Rhythm as well as Computer Music, Ronan is clearly the right man for this particular gig. He’s been playing drums for over 30 years and making music with computers since the 90s. Perhaps the most underappreciated skill of a great studio drummer is the ability to ‘push’ or ‘pull’ the overall timing of a groove at will. ‘Push’ means driving the beat forwards, ahead of the rest of the band or track elements, making the whole thing sound faster and more frenetic. ‘Pull’ refers to exerting the opposite influence, delaying every stroke slightly in order to create a more laidback feel. In both cases, the amount of timing offset from the grid or metronome is tiny. We’re talking milliseconds, not…

“Tracktion offers most of the features you’d expect to find in a DAW – plus quite a few you wouldn’t” BROWSER You can now navigate your file libraries in multiple Browsers simultaneously! CLIP Clips are edited directly on the tracks themselves – double-click to open them TIMEBAR Navigate the timeline and zoom in and out of the arrangement LFO MODIFIER Drag this icon onto a track to create a new LFO, then manually assign it to a listed parameter or assign it via Learn CPU A detailed breakdown, outlining CPU usage and latency for every plugin in a project MIX CONTROLS Essential mixing functions (Level, Pan, Solo, Mute) and channel inserts PROPERTIES Properties and settings for selected objects: plugins, LFO Modifiers & clips CLIP LAYER EFFECTS T7 introduces a way…

Garritan Personal Orchestra (AAX/VST/AU/ standalone) is an all-in-one orchestral library aimed at those wanting to program convincing symphonic parts on a budget. Version 4 (9/10, 147) included a 2GB sample set (piano, woodwind, harp, percussion, pipe organ, brass and strings), around 300 instrument presets, and 28 ensemble presets. GPO5 ups the ante somewhat with a 12.5GB sample bank and just over 500 instruments, including everything in GPO4 and new additions across all categories except woodwind. There have also been a few improvements to Aria Player, which has a new look, drag-and-drop patch loading, and improved dynamic transitioning between sample layers (a system dubbed Sonic Morphing). There’s also a new Convolution reverb with 27 sampled spaces, including six concert halls, and various chapels, ballrooms and scoring studios. This shares Aria Player’s…

As well as its main patch library, PanShaper offers a handy set of preset creative starting points right within the main window. Four groups of six stylised panning patterns each, called Basic, Edge, Rhythm and Creative, are always accessible, with each one comprising a variety of related waveshapes. For example, the Basic group consists of sine, sawtooth, triangle and square waves, while the Edge category contains a collection of extreme stepped waves. Below these are six Local slots, where you can save and recall six waveshapes of your own making. You can then jump from one shape to another with a single click. There’s also a library of ‘full’ presets, of course, and as with other Cableguys plugins, it can be synced to their cloud server, enabling you to download…

PreSonus’ Studio 192 USB 3.0 audio interface comes in two forms: the Studio 192 and the smaller Studio 192 Mobile (£549). It’s the former we’re looking at here, and the Studio 192 is a 1U rack-mountable unit that records and plays back at up to 24-bit/192kHz quality. It comes with the Universal Control software, used to control the hardware from your computer, set up ultra-low-latency mixes (both main and cue or foldback), and configure onboard effects. The free UC Surface iPad app allows you to do all the same things. Also included is PreSonus’ Studio One Artist DAW, with integrated control of the Studio 192 preamps and foldback mix features. On the front panel are two combi XLR/jack inputs capable of receiving mic, instrument and line level signals, while six…

The big question with SPL’s original Transient Designer was: how does it know what is a transient and what isn’t? Well, the unit used two envelope generators, one very closely following the incoming signal amplitude, the other with a slower attack. It then worked out the difference between the two to obtain a control signal, through which the attack (or transient) stage of the signal could be boosted or attenuated. The same system was used to derive the sustain stage. TS-1 apparently uses a similar setup, with envelope followers isolating the attack and sustain. The difference between its Type A and Type B modes is in the way that these curves are used to process the input signal. In Type A mode, the Gain pots act as simple dry/wet level…

Sample Magic FuturePop £35 Representing the mish-mash of styles that is pop music in 2016, Future Pop fuses a variety of electronic and urban styles in its 1.2GB of looped and one-shot samples (1060 in total, all loops at 100bpm), and MIDI files (139). The 50 consistently stemmed drum loops range from straight-up 4/4 to skittering trap and heavier hip-hop grooves; the Bass and Synth Loops folders are full of interesting melodies and sounds; the Inspiration Kits are genuinely inspirational; and the 60 cut-up vocal loops are an excellent inclusion. Poptabulous. www.samplemagic.com 9/10 Niche Audio Post Dubstep & Future Garage £25 Available in Ableton Live and NI Maschine formats, Niche’s latest follows their usual format, comprising 13 projects that between them contain 15 deeply processed Drum Racks/Groups, and 42 supplementary…

UA PULTEC PASSIVE EQ COLLECTION Another in a series of older UAD plugins that have been reworked and rejigged with better sonics and more options, the Pultec Passive Collection includes a virtual EQP-1A, MEQ-5 and HLF-3C low- and high-cut filters. It’s from Universal Audio, so we needn’t tell you that the sound is exemplary, and you can have it for 5% the cost of a second-hand original. uaudio.com ACUSTICA AUDIO COOLTEC EQP-1 Acustica Audio are masters of effects sampling, using their VVKT technology, and Nebula is much loved by analogue outboard aficionados. Pultecs are an obvious candidate for the Nebula treatment, and so we have the Cooltec EQP-1 (PC/Mac VST) suite of seven plugins. Each band and function is presented as its own plugin, as is the raw amp stage.…