Indholdsfortegnelse for February 2021 i Electronic Musician

Getting things right at the mastering stage often requires a bit of context – grounding yourself to the standard of a commercial track. It's reasonable to do this using a different DAW channel, but this plugin aims to make the process easier, and indeed to expand the possibilities available. Reference 2, by Mastering The Mix, allows you to load in up to four reference tracks (or use a plugin in your DAW), to compare them in terms of their loudness, frequency weightings, stereo width and even dynamics across the frequency spectrum. There are plenty of handy features that could find their way into your standard referencing workflow, with track alignment, level matching and switching between references all made incredibly easy. Using the innovative Trinity Display, Reference 2 lets you monitor…

Arturia MicroFreak First out of the gates, Arturia’s MicroFreak certainly lives up to its name, being the odd one out in so many different and somewhat freakish ways. There’s the capacitive keybed keyboard that has no moving parts but, at the same time, isn’t as unfeeling as a touch keyboard – more somewhere in between. The synth’s sound is also ‘out there’, wayward and wobbly and you’ll realize early on that this is for experimenters rather than purists. That’s because at its core lies a digital engine of several types, with 13 modes that cover subtractive, wavetable, harmonics and other synthesis types. The best part is that they are controlled via four main orange dials and virtual pots on the OLED screen meaning you can easily see what you are…

It’d be easy to sum up and say ‘well there’s something for everyone here’ because most of these cheap synths have been designed with quite tight briefs in mind, so there isn’t often a lot of direct crossover. Even with all of our analog contenders, there are wildly different approaches which makes choosing one for your needs easier. If you want pure, raw analog, there is the obvious choice of the Neutron. Not only does this have the biggest, grittiest analog tone, it gives you a lesson in both standard and modular synthesis and is a great intro to the latter. For easier analog, presets, sequencing and still a surprisingly big sound, UNO delivers the best bang for buck. That said, a shade over 50 bucks or so more gets…

T-RackS provides a multitude of plugins that work either alone or as modules inside their Suite. Over time it's accumulated an enviable array of almost 50 rather excellent processors, many based on classic hardware processors. To get started you can buy one of the T-RackS bundles or download their free T-CS version and purchase just the modules that you really want. On the test bench is the latest addition, Space Delay, which emulates the sound of Roland’s RE201 Space Echo. This tape-based delay actually combines a three-head delay and spring reverb, and you can use these independently or together to create anything from more subtle-sounding spaces perfect for vocals to more extreme, weird or unpredictable-sounding effects. Space Delay is styled to look just like Roland’s original, and to that end…

NADA uses the Best Service Engine Quick Edit screen to provide a standardized instrument interface, and this is augmented by patch-specific parameters at the bottom and in an additional window if required. Controls included in all patches sit either side of the large centre graphic and are Attack, Release, Volume, Pan, Pitch and Reverb. Each control includes an actual parameter readout (in milliseconds for Attack for example), so you can see what you’re changing. Output meters surround the graphic, creating a sort of halo effect, and the overall image certainly captures the meditative mood of the sample set. Each NADA patch has a bespoke Info panel that is accessed from the drop-down at the top. This includes a description of the patch and details of the underlying instrument and how…

Ideally, impulse response recordings should include as much frequency content as possible, so that the sounds you feed into them can ‘light up’ the bass, mid-range and treble frequencies in the reverb tail. But sometimes a more lo-fi approach can work well too and in this example, we’re going to see how quickly we can make something interesting. We’re starting with a phone recording inside a washing machine drum, whose echoes are brief and metallic. But by taking this sonic snapshot into Logic Pro X’s Space Designer convolution reverb, we can start to use the included overtones to shape the impulse response to the tempo of the track. We can even reverse it.…

You’d be forgiven for assuming that convolution reverb is always a better choice than algorithmic reverb. After all, a recording of a real space at the center of your spatial treatments has to be better than something artificial, right? Not always. The huge advantage of artificial reverbs is that they can often be shaped to become anything you like. The Non-Linear treatments made famous by the AMS RMX16 are a perfect example; a harsh, short, block-like blast of reverb which almost sounds gated, which you’d struggle to produce with an impulse response. Some manufacturers are so good at approximating space – both real and imagined – that they’ve made their reputations doing so. Lexicon, anyone? It’s better to think of these two approaches to reverb not as a rivals but…

Korg’s opsix is here to make you “rethink everything you know about FM synthesis” The first we saw of Korg’s opsix was at NAMM 2020, when the company showed a very early version of what appeared to be a DX7-style FM synth. Now, 11 months on, it’s officially been launched, albeit in a revised and far more compact format. With the opsix, Korg is seeking to do for FM synthesis what it did for wave sequencing with the Wavestate: update it and make it more accessible. So, the opsix is described as an “altered” FM synthesizer that promises to make exploring FM easier than ever before. The synth is built around a new six-operator sound generator that’s designed to reimagine the FM sounds you’re used to. There’s a more diverse…

The history of the synth has been what you might call ‘a real rollercoaster ride’, from the expensive hardware beginnings through the analog heydays of the ’70s and early ’80s when prices went from the ridiculous to the sublime, through to what some might call, ‘the dark days of digital’ in the late ’80s and ’90s. This was when synths became so unintuitive and menus so deep and complicated, that the whole hardware format came into question, just as software threatened to have the answers. And for a while at least, software took over… Yet, without doubt, the 2010s and ’20s were and are shaping up to be the new golden age of the hardware synth. There are more models than ever before in the history of the instrument, produced…

As we’re looking at cheap synths, we don’t really expect too many optional extras, but some of the effect options thrown in are a nice surprise. The most out-there effects come from the Behringer Neutron with a bucket brigade delay which has to be heard to be believed, but its Drive section is also very powerful, acting almost like an oscillator. Drive is also available on the Korg, adding a rich distortion to filth up many of that synth’s sounds. The UNO Synth’s effects on the other hand, are more for performance duties. Let’s take a closer look. Perform with UNO UNO Synth’s effects include Tremolo, Wah, Vibrato, Dive and Scoop. These are not your standard effects for applying to sounds, more for performances rather like the real-time performance effects…

01 We start with a dry piano part from Una Corda. This is a slow, open, reflective part and it feels like it would be appropriate to build a textural, evolving space around it. It certainly feels too dry in its existing form. 02 Rather than loading a sampled impulse response of a real space, we’re going to use Space Designer’s Synthesized IR to sculpt a space from scratch. The default patch provides a 3-second decay time with a fairly orthodox, exponential decay. Low and high frequencies are evenly spread. 03 We increase reverb length to 6.75 but decrease Size to 45%. We turn definition down to 43%, which grains the decay tail somewhat and introduce a pre-delay of a 1/32nd note, which delays the reverb start. Finally, we add…

When we did our series on amp modelers last year, the recent Neural DSP line was getting started and just missed being covered. They specialize mostly in software aimed at current high-gain players, with versions vetted by Abasi, Plini, and other purveyors of modern metal. More recently, they veered with a Cory Wong version developed in conjunction with the funk-meister from Vulfpeck. A video by the terrific modern guitarist Dan Phelps, where he used their version based on the Omega Ampworks Granophyre, piqued my interest. I tested it and the Cory Wong pack to see what this company might be adding to the amp modeling conversation. Neural DSP Technologies is of the same school as Kuassa Amplifikation, in that they assume you already have plenty of effects pedals and plugins,…

Enigmatic London-based producer MODEL86 makes music that seems to naturally pinball between a host of genres and influences, touching on classic hip-hop beats, UK dance music and experimental pop, all without feeling forced or jarring. His debut album, Is Model 86 Dreaming Of Being A Butterfly Or Is A Butterfly Dreaming Of Being Model 86?, arrived in December, representing the most fully-formed version of his sound to date. We caught up with him to find out how it was created. When did you start making music, and how did you first get started? Hardware wise it was an MPC2000XL when I was about 18 saved up for so long. Before that when I was pretty young I was messing around with Windows Movie Maker trying to loop stuff and make…

Steinberg releases Cubase 11, promising fun, inspiration and a speedier workflow All three versions of Cubase – Pro, Artist and Elements – are getting an update with numerous workflow and performance improvements. Steinberg says that it makes producing music easier, quicker and more fun. As you’d expect, there are some Pro edition exclusives, starting with a new way of printing stems. You can now process and export these in one operation, with full control over the signal path. There’s also synchronization across different windows; global tracks are now displayed in the Key Editor, so you can stay in sync with tempo changes or markers without leaving it. Improvements have been made to the Score Editor, too, and the Frequency EQ plugin has been updated. Other Pro exclusives include Eucon integration,…

Arturia MicroFreak $350 RELEASE: May 2019 1 Freak certainly stands out from the crowd. It has fairly robust feel next to some of the more plastic offerings here, and a more leftfield Buchla Easel-style 25-key capacitive keyboard. Inside you get a 4-part paraphonic architecture, a 12-mode digital oscillator covering analog emulation, wavetable oscillation, physical modeling and a Modal Resonator for real instruments and drums. A recent update has added a 16-band vocoder too. We said: “it feels like multiple synths in one. If stuck for ideas, quickly flipping to a different mode can instantly inspire something new.” arturia.com Behringer Neutron $299 RELEASE: August 2018 2 It’s ironic that the Neutron is one of our more expensive synths but it is the nearest fit from Behringer to our price point and…

As cheap as this selection of eight synths is, let’s not forget that there are even cheaper options available, some even approaching the sub-¢100 arena, including the Volca range from Korg, and the Pocket Operator range of calculator-type all-in-one music makers from Teenage Engineering. There are also numerous kits and modular options, many of which are also coming down in price. So the era of the cheap hardware synth is here to stay, you might think, but the truth is that it’s a hard market to predict. Will the use of plastics in manufacturing be reduced as we start to address eco concerns, for example, or will the many new soft and iOS synth releases finally tempt people away from hardware for good? That is doubtful, because what our batch…

Confession time: I tend to lean towards the jazz, fusion, funk and R&B side of the musical spectrum. To be sure that I cover all of your tastes and needs, this month let’s look at a few of the most famous sax solos in rock music to get a sense of how those players fit into the tunes. Hot Stoned Sax The Rolling Stones have famously used some big name sax players on their records over the years, including jazz legend Sonny Rollins (“Waiting On A Friend”), LA studio great Ernie Watts (“Going to a Go-Go”) and even Wayne Shorter (“How Can I Stop”). But the heart and soul of Stones sax playing was Texan Bobby Keys. He played on many records and toured with the band on and off…

Even at the best of times, Roland’s range of grooveboxes can get a little confusing. Case in point – Roland’s recent ‘606’ themed drop, which launched the TR-6S and TR-06 drum machines and TR-606 plugin. While the latter two of these both emulate 1981’s TR-606 drum machine, the TR-6S actually has little to do with the original 606 or either of its new recreations. In fact, the TR-6S is a close sibling to Roland’s TR-8S, the sample-equipped evolution of the company’s TR-8 digital drum machine. All clear? Setting naming conventions aside, the important thing to note is that the TR-8S is undoubtedly the high point of Roland’s current army of beatmakers and, although this diminutive new instrument might not look like much, the TR-6S inherits much of what makes the…

If you produce soundtracks, work in sound design or just like basking in the glory of beautifully recorded sample sounds, then it’s highly likely you’ve encountered one of Eduardo Tarilonte’s sound libraries. The Spanish native has an excellent ear for what works in these sorts of productions and always delivers something slightly unusual but at the same time eminently usable. What’s more, the recording and programming quality is always top notch. Packages such as Celtic ERA, ERA II Medieval Legends and Shevannai The Voice Of Elves indicate his eclectic tastes, and those tastes take another interesting turn with the arrival of his latest release, NADA Meditation Sounds. Tone poem Taking its name from the Sanskrit word for ‘sound’, NADA Meditation Sounds mines that rich seam of new age sounds suited…

01 We start with a basic programmed rhythm using the ‘Simple Waveform Kit’ in Battery 4. We identify three or four short sounds and program a simple syncopated pattern which we ensure is quantized. 02 To turn this rhythm into an impulse response file, it needs to be converted to audio. We do this using Logic’s Bounce In Place function, muting the original MIDI file in the process. We label the audio file ‘Rhythmic IR’. 03 Next, we set up a plucked synth sound, using Logic Pro’s Retro Synth. Ordinarily, a synth sound like this might be used to program a more detailed, syncopated pattern but we’re keeping things sparse, programming a single chord at the start of bars 1 and 3. 04 We set up Space Designer as an…

Full Bucket Audio FB-3300 A clone of the Korg PS-3300 synth, which was a ’70s classic, FB-3300 is a three-oscillator synth with some very old-school options and a truly vintage sound. The PS-3300 was effectively three Korg PS-3100 synths in one; Full Bucket also emulate that one as another plugin, available separately and also for absolutely nothing. FB-3300 is an intensely analog synth, giving you brilliant bass tones, wavering lead lines and characterful effects. Some great sequenced sounds are also possible. There’s a learning curve that takes time to ascend, but once you’ve got your head around the Modulation Source and Target selection within FB-3300, you’ll have more command over its vintage synth tones, and you can’t put a price on that… music.fullbucket.de Digital Suburban Dexed An excellent recreation of…