Wusik Sound Magazine June 2008 - Vol II
Issue 04
June 2008 Wusik Magazine
Getting Fresh Ideas by Rob Mitchell
Getting Fresh Ideas
Once in a blue moon, it happens. I think to myself, "Today I'm going to start writing some new music...." but there is that empty "page" in front of me, I go through what an author of a new book might feel. Sometimes this can be imposing, and can leave you in a rut. Oh no, writer's block.... Aggg!! Maybe you've found yourself in the same predicament. How can you get around this? These are some of the ways I get myself going when I feel like that. These suggestions are not too complicated, and were written for beginning-to-intermediate musicians. Some of them need a program such as Sonar or Pro Tools to be able work as directed.
A little Music Theory I have taken a couple years of music theory in college, but even if you don't take a class, you can go online and look for information on theory such as scales, chords, modes, progressions, etc. Theory helped me a lot, especially in helping me figure out how to get something to sound a certain way, and to get ideas down in notation. Now I just do the notation on the screen most of the time. If you're used to using a "piano roll" view in a program like Sonar, try the Notation view more often, I feel it helps me to think more musically.
Wusik Magazine
Sometimes you might think a song affects you a certain way, making you feel a bit happy or sad. Using a minor key can make you feel differently during the song, making it seem dark, mysterious, sad, or even scary. Using a major key can make it sound a little brighter or even cheerful, depending on the way it's written.
June 2008
Getting Fresh Ideas
Or, the music might give the listener a sense of suspense and/or tension, without even using words. One thing you can use to get that in your compositions are dissonant chords mixed in to the song to give it a bit of tension. A simple example of a dissonant chord is using F as the root, along with Ab and B. Another idea is to transpose a part you've already started writing in a major key into a minor one, (or vice versa) and it might give it the style it was missing before.
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
There are also ways to modulate between different keys within the song, which can
make it more interesting. Here is a real simple way to do this: We’re going from one major key to another for this example. Bring in the V chord of the new key at a certain point in a C major chord progression. The V chord is built on the fifth note of key you're heading towards, and is a Major chord. Then, you’ll need to put in the I chord of the new key (built on the first note of the new key). If you want to modulate to the key of G from the key of C, you could play a D major chord (needs an F# in there) and then a G major chord. (See figure 1) It can get a lot more complicated than this, but it might help get you some new ideas.
Getting Fresh Ideas
Odd time signatures are always cool, if not overdone. You can hear them more in progressive rock, jazz, jazz/fusion, and can be heard in other styles as well. You can experiment with the melody you have made up, but then for example, say it is an 4 note pattern (of quarter-notes), make the last note an eighth note instead, so it is now 7/8.
(Figure 2 and 3) Or you could try other things, like add 1 more note to the 4/4 time and make it 5/4. Another thing to try is to alternate every other measure, with 5 eighth notes on the first measure and 6 on the next, and then repeat that 2 measure pattern for a certain amount of times.
Wusik Magazine June 2008
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
Getting Fresh Ideas
Using a line originally for a different instrument. One day, just to see how something would sound, I copied a midi track originally set on a drum set and changed it to trigger something totally different sounding, which happened to be a trumpet sound. It sounded a bit goofy at first, since it was for a pattern on the drums. After switching it to the horn sound, I tweeked the notes around a bit in the pattern to make it sound better, or at least a bit more melodic. It ended up sounding pretty cool, and I used it for part of a song. This is easy to do in nearly any sequencer type of program.
using a different sort of drum sound to go along with it, one I hadn't used before. It ended up being an electronic sounding set. The regular kind of sampled drum sound just didn't fit along side of the techno-sounding bass line.
Start with a sound you normally might not use I didn't really think I would write something that would end up in a different sort of musical style, till just recently. I had started one day purposely using a preset that wasn't in my Favorites folder of Wusikstation, picking out a good electronic-sounding bass preset. After I wrote a few bass lines, it made me think of
On the road with ideas
Try doing the same thing. If you have something like the 4 gig Wusikstation collection, spend a while browsing through some of the presets you might not have checked out before, and play them in a different style than you normally do. You might be surprised at how it turns out and what you end up writing!
Once in a while I am out walking, or on the way to my real job (hehe) a little melody just starts up in my head. No, not voices in my head...just notes! Anyway, sometimes the little melody is decent, and wish I had a way of jotting them down when on the run. One way I drill something into my head is
Getting Fresh Ideas
just humming or whistling it to myself, and eventually I get it down pretty well. By the time I get back to the keyboard, it is basically the same line it was before, ready to write it down, or throw into the computer. You can buy a small portable recorder, usually used for recording dictation that can be used to snag those little ideas for later use. Hit record, and hum or whistle that magic line before you forget it. Some cell phones proabaly have something like that built-in as well. Listening to artists/songs you like
For parts of the music theory classes I took, they had us read/study music (it happened to be classical for my classes) to see the way it was written, note for note, and analyze the chord progressions, etc. You can do this yourself, but with the groups/artists you like. If they don’t have transcriptions (songs written out in notation) for the songs you like anywhere, you can try transcribing it yourself. It can really help with your writing, and your ears get a workout too! Music can be serious stuff, but can also be alot of fun. Hopefully this has sparked a few ideas of your own to try, and you can combine them with some of what I've mentioned here. Have fun!
Wusik Magazine
I used to listen to a lot of music (still do actually!) and would sometimes find myself analyzing the music, how the artist would change the sound for different sections, & how it would contrast from one part to the next. Sometimes just flipping through different music channels on TV or radio stations (in styles I don't usually listen to) makes me think of a part in my own music, but in a
different way. What if I did something like that in my own music? Even if it is only a cool way they used EQ for part of it, or an effect, it might be useful as a fresh change to what I have written or recorded so far.
June 2008
The Taming of the Room June 2008
a personal approach to Acoustical Treatment
Wusik Magazine
by David Keenum
The Taming of the Room
Have you ever heard of anything more un-glamorous than acoustical treatment? I can’t think of anything. You’ll never hear this:
Research
And then there was the subject of bass. If you read much about acoustics, you’ll find that most of the discussions surround bass management. And I have to admit that I wasn’t satisfied with my system’s bass sound. So it slowly dawned on me that I needed to either make or invest in some quality acoustical treatment. My quest began; and if you, too, think you need to look into this, read on and I’ll tell you my story.
In addition, Ethan Winer has some excellent articles on acoustic treatment and design (http://www.ethanwiner.com/acous tics.html) and setting up a listening room (http://www.realtraps.com/art_roo msetup.htm). Some of the info gets a little technical, but at least you’ll get an idea of what you need to do. Now let’s take a look at some of the general information I found on the net.
“His music sucks, but have you seen the acoustical treatment in his room? To die for!”
Wusik Magazine
But in the past it seemed that I couldn’t escape mentions of acoustical treatment. Every time I read an article about mixing… or mastering… or recording… or monitoring… or anything pertaining to making music, the author had to mention the need for quality acoustical treatment. The article would say something like, “Before we take a look at this new synth, I feel I should mention that this synth will only sound good in a room with proper acoustical treatment.” Sheesh! Talk about driving a point home!
Okay, I admit that I am a geek. I love details. So my first stop was to find out what I needed to know about acoustics. But I wanted practical knowledge: I wasn’t particularly interested in the mathematical and scientific aspects of acoustics. Along the way I found something interesting: there is a lot of conflicting information about acoustics. And the trick is figuring out whom to believe. Two of the best resources I found were MusicPlayer’s Acoustics Forum, moderated by Ethan Winer (http://forums.musicplayer.com/ub bthreads.php/ubb/postlist/Board/24 /page/1?PHPSESSID=2adc7ce3dab 700a43a63e9cff5484066) and the Gearslutz forum (http://www.gearslutz.com/board/). Gearslutz has regular discussions on acoustics, and several of the acoustic treatment manufacturers/retailers regularly drop by.
June 2008
The Taming of the Room
General Information and Urban Legends
> Isolation, Diffusion, and Absorption - And they are different. -
Isolation - Isolation is keeping the sound in your room from traveling outside your room, and keeping the sound outside your room from coming in. This is the most difficult and expensive part of acoustics to achieve in a home studio. A good point to remember is that acoustical treatment in a room will do little or nothing to affect the isolation in that room.
-
Diffusion - This is like the audio version of pong or ping-pong. You want the sound in your room to scatter as it bounces around your room. Furniture is the simplest form of a diffusion device. A wellplaced bookcase can many times be helpful. But there are a number of commercial diffusion devices.
-
Absorption - This is soaking up the sound in the room. The main point to remember in this area is that absorption can be frequency specific, and in the studio, we want the absorbed frequencies to be as broad as possible, and we want it to include bass frequencies.
> Bass is the main issue - Remember to keep this main issue the main issue. For the most part, if you can control the bass in your room, the other frequencies will also be tamed. This isn’t always the case, but it’s a good general rule.
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
> Egg crates - Pleeeeeassssssse! grocery bags to the wall.
You might as well nail
> Carpet is almost totally ineffective - I learned this by experience; one time, I covered an entire wall with carpet. It deadened the highs without doing anything to the mid-range and low frequency. It was terrible! > Blankets are only slightly better - I’ve tried this too. Blankets are effective as a secondary method of deadening the sound (for example, draped over an instrument), but not as the primary method.
The Taming of the Room
> Software and EQ solutions should come only after room treatment - IK Multimedia has a new software product to help with room acoustics. ARC has received numerous favorable reviews, but it will not completely alleviate the need for room treatments - specifically, base absorption. > Foam may not be the best acoustical treatment - I’m no expert; so don’t take my word on this. Do your own research. But from what I’ve read, 2” foam doesn’t absorb low frequencies as well as dense insulation. Foam may not be the best for acoustical control of your room. I think it would be especially wise to avoid cheap foam panels and squares. I know some will not agree with me, including well-known professionals, so check this out for yourself. There are companies like Auralex Acoustics (http://auralex.com) that specialize in acoustics and use foam products. I also know that this subject will be controversial to some. This is just my opinion. I can say that after reading a lot, I decided to not buy foam treatment. You can make your own decision. > Insulation board seems to be the preferred material for absorption - Again, this is opinion based on reading the information available to me. You can read for yourself and make up your own mind. The 4 types of insulation board I found were Owens Corning 703 and 705, and Roxul AFB and Rockboard 60. There may be others. Insulation Board is denser than insulation you would use to insulate a ceiling or wall. That denseness is, apparently, the secret to its effectiveness in sound absorption. Also keep in mind that the thicker the insulation board, the broader the frequency range it can absorb. Basically, the thicker the board, the lower frequency it can absorb.
Wusik Magazine
> You can build your own absorption panels - If you are handy with tools and willing to invest the time, you can save money by building your own absorption panels. And the cool thing is that there is a lot of DIY information on the web. MusicPlayer’s Acoustics Forum is a good place to start, but it is only the beginning. As an example of DIY information you can find on the Internet, here is a step-by-step guide to mounting acoustic panels on the wall (http://mysite.verizon.net/resqg90a/id31.html).
June 2008
The Taming of the Room
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
EDITOR'S TIP: If your little home studio suffers from too much reverb or 'flutter' (quick echoes), here is a $0 'quick fix': Hang sweaters and thick coats (the longer the better) all around the room. Hang them from window frames, door frames, window sills, handles, knobs, chairs ...you get the idea. Do you have a spare mattress or sofa cushions? Place them around the room, too. Sure, this little absorption trick won't equalize your room, but it is a temporary measure that can improve your mike recordings and sound monitoring.
The Taming of the Room
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
The Taming of the Room
What did I do? After all my reading, I decided to go with insulation board. I am very slow at building things by hand, so I decided to purchase rather than build my own panels. If you are handy, building panels yourself will save money. There are a number of plans available on the Internet.
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
The next task was deciding where to purchase my panels and how many panels to buy. I finally settled on ATS Acoustics for my panels, because… well, frankly, because of the price. I looked at their pictures, talked to them on the phone, and read their testimonials. Everything looked good, but in reality I took a little chance on their quality. I wasn’t disappointed. The quality was excellent! ATS Acoustics offers their panels in 2 inch and 4 inch thicknesses. The 4-inch panels are better at absorbing bass frequencies. According to ATS’s website, “The 4-inch panels perform 4 times as well as the 2-inch panels at 125Hz.” So I ordered the 4-inchers. But I still had to decide how many panels I would buy, and where I was going to put them.
Here is where some family negotiations came into play. You see, my current studio is right beside the downstairs bathroom, and visitors to my house can easily see into the studio. So my wife and I decided to negotiate on the number, color, and placement of the panels. For example, she didn’t want them covering all the walls and ceiling, and she didn’t want panels across the corners of the room (a favorite spot for absorbing bass frequencies). She wanted the room to serve my purposes as a studio, but also be esthetically pleasing from a decorative aspect. I wanted the room to look good as well, but I also wanted to place as many panels as I could. Speaking of the number of panels, ATS has a free online room acoustics analysis. When I did the analysis, it specified more panels than I could fit in my room, and more than I could afford. So that plan was out, and I had to figure out what I could afford. I settled on six 2’x4’x4” panels and two 2’x2’x4” panels - all for just under $450.
The Taming of the Room
More Information
Did it Work? Well, yes it did. It worked quite nicely. I noticed something interesting: When I had the panels stacked against a wall, I heard no difference in the room. But with only a couple of panels mounted on the wall, I could hear a difference. The room wasn’t dead, but it was missing some of its “ring.” The room sounded, to me, “tighter.” My mixes didn’t magically sound better, but my monitors sounded clearer. I could hear things that I couldn’t hear before. Was it worth the money? Yes. Of course I’d have liked to have spent the money on something like new gear or a soft synth… or a vacation. But the benefit was obvious. And the payoff will continue, even if I move to a different room. I’ll just take the panels with me.
Internet. This is not an exhaustive list, and I am not recommending any specific company. a. ATS Acoustics (www.atsacoustics.com/) supply both finished products and materials to build your own. b. GK Acoustics (www.gikacoustics.com/inde x.html) builds a variety of absorbers. c. Real Traps (www.realtraps.com/) offers a variety of products as well as a lot of information. d. Ready Acoustics (www.readyacoustics.com/) offers both finished products as well as DIY materials. e. Auralex Acoustics (www.auralex.com/) is, probably, the number one supplier of acoustic foam products. They have a wide range of products, plenty of support and education, and publish the acoustical specifications for their products.
Wusik Magazine
So are you interested? If so, I’d recommend that you start with a little research. You’ll find a lot of information. And once you’ve read enough, you’ll be able to develop your plan. Even if it’s just an added bookcase or a well-placed couch, you’ll start to see benefits. So get out there and Tame That Room!
Here is a list of some of the manufacturers and/or suppliers I have found represented on the
June 2008
Mini Reviews:
Sample Libraries by Ginno 'g.no' Legaspi
Sample Magic Around the World in 80 Raves The last time I reviewed Sample Magic libraries was back in our November 2007 issue.
I gave both
Electro-House and Sunset Session loops/samples good reviews due to their sheer quality and usability.
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
The new Around the World in 80 Raves tries to maintain what Sample Magic is well-known for: Quality samples that inspire.
This is the seventh
installment from the UK-based sample developers.
ATWIED Sample collection ATWIED was created and produced by electronic act Eat Static. For the first time, the techno pioneers have opened their well-kept sample set to the masses ...for a futuristic ride into world dance. ATWIED was constructed with a wide range of inspiring, unique sounds, courtesy of classic analogue and modern synths, and high-end outboard effects units. Featuring 900MB+ of 44.1kHz/24bit samples, you'll find plenty of banging drum loops, ripping synths and synthetic guitars. Not only are they suitable for psy-trance and breaks, you’ll also find lots of sizzling live percussion and tasty ethnic instrumentals that showcase big-room Brazilian, Cuban, Arabic and African elements. The samples are categorized by different tempos (90, 100, 120, 125, 144 and 160bpm folders) and have three sub-folders each; beats, music and percs. Tip!: Open the WAV file folder for 'bonus' sounds not available in other audio formats.
www.samplemagic.com www.soundstosample.comwww.soundsto sample.com FORMATS: - 2.28GB DVD/CD multipack (2454 files) - 44.1khz/24Bit WAVs (891MB, 796 files) - Stylus RMX compatible Rex files (361MB, 476 files) - Apple Loops (534MB, 476 files) - EXS24, Reason, Kontakt and Halion patches (12 each) - An audio CD is included for auditioning. LIST PRICE: - $99.95 / £59.95 including VAT with free shipping - Download for only £42.95
June 2008
Yet another good release from Sample Magic. The inclusion of pre-mapped sampler patches for EXS24, Reason, Kontakt and Halion is a big plus. If you want to inject some Eat Static-vibe into your tracks, then this comes highly recommended.
Wusik Magazine
When I started auditioning the samples (in Acid Pro 6) the sample set sounded crisp and clean. It definitely sounds fresh and interesting - full of liveliness that jumps right in front of your speakers. I am particularly fond of the world and ethnic samples for their impressive, tight performance. On another note: The one-shot hits folder has some cool springy, machine-like blips and buzzy analog sounds. Producers will find these useful for their glitch productions. There is also a ton of material you can utilize for ambient tracks productions - look inside the pads and soundtrack folder. The longer samples (some are over a minute long) are good for intros in an ambient piece or TV/movie soundtrack score.
CONTACTS:
Chilled Grooves
Zero-G/Xfonic SoundSense Series:
Chilled Grooves
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
Chilled Grooves is part of the budget SoundSense Series from Zero-G. As the title hints, this sample library from the UK-based sample developers caters to producers who are into chill, lounge, down tempo, trip hop, ambient and hip hop. You'll find lots of samples and loops that are on the 'slow' side. As one might expect from a sample library, Chilled Grooves comes in a variety of format flavors. You'll get AIFF Apple loops, ACID-type Wav loops and Rex files for programs such as Stylus RMX - all recorded in the 50-100bpm range. The WAV and AIFF folders offer over 600 MB of Atmospheres & FX, Bass, Beats (drum loops), Keyboard, Pad, and Misc & Perc loops. The 'one-shot' folder called 'Kits' has an emphasis on ambient genre productions. It is refreshing to find that Zero-G has included some processed samples because most libraries I've reviewed in the past usually have 'dry' samples. There are also seven 'Construction Kits' on offer that should get you started bangin' out tunes. Auditioned in ACID Pro 6, the demo mixdown files sounded.. oh..so..tasty, and well recorded. My only gripe with this library is the 'Pad' and 'Keys' folder. I wish Zero-G had included at least 5 octaves of the multi-samples instead of two. Apart from that, Chilled Grooves is a good value library with lots of useable contents.
CONTACTS: www.soundsonline.com www.timespace.com www.zero-g.co.uk FORMATS: - Over 1GB of multi-format on DVD - 44.1kHz/16-24Bit - Acid WAV, AIFF Apple Loops and Stylus RMX Rex2 LIST PRICE: $59.95 / ÂŁ29.95 including VAT.
Synthation
Synthation.net Synthation Producer's Collection Vol.1 Founded by Alexander Zwarg and Ralph Wegner in 2005, Synthation.net is best known for their creative sound design work and producing soundsets for various software synthesizers such as reFX Vanguard, NI Pro-53, etc. Their uncanny skills has lead them to further expand their product line with sample library releases. Synthation Producer's Collection Vol. 1 (or SPC1 for short) is an edgy collection of loops and samples geared for poundingstyle electronica. If you like it hard then this collection of 140bpm loops might suit you. SPC1 was recorded in 44.1khz/16bit sample rate and is available in WAVformat only. The various 300-plus punchy drum loops make up most of this 500MB+ library. You get tasty drum loops that are precisely pitched and 'looped' perfectly. The programming is tight and flavorful. It lends inspiration the minute you audition the samples.
Overall, I like this collection but I wish the samples were available in a greater variety of audio formats. But if you want to energize your techno, trance and electronica drum tracks, you might want to consider this library.
CONTACTS: www.soundsonline.com www.synthation.net FORMAT: - WAV files -44.1khz/16bit with pre-mapped software sampler patches
LIST PRICE:
Wusik Magazine
Other than the drum loops you also get an assortment of sounds for your sample player software. The single hit or 'oneshot' samples include sophisticated claps, cymbals, kicks, hi-hats, percs, snares and FX. Kudos to Synthation.net for giving us numerous samples, because they sure didn't skimp on the single WAVs. In fact, nearly 900 single-hit samples are on offer. My favorites include the 179 percussion samples, useful for composing tribal techno. The SFX folder also has a couple of nice big reverberated hits, swirling swooshes and odd reverse sounds that are good for transitions. It's also great to see
that the single samples come in Native Instrument's Battery 2 & 3 and Logic's ESX2 sampler formats. Everything is pre-mapped and compiled by the programmers with 16 ready-to-play patches.
$117 / 87 Euro June 2008
Sinevibes
Ambisphere
Sinevibes Ambisphere, Basslines Beat Constructor
and
I just can't help but admire a company that doesn’t limit itself to specialized audio products. Germany's Sinevibes is just such a company. Their diverse range of audio offerings range from sound design books to Audio Units plugins (synths and effects). They also have a collection of sound expansion libraries for hardware synthesizers and sample libraries namely, Ambisphere, Basslines and Beat Constructor - which I'm going to cover here.
Ambisphere Programmed by Sinevibe's head honcho, Artemiy Pavlov, Ambisphere is a library completely dedicated to ambient and other-worldly track productions. This was developed solely to have the usual 'unusual' mood that TV/movie soundtrack producers favor. So if you fancy unreal sounds that will help your track move smoothly between sections, Ambisphere is a real treat.
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
There are 84 AIFF and WAV samples in 44.1khz/16 bit format. Most of the mono and stereo samples are phrase-oriented and are well recorded, constructed and looped seamlessly; I didn't hear any pops or clicks when I auditioned them in Sound Forge (audio editing software). If I had to pick ideal sounds for intros and transitions between sections, the innovative samples under folders 'Radioactive' and 'Electric' would be it. This may sound odd but I find that the 'Organic' folder best suits glitch productions, for its bleepy nature.
Sinevibes
Basslines
Basslines Out of these 3 libraries, I find Basslines to be very useful. Not only do the loops have the energy of modern electronica production, but the way they are programmed lends a solid foundation for huge-sounding dance music. The loops are mostly upbeat and have a solid, tight feel. Under the 'Vocoder' and 'Digital' folders are some cool, twisted, warped bass loops, designed to be effected to the max. The 'Acid' folder gives you access to basses suited to acid techno. The programmer used the distortion effect cleverly on these bass loops because they definitely have some bite on them. And if you're looking for tasty, fat-sounding analogue loops, the 'Vintage' folder has some selections that won't disappoint.
Wusik Magazine
Featuring 154 bass loops, the aptly named 'Basslines' sample library is a collection of acid, soft, hard, pulsating and ripping bass loops made with Roland digital and analogue synths. The 'elastic' loops come in Acid WAV and Apple AIFF loop format and are recorded in 44.1khz/16-bit sample rate. You get both regular WAV and AIFF formats - compatible with virtually any software sample player. So if you don’t have Acid Pro or GarageBand, you're not left out!
June 2008
Sinevibes
Beat Constructor
Beat Constructor This third massive library from Sinevibes is not your typical sample library with loops and construction kits. Instead, it gives you fresh 'one-shot' drum sounds for modern electronica productions. Beat Constructor boasts over 500 samples with the most variety imaginable. The collection has tons of drum hits, including hats (44 files), kicks (63 files), percussion (48 files), drum synth hits (36 files), processed materials (40 files), snares (47 files), spectral (55 files), toms (23 files), effects (67 files), glitches (29 files) and vocoded (79 files) sounds. Whew! That's a lot of sounds. And if those don't inspire you to make beats, what will?!!
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
Besides the WAVs and AIFFs, if you want to buy only Akai MPC-1000, Roland SP404 and DJ 2.0 formats (pre-mapped samples+drum kit patches), they are also available for purchase.
I was surprised when I auditioned the Percussion folder because the content doesn't sound like your normal percussion set. Instead, they have been treated with processing. And if you're looking for acoustic sounds ‌look somewhere else. It ain't happening here. No acoustic, just synthetic. However, there's an array of good kicks available with the usual TR808 and TR909 flare. There are also lo-fi snares galore, good for hip-hop productions. The sci-fi, zap and beam sounds included in the 'Effects' folders are great for SFX-type composition. Think '2001: A Space Odyssey" or 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind'. Overall, the samples themselves are unique and pack punch. And with so many of them to choose from, I don't think you'll exhaust this library anytime soon.
Sinevibes
CONTACTS: Artemiy Pavlov, www.sinevibes.com FORMATS: - Acid WAV - Apple AIFF loops, WAV, AIFF - Sampler formats for Akai MPC series, Roland SP-404 and DJ 2.0 software AUDIO DEMOS: Yes, in both AAC and MP3 DOCUMENTATION: PDF manual LIST PRICE:
- Sample Mega Pack for all 3 libraries is $(117) $79 (discount: 32%)
Wusik Magazine
- Ambisphere: $29 (instant download) - Basslines: $39 (instant download / optional shipping of CD available) - Beat Constructor: $49 for all formats, or Akai MPC-100 (20 kits) $39, Roland SP-404 (8 kits) $19 and DJ 2.0 (116 samples) $19 (instant download / optional shipping of CD available)
June 2008
Voxengo Voxformer
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
by Arsov
Voxengo Voxformer
The Facts I'm working on a new project with a female vocalist. We recorded a first track and I started doing a mix. She felt uncomfortable with a certain placement of a microphone, so I lowered it a bit and didn't notice until the mix that we got far more ‘ssssibilants’ than was normal. I was also a bit unhappy with the compressor I generally use for vocals. So I tried a demo of Waves Rvox. It still makes me drool whenever I think about it ...but the price is out of my range. With a little tweaking, a compressor could be seated, but sibilants are another story. So I put my ass on a chair and started Googling for a decent de-esser. I found a few well-known companies I have even cooperated with most of them in the past, so there would be no problem if I were to ask them for an NFR (Not For Resale) copy for reviewing. Some evil readers may allude that we write these reviews just to get software for free. How dare you!! Sic. But, okay - never mind. :)
So... I tried the big ones, I tried the small ones, and almost fell into despair ...until I was reminded of Alexey, from Voxengo. He has all sorts of effects and most are high quality, with a low price. I scanned his site and found Voxformer, downloaded the demo and five minutes later wrote Alexey an email, requesting an NFR copy. Again, I hope I don't need to write once more about some allusions already mentioned. The reason for my email was this: With just a flick through the presets, I found one that worked as well as, if not even better than, Waves' RVox. It compressed the vocal in the best possible way; the vocal now stood out with brightness and sat nicely in the mix. And what about the sibilants? Well, Voxengo has an excellent feature - the deesser effect can be routed to output, letting you hear only effected sound. After half a minute, I found a critical frequency. Success! Voxformer deessed, without effecting the rest of the vocal!
Wusik Magazine
I downloaded demo versions and tried them on my new vocalist. She has a low female vocal and all the de-essers failed in one way or another. Some affected the whole vocal too much, while others just
couldn't find the right frequency. Yes, I even tried the well known free ones; Splitfish added too much highs, Tonmann DeEsser was almost good, but added some blur over the mids, while the mda de-esser came really close ...but not that close.
June 2008
Voxengo Voxformer
The Parts Voxformer costs $60 US dollars and comes as a VST effect, for Windows only. I presume a Mac version will come soon because, as far as I know, Alexey is already working on Mac versions of his other plug-ins. Voxengo Voxformer is a multifunctional, “vocal channel strip” plugin. That is the official explanation, but we can freely call it a “Vocal Almighty”. That is what it is.
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
Voxformer contains two “one-knob” vocal compressors, which can work
either as a two-band compressor, or in series. In addition, there is a noise gate section, vintage saturation module, a four-band parametric equalizer, asymmetric compression module (more about that below), two types of de-essers, a presence booster, high quality mode, a realtime FFT spectrum analyser, and gain reduction meters. We also shouldn't forget mono-to-stereo and stereo-tostereo processing options. And finally, as a very important thing for me (an old presets lover), there is a bunch of excellent and highly usable presets.
Voxengo Voxformer
The bottom part of the screen parts As is usual with Voxengo, there are buttons at the bottom of the plug-in that let us route and reroute a bunch of useful things: 'Presence' button - brightens the vocal and helps bring it forward in a mix - you can choose pre or post mode. 'EQ' button - sets the equaliser to pre/post or off. 'Asymmetric Compression' button - lets you switch between four stages of compression, or off. Asymmetric compression gives the sound a special analog feel and 'colors' the audio in a desirable way. 'Listen output' button - lets you listen to various parts of Voxformer in isolation - use it to fine-tune the deesser, compressor or any other part of the plug-in. There is also a button for choosing the quality of processing and another called 'Force Mono', which processes the left channel only. Lastly, a button named 'Misc' lets you tweak and tune some exotic functions.
I spent the whole forenoon testing most of the vocal tools available on the market. I have to admit, I didn't find one product that comes close to this one, regardless of the price range. Voxformer is one of the best vocal processors out there. And don't forget that most competitors sell their vocal processors with an additional zero added on the price! If you are doing any vocal recordings, you should at least try this product. Trust me, you will be more than pleasantly surprised. Besides, have I ever requested an NFR copy of a bad product? Come on!! Of course not.
Wusik Magazine
Regarding its plethora of presets, it exceeds my imagination who on earth could use all these settings. But just in case, they are there.
The End
June 2008
D16
Group
Devastor
D16 Group Devastor
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
by Ginno 'g.no' Legaspi
D16
D16 Group - the Polish company that brought us virtual instruments like Nepheton, Drumazon and Phoscyon - has delved into the plug-in effects arena. They’re expanding their product line with their first effects release, Devastor a multi-band distortion plug-in, which is an enhanced version of the distortion section from their TB303-emulation synth, Phoscyon. Installing the plug-in is a breeze. D16 sends you a key file by email after purchase, which you simply copy to the VST’s plug-in folder. This key file activates the plug-in for unlimited use.
Devastor
there in front of you. No hidden menus or various tabs, which is great. Devastor consists of three b l o cks; a d ynam i cs-g ai n m o d ul e, a d i o d e-cl i p p er distortion module and three filter sections (all three feature low pass, high pass, band pass, and band reject models as well as adjustable resonance and cut-off). The one-knob dynamic module will equalize the incoming signal's amplitude. The diode-clipper module simulates the behaviour of a diode-clipper from an analogue circuit. The signal distortion is caused by the circuit 'clipping' the top and bottom of the audio waveform, as the D16 Group describes it. The three separate filters’ jobs are to process the full audio signal, whether pre or postclipper. (The manual explains different possible configurations and signal flow for the filter section.) The final stage for the processed signal is the master section, which controls the overall volume. You can monitor the current level of the output signal with the LED-type meter, just below the master knob.
Wusik Magazine
It is fairly easy to get familiarised with Devastor's interface. Once you fire up the gorgeous plug-in, the GUI welcomes you with its silver knobs, simple sliders+buttons and LED-style output meter. The layout is so well thought out that tweaking parameters to taste is quick. You can pretty much ‘give it a go’ without consulting the manual (PDF or online) as everything you need to adjust is right
Group
June 2008
D16
Group
Devastor
In my opinion, Devastor is all about simplicity and accessibility. But does it sound good? Yes. Even though it only has one distortion algorithm, I achieved good immediate results while testing it. Application ranges from subtle to full-on distortion. I find it extremely useful for adding grit to drum loops. It is very musical, especially for dirtying up a Rhodes sound, and is indispensable for warming up stale and lifeless synth tracks. Also, subtle use of Devastor can enhance the timbre and character of gentler sounds... especially digital pads.
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
Devastor is shipped with 89 stock presets that provide a good starting point. The fun then begins when you tweak them. In case you need to cook up some more, there's room to save your own, in 'empty' slots. Bottom line: At €29, Devastor is a good alternative if you're looking for a 3rd party distortion effect in your VST/AU arsenal. But don’t let the price tag fool you; Devastor is a highly effective plug-in,
regardless of your audio source. It really shines when used sparingly yet can be one heck of a sound destructor if pushed to the max. At this price, it's too good to pass up. Highly recommended.
CONTACT: E-mail: contact@d16.pl Website: www.d16.pl PRICE: €29 (about US $45, at time of writing) COPY PROTECTION: Key file FORMATS / REQUIREMENTS:
SYSTEM
Devastor is available in VST and AU formats, for both PC and Mac. It has a dynamic library (.dll file) for PC (VST only) and Universal Binary bundle for Mac (VST and AU). To use the product you need Windows 2000/XP or Mac OS X 10.4.3 or later. It is not a standalone program so you need a VST or AU compatible host application to use it.
Hidden Place
by Sir Joe
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
Hidden Place
The eighties are back, at least in music, and if you bother to know my opinion this is a very good thing indeed. Following the interview with “The Frozen Autumn” in the December 2007 issue of WM, it is now time to have a chat with another electronic combo coming from sunny Italy: “Hidden Place”
Wusik Magazine
June 2008
There seems to be lately a return to the analog electronic sounds of the ’80s and “Hidden Place” are indeed part of this movement. What do you think is the main reason? In our case the return to the ‘80s is clearly caused by our passion for a certain type of sounds and atmospheres. The whole band feels tied to that fantastic decade, which unfortunately we could not enjoy due to our age. It is simply a matter of pleasure and nostalgia for those years. What was born in the ‘80s is something extremely innovative because the simplicity of the compositions married to a strong decadent vein created a rupture from the past and imposed styles still used today, styles that were the expression of something very deep and intense, not only in music but also in terms of concepts and
aesthetics. Unfortunately we must report that a lot of people abused of this return by gaining success which several bands from the past should have enjoyed. What we find really disgusting is the huge number of those who pretend to be estranged from the names of the past, as if they meant nothing. It’s like spitting on the plate where you ate! “Hidden Place” is and will always be a band devoted to those fantastic years. What kind of emotions do you try to convey through your music? We simply try to convey what we feel when we make music, hoping that the listener can pick up our emotions. How did you overcome the problem that not all the members of the group live in the same town, regarding both the creative and recording process? Unfortunately it’s true, we don’t live in the same town because of working and school reasons. However this is not really a problem, for we had to live with this situation since the band was started. Whenever we manage to meet we are very productive, because we spend a lot of time on our music.
Hidden Place
Is “Hidden Place” mainly oriented on the download market or do you think that CDs and records can still play an important role in the music business? Our market is clearly oriented on CDs and records, as we are all big collectors. We don’t really care about download, to the point that on our PCs you won’t find any program dedicated to music download! What kind of tools do you use to record your songs? We don’t use any specific instruments to record our songs, we basically use what we like without any particular orientation. We like to change and experiment and sometimes we get the best results from the most unlikely combinations.
where it comes from. The atmosphere we try to create is more important than the tools we use to create it. “Louder is better” seems to be the leitmotif of the last 10 years. Do you agree? We don’t deny the importance of sound quality nowadays but what we try to express with our songs does not depend on how loud they sound. Therefore we tend to use limiters and sonic maximizers in moderation. What can we expect in future from “Hidden Place”?
Of those that you own, what's your favourite piece of kit?
One of our songs will appear on the compilation "Electronically Yours Vol.1" (Undo Records/Emi), which will be released shortly. Furthermore we are working on our next album, that will see the guest participation of a big foreign artist (obviously from the ‘80s).
Same as above, we don’t have any instruments we feel particularly attached to. If we like a sound for a specific song we use it, regardless of
For more information and music, you can visit “Hidden Place” at www.myspace.com/hiddenplaceital ia Wusik Magazine June 2008