This video gives a feeling for how warm and strong Unique can sound. Also it shows the convincing talk sound that you know so well…
Ableton and Serato present The Bridge — a natural link between Ableton Live and Serato Scratch Live. Ableton’s Jeff Milligan shows how The Bridge spans the gap between DJing and playing a live set, by allowing DJs to seamlessly integrate Ableton Live into a Serato Scratch Live setup.
Video Rating: 4 / 5
More info – bit.ly In this Ableton Live video tutorial, we’ll explore some techniques inspired by two incredible conversations I had this past week. We will look at the creative possibilities of using the Simpler, some portamento, LFO, and delays, and we’ll also explore a great technique for crafting 8 bar drum patterns. First up, I had the great pleasure of catching Dorian Concept’s insanely inspiring set at Low End Theory last week. Dorian Concept is a Vienna-based producer who has developed his own completely original style of keyboard playing. He’s been tearing it up at Festivals around the world since bursting on to everyone’s radar with the massive tune “Vertical Output” a few years back. His latest release on Ninja Tune is called Her Tears Taste Like Pears, full of funky, synth driven club heaters. He often sits in live improv style with his friend Flying Lotus when they cross paths internationally, and his series of YouTube videos ‘Fooling Around With The MicroKorg, Alesis Micron, etc’ are straight jaw droppers. So I had the honor of chatting with him at length at Low End, and I thought I’d share some tidbits from our inspiring conversation. He shared some serious wisdom that would be helpful for any aspiring producer. Turns out he is not classically trained, and he’s actually completely self-taught. The great thing about what he has done, is that he has kept it simple and really mastered his instrument, developing his own unique style. With all the tools we have …
Video Rating: 4 / 5
The Live Sets were made exclusively for Ableton by ten artists from the Minus roster. Each Set comes with a companion Lesson that reveals insights into the artist’s musical vision and offers valuable production tips. Download the Live Pack here: www.ableton.com
Video Rating: 4 / 5
Softube has released Tube-Tech ME 1B, Tube-Tech’s unique take on the classic Pultec MEQ-5 midrange equalizer. There’s a lot of mojo going on in the Pultec designs, but the biggest mojo of it is that i… [Read More]
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Question by Gambit18: FruityLoops? Unique sounds?
Im still kind of new to the program but I just have one main question, In FruityLoops & FL Studios how can you get certian and unique sounds like Gunshots or Police Seriens or even synthesizers, stuff like that.
Do you have to Download them, Make them on your own? etc.
Best answer:
Answer by Keilee Willy Wilson
jizzzzzz
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
Sound and music for games is already a growing frontier for professional music careers; mobile, then, triply so. But with the expanded opportunities come unique challenges. Learning about them requires real-world experience, and short of word of mouth, that kind of knowledge is often scarce – even in the Web age.
Composer, sound designer, and audio director Ben Long has put his sonic thumbprints on games and TV networks alike, and has recently turned his attention to sharing some of the industry secrets of the mobile realm, with work in game design textbooks and GDC China. Now, he has a new book entitled “Game Audio 101: Mobile” that assembles all that experience into a single reference. Launched at South by Southwest Interactive, it could prove invaluable to people aspiring in this area.
What’s especially unique about this title is not only its focus, but its insights into real-world case studies – fairly legendary ones, at that. Long gets tips and background on the making of sound for hit titles Angry Birds (iOS, Android), music app Drumkit (iOS), and RPG hit The Harvest (Windows Phone).
Nor is this generalist advice, painted in vague, broad strokes. There are specifics of platforms (not only iOS, but Windows Phone and Android), sound design technique, technical information, and career advice. Covered in the book:
I should caution that this is more of a white paper of assembled research and tips than a front-to-back textbook. My one complaint is, therefore, it does feel a bit abridged, under fifty pages. There’s sometimes a copy-and-paste sense to the content, as well, in case you’re expecting something with the level of polish of, say, an O’Reilly e-book. The tips you can glean from it, though, could be worth the price of admission if this is a field about which you’re serious – and a lot more than you’d get out of a similarly-priced workshop or the massive cost of attending conferences. You’ll have to do a little digging – the title really picks up somewhere about halfway through – but you could easily get some nuggets that could transform a career.
To make things easier, we have a CDM-only discount code for readers, bringing the price down 50% off its current sale price to just $ 19.95. Enter the following code at checkout:
AT101ebooksxsw45
http://www.gameaudio101.com/about_book.php
Let us know what you think – and definitely if you happen to get a good gig in the industry.
Ski Beatz is a producer who’s worked with some of the biggest names in Hip Hop, including Jay Z, Mos Def, AZ, Foxy Brown, Lil’ Kim and Camp Lo. Watch the movie to see him in action and visit www.ableton.com to get the Ski Beatz slicing preset.
12th October 2010: Sugar Bytes has released updates for Guitarist (v1.0.2) and Unique (v1.2). The new Unique 1.2 update fixes all known bugs and brings some new power to the user. Unique is now available as a 64-bit …
AudioProFeeds-1
Nearly a decade on from their initial release, Korg has once again refreshed their enduringly popular Electribe range.
With the hardware groovebox apparently declining over recent years, it’s the perfect opportunity for us to take a fresh look at the popular sequencer and see how they shape up in 2010.
What do they have to offer? More importantly, are they still relevant to the producers of today?
Given that it’s been a while let’s start with a quick recap to see what the whole Electribe concept is all about. The story begins in 1999, when Korg released the original Electribe A-1 analogue modelling synthesizer and Electribe R-1 rhythm synthesizer.
“Users will enjoy the drive valves can add, but the front panel real estate could have been better employed.”
Based around a classic step sequencer layout, the EA-1 and ER-1 were an instant hit. Two more models, the ES-1 rhythm production sampler and EM-1 music production station followed in 2000 and 2001 respectively, introducing sampling features and the excellent ‘motion sequencer’ automation feature.
The ES-1 and EM-1 each received major updates three years after their introduction and the EMX-1 and ESX-1 really brought the Electribe concept to its logical conclusion as fully featured all-in-one production environments.
Both units offered a single box solution for Dance music production, with drum and synth features, arpeggiator, a good selection of real-time effects and the all-important ‘Valve Force’ tube gain.
The EMX (blue) focused on Korg’s MMT (multiple modelling technology) synthesis approach, whereas the ESX (red) is the sample specialist. New for 2010 are the EMX-1 SD and ESX-1 SD but there’s more going on here than just the addition of an SD card slot.
Both Electribes are based around their built-in step sequencer, which allows patterns and loops to be strung together to create songs. Patterns can either be played live and recorded into the sequencer for each part (in which case each of your notes is quantised to the closest step) or entered directly in step time using the 16 buttons along the bottom of the unit.
The vast majority of sequencing options are intuitive, but the synthesis and sampling features of the two devices take a bit more getting used to.
The EMX-1 uses a combination of PCM drum samples and digital wave shapes for sound generation. Basic envelope generator controls and filter options allow the sound to be shaped, but the real power lies in the modulation section in the top-right-hand corner.
Here, an oscillator (LFO all the way up to audio rate, with BPM sync option) can be used to modulate parameters such as pitch, filter cutoff or oscillator settings. It’s a relatively simple but highly effective system and the range of sounds on offer is phenomenal.
The ESX-1′s sample manipulation options are fairly similar to the EMX-1′s synthesis methods but the sound sources are samples rather than waveforms. Instead of the EMX’s nine drum parts and five synth parts, the ESX features nine regular sample parts (primarily intended to be used for drum samples), two keyboard parts for playing back melodies, two stretch parts for tempo-synced time-stretch effects and a slice part which allows you to chop a single sample up into a series of steps.
A number of options are available to add interest to your sounds and patterns. Most notably, the arpeggiator found on both units is rather unique, featuring a slider and a ribbon control which combine to offer control of note length and pitch.
In use it’s surprisingly intuitive, made more powerful by the fact that movements can be recorded directly into patterns for automated playback. This goes hand in hand with the so-called motion sequencing feature, essentially a form of automation which allows you to record knob movements and parameter changes as part of your patterns.
The central effects sections on the EMX-1 and ESX-1 are identical, offering a wide variety of options for manipulating your sounds. Effects range from subtle reverb and compression to outrageous bitcrushing and pitchshift.
However, it’s the master Valve Force tube saturation option that draws the most attention. Essentially a budget tube overdrive unit tacked onto the master output, the signal is run through a pair of 12AX7 valves to add a bit of analogue dirt.
We’re sure plenty of users will enjoy the grit and drive the valves can add, but we can’t help but feel the front panel real estate could be better employed. The LCD screen in particular is a little on the small side and a bigger display could help make things clearer when working with the more advanced features of each unit.
The only significant external update for the 2010 models is the move from SmartMedia to an SD card slot for data storage. SmartMedia was always a pretty ropey storage format, the expensive flash cards offering a maximum capacity of just 128MB.
Now that it’s obsolete, the move to an SD card slot makes total sense. Not only are SD cards cheap and widely available, but the new Electribes can handle cards with up to 32GB capacity.
There should be no need to worry about running out of storage space for your patterns or samples. It also makes it a lot easier to transfer data (such as AIFF or WAV samples) from your computer.
With such a huge increase in storage space, you’d be forgiven for assuming the ESX-1 SD would offer increased sample time. Unfortunately, you’re out of luck – the SX uses its internal RAM for sample storage, so the maximum sampling time remains 285 seconds (in mono). This really seems like a missed opportunity.
Those hoping for new features, software updates to fix known glitches or increased processing power will be sorely disappointed. As it turns out, the internal upgrades are limited to the preset patterns, sounds and samples.
Korg have enlisted the help of some of the best Electribe programmers in order to create sets of cutting-edge preset patterns that reflect the current trends in every genre from House to Chiptune, Dubstep to Minimal. However, let’s be honest: if you’re buying an Electribe for the presets you’ve got the wrong end of the stick. These machines are intended to be used for in-depth programming and composition, not preset noodling.
The SD models should really be seen as refreshed versions of the original EMX-1 and ESX-1 rather than huge overhauls. There’s no word as to whether the Electribe range will see any major updates in future, but we’d love to see Korg introduce some of the last decade’s technological innovations to the Electribe format.
Combine the synthesis power of the EMX-1 and the sampling capabilities of the ESX-1, fit a bigger LCD screen, expand the effects selection, throw in a Kaoss Pad-style XY controller and you’d be getting very close to the ultimate groovebox.
While we’re at it why not offer a USB connection and an editor or even a plug-in-based software controller to run the unit in sync with your DAW? There’s so much potential here that it seems a real shame the updates are so minor at this stage in the Electribes’ lifespan.
When the first Electribes hit the market back in the late ’90s, computer music software was only just starting to mature. With computers still expensive and limited by relatively slow CPUs and expensive RAM, hardware groove-boxes were pitched as an alternative to computer-based music making.
These days, things are very different – you could buy a basic computer and a couple of nice pieces of software for the price of an Electribe. As such, the Electribe should no longer really be considered an alternative to your computer and DAW.
Beginners would almost certainly be better off starting out with a laptop and Ableton Live (above) than either Electribe model. Instead, think of it them as a different workflow. An inspirational tool with unique sound design features and outstanding step sequencer. For that they’re great option.
The recommended retail price of both Electribe models is £516, but you should already be able to find them available at a street price under £450.
It’s a reasonable pricing level, if not quite a bargain but if you’re an existing Electribe owner, the SD card slot and new presets almost certainly won’t be enough to make you want to upgrade.
Newcomers to the Electribe will benefit from the increased storage capacity and more contemporary patterns and samples, but whether they’ll be enough to attract a new generation of groovebox fans is highly questionable.
Still, the Electribes show why they’ve remained so popular for the last decade. The outstanding step sequencer is the star of the show, making either unit a great choice for creating loop-based music.
We’ll have to keep waiting for a proper update, but for now this minor revision makes a small improvement to what was already a good pair of products.
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Korg Electribe ESX-1 SD & EMX-1 SD
Whatever the platform, you can expect musicians to do weird things and make noise. (It is, after all, our raison d’être.) In this case, while the input controller is an iPad or iPhone, the emphasis remains on running sound from additional gear, whether an inexpensive hardware synth in the form of a Korg monotron or the ubiquitous Ableton Live.
From the iOS inbox this week…
Top: nonstandard sequencing. Developer Franz Keller’s Radarhead 19 is one of the more unusual creations I’ve seen on iOS, a somewhat inexplicable (in a good way) alternative sequencer. It’s available now on iTunes.
Give it a try, after a short while some rather unique situations can emerge!
(In the hands of a real musician, or an untrained explorer.)
More complicated apps for musical experimentation are in the works now.
Interestingly, many control applications use Ableton Live as the sound source.
Via Vincent (something-wicked @ SoundCloud, Denkitribe has an Ableton control rig with two iPhones connected to Live wirelessly and gestural control via his n-forcer app, apparently not yet available but coming soon. Seen here in a demo at the Apple Store Ginza, and previously on ever-vigilant MATRIXSYNTH.
Perhaps more practical, Bjorn of Covert Operators and International Feel Recordings add their own custom iPad control layout app for Ableton Live to the various entries competing for your Ableton-controlling attention (including some on the JazzMutant Lemur). MB Control resembles some of the Lemur layouts, focusing on touch-augmented renditions of standard control schemes for triggering, mixing, and parameter adjustment. I still imagine this will fail to impress some people who enjoy tactile hardware controllers, but it does look practical, and there’s no reason you can’t put an iPad next to a box of physical faders.
No other details for now, so I think this qualifies as a “teaser.”
Whether we see similar competition from the Android, Chrome, and Linux and Windows camps I think remains dependent on what touch technology new devices use, and whether it works for control. We should know more as the fall and winter stretch on and some of those devices appear.
Read more from the original source:
iPhone, iPad for Wild Performances: Nonstandard Sequencing, Ableton, Gestures
Following mobile music making means keeping up with technical details that are complex and changing. And because the Internet is open, when you post a story on iOS DJ apps, odds are it may be read by some of the Apple audio engineers, third-party developers, and a casual DJ with little understanding of what’s behind the scenes. But I’ll say this: the behind the scenes stuff matters, and it’s a great gift that we’re all able to compare notes.
Last week, I noted that, via the developers of a scratch app called Flare, there was evidence that Apple had broadened developers’ ability to work with music from the iTunes library in iOS 4. That led to an explosion of comments, including many from developers. The issue is still one we’re exploring, but I’d like to clear up some questions.
Also, I want to invite developers interested in comparing notes and sharing code to join a new group on Noisepages, the community site we’re finishing developing this summer:
Next-gen Mobile Music + Visual Dev Hack Group
The group has forum-style discussion features, the ability to connect with other users, and a group blog which could be useful for posting code snippets and the like. That means if you want to share something you’ve discovered with other developers or ask a question, you can. We’re not trying to replace other resources, but to make it easier to find them – so you can point to a stackoverflow thread, or your Git repository, or your commercial developer blog. Part of the reason to invite you is that this July and August is when we’re establishing other features for launch, so if there’s something you wish the site did, just suggest it. You only need to sign up for a Noisepages account, which is free and now open to anyone. I kept this platform agnostic partly because I hope we can all learn more about different operating systems, and because there’s plenty of overlap.
But first, let’s clear up some of those questions users and developers might have about Friday’s story.
Why all this fuss over having access to the iTunes library? Aren’t there DJ apps already?
For a lot of DJ end users, the ability to manage music with iTunes but DJ with a mobile app is important. In the past, developers have had to keep a separate set of files for use in the DJ app, synchronized separately, which for many end users isn’t good enough.
Wasn’t this added before? This isn’t news.
Actually, this is news. iOS 3 added very primitive access to the library — that is, you could see what was in the library on the device and play and stop, but nothing else. DJ apps will naturally want to be able to do things like change pitch or scratch – or even play the volume – which weren’t available in iOS 3. That means access to the buffer data for the audio in order to process it directly. (Those are the numbers filling your head Prince was recently complaining about.)
So, what’s the story? You can access audio buffers in iOS 4?
Here’s where things got a bit confusing. Because there’s a new set of APIs, music developers on iOS are still working out what’s possible and how to implement it. As a developer, you really don’t know a platform feature until you’ve successfully used it in your own code. Even with a documented feature, you may discover subtle issues – and new features often aren’t fully documented, if at all.
Async Games, makers of Flare, did manage to pull audio files from a device library and scratch them. So far, so good. But to get there, they required an intermediate step; what developers really want is direct, full-blown access to the Library. (And yes, I got a few messages in my inbox from developers who thought I was overstating what Apple had provided.)
To see the discussion of what’s there, what isn’t there, and how to use it, complete with code samples, see comments on Friday’s post.
Async Games and some of our regular iOS developers readers have been helpful to me in untangling this. But while Flare was the first to officially scratch an iTunes track, here’s some good news – it does sound out like the makers of DJ Mixer have figured out how to mix tracks directly. That’s the breakthrough I was looking for.
And as I said on Friday, even for non-DJ apps, this could be significant. You could make a sample-based performance app, for instance, that allowed your user to manage samples via iTunes on the desktop instead of a separate conduit. So, for instance, an artist might take all of her albums, load it as an iTunes playlist, and then remix her back catalog in a mobile app.
It could also mean creative visualizer applications for the iTunes library. Stay tuned; hopefully we can document how to actually do this. (Join the group above.)
Here’s an old video of DJ Mixer; the new version won’t require this extra dance to sync tracks. (Yes, some readers say they prefer a separate file store for their DJ tracks; if that’s you, you don’t have to worry about any of this! As a developer, though, you have to cater to the users who want to use iTunes.)
What about Android? You said the situation was different on Android. This is all about different philosophies of openness, Apple’s lockdown, blah, blah…
Well, yes and no. I brought up Android on Friday to provide some context – and not because I wished to make a black-and-white comparison about which was “better,” but on the contrary, as a way of highlighting the unique challenges all mobile developers face.
Here’s the deal. First, Android does allow developers freer access to files loaded on the device. That is a partly philosophical difference; since before the iPhone, Apple has maintained a fair degree of control over media files synced to their iPod. For instance, when you mount an Android device on your desktop, you can freely drag and drop files into the music database. That’s actually been a cause for complaint among some reviewers, but I will say, even a lot of less-sophisticated / less-techie Android owners I talk to like it.
In this case, though, these issues are less relevant to the task at hand. The issue with a DJ app is that you want to get buffer access not just to any file, but very possibly a compressed file. Part of the reason neither Android nor iOS has made this very obvious may even be that both platforms are using hardware acceleration for some decoding tasks, and they’d need to get the data back from the decoder.
Anyway, this isn’t a platform discussion, and it isn’t philosophy – it’s good, old-fashioned, nuts-and-bolts, hands-dirty development.
For the record, when I said it was possible to directly access files on Android, I wasn’t incorrect, but I was simplifying matters in regards to decoded files. There isn’t a software-side decoder that comes out-of-box with the platform. It is possible to decode MP3s, however; you just need to add your own library and dig into the NDK. The MAD MP3 library would be a way to do that, and it’s free. I’m going to actually look into this, because I need for a project. But yes, assuming we do work out how to use them, it looks like the iOS platform will be a path of less resistance thanks to these recent changes. (In-box decoding could be an issue on new platforms, too, like Chrome and MeeGo.)
The bottom line? If you’re building a DJ app right now on mobile platforms, be prepared to roll up your sleeves, because some things you take for granted on desktops simply aren’t there. On the other hand, there’s such interest in the problem, you won’t be alone – and I suspect we’ll be getting code examples going in relatively short order.
So, definitely do join up the Noisepages group if you’d like to learn from fellow coders; otherwise, as always, stay tuned here. And if you’re an end user, of course, we’ll explain what’s available to you as these apps ship. Having a window into development simply means you’ll know what’s coming a little earlier.
See the original post:
Follow-up: iTunes Library Access on iOS, Developers, and iPhone, iPad DJ Apps