u-he

hakey · Post by **hakey** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 6:11 pm

Bronto Scorpio wrote:I always spend *a lot* of time with it and still I completely mess it up every single time

Your contest entry was fine.

satYatunes · Post by **satYatunes** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 11:24 pm

Hey Hakey can you share what would have been your vote, if you were allowed to vote.. u know just for fun. Also, your feedback on other patchbanks would be very much appreciated. Any tips or tricks and advice would be very helpful.

snigelx · Post by **snigelx** » Tue Apr 10, 2012 11:24 pm

I have to ask. How many of you designers toss your sounds into a sample project before saving the final draft of a patch, to get a rough idea how it melds volume- and frequencywise (esp with dance or techno oriented patches) or even testing how well arps or delays sync up? Just curious.

Conversely, are there some of you who design patches mostly outside of a project all the way through to final draft? Very curious about this.

I know that different projects call for different frequency content but I can sometimes notice with certain familiar designers that I can toss most of their patches into an ongoing project and end up cutting very little or minor comp to bring out what I need in the mix. Certain patch designers are amazingly consistent with this regard. I wonder how much *testing*, if you will, is done for some of these bass and leads, etc when you design your banks. Do you even look at a spectrum analysis or phase correlation indicator?

Thanks for any wisdom here.

Spitfire31 · Post by **Spitfire31** » Wed Apr 11, 2012 2:38 am

Unfortunately, I didn't see this thread until too late for voting.

If I'd been in time, the first place would've been a draw, 'cause my vote would have gone to Viva la Diva!

Inspiring, well crafted and slightly quirky sounds - well done!

Kind regards,

Joachim

xh3rv · Post by **xh3rv** » Wed Apr 11, 2012 2:59 am

I'm pretty ambivalent about passing myself as 'one of you designers'

But ...

snigelx wrote:I have to ask. How many of you designers toss your sounds into a sample project before saving the final draft of a patch, to get a rough idea how it melds volume- and frequencywise (esp with dance or techno oriented patches) or even testing how well arps or delays sync up? Just curious.

Generally the stuff I end up being most happy with is not made to fit any specific project, but I do make sure to noodle with stuff in a few different contexts. I sort of feel like figuring out how something is supposed to sound on it's own has to happen and I'm *extremely* happy when it clicks. From there it's just refinements.

For this contest particularly I'm rather unhappy with a couple patches that I thought worked specifically because they sounded nice in a couple projects, but a later listen makes me wish I'd stuck with earlier versions. A couple I was more careful and attentive with and I'm super happy with still.

Of course patches I got good feedback on in this contest - it was all on patches that just kind of presented themselves when the time was right, not endlessly fussed over

I wonder how much *testing*, if you will, is done for some of these bass and leads, etc when you design your banks. Do you even look at a spectrum analysis or phase correlation indicator?

The tools all have uses but I think there aren't any shortcuts - without any tools everything is by ear and feel, with a tool it's by ear and feel and the tool, so that's *more* work. I can't recall using those tools on this contest.

xh3rv · Post by **xh3rv** » Wed Apr 11, 2012 3:04 am

standalone wrote:Hakey, thank you for the bank, amazing quality!

+1

Gonga · Post by **Gonga** » Wed Apr 11, 2012 4:03 am

What the hell's a "phase correlation indicator?"

I did have brief phase cancellation once between two separate mono flangers on a single stereo signal. The lead got real quiet for a second or so!

Not sure why / how that happened, but it surely did!

xh3rv · Post by **xh3rv** » Wed Apr 11, 2012 5:14 am

Gonga wrote:What the hell's a "phase correlation indicator?"

I couldn't say it with a straight face in a conversation, but the technical term is 'goniometer'

I liked the one on this page: http://hofa-plugins.de/pages/start_en/4u_en.php
Flux has a nice freeware tool: http://www.fluxhome.com/products/freewares/stereotool

IMO - not of much use for synth patches, especially anything out of Diva.

hakey · Post by **hakey** » Wed Apr 11, 2012 8:42 am

satYatunes wrote:Hey Hakey can you share what would have been your vote, if you were allowed to vote.

My votes usually end up not far off the popular vote - I think I'd probably have had Viva La Diva at No.1.

I had a go at picking out my top 5 patches. D Piano would be my top choice... the other four from this shortlist:

Green Falling Leaves, Infinite Forest, Melloflute, Mono Lead Bite, Moog Wirez, PADS Before I was born, Story Telling, String Pad, Synphony, The Iron Horse, TXT Distant Dreaming

Any tips or tricks and advice would be very helpful.

I'm hardly the oracle on such matters, but I listed some in this thread (a couple of posts in).

hakey · Post by **hakey** » Wed Apr 11, 2012 10:09 am

A recent discovery for me was the use of really good quality midi files for testing and fine tuning instrumental patches.

And by good quality, I mean recorded live by a talented pianist/keyboard player - good ones are rare as hen's molars. 99.9% of midi's are single velocity, hard quantized, utterly unusable dreck!

Bronto Scorpio · Post by **Bronto Scorpio** » Wed Apr 11, 2012 10:15 am

hakey wrote:99.9% of midi's are single velocity, hard quantized, utterly unusable dreck!

Indeed!
Where did you find some good ones?
I prefer to test my instruments while playing them though. It's easier for me to adjust velocity etc. that way but I'd be interested in some good midi files nontheless

Cheers
Dennis

3ee · Post by **3ee** » Wed Apr 11, 2012 10:22 am

Bronto Scorpio wrote:Where did you find some good ones?
I prefer to test my instruments while playing them though. It's easier for me to adjust velocity etc. that way but I'd be interested in some good midi files nontheless

I found some good piano ones for example here: http://www.classicalmidiconnection.com

But be warned that it's a hit or miss game also... so you have too look a bit.
Don't know a website with all files being great but sure be interested in one as well.

Bronto Scorpio · Post by **Bronto Scorpio** » Wed Apr 11, 2012 10:24 am

3ee wrote:
Bronto Scorpio wrote:Where did you find some good ones?
I prefer to test my instruments while playing them though. It's easier for me to adjust velocity etc. that way but I'd be interested in some good midi files nontheless
I found some good piano ones for example here: http://www.classicalmidiconnection.com

But be warned that it's a hit or miss game also... so you have too look a bit.
Don't know a website with all files being great but sure be interested in one as well.

Thanks

Cheers
Dennis

hakey · Post by **hakey** » Wed Apr 11, 2012 10:32 am

Bronto Scorpio wrote:I'd be interested in some good midi files nontheless

The best classical/latin guitar files I've found (and by a long way):

http://www.iama.gr/music/midi.html

For classical, this site is pretty good:

http://www.classicalarchives.com/midi.html?navID=3

Can't vouch for the quality of the rest, but Sunday Morning Blues here is good:

http://www.ajsmidi.com/docdoc/docblues.html

Some decent jazz piano files here (down the page):

http://www.billevans.nl/Midipage.htm

Bronto Scorpio · Post by **Bronto Scorpio** » Wed Apr 11, 2012 10:50 am

hakey wrote:
Bronto Scorpio wrote:I'd be interested in some good midi files nontheless
The best classical/latin guitar files I've found (and by a long way):

http://www.iama.gr/music/midi.html

For classical, this site is pretty good:

http://www.classicalarchives.com/midi.html?navID=3

Can't vouch for the quality of the rest, but Sunday Morning Blues here is good:

http://www.ajsmidi.com/docdoc/docblues.html

Some decent jazz piano files here (down the page):

http://www.billevans.nl/Midipage.htm

Thanks

I'll check the sites out asap!

Cheers
Dennis

u-he

KVR Audio

Diva mini-Patchbank Contest: Results