Experiments in feedback ?

[disturb]

I've been having a bunch of fun lately playing with different kinds of feedback pathes in eXT using senderella.
So far it's been pretty much trial and error, asi i realised plugins react quite differently when dealing with feedback. Some just stop processing passed a certain amount of feedback, when some others scream like hell.

The most fun i've had so far was when feeding back its output into fabfilter volcano, mostly cause of the great sounding filters, and the easy modulation.
I guess modulation plays a big part in trying to keep things from going outta hand.


Well now i'm interested in finding out what kind of feedback experiments produce usable sounds.
Hope you folks have some experiences to share, wether it's eXT related, low level modular stuff, whatever allows to have fun with this...

cheers

[Mighty Pea]

Cheers for the senderella suggestion, i've been interested in this for a while, and i usually just use the chorus in oatmeal for screaming feedback-like sounds.

[disturb]

Trying to keep this thread alive...

Another cool use of senderella is wth synths that provide an audio in, you can feedback the output into it, kinda like the minimonsta feedback knob.
I guess in a modular synth like vaz, one could make a feedback path for the oscillators only, prior to all filters efx etc... must be pretty gritty.

[shamann]

For a good method of getting usable sounds with feedback, stick a delay in the feedback path. The delay will let you control the sound before it becomes complete high-pitched resonance.

Here's an example of nothing but feedback (careful on your ears):

http://www.sighup.ca/tunes/SIGHUP_Machi ... achine.mp3

It was done with More Feedback Machine looped back on itself. Can't remember if I had any source input, wasn't more than impulses or white noise if I did. I have a few other tracks based on feedback loops that are perhaps more subtle. I've had pretty good results using Izotope Vinyl fed back on itself.

Another way to go, have a look at the music of Toshimaru Nakamura, and the Onkyo scene in Japan. He uses a mixer fed back on itself to produce these very subtle sounds.

[shamann]

Here's another example. I just made this very quickly (although I really should be working right now):

http://www.sighup.ca/tunes/SIGHUP_f-loop.mp3

This a feedback loop in Audiomulch of a simple stereo delay, GVST's GBand, Audio Damage's Fuzz+2 and a stereo gain mixer. No input, the resonance from Gband once it feeds back causes the sound. Any changes in tone are just me adjusting the band on Gband, the gain, turning Fuzz+ on/off (the bright, louder bursts) and occasionally adjusting the mix and feedback on the delay.

Feedback ultimately leads to a sine wave, so sticking things in the loop and altering parameters will help you shape it to something more interesting. Once you know how all the basic components affect the sound, it's easy to layer them in to a soundmaking circuit of some interest.

[disturb]

well thanks for taking interest in the topic and sharing shamann.

I'm not a big fan of the first file you posted, mostly cause i couldn't use this kind of result in my music, but the second one is really cool.
That's exactly what is so interesting to me with feedback : getting usable/controlled sounds out of pretty much nothing....

I quickly wrapped up an audio example myself.
Using Volcano, and timeless in the feedback path as you suggested. Lots of lfo modulation on volcano's filters. I don't have a midi controller anymore so things move slowly, but it's pretty much the kinda sounds i've been enjoying lately.
The only sound source is the clicky thing at the begining ; i could get similar stuff with the filters' self oscillations, but then the pitches become a bit too obvious, and it's hard to produce anything musical. I have to check on that though.

Here's the file : http://www.zshare.net/audio/fdbktestkvr-mp3.html


cheers

[shamann]

Another thing that'll produce good results is building several divergent streams within the loop and then summing them all back together at the loop point. Various elements will start to compete with each other more.

Throw in a phase inverter somewhere along the way of one of those streams, its output will start cancelling out parts of the signal.

[shamann]

Here's the file : http://www.zshare.net/audio/fdbktestkvr-mp3.html

Fun thing.

[Atomsplitter]

I made a feedback delay effect a while back, that sounds quite good I also had another which had a volume meter which lowered the volume if it got too high but i think i deleted that by mistake, im not sure if i should release it though maybe if people really want one

[Dozius]

as an addition to all the suggestions from shamann I like jamming multi-band EQ's into a feedback chain for some serious shaping.

[disturb]

@Atomsplitter, feedback delay thingies are always appreciated, post em up

@dozius, you're right, only recently i discovered the importance of regular dsp processors for serious sound shaping and fsu. I'd get a proper set of eq/comp/gate over any FSU plug any time of the day now.

[Atomsplitter]

It will need a new GUI and a few adjustments first, will be free if i release it, sometime in the future maybe not sure yet, i think that feedback delays are only really useful in modular apps like EXT and AM and possibly only for sampling purposes though which is why i question releasing it. I may even make a new site dedicated to sound toys such as drum roll makers ect which i have made and algorythmic drummer and that type of thing, i think it would go well with that type of stuff (experimental)

[GaryG]

Interesting topic, I played around with feedback loops a few years back when i still had a reasonable amount of outboard.

A loop of guitar pedals was always good fun though i needed to patch my mixer in too to control levels... so much easier to do this stuff nowadays with a modular host and a handful of free vsts...

.g

[stefancrs]

Interesting topic, I played around with feedback loops a few years back when i still had a reasonable amount of outboard.

A loop of guitar pedals was always good fun though i needed to patch my mixer in too to control levels... so much easier to do this stuff nowadays with a modular host and a handful of free vsts...

.g

Don't you find the buffer latency cumbersome?

Should maybe try to do some weird feedback thingy in SM later on...