KVR Audio

Coxy · Post by **Coxy** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 12:33 pm

It's gonna be a long one sorry
I aplogise for all the posts of late but I'm really trying to hone in on what aspects I enjoy most in the studio and trying to research what hardware and tools I can get to really aid and bring out these creative aspects of myself.

It's my birthday soon and really a time to treat myself to some nice hardware gear. I've got around £500 to spend. I was initially looking at a decent synth to center alot of my studio around (a virus B or Nord... perhaps a waldorf Q) but over the last few days of research I realise that I basicly have what I need synthesizer wise already in software form. I'm competent at programming patches and have no real trouble creating sounds that I'm after I have realised it was mainly the gear lust for hardware buttons and knobs which was making me dribble.

After playing around with my sampler (the esi-32 I mentioned earlier on in the week) and the shitty old hi-fi turntable I have I have realised I am really enjoying ripping beats and pissing around with old samples and mangling them up. So I think instead of the synth perhaps I should focus on a more dedicated hardware sampler for my center piece? and perhaps upgrading this aspect of my studio by getting a decent turntable and a nice second hand sampler and perhaps a hardware filterbank or fx unit?

I was also looking at these all in one groove boxes like an MC-909 or even an mpc-1000 (and similar) had a look at some reviews and watched some videos on youtube of them in action (as I always do when looking for new gear) and thought hey yeah pretty cool but what can it do that my computer and a decent software synth and external sampler cannot do? again I was simply lusting after something physical to touch and twiddle the dials on.

I'm at my wits end now researching stuff I get to a point when I think that's what I'll get have a look around on ebay and such tnen find other cool goodies that I get distracted by.

As I stated and for a mini conclusion on this post it seems I'm having most fun when sampling and pulling loops and such from old records mangling synth sounds with filters and fx units(software at the mo), At the moment I'm ripping up old tunes in Audacity and looping them on cubases sequencer, some time strech, alot of fx and filtering etc then applying my own take on the surrounding elements and the loop itself. Much like what daftpunk do. This however is getting tedious with my ESI-32 and it's 4meg of ram and a turn table from a hi-fi that I'm about to rip apart to stop the f**king AUTO CUE mechinism from kicking in lol and software FX that arn't giving me the hands on control I need.

If you''ve got this far I commend you because I'm simply jibbering like an idiot. I'd like to ask you, the more experienced reader what kind of setup I could get for my £500 budget that would enable me to bring out my creative sampling sides or any other setup that you think I would have fun with. (second hand is the way to go for me btw)

Current setup is
XP
Cubase SE3
Tannoy monitors
Padkontrol
44 key midi keyboard
ESI-32 Sampler
emu 1212m
Some other crap.
£500 burning big holes in my pocket.

shamann · Post by **shamann** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 2:51 pm

Well, it's a tough call. They don't really make deep hardware samplers any more. The MPCs are good for some things, but primarily they are designed to be sequencers/arrangers first and foremost. If you want something a bit unpredictable to work with, analog effects can be a good way to go. You'd probably get the most mileage out of a filterbox of some kind, or maybe consider some analog delays.

Your computer can be made to a be a monster sampler depending on what software you use. I like hardware samplers, and while they offer a different approach to working (which is better for some), they can't really touch software for deep, deep possibilities (which comes at a cost of requiring more than one app and possibly a slower workflow, but sometimes you just have to take on baggage to get the goods). I'd stick with ESI-32 as your hardware sampler, consider using your computer for advanced/esoteric functionality.

So from the sounds of it, a filter and a good turntable would probably do the most for you at the moment.

Coxy · Post by **Coxy** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 3:51 pm

shamann wrote: I'd stick with ESI-32 as your hardware sampler, consider using your computer for advanced/esoteric functionality.

So from the sounds of it, a filter and a good turntable would probably do the most for you at the moment.

Cool, I'm having similar thoughts about the turntable and an FX unit like a filter bank. However i've been using my computer for the advance and esoteric functionality since I got started in this game and now I'm going the hardware way. At least I want to. I've owned software samplers in the past and to be honest I didn't have as much fun with those as I have had with my ESI.

keyman_sam · Post by **keyman_sam** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 3:58 pm

Get an Emu E4 Ultra. Its purrty...

shamann · Post by **shamann** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 4:15 pm

Coxy wrote:I didn't have as much fun with those as I have had with my ESI.

I'm not against hardware samplers at all, I'm just saying a lot of software has gone further to really turn recorded audio inside out. The ESI-32 will do a good job for now as hardware samplers go, I wouldn't upgrade yet.

keyman_sam · Post by **keyman_sam** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 4:21 pm

4 mb is pathetic...get the E4 Ultra with 128 Mb, effects board, etc

Coxy · Post by **Coxy** » Sun Sep 09, 2007 10:58 pm

keyman_sam wrote:4 mb is pathetic...get the E4 Ultra with 128 Mb, effects board, etc

Less can always certainly be more!

/me looks at fatboy slim.

Ok so he's got a studio(a bedroom) filled with vintage gear but most of his older albums were almost entirely sampled and all on the akai s950. A whole 2.2mb (if he upgraded) of ram

keyman_sam · Post by **keyman_sam** » Sun Sep 09, 2007 11:17 pm

If you want to be forced to limit your creativity, go ahead. Ofcourse you can work with 4 mb, but it'll take 30 minutes to do something that you can do in 5 minutes.

Coxy · Post by **Coxy** » Sun Sep 09, 2007 11:26 pm

keyman_sam wrote:If you want to be forced to limit your creativity,

No but I'd like my limitations to force my creativity. no point on spending out on another sampler when I can upgrade this one (which i'm doing) to 32mb which to be honest is ample sampling time.

keyman_sam · Post by **keyman_sam** » Sun Sep 09, 2007 11:47 pm

Oh, then its settled. Case closed. Thread over.

/threadKill3R.

hasenbraten · Post by **hasenbraten** » Mon Sep 10, 2007 12:38 am

What about the Electribe SX?
Lots of knobs and you can get interesting mangled stuff out of it very quick.

Quite a few Electribe Vids on youtube. Some of them are interesting. Check out "Ghostradioshow" or "Denkitribe"

/e:
not even the sx in that example but a version before that. with no ability to load samples

daley · Post by **daley** » Mon Sep 10, 2007 1:07 pm

I have elecribe SX. Which works well for getting different results. I use it with ableton live. It has a sound of its own. I used the P.C.editor which makes it alot easier to make sample banks. Its good to have plenty of smart media cards to store different banks onto

jones-y · Post by **jones-y** » Mon Sep 10, 2007 9:41 pm

My all time favorite sampler is the ASR-X Pro. Features IMO the best sounding effects unit ever placed inside a synth/sampler (which goes well with resampling) and some of the best sounding ad/da stages. And its dead simple to learn and use.

Problems are a tendency to crash when the sequencer is used with a SCSI device attached, glitchy knobs (which can be replaced for $12 if you know how to solder), and two line display with no sample display or detailed 'sample editing' per se. Does support SMDI however. I'm also not a fan of the pads, but they're serviceable.

Important features:
-40 fx algos
-dedicated sample/resample and 'send to pads button for instant sampling and mapping (no dedicated sampling mode needed)
-extra pad dedicated to scratchpad function - whaever you sample is instantly available for audition
-dual resonant 3 pole LP/HP/BP filters
-multistage envelopes (more than ADSR)

justin3am · Post by **justin3am** » Mon Sep 10, 2007 10:05 pm

It may be slightly out of your price range but I was in your same position and found that the Roland V-Synth is the end all for total beat manipulation and a used original V can be had for $1000 USD. Yoy can record a drum beat into it chop it up (Ala recycle) on the touch screen and encode it with one of four time stretching algorithms. Once the sound is loaded, Rolands Cosm effects can be applied, an oscillator can be used as an FM source, time stretching can be done live and so on. And I have barely gotten into it's synth engine.

I am more happy with my V-Synth than I have been with any other gear purchase I have ever made. Check out the latest tracks in the link in my sig for examples of what can be done drum wise with the V-Synth.

musikmachine · Post by **musikmachine** » Sun Sep 16, 2007 1:34 pm

Have you looked at the RS7000?You can resample processed audio onto another track,slice and sequence,timestretch,reverse and remix audio.The loop remix function is excellent.It also has a decent onboard synth which is fairly basic but highly useable.Like i say it's the resampling that takes it further for sounddesign and i'm still learning stuff about it but each new feature that i uncover seems to expand the creative potential of the RS

Hardware for creative sampling, beat+fx mangling etc.