Gear Obsession

[jok3r]

Are workstations like the Kronos allowed? Feels like cheating to me somehow... 

[Sacred Synthesis]

I agree.  But for the sake of keeping things simple and avoiding endless rules, I'd say, yes, workstations are allowed.  The idea is to get at the core of the synthesizer and its sound, while workstations are obviously instruments of another sort.  But I doubt we will be overrun by workstations...or digital pianos, drawbar organs, or mellotrons.  Besides, you could just as legitimately ask about the Prophet X.  Should we allow sample-based instruments?  Again, I'd say, yes. 

I'm not trying to write a constitution here.  Let's just have the few basic guidelines and see how it goes.

[jok3r]

And just to be sure (even if I think this should be clear): Sustain/Expressionpedals are allowed? They are part of the instrument from my point of view, just like the mod wheel, etc. ...

[Sacred Synthesis]

Absolutely.  Pushing a pedal during a performance would be equivalent to turning a knob or moving a wheel.  Onboard and offboard effects are allowed as well.  And we can also use multiple patches, as long as they're all part of a single composition and performance.  The challenge is to make the most of a single instrument, not to make the performance difficult for the musician.

[LoboLives]

So is the goal to make a piece of music using only a single instrument in one recording pass or are overdubs allowed?

[chysn]

Compared to what's common these days, that's actually not a large amount of gear.

It would be interesting to have on this forum a challenge to produce on YouTube one synthesizer piece each member, using a single instrument, start to finish, and with only the usual effects as compliments.  Again, not a competition, but a challenge; and not a demonstration, but an actual complete piece of music.  That would be a fascinating refreshing thread.

I’m in!

[Shaw]

And just to be sure (even if I think this should be clear): Sustain/Expressionpedals are allowed? They are part of the instrument from my point of view, just like the mod wheel, etc. ...

I’d say anything you have that you want to use is allowed... the point is to just make music with what you already own (and inspire others to do the same) instead of obsessing over gear.

[Shaw]

So is the goal to make a piece of music using only a single instrument in one recording pass or are overdubs allowed?

Overdubs, tracks, effects, one pass, low pass... however you want to do it.


The only “Rule” anyone has stated is this:  one synth.

[Sacred Synthesis]

So is the goal to make a piece of music using only a single instrument in one recording pass or are overdubs allowed?

I've set up two threads - one for single tracks and the other for multi-tracks.  I'll copy the guidelines here:

1) This thread is for multi-track recordings of any length and complexity made with a single synthesizer.

- Any brand or model can be used, monophonic or polyphonic
- Only one instrument can be used, although multiple units of the identical synthesizer can be linked together
- The recordings can be made with as many tracks as the synthesist wishes, but from only one keyboard and panel
- External and onboard effects can be used
- Each synthesist can contribute any number of recordings
- This is not a competition, but a friendly sharing

2) This thread is for single-track recordings of any length and complexity made with a single synthesizer.

- Any brand or model can be used, monophonic or polyphonic
- Only one instrument can be used, although multiple units of the identical synthesizer can be linked together
- The recordings must be made with a single track, from one keyboard and panel
- External and onboard effects can be used
- Each synthesist can contribute any number of recordings
- This is not a competition, but a friendly sharing

I should add that you can use multiple patches, as long as they're all in the single piece of music.

[Sacred Synthesis]

Compared to what's common these days, that's actually not a large amount of gear.

It would be interesting to have on this forum a challenge to produce on YouTube one synthesizer piece each member, using a single instrument, start to finish, and with only the usual effects as compliments.  Again, not a competition, but a challenge; and not a demonstration, but an actual complete piece of music.  That would be a fascinating refreshing thread.

I’m in!

That's great to hear, Chysn!

Jeepers, I'm looking forward to getting started on this.

[Razmo]

In general, what this is about is using ONE sound generating device only... There could be a multitude of sound manipulation devices included as well.

You have to understand though, that sound manipulating devices like FX, EQ and dynamics can SERIOUSLY change the sound... I could easilly turn even a Monotron into a gorgeous wash of ambient chordal pad sounding nothing at all like a Monotron, simply by running it thru a shimmer reverb 100% wet, but it would not say much about the character of the Monotron as a stand alone sound generating device. But it WILL prove, that you csn more or less make music with any single device which was more  or less the point in the context of gear obsession.

In general all I would need would be one synth, a DAW for multitracking and a quality reverb and delay plugin... That would let me go many places in different genres.

A simple example for creating lush ambient pads is to simply fire off an Arp chord, run thru a reverb set to 100% wet and the right settings... Instant ambient pad that you can even play live with a monosynth.

[OakBloodThree]

I've set up two threads

Is your intent to allow meta-discussions in the new threads, or should those threads be limited to YouTube/SoundCloud links, etc.?  Feel free to move this post if appropriate.  I hope to participate in one or both of these challenges.

In one sense, the single-track challenge could be very easy and straightforward:  A solo musician with a single instrument playing a song start to finish probably first happened 40,000 years ago.  Let the "tape" roll and you're done.  I do it all the time with my piano and a Tascam DR-05 recorder.

To make it a "synth challenge" (i.e. both challenging and using a synth) I will probably spend more time designing patches than composing/rehearsing/recording.  I don't often use my synths for live performances, so my custom programming has been geared more toward expediency in a multitrack recording environment. I imagine I'll have to set up a few Split A|B presets on adjacent slots to allow two-handed playing and rapid changes by "knob twisting."  I will probably add delay/reverb after the fact rather than use the onboard FX on my Rev2.  That will smooth the transitions between presets.

[Sacred Synthesis]

I've set up two threads

Is your intent to allow meta-discussions in the new threads, or should those threads be limited to YouTube/SoundCloud links, etc.?  Feel free to move this post if appropriate.  I hope to participate in one or both of these challenges.

I think the two threads should be limited to links to the recordings, together with comments from the synthesist-composer.  Otherwise, we probably will end up with far more discussion than music.  We tend to be...um...a little long-winded around here.  The challenge is to be music-focused, as opposed to the endless chatter that is the norm elsewhere.

As unnatural as it may seem, we should keep the compliments and congratulations towards the posters to a minimum; Otherwise, the threads could get terribly bogged down.  The comments should be made primarily by the posters themselves, in describing their pieces of music.

[Razmo]

Well... now that there is a thread like this I may as well use it... I have been thinking hard since this topic started a while ago, thinking hard about my new idear of non-preset machines, and in the end I'll have to admit, that it's not really an option anyway... I need to flip my "fix" from buying new gear into being a "fix" for creating music instead. It is not an easy task, but keeping up that "gear fix" for more years is simply not going to make any changes for me, I see that now. I have to switch focus from analyzing my gear options to analyzing what gear I NEED for creating the music I actually want to make.

I also realized that more gear is (in my case) not equal to more productiveness, it only fuels my gear buying "fix" needs. So I have to cut down on the amount of gear, to be what I absolutely need, and preferably so few synths that I do not need to split my focus on too many devices... that alone will provoke my "gear fix" abstinences imensely, but it has to be done.

I realized that creating ONE sound on a semimodular is nice enough, but when that first track has been laid down, the following cannot be semi modulars anymore... i need fast access to presets to keep the creative flow going.

Currently I work via HD recording, and I will do that in the future as well, because it gives me more advantages to MIDI recording... first off, I need fewer synths as they can be reused on as many tracks as I want to, and it allow me to record knob movements directly into the score... my scores tend to get much more dynamic and alive when I HD record, rather than copy/paste MIDI tracks again and again.

My Audio interface is an RME AIO with four input expander, so I've got three stereo inputs that I decided to set as a limit... that is: three stereo synths, and no more... that will be something I can comprehend, and the three devices will be learned more in depth because of this.

The type of music I'm going for is any kind of Ambient music and Berlin School types of music, but especially one band has "that sound" that I'm after... not that I want to copy their way of making music, but the tone of the sounds, especially their basslines is what I'm after... you can hear a bit from REDSHIFT here:

https://youtu.be/ttMmBRjrDXU?t=367

Notice the power of those bassnotes... it's done by a MOOG MODULAR, so the first synth I would definitely need, will be something that kan produce these bass characteristiscs, and unfortunately there is no other way than something that use those MOOG MODULAR circuits, so the first synth (or actually two) I've chosen is the MOOG MATRIARCH. This synth is built on the MOOG MODULAR circuits, and sound like them... it will even provide four note paraphony as well, and it has that essential analog delay that is also needed to get the right sound out of the box.

I already have the GRANDMOTHER and have thought long and hard if I should sell it when getting the Matriarch, but I decided against it for a few reasons; 1. It fits nicely above the Matriach on my table, 2. it has an analog spring reverb which is also crucial for the right sounds I want from this, and 3. it will work well together with the Matriarch as additional modules to patch in... I will only have the stereo outs of the Matriarch connected to my soundcard, so the Grandmother WILL have to be patched in, but it does allow me to fire off basslines with 6 MOOG oscillators, 3 LADDER filters and both analog spring reverb and analog stereo delay... I think this little combi will work very well for any and all analog needs I'll have when making my music.

Now, the Matriarch and Grandmother will be the hands-on semi-modulars that I tweak, so the most logical would be to get a polysynth for device number two, and I have already decided on that one because my V-Synth GT will cover so much ground regarding this, that I actually have a hard time figuring out what the third synth should be. It's sample engine is unique, I can program it without an editor because it has a nice big display. It wil do timestretching, formant synthesis, sample percussion with round-robbin, Virtual Analog, FM, Ringmod.. has tons of cool FX... this synth simply has no match out there and is a god sent for creating pads which is what is just as important as basslines... also the fact that samples can be stretched, any modulation going on inside the samples do not change speed when transposing, so instead of creating specific presets, you can create templates instead, and get a pletora of new sounds just by switching the samples in a template... this fit's my needs tremendously since I hate having to create so many presets before I can use a machine... it will also let me do serious vocoding via microphone, create singing voices...

Will it do everything other synths like a wavetable synthesizer, FM synth etc. do? ... no of course not, but it can create sounds that cover the same tonal landscape... it has no wavetable synthesis, but specially prepared samples with timestretch and moving thru the samples sound just like it... it can not do 6 operator FM either, but it has FM between oscillators, and with timestretching you could use an FM sample and cover the same territory anyway.

I looked at what instruments REDSHIFT actually use beside the MOOG MODULAR, and the keyboards are a mixture of differet polysynths like DX7, Kurzweil sampler, Juno-60 etc... all polsynths that my V-Synth GT can easily cover ground for.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbVwhMZWI0U

To be honest, I think that I can make all the music I want with just these two(three) synthesizers, and any other syth added would just add up on the complexity and space it requires... and that's where the addiction hits you right i the face when you start thinking about it... "is this the end of synth buying!? AAAARGH!!!"... it's stupid, but it's that feeling I get when I think about it... that is where the burden lies to be honest. that is what I need to fight!

Anyway... I still have a singel stereo input left... and then my OCD kicks in... I really want to find that third synth that is NEEDED, but I cannot find it... Quantum and SUMMIT are the only two I seriously have been considering, but they would not cover much more territory that a V-Synth GT cannot except it has a more direct synthesis approach to the presets, and have more modulation options because of their modulation matrixes... I guess I will just have to let that slot be open until something is screaming at me: "YOU NEED THAT!" ... I am close to thinking SUMMIT might be that synth, but it has ONE drawback... it has menu diving, and not a big touch display to edit it's sounds... I do NOT want to deal with SoundDiver editors ever again! ...

So yes... I sold the PEAK, and that would have been sold anyway, so that's not a bad thing... the REV2 also has to go, it will partially fund the Matriarch next... the NYX and NEUTRON has been sent back to the dealer, so I at least got my money back there to help fund the Matriarch instead.

Other than this, I'm not in need of much anything else besides another foot pedal, a gooseneck microphone and a transportable recorder for samples. Everything fits my corner table having my computer and screen in the corner, the digital part to my left (V-Synth GT), and analog to the right (Matriarch and Grandmother).

The essential high quality reverbs and other FX will be dealt with using my DAW's plugins (ValhallaDSP).

Well... this was just "a bit" to let you guys into the "head of a gear addict" trying to get "clean"

[Lady Gaia]

I need to flip my "fix" from buying new gear into being a "fix" for creating music instead.

This feels like such an important insight, I'm quoting it for myself as much as anything.  Try coming back to it now and again as a reminder, because it's all too easy to get caught in the trap of "I could make great music if only I had <fill in the blank>."

In my, admittedly limited, experience art thrives on constraints.  Making the most of what I have teaches me to appreciate it all the more.  I may learn where I'd like to be able to improve my workflow somewhere down the road with some other gadget, but I try to avoid the trap of feeling unable to do more with what I already have.  I've known for a very long time that I can be incredibly obsessive.  In my case it's all about learning to channel that productively.

[Sacred Synthesis]

I have to say that there is some genuine wisdom being expressed on this thread.  Self-analysis is important, as is self-criticism. 

[Razmo]

Just a short note about the two threads on single synth showing... if no one is meant to reply on the demo's people post, I think those two threads will die out pretty quickly because if you as an artist cannot get any feedback on your creations, and ask/answer questions about how different tricks was made, then these threads will (to me at least) quickly become boring... I aggree that too much off-topic is not good, but comments relating to the tunes posted would be a welcome aspect of such a thread...

[Sacred Synthesis]

I partly agree.  I've only suggested that the threads be light on talk and heavy on music.  Most of the comments should come in the form of detailed descriptions of the techniques used by the composers themselves.  But if people want some discussion, that's fine.  But I don't think a scarcity of posts necessarily means the threads have died.  It may mean instead that only a few synthesists are interested in taking up the challenge.  Plus, it takes some time - even for those who are willing - to prepare such music and record such performances.  Give it some time.

[Razmo]

I partly agree.  I've only suggested that the threads be light on talk and heavy on music.  Most of the comments should come in the form of detailed descriptions of the techniques used by the composers themselves.  But if people want some discussion, that's fine.  But I don't think a scarcity of posts necessarily means the threads have died.  It may mean instead that only a few synthesists are interested in taking up the challenge.  Plus, it takes some time - even for those who are willing - to prepare such music and record such performances.  Give it some time.

I aggree... it's just that personally, showing what I do to others, without ever getting any response (good or bad, does not matter), then my participation eagerness will slowly die out because it generally feels just as if i had made the music, and then stored it in a directory on my harddrive... I know that it of course benefit others to listen to the posts, but seen from the creators point of view, it does get a bit boring... but I'm fine with what you just wrote, so lets keep it at that ... I bet I have a lot more of these types of single-synth demos from all the years I've been having loads of synths thru my studio, but it can get a bit hard to remember which ones was solely one-synth works... so I have to do a bit more digging before I post more.

[OakBloodThree]

it's just that personally, showing what I do to others, without ever getting any response (good or bad, does not matter), then my participation eagerness will slowly die out

For people posting on SoundCloud, YouTube, etc., I figured those platforms allow for comments, "likes", etc. Since yours are self-hosted, there's nowhere to comment but on the threads here...