£240 OF SOFTWARE 2GB OF SAMPLES, 5 HRS OF TUTORIAL VIDEOS

Issue 148 July 2015

www.musictech.net

Issue 148
July 2015
The magazine for producers, engineers and recording musicians

NOVATION
LAUNCHPAD PRO


       
www.musictech.net

WORLD EXCLUSIVE REVIEW Issue 148

July 2015
£5.99

MT148.cover.indd 1 02/06/2015 16:17

 Welcome MT

Expert Panel
Studio Hardware John Pickford
John is a studio engineer with over 25 years of
experience. He is a keen sound recording historian
and has a passion for valve-driven analogue
equipment and classic recording techniques.

Mixing/Mastering/Logic Mark Cousins

Mark specialises in sound design and cinematic
productions. He has recorded with orchestras
across Europe and is heavily involved in
soundtrack composition.

Careers Editor Rob Boffard

Rob Boffard is a sound designer with a
background in TV and radio work. He is a Reason
evangelist, and when not writing for MusicTech he
releases hip-hop music under the name Rob One.

Digital/Composition Andy Price

With a Master’s in songwriting and a vast interest You can’t move for the
in music history and recording techniques, Andy
works daily on MusicTech.net as well as regularly
word ‘Novation’ this
contributing to the magazine. He is currently month, and with good
heading up our Landmark Album features and
songwriting/Cubase series. reason. Not only has the
company supplied three
Recording & Guitar Tech Huw Price
A recording engineer since 1987, Huw has worked exclusive plug-ins for our
with David Bowie, My Bloody Valentine, Primal bonus DVD this month,
Scream, Depeche Mode, Nick Cave, Heidi Berry,
Fad Gadget and countless others. but we also have the
world-exclusive review of the new Launchpad Pro (p6), very
Scoring/Orchestral Keith Gemmell much the product of NAMM 2015.
Keith specialises in areas where traditional
music-making meets music technology, including We look at the history of the company on p30, where we interview no fewer than
orchestral and jazz sample libraries, acoustic five of the staff, past and present. And it’s not until you look at the timeline of
virtual instruments and notation software.
products from the company that you realise how much of an impact it has made on
music making in a relatively short period of time – Automap technology and
Ableton Live Martin Delaney
Martin was one of the first UK Ableton Certified (of course) the Bass Station being just two of my personal favourites.
Trainers. He has taught everyone from musicians Before you start to think we’re getting a little carried away, we balance things
to psychiatric patients and has written three
books about Live. Martin also designed the
nicely with another world-exclusive review (he adds flippantly) in the form of the
Kenton Killamix Mini USB MIDI controller and is Roland JD-XA, very much the product of Frankfurt 2015.
now the editor of www.ableton-live-expert.com. So that’s two world exclusives from the two biggest shows, two DVDs packed
with 2GB of samples and three (doh!) plug-ins. If ever there’s a time to buy this
Reason, DJ & Mobile Hollin Jones
As well as teaching music technology, producing magazine it’s now (but since it’s in a bag that you’ll have ripped open to read this,
and writing soundtracks, Hollin is an expert on you’ll have done that already).
everything Apple, mobile or computer-related, as
So happy reading, playing, composing and producing – I like to think we’ve
well as being an accomplished keyboard player.
covered you on all of these with this issue alone. So, until next month…
Andy Jones Senior Editor
Electronic Music Alex Holmes
Alex has been a computer musician for 15 years, Email andy.jones@anthem-publishing.com
having a keen passion for beats, bass and all Twitter @AndyJonesMT
forms of electronic music. He’s currently involved
in three different dance music projects.

Pro Tools Mike Hillier

Mike spent five years at Metropolis Studios,
working alongside some of the best-known mix
and mastering engineers in the world. He is now
building his own studio in south London.

New to Music Tech?

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MAGAZINE July 2015 |3

MT148.welcome.indd 3 03/06/2015 16:18

MT Contents

MT Contents
Issue 148 July 2015

FREE SAMPLES
GO HERE P114
NOVATION
LAUNCHPAD P6
YOUR FREE
PLUG-INS P114
MT Exclusive review
36 Martin Gore
68 ROLAND JD-XA
The Depeche Mode
main man talks tech
to MusicTech

REVIEW
The secret synth from NAMM and MT Buyer’s Guide
the star of Frankfurt reviewed here

103 Six of the best…

hardware controllers
As we review the new kid on the block,
here are six of the best…

4 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

 Contents MT

MT Issue 148 Full listings…

WORLD-EXCLUSIVE REVIEW
006 | Novation Launchpad Pro
We’re first to get our hands on a
major update for the classic pad
The latest reviews -based controller.
ADVANCE

BUMPER REVIEWS
Read all of your world-first reviews here!
010 | Industry news and opinion
THE FINAL MIXDOWN
014 | Prepare for mastering
Read the complete guide, hear the
examples on the MT DVD…
INDUSTRY GURU SPECIAL
030 | The Novation Story
DAW workshops We interview five gurus at

44 Logic Pro in depth

Novation to discuss the past,
present and future of the great
British company…
INTERVIEW
036 | Martin Gore – Solo Mode
New series of tutorials. This month: B3 Depeche’s main man talks tech

48 Ultimate Guide to Live

TECHNIQUE
044 | Logic Pro in depth
Getting the most from B3
048 | Ultimate Guide to Live pt.5
Keyboards and sidechaining… Keyboards and sidechaining

56 Modulation in Reason
052 | 20 Tips on… Restoration
056 | Beat programming & sound
design Modulation in Reason
060 | Cutting-edge production
Creating movement with synths Get to know your EQs
SUBSCRIBE
066 | … and get a discount!
REVIEWS
068 | Roland JD-XA
Bluffer’s guide The MusicTech exclusive review
074 | Akai Advance controller
078 | Yamah AQ Series mixers
081 | Toontrack EZX expansion
083 | Warm Audio EQP-WA tube EQ
087 | RND 511 & 517 modules
090 | Pigtronix looper

106
095 | Editor’s Keys back-lit keys!
096 | Neumann u47 FET mic

A BLUFFER’S
099 | Mini Reviews
REGULAR FEATURES
103 | 6 of the best… controllers

GUIDE TO MIDI
106 | A bluffer’s guide: MIDI
110 | Show off your studio now!
112 | Next month in MusicTech
114 | On your MT DVD

MAGAZINE July 2015 |5

MT148.contents.indd 5 04/06/2015 11:34

 MT Reviews Novation Launchpad Pro

MT Lead Review
Hardware Software Mobile tech Accessories

Details
Price £229
Contact
Novation (via web)
Web www.
novationmusic.com

Key features
● 64 RGB-backlit,
velocity- and
pressure-
sensitive
button grid
● Only a little
larger than
the original
Launchpad
at 260mm (w)
Choice x 260mm (d) x
29mm (h)
● MIDI in/out on

NOVATION
3.5mm jack
sockets - use
supplied MIDI

Launchpad Pro
din break-out
cables
full-colour RGB pads, hardware MIDI,
● 32 RGB-backlit
mains power and an array of edit round mode
buttons; that’s at least two items buttons
ticked off my personal wish list. ● USB or mains
power (power
Connections include a USB port,
The classic pad-based controller gets major new minijacks for MIDI in/out, and mains
supply and
USB cable

features, including RGB LEDs, in a not-much-bigger power (with on/off switch). In the box, included) Mains
power provides
you’ll find a USB cable, power supply,
package. Martin Delaney enjoys the light show… two minijack MIDI cables, a quick start
brighter LED
lights, and

E
also enables
guide, download info and serials for standalone
verybody needs at least one incarnation is the Launchpad Pro, Ableton Live 9 Lite, Loopmasters mode for
MIDI controller. We’re at which caused a stir at the NAMM Show sample content, and Novation’s Bass hardware
control
a point where we can use earlier this year, and is now ready to Station and V Station AU/VST plug-ins.
● Momentary
almost anything to reach take its place at the top of the Launch I connected the Pro via USB, mode for fast
into our DAW and boss it tree, above the Launchpad S and plugged in the mains supply and controller
access
about, from a citrus fruit (true), to Launchpad Mini. launched Live 9 – the unit quickly
● Setup button
a phone or a master keyboard with The Pro is a tad larger than the appeared as a control surface in MIDI provides
hammer-weighted keys. In recent regular Launchpad, but it’s not hefty. Preferences. I opened an existing set, instant access
to key function
years, though, the popularity of The pads are the same size as on containing a few hundred clips settings
Ableton Live, with its distinctive previous generations, and everything arranged over 480 scenes, and began ● Easy to change
Session View grid, has driven the rise feels solid – I’ve never experienced to enjoy the benefit of the update to MIDI channels
on the fly
of pad-based controllers, and build-quality issues with Novation full RGB colour LEDs; clip launching
● Kensington
Novation’s Launchpad has been there products. There’s plenty of newness to with the Pro is an improved experience Security Slot
from the beginning. The latest be explored, with velocity-sensitive when it’s showing clip colours.

6 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

MT148.REV Launchpad.indd 6 04/06/2015 11:41

 Novation Launchpad Pro Reviews MT

Navigation of large sets is achieved by drawing in beats sequencer-style, but Using the Launchpad Pro with other music software
pressing and holding the Session the Pro’s buttons give you everything The Launchpad Pro is primarily targeted at Ableton Live users, but there
button and scene launching is done via you need to create a clip, and record are plenty of people who use Live alongside other software, and also –
the right-hand buttons. quantised beats, mouse-free. If I was unbelievably – some people who don’t use Live at all! There are times when
a dedicated controller is exactly what you need, and times when you want
That’s all good enough in itself, but working with drums all day every day, a controller to keep up when you swap between your DAWs. It’s early days,
there’s more, as a press of the Note truthfully the Pro wouldn’t be my go-to but I wouldn’t be surprised to see the Pro in a more integrated relationship
with Logic Pro or Bitwig Studio at some point – all it needs is a little
button transforms the Pro into a box, but for on-the-move beat making
cooperation between Novation and the DAW developers (it’ll be interesting
grid-based keyboard, with velocity it works great. to see how Bitwig Studio integration works out with its Open Controller
sensitivity and aftertouch, defaulting It’s time to mention my absolute API). The uses for the original Launchpad far exceeded what was originally
conceived for it – and the Pro, with its added functions and enhanced
to C major, starting with C1 at the favourite feature. Any time you’re visual feedback, is inevitably going to top that. As you’ll see in this review,
bottom left. The root notes are lit pink, dealing with a fader function, you can I tested it with Logic Pro, and (spoiler alert) of course it does work in a very
and other notes in the scale are blue; tap a pad to change the value for that limited way, but it needs a boost to make it more functional and viable.
At this point, realistically, the Launchpad Pro’s all about Ableton Live
all other notes are unlit but still fader. This is not new. But what is new straight out of the box.
playable. Some extra scale choices is that you can tap a pad, and the
would be nice, but a simple chromatic parameter value will ‘slide’ to that track selection, mute, solo, and so on.
keyboard layout is totally playable as it position, illuminating the pads There’s also a Stop Clip button, which
is. I’m sure we’ll see further between the two points – it’s can be deployed to stop clips in
developments on the scale front, a smart way to overcome the low-res specific tracks or across the entire set.
maybe from Novation, or the active effect of changing controller values Tap the Sends button, then each ‘fader’
user community that will undoubtedly with only eight steps. Tap across on the Launchpad Pro is a send for
embrace the Pro; until then, if you want a number of faders at once, and watch each of the current eight tracks. The
to be ‘locked’ into a scale, use Live’s and listen as they all move to their new eight buttons on the right let you select
Scale MIDI effect device. The Pro is positions – this creates very organic which send you want to use within the
small enough to put on your knee and changes to your sound. Not enough? tracks – A, B, C, etc; only eight sends
are available, though, so if you have
between nine and 12 sends in your set

Tap across a number of faders it’s too bad. I like to use a lot of sends
during performance, and for me this

at once and watch as they all will be a perfect opportunity to use the
velocity-sensitive fading again!

move to their new positions Editing functions are located on the

left; there’s the Shift button, which is
used with any control that has an
jam with; it’s very playable – I’d These fades are velocity-sensitive – alternate mode, then Click, Undo and
suggest that these modestly- tap a pad gently and the fader value Redo, Delete, and Quantise – which
proportioned pads are the ideal size slowly moves to the new position; tap toggles record quantisation, as well as
for finger-style grid performance. harder and it moves faster. So not only quantising recorded audio or MIDI
Load a typical Live Drum Rack, can you enjoy up to eight faders after the event. It quantises audio clips
enter Drum mode, and see the moving ‘automatically’ in different as well – very nice! The Duplicate
trademark 16 yellow pads at the directions at the same time, you can button duplicates clips or scenes, and
bottom-left. Continue adding drum have them all moving at different the Double button is the same as
sounds, and the entire grid will be speeds. Fantastic. This is a killer clicking Dupl. Loop in Live’s Notes box.
populated, accessing up to 64 drum feature for live performance, and of The Launchpad Pro doesn’t provide
pads simultaneously, and you can course Live can record these moves as ultra-deep programming tools, but it’s
scroll through another 64 if you have clip automation. I can’t begin to intended as more of a performance
a monster drum kit. You won’t be express how much I like this! Keep this tool (it says so on the box), and there
element in mind as we continue… are more than enough controls for
Push v Pro most live situations.
Comparisons with Push are inevitable. To label
the Launchpad Pro as a ‘cheap version of Push’
Take control The Pro continues the Launchpad
is disrespecting both products. Sure, there’s Device mode lets you navigate to tradition of providing a User Mode; if
common ground – pads are an obvious route a specific device, and take instant you’re mostly using Ableton Live and
to clip launching in Live. In reality, each device
has its own virtues; Push has an LCD display
control over the top eight parameters the standard devices, you might never
that enables browsing of Ableton Live’s Library. (or macros in a rack). Now think about need it, but if you’re more
It also demands a commitment in terms of filters or EQs with those velocity- experimentally-inclined, User mode is
desk space, and effort to transport it. The Pro is
more portable, and the absence of knobs and sensitive sweeps going on – excellent! where you can configure the Pro to talk
a screen tells you the focus is elsewhere. Now Mixer functions are available across The Pro is a highly to other software, perhaps Max for Live
the inevitable has been addressed, let’s forget portable device,
the lower edge of the Pro, with small enough to sit devices, or to concoct extravagant
it and move on!
dedicated buttons for record arming, on your knee visual feedback with those new

MAGAZINE | July 2015 | 7

MT148.REV Launchpad.indd 7 04/06/2015 11:41

 MT Reviews Novation Launchpad Pro

Alternatives
Live users are often obsessed with hardware control, which of course
1 drives product design. It’s a buyer’s market, spanning everything from
niche devices from builders such as Livid Instruments, to iOS apps such
as TouchAble and Lemur, and the big hitters such as Akai, with its APC
2 series, and Ableton itself, with Push (see more elsewhere on these pages).
Even sticking to just Novation’s range, there are some alternatives – the
Launchkey keyboards now have RGB pads for Live use, there are the
Launch Controls, and the Launchpad Mini and S – the latter has recently
been updated to include RGB colours for the LEDs.

and trigger a different sound in the

same Combo. Of course, as well as
triggering notes and using the Pro’s
fader functions, the velocity fader
5 3 behaviour – which I just can’t stop
coming back to – can make for some
very impressive sound transformations
(you’ll have to re-assign the MIDI CCs
4
on your hardware, though, because the
Launchpad CCs are fixed).
Leave the slow stuff, such as menu
browsing, to your mouse and keyboard,
because, frankly, they’re faster anyway.
6 The RGB LEDs make all the difference
for Live Session View clip and scene
launching, and the MIDI connectivity is
going to score with folks using
SETUP BUTTON VELOCITY SENSITIVITY hardware synths and drum machines,
1 Press this button to view the Setup page
4 The pads are also velocity sensitive,
while for me it’s the velocity-based
and configure settings, including layout which opens up a whole new world of
selection, MIDI routing and channels, velocity instrument-like interaction, whether you’re fades that nudge it over the edge into
sensitivity, and aftertouch. It’s especially playing and programming drums, or using the ‘must have’ territory. In the studio, it’s
useful for non-Ableton Live applications, such Launchpad Pro as an expressive grid-based
as other DAWs and connected hardware. keyboard layout.
not as powerful as Ableton’s Push in
the beat and device control
MODE BUTTONS EDIT BUTTONS
2 Quickly swap the Launchpad Pro
5 Amongst other things, the left-hand
departments, but for other situations,
between clip and scene launching modes, note buttons provide editing features, such as Undo the Pro is a flexible, expressive,
input for instruments or drums, parameter (Shift-Undo for Redo), Delete (for notes or interface, for your clips, instruments,
control for audio and MIDI effects or clips), Quantise (including Record Quantise),
and just about everything else. This is
instruments, and into User mode, for a fully Duplicate and Double. Expect to reduce your
customisable environment. mouse time! a great update all-round, and takes the
Launchpad to a new level of Ableton
RGB PADS RECORD BUTTON
3 These are same size as the pads on the
6 Here at the bottom-left is the Record
Live control and performance. MT
current Launchpad model, but with the button; use this in conjunction with the
benefit of full RGB colours – which means that Record Arm button to prepare and record
you’re always getting a clear overview of your into your audio and MIDI tracks, with clip MT Verdict
Session view clips. automation included.
+ The velocity-sensitive faders are
win-win-win. Brilliant
+ Hardware MIDI-out for synth
extra-juicy LEDs. It’ll be exciting to see technology has come full circle, as our control - easy to set up and
what people come up with! The Setup USB controllers reacquire the MIDI works perfectly
button reveals settings for velocity and connections that we abandoned not so + Full-colour feedback from the
aftertouch response, MIDI routing and long ago. Now, the Pro will control your RGB-illuminated pads
+ Fast access to commonly-used
channels, and standalone behaviour. favourite hardware synths or samplers
editing controls
A nice touch is that velocity settings, alongside Live, or you can go further, + Greatly improved function
for example, are stored for the selected ditch the computer altogether, and without much added bulk
page, so you can store different work ‘standalone’. I powered up the Pro + This is a really fun device to pick
velocity curves for drums and notes. with the included power supply, and up and play
Although the Launchpad Pro is connected it to the Dave Smith - Not much visual feedback for
focused on Live control, outward Instruments Tetra, a nice little tabletop drum sequencing
expansion is allowed for. I quit Live and synth that really benefits from added - Scale selection limited
launched Logic Pro X, and the Pro physical control. In Combo mode, it to chromatic
- Only top 8 device controls
worked perfectly well from the off, works as a four-channel sound
(or macros) accessible
using the Setup button to select note module, receiving separate MIDI inputs
and fader modes. Just throw one of for each, and sending the audio to up If you already have a Launchpad,
Logic Pro’s recently added Arpeggiator to four separate outputs. It’s fast and you’ll be itching to update. If you
don’t have one, the Pro is the
presets in front of the Retro Synth, easy to switch MIDI channels from the
perfect excuse to get on board.

9/10
MIDI Learn some filter and delay Pro’s Setup page, so it was as smooth
parameters to the Pro’s faders, and as could be to play the first sound in
you’ve got instant disco. Music a Tetra combo, then change channels

8 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

MT148.REV Launchpad.indd 8 04/06/2015 11:41

B M L
MANUFACTURED IN
G R E AT B R I TA I N B Y

S P I T F I R E

MA
THE BRIT IS H MO D U L AR L IB RARY
C AT N o . 3 1 0

r
ul
ENSEMBLES

S P I T F I R E AU D I O. C O M
 MT Advance

MTAdvance
Round-ups Analysis Industry insight
FOR MORE
OF THE
LATEST NEWS
CHECK OUT
MUSICTECH.NET

LIFT OFF
We have news of more Launch products, plus a chance to win a piece
of synth history as we round up Novation’s latest news and more…
3… 2… 1… MiniNova… by Giorgio
Novation has announced updates to its Launchkey controller Novation has also unveiled a new limited-edition Giorgio
range. Featuring enhanced RGB feedback and quick automatic Moroder signature model, based on its MiniNova synth. It’s
integration with Ableton Live, the new range, on sale the result of a collaboration with the iconic Italian producer,
from this month, provides the user with hands-on control of who used a MiniNova at his recent US DJing debut at Deep
the session view, instruments, effects and mixer. Full-colour Space in New York and has been at the forefront of electronic
RGB LEDs mean the pads match the colour of your clips, while music throughout an incredible five-decade career.
the knobs have also been redesigned to offer a better feel. Credited as defining the sound of disco and synth pop,
But while Launchkey was designed for use with Ableton Moroder is one of music’s great innovators, and his signature
Live, it can control all other major music software with what model comes loaded with ‘personally-approved’ patches
Novation calls InControl technology. Each keyboard comes crafted by Novation’s designers to replicate Moroder’s original
bundled with Ableton Live Lite, Novation Bass Station and sounds, and each synth comes with a certificate of authenticity.
V-Station virtual instruments, plus 1GB of production-ready Retailing at £319.99, the 500 custom units are branded with
samples from Loopmasters. Moroder’s ‘moustache and shades’ insignia, and evoke the
There are eight solid rotary knobs for tweaking instruments sounds of his influential work with the likes of Daft Punk,
and effects on each of the 25-, 49- and 61-note keyboards in Sparks and Donna Summer.
the range, while the latter two also feature nine faders for
mixing (the 25-note has a single fader).
Launchkey is fully bus-powered via USB. The 25-note
version has an RRP of £99.99, with the 49-note model costing
£139.99 and the 61-note retailing at £159.99.
Also, alongside the Pro exclusively reviewed on p6, the
company’s Launchpad has been updated. Like Launchkey, the
new version also features RGB LED-lit pads that match the
colour of your clips, and it also sports a design more in keeping
with the new Launchpad Pro. The unit is lightweight, portable Win an original OSCar
and USB bus-powered. It can be linked to more pads or other If you check out our Industry Guru feature on p30 onwards, you
Launch products, such as Launchkey, Launch Control or will learn that Novation’s synth history can be traced back to a
Launch Control XL. It comes with the same software bundle as couple of classics: the Wasp (which used the same filter as the
the Launchkey range and goes on sale this month with an RRP Bass Station) and OSCar. Both were designed by Novation guru
of £129.99. Chris Huggett, and to celebrate this rich synth heritage,
Novation is giving you the chance to win ‘a genuine, fully
restored OSCar, one of just 2,000 made – and valued at over
£5,000’. For a chance to win, you’ll need to buy and register a
Novation synth product and then go to http://uk.novationmusic.
com/synth-heritage. You can also check out a lot of Novation’s
heritage synths at an exhibition at this year’s Sonar Festival.

10 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

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MusicTech.indd 1 28.05.2015 16:06:42
MusicTech.indd 2 28.05.2015 16:06:47
 MT Feature The final mixdown

MT Feature Prepare your mix for mastering

The final
mixdown
How to prepare your mix for mastering: what you should and
shouldn’t do, with real world examples on the MT DVD for you to
hear, compare and contrast. Mike Hillier explains all…

14 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

MT148.Feature Final Mixdown.indd 14 02/06/2015 12:11

 The final mixdown Feature MT

W
hen mixing, we’re often told to processes. If you don’t have Pro Tools or these plug-ins
reference our mixes to professional we’ve also included bounces in the Bounced Files
tracks to try and get the balance right. project sub-folder. The four bounces are: the mix as it
But these tracks have all been was intended with the EQ and compressor in place,
through the hands of a mastering but no limiting; the raw mix with no buss processing; a
engineer, who will have added EQ, compression, mix with only the EQ, but no compression; and finally, a
limiting, harmonic saturation, mid-side processing and limited version of the fully processed mix.
sometimes even reverb to the mix to generate the As you listen, compare each stage. The EQ
track you’re referencing to. With this in mind, is it fair (Brainworx bx_digital V2) alone brings a focus to the
to reference our mixes against these? If so, what bottom end, while simultaneously providing width in
should we be trying to match in these references and
what should we leave to the mastering engineer?
In this feature we’re going to look at the process of It’s easy to see why nervous
preparing your mix for mastering. We’ll look closely at
the mix buss, what should and should not be on it engineers might choose to ignore
when bouncing your final mix, what different versions
you should bounce and also at referencing the mix-buss completely
professional mixes against your own to ensure you’re
in the ballpark before you send your mix to mastering.
the top-end. However, the vocal sits slightly above the
Daniel Pattison aka HART music bed, automation moves sound exaggerated, and
● To accompany this feature, we’ve included a the top-end is a little brittle.
mix of Anchor by Daniel Pattison, aka HART (www. Whereas the finished mix, which adds the (SSL
facebook.com/hart.musica), with additional string G-Buss) compressor to the EQ, calms all of these
arrangements by Nico Muhly. The track was recorded issues, with only the slightest amount of compression
and produced by Ben Walker (www.bensroom.co.uk),
actually taking place. The high-end is toned down as a
with additional recordings by Mario Leal and George
Murphy, and mixed by Mario Leal (www.mario-leal. result of simply passing through the compressor – this
com), who also kindly supplied the stems attached is common for compressors, particularly analogue
and his mix-buss settings, which we have recreated. modelling compressors, and is one reason why
engineers will frequently boost the top-end slightly
before a compressor.
Many inexperienced mix engineers ignore the The limited version brings the level up, closer to
mix-buss, preferring to leave any stereo buss that of a commercial mix, and gives you a good idea of
processing to the mastering engineer, while plenty of the problems that the mastering engineer is going to
others overcook the mix-buss, adding too much face as the level is boosted. You should also note how
processing, particularly compression. Of the two, the dynamics are starting to feel a little squashed as
overcooking the mix-buss is the more problematic, so the limiter takes hold, and if you turn the limited
it’s easy to see why nervous engineers might choose to version down to match the level of the compressed
ignore the mix-buss completely. Once the mix has mix it loses a little of the punch.
been over-compressed the mastering engineer will As you should be able to hear, the compression and
struggle to bring any sense of punch to the track, and EQ together complete the mix, turning what was close
any processing that’s added will be fighting against into something that the engineer is happy to send to
the work already done to the track instead of working (Below) You’ll find the session mastering. The limited version is there to give you
for Anchor by HART in the
with the mix. For this reason many mastering ‘Completing The Mix’ folder on some ideas of what the track sounds
engineers when asked will request that the mix is this month’s MTDVD like at
given to them with no mix-buss processing
whatsoever. However, ignoring the mix-buss altogether,
and leaving it to the mastering engineer to apply all the
stereo processing can also have a negative impact on
the mix. Compression alone can have a huge impact on
how a mix holds together, bringing certain instruments
to the foreground, while pushing others back. So if you
leave this up to the mastering engineer you’re
essentially leaving an important creative part of the
mix to someone else.
To highlight this we’ve included a Pro Tools session
on the cover disc in the Completing the Mix folder. This
Pro Tools session has the basic stems for Anchor by
HART with buss processing applied using the
Brainworx bx_digital V2 mid-side EQ, the UAD SSL
G-buss compressor and a T-RackS limiter in bypass. If
you have Pro Tools and these plug-ins, experiment with
listening to the mix with and without each of the

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 15

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 MT Feature The final mixdown

vocal by 4dB with a 4:1 compressor in place will result

Expanders
in only a 3dB lift in the vocal, but also a reduction in
● Compression across the mix buss can sometimes
the level of the instrumental around the vocal. While
leave your mix sounding a little flat. Expanders placed
this can be tricky to get your head around initially, once
just before the compressor can help to provide a
little extra punch where it’s needed. By expanding mastered this is an incredibly powerful tool.
the transients before a compressor, the transients
should make it out of the compressor without being Compressor settings
too squashed, while the rest of the track benefits from Choosing a compressor or two and getting them set up
the compression. This technique can sometimes save before you mix is not an easy task. Over time you will
a track, but can just as often result in the transients
most likely develop a few favourites. VCA compressors,
sounding too spikey and the mix sounding less glued
together. Keep it up your sleeve for the mix that just such as the classic SSL G-Series buss compressor, are
won’t sit and it may save the day, but this isn’t a trick a great place to start as they’re usually quite clean and
to rely on. can be configured to respond relatively slowly, but they
are by no means the only option with many engineers
making use of vari-mu style compressors, such as the
commercial levels, and as a reference for the artist, Fairchild 670, or optical compressors, such as the
but is not meant to be used as part of the final mix Maselec MLA-2, across the mix buss.
sent to mastering. Slower compressors are more common in this
position than faster ones, with any fast transient
Getting in early compression being left to the individual channel
The key to getting the mix-buss right is to apply the compressors rather than the whole mix. So start with a
processors to your mix before you start mixing. This slow attack and release time to let the transients
way, as you work on the mix you’ll already be hearing through. If your compressor has an auto release this
the effect of the mix-buss processing, and you’ll be can also be a good starting point. Then, as your mix
able to focus your attention more keenly on matching

We’re not looking to smash the

your mix to the mix-buss processing. Dynamics
processors are important to add on to your mix early

mix at this stage, we just want to

on, as they’ll change the balance not only of the
dynamics, but will also change the frequency balance

help tie it together

in response to the dynamics of the song. This should in
turn change the way you mix.
With a compressor already in place, as you adjust
the balance of the mix you’ll be adjusting the response
of the compressor. So pushing the bass higher in the starts to take shape, experiment with different release
mix will in turn push the compressor to work harder in settings to try and get the compressor moving in time
response to the bass, bringing the rest of the track (Below) Mario Leal at the mixer with the music.
down as you push the bass higher. Similarly any fader for our example track, Anchor by Usually we will opt for a low compression ratio of
HART, and the mix window for
rides will be pushing into the compressor, so lifting the around 4:1 or lower. We’re not looking to smash the mix
that track (above)
at this stage, just to help tie it together. With that in
mind, it’s also worth setting the threshold fairly high,
so the mix isn’t pushing too heavily into the
compressor straight away.
We often find that as we build our basic static mix,
we have to go back and adjust the compressor a little
to keep the mix balanced, but that it is much faster
this way than building the static mix, and then adding
the compressor. Then once the static mix is done we
can work on the automation stage knowing our
compressor is going to be working with us to complete
the mix. Furthermore, with a compressor across the
master buss, any individual track compression and
group buss compression need not work as hard.

Drawing the curves

EQ is harder to put in place before you start your mix.
However, if your compressor is pulling the top-end
down, adding a high-frequency shelf across the
mix-buss can help to compensate for this. Other than
this, any frequency build-ups ought to be taken care of
on a channel-by-channel basis. If, as your mix
progresses, you feel that further manipulation of the
mix-buss EQ would improve the mix it can be added,
but always consider what it is you’re trying to achieve

16 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

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 ‘SEEING RED’
When we see red we are far from angry.
MT Walkthrough Pro Tools playlist reference In fact we are over the moon with both
The Phoenix HG15 and The Culture Vulture super 15
receiving awards. We must be doing something right!

THE PHOENIX HG15

A super-sounding mic amp and compressor with
some eq thrown in, so effectively a “channel strip” with the
unique Phoenix sound. 48v supplied, Air, Presence and HPF eqs.
Side chain bass cut switch. Two can be coupled for stereo
We can use playlists in Pro Tools to quickly store all our
01 reference tracks without using any additional plug-ins at all.
Create a new stereo channel in a session – we have a template
session just for this purpose. Place each reference track on a
different playlist and name each one.

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Using Clip Gain, lower the gain of each track so that each
02 reference track plays back at a constant loudness level. It can
be useful to set this level around the same as your average mixing
level, as this is what you’ll be referencing against.

Now each
03 time you open
a new session you
can import the
Reference track
and all the
playlists into your
new session using THE LITTLE RED BUSTARD
Import Session 16 input all valve summing mixer.
Data (Shift+Alt
+I (PC) or
She may be smaller than her big Fat brother, but she’s feisty and
Shift+Option+I will fully drive your DAW! Clean yet warm until the Attitude
(Mac)). Be sure to
import all the
is boosted and musical 2nd harmonics are added.
alternate playlists, The eyes may glow red when the output is high.
and select “Link to
The Air control adds a nice silky sheen to the mix.
source media
(where possible)” Channels are switched in pairs. 13-16 may be sent to centre.
in the Audio Media
options to reduce A terrific summing mixer bringing
hard disk clutter
and save space.
NATURALITY to a mix.

MT148.Feature Final Mixdown.indd 17 04/06/2015 09:06

 MT Feature The final mixdown

(Below left) Waves plug-ins were the top-end, giving the overall impact of a narrow bass
Corrective EQ used extensively and (right)
range and wide treble. This has been further gelled
● EQ across your stereo mix doesn’t have to be used Brainworx Digital V2 helped
widen our mix. with the use of the Mono-Maker knob, which filters
to just improve the mix itself; it can also be used to
correct your listening environment, or even your mixing frequencies below the cut-off point into the mono
style. For instance, if your room has too much of any signal. These two shelves and the Mono-Maker can be
particular frequency then you can dip this frequency a great starting point for your mixes. We’d probably
a little when mixing. This should give you a more start with the Mono-Maker set much lower, especially
accurate representation of your mix, and help you set on a busier rock mix with wide-panned guitars. We also
that frequency in your mix. Then as you are ready to
recommend caution when working with mid-side EQ
bounce the final mix, remove this EQ from the mixbuss
to get the well balanced mix. Similarly, if you find you as you can introduce some strange phasing issues if
usually produce mixes with too much or too little of a the EQ is pushed too far.
frequency, you can counteract that by adding an EQ. As well as mid-side EQ, the example mix uses the
For example, if you usually mix with too much bottom Brainworx Digital V2 to widen the whole stereo image
end, try adding an EQ which boosts the bottom end with the Stereo Width knob. This is a very simple
before you start. That way when the EQ is removed,
process, and can be done with a variety of plug-ins all
the mix will have less bass, and be more translatable
on other systems. Ideally, this type of EQ should be producing the same result. This can be safely left until
added to the monitor chain, rather than the mix buss. mastering, but can be useful if you have a strong idea
of how much width you’re looking for.

Distortion
In a similar way to compression, the choices you make
for distortion on your mix buss, if any, will have a huge
impact on the sound of your mix, and should be there
from as early in the mix as possible. Distortion on the
mix-buss is unlikely to be a face-melting over-the-top
effect – we’ll leave that for special effects on the
guitar, synths, or vocals. Of course, if you find you just
can’t get your signature sound without a Big Muff Pi
strapped across the mix, who are we to stop you? But
more than likely, mix-buss distortion will take the form
of a very subtle saturation plug-in. Perhaps an
analogue console emulation, tape simulator or some
choice outboard gear with tasty transformers.
Distortion works by adding musically relevant
harmonic content to the mix. This can act as both an
EQ and a compressor in one, with additional harmonic
content emphasising certain frequency ranges, while D
simultaneously bringing up the sustain of sounds like
a compressor.
In-the-box mixes often suffer from being too clean
compared to their analogue cousins, which will pick up
small amounts of distortion at every stage. Compare
the signal path of an instrument in the box, which may
go through a mic capsule and transformer on the way
in, then through one or two analogue modelled
plug-ins, before being spat out the speakers with that
If you find you just can’t get your of an analogue mix, which will be recorded onto tape
through various amp stages and transformers, before
“T

signature sound without a Big

de
being read off tape, passed through a console, which st
will add more colour at each stage (particularly if it’s a
Muff Pi, who are we to stop you? transformer-based console), then through an outboard
– usually another two transformers per unit – before
being summed in analogue and then back through
and if going back and changing a specific channel in another amp stage to a tape machine. With so many
your mix would not be a better approach. stages of distortion in analogue mixing it’s no surprise
In the example track, the mix has no traditional old-school mixers spent so much time and money on
mix-buss EQ, but instead a mid-side EQ is being used. low-noise gear. We can afford to be less picky, and in
Mid-side EQ is a complex beast to understand, fact, simply running your mix out through an analogue
changes tend to move frequencies around in the EQ or compressor can be invaluable at this stage.
stereo space rather than actually boosting or cutting.
The low-end boost in the mono section of Anchor has Reverb
the effect of rooting the kick and bass together in the The final mix-buss processor we want to look at here “T
c
centre image, while the top-end boost adds width in is probably the least commonly applied. Reverb is de
St

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 The final mixdown Feature MT

usually added on an auxiliary channel as a send effect,

with multiple instruments each being sent to the
reverb. This method has a big advantage in that you
can send differing amounts of each channel to the
reverb, placing each channel in a different space. This
also enables you to place different instruments in
different spaces, or have multiple versions of a similar
reverb with different instruments sent to different
versions to enhance the concept of space in your mix.
Most of the time we’d recommend using this
method above placing a reverb on the mix-buss. But
from time to time placing a reverb across the mix-buss
can help to really bring a mix together, placing it all in
one space.

Magic AB
● One of the quickest ways of comparing your mix
against another is using the Magic AB plug-in from
Sample Magic. This plug-in sits on your mix buss and
enables you to quickly switch between your mix and up
to nine reference tracks at the push of a button. Magic
AB lets you loop any section of the reference track
against any section of your own mix, quickly and easily,
which can be a great way of checking each section Usually when we’re using reverb on a whole mix we
of your track against the corresponding section of tend to look at a very wide reverb setting, with the wet/
the reference without having to constantly shuffle dry control set fairly low. A dark room sound with quite
through the tracks in your DAW. The plug-in includes short reverb tails can sometimes work wonders in this
metering, and independent level settings for each
situation, and as well as this, we’d usually avoid static
reference track, enabling you to match the loudness of
each track. convolution reverb types in favour of more lively
algorithmic reverbs.

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 MT Feature The final mixdown

Referencing MT Walkthrough Brainworx bx_meter

With all of these processors in place it can be very
easy to ruin your mix: often what seems like a great
idea at the time can sound awful the next day. This is
why we always check our mixes against reference
tracks. While it can be tempting to simply reach for
your iTunes library or Spotify to play reference tracks,
we prefer to play them from inside our DAW. This lets
us use all the tools at our disposal to listen to the
reference tracks in different ways. For example, if you
want to compare how much is going on in the bottom
end of each of your reference tracks compared to your
track you can apply frequency spectrum meters across
both, but you could also use low-pass filters to remove
everything but the low-end and listen closely to the
two tracks side by side. This way you should be able to
hear not only the frequency content, but also how
quickly the low-end of the kick attacks, how long it
sustains and then decays. You can then use this to
help you tune the dynamics on your own kick drums.
You can use similar techniques across the whole
spectrum, focussing in on each frequency range using
high- and low-pass filters and matching the qualities
of each frequency range in your mix. Be sure to
double-check the results with the filters off though, as
the last thing you want to do is spoil your mix trying too
hard to make it sound like someone else’s.
We also check the mid and side bands of our mix
with those of the reference track, using a free tool like
Brainworx bx_solo. The mid-band is essentially the
mono-mix, and it’s important that you always check
this, but checking the sides is useful too as it lets you
compare how wide your mix is with others, and often
how much reverb and delay there is on the lead vocals.
It can also be useful to take the same reference
tracks with you when checking your mix on other
playback systems, such as on a hi-fi, MP3 player, or in
the car. This is so you can listen not only to how your The Brainworx bx_meter helps you to visualise not only the RMS
01 loudness of your track, but also the peaks and the dynamic
mix translates on other systems, but also how that
translation compares with other mixes. value, which is the difference between the two. Keep your peaks well
below 0dBFS and look to have a dynamic value of at least around
8-10 on mixes.
Room at the top
One area you don’t want to try and match reference
tracks in is loudness, as the reference mix will already
have been mastered. Rather than bring our mix up to
the mastered level, it’s more useful to bring the
reference track down to match your track, or even a
reference “mix level” that you want your mixes to
achieve. This is doubly important now that the (to p24)

Tape mastering The two stereo meters at the top of bx_meter give an indication
02 of the stereo balance, which in this example is off to the left,
● Some engineers still like to bounce their finished
versions to half-inch, or quarter-inch tape and and the mono correlation. Ideally the stereo balance should be close
deliver them to mastering like this. If you’re going to the centre, and the correlation should always be a positive figure.
to do this make sure that your tape machine has If it becomes negative you have phase problems that need sorting.
been properly biased before the final bounce, and
include test tones at the start of the reel, so that your You can use different filters
mastering engineer can align their tape machine for
03 to get an idea of the relative
playback. It’s a good idea to record the bounce off loudness using either IEC A or C
the tape machine into your DAW – as it’s recording if weightings, or the ITU/EBU
your tape machine allows – in order to keep a digital K-weighting system, additionally
backup of the mix, with all the extra warmth of the the meters can be changed to
tape on it. This will also provide additional assistance Bob Katz’ K-System.
for the mastering engineer to check the two machines
are aligned.

20 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

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 MT Feature The final mixdown

MT Walkthrough Pro Tools template

On the cover disc we’ve included a Pro The template will then route each of
01 03 these channels to the multiple output
Tools template folder, which has a
series of channels set up ready to use, busses in orange. Note that many of these
which will enable you to print your mix and aux channels are muted: this is so that you
all the alternative options, such as the only hear your full mix, and not a sum of the
instrumental, a capella, TV mix and a mix, the instrumental, a capella, TV mix and
limited version simultaneously. limited version. But you can monitor those at
any time should you wish.
If you want
05 to add any
processing to the
mix buss, you’ll
have to add master
channels for each
of the orange To use this template as a starting point
output busses
02 you have to ensure that any channels
(Shift+double click you add to your mix are routed to one of the
in space the Mix four buss channels in green. Most of the mix
window). If you add should be routed to the ‘Instruments’ buss,
the processing the lead vocals and any effects specific to The LIMIT buss has a master channel
directly to the aux it the lead vocal should be routed to the ‘Lead 04 with Maxim placed on it before the Aux
will still appear at Vocals’ buss, all backing vocals to the ‘BVs’ buss. We’ve preset Maxim at -6dB, which may
the Master output, buss, and any remaining effects, such as be too much or too little depending on your
but won’t allow you general reverb, to the ‘FX’ buss. mix, but is a good starting point for getting
to bounce the the mix up. Note we’ve also set the ceiling at
various mixes -0.3dB – this is as loud as we’d ever let
simultaneously. anything get, and would often set this as low
as -1dB.

To print all of
06 your mixes
simultaneously, use
the bounce window
(Ctrl+Alt+B (PC) or
Cmd+Option+B (Mac)),
and use the [+] button
in the top right to add a
new bounce source for
each of the five mixes.

22 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

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 MT Feature The final mixdown

(from p20) loudness wars are largely over, especially Labelling

when referencing tracks that were casualties of that ● One of the most common mistakes mastering
war. As a rule of thumb it’s best to leave the mastering engineers will receive on tracks is poor labelling.
engineer a good 4-8dB of dynamics headroom in the Ensure all your files are clearly labelled with the artist
mix, erring on more if you aren’t all that confident with name, track title, version and revision number. For
example, our example track Anchor would be titled
your mix-buss compressor. With this in mind, bring the
“HART-Anchor-mix-03.wav” for the third revision
reference track down 4-8dB to match your mix. Your of the main mix. Any communications can then
peaks should now be louder than the reference track, reference exactly which file you are both working
but the overall loudness (or RMS value) should be on. If you’re sending a full album or EP to mastering,
around the same level. If your RMS is already equal rather than just a single, consider including a .txt
with, or above the level of the reference track before file with the audio indicating the running order, and
revision number that each track should be so that the
you turn the reference track down, you’re probably
mastering engineer can check each track off as it’s
squashing your mix too much. Similarly, if after turning done. You can also include any notes here about gaps/
the reference track down to match yours, your peak fades/crossfades, and possible mastering notes.
levels are not above those of the reference track you’re
again most likely over-compressing your mix.
While it’s possible in most DAWs to use the channel
metering to view both RMS and peak levels, it’s usually (Below) the main session for the quieter sections. However, any gain applied to this
track Anchor and inset (and
quicker to use additional plug-in metering. Meters that signal will raise the noise floor, while any compression
above) the SSL Stereo Buss
combine RMS and peak in one are especially useful. compressor. will push the signal closer towards the noise.
The free TT Meter is one such example, providing not Pass this mix on to mastering and every dB of gain
only RMS and peak metering, but also showing the reduction applied by a mastering compressor or
difference between the two in what is referred to as limiter takes your signal another dB closer to the noise
dynamic-range metering. Different meters may give floor. At 24-bit however, you have 144dB of dynamic
different values for the RMS and dynamic-range of a range to work with before you hit the noise floor, while
signal, so it is important that you compare values 32-bit floating point essentially puts the noise floor
using the same meter. out of the question, with an enormous 1680dB of
When checking your levels be sure that your peak dynamic range.
level never reaches 0dB on your master buss, even
when bouncing at 32-bit floating point resolution. It is Bouncing down
good practice, in fact, to make sure no channel or buss The final mixes should be bounced at 32-bit floating-
in your entire session ever reaches 0dB, especially if point if your DAW supports it, or 24-bit if not. This
working with older DAWs at below 32-bit. This is ensures the greatest possible signal-to-noise ratio.
because any signal that reaches 0dB will result in Even if all the tracks in the session were only recorded
digital clipping distortion. We usually leave around 6dB at 16-bit, assuming your DAW sums at 24- or 32-bit it
of peak headroom on each channel or buss, not only is worth bouncing the final mix at the highest available
because this works better when interacting with bit-depth. The sample-rate however, should be kept
outboard hardware, but because many plug-ins – the same as your project sample-rate. There is nothing
particularly analogue modelling ones – work best with to be gained from up-sampling unless you’re bouncing
some headroom too. through an analogue summing chain and into a
The exact figure you achieve with your peak separate DAW and interface, running off a separate
headroom is far less important. With early digital clock, to capture whatever additional details may have
recordings, the signal-to-noise ratio was important, been added by the analogue stage. For most of us that
and leaving too much headroom would mean your kind of commitment to audio fidelity isn’t an option, so
noise floor would be closer to your signal level. At if you want to submit a high
16-bit for example the noise floor is -96dB. Leave 6dB
of peak headroom and you still have 90dB between the
peaks and the noise floor, but this will be less for

The template
● Using the Pro Tools template method to bounce
multiple stems simultaneously is convenient if most of
your buss processing is placed across the sub-mixes.
However, if you want to use buss processing across
the stereo buss you have to duplicate the processing
across each of the output busses. This is easy with
plug-in compressors, so long as you have enough DSP
spare. But it usually isn’t an option with hardware
processors. So you’d have to bounce each version
separately. However, any dynamics processors will
respond differently on an instrumental compared
to the mix, so you wouldn’t get a 100% copy anyway.
This usually isn’t an issue though, although it can be
on the a capella and vocal mixes, which will have very
different dynamics to the mix.

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Focal
 The final mixdown Feature MT

sample-rate master you should be recording and Analogue summing

mixing at that high sample-rate too. ● Analogue summing mixers are a popular studio
In addition to your final mix, you should include choice now, adding a variety of colour and depth to a
bounces of the instrumental track, an a cappella, and mix. Emulations of analogue summing, such as the
a TV mix. We usually also bounce down a limited Slate Digital Virtual Console Collection can get you
much of the warmth of analogue summing in the box.
version as well, which we use as a reference for the
However, there are several advantages to true
artist. Often we will also bounce a radio edit of the analogue summing, not least that by summing
track too, for which we would again bounce not only multiple 24-bit streams in analogue you can improve
the radio edit itself, but also an instrumental, an a your signal-to-noise ratio. If you’re using analogue
cappella, a TV Mix and a limited reference. This means hardware in your mix, you can also benefit from
that for every mix of the song, we are creating four summing the signals without having to first convert
the signal back to digital.
separate files.
We usually send all four to mastering, although
whether you get all four mastered will depend on your and the vocal effects, while the a cappella should
budget and the terms of the particular mastering contain both the lead and backing vocals and all the
facility. Most mastering houses will charge a small vocal effects. Play these two files together and you
should have your mix. The TV mix should include
everything from the mix but the lead vocal. While
In addition to your final mix, called a TV Mix, or sometimes a karaoke mix, this
version of the track can be useful for any performance
include the instrumental track, an of the track where the vocalist may want to sing along
to the backing alone.
a cappella, and a TV mix Some engineers will also bounce a Vox Up and Vox
Down mix, leaving the final decision to the mastering
engineer. However, if you have sent the a cappella this
additional fee for each version of the track mastered, is unnecessary as the mastering engineer can, in an
while a few will actually include this in the charge. emergency, add more vocal to the mix from this. And
The instrumental track should contain everything you really shouldn’t be leaving these important mix
from your mix, except the lead and backing vocals – decisions to anyone else. MT

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MT148.Feature Final Mixdown.indd 25 02/06/2015 12:11

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 MT Feature The final mixdown

MT Walkthrough Backing up

One of the advantages of digital media is the ease of bringing a Start by taking any MIDI or virtual instrument tracks and
01 mix back for recall, but it is still a good idea to prepare your
02 bouncing them down as audio. This way, should you ever lose or
sessions for backup when you’ve finished a mix. sell the instrument you still have all the audio available to recall this
mix. Remember to leave a little extra time after the last MIDI note for
the audio to decay naturally.
With all the unused media
05 selected, remove it from
the session (Shift-Ctrl+B (PC)
or Shift+Cmd+B (Mac)). You
don’t have to delete it
completely, but removing it
from the session will save
space when you backup the
project.

Take detailed notes and In the clip store select all

03 even photos of any
04 Unused clips (Shift+Ctrl+U
outboard hardware you are (PC) or Shift+Cmd+U (Mac) to
using and save this with the select all the audio files in your
session folder. Photos are session that aren’t being used in
much quicker than recall the mix.
sheets, but sometimes a mix
of both is necessary.

Finally save a duplicate of the project to your backup drive using

06 the File > Save Copy In command. Include all the audio files, and
the main playlist only. This will save your project and all of the
necessary audio files to your backup drive.

26 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

MT148.Feature Final Mixdown.indd 26 02/06/2015 12:11

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 MT Industry Guru The Novation Story

MT Feature Interview

THE NOVATION STORY

PAST, PRESENT
AND FUTURE
It’s a bit of a Novation extravaganza in this issue of MusicTech.
Alongside the exclusive review of the Launchpad Pro (see p6), we have
three incredible pieces of Focusritre/Novation software on our free DVD.
So what better time and place to catch up with the team behind the
company in an Industry Guru special?

1992 1993 1994 1995 1997

Novation founded Bass Station Bass Station Rack Super Bass Station
by Ian Jannaway and The product that stamped With added features, Adding an arpeggiator,
Mark Thompson Novation’s name on the the Rack became a hit noise source, ring
Originally called Novation studio world. Ideal timing in its own right, finding modulator, additional LFO
Electronic Music for dance music, and it celebrity fans in everyone and extra presets, this
Systems, the company shifted tens of thousands from Massive Attack took the original away
started with the MM10, of units. Thanks Roland… to Underworld. from its acid roots into
a keyboard add-on for a wider territory.
the Yamaha QY10, the two Drum Station
together making up an A product aiming to ‘do a
effective workstation. Bass Station with drums’,
It was followed by the this time emulating
more versatile MM10-X. another set of Roland
classics – the TR-808
and 909.

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 The Novation Story Industry Guru MT

N
ovation is one of music production’s Cheetah would score big with the MS6 and also
success stories, and in just a couple of release one of the first affordable samplers, the
decades the company has come up with SX16 [once owned by me! – Ed]. Jannaway,
an incredible number of ground- meanwhile, had “built up sufficient commercial
breaking products, not to mention experience and decided to ‘go it alone’. In 1991, a
technologies such as Automap that have changed former band member, Mark Thompson, asked me if I
the way we interact with and control the software could design a multi-reverb box, as products such as
we use. From the original Bass Station right up to the Alesis Microverb were popular but could only
this month’s cover star, the Launchpad Pro, process one audio signal at a time. Home studio
Novation has continued to provide products that we musicians were buying two, three or four of these
need and those we didn’t know we needed. Here, we Ian Jannaway, who formed the units so they could run a live mix with one box
catch up with five of the Novation team – past and company with Mark Thompson doing the gated reverb delay on the snare drum,
present – to celebrate a very British business. another with a long-tail reverb on the vocals and
The Brits are here another on the piano, and so on.
The past (and the Germans) “Work began on this ‘Quad Reverb Unit’ and
Novation was formed in 1992 by Ian Jannaway and ● One of the reasons this during that time, in curiosity, I purchased a Yamaha
magazine is celebrating
Mark Thompson, eventually being joined by Novation is because of its QY10, which was a neat all-in-one 8-track sequencer
legendary synth creator Chris Huggett as one of the unique British appeal. “For us, with an audio engine in a little box smaller than a
we embrace British musical
chief designers. Chris had already been responsible VHS video cassette. The problem with it was that it
culture, sense of humour
for the ‘first synth that everyone could afford’, the and use of language,” says was fiddly to input pitch and timing information, so
Electronic Dream Plant (EDP) Wasp, and went on to Matt Derbyshire. But ask the it was obvious that a neat accessory would be a
team what other companies’
form the Oxford Synthesiser Company. “It seemed products and artists they
simple portable battery-powered keyboard that it
logical enough as I lived there,” he recalls, “but it admire, and the answers take could slot into. On that basis, Mark and I decided to
also had the bonus of the abbreviation OSC, for on a Germanic feel… start a company, which we called Novation, the
oscillator. The name OSCar wasn’t as clear-cut, and IAN JANNAWAY MM10 keyboard being our first product. Fortunately
I’m not sure everyone liked it.” “Native Instruments: it went on to to sell over 30,000 units… oh and we
A typical German software
They did all love the resulting OSCar synthesiser, company with massive never did finish the Quad Reverb product!”
though – it became a classic and Chris became one emphasis on engineering While the MM10 was a success, Novation made
detail and quality.”
of the UK’s eminent synthesiser designers. Engineer a proper mark with the Bass Station, a product that
Jannaway had by this time used his skills to come CHRIS HUGGETT might not have been so successful thanks to the
“The Access Virus TI, which
up with “a small calculator-type device that would I think is an excellent
apparent stubbornness of a Japanese music
enable musicians who couldn’t read music to hear great-sounding synthesiser technology giant…
phrases to help with their learning”, and met incorporating some very It has gone down in music history that the
clever software design.”
Huggett demoing this product at an exhibition. Roland TB-303 accidentally and single-handedly
Jannaway recalls: “We found we had a passion NICK BOOKMAN kicked off dance music in the late 1980s. A bit of
for electronic musical instruments and he “Kraftwerk! Seeing them abuse from a few forward-thinking producers
using SL controllers is great.”
mentioned that a British company, Cheetah, were morphed its output from the polite basslines that
But there are also the high
looking for a polyphonic analogue synth to be profile Brits, none more so Roland had intended it for into acid-squealing
developed. With Chris’ invaluable guidance on the than Orbital. “Paul Hartnoll melodies that would (in more senses than one)
using the Bass Station II
software concepts and a local friend in High alongside other monosynths
resonate with the effects of ecstasy – a drug
Wycombe – Phil Perkins’ help on the hardware, with much larger footprints – sweeping the UK at the time. Roland ignored the
I signed up for the task and about 18 months later it’s great seeing people get the belated success of the product, deciding to focus
most out of the gear.”
the MS6 appeared.”

1998 1999 2000 2001 2002

Supernova Nova A-Station KS Series
One of Chris Huggett’s Desktop performance Like a Bass Station on the (KS4, KS5, KS Rack)
first full-time projects module featuring the outside and Supernova Enhanced versions
(after acting as a freelance same synth engine as on the inside. The voice of the K-Station
designer for earlier the Supernova. architecture featured engine with additional
products), Supernova Supernova II ASM (Analogue Sound features, including
had a complete multi- Available in 24-, 36- and Modelling) digital four-part multitimbral
effects processor for 48-voice models, with oscillators instead of operation with multiple
each of its eight audio additional 12- or 24-voice simple DCOs, and added assignable audio
output parts – a total of expansion boards, as 8-voice polyphony. outputs and a separate
56 programmable effects either a 3U rackmount effects processor for
available on all voices. format or 61-note each part, as found on
performance keyboard. the Supernova, plus
The Supernova II also ‘Hypersync’, allowing the
featured FM K-Station musician to automatically
synthesis and Two-octave keyboard match rhythmic effects
an 8-part arpeggiator. version of the A-Station. to MIDI clock.

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 31

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 MT Industry Guru The Novation Story

elsewhere, leaving a huge gap in the market for 303

clones, and the Bass Station – whether intended or
otherwise – helped fill the gap. The need for its
acid-like sounds was so great that its success helped
ensure Novation’s future. “Seeing the Bass Station
go on to become a popular instrument, and
financially a success, was a hugely proud moment,”
says Jannaway. It was such a success that the
company tried to repeat it with the Drum Station,
that would emulate another couple of dance music
staples, this time Roland’s TR-808 and 909 drum
machines. While it was successful, Jannaway now
looks back at its concept with some regret…
“At the launch in Frankfurt, I was talking to the
owner of Clavia, which was launching the Nord
Lead 1 polysynth. He said they only decided to (Above) Novation’s head of (“the launch of the SuperNova rack was the first
product and marketing (London)
produce it after seeing our success with the Bass Matt Derbyshire
ever multitimbral synth with a complete multi-
Station. I remember thinking, ‘damn, I wish we had effects processor per part”). He is also still a proud
made a polyphonic Bass Station instead of the Drum user: “These days, I use a MacBook Pro with Logic
Station’, but we only had the financial capacity for Pro X and a bunch of plugs-ins, along with my
a single product at a time in terms of R&D spend.” trusty X-Station 61 keyboard!”
Nevertheless, Novation went on to establish itself Chris joined as a main designer in 1998, and has
as one of the world’s leading synth and controller been involved in “all of the Novation synths, and on
all the earlier controllers (before the Impulse)”.

Novation went on to establish “For Supernova and Nova 1 and 2, I did the
hardware design, synth engine and low-level

itself as one of the world’s leading software, while the human interface and
arpeggiator software was done by Chris Pidd and

synth companies Colin Jordan. For the controllers, X-Station and

XioSynth, it was a similar situation and Den
Seunarayan did the human interface and
companies with products such as the A-Station, housekeeping software. For A-Station, K-Station,
K-Station, Nova, SuperNova, KS synths, ReMOTE KS4 and 5 and Ultranova, I did pretty well all the
keyboards and controllers, X-Station, Automap electronics and software. For Mininova and Bass
technology and the Launchpad and Mini ranges. Station II, I was responsible for the synth engine
Jannaway left the company in 2007, but remains hardware and software, but a team of engineers
proud of what it achieved, stating that its always were involved in the rest of the design.”
attained the goals of “creating musical products
that are innovative, easy to use, cost-effective and Present
sonically perfect”. He cites the Bass Station Right up to the present day, we have the new Launch
keyboard and SuperNova rack as his finest moments and Mini ranges of controllers that are defining
how we interact with music hardware and software.

2003 2004 2005 2006

ReMOTE 25 X-Station ReMOTE LE ReMOTE SL, ReMOTE Zero
Designed as a state-of- Brought together Cut-down version of the SL and Automap
the-art portable, compact ReMOTE 25 Audio a Novation 8-voice ASM- ReMOTE controllers The ReMOTE SL range
MIDI controller and Provided the same based synth engine, of controllers
featured a range facilities with the addition template-based ReMOTE and keyboards
of electronic templates of a built-in USB audio style MIDI control and featured Automap
that provided a new interface, and later a 2-in, 2-out stereo audio technology that
level of control for all the developed into the interface and multi- detects your sequencer
leading music-making X-Station. effects engine, plus and plug-ins and maps
software packages. a semi-weighted the software’s controls
V-Station and B-Station aftertouch keyboard. to the SL’s controls.
plug-ins Selecting an instrument
Software emulations of Speedio in the host makes the
the K-Station and synth Lightweight audio/MIDI Remote SL detect it,
classic Bass Station interface powered placing the correct
respectively and now by USB. parameter names on
available on this issue’s the LCDs.
bonus DVD!

32 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

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 Singer-Songwriter Ben Montague

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 MT Interview The Novation Story

Novation artists
● Will Evans is responsible for most thrilled about and why. artists, though, include Bjork,
When controllers become instruments in their own artist relations at Novation, He replied: “Before I worked Arca and Bonobo.”
so deals with the day-to-day here, I was aware that the likes
right, you know they’re succeeding – and that’s needs of Novation users, of Radiohead, Trent Reznor Who would Will like to see
where pretty much all the controllers in Novation’s famous or otherwise, not to and Jean Michel Jarre were using Novation gear?
mention coming up with the odd Novation users. Since then, “As far as large-scale artists,
line-up score well. Head of Product & Marketing I would be very excited to see
product idea along the way. our artist database has grown
(London) Matt Derbyshire, hardware engineer Nick exponentially, from legacy Aphex Twin, Pharrell Williams
“The MoroderNova [limited artists like George Clinton, and Daft Punk using our kit,”
Bookman and artist and media guru Will Evans
edition signature synth – see Giorgio Moroder, Kerri Chandler he says. “Equally, I’m just
are among the Novation employees responsible for p10] was a product I’d conceived and Richie Hawtin, to new excited to see those in new
taking the company’s reputation forward with after our marketing director emerging artists like Lorde, or underground music using
said how much he’d love to work alt-J, Arca and Flume. It’s our gear, and so it’s great to
new products. with Giorgio Moroder,” Will great to see our gear used by see those artists using our
“We have such a rich synthesiser heritage that reveals. “I flew out to LA and such a wide variety of artists equipment live or in the studio.”
we’re in a great position to uniquely combine this met with Giorgio, secured his in different genres, and feels
blessing, and began in earnest And which products have had
sound, with new ideas such as Grids,” says Matt, like that’s a testament to the
working with the product team the best reaction from artists?
versatility of our range.”
before summing up the company’s current goals. to develop the product and the “The feedback for Bass Station
marketing plan. MoroderNova Matt Derbyshire added: II has been overwhelming –
“To not be afraid to try new ideas, evolve the way people really love it,” says Will.
seems to have had a good “Personally, I love seeing our
people create electronic music, and collaborate with reception – I’m pretty proud products on stage at Sonar “Also, there’s no question when
exciting partners. When I joined, I was introduced of that.” Festival. It’s a powerful place it comes to the impact that
for many of our artists to Launchpad has made over
to some exciting interfaces, and great synthesiser We asked Will what artists showcase their work. Notable the years.”
ideas Ian had. More recently, we’ve created some use Novation gear that he’s

When controllers become “Launchpad helped electronic music makers to

move away from a keyboard. With Ableton leading

instruments in their own right, a time-stretching revolution, and new hardware

concepts such as Monome arriving, we realised

you know they’re succeeding simplicity and integration were missing. We mocked
up some prototypes and presented them to an
outside review group. Someone in the room looked
really successful iOS products, and I’m excited to up and said, ‘So, it’s just a bunch of buttons, that
see these evolve.” One of the products that Matt was light up and sounds happen? Is that it?’
involved with from conception was Launchpad, but “I couldn’t believe they couldn’t ‘see’ what it
it wasn’t without its teething problems… meant. As someone holding a fragile idea, it’s your
responsibility to help people understand, take
Nio 2|4 people on a journey, help them visualise what it
2-in, 4-out USB audio
interface bundled with
20 software effects. Dicer
Controller with five
XioSynth buttons and three
A keyboard synthesiser Automap for iPhone mode select buttons
with USB audio and iPod Touch that attaches to the
interface and iOS app providing corners of a turntable
template-based MIDI remote control or laptop to allow users
controller, in 25- or 49- of DAWs, effects, of DJ applications such
key versions. Featured sequencers or plug-in as Traktor and Serato
Novation’s X/Y parameters using the ability to
touchpad and a synth two faders and control loops,
engine based on it. eight buttons. cues and effects.

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011

ReMOTE Compact Nocturn Launchpad UltraNova Twitch
More affordable version Updated the Automap A new partnership Nova series analogue- DJ controller with
of the SL. technology. Instantly between Novation and modelling synth with Touchstrips/ribbon strips
downloads a list of Ableton, a multi-button effects processor. as controllers rather than
Automap Universal controllable settings controller for Live. The A single-part synth, the traditional turntable
New version of Automap. provided by a plug-in unit consists of a grid of taking the Supernova II emulators.Also includes
The ‘Universal’ was later and assigns them to its 8x8 illuminated square synth engine and adding a built-in audio interface.
dropped (the software is combination of knobs and buttons and is fully bus- new features including
currently at Automap v4). buttons. Make changes powered. Plug it in and wavetable synthesis, Impulse
on the controller or on- control Live in an instant. more filters, a software Range of USB/MIDI
screen as the two are editor and a touch-sense controllers combining
synchronised. Nocturn 25 and 49 performance mode. a 25-, 49- or 61-note
Addition of a 25- or 49- semi-weighted aftertouch
SL MkII and Zero SL MkII note velocity/aftertouch keyboard with a control
Updates to the ReMOTE keyboard to Nocturn surface powered by
series included rotary encoder- Novation’s Automap
touch-sensitive knobs based controllers. control software.
and sliders and
updated Automap.

34 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

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 The Novation Story Industry Guru MT

music-making product concepts. It’s in Tileyard,

near Kings Cross, in a creative/tech hub surrounded
by some of the biggest names in the business. It’s
inspiring, and we’ve got some cool things planned.”
And what about the future of music production
as a whole? Any ideas on where we’re heading?
“I see us following a cyclical path in terms of
hardware,” says Will. “We’re very pro-analogue, but
I can imagine a resurgence in digital hardware to
counter-balance the abundance of analogue sounds
in recordings. Regarding software, I think it’s
simple, intuitive apps that work well alongside
typical setups, so will be most successful for the
near future, then we’ll be due a shake-up with a new
DAW or way of working – like Ableton recently.”
means. We approached Ableton, with whom we have Novation hardware engineer Matt adds: “As music makers, we’re undergoing a
Nick Bookman
a great relationship. Gerhard [Behles, CEO and paradigm shift. Just as laptops changed our world,
co-founder] saw the designs, saw what it meant, and it’s happening again with mobile technology. We’re
agreed on a partnership. We refined our designs halfway through, and the next 10 years will see this
with their team, headed up by Baptiste Grange, and transition completed. It won’t look massively
the result was the Launchpad.” different, it’ll just be a lot simpler to make the music
And it has been very successful, as Matt details: you want to, and get it listened to by a lot of people.”
“Launchpad has been a great winner, and now that The last word goes to Nick Bookman, who sums
we have our own iOS app that can be instantly up Novation’s overriding philosophy.
downloaded in every country in the world, that is “Quite simply, to make products that will help
proving to be an exciting area. Our keyboards have inspire electronic musicians to make music, and to
always sold well, but with the trend of electronic make the products as useful to them as possible.” MT
music makers wanting real hardware, our synths
have had a comeback, especially Bass Station II.” Wanna work in the industry?
● Then maybe you might want IAN JANNAWAY
The Future some top advice from our “Ideally [my advice is] that
Novation interviewees… their parents have left them
Matt also reveals some of Novation’s future plans… a house! No, seriously, it’s a
“We’ve recently set up a new office in the heart of WILL EVANS tough career path to take and
“It takes time and dedication only very few make a really
London. It is a small space, with a start-up culture, – it’s not something you can good living.”
tasked with creating the next generation of quickly jump into. So long as
you’re passionate and put in MATT DERBYSHIRE
the hours, it’ll always come “One of the best things to have
good in the end. A big tip is is simply great people skills.
Bass Station II ‘don’t shoot too early’ - wait Even at places like Abbey Road
20 years after the original, a new Bass Station, until you’re really ready to Studios, the best engineers
send that demo or ask for that and producers are the ones
with updated filters and specs for only £50 extra,
introduction - you want to who make the people around
prompting a 10/10 review score in this magazine. present your work at a point them ‘feel’ inspired, always
“Bass Station II is an exceptional synth. For £399 you that you’re really confident bettering themselves.”
could buy a high-end synth plug-in for your computer. that the person seeing/hearing
Don’t. Buy this instead. The sound of the circuit at its it is going to take notice.”
raw, dirty, animal-like best.”

2012 2013 2014 2015

MiniNova Launchkey Launch Control Launchpad iPhone App Launchpad Pro
Micro synth with 37-note Range of 25-, 49- and Compact versions of the Launch Control XL (see review on p6),
keyboard based around 61-note controllers with Launchpad, while Launch Launch Control with and updated
the same synth engine as up to 50 physical controls, Control is a compact eight extra pads, sliders Launchpad and
the UltraNova, with up to including 16 velocity- controller with 16 rotaries and rotaries. Launchkey
18 voices and effects. Has sensitive multi-colour and eight pads. with RGB LEDs plus
a VocalTune function for launch pads that trigger Audiohub 2x4 MoroderNova (see p10).
clips and scenes in Live. Launchkey and Audio interface designed
urban and hip-hop vocal
Launchpad apps to cut down your USB
sounds, as well as classic
Launchpad S Launchkey app includes clutter in a neat and
house and techno voice
Updated version of the 60 synth sounds for a compact design.
effects using the
Launchpad with brighter uniquely fast and fun way
onboard vocoder.
LEDs, faster refresh rate, to play with sound, making
and plug and play with it possible to change
other software such as sounds using interactive
FL Studio. graphics. The Launchpad
app is for iPad that makes
Launchpad Mini, it possible to create beats
Launchkey Mini, and music instantly.

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 35

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 MT Interview Martin Gore

MT Feature Interview

MARTIN GORE Music Tech has a rare interview with the driving
force behind Depeche Mode on the creative spark that led to his latest
creation, and the recording process behind it…

T
he history of electronic pop icons projects, not to mention recent collaborations with
Depeche Mode might have been very Nitzer Ebb and MOTOR. In 2003, Gore released his
different had Vince Clarke not announced debut solo album Counterfeit2, and more recently he
he was leaving the band in 1981. Even teamed up with Vince Clarke to record the techno
though the band were becoming EP Ssss under the pseudonym VCMG.
increasingly successful, Clarke appeared to be more For his latest solo release, Gore refashioned
about songs than the pop that came with them. leftover tracks from Depeche Mode’s 2013 album
Although Alan Wilder replaced Clarke as Delta Machine and expanded the material into a
keyboard player, it was Martin Gore who took over 16-track universe of filmic instrumental electronica.
songwriting duties, propelling the band towards the To add a sense of continuity, he then detached the
darker, more creative territory that paved the way last two letters of his VCMG collaboration and
towards their 100 million-selling album success. named the album MG.
Having grown up alongside his Basildon In the 80s, electronic bands would often release
bandmates, Gore now lives in Santa Barbara, an album every year, sometimes two, but these days
California. The studio is his second home, where he such torrents of activity are far more infrequent.
works five days a week collating ideas for future DM The last six Depeche Mode albums have stuck

36 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

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 Martin Gore Interview MT

studiously to a four-year timeframe, enabling Gore during the recording of MG, creating a conceptual
plenty of time to potter around his studio conjuring vision that would link the tracks together or give
up ideas for collaborations and solo projects. them a particular vibe? “I didn’t sit down and have
Dark, filmic and instrumental, Gore’s second an overall concept in mind, but when I started
solo release takes a very different turn to his covers listening back to the first couple of tracks they felt
album Counterfeit2, released over a decade ago. like they had a kind of filmic and science fiction feel
Writing began soon after the release of DM’s Delta to them, and I quite liked that, so I think I had that
Machine, but with Gore being such a talented in the back of my mind while I was writing the rest
vocalist, why record a purely instrumental album? of the album.” Far away from the rain and damp of
“Well, as you say, the idea only really came to me his hometown Dagenham, Gore’s sunny Californian
after we finished the Delta Machine project. I had a surroundings do not appear to have influenced the
bunch of instrumental songs left over that we didn’t type of music he makes: “Yeah, I think I should be
use because we just had so many songs. Now that living somewhere else really (laughs), it’s not very
Dave writes these days, we just had a whole slew of good for my image living here. But somehow,
songs to record for both the album and the Deluxe wherever I live, it doesn’t seem to come through in
Edition. So I had these tracks left over and didn’t the music. Music comes from your soul. This is all
want them to go to waste, and then I thought, well superficial around me, and so it doesn’t seem to
maybe it’s a good idea if I carry on that theme and affect the output of my writing.”
write a full instrumental album; something From listening to MG’s expansive sci-fi themes,
different for me and something different for the one could make comparisons with the soundtrack to
fans as well. I think it’s always good to push the futuristic thriller Bladerunner, composed by
yourself and do different things.” Vangelis in 1982. The songs have a similar spacious,
Having recorded a techno album with Vince grandiose quality, seething with mechanical – yet
Clarke in 2012, which was also instrumental, did very human – atmospheres. Would I be right in
that project spark any ideas in terms of the writing assuming Vangelis was an inspiration, if only
process? “That was something very different; subconsciously? “Funnily enough, I watched
although it was an instrumental album, it was also Bladerunner not that long ago, because my son’s at
a pure techno album. With this, I really wanted to an age now where, y’know, we’re trying to find these
do something completely new and make it far more sci-fi classics, and that has always been one of my
cinematic, atmospheric and filmic – although, favourite films. So I did watch it within the last six
because it was instrumental, I quite liked the idea months and it was certainly as good, if not better,
of carrying on the MG moniker.” than I remembered it. And the soundtrack’s
The album is a special treat for long-term fans of amazing, so subconsciously there’s probably some
Depeche Mode’s work, harking back to the days kind of influence there.”
when Gore provided dark, melancholy themes for Indeed, MG would have been a very different
classic albums such as Black Celebration; ideas that beast had vocals supplemented the music. When
contributed heavily to its ethereal atmosphere. Gore writes for Depeche Mode, room has to be
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 Martin Gore Interview MT

that I don’t know where we’re going to put. They’re

probably going to be given away. I could have gone
on writing this sort of music forever.”
So, what about Gore’s studio? The lasting
impression you get from listening to MG is its deep
analogue sound field. The music has a depth,
warmth and richness to it that separates it from the
majority of today’s digital productions. Gore
mentioned modular synthesis, so was the album
mostly comprised from analogue gear? “Yes, the
majority of the album was. Most of the sounds on
there were made with modular stuff. I’ve got a
dotcom modular system, but the majority of it is
with MG, the music had to be more expansive to Eurorack, and then obviously there is some
compensate. How did that change Gore’s approach polyphonic stuff used on there too. I also used
to the writing and recording process? “It does instruments like the Memory Moog, an Elka
change things because all of a sudden the music has Synthex and also the Gleeman Pentaphonic. They’re
to open up more space to do things instrumentally. quite exotic; the Gleeman is fairly rare. I’m not sure
Obviously, when you’re working on a song you know the year it was produced but it’s got some very
that the end result, and usually the most important unique, mechanical presets – you actually turn a
thing, is the vocals and the lyrics – and there’s switch to change them, so it’s very hands-on.”
always got to be a space for that. Whereas with Use of modular technology is becoming
instrumental music you don’t have to worry about increasingly common. Recording in-the-box using
digital software packages

When you’re starting off with a can breed an air of

familiarity, while artists

patch, that opens up so many occasionally yearn for an

alternative to the click of a

more new possibilities mouse wheel. Modular

systems used to be
notoriously expensive –
that at all. Instead you’re thinking about ways of however, the latest Eurorack modules are relatively
keeping the listener interested over the course or cheap to put together, hence their popularity has
length of the song that doesn’t involve any kind of grown markedly. “It’s the biggest growing area of
word play or vocal melody.” modern modular, and there are so many
How long did the album take to complete, and did manufacturers now that modulars are virtually
the music derive from a collection of demos or were coming out on a daily basis. In terms of using them,
tracks completed individually? “I had the four or I just think that you look at your system and think
five tracks that I’d finished during the Delta about where you’re going to start, whether it’s a
Machine period, then as soon as I got back from the bass sound or an oscillator – then patch it to Gore is a mine of creativity: his
tour in March I went straight into the studio. The somewhere else, and from there to another patch current album is 16 tracks, with
plenty more where that came
whole recording process was finished by the end of bay. It’s just unique every time, and there’s no from - and his intention is to give
November. I think, for all of the tracks, I worked on saving of the patches, it’s all in the moment!” away any spare tracks free…
them one at a time until I’d got them to the point Was the hands-on aspect a big attraction, and
where I liked them and finished them, or didn’t so I the fact that you’re able to be instantly creative,
didn’t finish them. There were a few tracks where I which no-doubt adds a sense of spontaneity? “I
got to the end having spent a week or two on them think so. And there are so many interesting
and thought, no, it’s not going anywhere. So as long modules coming out now, so that alone
as I liked a track, I would finish it up to a point is inspiring. When you’re
where it was ready to be mixed.” working on a keyboard –
MG is a 16-track album, denoting that, despite even if you’re creating your
Gore’s lengthy career as a composer, he is far from own sounds – I think that
short on ideas. Does finding that artistic spark come there’s a tendency to
just as easily these days, or did this type of album switch through the presets
only indulge his creative impetus further? “I think, and work on something
because this was always going to be something new, that’s in a kind of vague
it was fairly easy to get new ideas. My studio is a area of where you want to
great place with so many great instruments, which be. Whereas when you’re
gives me that space in which to get inspired. At the starting off with a patch,
moment it’s like a modular city, with all kinds of there is no vague area, you’re creating it
things I can use and get enthused by. I did find it from scratch, and that opens up so many
very easy; in fact there are a couple of extra tracks more new possibilities.”

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 39

MT148.interview.indd 39 04/06/2015 14:40

 MT Interview Martin Gore

take a break, with the right film. It’s never Gore has been Depeche
happened, but I can’t say I would ever rule it out.” Mode’s songwriter for 35
years – and counting.
Perversely, artists rarely have time to listen to
other music, and when they do they often find it
difficult to listen without picking apart the
Making of MG:
production. Is Gore inspired by other electronic
Gear List
artists? “I like Andy Stott a lot. A couple of days ago
● Eurorack Modular System
I got a remix in that he did for me of the Depeche
● Dotcom Modular system
Mode track Europa Hymn that was really amazing; ● Elka Synthex
he’s very creative. But electronic music is such a ● Moog Voyager
broad term these days. If you listen to the charts, so ● Gleeman Pentaphonic
much of the music is made electronically, but then ● Elektron AnalogFour & Rytm
there’s underground experimental electronic too ● Arp 2600
● Arp Solina
– so it’s all over the place. I feel like [technology] is a
● Aries Modular
bit of a double-edged sword. I love the fact that ● Digisound Modular
electronic music has carried on the punk ethos, ● Synton Fenix
because it felt like that was what we were doing ● Swarmatron
when we first started out. We would turn up to gigs ● Voyetra 8
with £200 synthesizers in suitcases and just plug in ● Arturia Minibrute

and play. It was all about your songs and your ideas,
and that’s kind of carried on now, because people
can just make music in their bedrooms. The problem
with that though is there’s not much quality control,
which is also why there’s so much bad music about.”
Despite Gore’s current analogue bent, digital It’s been two years since the last Depeche Mode
technology still played an important role in the album, Delta Machine, which just fell short of the
recording process. Software was used to piece No. 1 spot in the UK. Despite Gore displaying a
together the sounds and sequences that flowed from new-found love for instrumental music, attention
Gore’s analogue setup, and Logic is his choice of naturally turns to when he might focus on writing a
production DAW, but has it always been that way? 14th studio album with the band. “It’s not in the
”Yeah, I write everything in Logic. I’ve used it for
years and years, because it’s comfort. When you’ve
been using something for so long it’s hard to move I like digital effects and reverbs;
onto something else. For example, I know that
people love Ableton – and I know that I would love I used a mixture of hardware and
Ableton, but it’s just the learning curve.” Was Logic
merely used as a sequencer or did virtual synths software to record the album
and plug-ins also contribute to the album’s sound
design? “Not so many virtual synths, this album in works at the moment, but it is something that we’re
particular was pretty much hardware-based. I quite thinking about, so that will be the next thing I get
like using digital effects and digital reverbs, so I into. I’m not doing tons of promotion for this album
used a mixture of hardware and software to record because it’s not that kind of a record really. Being an
the album. You can find cool, creative digital effects instrumental album, it’s not going to get radio play
in the box these days; they can be creative as well.” and that sort of stuff, but obviously I want to do
Long-term collaborator Q (Timothy Wiles) mixed some press to make sure people are a little bit aware
the album; what did he bring to the process? “I of it, and then I’ll get back to writing some songs for
thought that Q did an amazing job with the VCMG the band.” Is there anything you’ve learned from
project, so I was very keen to get him involved in making MG that you’d be able to bring to the next
mixing this. He’s just able to get this amazingly DM record? “The only thing I would say is that when
detailed sound that is very wide and deep, and he you’re hands-on working with modular synths all
seems to be able to bring everything out in a way the time, you get to know certain modules more than
that is very clear, with an intensity and loudness.” others. Everything has its own sub-menus and you
Many commercial electronic artists have found a just get to know your gear a bit more.”
new home in film: Trent Reznor, BT and Junkie XL As Depeche Mode lays dormant, in the middle of
spring to mind, I therefore wondered if soundtrack its fourth decade, how does Gore reflect on where
was an area that Gore would like to move into? “If the group is positioned at the moment? “In terms of
the right film came along at the right time, I think the band, it’s amazing that we’ve been together for
I’d be interested. That’s always the problem, 35 years. That is pretty stunning; maybe even a bit
because when you’re in a band you have a cycle, and of a miracle if you look back at certain periods in
our usual cycle these days is every four years. That our history. I think that is testament to the fact that
includes a writing period, a recording period, a we all get on well considering the amount of time
touring period, and then a bit of a break. So someone we’ve spent together, and we all have a certain
would have to come along just when we’re about to amount of respect for each other, obviously.” MT

40 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

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 MT Technique Logic Pro X In Depth – Part 1

Powered by
New series Logic Pro X In Depth – Part 1

Vintage B3 in detail
Logic Pro X’s Vintage B3 faithfully captures the classic Hammond
Organ sound, complete with drawbars. Mark Cousins unlocks its
hidden depths in the first of a new series of tutorials on Logic…

L
ogic Pro X’s Vintage B3 organ is arguably one of the keyboard, the original Hammond has two separate
most comprehensive Hammond emulations
On the disc keyboards (known as manuals) as well as a series of bass
available, with a host of features and an incredibly pedals that effectively forms the third manual. Each manual
authentic sound. Although immediate enough to has its own set of drawbars (hence the Main page on the
Accompanying
use at first glance – especially thanks to the chunky project file included Vintage B3 having a separate set of drawbars for the Upper,
re-designed interface introduced in Logic Pro X – the Vintage on the DVD Lower and Pedals manuals respectively) allowing the player
B3 takes some time to master. If you do though, you will have to build a performance from a number of different timbres.
a wealth of sounds at your disposal – from cheeky retro The left-hand, for example, could play chords on the lower
organ sounds, to wall-of-sound Hammond chords that could manual using a relatively simple sound while the right-hand
fill Wembley stadium. solo’d using an ‘all-stops-out’ patch.
To sound of the Hammond organ, and thus Logic Pro X’s Obviously, if you’re after a truly authentic Hammond
Vintage B3, is defined by the principle of drawbars. In effect, performance you’ll need to work between all three manuals,
the Hammond works as a form of primitive additive which can be difficult as most of us just use a single MIDI
keyboard. The Vintage B3 offers two solutions to this

Use just a few drawbars to problem. Firstly, you can choose to run the plug-in in Split
mode, whereby the manuals are divided across the full

create a simple sound; ‘pull out range of keyboard. If you’re particularly ambidextrous and
have 88 notes to play with, Split is a viable solution.

all the stops’ to hear it at full tilt Otherwise, use the Multi mode and have the manuals
spread across the first three MIDI channels. Create three
tracks in Logic (incrementally assigned to the Vintage B3’s
synthesizer, whereby a keyboard player can mix together a first three MIDI channels) so as to access each Manual and
number of different harmonics to create a composite sound. recording performance data assigned to it.
The harmonics are represented by a series of drawbars, each
working at a different pitch. By pulling the drawbars out to Organ Donor
you, you can shape the sound – using just a few drawbars to Beyond the drawbars, there’re plenty of other ways to tweak
create a relatively pure sound, or ‘pulling out all the stops’ to the sound of the Vintage B3. The original Hammond came
hear the distinctive wail at full tilt. with its own Vibrato and Chorus effect, replicated with the
The best way to understand the Vintage B3 is to two rocker switches on the Vintage B3’s Main page. There’s
appreciate the sound of each drawbar, which is handily also the much-loved percussion effect, which added a small
colour coded between even and odd-ordered harmonics, on 2nd or 3rd harmonic ‘plonk’ at the start of a note. The
white and black drawbars respectively, as well as two percussion effect sounds great on solo Hammond
subharmonics indicated in brown. It’s well worth a look on lines, as well as being the key
the Internet to find some Hammond enthusiast sites, which ingredient
will often list classic Hammond sounds in numeric form –
like 88 8200 000. Rather than being a phone number, the
numbers refer to the drawbar positions, so the
aforementioned 88 8200 000 would indicate that the first 3
drawbars are pulled out to 8, and the 4th to 2.

Find the manual

One factor that might confuse a newcomer to the Vintage B3
is the concept of Manuals. Rather than having a single

BECOMING AN EXPERT
The host of options included on the Vintage B3’s Expert page can appear daunting, but it’s
well worth exploring some of the more useful parameters. Arguably the most valuable
section relates to the Condition of the organ, as for many, the classic sound of a B3 organ
isn’t exactly an instrument in tip-top condition. Given its electromagnetic inconsistencies,
one key characteristic of older B3s is leakage between the drawbars, which created a
unique form of high-pitched ‘whine’. Try adjusting Drawbar Leak to hear this in action, as
well as modifying the Click parameter to emulate the odd dusty keyboard contact.

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 Logic Pro X In Depth – Part 1 Technique MT

MT Step-by-Step Vintage B3 in detail

The main principle behind the Vintage B3 is the drawbar system, It’s important to get to know the sound of each drawbar. Start by
01 02 turning down all the other drawbars in the Upper Manual and
with each drawbar representing a different harmonic in the
harmonic series. The drawbars work like inverted faders, so that then raise the 8’ drawbar to its highest setting. The 8’ is the
pulling the drawbar towards you raises the level of that harmonic. fundamental, as a concert A sounds at 440Hz.

Now experiment by adding different proportions of the 4’, 2’ and The two brown drawbars beneath the 8’ stop add subharmomics
03 04 to the note, adding body and warmth to the sound. Indeed, a
1’ drawbars. These add even-ordered harmonics, moving up an
octave each time. The sound is relatively ‘pure’, although it becomes good ‘vanilla’ Hammond sound is the first 3 drawbars pulled out (88
brighter as you add the upper drawbars into the mix. 8000 000) to their maximum setting.

The black drawbars add odd harmonics, which tend to have a When you want a really full-bodied organ sound, there’s no other
05 06 option but to ‘pull out all the stops’ and have all the drawbars on
more nasal-like tone when used on their own. Added selectively
to the basic 88 8000 000 patch, the 2 2/3’, 1 3/5’ and 1 1/3’ stops add their maximum setting. This provides a rich, pipe organic-like tone
some distinctive colour the upper harmonics. that will cut through any mix.

of the quintessential House Organ Bass where the use of sound, it’s well worth exploring the Vintage B3 with the
the 3rd harmonic creates a form of parallel harmonic Leslie speaker in its Off position. Without the Leslie, the
motion. Vintage B3 sounds cheaper, and distinctly less Hammond-
The final essential ingredient is, of course, the Leslie like, although you can still run it through one of the amp
speaker, originally built as an optional add-on for choices in Amp Designer if you want a touch of speaker
Hammond players in the 50s and 60s. Indeed, if you’re colouration.
interested in recreating a retro Vox Continental-like organ When you do engage the Leslie speaker, the Vintage B3

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 45

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 MT Technique Logic Pro X In Depth – Part 1

takes on that classic ‘swirling’ tone, mimicking the you want to control this dynamically, switch the MIDI
acoustic effect of a Leslie speaker being spun around mapping to Native Instrument B4D (under the Expert Tab)
continuously. At the bottom of the interface you’ll also find so that the Mod Wheel can control the Leslie speaker.
the distinctive switch that moves between a Slow and Fast Like any instrument, the Vintage B3 is a musical tool
rotation speed. The Leslie speaker works best when moved that deserves to be played. However, rather than just
between Slow and Fast speed settings, especially thanks flicking between the presets included in Logic, get your
to the inertia effect as it moves between the two speeds. If hands on the drawbars and start to experience the unique

MT Step-by-Step Vintage B3 in detail… con’d

The Vibrato/Chorus controls in the bottom left emulate the Depending on the age and condition of the instrument, distortion
07 08 played a big part in the distinctive ‘growling’ sound of the B3. Try
original lo-fi scanner vibrato effect included in the original. There
are three variations for each effect (Vibrato or Chorus) selectable with experimenting with the drive – using less distortion on light,
the Type control, and a switch to set which manual has the effect. shimmering chord sequences, and more for searing lead line.

Percussion adds a distinctive edge to the front of the note, and One often forgotten feature of the Hammond was its in-built
09 10 preset switching system using the lower reverse-coloured keys.
is a key component in the classic house music organ bass
sound. Set Percussion to On, Volume to Norm, Time to Fast and use Press the Presets tab in the lower right-hand corner to see this active
the 3rd Harmonic. on the Virtual B3, with a small icon to indicate the setting.

Pressing the Select By Keyboard Option lets you move between No Hammond sound would be complete without the addition of
11 12 a Leslie speaker, which can be found under the Rotor Cabinet
presets using the MIDI keys C#0 to B0. You can also do this with
the note held down, which create some interesting steeped timbral tab. You can bypass the Cabinet completely using the On/Off button,
shifts that can be quantized in time with your track. and also move between two speeds using the Rotation control.

46 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

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 Logic Pro X In Depth – Part 1 Technique MT

range of tones and qualities that can be extracted from the Hammond to continue its contribution to music making. MT
instrument. Once you appreciate the sound of each This tutorial is endorsed by Point Blank Music School, which specialises in
drawbar (and how they can work together) you’ll start to courses on production, sound engineering, the music business, singing, radio
see why so many keyboard players regard the Hammond as production, DJ skills and film production, all run by top British music
such a versatile and expressive instrument. The Vintage B3, producers and media professionals, with regular visits from legends in
therefore, is a marvellous tribute to the design of the music and media.
original instrument, and a great way for the sound of the More info here: www.pointblanklondon.com

MT Step-by-Step Vintage B3 in detail… con’d

A key attribute of the Leslie sound is the balance between the The Vintage B3 includes both modeled and IR-based versions of
13 14 the Leslie, with the Real Cabinet option being the most intuitive
mics placed on the Horn and Drum. In effect, the Balance control
works like a form of treble and bass control, while the individual to use. With the Real Cabinet you can switch between three mic types
Stereo Width parameter lets you define the ‘stereoness’ of the spin. as well as move between micing from the front or rear.

The best way of accessing all three manuals is to use the Multi You’ll need to create a unique track lane for each Manual. To do
15 16 this, set the track to MIDI Channel 1 and then choose the menu
option found under the Split tab (located in bottom right-hand
corner of the Main page). Split assigns each manual – Upper, Lower option Track > Other > New Track with Next MIDI Channel. Do this
and Bass Pedals – to a different MIDI channel. twice to have three Manuals accessible.

17 Now record each Manual as a separate pass (which is useful if 18 The Effects tab is the final icing on the cake. Reverb can be
applied both pre and post the speaker emulation. Use a pre
you’re not a keyboard-playing genius!). It’s also worth changing
the MIDI mapping to Native Instrument B4D (under the Expert Tab) so setting for a more retro sound, or post if you want a more studio-
that the Mod Wheel can control the Leslie speaker. like sound.

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 47

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 MT Technique The Ultimate Guide To Ableton Live Part 5

Ableton Live The Ultimate Guide to Ableton Live Part 5 On the disc

Make your own

Accompanying
project file included
on the DVD

keyboard sound
& sidechain it…
Anybody can load a synth preset but it’s fun to As well as adding a new sample to our set – which
build your own. Connect your keyboard and again, incorporates the steps from the last tutorial – I’ve
taken the opportunity to reorganise, rename, and colour
Martin Delaney will show you how it’s done. code the tracks and clips. Not only do I get a kick out of

W
organising everything, it helps me recognise what I’m
e continue our Ultimate Guide by adding a looking at faster and it avoids accidentally triggering or
simple keyboard part to our ongoing selecting the wrong clip or track. I made a ‘spare’ group
project, following on from the bass last track for unused tracks, and put the original beat in there.
time. You like the project? Good. You don’t We mentioned this before – Shift-Click to select the tracks
like the project? That’s fine too as it’s you want to group, then type Cmd-G. You can also drag
merely a vehicle for us to introduce the core techniques of additional tracks in later.
using Ableton Live. Our keyboard part doesn’t have to be too demanding.
All we need for this project is something basic that doesn’t

If you’re not great at take up too much room, sonically speaking; we’ve got
enough going on already. We’re just using one note, then

music theory Live has a making it move with some sidechaining instead.
Whenever we talk about creating instrument sounds,

whole bunch of tools to make sure you’re using a keyboard to audition the sound
constantly as you work on it. If you already have a MIDI clip

make parts sound busy and notes in place, you could just keep that playing and
rolling round. But if you’re working on a sound that needs
to have some velocity sensitivity – some responsiveness
Once again we’re using the Simpler instrument device, to how hard you hit your keys or pads – it’s better to use
with a sample that you can load from the provided your keyboard or pads in real time while you’re testing. As
example Live set. This works for us because there are a I’ve said before, I like to use the computer keyboard as
few different versions of Live out there – Suite, Standard well, and when I’m doing that, I’ll keep tapping on the c
and Intro, not to mention older versions counting from 9 and v keys to change through some different velocity
backwards – so using a synthesizer instrument device at settings if relevant – they’ll take you up and down through
this point could cause compatibility issues with some the velocity range from 1 to 127 in increments of 20. Don’t
folks reading this. We’re on safe ground with Simpler forget to keep an eye on your track and master volume
because it’s in every version of Live – it has to be, because levels as well as we don’t want to see any red peaks!
drum racks in particular won’t work without it! We don’t use any notes other than E4 for this clip,
Either way it’s good, partly because we can now say because we want to start with a drone and then find a way
we’re using sample based synthesis, a form of sound to make it sound a bit more interesting. If you’re not great
design that uses audio samples as well as waveforms at music theory, Live has a whole bunch of tools to help
generated by the synth instrument itself. Many synths let you make even a basic
you combine these techniques in one preset, which really
opens up the sonic spectrum.

FOCUS ON… THE HARDWARE

In this tutorial we’re building a keyboard sound based on a sample
from a Waldorf Pulse Plus, a hardware, rack-mount synth first
released in 1997 (the range is still going strong in a tabletop format).
I used the Pulse for two important reasons: one, because it would
give a different texture than resampling a plug-in, and two, because
it was nearby! One of the great things about Simpler is that it makes
it easy to use almost any sound as a source. Hardware instruments
seem to be on everybody’s mind at the moment, so the Pulse it is.

48 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

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 The Ultimate Guide To Ableton Live Part 5 Technique MT

MT Step-by-Step Keyboards and sidechaining

Be sure to use our updated example set for this tutorial. I’ve Load the Simpler sample-playback instrument into a new MIDI
01 added a new sample, ‘synth note’. This is a synth playing a long C
02 track, and drag the ‘synth note’ sample into Simpler’s drop area.
note (sampled from the Waldorf Pulse Plus hardware synth). Double-click the top empty clip slot in the track to make a clip.

This should sound familiar, because we’ve done this step before When you arm your track and play your MIDI keyboard, you should
03 when we made our bass part. Click the Dupl.Loop button in the
04 be hearing the sampled synth tone playing across the range. We
MIDI Editor’s Notes box twice, creating an empty 4-bar MIDI clip. used a C so it’ll be correctly in pitch with other instruments.

Draw an E4 note across the entire length of the clip - launch the To edit the note velocity, unfold the MIDI Velocity Editor (click on
05 clip and then it’ll play just like a drone over four bars. Keep the
06 the little triangle) below the MIDI Note Editor, then drag the
velocity to around 100 or 110 – it doesn’t matter precisely. velocity marker up or down until you reach the desired range.

programmed part sound busy i.e. the MIDI Effect Devices. ‘pulsing’ quality. After you’ve loaded the Compressor into
We’re using the Chord device a little bit here, but don’t be the keyboard track, you can choose any sound as a source,
surprised if we come back and look at MIDI effects again. digging deep into drum and instrument racks to find the
The other thing we do to make it sound more active is to exact trigger you want. However, from a workflow point of
sidechain it, taking the timing of the drum track (or parts of view I find it much easier to work with a separate track as
it) and applying it to the keyboard sound to create a a source for a sidechain, that’s why we’ve copied the drum

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 MT Technique The Ultimate Guide To Ableton Live Part 5

MT Step-by-Step Keyboards and sidechaining cont’d

So far we have a pretty dull synth part so let’s jazz it up a bit. At Let’s make some changes inside Simpler. Start by turning Loop
07 this stage if you need to do any volume management for this
08 on and set it to 40%, then turn Snap on and set the Start to
sound, use the Volume control in Simpler. 0.30%. Set Length to 14% and Fade to 70%.

Set the Volume envelope Attack to 500ms so there’s a bit more to Now let’s add some interest: because we’ve been lazy with our
09 the tiny little fade-in at the beginning of the sample (as you can
10 programming, let’s expand the part with one of Live’s MIDI effect
see, it starts quite gradually already). devices. Add the Chord MIDI effect to the track, it’ll go before Simpler.

Set the Chord device’s first two Shift control knobs to +3 and +5 The extra notes make it sound very full – too full, in fact. So drag
11 semitones. As the clip loops or as you play your keyboard, you’ll
12 an EQ Three audio effect to the end of the chain and set the
hear the extra notes. Set Simpler’s Spread to 50. GainMid to -12dB. This thins it out nicely.

track here. Not only do I then have something that visually that sidechain track and do very weird things with it,
helps me keep track of what’s going on, outside of the without disrupting your drum beat. As it says in the
drum kit, a separate track for sidechaining, it enables me tutorial, remember that the sidechain source can be silent
to program a totally different kick pattern to trigger the – mute the track and it still works!
compressor if I want to, or even to keep the sidechain feed If you’re a musical type of person, who can play
going when the drums drop out. You could even automate keyboards and who understands musical theory, Live is a

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 The Ultimate Guide To Ableton Live Part 5 Technique MT

MT Step-by-Step Keyboards and sidechaining cont’d

Now we need to add some movement to this keyboard part – I Inside the rack, solo chains 1, 3, 5, 9, and 13 and deactivate the
13 guess you’d say it’s a pad sound; duplicate your MIDI drum track
14 track by clicking on the yellow track number. Launch the clip,
by clicking on the track name and type Cmd-D. though. Yes, that’s right. We have a plan.

If you can only solo one item at a time, check your Record/Warp/ Click on your copied drum track and use Cmd-R or the Context
15 Launch Preferences and make sure Exclusive Solo is off.
16 Menu to rename the track ‘Sidechain’, then load the Compressor
Otherwise, temporarily override the preference setting by Cmd- ‘Brick Wall’ preset into your keyboard track after the EQ Three.
Clicking on each item.

Click on the small triangle in the Compressor title bar, turn on Bring the Compressor Threshold down to -50.0dB and set the
17 Sidechain and choose the sidechain drum track from the Audio
18 Attack to 0.30ms. Play your keyboard and sidechain clips and you
From box. Leave the other settings alone. should hear a new rhythmic pulse to your keyboard part.

great tool for you anyway, especially with ‘alternative’ input knowledgeable. We’re making good progress through this
devices like Push and the new Novation Launchpad Pro. project. Next time we’ll be adding our final element – a
But if you’re really confident or even conscious in terms speech sample – and processing that in a few interesting
of theory, Live can really give you a boost with the MIDI and different ways. MT
effects we’ve mentioned here. It’s about as novice-friendly This tutorial is one of the all new tutorials available in the MusicTech Live
as it gets, and it doesn’t fail to deliver once you get more 2015 Focus on sale now.

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 MT 20 Pro Tips Audio restoration and repair tips

Audio restoration
and repair tips
How do you rescue a track when it seems like you’ve pushed it beyond repair?
Never fear! Hollin Jones is here to explain how to bring it back to life…

01 DOWNLOAD AN APP
In many cases you will be attempting to repair audio When cleaning up audio it can
be tempting to really throw
that has already been recorded and has turned out to have
some kind of issue with distortion, hiss or hum. In other cases
such as when digitising vinyl or tape, you know in advance
that the audio is likely to have some cracks, pops and other
problems due to the nature of the source media. When you everything at the problem
record any source to digital audio it captures everything
exactly as it sounds, unlike analogue recording media which to deal with these artefacts during capture, saving you time.
can add their own flattering characteristics like warmth or Some gadgets such as USB turntables come with their own
compression during tracking. If your express intention is to SoundSoap will deal capture apps with audio repair software tools, though these
digitise analogue media such as vinyl or tape, consider using with distortion and vary in quality.
a specialised app or plug-in like SoundSoap that will attempt cracks (below).
VIRTUAL MIC PLUG-INS
02 Room ambience can be one of the hardest things to
01 get rid of on a recording but some plug-ins enable you to
move ‘virtual microphones’ around in order to change the
proximity of the source to the mics. This can take a while to
get right but it can help you to ‘reposition’ a sound even after
it has been recorded.

DON’T GO TOO FAR…

03 When cleaning up audio it can be tempting to really
throw everything at the problem. As when mixing, software
lets us keep applying more and more processing to any
sound without the likelihood of really running out of
processing power. The risk with this is that you go too far. In
the case of audio repair this sometimes means layering on
too much hiss removal which will blunt the high frequencies
of the sound and thus deaden it overall. If a sound is too quiet
you might also over-compress it in an attempt to make it
louder, and correspondingly make it sound too squashed or
forced. In trying to draw out certain elements of a complex
sound using EQ you can over-emphasise sounds like voices
or guitars to the detriment of the overall soundstage. Be
mindful of these considerations.

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 Audio restoration and repair tips 20 Pro Tips MT

Some applications are able to 05 DEDICATED TOOLS

Some software has dedicated audio repair tools. It’s

analyse and take noise prints often not DAWs but wave editors and audio-for-video
packages that have them, as post production editors

from digital audio clips

sometimes use these kinds of applications rather than DAWs
since they’re editing sound more than making music.
Packages such as Adobe’s Audition and the sadly
discontinued Soundtrack Pro for Mac as well as Sound Forge
SPECIALIST TOOLS and Wavelab all have versions of audio repair tools.
04 Regular DAW-style processing with mix tools such as Sometimes these are simply chains of plug-ins, other times
EQ and compression can be useful but for more tricky jobs they’re able to analyse and repair audio clips with a single
you will want a more specialised set of tools. Spectral click. If you’re repairing a large amount of audio this can be a
analysers and repair tools are the way to go here, with more effective way to go about it than opening and searching
applications such as Izotope’s RX and Sony’s Spectralayers through the waveforms of lots of clips. If you can’t buy an app,
Pro leading the way when it comes to letting you get right (Below) Spectral try to borrow a system with it installed for a few hours.
repair tools,
inside a sound. Imagine you have an audio take with a vocal
such as Sony’s
but halfway in there’s the sound of a door slamming in the NOISE PRINT APPS
background. It might occupy a similar frequency range to the
Spectralayers and 06 Some applications, particularly those designed for
Izotope’s RX (bottom
vocal so it’s very hard to remove using regular EQ. With a left) enable you to working with post-production film or TV sound, are able to
spectral repair tool you can visually identify the door sound get inside a sound. analyse and take noise prints from digital audio clips. The
– or any other sound – and paint over it or cut it without most common use for this is for identifying a specific sound,
(Bottom right)
affecting any of the frequencies around it, however close. You getting down to sometimes ambient, and then either creating a new clip with
can also use these tools to take noise prints and ‘unmix’ a sample level to it or removing it from an existing file. You can use it, for
mixed file by separating off different sounds to new files. identify spikes. example, to ‘match’ ambiences by taking a noise print of a
room with no other sound audible, and then applying it to a
voiceover to make it sound like it was recorded in that room.
Or print from a few seconds of road noise then use that print
04 to remove the same noise from a clip that you want to be
quieter. It’s a bit of a fine art getting it exactly right but it can
be far more effective than using EQ in some cases.

SNAPPING & STRETCHING

07 When using material cut or copied from one part of an
audio file to fill in or replace damaged signal in another your
DAW or wave editor can really help you with tools like
snapping or time and pitch stretching. In some cases you may
want to deactivate snapping in order to be able to stretch and
position very precisely and avoid gaps or glitches.

REMOVE SPIKES
08 Some of the most common errors in recorded digital
audio are spikes and clicks caused by levels that peak too
high during recording. If you open an audio clip in your DAW’s
sample editor you are usually able to zoom right in and get
down to the sample level to locate these clipping events. The
more capable your DAW, the more likely it is to have this
feature: and some wave editors have it too. Once you’ve
identified the clip/ distortion event, which will probably look
like a big peak in the waveform that flattens out against the
top of the window, you can try to draw it out using the pen
tool or select it and insert silence to remove it. The
effectiveness of this can vary hugely depending on the
material and the severity of the click. If you’re lucky you can
paint it out pretty seamlessly. If not, it’ll leave an audible gap
in the sound.

04
08

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 MT 20 Pro Tips Audio restoration and repair tips

09 CHECK YOUR TOOLBOX

Although dedicated tools can be very helpful, some Some audio repair tasks can
be carried out using the stuff
audio repair tasks can be carried out successfully using the
stuff that comes with your DAW or that you may already have
as part of your music tracking and mixing toolbox. Rumble
and hiss, for example, can often be dealt with by using high or
low pass filters respectively, and you can draw out or back off that comes with your DAW
any other frequencies by using a regular multiband EQ.
Similarly, a multiband compressor can be used to tame or
enhance specific frequency bands without adversely
affecting other parts of the file. Audio processing tools like
12
normalisation or fades can also help to change the character
of a file and are not all that hard to find – indeed some free
audio editors have these kinds of tools. And remember that
you can layer up several kinds of processing if it’s necessary
to get the best results.

09

insert. It’s better to apply this post-recording to ensure no

signal is actually lost when you use it, but if you set the
threshold, attack and release settings properly you can
RE-RECORD Rumble and hiss can make sure periods in your track that are supposed to be
10 It might sound obvious, but if you have a recording be sorted with a silent really are silent.
where there’s significant distortion, clipping or interference dedicated EQ
(top left).
it’s always preferable to re-record it if at all possible. Thanks COMPOSITE AND CROSSFADE
to broadband internet and cloud file storage it’s now
13 Compositing audio takes and using crossfades
Noise gates (above
technically easier than it has been in the past to send right) are quick and between comp sections is a good way to build a good take
someone a DAW project or just a reference file and get them easy solutions to, out of several others. Imagine you have a few takes and
to re-do a performance and send it back to you in high quality. well, noise of course! certain parts have problems. If you’re lucky you may be able
Of course this is all dependent on them being willing and able to cut the best bits from each one and stick them together,
Compositing audio
to do it. Sometimes the technicalities of a particular task can build a good using crossfades to smooth out the joins.
make re-recording difficult or impossible to do. Nonetheless take out of several
it should be your aim if it makes sense in the context of your takes (below).
situation. If you’re lucky you might have access to a realtime
online recording package like Steinberg’s VST Connect which
13
can make things easier.

BE CONSISTENT
11 If you’re dealing with audio from a number of different
sources, say for example from several recording sessions, or
lots of samples from old records that are being combined into
a single song, it’s important to keep an ear on consistency
across the whole project. It can be too easy to get bogged
down in fixating on one sample or loop when in reality it’s the
sonics of the whole track that’s really important. So if you’re
going to take the crackle out of one sample you’ll probably
have to take it off them all. Or if you want to leave it in one,
you might have to noise print it and apply it to the others as
well. This is all very specific to a given project of course, but
nonetheless consistency is something to bear in mind.

USE A NOISE GATE

12 A quick and easy way to deal with background noise
between takes is simply to use a noise gate plug-in as an

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 Audio restoration and repair tips 20 Pro Tips MT

14
Specialised
processors like
Izotope’s Nectar have
plosive removers
WATCH YOUR ANALOGUE
17 Material recorded on analogue media like vinyl or tape
usually has a lower overall level than that recorded to a hard
drive. When you’re incorporating it into a digital project the
temptation is to normalise it to bring its level up. This is fine
but remember in the process you will also pull up pops, clicks
and any hiss that may be on it as well.

USE EFFECTS
18 Occasionally you can disguise errors with special
effects. If for example a take has some crackle on it or is too
mid-heavy, stick a megaphone effect on it. This will more or
less mask the inadequacies of the original recording. Of
course this kind of trick only works in a few cases, but it’s
worth keeping in mind.

REMOVE YOUR PLOSIVES

19 Plosives – ‘b’ or ‘p’ sounds that are very prominent on a
vocal recording, can be annoying when they’re too loud.
Obviously, using a popshield helps to prevent them but where
they already exist you can use frequency-specific

Test and monitor compression to help dial them down. Specialised processors
like Izotope’s Nectar have plosive removers.

recording levels and get A spectral analyser

from Blue Cat Audio 20 PROCESS DIFFERENTLY

the performer to go as
(above) will give you One interesting trick is to take two versions of the same
a good idea of what’s file and process them differently. For example, take one and
going on before you compress it while cutting the bass end. On the other, boost
loud as they plan to go start.

Use Izotope’s Nectar

the bass and run it through a limiter. Use faders to blend the
two channels. It’s more complex but can help you kind of
(below) to remove ‘unmix’ a sound and get better overall control. MT
your plosive sounds.
SPECTRAL ANALYSIS
14 We have mentioned spectral repair but spectral 19
analysis of audio can be just as important. When you hear a
sound, many factors are at work in shaping how you perceive
it. These include the levels set at every stage of your signal
chain, the quality and quirks of the monitor speakers or
headphones you’re using, and the acoustics of the space
you’re listening in. A spectral analyser such as those from
Blue Cat Audio, properly inserted across a track or across the
master outputs, looks at the sound before it even leaves the
application and so gives a very accurate picture of what’s
really going on. This will help you to gauge for example
whether excessive bass end is really an issue or actually
being caused by poor room acoustics. This trick is handy not
just for audio repair but mixing and mastering in general.

PERFECT YOUR SETUP

15 When you record sound you can reduce the risk of clips
and pops by setting up correctly. Test and monitor recording
levels and get the performer to go as loud as they plan to go.
Do a test take to find out the ideal level to record at. Err on
the side of slight caution and remember it’s easier to boost a
slightly quiet signal than to repair one that’s clipped.

USE EXISTING MATERIAL

16 Digital audio affords a great deal of flexibility to
manipulate existing material. If you have an audio take where
there’s repetition but one or more sections has a problem, it
can be possible to copy and paste a good section in place of
a bad one. This requires great precision to avoid jumps and
glitches, perhaps even using some timestretching but it can
work well.

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 MT Technique Adding movement to synth patches with modulation

Requirements
MT Workshop Beat programming and sound design Our Beat

Adding movement
Programming and
Sound Design feature
is illustrated using
Reason but you can
apply the principles
to whatever
DAW you use.

to synth patches with

modulation
Making your synth sounds more dynamic and interesting can be as
simple as adding some modulation, as Hollin Jones reveals…

Y
ou might have seen lots of references to shape the sound, such as oscillators, filters, amp
‘modulation’ when reading reviews of synths or On the disc sections and internal mixers. Within each of these are
workshops like this one. It’s something that whole subsets of controls. So in an oscillator section you
developers like to talk about when you can do a might have waveshape and octave controls. A filter will
lot of it with their product, and if you’re not a Accompanying have cutoff, resonance and type as basic controls, and
project file included
synth expert you may wonder why it’s such a big deal. The on the DVD some synths even have onboard step sequencers which
short answer is, because it can make static sounds much really open up a whole new level of creativity.
more interesting and dynamic. By default, most types of Someone with some experience and a bit of time on
synthesized sound are fairly simple, using waveforms their hands can make some amazing modulation
generated by oscillators to create signal. You can tune assignments in a well-designed synth and create sounds
these, alter them and filter them as much as you like but that go far beyond simple patches. For those less familiar
they’re not going to start sounding hugely interesting with the world of programming, you may want to rely a
until you start to modulate them. And yes, of course you little more heavily on pre-built patches than do it all
can use effects on them to bend and twist sounds, but yourself. But a basic understanding of how modulation
we’re talking about doing everything inside the synth at works can be key to learning more about synthesis and
this stage. will also help you on your journey towards achieving your
Modulation essentially involves varying a given own sound. Just knowing that dubstep bass effects are
parameter over time. Something that modulates does not achieved by using automated LFOs to modulate cutoff
stand still; rather it changes state, often in a regular, filter frequency settings, for example, means you can
back-and-forth kind of a fashion. In a synthesizer, build your own from scratch, or change an existing
modulation can come from a range of parameters inside patch to suit your project.
the instrument and be sent to a range of other
parameters; the details depend on the model of synth
and how it has been designed. Some modulation sources
such as LFOs go round and round by themselves and so
when applied to a destination, they produce a regulated
change in that parameter. In other cases, a user-variable
parameter can be sent, such as an envelope control, a
button or even a MIDI note or velocity amount.
Not every source will have a useful effect on a
destination parameter, and some will have no effect at
all. The trick is in knowing what kinds of things can be
linked together to get your sound moving. You need to
think about altering the kinds of things that actually

MODULATION MINUS MIDI

The ability to modulate using CV inside Reason means you can actually take
parameters from within one module and route them out to any other module to
change them. Not everything will have an obvious effect, so choose wisely. A typical
example of this might be to use an LFO or sequence from one device and link its CV
output to the filter or rate CV input on an effect or another synth. You can sync up
patterns of modulation in this way, or link controls together, all without creating any
MIDI data. It’s a shortcut to matching patterns of movement, even more so when you
factor in the Spider CV merger and splitter modules for even greater flexibility.

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 Adding movement to synth patches with modulation Technique MT

MT Step-by-Step Adding modulation

Load up an instance of Thor, and either reset it or load a simple

01 patch. Here we’ve chosen one called Eight Pole Lead which is At the base is the modulation matrix, and you can start by
02 introducing some movement into the sound. Go to the LFO 1 row
static and will suit our purposes. Press the Show Programmer button to
expand Thor’s sound designer sections. and turn off the Mod Wheel option, which removes the parameter from
control by the mod wheel.
Since you have
04 assigned LFO1
to control the filter
frequency, altering
LFO1 will change
the modulation. Go
to the LFO1 section
in the synth and
turn on tempo sync,
then try changing
the LFO rate to alter
Now change the Amount slider in this row to 100 to have the LFO the speed of the
03 applied fully to the filter 1 frequency. There are Amount controls modulation.
for both the source and destination so you can precisely control how
much is applied.

In another example, try assigning What you’ve done is kind

05 LFO2 to the delay dry/wet control.
06 of automated the delay
Click on the source column in any slot to amount on and off in a regular
choose LFO2, then in the destination pattern based on the LFO2
column, select Delay > Dry/Wet and then settings, but without having to
make the relevant settings on the two perform any actual
synth sections. automation. Try it with any
internal effect parameter.

Even a basic synth will often have the ability to use Twin 2 and FXPansion’s Tremor are just a couple of
some simple modulation sources within its interface. examples of this.
Reason is well catered for in this regard and indeed the Reason is unusual in having an integrated design that
mighty Thor synth has a very advanced modulation means modules and Rack Extensions built for it must all
matrix, though this doesn’t mean it’s difficult to use. Pop comply with a specific standard. So as well as having
out the Programmer section and you can clearly see how audio and MIDI capability, modules are also able to send
it all works. Spin the module around and there are even and receive CV (control voltage). Based on real control
some instructions for how to get started printed on the voltage as found in hardware modular synths, this isn’t
back of the module. It’s not a feature of Reason yet, but quite the same as the modulation systems found
some third-party software synths actually let you drag internally in synths but it can have a similar effect, with
and drop sources to destinations using the mouse, which the major difference that it can be sent between
makes the whole process particularly intuitive. Fabfilter’s modules, not just internally within a single module. In the

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 MT Technique Adding movement to synth patches with modulation

MT Step-by-Step Adding modulation… cont’d

There’s much more to modulation assignment than just LFOs. Try To restrict the amount of change it’s possible to make, use the
07 assigning one of the rotary controls to an oscillator’s pitch. Now
08 Amount sliders in any particular row. So you might set the
when you move that control you can change the pitch of one of the maximum amount to 30 for example, to ensure that only moderate
components of your sound in realtime. modulation is ever possible for that control.

The area to the right on the mod matrix has more columns and Assigning buttons as mod sources can be useful for making
09 this is because it adds a second destination column. So you can
10 quick changes. Here for example, a button has been assigned to
take any source just like you’ve already tried but this time assign it to toggle between two filter frequency states. Pressing the button zaps
two things at once, with variable amounts. between two completely different sounds.

All these modulation options have a Scale column and this can be For really interesting results you can choose Thor’s step
11 used to assign the Amount parameters to another control such as
12 sequencer as a modulation source, choosing from several of its
the mod wheel, a performance input such as aftertouch or breath, or an parameters and assigning these to destinations. So you can effectively
envelope or CV input. This opens up even more possibilities. design your own step-by-step modulation.

case of more advanced modules such as Thor and the modulate the filter frequency on an effect module. The
Pulveriser, plus quite a few others, multiple modulation result would be filtering on the effect that matched up
inputs and outputs are available using CV connections, with the modulation of the synth sound since they were
and there are also CV splitter and merger modules being controlled by the same parameter. If you
available for amazing routing flexibility. extrapolate this simple example out to account for all the
In a typical example of using CV, you might take the CV and audio modulation ins and outs that are possible in
LFO CV out from a synth where that LFO is already being Reason – a near-infinite number – then you begin to see
used to modulate the synth’s sound, and use it to how remarkably powerful this technology is. MT

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LEARN LIVE WITH SSR
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 MT Technique Get to know your EQs

Requirements
MT Workshop Cutting-edge Production Techniques Our Cutting-edge

Get to know
Production
workshops are
illustrated using Pro
Tools, but you can
apply the principles
to whatever
DAW you use.

your EQs
Knowing what makes your EQs tick will help you get the most from them.
Mike Hillier looks under the curve…

L
ast month we looked at the various compressor
types, with the hope that a good knowledge of the When engaging an EQ,
idiosyncrasies of each type would help you to
choose the right compressor for each particular knowing how it works is key to
job. This month we’re going to take the same step
with equalisers. getting the most out of it
If you think of an EQ simply, it is just a frequency-
dependent gain stage. The biggest difference in sound applied equally across all frequencies – so to boost around
between two EQs comes from the frequencies it acts upon. 500Hz, a passive EQ will actually cut either side of 500Hz
A filter, for instance, will sharply attenuate frequencies and then boost all frequencies. This will inevitably increase
above (low-pass) or below (high-pass) the cut-off. But how the noise floor, but can have a very smooth and natural
sharply these frequencies are attenuated will have a huge sound. Active EQs use gain stages in parallel with the EQ
effect on the sound of the filtering. It is common for filters to circuitry, and so can boost only the necessary frequencies,
have a slight lift before the cut-off frequency, which is which will keep any noise increases within that small range.
known as a resonant peak, and if emphasised, as on some Most console EQs come into the active EQ category.
synths, can produce some very wild sounds. But even when When engaging an EQ, knowing how it works is key to
subtle, a little boost before the cut-off can have very useful getting the most out of it. The sonic difference between two
results – we’re fond of using it on bass instruments to get a different EQs may be subtle, but knowing when to reach for
bass boost, while cleaning up the subs. a Pultec and when to choose a console EQ will help to give
A shelving EQ will boost or cut all frequencies above or your mixes an edge.
below the cut-off frequency, but unlike a filter, a shelf is Digital EQs, like the simple Avid EQ III, are ideal for
more subtle. Shelving filters are particularly useful at clinical removal of problem frequencies, but for broader
changing the overall tonal balance, shifting the focus from tonal shaping, an EQ with a little more flavour can help to
bass to treble, or vice versa. A parametric EQ is used when shape the tone with more natural results. The Maag EQ4
you want to boost or cut around one specific frequency, and doesn’t have anywhere near the flexibility of Avid EQ III, but
most parametric EQs will come with some means to vary we are far more likely to turn to it for tonal shaping, as it
the Q, or width, of the boost/cut. On some models the Q will seems to work wonders with very slight changes.
change in proportion to the amount of boost/cut applied. The big-bottom Pultec trick is great for adding weight to
These might be wide bells at small gain settings, narrowing the bottom end by increasing and decreasing the bottom
as you turn the boost/cut up. Many EQs will include a around the same frequency, but try doing the same with a
combination of these different EQ shapes, providing you clean EQ and you’ll get nowhere. The extra noise and
with a full range of tone shaping options. colouration of the Pultec is what lends this trick its magic.
Further differentiating EQ models is the technique the
EQ uses to boost or cut the signal, and this can have a huge
effect on the sonic characteristics of the EQ. Passive EQs,
such as the Pultec EQP-1A use passive circuitry to shape
the tone. However, this kind of circuitry can only reduce
signal level, and to include boosts passive EQs do actually
include a gain stage. In the original Pultec this gain stage
was valve-based, although many modern imitations use a
solid-state gain stage to great effect. The gain stage is

LINEAR PHASE EQS

Linear phase EQs are a great tool for changing the balance of a signal with
little to no distortion or colouration. However, be careful of pre-ringing,
especially on bass instruments. This can spoil the attack of a kick or bass
guitar, and even ruin the feel of a well tracked song.

60 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

MT148.TUT CPT.indd 60 29/05/2015 14:59

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 MT Technique Get to know your EQs

MT Step-by-Step Bringing the EQ into play

The bass is sounding quite lifeless, so let’s start by adding a

02 Pultec-style EQ after the compressor, both to give some life to
the top-end, and to try the big bottom trick. We’ve boosted heavily
This month we’ve used a variation on last month’s project, with a around 4kHz, cutting around 10kHz at the top, while we’ve used the big
01 single drums stem and parallel chain, acoustic guitar, bass and bottom trick around 60Hz to add some weight.
organ. We’ve added Avid Dyn3 compressors for compatibility, but feel
free to swap these out with some of your favourites.

For the clean

04 drums channel
we’ve added an SSL
style channel strip EQ
using the high-pass
filter to scoop out the
very, very low-end –
even on the drums –
and then shaping the
bottom end with the
low- and two mid-
bands, adding in just a
little top with the
high-shelf.

The bass is starting to sound a little better, but the mid-range is

03 still quite muddy, so we’ve added a digital EQ to clean it up. Here
we’ve used FabFilter Pro-Q2 in the first Insert slot to pull out
frequencies we don’t like before the signal hits the compressor.

As you EQ, On the parallel drums

05 06 track, we want to
be sure to
re-adjust the levels, remove all but the mid-band
pulling the signal before it hits the compressor,
down a bit if you’ve so we’ve added another
boosted too much, to console EQ and used the
ensure you don’t high- and low-pass filters to
simply raise everything create a band-pass filter
up in the mix. around the mids.

62 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

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 MT Technique Get to know your EQs

MT Step-by-Step Bringing the EQ into play… cont’d

The acoustic guitar
08 has a rhythmic as
well as a melodic part to
play in this mix. However,
it’s masking the bass guitar
a little, so we need to try
and find room for these
two to come through the
mix together.

Using the same console EQ on a number of different sources

07 can have a gluing effect on the mix, as each will add similar
harmonic distortions. Add another console EQ to the acoustic guitar
track for this purpose.

The Tonelux Tilt acts similarly to a high- and low-shelf, raising one We’ve also added a mid-side EQ to add some width to the
09 while lowering the other. It can be a great way of quickly finding a
10 mid-range of the organ. This will help to push it out of the way
place for a sound in your mix, and we’ve used one on the Hammond of the bass guitar part in the mix, while keeping the overall tonality of
Organ to lift the top-end a little. the instrument.

One of our favourite EQs for the master buss is the Manley Even a subtle use of the Massive Passive can transform a mix.
11 Massive Passive, as it can work wonders through the mid-range,
12 Here we’re adding a little top-end in with a high-shelf set to
has a great tonality of its own, and can really lift the top-end if needed. 27kHz, boosting the bottom end with a lift around 100Hz, and
tightening up the mids with a cut around 800Hz.

64 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

MT148.TUT CPT.indd 64 29/05/2015 14:59

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MT148.subs.indd 67 03/06/2015 15:15

 MT Reviews Roland JD-XA

MT Lead Review
Hardware Software Mobile tech Accessories

Innovation ROLAND
JD-XA
Choice

9/10
9
9/10
This is what all the
fuss was about at
NAMM 2015, but was
Details the JD-XA synth
Price £1,599 worth keeping
Contact a secret?
+44 (0) 1792 702701
Web
www.roland.co.uk

Key features
● 49-key
Crossover synth
It’s the Roland ‘secret’ from the 2015 NAMM show. Yes, MusicTech strikes again
with analogue
and digital
with yet another world exclusive review. Andy Jones is the luckiest man in music
synth engines
● Velocity
technology, so does he really have to go on ‘that’ Roland rant again? Yes. He does.
sensitive with

T
aftertouch
hose with a short attention span damn of creativity at the Japanese the new Aira effects modules and they
● 256 Programs,
8-part combos, might want to skip the next giant, and now we’re inundated with look and sound pretty awesome); and
sequences couple of paragraphs, to the bit product release after product release, a company that has even embraced
or arpeggios
that I will probably start with to the point where Roland actually won computer music making (I never thought
● USB MIDI/audio
with digital “and now Roland could be brilliant the show-stopping headlines at the I’d say that, but System-1 could be seen
and analogue again”. Because I always find that when recent major trade shows (whereas at as basically a controller for a bunch of
streaming to
computer
writing about this particular company, one time we weren’t sure if they were superb soft synths).
● Analogue engine, lots of explanations are needed. And even at these trade shows). I’ve also just realised that Roland
4-part multi and lots of adjectives… makes me use a lot of italics. But as if
monophonic
or up to 4-part
As a music technology big gun, And now Roland could be all the above (bar the italic bit) is not
polyphony at Roland has been one of the most brilliant again… enough, Roland could be making
one instance brilliant and aggravating in music …and here’s where we welcome back fantastic synths again.
● 4-pole transistor
technology history. It released some of some readers. So, to Roland today, and I say ‘could’… After that fanfare of an
ladder multi-
mode filter the finest synths to grace the planet, we’re talking about a company that has intro, it would be easy for me to say, yes,
● Digital engine: with the likes of the Jupiter 8 and Juno
SuperNatural 60 in the 80s. Then, at the end of that
sounds, up to 64
parts polyphony
over four parts
decade, it inadvertently kicked off
dance music with a bunch of old bass
Roland has finally come to
● Digital sounds
can be routed
and drum machines (rediscovered,
re-used and abused years after their
terms with its past and could be
making fantastic synths again
through
analogue engine original release by pioneering
● 5 system effects producers on both sides of the Atlantic).
over 100 types
For the next couple of decades, it
● 16-track
sequencer floundered into trying to ignore come to terms with its past (both Aira Roland’s doing that, too, and lead into
(8 internal and computers while at the same time TR-8 and TB-3 do justice to the original another glorious review of its latest kit
8 external)
eventually realising what it had done in machines); a company embracing but, well, you’ve guessed it, this is
● Connections
inc. MIDI, USB, dance music and trying to cash in with analogue as never before (the Roland. The JDX-i was the big return to
Gate + mic i/p for instruments your dad might like. forthcoming System 500 is my most synths, and the last Roland gear that
vocoder effects
That’s ‘might’. But then, last year, Aira anticipated release of the year); I tested, but it was not without its faults.
● h x w x d (cm) =
11.1 x 90 x 39 – ahhhh sweet Aira – signified a return. a company embracing the burgeoning It sounded great, was analogue and
● Weight (kg): 6.5 Of sorts. It was a secret project to start modular synth community as if it is part digital, but built as if it was designed for
with, but seems to have broken a huge of that community (we’ve had a demo of EDM users (and probably loved by

68 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

MT148.Rev Roland.indd 68 03/06/2015 15:11

 Roland JD-XA Reviews MT

them). Fortunately, while the JDX-A is not the same, boasting dual oscillators
related in the ‘JD’ sense of the name, and a drive rather than the i’s sub
this one’s built for their dads, and not in oscillator. Other elements, too, are
the embarrassing dad dance way of skewed slightly between the two; so it
Roland products from 1998 to 2012. would probably be unfair to consider,
for example, the JDX-A as being simply
What they share ‘the JD-Xi times four’.
The JD-XA does, of course, share Indeed, there are many marked
features with its smaller brother, the differences, and it also transpires that
JD-Xi, but when you get into the detail Roland doesn’t particularly want you to
it’s more about an overall concept that think of them as brothers, so I’m going
they share rather than too much of the to shelve the comparisons for now and
depth. Yes, both are analogue/digital just look at the A on its own. I was
‘Crossover’ synths and, yes, the digital getting sick of writing ‘i’ and ‘A’ anyway
side of the JD-XA is again represented to be honest…

The main knobs and making the latter hard to read in certain

It would probably be unfair to sliders are backlit, in

a way we now expect
light. Having all of that lettering lit as
well would have been great, but

consider the JD-XA as simply

from our gear…
perhaps a little too Christmassy…
On to the synth’s main architecture;

‘the JD-Xi times four’… think of a Program as an eight-part

combination made of four analogue
mono synths, which you can stack (but
by Roland’s long-standing In detail with default MIDI channels of 1 to 4),
SuperNatural technology. They also We’ve explored some of the front-panel and four digital slots that take their
share a glowing fascia, well-lit front functions below, but broadly speaking, sounds from the aforementioned
panels being de rigour for any item of think of the bulk of the fascia as being SuperNatural engine. These have up to
studio technology these days (which taken up by the analogue synth controls 64 voices of polyphony available
gets my vote). and the bottom by common controls for between them, and by default are set
But whereas the ‘i’ was monophonic Program selection and the onboard on MIDI channels 5 to 8, so clearly these
on the analogue side, the ‘A’ has four sequencer programming. eight parts can be played as a
parts, which can each be monophonic Interestingly, on the JD-XA you might performance (together) or a multi-
or combined for up to four notes of find the contrast between these well-lit timbral set-up (separately). With that in
polyphony. And, going further, the features to be a little high compared to mind, we can look at how the Programs
analogue element on the larger synth is the printed lettering on the unit itself, sound, and their constituent parts but,

PART SELECTION SYNTH CONTROLS EFFECTS/MIC SECTIONS

1 You choose – or can see – which of the eight parts is
2 The biggest part of the front panel is the analogue
3 These include five system effects (reverb,
active within a Program. The top four are the analogue (and digital) synth area, where the oscillators, mixer, filters TFX1, TFX2, delay and master EQ) for all parts, plus
components, the bottom are the digital. Below this, you and amp section are, along with four envelope sections. a Mic section. Here, you can modulate the synth
determine three partials that make up the digital sound. Each can also be accessed and changed via the screen. sounds with your voice and vocode.

2
1
3

4
5 6

COMMON SECTION + CONTROLLERS PRESET SELECTION PATTERN SEQUENCER AND TEMPO CONTROLS
4 Main controls include volume, octave +/-, arp. and
5 As well as the + and - detailed left, you can choose
6 The main controls for the on-board sequencer
the main screen (and a + and - for stepping through preset Programs via bank and number here, with 16 are to the right of the 16 buttons that program them
parameters/presets). Also, pitch/mod and two buttons that double up as the 16-track sequencer. and determine scale, length and so on. There’s also a
programmable wheels, plus MIDI setup for ext. control. Favourite Programs can also be selected here. master tempo dial for a third display showing its value.

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 69

MT148.Rev Roland.indd 69 03/06/2015 15:11

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 Roland JD-XA Reviews MT

unlike the JD-Xi, it’s not so easy to get to utilise all eight parts of a Program, with We would say it has sub basses and then brought in extra
the usual controls,
the constituent parts of these either a big-sounding analogue half movement by way of the effects. In fact,
and it does, but a lot
Programs. The analogue sounds can’t with four notes of polyphony, or four more besides – talking of the programmers, what a
be chosen from a list, for example, but different analogue sounds stacked pedals plus CV/Gate palette they had, with so many engines
connections, too.
the digital ones can be defined by their (or a mixture of these). Add four digital and modifications at their disposal
partials. Again, the thinking is that the combinations with up to 64 notes and – and by and large, they do seem to
XA is a grown-up version of the Xi, so you’ll understand why I say ‘big’. have made the most of them.
where that synth had it laid out for you, There’s lots of movement, too – Who will benefit? Soundtrack and
the XA is more for people who want to flowing sweeps, dubsteppy basses, dance composers, for sure – there are
create analogue sounds from scratch or one-button-press soundscapes and lots of instant tunes in both camps.
use some of the Programs on offer. simply loads of things right across the People used to the digital side of Roland
frequency spectrum. As you would synths – those sound modules and
The Programs expect, the Roland programmers have keyboards stacked full of both real and
As far as these go, you can expect pretty played to the Crossover strengths, so imaginary sounds – might be
much something of everything, but if where big booming bass is required disappointed because there’s less
I were to try to sum it up, I’d use the they’ve layered punchy analogue acoustic stuff here. And thank the Lord
word ‘big’. The biggest sounds, of course, sounds with fast attacks over droning – you can keep your fake trumpets and
saxophones for another module, this is
a synth that you get hands-on with, and

You can keep your fake dirty hands at that.

Which is the main point of it. The

trumpets. This is a synth to get more than two dozen rotaries demand
that you turn them, command you to

your hands dirty with… change sounds and dream. You can
create virtually anything you want with
the ingredients Roland has given you,
and then you can take them anywhere
with the controls. If you mess with just
one in your first half-hour, make it the
Drive control – as this will dirty up
anything. The synth might have one of
the cleanest and most shiny (and
arguably a tad too plastic) front panels
in synth design history, but the JD-XA’s
got the potential for the dirtiest of
sounds. It’s like meeting a nice lady at
church, only to find that she talks like
a navvy and burps for her country.
Which brings us to the crux of the
synth. The clue is in the word
‘Crossover’. Yes, we have a great
analogue synth that you can layer up,
or add polyphony onto one sound. And,
yes, we have a great digital synth, with
Roland’s Supernatural technology its
well-tested backbone. But the JD-XA is
all about the two crossing over, so as
well as that dirty drive, it’s about
channelling the digital through the
audio and adding warmth; it’s about
blending the best analogue sounds with
chiming digital cleanliness and creating
something new out of it. You can see
examples in the videos online and
witness how a straight-up, clean digital
synth can produce a Blade Runner-
esque sound that evokes the best in
It’s a clean-looking synth, but don’t let that fool you. Getting hands-on with the JD-XA is where the analogue; it’s these combinations and
synth’s real dirt lies. Use it in one of four ways. It has pure analogue (with a dedicated bus), it has
digital, but mixing the two in a single Program, or routing digital waves through the analogue signal the possibilities they bring that really
path is where you will add most interest. ‘Crossover’ equals mixing the two for the best results… make the JD-XA synth so exciting.

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 71

MT148.Rev Roland.indd 71 03/06/2015 15:12

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 Roland JD-XA Reviews MT

Other features soon see how creative it can be, and it’s Alternatives
But there is more. You can use the JD as another good sonic feature. As I suggest in the text below, the JD-XA’s price puts it in the big league of
a fully-assignable MIDI controller for synths, with Moog, Dave Smith, Access, Nord and more hitting big in that
zone. Of those, I’ve looked at the Nord Lead 4 (slightly cheaper at £1,350),
your DAW/plugs, or a high quality A for attainment? which obviously does the virtual analogue thing well. With some digital
vocoder by connecting a mic. And the So what do I think overall? The sound is wavetable synthesis, it also offers a bit of both worlds, although the clash
on-board sequencer is very useful and a plus. I liked the JD-Xi’s sound. I love between them isn’t as pronounced and it’s only over, essentially, four parts.
The Access Virus TI (£1,500+) is a synth I looked at seemingly ages ago, and
doesn’t add too much complexity. You the JD-XA’s. It takes the concept of is still around. It sounds incredible and also acts like a virtual instrument
might brush over this as – with each Crossover synthesis that you could within your DAW, although by now I suspect it might be sounding just
a little dated. Other than that, there’s little in any price range that does
Program clearly created as an argue the JD-Xi introduced, and runs
digital and analogue so well, so if this is what you want – and especially if
eight-part MIDI multi-timbral set-up with it to a much higher level. There are you are pushed for funds – you should check out the JD-Xi, even though
– the synth certainly lends itself to more parts, with which to make bolder they are surprisingly different in many ways. It’s light in weight but sounds
good – not as good as the ‘A’, but it is a quarter of the cost.
being used with an external DAW. But sounds – and the engines to get you
the sequencer also reveals the synth’s there are also bigger.
Patterns which demand attention. I also like many of the features,
Essentially behind many – but not including the sequencer – it’s simple
all – of the Programs lie Patterns, which and surprisingly creative. I’m not saying
you can trigger with the Play button. I’d use it, but there’s no reason for it not
These Patterns are essentially cycling to be there and not to use it as, at the
riffs (over the 16 parts) of notes, created very least, a notepad.
over up to eight parts of a Program. You I love the look of the synth, too.
can easily record your own by playing My studio is swimming in lights at the
notes in real time, or a couple of step moment – it’s a personal thing, I know I moved away from, as it has some very
time modes where you key in the notes – but I’m very happy with that. big differences. And because of those
using the 16 pads. The negatives are fewer. I can live differences, Roland doesn’t really want
Importantly, both the effects and the with the fact that you might have to you perceive them as related, but they
Program’s sound parameters can be squint to read some of the front panel do share the Crossover architecture, so
recorded so, for example, you can open – you’ll get used to what is where after do have some similar sounds. With the
up a filter on a sound while it cycles a while. The partial analogue thing Xi streeting at just £379 you could, then,
around and increase the amount of the threw me a bit at first, but I can see why buy four for the price of one JD-XA…
effect you’re using. Roland has done it this way. I’d maybe Food for thought…
When you consider that you can do have liked a bigger screen to Would I, though? Well, with the extra
this on all eight sounds that make up incorporate colour and touch and muscle, bigger keys, the approach and
a Program within a Pattern Sequence, it lessen the need for three LEDs – but the design, I think – even though I’m
suddenly becomes apparent that you there again I have been spoilt this greedy and usually choose quantity over
have a powerful feature and one that, month by the screen on the new Akai quality – this time I’d say less is more.
It’s an A for me, and an A from me. MT

Effects and parameters can MT Verdict

+ Crossover architecture really
be recorded, a powerful feature does offer best of both worlds
+ Great preset Programs and all

you may have avoided very inspiring

+ Hands-on controls make it very
easy to manage all sounds in an
analogue way
+ Good general effects, plus mic
oops, like me, you might have up until Advance keyboard (see review on p74 effects for vocals
that point avoided… for more details). Yes, the plastic finish + Great to be able to route digital
sounds through analogue engine
I’m not a huge fan of programming is still a little smooth and does tend to
+ Easy to understand and use many
sequences of Patterns together like this mark easily, but now I’m picking hairs. of the features
when I have Logic to do that with, but That leaves the price. The full retail + Patterns Sequencer is solid
once you give it a go you realise that you of £1,599 (currently £1,549 street) puts and creative
might not need that computer after all. this synth close to synth super-league + Looks great
It’s actually so easy that, as well as a territory price-wise. It’s up there with - Expensive
scratch pad when you are alone and models from the likes of Moog, Dave - Could be initially confusing on the
DAW-less, live players will love the Smith, Nord and Access, all of whom analogue sound side of things
ability to have programmed phrases have great reps and great machines. - Do you want three screens or one
good one?
and backing tracks at their disposal. You could argue, though, and I will, that
The arpeggiator is another JD while these synths have individual While Aira and analogue might be
feature worth touching on, again strengths, they focus mostly on specific stealing the headlines, Roland’s
because it’s pretty easy to get in to and sonic areas, whereas the JD-XA has two new JD synths are also helping the
company get bang on course, and
to make the best of. Simply hit the distinct territories in its Crossover
this is the pick of them so far. Pricey,
Arpeggiator button with any sound, architecture: analogue and digital. but a damn fine synth.
then maybe the Key Hold and
Shift>Arpeggiator, and you will be in its
Bizarrely, then, if you take this
argument further, the one synth that 9/10
feature list to tweak Patterns. You’ll does compete with it is the JD-Xi, which

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 73

MT148.Rev Roland.indd 73 03/06/2015 15:12

 MT Reviews Akai Advance Series keyboards

Innovation

Choice
AKAI
9/10
9
9/10
Advance
Series
Details
Price
25: £299
49: £399
61: £469
Contact
+44 (0) 01252 896040 The Advance Series from Akai certainly looks like a bold, new set of keyboards,
Web
www.akaipro.com but its software attempts to blur the lines between hardware and software and
Key features revolutionise the way you control your instruments. Andy Jones feels VI…
● 25, 49 or 61 keys
● 4.3in high-res

I
colour screen
with interface do hope that you’re paying attention. MP3s but most producers need kHz/ So, the tens will hopefully be
buttons The world of gear for music making is MHz a plenty. A time where, well… remembered as the decade where we
● Includes Virtual a fickle place and there are some anything goes. (finally) got it right. Where classic gear
Instrument
Player software pretty seismic things happening One thing that is certain, though, is blended seamlessly with software,
for VI preset right now. It has become so changeable, that hardware has made a comeback where virtual instruments acted real
management, though, that anything could happen, like no other and that today’s studio and where we really did enjoy the ease
mapping and
patch creation and probably will. But as we’re at the sounds great, is colourful, looks of software with all the tactility of
● Semi-weighted centre of ‘things’ music technology incredible and, thanks to an increasing hardware. Which leads me nicely (again)
velocity- related, we like to think that we have a number of companies like Native to the new Advance keyboard range
sensitive keybed
with aftertouch pretty clear picture of what’s emerging Instruments and now Akai, is incredible from Akai. The company behind it thinks
● Eight endless and where our studio technology is to use. Computers are still at the heart this range is important, that it is
rotaries, plus going. And products such as Advance
eight pressure-
sensitive MPC 49 look like being a part of it – a big one

Us producers are a fickle

pads with RGB at that. Before we explain why, a recap
illumination of the last 40 years might be in order
● Transport, pad

bunch. We want everything, but

bank , octave and
(don’t worry, it’s quick).
performance So, in the 70s everything was

do seem to be getting it…

buttons analogue. It sounded great but was a
● Connectors: USB
and 5-pin MIDI
pain in the arse to use. In the 80s
input/output everything went digital. It was much
VIP software easier to use but sounded shocking. In
● Part of a 16GB the 90s computers came along to save of everything, of course, but the front probably the most (ahem) advanced
10,000 sound everything and everyone. And during the end looks more traditional, feels more and ground-breaking thing that Akai
bundle
● Plays ‘virtually
noughties everyone thought they were like hardware, and is consequently has done since a certain S-series
every’ VSTi- doing just that, so everyone became often more creative. sampler. It even hired out Real World
compatible saved. Mostly with laptops. So that’s where we are. In an age studios to tell us about it (and the free
plug-in
But then the tens happened. Do we where we’ve used computers to give us food was exceptional).
● Standalone VI
player or plug-in even call it the tens? Whatever. The everything and now we are turning And the demo there made us believe
within any AU, ruddy tens. A time when analogue is away from them in favour of the old that this range is important too.
VST, or AAX DAW
back in fashion. Where everything ways – but still expect them to be there Because, like Native’s Komplete Kontrol
● Access, edit and
mix up to eight sounds incredible. But is getting easier for us should we need them. Like I say, S Series, the new Advance range takes
VIs at one time to use. Where some people like tape we’re a fickle bunch. We want the best software and (kind of) turns it into
● Unlimited and vinyl. Where others like Pro Tools of everything. But we do seem to be hardware. It offers a keyboard that you
instances
and digital. Where most people listen to getting it… use in favour of your computer screen

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 Akai Advance Series keyboards Reviews MT

and it offers control over a swathe of Apparently Akai has a team of

software titles. Only from the demo we programming elves dedicated to
had, it *whisper* seemed to do it making sure VIP talks to every – or, as
slightly better than Komplete Kontrol… they say, ‘virtually every’ – instrument
that has been released and every one
No screens that will be released…
There are many reasons why using your
computer screen less to produce music Like every good demo
is a good thing, not least because you Like I’ve said, the demo at Real World
might start to listen to it more rather really did impress so let’s get straight
than look at blocks on the screen all the into it to see if I can be as slick.
time. The Advance series doesn’t lose Firstly it’s a case of downloading the
your screen altogether, though; it VIP software, which was not as
essentially moves it from your straightforward as I thought it would be.
computer to the keyboard, replacing it After a few minutes I realised I had to
with a superb LCD screen which gives register the product before I could get

Apparently Akai has a team of We admit to being

suckers for flashing,
and loaded it in as a ‘regular’ plug-in,
selecting it as an instrument within a

programming elves making sure

coloured lights, but
the knobs are pretty new MIDI track. Hey presto, it worked
special as well… straight out of the box with some of the

VIP talks to every instrument bundled plug-ins.

In order for it to control your
installed plug-ins, though, it then needs
to scan for them. Select Settings from
you an overview of what your software access to the software but then it’s a within VIP and then Plug-in Manager. It
instruments are and what they’re doing, download including that swathe of provides you with a couple of locations
all by way of a piece of software called extras I mentioned. in which to look for installed plug-ins –
Virtual Instrument Player (VIP). You then simply enter a registration hit OK once you’re happy and then it’ll
The software comes bundled with code before authorisation via your hard scan for them.
the keyboard as a 4GB download (part drive (iLok is an option I thankfully didn’t The process to find the instruments
of a 16GB/10,000 sound bundle which have to pursue, having had all sorts of is quick, and the process to manage the
we’ll come to) and is designed to sit in or problems with it in the past). presets a little longer depending on the
out of your DAW acting as the interface VIP works as a standalone number you’ve installed. In my case,
between it and the keyboard. It’s like a application or within a DAW. I installed it and as I was using the MusicTech test
bridge from the Akai to any and every (a slightly longer process than you machine, there were some 20,000
virtual instrument ever made. might expect) and then booted Logic up presets to ‘manage’, but even this took

THE SCREEN ROTARIES PADS

1 The 4.3in screen is a key feature of the Advance
2 These ‘endless’ rotaries are among the most striking
3 These multi-coloured, pressure and velocity
series. It’s full colour, clear and graphically capable of feature on the Advance range and stood out at our demo at sensitive pads are ‘MPC-style’ controls that perform
showing pretty much everything on your computer screen Real World. They’re big, cool and you wonder why all everything from muting multi-tracks to triggering
including the GUI (or part of) the instrument you select. rotaries can’t be this way. whatever you want…

1 6
4 3

STANDARD CONTROLS KEYBOARD MAIN ROTARY AND CURSORS

4 Pitch and mod wheels are ‘rubberised’ – the mod
5 The keyboard is semi-weighted and velocity
6 These multi-coloured, pressure and velocity
wheel feels particularly good. Under you also get octave sensitive. It feels like a cut above a standard MIDI sensitive pads are the main controls you need to
and arpeggiator controls (not as fully featured as those on controller keyboard, perhaps a little heavier. It’s not a navigate around the screen. The single rotary might be
Komplete Kontrol) and main DAW transport buttons. ‘proper’ weighted one but is certainly very playable. smaller than the main eight but you can also press it.

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 75

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 MT Reviews Akai Advance Series keyboards

less than minute. And once you’ve In general use you’ll find that Main The 49 on test has the more than the computer almost
same connections
scanned them… we’re there! and Browser Modes are where you’ll be straight away – especially for the main
around the back as
most of the time, and there are two all the keyboards in navigation, as it does become very
All in one extra Multi Modes that we’ll come to the range including intuitive. You will, initially anyway, want
MIDI in/out, USB, plus
Now I do get a little over excited about after we look at how the Advance range expression and
to turn back to check everything is
stuff that works, because I usually deals with preset sounds. sustain connectors. working, and for certain tasks you might
expect it not to, but VIP really does work stick with the computer for a while.
from the off with your VI library so, Sound control For preset selection, for example,
initially, I was hyper excited. Your virtual With the hardware, you select presets you simply see more on the computer
instruments are there waiting for you. via your selected plug-in as you would screen so it’s slightly better to go this
Sure, you may need to re-select the odd normally by dialling and pressing the way for this task. And everything does
one (Blue 2 in my case) and scan them main rotary on the keyboard. Or, better take a little getting used to using only
but once they’re in, they’re in. Hit still, select them by type. Here you get the keyboard screen but, in time, I did
Browser and they’re listed. Select one multiple options to home in on sounds: find myself using it more and the
via the keyboard or via your DAW, load a and you can do this by instrument, computer’s screen less.
preset and the plug-in appears. timbre, style or articulation. Anyone One point to note is that when using
There are several modes within the who’s familiar with FM7/8’s approach to Kontakt instruments you’ll have to load
hardware and software that you should zooming in on presets will be very much in a ‘Plugin Map’ associated with
whatever instrument you’re using – but

Better still, you get to home in

all of these should have been mapped
out for you by the Akai programmers. In

on presets by instrument,
practice this means you load up
Kontakt within VIP and then go to the

timbre, style or articulation…

File menu to Import Plugin Map For
Kontakt, then simply select from the
Kontakt instruments there – easy.

become familiar with. Main Mode at home here. Again, do it by keyboard Multi setups
displays all presets for all instruments; or computer. Another great feature of VIP is the
Setup Mode is used to set up the Once you load in a preset, the eight ability to run everything you do as a big
keyboard to control your DAW; Browser rotaries –rather like Komplete Kontrol’s multi setup. That is, you can layer eight
Mode is where you select instruments eight rotaries – are assigned to the sounds together (from the same or
and presets; Global Mode enables you most important or dramatic parameters different virtual instrument in your
to change global settings; Control Mode of that sound (think filter, resonance, library) or have them triggered by
enables you to change what hardware etc) so you can get hands on with the different MIDI channels. And,
controls operate which functions. And sound straight away. All great stuff and importantly, you can do this from just
finally the Control, MIDI and MIDI Edit some instant hardware control. one DAW track or VIP instance within
modes enable you to get deep down And, interestingly, overall I quickly your DAW. Suddenly VIP becomes a
and dirty with MIDI parameters. started using the hardware keyboard multi-sound module all within the safe
environs of your sequencer.
Where preset selection might have
been easier on the computer screen, I
found the task of setting Multis up
easier to complete using the keyboard.

(Left) The VIP software in full flow showing MusicTech favourite Fabfilter
Twin loaded up with the preset Bellarius DJM. (Right) The same preset on
the screen of the Advance 49 (note the graphical representation of the
Fabfilter synth is also shown).

76 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

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 Akai Advance Series keyboards Reviews MT

Simply use the cursors to select the A quick run down of what you get for Alternatives
part you want, then select a sound. You free includes the Velvet piano and Where the heck do you start in terms of alternative controller keyboards?
can use the large colourful pads (each Transfuser drum instrument, plus tech Well, pretty much anywhere. If it’s a good, solid set of cheap controllers you
has a different colour per multi-part) to and deep house sound expansion want that control software in an old school way then I’ve looked at both the
Alesis V&Vi and Korg Taktile ranges recently and both are great, the former
mute a part and the smaller buttons for packs. Some of the bundled especially for the cash. In terms of software integration that matches what
solo mode – very easy and you can very instruments might be slightly old – as we have here, there’s one big contender that we’ve hinted at in the main
text and that’s Native Instruments Komplete Kontrol S-Series. So which is
quickly set up massive sounds or multis you often find with any bundles – but in
best? In terms of software integration the Akai probably steals it because
triggered by different MIDI channels, truth they sound surprisingly fresh and, of that screen, enabling so much more to be done without the computer.
just like an old hardware sound module. combined with the expansions detailed, But Komplete Kontrol integrates far better with NI’s own software, has
those incredible LightGuide keys, which help with both playing and control,
While we’re here it’s also very easy to add up to a decent amount of sounds and now comes bundled with 10 NI instruments worth a thousand bucks.
set up Setlists, where you can order for your money when you look at the And the technology, like Akai’s, is now able to control (or Kontrol) third-
presets within a list for when you need overall asking price. party instruments.

them (a live performance, for example.)

Both Multis and Setlists can be Advance, advance
loaded and saved. Actually, when I say Overall, I’m pretty impressed with
‘can be’, I mean ‘should be’. I assumed Advance. Even though we’re talking
that all Multis would save automatically about a new generation of technology
but you need to manually do this as it’s here, it seems very well thought out and
quite easy to lose them if you don’t. works surprisingly well given that it is in
its infancy.
So far so good Sure there are niggles as you’d
So we’ve seen that the control side of expect with v1 of anything. I’d have put
things is great, as is the interaction with the Browser Button on the keyboard at
your current VI library. Now, to cover the top to match its far left position in
that extra content I mentioned earlier. the VIP software (very minor). I’d also Overall the bundle offers a very
Firstly, there’s the content you get free; add a more obvious route back to the successful mix and integration of both
secondly, the content that isn’t… top plug-in menu in the software – it’s software and hardware, and one that
You get half a dozen instruments by easier on the hardware. You don’t will have you turning from your
Air Music Tech, plus Eighty Eight always get a visual indication of the computer to your hardware and, what’s
Ensemble by SONiVOX. We’ll look at a plug-in on the keyboard screen, or at more, using your ears to mix rather than
your eyes. And if ‘the tens’ are
remembered for one thing in music

The extras might be a little old production history, surely that would be
enough in itself? MT

but they add up to a decent MT Verdict

amount of sounds for the cash + Fantastic control over
your presets
+ Amazing screen really will make
you turn from your computer
few of these extras: Vacuum Pro is a least it’s not always instantaneous. The + Easy to use your VI collection and
surprisingly versatile analogue-style plug-in front panel doesn’t adjust to the make it ‘hard’
synth that looks a bit Russian and size of the VIP software window so + Solid keyboard, attractive and
sounds lush and powerful. Loom is an sometimes it doesn’t fit (Blue 2, stand tactile controls
+ Great bundle of instruments and
additive synth suited to sound design, up again), and sometimes it looks too expansion packs
with some standard and unusual small (Crystal), but this is surely not + Elegant shop front
sounds, plus a neat graphical interface. Akai’s fault. Then I had the odd crash,
Hybrid is another ‘analogue’ but with but this happened with Analog Lab and - Screen will take some getting
used to
some amazing and plentiful presets; if you read my review of that, it crashed
- Some features still accessed
Some of the other extras need to be in Logic and I never did get to the better with the computer’
downloaded along with sample packs bottom of it, so suspect this is an - Software could do with a ‘back to
that also come bundled with Advance. Analog Lab thing, not a VIP thing. main menu’ option
You’ll see what you get in the Advanced
Akai hasn’t made anything as
Content menu where the VIP store is Final thoughts ground-breaking as this for a while.
located. As well as the future of control, Those few niggles aside, though, and I’m It really does make using and
we could be looking at the future of left with a great impression of both the controlling your software a breeze.
purchasing as there’s a lot here to keyboard and the VIP software. Taken This is what software control
should be like: hardware!
choose to buy, with more titles from a on its own, Advance is a good controller.
large number of third-party companies
likely to join the party.
But combined with VIP it’s almost in a
league of its own.
9/10
MAGAZINE July 2015 | 77

MT148.REV Akai.indd 77 29/05/2015 12:44

 MT Reviews Yamaha AG Series mixers

YAMAHA Value Choice

€£$ 9/10
9
9/10
Details
AG Series
Price
AG03: £105 The small mixer market seems to be booming, with many people simply needing
AG06: £130
Contact Yamaha UK a small interface with mix capabilities. Yamaha is pitching its latest AG Series at
0844 811 1116
Web
everyone from producers to bloggers. Andy Jones looks at both models in the
yamahaproaudio.com
range to see if they really do offer something for everyone…
Key features

J
AG03 ust recently, I’ve looked at what I say – those extras aside – as Controls are solid and, importantly
● 3-channel mixer/ a couple of small mixer solutions, applicable to the 03 as well. given the unit’s diminutive size, not
USB
audio interface which seem to be becoming cumbersome – even someone with
● Freq response: a popular choice for musicians In use fingers as big as mine can easily
+0.5 dB/-1.5 dB and producers who need simple input Set-up is very easy. You’ll need a driver if operate all the controls without any
(20 Hz to 48 kHz
@ Fs = 192 kHz), and output control. The resurgence of you have a PC, but Mac users can getting in the way of each other.
● Weight (Kg): 0.8 this type of mixer could be down to the simply select the AGs as an option So as for applications, I’ll return to
● Dimensions popularity of the acoustic singer/ (Cntrl Click) under the Utilities menu in the four I mentioned above. Bloggers
(wxhxd):
songwriter, or it could be down to the Applications. Then, simply make it the can simply connect a mic, switch to
129x63x202
prevalence of blogging and YouTube default input and output device for Loopback (which effectively takes
AG06 video creation, all of which need good iTunes, Logic or whatever. I had it up and inputs and playback and mixes it back
● 6-channel mixer/ audio mixing but not complicated running in no time with, it has to be to your computer), mute the monitors
USB
audio interface
amounts of it.
Yamaha has clearly recognised this
Future Ed Sheerans can
● Freq response:
+0.5 dB/-1.5 dB need, so the new AG series is aimed at
(20 Hz to 48 kHz
all of the above, with the marketing
@ Fs = 192 kHz),
● Adds amp sim video showing bloggers, mobile
musicians, video game YouTubers and
simply plug in a mic, guitar and
even that looper he uses
processing
● Weight (Kg): 1.0 pro musicians – a healthy and large
● Dimensions
audience if ever there was one.
(wxhxd):
155x63x202
The range said, far less drama than it takes and use headphones. For video game
Shared features So, we get two models in the range certain FireWire interfaces to get going. commentators, it’s straightforward to
● 24-bit192kHz
– the AG03 and AG06. Both offer similar With such devices, I’ve often mix game audio with your words.
2-track audio
recording and specs, as you might expect, with the 03 experienced all manner of rebooting to Producers will find it surprisingly
playback offering mono inputs for guitar and mix, get things to recognise other things, but useful if you just want to mix a couple of
● 48v (ch. 1) for and a pair of stereos for a keyboard. The not so here. Good old USB… analogue sources with your DAW audio,
condenser mics
and DI boxes 06 adds an extra mono channel, plus The mixer is pretty silent, certainly for example (I plugged in an analogue
● D-Pre preamps a couple of phono ins for mp3 players only hiss is noticeable at full blast on synth and was playing away with a
for low noise and the like. It also adds an amp sim the output, and on the input this bunch of soft synths in no time). And, of
● Comp/EQ effects
effect control for guitar inputs, so obviously depends on what you are course, that singer-songwriter category
● Hi Z input for
guitars (ch. 2) overall it has quite a lot of flexibility plugging in. I only really got anything of is well catered for. Future Ed Sheerans
● USB-powered given the price and size of the unit. any consequence when using the Amp can simply plug in a mic and guitar
● Loopback With that in mind, and considering Sim mode (not available on the smaller – and probably even a looper like the
feature
that there are few other differences 03), which as you might expect had one Ed uses so much, too.
● Includes Cubase
AI via download (bar size and weight), I’ll concentrate on inherent noise – but that’s all part of Another possible use for the AG is as
the more fully-featured 06, but consider the fun, really. a tool for bands. OK, that might be

78 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

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 Yamaha AG Series mixers Reviews MT

stretching things a little, but if you have complexity, the AG series will find simply because you get the extra
a guitarist, vocalist and keyboard player homes in a good variety of places. flexibility of the phono ins, another
you could plug them all in and play They’re well suited for everyone I’ve mono in and the amp sim (although this
away, recording to your computer with mentioned, plus the odd band, and is pretty limited in its effect, it is
minimum fuss and financial outlay. novices in all areas of audio should take dramatic!). Either way, you’re getting
something easy to set up, difficult to

Either way, you’re getting break, and fast to mix audio with. For
not too much cash, either. Dead easy to

something easy to set up and use and even easier to recommend. MT

fast to mix audio with. For not MT Verdict

too much cash either… + Low noise, good-quality output

+ Neat and very sturdy boxes
+ Compact and very easy to use
+ Great for at least four different
A simpler solution I have yet to come note: these are very probably what
uses, especially blogging
across for all of the above scenarios… you need! + …and bands and producers in
At just over £100 for the 03, I’d be need of a quick mix fix
Conclusion inclined to advise spending the extra + Set up in no time at all
While these mixers are clearly not for £25 for the 06 (although both street at
- No faders, only rotaries on 06
top-end recording artists after oodles lower prices than (you do get one fader on the 03)
of features, sliders, configurations and I’ve stated), - 03 a little limited on inputs

Alternatives The Yamaha AG Series might look

simple, but both units in it pack
I looked at the Mackie Mix series in a recent issue. They offer incredibly
quite a punch in terms of features
cheap analogue mixing, also in compact and sturdy boxes, but no
USB interfacing (although there are other Mackie models that do). I – especially the 06. They represent
also reviewed the Alto Live 802 a couple of issues before that, which, a great route into audio for a variety
while less compact and a little noisy, does also feature USB and longer of tasks and users.
faders for just £169.
9/10
Tiny Thunder Audio

You say
“Control Freak”
like it’s a bad thing.

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MT148.Rev Yamaha mixers.indd 79 04/06/2015 11:32

 Toontrack Hip Hop EZX Reviews MT

if you prefer you can record notes into a

MIDI track in your DAW instead and edit
conventionally there. You can change
playing styles easily, swapping open
and closed cymbal hit types, full and
side snares and many more, to tweak
the kit.

Mix it up
There’s an onboard mixer section with
the ability to send up to 16 individual
outs for more flexible mixing in your

TOONTRACK DAW, and for processing individual

sounds through external effects.

Hip Hop EZX

EZdrummer has some effects of its own
though they seem to work on the
master output of the kit and it’s not
possible to swap them out, merely to
Hip-hop has its own requirements when it comes to have them on or off and change their
settings. The Song Creator feature is
beats. Hollin Jones finds out if Toontrack’s latest handy though, allowing you to build
expansion pack can do the business… verses, choruses, fills and so on. For
more serious work you’ll want to use it
inside a DAW to take full advantage of

E
Zdrummer is one of the most Details drums, as well as hundreds of acoustic the more advanced MIDI and effect
popular sample-based drum Price €69 and electronic percussion sounds – a processing features that are available
instruments around, partly Contact via website full list of the samples is available on to you there.
Web
thanks to its friendly interface the website. Graphic-heavy drum The hip-hop drum sounds in this
www.toontrack.com
and features such as the innovative System requirements instruments haven’t historically always expansion pack are excellent and cover
Song Builder that enable you to create EZdrummer 2 or been the most efficient to actually use, a wide range of styles, from classic
backing tracks. It runs as a plug-in as Superior Drummer but EZdrummer and this expansion hip-hop through to more processed,
2.4.2
well as a standalone application. It’s 2GB hard disk space pack make a good job of it. Each sound filtered and affected kits. It’s a shame
also expandable, and one of the latest 2GB RAM in use is mapped to an onscreen you can’t modify effects chains inside
expansion packs is Hip Hop! EZX, element, and wherever you see an EZdrummer (this is possible in Superior
produced by Mattias Eklund and arrow, it means that element can be Drummer) though you can easily route
Alexander Juneblad. swapped out for a different one. In fact, channels out and process them
This pack requires an existing clicking the arrow not only reveals a list externally, which isn’t a huge hassle. The
installation of EZdrummer 2 or Superior of alternative hits for that slot but also preset patterns are very useable and
Drummer 2.4.2 to be present on your volume and pitch controls, plus the you are of course free to program your
system. Unlike some other sample- current MIDI mapping details. own beats and make extensive changes
based ecosystems there isn’t a free There’s no visual or audible lag in to kits and the playing styles of each
version of a player in which you can load triggering the sounds with the mouse individual hit. If you happen to own
it. This might be an issue for anyone (which some instruments suffer from) EZdrummer and like hip-hop, this pack
who wants the sounds but doesn’t and in addition to MIDI keyboard comes highly recommended. MT
already have the player software, mapping, there are options to connect
though in fairness since the expansion and map MIDI drum kits as well, which MT Verdict
pack is designed to take advantage of generally offers a better playing
+ Excellent hip-hop drum sounds
most of EZdrummer’s features, it’s not a experience for drummers. + Great MIDI loops
surprise that it requires an existing Key features The kits cover a lot of ground, from + Mix and match kits and patterns
install of some kind. ● 22 mix-ready vintage funk-based hip-hop through to + Route creatively into DAW mixer
The installation process is simple kits modern-day neo-soul and southern + Easy-to-use interface
● 16 acoustic + Covers lots of stylistic bases
and, once completed, the collection trap. The patterns are really well put
snares + Decent price
appears as a list of kits and as a ● 18 acoustic kick together, and mixing and matching
selection of preset patterns in the MIDI drums patterns with kits can produce some - You need at least EZdrummer 2
browser. You can mix and match these, ● Hundreds of interesting results. Of course a vintage already installed
and this applies to any other kits and
acoustic and
beat with a vintage kit has a classic - No free ‘player’ option
electronic - No full MIDI editing in the app
patterns you have in your library. percussions kind of a sound, but swapping the kit - Can’t modify effects chains
Everything follows your host tempo and sounds and playing a boom bap beat with more
● Custom MIDI
since loops are MIDI triggered, time modern, electronic drums can sound An excellent collection of hip-hop
grooves
stretching isn’t a problem. excellent as well. beats covering many styles. You’ll
● Tweakable
need EZdrummer 2 though, which is
playing styles You can drag loops into the timeline arguably limited in a few areas.
Boom bap
8/10
● Multichannel and make some edits, removing notes
audio out routing
There are 22 kit presets featuring 16 ● Master effects
by type, though there’s no direct MIDI
acoustic snares and 18 acoustic kick grid edit as you’d get in a DAW. That said,

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 81

MT148.REV Toontrack.indd 81 29/05/2015 14:13

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 Warm Audio EQP-WA tube equalizer Reviews MT

Excellence

10/10
WARM AUDIO
EQP-WA tube equalizer
Incredibly, Warm has managed to launch its first EQ
and land an instant classic – and, what’s more, it’s
actually affordable. John Pickford investigates…

H
ot on the heels of the Details Per Second) nomenclature has been 400 and 800Hz. The old Pultecs, and
Urei-inspired WA76 limiter, Price replaced with Hz and kHz. most other copies feature just four
which impressed us a few £649 (including VAT) As a Program Equalizer, the EQP-WA bands from 20 to 100Hz, so this new
Contact
months back, Warm Audio Nova Distribution excels when processing wideband model has additional control for the
has turned its attention to what is 020 3589 2530 material such as sub-groups and lower mid-band. Up to +12dB of
arguably the most iconic equalizer of all Web complete mixes, as the nature of the shelving boost and -18dB of cut is
www.warmaudio.com
time: the Pultec EQP-1A. Check out the unit is to provide musical tone-shaping available and because the Q shape of
Studio Icons feature on our website for rather than forensic corrective EQ. Of the Boost and Cut controls differ
the full EQP-1A story. Bryce Young, CEO course, the unit is not limited to this slightly, it’s possible to use these
of Texas-based Warm Audio has been style of operation and all manner of controls simultaneously to create
causing a stir within the world of solo instruments and voices can benefit interesting equalization curves. This
analogue outboard gear by offering
excellent high-quality equipment at
bargain prices. And now the company is
really living up to its name with this, its
Warm Audio has turned its
first foray into valve land.
The EQP-WA Tube Amplified
attention to arguably the most
Program Equalizer, to give it its full
name, is a single-channel 2U rack-
iconic equalizer of all time
mount unit based upon a design that’s
now over 60 years old. The original from its sweet sonic enhancement. method is known as the ‘low-end trick’
Pultec design remained in production Audio can also be improved by passing (see the Practical Tip box) and has
for almost 30 years and has been a signal through the unit without the EQ become one of the best-loved features
copied numerous times – however this switched in, allowing the transformers of this type of equalizer. When, for
new model isn’t a direct clone, although and valve amplifier to warm (no pun example, boost and cut is applied with
its vintage styling gives it that familiar intended) sounds, adding rich harmonic 100Hz selected, the low-end boost is
Pultec look. The old units were 3U high Key features enhancement, particularly useful when accompanied by a droop in the
behemoths but Warm has managed to ● Premium high- dealing with sterile digital stems. mid-range, around 1kHz. During the
slim it down by one third, while offering voltage valves There are three distinct sections of 1960s, Tamla Motown processed their
some additional frequency settings, ● CineMag input this equalizer comprising low-end many hit recordings with this type of
and output
both in the low-end and the high- transformers shelving Boost and Cut, boost-peaking EQ, scooping out some mids from
frequency Cut control. The unit’s Cut ● Additional high-frequencies and high-frequency backing tracks to allow the vocals to sit
control was named Atten (attenuation) frequency points shelving cut. The Low-Frequency nicely in the mix.
● XLR and TRS
on original models and, in a further nod control section offers seven selectable The High-frequency control comes
connectors
to modernity, the ancient CPS (Cycles frequency bands at 20, 30, 60, 100, 200, in two sections. The Boost control

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 83

MT148.REV WarmAudio.indd 83 29/05/2015 14:16

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 Warm Audio EQP-WA tube equalizer Reviews MT

provides seven frequency points at Practical tip 16kHz air on vocal tracks, and a subtle
3, 4, 5, 8, 10, 12 and 16kHz, exactly For a great bass drum sound perform the legendary low-end trick of 60Hz boost on bass guitar to name but
mimicking the classic units, with +18dB boosting and cutting simultaneously. Select 30Hz and dial-in equal three – as well as making use of the
amounts of boost and cut until you hear the low-end gain weight while
of available boost. As this is a peaking extra frequency bands not featured on
the boxy mids are reduced. The high-frequency section at 3, 4 or 5kHz will
EQ, a bandwidth control is employed to bring out the click of the beater and a touch of extreme top cut produces a traditional units. The 800Hz setting in
adjust the contour of the EQ curve from beautifully rounded bass drum sound. the low-end section was excellent at
sharp to broad. The HF shelving Cut giving some body to an electric guitar
control has five selectable frequencies rotary switches that allow selection of track and we further tailored the sound
at 3, 4, 5, 10 and 20kHz; the first two frequencies engage with a satisfying to add some bite and presence at 3kHz.
frequency points are additional to the clunk that feels purposeful and inspires As a final touch we cut some extreme
original design. confidence. Even the powered-up LED top at 20kHz where very little useful
glows a gentle red that doesn’t dazzle electric guitar information exists,
Inside the box like many units that opt for neon-blue creating a big, full-bodied sound that
Internally, the fully-discrete unit indicators. Only the Warm logo is a blot was still able to cut through the mix.
features a vacuum tube make up gain on the unit’s faceplate. On the As we usually work in stereo, we
amplifier, which employs two high- company’s earlier orange units (WA12 couldn’t resist strapping our two
voltage Tung-Sol valves (tubes): a and Tonebeast) the logo looked funky in EQP-WA review units across some
12AX7 and 12AU7. Warm has sensibly black – however, on this lovely grey-blue stereo mix-busses and previously
avoided using a valve rectifier as the unit, the brown logo is unfortunately prepared final stereo mixes; the results
Pultecs did; purists may bemoan this, reminiscent of a steaming ****. were superb. This is something we’ve
but the truth is that solid-state So, logo aside, the EQP-WA looks been unable to do with our single Pultec
rectifiers are much more efficient than and feels the part, but how does it copy, unless we processed each
tubes, and arguably allow the unit to sound? We were able to compare the channel separately, but now we can see
perform better. Input and output unit with our well-loved Tube-Tech PE why this type of equalizer is so revered
transformers, along with the inductor, 1C Pultec copy, which has seen as a program equalizer. With many
are by the ever popular CineMag brand. constant use in our review studio for Pultec clones costing several times the
On the rear of the unit is a connector almost 20 years. After a 30-minute wait asking price of Warm’s new version,
for an IEC power lead (supplied), along for it to warm up, it was obvious that the owning more than one is beyond the
with balanced Input and Output EQP-WA is the real deal, possessing the reach of many smaller studios. Now it’s
connectors that support both XLR and weight and warmth we expect from the possible to have a pair for less money
quarter-inch TRS jack cables. Warm low-end boost, and the silky highs from than any of the single-channel boutique
recommends that it’s not advisable to the extreme top-end settings. units. With that in mind, the question
connect both input connectors or both Dialling-in similar settings on both the we found ourselves asking wasn’t, “can
output connectors at once. Warm and Tube-Tech units confirmed we afford to buy both of these?”, rather
Straight out of the box we were that designer Bryce Young has got the “can we afford not to?”
impressed with the feel of the unit, classic sound spot-on. Admittedly, we Don’t make the mistake of thinking
which oozes quality. The large vintage- had high hopes for the unit as we were that the low price of the EQP-WA
styled pots are smooth in operation and impressed enough with Warm’s WA76 equates with low quality. This new
finely indented for precise recall of – their 1176 limiter copy – to buy a pair Warm product can hold its own in
settings, which is particularly useful for our studio. However, we’re in valve comparison with any Pultec-styled EQ.
when using a pair, as we did, for stereo land now, which is previously uncharted The ability to perform all the tricks of
processing. The chicken-head type territory for the company. Even with these units coupled with the advantage
great expectations we were blown- of additional frequency points surely
Alternatives away with the unit’s performance; how makes this a first among equalizers. MT
Manley Laboratories produces a stereo version Warm can manufacture a unit of this
of the EQP-1A (£2,874) which costs more than
quality at such an absurdly low price is MT Verdict
twice the price of a pair of EQP-WAs. The Lindell
PEX-500 (£229) is a very respectable take on nothing short of astonishing.
the EQP-1A style in lunchbox format. However, We made many of our tried and + Classic Pultec equalization style
this solid-state design lacks the creamy- + Useful additional EQ frequencies
smooth valve sound of the Warm EQP-WA.
tested EQ moves with the unit – a touch
+ Quality build and finish
of 10kHz sparkle on snare drum, some + Sweet valve sound
+ Excellent value for money

- Unattractive logo

Warm Audio has taken a world-

class design, added some useful
features and improved some of the
original units’ antiquated internal
components to create a superb
product that punches way above
its weight. As a creative, musical
sonic-shaper it’s second to none.
However, those looking for
surgical corrective EQ should
look elsewhere…

10/10
MAGAZINE July 2015 | 85

MT148.REV WarmAudio.indd 85 29/05/2015 14:16

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 Rupert Neve Designs 511 and 517 modules Reviews MT

Choice

9/10
9
9/10

RUPERT NEVE DESIGNS

511 and 517
modules
Rupert Neve Design’s foray into API’s
500-series comes with two unique mic
preamps. Mike Hillier finds space
for the rack…

A
Details dapting existing designs for and out, and the amount of texture from mic signal. To access the DI you must
Price the 500-series is always a the silk circuit can be dialled in, from so use the 1/4in jack socket on the front
511 £520, 517 £649 challenge. In addition to the subtle it’s almost absent at the panel. A 1/4in Thru socket is also
Contact
Sonic Distribution
limits of physical space inside minimum position, to a setting with included for sending the signal back out
Web a single module, the format has very roughly 10 times the harmonic into an amplifier. This enables you to
www.rupertneve.com strict current and voltage restraints. distortion as the original silk circuit in record the DI’d signal at the same time
Rupert Neve “experimented with a the Portico designs. as the mic’d instrument or amplifier,
number of different transformer and controlling the blend between the two
circuit designs to achieve the same 517 inside the 517 using the Blend knob,
presence and sweetness found in the The RND 517 module lacks the trim and and sending a single mono output to
Portico Series of modules”. high-pass filter controls of the 511, your DAW or recording medium. To keep
At their most basic, the 511 and 517 simplifying the mic preamp section, but the two signals in phase, the DI’d signal
modules share the same preamp instead feeds the signal into an optical has a Variable Phase knob.
design. They both use a Transformer-
Like-Amplifier non-reactive circuit, with

The two preamps share the

a gain switch providing up to 66dB of
gain in 6dB increments. Both have +48V

same structure but the 511 is

phantom power for condenser
microphones, and a polarity invert

more refined for basic duties

Key features switch. However, beyond this simple
511 preamp topology, the two modules
● Mic pre with differ, with each module suited to
72dB gain
different tasks.
● Variable high-
pass filter compressor with a fixed 2:1 ratio. The Finally, the output of the 517 has a
● Variable silk 511 compressor has only a threshold switchable Silk setting, which can be
control The 511 adds a +/-6dB trim control to control, leaving the attack and release used to reduce negative feedback and
the basic preamp, which means when characteristics to the opto-cell. No gain introduce small amounts of harmonic
517
● Mic pre with
it’s flat out the 511 is capable of 72dB reduction monitoring is present, but you distortion to colour the output.
66dB gain of gain, while at its lowest setting the can see when the compressor is active
● One knob 511 will actually attenuate the input with a single LED. In the studio
compression
signal by 6dB. The preamp feeds a In addition to the mic preamp, the While the two preamps share the basic
● Fixed silk control
● DI with 30dB gain
switchable 12dB/octave high-pass 517 has a DI input. However, unlike structure, the 511 is more refined for
● Variable phase filter with a continuously variable cutoff many preamps with built-in DIs, the DI basic preamping duties. This is, in large
● Variable blend frequency, from 20Hz to 250Hz. This in is not simply a hi-impedance input to part, down to the variable texture as
between Mic turn feeds Rupert Neve Designs’ Red the mic preamp, it’s a separate input opposed to the simple on/off switch on
and DI
Silk circuit, which can be switched in entirely, which can be blended with the the 517, and the high-pass filter, which

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 87

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 MT Reviews Rupert Neve Designs 511 and 517 modules

enabled us to filter out low-end rumble We lean towards the

511 but would love
Alternatives
and proximity effect and leave only the
both in our The 511 preamp is one of the better 500-series
signal we wanted. 500-series rack… preamps we’ve tried, although it has some stiff
We began recording an acoustic competition in this range from the likes of SSL,
AMS Neve and API. The 517 is more unique,
guitar. We’re not generally fond of DIs on providing DI and mic preamp in one. This same
acoustic guitars and opted to use the sound could be achieved with a DI and mic
511 mic preamp, this time with an Ear preamp separately – although to get the vari-
phase option you would have to then move the
Trumpet Labs Edwina large diaphragm files in your DAW or add a phase tool such as
condenser microphone. The Blueridge the Little Labs IBP.
dreadnaught-style acoustic guitar we
used has a wonderful tone, and the mic little more visual feedback for the
and preamp combination worked compressor would be nice, if only to see
wonders at capturing the guitar, with how much we were shaving off, but this
just enough depth from the body of the method does at least force you to use
guitar and great tonal definition from your ears.
the strings, without too much string Finally, we experimented with the
buzz or finger noise. On the 511 we silk switch. As the silk can’t be dialled in
dialled the high-pass filter up just on the 517, we opted not to use it,
enough to rule out any rumble from preferring to get our colour from the
reaching the recording, but not enough amp and compressor, but could easily
to affect the signal. We experimented imagine opting to use that instead of
the compressor on some bass parts.
While some engineers prefer to
The 511 and 517 are easily record both the DI and mic’ed signals
separately, we enjoyed being forced to
worthy of finding themselves in make decisions during recording. The
bass recording sat in our mix perfectly
the best studios in the world with very little extra EQ.

Racking up
with the Texture control, deciding in the with an amp simulator, to add colour, Both the 511 and 517 are great
end to set it at around 11 o’clock, for just and to provide extra definition in the preamps, easily worthy of finding
a touch of extra colour. upper harmonics. We used the 517 to DI themselves in the best studios in the
Next up we recorded a vocal, again the bass guitar then ran the signal back world. Despite the extra functions in the
using the 511 as our preamp. Our out using the Thru output on the 517 517 it’s the 511 that we consider to be
vocalist’s voice was a little thin, so we into a small Orange combo bass amp. the more flexible, and were we to equip
paired the 511 with a dynamic mic – the The amplifier cabinet was then mic’ed a studio with just these preamps – not
Heil PR40 – using the proximity effect with the Heil PR40 running back into a terrible proposition – we’d prefer to
to our advantage, and dialled the the mic input of the 517. have a bank of 511 preamps with one or
high-pass filter in just right, to prevent To set the gain of the DI and mic two 517 preamps for handling bass and
the proximity effect from sounding portions of the signal we set the blend guitar. The lack of a high-pass filter isn’t
boomy, but still adding some weight to knob to 100% DI, set the DI gain, then to hugely important – we can always add
the vocal. To give the vocal a little more 100% mic and set the mic gain. We then one as a plug-in later in the mix –
depth we engaged the Texture knob and set the blend to 50% and used the although it would be useful to have one
dialled it all the way up. The extra Variphase control to find the position to filter out sub-harmonic noise before
saturation from the Texture even at this with the thickest sounding bottom end. it reaches the compressor. MT
setting didn’t sound forced, or even lo-fi, An interesting trick here is to flip the
it simply added some much needed polarity of the mic signal, then dial in MT Verdict
character to the vocal. the variphase until the signal is at its 511
On bass guitar we usually record a quietest – i.e. most out of phase – then + Great sounding preamp
DI signal, and then reamp this in flip the polarity back to get the two + Variable silk texture
parallel, either through a real amp, or signals at their most in-phase.
517
With the two signals properly gain
+ Blend DI and mic preamp
staged and in phase, we finally dialled + Optical compressor
Practical tip
in a blend that was nearer to what we + Silk switch
To go with the preamps, Rupert Neve Designs
also sent along its R6 chassis. This chassis wanted for the track – around 60% amp
holds six 500-series modules – not only Rupert - Requires 500-series chassis
signal, 40% DI in this instance.
Neve’s own of course, but any of the hundreds
now available. It has XLR, TRS and D-Sub inputs
The optical compressor on the 517 The 511 and 517 are incredible
and outputs. And, so you don’t lose the extra is perfectly tuned for bass guitar, and sounding preamps; worthy
two-channels over an eight-channel D-Sub, we dialled this in to only just tickle the additions to any 500-series rig.

9/10
two additional channels of XLR and TRS I/O are
provided simply for ‘Thru’ connectivity. signal, with the LED lighting up only on
the more heavily plucked sections. A

88 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

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 MT Reviews Pigtronix Infinity Looper

Details
Price
£449
Additional dual
momentary remote:
£59.99
Contact
John Hornby Skewes
01132 865381
Web
www.pigtronix.com

Key features
● Two stereo loops
with sync
● Loop 2 multiplier
x1, x2, x3, x4, x6
● Series or parallel
looping modes
● 50 presets
(100 loops)
● 24-bit /48kHz
recording
● Latency-free
looping
● Analogue
pass-through of
clean tone
● USB access for
downloading
loops, uploading
audio and
updating
firmware

PIGTRONIX
● Input split
for recording
separate

Infinity Looper
instruments on
each loop
● Remote switch
for undo/
redo, reverse,
rec>overdub
Choice
>play, instant
Looping is now more popular than ever. Marcus
9/10
9
9/10
clear and
varispeed
control Leadley explores the mass appeal and road-tests
● Aux loop out for
drum monitor the latest looper on the block…
● Expression

C
pedal for
loop audio ertain types of music companies such as Roland and Digitech loops that can work in series or parallel.
volume, loop
aging (variable
technology catch the popular got into the game. It can function as both a mono and
feedback decay) imagination and have a Looping appeals to artists of every stereo input/output device. Loops can
and varispeed profound impact on the way we persuasion – so it can enhance the be summed at the output or split to
control
make music – helping to kick-start conventional framework of a singer/ separate outs. You can overdub as
● Active MIDI beat
clock sync entire genres in the process. songwriter/guitar player such as Ed much as you like, and there’s an undo/
● Complete MIDI Since around 2000, cost effective Sheerhan, or alternatively, contribute to redo function. Dual loop information
control of all
digital looping pedals have been Nel’s Clein’s sonic mayhem. Trumpet can be stored to 50 preset locations.
functions
● Varispeed (pitch spreading their influence far and wide.

Since 2000, digital looping

up & down) via Looping’s potential was noticed in the
MIDI or remote early days of sound recording, as
control

pedals have been spreading

● Reverse
evidenced by the early turntable
playback experiments of Pierre Schaeffer and the

their influence far and wide

● Stutter mode subsequent tape-based work of artists
● Five stop modes such as Terry Riley, Brian Eno and
for flexible
performance Robert Fripp. However, despite the
options tantalising possibilities proposed by the
● 18VDC power Infinite switch on the Electro Harmonix players, beatbox poets and sound The Infinity contains an 8Gb micro SD
supply included
16 Second Delay, it wasn’t until artists – they all love loopers. card, which delivers around two hours
● USB-A to micro
USB cable Oberheim released the Echoplex in Phrase recorders have been steadily recording time. And it’s mounted
included 1994 that there was a device with which developing in terms of sound quality, internally and not designed to be
● Voltage: 18V
you could loop and layer performances, storage time and feature. The Pigtronix changed; data can be moved to and
DC – adapter
included and play along in real time. Things didn’t Infinity Looper delivers 48kHz/24-bit from the pedal via USB using the
really go mass-market however, until sound quality and it can record two Infinity Looper Application.

90 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

MT148.REV Pigtronix.indd 90 29/05/2015 12:47

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 MT Reviews Pigtronix Infinity Looper

The Infinity’s well laid out: verse and chorus structures for In use tip
everything’s clearly labelled and the top example. Playback can be automatic, or Now we live in a digital era it’s easy to forget
that analogue transfers offer a particular sort of
panel’s not cluttered. It’s a good-sized a fade option can be selected. As well focussed immediacy that encourages listening
unit that can easily be incorporated into as the main outputs there’s also an in real-time. So if you’re running the Infinity in
a pedal board – unlike the Boomerang auxiliary out that provides a summed step with a DAW, and monitoring via a channel
strip, printing loops you’re happy with as you
III or Boss RC-300, for example, which mono signal – which would be useful as go makes a lot of sense. This Looper’s audio
are essentially standalone solutions. a loop cue for a drummer. quality is such that you’re unlikely to notice
any signal degradation. Even if you ultimately
Many of the controls are multifunction, Rather than offering a basic choose to do a digital transfer, the analogue
so time spent with the manual will pay metronome function, the Infinity has a loops will be there from the get-go so you can
dividends. In terms of basic functions MIDI input, which is far more useful. explore further processing, editing or mixing
options straight away.
it’s very easy to get the hang of. Master Hooking it up to a DAW is extremely
volume and loop level are controlled by easy so it integrates into a home studio
physical knobs, which instantly gives setup or can be controlled by an The Infinity has an expression pedal
you a degree of intuitive control. The external sequencer in the performance input: audio level or varispeed can be
unit powers up with Loop 1 armed so environment. Running the unit against mapped to it The pedal can also be
you can start recording straight away Pro Tools and Logic is great fun, and an used to control Loop Aging, a feature
when you touch the appropriate foot external looper is great for capturing that enables loop content to gradually
switch. Pressing it again initiates spontaneous ideas – which can fade out as new ideas come forward
– so looping isn’t tied to an entirely

Hooking it up to a DAW is easy, so it

repetitive, cyclic mode. It’s also possible
to extend the unit’s functionality by

integrates into a studio setup or can be

connecting the dual momentary remote
footswitch. This puts control of the

controlled by an external seqeuncer

varispeed, undo/redo, overdub and
reverse functions at your feet. MT

MT Verdict
playback. Press it again during subsequently be transferred to the
playback and you’re into Overdub mode. computer. And the audio quality is such + Great to create and store
Now’s a good time to save, so select a that work can be incorporated into a independent dual loop data
+ Excellent sound quality
preset location, and press and hold the finished mix without fear of + Easy integration into a
knob until the display blinks. Loop 2 can compromise. Many of the Infinity’s pedal board
now be recorded in the same fashion: features can be directly controlled by + Good MIDI sync enabling
however this needs to be armed MIDI, so automation can be used in sequencer/DAW integration
manually, so press the Tromp switch complex performance situations.
- More basic single loop
twice to start recording. There are red, Moving to consider deeper levels of performance solutions out there
green and orange LEDs for the different functionality, the Infinity offers many - Could do with higher independent
play, record and overdub modes. If you excellent features. Sync-multi, for track count for laying loops
want to create different versions of your example, lets you link Loops 1 and 2
The Infinity Looper is an excellent
dual loop, performance presets can be together – but without limiting the bit of kit that definitely brings
copied to another location and performance to the length of the initial something new to the looping table.
subsequently modified. loop. The second loop can be created in The ability to record synchronised
multiples between one and six times. dual loop audio from separate
sources and run the unit via MIDI
In use means it’s a real looping solution
Depending on how you intend to use the Alternatives for bands. The 24-bit/48kHz
Infinity there are a number of ways it There are many digital phrase recorders on the recording spec means the unit
can be incorporated. Connectivity is market now, and part of the addictive appeal of sounds great, so it’s very hard to tell
looping is that they all offer a slightly different the difference between live and
good, so most options are catered for. features set. If all you need is a simple, rugged looped playing, and recordings are
As a basic performance tool you can mono/stereo single-loop solution capable of virtually noise free. While you can
output to an amp, a pair of amps or a overdubs and you don’t need to store loops,
get into the unit’s basics pretty
the latest Boss RC-1 Loop Station’s a winner
mixer: Input Spilt mode is potentially with an RRP of just £85. On the other hand,
quickly you do need to study the
very useful in this context. You can an Electro Harmonix 45000 lets you record manual – thankfully this is well
loops with four individual tracks that can be written and the information is easy
directly connect two mono sources, panned and mixed down, enabling you to build to access. The Infinity has a well
such as a guitar and a microphone, to incredibly complex musical textures. This will laid out and fully featured interface
inputs 1 and 2, and Loops 1 and 2 will set you back somewhere in the region of £350 and all the right sorts of
(and for full functionality you really need the connections to make it an
be isolated to the inputs. Hence you can additional five-button remote). For a top-end
extremely musical, practical and
record discrete, but synchronised parts. solution that doesn’t archive loops, the esoteric
Boomerang III Phrase Sampler (£408) lets you
flexible solution.

9/10
Performers will also find the unit’s
record four loops for serial, synchronised or
Series mode useful as it enables loops unsynchronised parallel performance.
to play in sequence so you can build

92 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

MT148.REV Pigtronix.indd 92 29/05/2015 12:47

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Summer Sale 2015 - House ad A4.indd 1 21/04/2015 08:29

 Ableton Live Editors Keys backlit keyboard Reviews MT

complete the instruction, so using tab,

spacebar, and the top row of red
function keys, which toggle track
activation, feel snappy to use.

Who’s it for?
Not every Live user will be excited by
these – many of us are laptop users
after all. I use Live, but I also use Logic
Pro X, Final Cut Pro X, and the other day-

ABLETON LIVE
to-day type of apps that everybody
uses, and I wouldn’t really appreciate

Editors Keys
having to look at an Ableton Live-
dedicated keyboard when I’m working in
those other programs – it could get

backlit keyboard
annoying. Live users tend to be not so
workstation-based as Pro Tools users,
for example, and the days of having a
computer or work area dedicated to one
piece of software are mostly gone.
There are aesthetic issues as well, if
A crowd-funded keyboard that’s backlit: what’s not you really want to go there. In the dark,
to love? Martin Delaney road-tests the latest Editors with the keys lit up, it looks quite cool,
but in broad daylight, not so much. If
Keys offering and finds out… you’re a laptop user, or you want to keep
your existing Mac wireless keyboard,

T
he folks at Editors Keys have Details software installation required, just plug Editors Keys sell printed silicon covers
led the way in providing Price £99.99 it in. For the review I had it connected to that cater for those. They also offer a
DAW-specific keyboards, with Contact via website a mains-powered USB hub and it non-illuminated Apple wireless
Web
icons and labels for all the worked perfectly. It’s not particularly keyboard for Ableton Live.
https://www.
major players, and it was good to see editorskeys.com impressive physically, being a generic In my opinion, this is a product that’ll
Ableton Live added to the roster, black plastic object with a hard-wired be most useful to folks who are, a)
alongside Pro Tools, Cubase, and so USB cable - you’re not encountering any unable to remember keyboard
on… and in both Mac and PC varieties. Apple design-centric sleek aluminium, shortcuts, or b) impressed by pretty
The idea of using such a keyboard is but you know, it’s a just a keyboard, get lights. During the review period, though,
that it speeds your workflow, by giving over it. Underneath there are two small I’ve discovered that this keyboard
you visual cues based on colour, pop-up feet to raise the back end of the divides Live users into two camps:
graphics and text, to help you get to keyboard to a more user-friendly angle. namely “Ack, I don’t need this!”, and
grips with your DAW’s key commands These keyboards don’t do anything “Wow, this is awesome!”, so I
and shortcuts. special in terms of interacting with the understand there’s an audience for this.
What’s new this time round is that software – you still need to use cmd, There’s a big cool factor that’ll sway a lot
Editors Keys has introduced backlit ctrl, alt, or whatever, to execute the of people; having a backlit-dedicated
versions of these keyboards; this was commands – it’s all about the labelling. Ableton Live keyboard will impress your
financed through a very successful There’s a lot of visual feedback – each Live-lovin’ friends. MT
Kickstarter campaign which raised over key has an icon and a text label on a
200% of the required funds. You can’t coloured background – the colours are MT Verdict
argue with that: this is something that grouped according to the type of
+ All keyboards should be backlit
people want to happen. function they represent, which is a good – it’s so useful
Illuminated keyboards make a idea. I’ve been using Live a long time, so + Includes a numerical keyboard (if
critical difference when working in a I’m pretty familiar with the keyboard you think you need one)
dimly-lit pro studio, or when trying to shortcuts, but scanning over these keys + No more excuses for forgetting
Key features keyboard shortcuts
create some ambience for your home is a good way to be reminded of ones
● It’s backlit!
setup. Somehow it feels more rock if that perhaps you don’t use so much. - A backlit, wireless version would
● An Ableton
you don’t have all the house lights on, Live-dedicated The most elegant commands and be super-cool
but using a regular keyboard in bad keyboard functions are the ones where you don’t - Big keyboard takes up a lot of
light can lead to eyestrain… which is ● Helps to visually need to use modifier keys at all to desk space
immerse you in - Come on, are the Ableton
also not very rock. With backlit the world of Live key commands that hard
keyboards you can have it all! ● Simple USB to remember?
I’ve tested the PC version of this powered device,
available in Mac If you’re one of the many Live users
keyboard, graciously condescending to and PC versions
who are excited by this idea, you
grant it access to my iMac, as the Apple ● Includes printed won’t be disappointed.

7/10
version wasn’t ready at the time of this labels and icons
for all major Live
review. Fundamentally, this is just a commands
keyboard after all, so there’s no In the dark, it definitely looks cool…

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 95

MT148.REV Ed Keys.indd 95 29/05/2015 12:46

 MT Reviews Neumann U47 FET Reissue Collector’s Edition

NEUMANN
U47 FET
Besides a limited run of U67s back in 1992, Neumann has never
done vintage reissues. However, the U47 FET is supposedly
vintage-correct in every way. So is it as good as ever?
Huw Price welcomes back an old friend…

the rats nest of point-to-point wiring microphone, but the U47 FET is in a
that makes up the preamp. There were slightly different league.
various versions of the U47 FET but Vocal tests also proved revealing.
Neumann’s reissue combines the The U47 FET’s sound has a very present
Excellence physical circuit layout of version No 2 and up front quality. The mic adds body

10/10
from 1972, with the circuitry and without adding boom and we sensed a
physical features of version No 6. slight softening of the ‘esses’ that will
help with sibilant singers. Off axis the
Sounds familiar sound is fairly consistent, which helps
The U47 FET is not the subtlest or most with talent that can’t keep still.

T
Details here was a gap of four years nuanced microphone Neumann has The U47 FET became the go to
Price £2928 between the discontinuation of ever produced, yet it does have that microphone for electric bass, kick
Contact the valve U47 and the sense of enhanced realism that typifies drums and double bass and, for many
Sennheiser UK
01628 402200 introduction of U47 FET in so many of the company’s products. The of us, it still is. Often put up as an
Web 1969. The model designation has midrange is fat and up front without afterthought, U47 FETs would
www.neumann.com always caused some consternation sounding woolly or too dominant, and frequently win vocal shoot outs, and
because the two microphones had the strong upper midrange and low they could be relied upon for electric
Key features
virtually nothing in common. treble allow the U47 FET to cut through and acoustic guitars, brass instruments
● Polar Pattern –
Hypercardioid The U47 FET was outfitted with a without being edgy or take up too much and voiceover applications too.
● Capsule – 34mm newly designed fixed hypercardioid frequency space. It’s not a supremely detailed or airy
6 micron gold/mylar capsule called the K47. This Many see Audio Technica’s fixed microphone and its reputation is
● FET preamp fed into a field effect transistor (FET) cardioid AT4047 as an alternative to the somewhat overshadowed by its valve
● Transformer
balanced output
preamp circuit and it no longer needed U47 FET, largely due to its transformer namesake, but the U47 FET is an audio
● Frequency a separate power supply. Phantom coupled FET preamp and attenuation classic in its own right. Freelance
Range: power was fine. and HPF switches. To be fair, Audio engineers would always expect to find
40Hz-16000Hz
Technica never marketed it as such, but at least one in any professional studio.
● Impedance:
150 Ohms Versions of the story then again putting ‘47’ in the model Although we didn’t have an original on
● Self Noise: 18 dB The body shape was similar – like a designation invites comparison, and we hand to compare, the reissue sounded
● Max SPL: 147 dB compact version of the short body valve were pleased to have one on hand. exactly how I remembered it.
● Pad: 10dB U47. It also had a bass roll-off switch There is some passing resemblance
● Output pad: 6dB
(200 Hz) and two pad switches. but it’s easy to tell them apart. The Culture shocks
● HPF @ 140Hz
● Power Supply
Neumann also dispensed with a Neumann is noticeably clearer in the Many companies find their current
Voltage: 48V suspension mount, opting instead for a midrange while the AT4047 has a softer offerings overshadowed by products
● Dimensions: bracket with an integrated cable clip. and cloudier quality. But the real they discontinued decades ago. Openly
63 x 160mm
For this reissue, the old specs and difference has to be the transient acknowledged in the guitar and
● Weight: 710g
new specs are identical – right down to response: the U47 FET wins because it synthesizer worlds, and by some iconic
has real punch and dynamics. pro audio brands, product lines often
Alternatively One area where this became reflect this. However some microphone
Many U47 FET fans have been impressed by the Lawson FET47 ($995)
obvious was acoustic guitar. Using the manufacturers, Neumann included,
and the Bock Audio iFet (£1614). The iFET has two operating modes:‘I’ for Neumann, individual notes in a chord have resolutely asserted that their
U47 FET style sound and high SPL handling, and ‘V’ with a simplified single were easy to distinguish, with a clear current mics are technically superior to
FET signal path based on the KM84, for greater sensitivity and a warmer
tone. Alternatively, the Audio Technica AT4047 (£538) will do a similar job front end to each and every one. In their classic models so there is no
for about a sixth of the price. Of course you could track down an original, contrast the notes seemed to blur into necessity to resurrect the obsolete.
but that might require some maintenance work and could easily end up
one another with the AT4047. The This thinking is deeply ingrained in
costing you more than the reissue.
AT4047 is still a very fine quality the Neumann company. In a 1989

96 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

MT148.REV Neumann.indd 96 02/06/2015 12:15 A an

 Neumann U47 FET Reissue Collectors Edition Reviews MT

interview, Neumann’s sales manager limited production run, but it’s now a
Practical tip
Dirk Rowehl told Mix Magazine: “we Most condenser microphones with attenuation padding only have the
permanent fixture. We hope this
could not make Mr Neumann go into one switch – sometimes with two or more settings. The U47 FET has two microphone enjoys the success it
tube microphones again; he wanted to attenuation switches that operate on different areas of the microphone. clearly deserves. And if Neumann’s
The 10dB pad is an amplifier feedback switch that prevents overload in the
be in the technical forefront.” preamp and transformer. A second switch next to the output connector cutting edge and legacy products can
Of course the technical metrics for offers an extra 6dB of attenuation to prevent excessive output levels from coexist, wouldn’t it be fantastic to see
audio quality, such as low distortion and overloading microphone preamps. some authentic KM84 and U87
ruler flat frequency response, apply to reissues, too? When asked, Neumann
recording microphones, but only up to a components, and prices for classic responded with a noncommittal, “we’ll
point. Whether it’s soul, funk, pop, rock microphones remain buoyant. see”. Meanwhile, we can only hope… MT
or folk, recordists use their ears to
select mics, and character trumps Past, present and future MT Verdict
clinical more often than not. Ultimately Neumann’s reluctance to provide
+ Totally authentic reissue
it’s about musicality not measurement. vintage-correct reissues has forced + Classic general-purpose
This applies to microphone customers to splash significant sums recording microphone
preamps, compressors and equalisers on vintage Neumann mics or + Particularly superb on bass
too. Demand drives the market and it’s investigate other options. In addition to instruments
+ Soft on sibilance
no wonder that so much current the competition it has always faced
+ Punchy and dynamic
equipment is based on decades old from its own (vintage) products, the + Excellent SPL handling
company must now go head-to-head
with manufacturers who are happy to - Limited treble response
cash in on Neumann’s audio heritage. - Best for close mic’ing
The U47 FET is no half-baked It looks and sounds like the real
reissue. Neumann has done a proper deal – because it is. Rather
job and the results are superb. Although than thinking of this as a reissue,
it’s not a technical leap forward, it may consider it more of a resumption
of production.
signify a softening of its stance.
‘Collectors Edition’ implies that the
U47 FET reissue is destined for a
10/10

Avantone CV12 Large Diaphragm

Multi Pattern Valve Microphone.
The CV12’s design, character and performance is comparable to some of the fine
vintage valve mics of the 1950’s & 1960’s… but at a fraction of the cost!

Also available by Avantone

CK-1 CK-7 CK-6

CK1 Pencil FET CK7 Multi pattern FET Large diaphragm FET

 www.scvdistribution.co.uk
Distributed by SCV Distribution: Call 03301 222500 for your nearest dealer

MT148.REV
A an one Neumann.indd
-12 al a e 97 -2-15.indd 1 02/06/2015 15:15
05/02/2015 12:15
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 Mini Reviews MT

Classic Hip Key features Boom Bap Beats Key features

Hop Cuts & Bits

● Chunky boom
● Vintage hip- bap hip-hop
hop beats and beats and hits
instrumental loops
Manufacturer Samplephonics ● Available in
● 415 loops and Manufacturer Samplephonics Acid Wav, Apple
Price £34.70 one-shots, Loops, or REX2
64-120bpm
Price £34.70
formats
Contact ● 24-bit Acid Wav, Contact ● 4 sampler
info@samplephonics.com Apple Loops or patches for
info@samplephonics.com
REX2 formats EXS24, Ableton,
Web www.samplephonics.com ● 27 sampler Web www.samplephonics.com HALion, Kontakt,
instruments Mach 5, Maschine

T C
he golden era of hip-hop ● Recorded on ontinuing the hip-hop NN-XT and SFZ
was when the art of an MPC and then theme, and the perfect ● 79-97bpm
passed though ● Produced by
sampling really began. analogue tape accompaniment to the
RiggleBeats
Classic Hip Hop Cuts, from Classic Hip Hop Cuts pack, we & Illiterate
Samplephonics, looks to capture authentic warmth and lo-fi have Boom Bap Beats & Bits, also
that vintage, crate-digging sound, quality, we occasionally found the from Samplephonics. Created by The one-shot hits are a welcome
with 415 loops and one-shots in tape noise a little overbearing on production duo RiggleBeats & addition and form a decent,
your choice of Acid Wav, Apple certain loops. Overall, though, this Illiterate, the library contains 99 characterful drum kit. Although
Loops or REX2, captured on an is an interesting library with a drum loops in raw and super- this is a relatively pricey pack given
MPC and processed through decent amount of variety and crunchy tube versions, plus 50 the amount of content on offer, the
analogue tape. You’ll find folders some inspiring loops and riffs. MT percussion loops and 100 drum quality throughout is excellent and
of chunky drum loops, dusty one-shots with accompanying it would make an excellent drum
Rhodes chords, wonky arpeggios MT Verdict sampler patches. There’s plenty of toolkit for any hip-hop producer. MT
and synths, funky guitar licks, and variety, with a mixture of lo-fi,
The odd bit of excessive tape
chopped-up pianos and
noise aside, this is a varied
saturated shuffles, and cleaner, MT Verdict
saxophones. There’s also and inspiring pack with some more spacious and punchy A characterful pack of
a handful of drum hits, effects and interesting, song-starting loop rhythms. All the loops have the authentic, chunky hip-hop
slightly odd synths, with patches ideas that are ready to be classic MPC looseness and beats and hits with a raw
for Kontakt, Ableton, HALion, chopped and manipulated. groove, and we defy anyone to saturated finish.
Mach 5, EXS24, NN-XT and Sfz.
Although everything here has an
7/10 listen to this pack without
involuntarily nodding their head.
8/10

Reel People Cubase Pro 8

Sounds For Explained
The Soul Vol1 Manufacturer Groove3
Key features
● 3 hours, 4
minutes of video
Manufacturer Loopmasters Key features Price $30 ($15 for 30-day access to
● 21 chapters
● Live funk and whole site)
Price £29.95 ● Written by
soul loops and hits
Contact info@loopmasters.com Choice ● 696MB
Contact via website Cubase expert
Dave Askew

9/10
9
9/10
of 24-bit/44.1kHz Web www.groove3.com
Web www.loopmasters.com audio Choice ● Watch online,
stream to iPad,

S G 9/10
9
9/10
● 34 sampler iPhone & iPod
ounds for the Soul is a new patches for roove3 and expert Dave
● For beginner
collection of live and Kontakt, HALion, Askew tackle Cubase 8 to intermediate
EXS24, Kong, NN-
programmed funk and soul head-on with a massive Cubase 8 users
XT & SFZ
loops, played by expert musicians ● Over 300 loops new three-hour tutorial aimed at
and produced and recorded by and 200 one-shots newcomers and those moving and with so much detail, even
Reel People leader, and founder of ● Recorded and over from other DAWs. There are seasoned pros are bound to learn
produced by
Papa Records, Oli Lazerus. There Oli Lazerus
21 chapters in total, which can be something new. The only negative
are over 300 loops, 200 one-shots streamed online through is that many of the videos are
and 34 sampler patches, plus the played loops, that form a great Groove3’s player or downloaded to around 10 minutes long, so you
Apple Loops version has a special library for anyone looking to add watch later. Proceedings kick off might find it hard to navigate to
Logic X demo song arrangement. an organic edge to their tracks. MT with a look at the basics of a specific topic. MT
You’ll find heaps of breaks and installation, set-up, project and
broken beats, live bass and guitar, MT Verdict file management and VST MT Verdict
grooving keys, brass and flutes, connections, before moving on to
Another great collection from An in-depth introduction to
and deep synth riffs. The playing Reel People that puts usable, working with tracks and Cubase 8 that’s well written
style and the finish are tight, but soulful live funk loops at your customising the workspace and and packed with details and
natural and not too squashed or fingertips. It’s great for interface. Other topics include helpful tips. We’re already
compressed. The moderately injecting some human feel recording, the mix console and looking forward to checking
into your tracks. out the advanced series.
sized collection of drum, effects exporting a finished song. Each
and chord hits is a nice addition,
but the real stars are the expertly
9/10 chapter is presented in incredible
depth with no stone left unturned,
9/10
MAGAZINE July 2015 | 99

MT148.REV minis p99.indd 99 03/06/2015 15:08

 MT Mini Reviews

Making Music - 74 Creative (it doesn’t claim to be); the aims are
more pragmatic – perhaps you’d refer

Strategies For Music Producers

to this book after using Eno’s cards.
The intent and execution are sincere
– some of it’s stating the obvious, but
Manufacturer Dennis DeSantis,
what’s wrong with that? Occasionally,
published by Ableton
things can get a little po-faced, where
Price €25 something more relaxed might better
Web www.ableton.com engage the reader; it’s not as readable
as it could be, and it doesn’t convey the

A
bleton has taken another sense of fun that accompanies creative
left-field move by producing endeavours. As somebody who writes
a book – a printed, hardcover, about Live extensively, and as an
book at that. They score points Ableton Certified Trainer, I’m regularly
by not using it to shill the company’s reminded of the challenges faced by
software, instead creating a textbook beginners - I probably won’t use this
that’ll benefit a wider audience. ‘They?’ 340 pages, and divided into three main book myself, but I will recommend it to
you might ask. This isn’t writing by categories: ‘Problems of Beginning’, my students. Hopefully, there’ll be more
committee, it’s the product of one ‘Problems of Progressing’, and titles following along.
person: Dennis DeSantis, Ableton’s ‘Problems of Finishing’, sub-divided into Ableton has posted free extracts
head of documentation, and all-round sections with titles such as ‘Presets as online at www.makingmusic.ableton.
Smart Guy. Starting Points’. You’re presented with com and the book is also available in
Key features
After honing his skills writing advice such as “Try starting with the iBook and Kindle formats. MT
● Hardback
Ableton’s exemplary manuals, Dennis is print edition simplest sounds you can” and “You may
perfectly qualified to tackle this book, ● Tasteful Ableton need to do lots of erasing in order to get MT Verdict
designed to help at those points in eye candy layout back to something that makes sense Beyond the inevitable rush of
● Popularises Ableton fanboys snapping it up, this
electronic music production when for your song”. It’s not so much a bossy
creative tools book will have a long and useful life
maybe you’re lacking inspiration, or you ● Good price teacher as a little voice in your ear,
for educators and producers.

8/10
need something to push you into ● Also available asking “hey, why don’t you try this?” It’s
making a decision and taking the next in Book and not as provocative or creativity-
Kindle formats
step. The information is laid out over boosting as Eno’s Oblique Strategies

MIDI Controller Guerrilla Film

Backpack Scoring
Manufacturer UDG Author Jeremy Borum
Price €169.95 Price $30
Contact via website Contact via website
Web www.udggear.com Web guerrillafilmscoring.com

W A
e love UDG, as it’s one of s the pop charts become
the few companies more out of reach and less
dedicated to making creatively fulfilling, other
bags specifically for our studio ways of making money from music
Key features
gear. Yes, it concentrates more on Key features productions come into focus, none
● Real-world advice
DJs – they are, after all, the ones ● Water repellent more so than music for films. from composers
laminated polyester ● Chapters include
lugging gear from gig to gig – but ● Four compartments:
Is this as far out of reach as pop?
editing, gear, scoring,
this backpack has also been 1x main, 1x laptop, Not so according to this title, time management
designed for use with specific 2x small which gathers knowledge – a lot of ● Provides useful
● Carry handle and example contracts
studio items, including NI gear knowledge – from many people in
shoulder strap ● Accompanying
and M-Audio’s Trigger Finger. ● Dimensions: 59x the industry to offer the reader a
videos online
Equipment such as that would 40x 22cm route to success. Or perhaps we ● 240-plus pages
go in the smaller compartment, ● Weight: 3.2kg should say ‘strategy’; the word
with a larger space for turntable ‘strategise’ is a little overused in MT Verdict
gear, although, with movable MT Verdict Guerilla Film Scoring, with the
protective pads inside it, you could focus more on the ‘process’ than Certainly helps you treat your
Be careful when you wear it, music in more business-like
tailor it to most studio gear uses. a love of making music. But if you terms. It may be a tad cold
as its size might have you
The bag comes with back knocking stuff off shelves, but believe the main message here: and ‘American’ for our UK
straps and is a comfortable wear. this is a great way of ‘if you want your music to be your readers, but has some great
It’s big and a bit bulky, but it works transporting studio gear. business, you should treat it like advice nonetheless.
– simple as that! A studio. In a bag.
On your back! MT
8/10 a business’, then this is definitely
the book for you. MT
7/10
100 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

MT148.REV minis.indd 100 03/06/2015 15:10

 Mini Reviews MT

Rode which might well be a welcome

characteristic for podcasting, as well as

NT-USB
traditional vocal recording. Indeed, the
higher bass register, as well as the
higher treble reaches, is prominent,
Manufacturer Rode
giving a great overall tone, offering an
Price £129 air of authority and a ‘BBC’ feel.
Contact Source Distribution You can see the mic used mostly on
Tel: 020 8962 5080 vocals, as USB mics lend themselves to
Web www.rode.com all sorts of computer-based malarkey.
We’d be very happy to use the NT-USB

U
SB mics are now big business Choice for anything of this ilk, and you’ll see it

9/10
9
9/10
and ship in huge numbers, being used on some of the increasing
thanks to their wide mobile number of YouTube commentaries (on
compatibility, ease of use and video games and just about everything
increasingly low cost. Plug n play is, of else), by people who are after a quality
course, a great help – especially when it mic to give their solutions, thoughts and
works, as it tends to here! And we’ve Key features opinions even more gravitas.
also seen the quality levels rise, with ● USB studio mic Vocals aside, you could use it as a
models from sE in particular scoring ● Pop shield, good all-rounder, it’s a great USB mic,
tripod desk stand,
well in MusicTech. ring mount, asking price for that alone! If only other easy to use and suitable for a wide
Rode is wading in with its NT-USB, storage pouch and companies would appreciate the range of tasks. A no-brainer, really. MT
carrying the NT name from a range of 6m USB cable, all producer’s need for USB length!
in the box
mics that have already been very well ● 3.5mm stereo
Plug n play works well, especially MT Verdict
received (we looked at the NT1-A some headphone jack with our Mac, where you simply see it in A great package with a superb,
time ago, and it has featured regularly for monitoring your preferences, so we were up and quality feel about it. Great sound
● Frequency will give your recordings a pro feel
in our best condenser mic guides). running in Logic very quickly.
range:
The NT-USB is priced competitively Sound-wise, the mic punches well for a non-pro price. Just at home in
20Hz-20kHz
the studio as it is in your podcast.
and ships with an effective shield, above its weight – as you’d expect with
9/10
● Max SPL: 110dB
SPL (@ 1kHz)
stand and a ruddy great big long USB ‘Rode’ written on it. With vocals, there’s
● Weight: 520g
cable – at last! We’d almost pay the a pleasing presence at the bottom end,

Moog considering the price. Changing scales

is a bit of revelation, and you’ll find

Theremini yourself learning more about the

subject in two minutes playing the
Theremini than in a previous lifetime of
listening to music theory –the scales
are laid out on-screen and the sounds
are a flick of the wrist away. All manner
of parameters – some obvious, such as
pitch and note range – are adjustable,
and there’s even a delay effect to add
some variation.
And talking of variation, the 32
Manufacturer Moog
can do more than just ‘that’ sci-fi presets take it away – but not too far
Price £259 whistle. But before we get on to that… – from that eerie whistle; in truth, most
Contact Source Distribution Setting up is straightforward. Simply are of that ilk, and we could have done
Tel: 020 8962 5080 plug in the antenna (which is stored on with some more varied tones to really
Key features
Web www.moogmusic.com its underside), go through a (simple) experiment with.
● 32 presets
calibrating setup and then use your left However, for those after an easy

T
● 2 outs +
he theremin is one of the headphone out hand to adjust volume and your right for intro to the world of the theremin and
earliest pieces of music ● Pitch/CV out the pitch. We might have made that the other-worldly nature of its sound
technology out there. You’ll have ● User-selectable sound easier than we found it, as (it’s also worth delving deeper into the
scale and root note
seen performances of people (stored per preset)
setting up in an office full of computers fascinating life of its inventor if you
making wobbly Forbidden Planet sci-fi ● Selectable didn’t do the unit any favours – an have time), there’s no easier way. MT
noises using 20th Century wireless note ranges empty room with little to interfere with
● Built-in speaker
technology (electromagnetic fields) to an instrument that relies on EM waves MT Verdict
● Adjustable
change pitch and volume with either turned out to be a much better option.
delay effect An easy theremin to get into, both
hand, using invisible (death) rays. ● Built-in tuner The unit itself is very cool-looking, practically and financially. It’s a
Moog has ‘done’ the theremin before, allows you to learn kind of like a Jetsons spaceship, and little lightweight, but bang for buck
pitch and scales this thing whistles like no other.
but this is arguably the company’s most ideal for that 50s vibe. It’s a little

8/10
● 58x10x17cm
accessible release. It’s cheap, easy to plasticky – maybe a surprise for those
● Weight 1.3kg
use and comes with 32 presets, so you expecting Moog wood, but perhaps not

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 101

MT148.REV minis.indd 101 03/06/2015 15:10

 Six of the best Buyer’s Guide MT

Six of the best

Hardware Software Mobile Tech Accessories
Welcome to the MusicTech Buyer’s Guide where we round up
some of the best products recently reviewed at MusicTech. After
last month’s round-up of keyboard controllers it’s time to look at Details
the best standalone controllers for many a studio task… Price £79
Contact
Focusrite/Novation
011494 459920
Web
http://uk.novation
music.com

BEST Innovation

M-Audio Trigger
Finger Pro
T
F Pro is the latest incarnation of BEST Subs offer
M-Audio’s popular controller

Novation
and one that the company has
Details
designed to control a range of
Price £299
devices, hard and soft. You get
Contact

Launch
InMusic templates for controlling popular VST
Web instruments and can set the Trigger
www.m-audio.com Finger Pro to control your DAW. Reviewer
Hollin Jones said: “What M-Audio is

Control
aiming at here is not dissimilar to what
Native Instruments does with its
Maschine 2 controller. M-Audio provides
a hardware step sequencer and some

W
faders and it is also rather less e couldn’t, you could argue,
expensive. Ultimately, this is a fun and not include this one as you
flexible MIDI controller.” He concluded: can currently get one free if
“A powerful controller with some great you subscribe to MusicTech
bundled content. At home on stage or (UK only, see p66). But Novation’s
in the studio.” LaunchControl is a fine controller. It’s
sturdy, has 16 assignable rotaries, eight

BEST Beats LED pads, is buss powered and comes

with a bundle of software including
Ableton Live Lite (and also currently 12

Arturia Beatstep
issues of MusicTech – sorry, had to get
that in there). Reviewer Andy Price said:
“We tested the Launch Control and
found it to be a very useful addition – it

G
enius. That’s a word that sequencer via its more old-school will be the primary parameter and
could describe the 10/10 outputs. At this price, BeatStep is a studio workflow controlling mechanism
Beatstep. It’s hardware that great choice– hardware at a price and it also works a treat with Ableton
controls and sequences that’s hard to ignore.” Live. It’s a well-made controller that
pretty much anything you throw at it: adds an extra degree of creative
analogue or digital. Hollin Jones said: dexterity to Novation’s iPad-based
“BeatStep is an excellent little and Ableton Live-using performers.”
MIDI controller. For
triggering in Details
software it’s Price €99
intuitive and fun Contact Source
to use, and it also Distribution
Web
works as a MIDI www.arturia.com
hardware trigger and

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 103

MT148.6OTB.indd 103 29/05/2015 12:32

 MT Buyer’s Guide Six of the best

BEST Build

Icon QCon Pro

N
ow here’s a controller that If you’re used to the mouse there’s
you feel – should the need inevitably a little readjustment needed
arise – you could drive a when switching to physical controls, but
tank over. The QCon Pro is it quickly becomes second nature. The
designed to control most popular ability to control a surprisingly wide
DAWs, does so with some aplomb and range of DAW functions remotely is
has a great action and feel. And it is, like really useful, the faders feel accurate
we say, built to last, representing and motorisation is a real bonus. As a
fantastic value – if, in nothing else its MIDI controller this unit works very Details
weight alone! Reviewer Hollin Jones well.” He concluded: “A USB DAW MIDI Price £399
said in MT146: “The layout is well- controller that works well and won’t Contact Synthax
designed and communication between blind you with science. A good way to Web
www.synthax.co.uk
hardware and software instantaneous. get hands-on with your projects.”

BEST Compact

Korg SQ-1
N
ot so much a controller in Like the QCon above, it has a great,
the broadest sense – solid build, ideal for many rigorous
although it will control your situations. Andy Jones said: “SQ-1 is
soft synths and hardware, not just a controller for the MS-20m
Details particularly Korg’s MS-20m and Volca although it does make a great partner.
Price £106.80 range via MIDI – but the SQ-1 is a Use it with your soft synths, or your
Contact surpassingly decent unit given its size. hard synths, but make sure you use it.”
Korg
Web
www.korg.co.uk
“SQ-1 is not just a controller for the MS-20m.
Use it with your soft synths or hard synths, but
make sure you use it…”
BEST For Live

Akai MPC40 MkII Details

Price £289.99
Contact InMusic

T
Web
he original Akai APC40, which great colour matching to www.akaipro.com
both Akai and Ableton Ableton Live.”
developed, was the first of its He then
generation of purpose-built concluded:
Ableton Live controllers that included “The APC40
clip launching grids for the software. MkII is a good
The MkII has a number of refinements example of a
and additions which meant reviewer follow-up
Hollin Jones ultimately concluded that: release outdoing the
“We recommend all Akai APC40 MkI original in many ways, as
users to check the MkII out. It has a it answers most of the Akai
slimmer profile, slick crossgrading, and MkI user’s gripes.”

104 July 2015 MAGAZINE

MT148.6OTB.indd 104 29/05/2015 12:32

 Read
on any device,
anytime!

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MT App ad A4.indd 1 04/06/2015 08:53

 MT Feature A bluffer’s guide to MIDI

MT Feature Music Technology

A BLUFFER’S
GUIDE TO MIDI
Get your head round MIDI and you’ve got your head round music
production. Rob Boffard explains the ins and outs…

M
IDI can be one of the most mystifying parts of music production. Powered by
Although its basic purpose can be intuitive with a little bit of
practice, unlocking its hidden depths often takes a lot of time,
especially if you’ve never encountered it before. But it is crucially
important to know how it works, especially if you want to
produce anything involving software instruments.
That’s because all manufacturers of DAWs – from Apple to Avid to Ableton to
Propellerheads rely on it. It’s the Rosetta Stone of music production; a common
language that enables any device and any software program to talk to each other.
If you can master MIDI, if you can work out how it functions and make it part of
your toolkit, then your production will become much faster, and the results will
be as slick as they come.

MIDI Magic
Musical Instrument Digital Interface: that’s what MIDI stands for. We don’t
really want to go in-depth into its history (there’s plenty online if you’d like to
find out more) – this is a Bluffer’s Guide, after all – but what you need to know is
that it came to fruition in the early 1980s as part of a collaboration between
engineers Dave Smith and Chet Wood, and several synthesiser companies such as
Korg, Moog and Roland. Smith and Wood initiated this, because the market had
just got far too complicated. There were too many protocols, and too many
devices, and it was becoming increasingly difficult for them to talk to each other.
MIDI was the solution.

106 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

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 A bluffer’s guide to MIDI Feature MT

But forget the

history. The best way to
understand MIDI is to
talk about what it is
now. We’ll get to the
complicated information
that a MIDI sequence can
contain in a minute. For
now, we’re just going to
talk about the basics.
The easiest way to
understand this is to
pull up your favoured A single MIDI note. This one is perfectly in time, locked in place on the grid.
DAW, and load up a
software instrument. I’ll
use Reason, but you can use any one you like. Once you’ve queued up your Tech terms
instrument, you’ll need to go into the sequencer, where you’ll see a virtual
● NOTE: a single
keyboard (or equivalent) running vertically. Running horizontally along from that piece of MIDI data,
keyboard should be a line-up of rigid blocks. usually expressed as
Find the pencil tool, which is usually located in the toolbar, and click one of a slim rectangle and
those blocks. You’ll notice it will fill in. There: you’ve just drawn a MIDI note. displayed on a grid.
Now, if you press play, your software instrument will play a sound when the Instructs an instrument
to play audio.
marker reaches the note. You can play these back at any tempo you like, and they
will stay in time. ● VELOCITY: a method
At its most basic, a MIDI note is an indication for an instrument to play a of simulating the
By having your software note. A much-used analogy is that of an orchestra. If the instruments are the perceived loudness
instruments respond to of a given MIDI note.
properties of your MIDI notes, violins, horns, woodwinds and the like, then the MIDI notes are the sheet music.
Measured in units
you can put together They tell the orchestra what to play. By arranging MIDI notes in sequence,
interesting effects.
from 0 to 127.
running up and down the chords on the keyboard, you can create complex
● QUANTISATION: the
melodies. This is why MIDI notes are so popular in electronic music production.
process where MIDI
It’s worth remembering that MIDI notes, beyond just being sheet music, are a
notes are snapped to
way the different instruments are able to communicate with each other. It their nearest spot on
enables you to play a note on a physical keyboard (called a MIDI controller) and the grid in order
have it appear as MIDI data on your screen. That’s important, by the way: MIDI is to compensate for
not sound. By itself, it can’t do a damn thing. If you draw a MIDI note without an human playing, and
instrument connected to it, nothing will play. It’s just data, and it relies on the retain timing.
context it’s being used in for the outcome. ● CONTROLLER: a
device that’s used to
Up a level input and sequence
But of course, MIDI programming is a lot more complex than simple instructions MIDI notes. Usually
this is a keyboard, or
for an instrument to play a note.
set of pads.
Let’s start with one of the most common ways of treating a MIDI note:
velocity. If you hit a piano key hard, the sound it plays will be much louder than
if you just pushed it down gently. MIDI has the same principle encoded in it. The
higher the velocity, the louder the note. The advantage of this is that you can
tweak the volumes of individual notes on a particular track, instead of having to
automate the track fader.
Velocity gives you a hugely versatile way of controlling your sound. You could,
for example, set your instrument to only trigger certain effects at certain
velocities. Try doing this with a filter that has the MIDI velocity as its source,
and get it to activate only when the velocity crosses a certain threshold. Velocity
is usually measured from 0 to 127, so it’s easy to set an exact value for it. This
particular trick has endless applications. One we really like is setting different
samples to trigger at different velocities, which can really bring some life to a
track. At this point, we need to stress that not all techniques will be available on
all instruments, and it’s crucial that you spend time getting to know your
favoured software instruments before playing around with this.
There are other ways of controlling the character of a MIDI note, but they are
largely restricted to the software instruments themselves. You can apply
envelopes to the notes, changing their attack, decay, sustain and release settings.
You can apply filters to them. Some DAWs even let you adjust the fine pitch of

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 107

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 MT Feature A bluffer’s guide to MIDI

the MIDI notes, adding a human element to your

compositions. But really, once you understand how
MIDI notes and their velocities work, you’ll find it
extremely easy to start composing.
And since we’ve got onto composing, there is an
additional concept it’s worth giving your head
around: quantisation. Essentially, all MIDI notes are
displayed on a grid – but when they’re being
recorded, particularly if you’re using a MIDI
controller, perfect timing is often elusive. By
switching on quantisation, you essentially ‘lock’
each note to its closest segment in the grid, resulting
in perfect time, every time. Quantisation is always
desirable (it can sound a little robotic if applied too
heavily) but it’s a real boon when you’re recording.

Fine tuning
There are a few advanced applications of MIDI that
you can use once you’ve got the hang of things. We’re You can layer your MIDI notes to create complex chords.
going to go into a few of them now, although we’re

Once you understand how

As we mentioned earlier, you can also use MIDI
data like velocity and note on/note off to trigger

MIDI notes work, you’ll find it

certain aspects of the software instrument. This
gives you very fine grained control, and allows you to

easy to start composing

come up with some seriously wild effects. Also,
because you can draw multiple MIDI notes into one
track, including on top of one another at different
octaves, it’s easy to create complex chords and
not going to spend too much time on the individual layered effects.
steps to pull them off. This is because they’re largely One of the lesser-known ways of creating MIDI is
dependent on individual DAWs. to extract it from audio information. DAWs such as
One of the most fun ways of employing this is Ableton are known for enabling users to do this.
using the MIDI notes to trigger external Essentially, it means that you can input a piece of
instruments, not just software ones. In this way, you recorded audio and extract pitches and note
can use the data to get a MIDI controller, like a set locations from it. This is a great way to create
of pads, talking to another instrument like a accompanying parts to a recording.
hardware synth, and using one to play the other. It In addition, one of the big pluses of MIDI
takes a little bit of work to set up, but if you find composition is that it is highly portable. What we
yourself with a lot of different instruments and one mean by this is that because the notes are simply
preferred control method, then this is a neat way to bits of data, and contain no actual audio information
streamline your work. themselves, it’s really easy to port them over to
another computer and continue working on it there.
As long as you’re using the same DAW, and using the
same instruments and effects, you will easily be able
to move back and forth between the two.
In fairness, this is less important these days now
that even the smallest flash drive has multiple
gigabytes of space, but it’s a useful tool to illustrate
what MIDI is and how it works. It’s data, and
nothing more.
Every DAW will treat MIDI slightly differently,
display it differently, and enable you to do more with
it. So experiment, and switch between them until
you’ve found one you like. MT

This feature is endorsed by SSR which has been

providing professional education training in the
audio engineering industry for over 30 years. With
campuses in London, Manchester, Jakarta and
Singapore, SSR has gained a healthy reputation
Here, we are adjusting the note’s velocity. This will control its perceived loudness. within the music industry for producing well
trained, professional graduates across the globe.

108 | July
March2015
2015 MAGAZINE
MAGAZINE

MT148.Bluffers Guide.indd 108 29/05/2015 12:34

 ABLETON LIVE 9

On sale now £8.99 with free DVD. Digital version £5.99.

Available at WHSmith (UK), Barnes & Noble (USA) and all good
bookstores in Australia, Canada, and throughout Europe.
Or order online at www.musictech.net/tag/focus

MTF38.ad.indd 1 04/06/2015 08:47

 MT Show off your studio

Icons, gear and a possible

Native Instruments
endorsement deal we wonder?

After the odd grumble that we’ve

Show off
been focussing on too higher-end
studio setups, here are three
MusicTech reader studios of a more

your studio
‘home’ variety. (And they’re all still very
cool.) Get in touch via Facebook if you
want us to feature yours…

Kevin McGrath
Interviewee: Kevin McGrath
Contact: kevindmcgrath@gmail.com

What are the key components in got accustomed to it. I also use worst thing that could happen, but it
your studio? Ableton 9, Audition and Reaper, and is annoying.
Some of the following gear was use Maschine mainly as a plug-in for
bought with a tight budget, but all all three. What is next on your shopping list
over time. MXL RF-100 mic reflection and why?
filter; MXl mic; Shure SM27 mic; ART What is your favourite piece of I really want the LinnStrument, for
DJ Pre II; Stanton T55 turntable; studio gear in the studio? obvious reasons – mainly because
Ortofon DJ Cart; Behringer Xenyx Native Instruments Maschine, it’s different, and different usually
Control 1; Beyerdynamic DT880 & because it’s the best of both produces out-of-the-ordinary
Custon One Pro’s; Audio Technica worlds (in terms of both software results. Plus, it’s really cool. But it’s
ATH M50x; Focusrite Saffire Pro 40 & and hardware). not cheap though, so that’s a tough
VRM box 10’ Tandy passive sub; KRK pill to swallow.
Rokit 8; Yamaha HS 50m; M-Audio How often are you typically in
Oxygen 49; Novation Impulse 61; your studio? What is your dream piece of gear
Native Instruments Maschine 1; Over 40 hours a week. and why?
Traktor S2; Kontrol F1; Ibenez There are quite a few, but I’d say a
electric guitar; Fender bass guitar; How do you use your studio? Is it a Minimoog Voyager because I’ve
Line 6 POD HD. And finally a professional facility or do you use always wanted one or something
hand-crafted studio workstation, it just for fun? similar to it.
made from oak and birch. [Like we I work semi-professionally producing
said, we’re focussing on more home for others, tracking light vocals, and What advice do you have for
studios this month!] of course make music for fun. anyone wanting to set up a studio
from scratch?
Which DAW do you use for music Does anything annoy you about You don’t always need the bells and
production and why? your current setup? whistles to make them sound just as
I use FL the most, because at that My Behringer Xenyx Control 1. It is good. Review everything you think
time (I believe FL8 or 9-ish) it was about two years’ old, and the big you want – most of the time you get
affordable. I came from Sony Acid knobs pot throws static on the low what you pay for, so don’t waste
before that, way back in the day, and end of the volume scale. It’s not the your money.

110 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

MT148 SOYS.indd 110 29/05/2015 11:52

 Show off your studio MT

Laurens Meeusen Amir Hoss

Interviewee: Laurens Meeusen Interviewee: Amir Hoss
Contact: laurensmeeusen@hotmail.com E: info@amirmusic.com

Amir’s compact
setup…

Main studio components?

Mackie D8B mixer, MotU 828 MK 2,
KRK Rokit 8 and two sets of
We like a compact,
straightforward setup Yamaha NS-10m monitors, Korg
Triton Extreme, Roland D-50,
Yamaha P85, E-mu Orbit-3, E-mu
Key components in your studio? What is your dream piece of gear? Mo Phatt, Korg Electribe EA
Focusrite 2i2, Scarlett Studio CM25 I would love to have a U47 mic. It has modules, M-Audio Oxygen 25, Korg
mic, Scarlett Studio HP60, Novation such a warm and realistic sound padKONTROL controllers, Korg
Impulse 61, self-build PC, Razor which I’d love while singing. Electribe EA, Rode K2, Apex 205,
keyboard and mouse, a Moleskine Shure SM58 and SM57, AKG c1000S
notebook to write music lyrics/ideas. How do you use your studio? I am mics, Korg Zeor 4 mixer, Macbook
just testing out various things and I Pro with NI Traktor, Audio 10,
Which DAW do you use and why? love to write lyrics while listening Kontrol X-1, electric and acoustic
I use Cubase, because I got a test to other music. I hope to collaborate guitars, Middle Eastern percussion.
version free with my studio set. As I with some other producers. I see
was really happy with it I bought the myself more as an experimental Which DAW and why? I run Cubase
full version a year later. I really like vocalist than a real ‘producer’. 7. I started using Cubase VST 3.5
the interface and the simplicity of it. back in 1998 and have been glued to
One piece of advice? Read reviews it ever since. I know it inside out.
Favourite piece of gear? I love my and try everything before you buy
Mackie monitors mostly, because it. At first I wanted KRK Rokit Favourite piece of gear and why?
they give such a realistic sound with speakers but I didn’t really like the Yamaha NS-10s – the end result is
an amazing bass – the best speakers sound – the bass seemed overdone. what we hear. I just love the clarity
in that price range for me! I spent a The Mackies were much more of vocals that I bring out of a mix.
lot of time auditioning speakers but realistic. I would also advise not to
in the end the choice was pretty easy. save on your mic – vocals make or How do you use the studio? I’m
break the song. (My mic is also one working on singles and an album
Perfect or room for improvement? thing I’d like to change.) One final released through my label Funktasy
I am thinking about buying a tip: get to know people with Records. I also do a variety of side
reflection screen for my mic as I have experience in recording. I signed up projects – composition, arrangement
very poor acoustics. With that I hope to a forum and got so much help or even jingles/ads.
to record less room reverb. from other producers.
Next buy? I’m about to go from PC
to Mac. I use an MBPro for my live
Read our reviews before you setup and really enjoy its simplicity.
buy, is what Laurens is (sort I will be adding a UAD Apollo
of) saying…
Interface to the new setup as well.

Perfect or room for improvement?

Room acoustics could definitely be
improved. I have gotten to know the
sound in my room pretty well but I
could still do some touch ups to it.

Any studio anecdotes? Before all

these fancy controllers I was using
my computer’s QWERTY keyboard as
a MIDI controller. I didn’t grow up
rich so I had to be innovative

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 111

MT148 SOYS.indd 111 29/05/2015 11:53

 MT Next month

What’s in Issue 149 On sale 16 July

MASTERING: THE
FULL GUIDE
This month’s DVD track gets the full mastering
makeover. Listen to the before and after…

Library mayhem How to…

THE VERDICTS ON THREE NEW RECORD

MASSIVE SOUND LIBRARIES BASS!
The Experts (see p3) Media Dist. Srv. Corp.at 26 Power Dam Way TEXTING
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MT148.next.indd 112 03/06/2015 15:07

 FIRST WITH REVIEWS
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//CUBASE //MIXING
PRO 8 VOCALS,
EXPLAINED ABLETON LIVE TIPS
Size 179MB Format gPlayer Size 2.19GB Format MOV, MP4
Steinberg’s Cubase continues to evolve, and the latest We’ve got a massive bundle of video content for your viewing
version has some excellent features. Groove 3 has teamed up pleasure. From Loop+, you’ll find James Wiltshire of The Freemasons
with Cubase master Dave Askew for its latest tutorial and talking about his label F9 Audio, Mozaic Beats AutoTheory and Rob
we’ve got four chapters to help you get to grips with this new Papen SubBoomBass plug-in overviews, two quick tips on 2-step beats
version. First up, Askew takes a look at Group Tracks and how and multiple outs in Ableton live, plus a guide to Ableton sampling zones
to set up your mixer channels, followed by using FX Tracks to from Producertech. There are also some massive videos from Point Blank
add effects to vocals and drums. Next, we have a video on Music School on mixing vocals in Logic, live jamming with the Korg Volca
setting a recording level, then recording and working with Sample and Electribe EMX2, plus Ableton Live tempo changes and M/S
guitar takes, and finally object handling and editing in the techniques. Web www.groove3.com, www.pointblanklondon.com
main Cubase window. Web www.groove3.com

DEMO//SOFTWARE

//SOFTWARE
SOFTWARE DEMO//SOFTWARE
AUDIO THING FROSTBITE
(WINDOWS, MAC OSX)
Frostbite is a multi-effects plug-in aimed at
ambient, cinematic and experimental music.
IZOTOPE RX LOUDNESS CONTROL Combine Ring Modulator, Feedback and Freeze
(WINDOWS, MAC OSX) modules in six combinations and freeze the input
A useful plug-in for post production and audio for drawn-out effects. www.audiothing.net
professionals, RX Loudness Control can help
you create industry-compliant mixes, control
the volume level, and analyse and output a FULL//SOFTWARE
loudness report. www.izotope.com AEGEAN MUSIC DOPPLER DOME
(WINDOWS, MAC OSX)
A unique plug-in for creating Doppler-style pitch
effects. Draw dots in the dome to create LFO and
loop-style effects along a path, and control pitch,
panning and volume, with sync and MIDI features.
www.aegeanmusic.com

DEMO//SOFTWARE
FULL//SOFTWARE
WAVE ARTS TUBE SATURATOR 2 (MAC OSX) ANUBIS 2 (WINDOWS, MAC OSX)
A super-accurate circuit simulation of a tube pre-amp with Anubis 2 is a fully-featured synth with 32-note polyphony, eight-
analogue EQ. Tube Saturator 2 can be used for subtle warming voice unison, multimode filter, a drifting effect, full MIDI learn and
effects or full-on distortion with two different tube types and host sync. There’s also a split point envelope, modulation matrix
a three-band Baxandall EQ. www.wavearts.com and vibrato, delay and chorus effects. http://bserrano.free.fr

114 | July 2015 MAGAZINE

MT148.DVD pages.indd 114 03/06/2015 15:06

 Your Disc MT

Novation extra
NOVATION SPECIAL DVD JULY 2015

FOCUSRITE MIDNIGHT PLUG-IN SUITE NOVATION V STATION SYNTH NOVATION BASS STATION SYNTH
free disc special!
VIDEO TUTORIALS//3HRS, 15

FULL SOFTWARE//FREE SOFTWARE

//SYNTH TUTORIALS
FREE SYNTHS,
Size 1.83GB Format MOV, MP4
Whether you own a Novation synthesiser, or are just
thinking about getting one and want to know more, these

COMPRESSOR & EQ in-depth tutorials will take you through the main features of
the three most popular products; the long-awaited Bass
Station II brings raw analogue power to a portable monosynth,
Size 48MB Format Windows, Mac OSX the Ultranova packs a comprehensive synth engine based on
Get your hands on three amazing bits of software! Bass Station is the Supernova II into a keyboard, and the Mininova fits the
a soft synth that has been carefully modelled to recreate the distinctive same synth engine into an easy-to-use, compact package.
analogue-digital character of the original hardware Novation Bass Station, Learn about the oscillators, envelopes, LFOs, mod matrix,
which was launched back in 1993. Features include two oscillators, filters, arpeggiators, vocoder, effects and more across over
12/24dB low-pass filter, envelope and LFO, oscillator sync, and 100 three hours of video. Web www.uk.novationmusic.com
presets. The second free synth is the V-Station, which is a plug-in version
of the hardware K-Station. The instrument includes powerful liquid
analogue sounds, three oscillators with Noise and FM capability, built-in
arpeggiator, eight-note polyphony, and high-quality reverb, chorus, phaser,
delay, panning distortion and EQ filter effects. Last but not least, we have
the Focusrite Midnight plug-in suite, which brings sophisticated modelling
of the ISA110 EQ and ISA130 compressor taken from the Forté console.
Use the compressor’s smooth and transparent sound to enable your tracks
to sit perfectly in the mix, and build naturally rich low-end, defined mid-
range and sparkling highs with the EQ. Be sure to read the included PDF
for details on how to activate the software.

SAMPLE LOOPS//ROYALTY-FREE Size 1.23GB Format 24-bit/44.1kHz WAV

//ROYALTY-FREE
On top of the excellent software and videos, you’ll also find a
bumper crop of royalty-free samples to load into Ableton and rock out
on your Launchpad with. There are perfectly formatted hits from Niche

SAMPLES Audio, taken from the Deep Jackin Garage, Deep Jackin House, Dirty
Bass House, DnB Skyline, Neuro DnB and Stripped Techno packs. There
are also plenty of expertly crafted loops from Loopmasters, including
Carl Cox Collective, Reel People Sounds For The Soul, Slo-Fi Sessions,
True Disco, Shapeshifters and Defected House Copyright. To finish off
the package, we’ve also thrown in over 600MB of our favourite MT
samples for you to explore and use in your tracks.
Web www.loopmasters.com

VIDEO FEATURE//38MINS

//PROMO &
PERFORMANCE VIDEOS
Size 498MB Format MOV, MP4
To round things up, we’ve got a handful of performance and promo
videos so you can check out the latest kit. First, there’s an impressive look
back over an array of Novation products with a seamless performance of 21
years of electronic music, plus a montage showcasing how you can use the
Launchpad Pro, Launchkey Mini, Bass Station II and Launch Control XL to
perform tracks and riffs. Next, there’s a look at how Chris Calcutt utilises
and combines several bits of hardware to create his setup, plus a promo
video explaining the details of the Audiohub 2x4 Interface. Finally, we’ve got
an extensive overview video that delves into the features of the new
Launchpad Pro. Web www.youtube.com/user/NovationTV

MAGAZINE July 2015 | 115

MT148.DVD pages.indd 115 03/06/2015 15:07

 NEW

Never get overloaded.

C314
PROFESSIONAL MULTI-PATTERN CONDENSER MICROPHONE

› Four selectable polar patterns › Lowest self noise › Overload detection LED
› Computer-matched diaphragms › Integrated capsule suspension › 20 dB attenuation pad and bass-cut filter

Meet the C314, the latest sibling from one of the industry’s most widely used studio and stage microphone families.
Designed for enthusiasts and professionals alike, the C314 has advanced features that help artists fine-tune their signature sound.
Using the same one-inch dual diaphragm capsule as the C414 XLS, musicians, engineers and producers can have the
confidence that their audience will experience every subtle nuance as it was intended.

AKG ACOUSTICS GMBH LAXENBURGER STRASSE 254, 1230 VIENNA, AUSTRIA

AKG ACOUSTICS, U.S. 8500 BALBOA BOULEVARD, NORTHRIDGE, CA 91329, U.S.A.
© 2015 HARMAN International Industries, Incorporated. All rights reserved. AKG is a trademark of AKG Acoustics GmbH, registered in
the United States and/or other countries. Features, specifications and appearance are subject to change without notice. www.akg.com
ADV741/1/E

DESIGNED AND ENGINEERED IN VIENNA, AUSTRIA

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01462 480000 | www.soundtech.co.uk