Monthly Archive for October, 2007

VST Preset Genreator or Escaping the Random Void

VST Preset Generator is pretty cool. Here is the description from the site:

“As described in the left side of this page, the VST Preset Generator (VPG) is a simple tool to create preset file for VST instrument and effects. Generally, VST plug-ins have a lot of parameters and the preset file contains values of them to specify sounds or effects. From this statement, the VPG writes preset files (fxp for program patch or fxb for bank patch) with randomized values.

The VPG is a tool for lazy or curious sound designers, who want to experiment random theory with their VSTs.

VST Preset Generator is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.

What VPG can do:

*create preset file after you’ve load informations about your VST plug-in;
*create totally randomized file;
*create semi-randomly file, specifying the range of random values;
*help you to find new sound for your VST instrument of effect;
*waste your time, trying to help the author of this software ;-)”
The coolest thing is to have the ability to have controlled randomness and add randomness to those effects which don’t have a random button. I always have liked the random button. It provides a new starting point leading to very creative and fresh sounds. Plus they usually are fun. This should fill the void.

Combinator Back Drops or More Virtual Inspiration

Willbe has a excellent set of back drops. Better than mine me thinks. It will be fun making instruments for them. Real hard ware inspired yet original in that it is not all music hardware. They also is a nice refill available.

Circuit-Bending Challenge or Mission Sort Of Possible

Sunday I participated in the Circuit-Bending Challenge form GetLoFi & CDM. I had other things to do so it was a bit hectic. I got out late and hit two thrift stores and pick up a little tikes keyboard and a fisher price tape player with a mic that played through a small speaker with vocal effects(robot, monster etc.) I bought two because I was scared 1 won’t work & did not have time to shop more. It cost me a whole 4 dollars thanks to a purple tag sale at goodwill. I was going to use the tape play first make a weird tape delay. I think it would have work only I could make the tape loop work. If it was 2 slack it would not turn the loop and to tight it just switched off. I wasted a lot time trying to make that work. Time I did not have because other things I had to do. I never though about making the the tape loop it self and left it for the end. Sometimes the things that seem the simplest…

Then it got fun. I liked the race against the clock. It was like trying to disarm a bomb only less mess when I missed the deadline(oh, and funner.) I decide since I took the tape play all a part I would use it for a Frankenstein machine. I set up the keyboard so it could play through the vocal effect and used the little mic to record the speaker and run it back through every thing. Plus I found another bend that changed the tempo of the program drum beats and add a farty 8bit sound bass noise. It was pretty fast to do. I like the robot voice sound but when I put it together and screwed it up the sound changed. Something came lose of something is touching. It got a lot quiter also. The drum beats sound cool though.

I did not have time to fix it. Maybe if time was an issue I would have built something that worked better. But more likely I would not have built anything. I did not turn out that great but it was good fun. There is a pretty sound clip at my website. I did have much time to document it or record anything(and I was still late.)

I like seeing the other stuff people made you should check them out. And the race against the clock added some spice. Reminded me of trying to finish school work at the very last minute back in my younger days. They should do this again. I am motivated now to build something better with more care that will be rad as hell.

Soundbomb

The way things are presented sometimes makes all the difference. Soundbomb is an example of this. It can record a sound that can be played back when triggered by a motion detector. A device like that could easily be mass produced in bright colors & marketed as a children’s toy. A forgettable one at that. Or it could be a beginners electronics kit. But instead it is something else. From how you can get one to it suggested uses makes it more than a electronic gadget that is “neat” to something with the possibility of making the world a little more interesting. The idea for the device is much more than the sum of its parts.

Assorted Links or Various Stuff

Piracy Again

The news on this front is of course oink.cd. Read about it at CDM, redwriteweb, TechCrunch, & pitchfork. There are much more. Because of the amount comment on this I will only say piracy effects all media yet the movie, television, and software business seem to be doing a lot better with out busting out the big club of the law.

Mics & Recording

CDM had this crazy video of a sm58 torture test. Yeah it is true they are tough. Its tough cousin the sm57 has a good review at Tweakheadz along with is good article on mic preamps that opened my eyes a little.

Dorninger has an interesting entry on field recording with some good links. I like recording of a video game arcade. Brought back those days more than anything else experienced. I glad people capture that kind of thing.

Audio Conversion

Any-Audio-Converter is a free audio conversion tool that seems alright.

Virtual Modular

Analog Box 2 is a cool little object oreiented modular synth. Fun to play with if you like this kind of thing.

A BIG Recording Space

Need to record some samples in pristine echo & inference free silence but you anechoic chamber is a bit to small. You might check into rent this place out. It might just be big enough.

Weirdness

I might be in the minority but I never tire of weird instruments here is some.

Greatest Guitar Solo Ever or Clap Along

I hurt myself laughing.


Pot of Gold On The Other Side or Radiohead Again

There is no hard official numbers. Yet, but there have been rumors, polls, surveys and a lot of comment. Gigwise estimated that the album “sold” 1.2 million downloads the first day. Other guess and estimate have been right around that number. If you have been interested in this whole deal you probably have read that and that $8 bucks was the the supposed average.

There has been very little numbers since then if any. And my guess is they will not say anything. The band tries to be so cool and never divulge much. That was the biggest problem with the whole thing. I do not know but I think the problem were caused more by laid back rock star hipsterism than greedy.

This is the first time anything like this has been a such big deal. I hope others who certainly will try this will learn from it. They will have to to succeed. There should have been more information up front. These days I mostly rock the ipod mostly so 160k was find. But I understand that people were pissed about especially since other Radiohead digital downloads were always had a high bit rate. Some of it is over blown though. Those bitching that is unlistenable are full of it. If you can more about the sound quality than the emotion use might as well being buying DVD audio of Yanni. My favorite music listening memories was listening to an independent AM radio station that played great music you could not find anywhere else. The sound quality sucked but I was lucky to have heard it and would trade a $20,000 Hi-Fi to be able to listen to it again. But I get the point. Maybe set up different price point for different bit rates of just go high to start with. The possible extra track on the CD is kind of shitty also. These thing should have been out there for the start. But still personal I don’t feel cheated.

The whole thing is a little weird. I cared about album sales for the first time ever. More people talked about how it was sold rather than how good it was. It did get good reviews mostly if anyone paid attention. I would agree with that it is not their best not there worst. The band with no record company payola and promotion created the most buzz a rock band has had in a long time. I sure it will help that tour. They also most likely made a lot of money charging mostly nothing. I heard it referred to as the rich getting richer. But hey I don’t have a problem with bands making money. If there are good they deserve it more than a corrupt infrastructure of leeches. It is better than the labels getting rich doing everything wrong morally and business wise which in their case is “business as usual.”

I think this or something close to this can work clearly. But you should know what you are getting exactly in the way of quality and a sample tracks would not hurt either. Also take advantage of the medium and offer format options to meet the needs or different people. Some art & a track lists would not hurt either. But most of all it just needs more openness.

Basic VST or The Commodore 64 Sound


de la Mancha has added another plugin to a fine collection. It is Basic a VST synth inspired by the Commodore 64. If if like that SID chip sound or just get misty when it comes to the early days of personal computing you should give it a try.

Mellonman or This Is Not What Sony Had In Mind


Mellonman is freaking amazing. Most guys won’t even consider trying to build something like this. Using walkmen(what the hell is the correct plural form of “walkman”) was inspired and a little crazy. If someone turns something like this in for the circuit bending challenge I would be very suspicious.

The Amazing Randi & Golden Ears

I was on the Sonic Transfer site and saw a name I never though I would see on a music site. It was the name of one of my hero’s The Amazing Randi. He is most famous for is exposing Uri Gellar & Peter Popov as frauds & is million dollar prize he offers if you can prove psychic powers. You can find out more if you visit James Randy Educational Foundation. As suggested by Sonic Transfer do a search for Stereophile. That million dollar prize was extended to them to prove some of there claims. You should also check out AudioCritic another critic of Stereophile and some of there pure nonsense like $10,000 dollar cables. I have often wonder but this kind of thing. Now, I am not even close to being an expert or even knowledgeable but now that I have built a few of my own gadgets and gain more of electronics applied as applied to audio applications things just seem more and more silly. Electronic is of course a well understood science and so is acoustics. It is not magic and think everyone should be skeptical when there is no scientific reason for it. It is not magic and there is not “mojo.” Provide a valid reason why a device is better. And conduct double blind tests to prove people think it sounds better. You almost never see them and I think there is a reason for that.

This of course does not just affect people with way to much money to spend on stereo equipment. It effects musicians as much if not more. Guitarist have it the worst. There is all those guitar idols that we aspire to sound like. We we take that fools errand and try and sound like them and fail it is all to easy to attribute their sound to that obscure magical piece of gear. When of course Jimmy Page sounds like that because he is well Jimmy page. It is not magical cap or this pickup wiring etc. It is all of them together combine with the man himself. The complication with guitar is the signal chain is complex with pickups to pot and caps to pedal to amp and back through mics into the mixing environment. They all have to play nice to get great sound. And there is not a single magical ingredient. And the is no “holy grail” of guitar gear. Combine with the fat that electronic is somewhat mysterious to most operating invisible.

Don’t get me wrong I think some product are great. I think there are both new and old products that are wonderful and worth the hype. I just think here need s to be a lot more skepticism and we need to use our “non-golden” ears with as much detached objectivity as possible. And demand more form the supposed experts. It to easy to let your gear lust and want of a magic bullet to cloud our judgement.

More reading:

Cables, Interconnects & Other Stuff - The Truth from Elliot Sound Products

Craig Anderton on Guitar Cables

Realy long thread on these kind of products and claims on DIYstomboxes forum