This is neat. Only 38 produced, so I have 2.631% of them:

What is it? It's a crazy tube distortion device, sort of like a guitar pedal, but designed by a mad-man (Eric Barbour) in 2000. I think that this box could be called a Y2K pandoras box of horrors.

Eric Barbour (on Mafia Hit list? started a company called Metasonix in 1998 making crazy tube circuits out of unusual tubes, and designed these circuits to sound really ... different. Some of his latest products don't even have 'work-safe' names. Just go to the site and you'll see.

Here's another close-up shot of the magic tubes:

Here's an mp3 made by the dude I bought it from (Rhodes piano via Hellfire Modulator). He's using a very light application of the TS-21 Hellfire Modulator.

Check this whack thing:

It's an old six string pedal steel. Pedal Steel guitars don't have frets. Instead, you slide a peice of metal or bakealite down the strings, which are usually strung in an open tuning (mine is Open-A I think). One steps on a lever, which then tightens or releases ONE OR MORE strings. You have screws which you can adjust to determine exactly how much the pitch on the affected strings should change. Check te pedals:

It's very 'country', 'trancy', and just plain cool. This pedal steel is very old, and very simple. It looks like a toilet seat, with cigarette burns, a crack in its formica finish, and that ludicrous pink/red top. It's a one-of-a-kind. Sounds very pretty tho. I fed it into an Access Virus Ti Desktop (next month's toy of the month, even though I bought it a while back) and it really blew my mind, esp on the vocoder patches.

This one has rusty strings, so I'll need to get some new ones.

Anyway, pedal steel guitars can get very complex. Some have five or nine pedals, and separate knee levers, and TWO necks. Check how ultra-complex it is from the bottom:

This Guitar is machined aluminum and carbon fibre. It's crazy!

I think Pedal Steel guitar (the Steel is for what you hold in your hand, not the construction of the Guitar) is about my favorite stringed instrument. Sounds beautiful.

Akai makes a famous line of samplers called the "MPC". They popularized devices with little pads you could tap to trigger samples. Their machines are sampler workstations with sequencers, MIDI, effects, etc... Lots of HIP HOP producers use them, and you can see some great videos on Youtube: (MPC 4000, MPC 1000).

So now that you've watched the videos, you might be saying: "Paul! Why spend coin on a sampler when your laptop can do it all?". That's sort of true, but after playing with one for a few hours at a Guitar Center, I'd have to say they are good tools for sketching cool songs with. I've never really done much with sampling either, and I figured a little MPC 1000 might let me squeeze as much HIP-HOP out of me as there is, and maybe other stuff too. Here's what it looks like:

The coolest thing by far about the MPC 1000 is that a guy in Japan wrote a new operating system for it that packs huge features (apparently rivalling those of the MPC 2500, which costs a bunch more). So, for 30 bucks, you get many more features (even Pong :), in a portable travel safe package. And really, that's the main reason I bought it -- to travel with it. I figure it, and maybe a TI Virus would be good traveling companions on those long, lonely business trips.

(I'm such a geek)

I was looking for a distortion device ala a tube amp, but not a tube amp, and some folks on the Gearslutz forum suggested I try a Chandler Germanium Pre-amp. The thing is I don't really record with microphones much, so I didn't need the 'pre-amp gain' -- or so I thought. I also figured most pro pre-amps are 'clean/transparent/etc...' and wouldn't impart a lot of colour. Again, folks recommended the Chandler Germanium Pre, mainly because it features a variable feedback control, and has various other nifty features like germanium transistors (used in vintage fuzz boxes). The device looks like this:

You don't have to use a microphone, as you can plug in directly to the front direct-input (DI). It generates some rather snazzy distortion that I've never heard duplicated in software. Sort of adds an 'alive' shimmer and/or brittleness and/or bass blast zoom. Like a guitar effect, the distortion completely depends upon the frequencies and amplitudes of the input. Different signals give different results at different gains and different feedbacks. You get the picture. A lot of variety for just a few controls.

I wondered about the usefulness of 'gain' in a device that essentially takes "line-level" signals and outputs "line-level" signals, but I've found that it's a very useful sound shaping tool. You can use the gain to 'position' the sound relative to various 'feedback' thresholds and thus tailor the distortion to your liking. It's quick to dial in a good sound. It's also got a 'PAD' switch, which lets you feed in crazy hot signals from other equipment without first sending them to a compressor. Finally, there's a subtle 'thick' button that gives a low end boost that helps balance the fracturing the device can also create.

I wish the device was stereo, but I can see that the nature of its distortion would not really produce a correlated result across each channel. Still, later on I might pick me up another of these things and strap them on a summing bus.

This is my first piece of 'analog studio equipment'. I always figured most studio equipment of this sort was designed to record voices, drums, and acoustic instruments (which I don't do much of), so it seemed foolish to spend big $$ on something that wouldn't be useful. This chandler unit however came across as something a bit different, as it didn't try to go after that 'transparent' sound. Since I'm just after a 'cool sound', it sounded good.

I'm very satisfied with its performance so far. I did feel I was going out on a limb paying $1050 + $150 for an external power supply in what could have turned out as a glorified volume control.

I was looking for an expressive instrument that could travel as carry-on, or in the worst case, fit in my luggage. Mini portable keyboards are tired and really not as expressive as I'd like. Really, I wanted something with a bit of the Continuum Fingerboard feel that was very portable (even more than their 1/2 sized version), so here's what I got from Swee*censored*er:

It's a lot easier to play than a 'real woodwind' for sure, and it has a synth built in to it (great for headphones). Midi-out helps too.

Here are some quicktime demos that are kinda cool:

Steve Tavaglione Home Demo - 14.7MB (this is the coolest link)
Michael Brecker Home Demo - 2.39MB
Bob Mintzer Rehearsal Demo - 3.39MB
Mike Phillips Rehearsal Demo - 5.98MB

Neat!

For the last five or so years, I've pretty much abandoned using computers for making sound. I use them to 'record', and 'convert', but that's about it. It's mainly because they're so unreliable. They also run out of horsepower too fast.

So instead I've depended upon other electronic gizmos, most without CPU's. Occasionally, something with a CPU comes along that's not a full-fledged computer that is interesting.

The most recent gizmo is the Eventide H8000FW. It processes audio signals and makes them, hopefully, more interesting. It has two digital signal processors and a whole pile of audio I/O: something like 20 AES/EBU, 4 Analog I/O, SPDIF, ADAT, and 16 channels of Firewire IO. It can act as a sound card too. Here's what it looks like:

UI is okay -- I didn't need the manual for a few days

Check out all the inputs! It's even got MIDI, and Pedals, Relay controls, Serial, Firewire, AES/EBU, ...!

What does it sound like? Well, pretty good. It's got like 1800 presets. I haven't even bothered to make my own, but when I do, it'll be in a visual modular environment that looks like this:

What's it sound like? Well, it's hooked up to Radio Modular, but you don't have A/B ability. Here's a nice MP3 from the Eventide site:

1 --- h8kdemo.mp3 - a really nice demo that covers a lot of ground
2 --- fuzzpitch.mp3 - nice guitar effect

Fun!

What is the modular streaming? Every now and then I change it, and usually I update the configuration here.
Nov 23: Enough with the drony stuff. I'm going to try to focus on 'beats' (well, in so far as I can... Beats and I have a sordid past). Tonight's modules are mainly Metalbox, still the Modcan CV Recorder (great module!) along with the new toy, the Eventide H8000FW adding some neat digital FX. Don't expect too much :)

Nov 20: Three new modules: The Modcan CV Recorder (wild wild wild), the Modcan Super Delay, and a Modcan 01A oscillator from a long time ago (board says 1997). What you hear are two oscillators being driven by a simple 8 step sequencer. The CV Recorder 'sampled' the sequence, and is playing it back slowly. The two oscillators are tuned differently, but tracking the same sequence. The two oscillators feed the Modcan Super Delay. An LFO modulates the delay parameter just a touch. There's a VCA in there somewhere as well, driven by an LFO. The output from the Modcan CV Recorder is fed to the 904A Moog to filter out some grit. A touch of white noise is fed into one of the oscillator's CV input to give it a cloudy feel. In total: 10 modules are used:

2x Oscillator 01a
1x Modcan CV Recorder 57a
1x Modcan Dual LFO 05a
1x Modcan Noise/S&H 07a
1x Modcan 904a Moog Filter 44a
1x Modcan 4VCA 31a
1x Modcan Super Delay 30a
1x Modcan 6x2 Mixer 43a
1x Metalbox Sequential Switch (sequencer)

I'll tweak it over the next few days and see how it evolves.

Thank you Daniel Weiss of Weiss Engineering for the DNA-1, an audio mastering device designed to remove noise, crackles, clicks, and recover lost ambiance. This is just the perfect thing to help me restore dozens of my old cassettes of Amiga Music, as well as my mothers large collection of Yugoslavian 45's and 78's from her youth.

Click for a larger pic of the DNA-1

Background noise is worst on old records (which also click and crackle), and pretty bad on most old tapes (tape hiss). It also creeps in when you're recording with mic's (air conditioners, wind against the building). Even vintage analog gear hums a bit and sometimes has a higher noise floor than you'd like. The purpose of this device is to improve the signal to noise ratio while minimizing artifacts. As you mix more sources together, the noise is additive. If you can minimize it at the beginning of a chain, all the better. Even temperature in a room actually causes D/A conversion errors in the converters. Taken to the ultimate level, vacuum energy could be called the background hiss of the universe. You really can't escape noise (at least in our Universe).

The trick of an expensive box like this is that it is good at removing noise without making the original sound wonky. Lots of noise algorithms exist, but this is among the best. This is a challenging problem to solve, as noise is often broad-spectrum and random -- how can a device know what the signal is? How can it differentiate the rush of a cymbal or the tail of a reverb from background noise? Tricky problem. It's not perfect, but the DNA-1 does a good job.

Technically, one of its tricks is a linear-phase convolution engine. I imagine what it does is akin to removing blur from a photograph.

Here are three examples of the noise removal algorithm at work:

Original
Soft noise removal
Medium noise removal

You can hear that the 'original' and 'medium noise removal' samples sound quite different, and see the noise difference in spectral envelopes (guess which is which):

Here are some more examples of the three algorithms working: Denoiser, Decrackler/declicker, K-Stereo Ambiance Recovery:

Aretha Franklin Pre
Aretha Franklin Post

Booker T Declick Example 1
Booker T Declick Example 2
Booker T Declick Example 3
Booker T Full DNA1 Example Pre
Booker T Full DNA1 Example Post

Piano Denoise Pre
Piano Denoise Post

String Denoise Pre
String Denoise Post

Symphonic Denoise Pre
Symphonic Denoise Post

Guitar Solo Declick and Denoise 1
Guitar Solo Declick and Denoise 2
Guitar Solo Declick and Denoise 3

The device is all digital. That is, it takes AES/EBU in and out. You should clock it to a master clock like the Apogee Big Ben. Weiss licensed the noise removal from PureNotes. Also licensed is the K-Stereo ambiance algorithm from the famous and loved Bob Katz. K-Stereo is a bit mysterious, and patent pending. People aren't clear on how it works, only that it does work. Weiss developed the Decrackle/Declick themselves, and are releasing an upgraded algorithm soon. To top it off, the device has POW-R dither, which allows the 24-bit 96khz signal to be truncated to 20, 18, 16 bits (like a CD), with minimal artifacts. It is not noise shaping in the classical sense, and there are various types of algorithms provided. Here's an example of noise distribution from a low level sine wave. If there was no noise, you'd just see the spike. Each -3 db is 1/2 the energy. Anything less than 95 is, for me, pretty great.

The device, in their own words:

Denoiser to reduce all types of wide band and non-stationary noises like tape hiss or air conditioning hum using a novel adaptive approach to noise reduction (no spectral noise footprint required).

Decrackler / Declicker with three independent subsystems to detect and remove a broad range of impulsive noises, for example scratches and clicks from vinyl recordings.

K-Stereo Processor to recover lost or amplify hidden ambiance, space, and imaging; or to generate stereo from mono signals without adding artificial reverberation.

Output Control to regulate stereo balance and stereo width, as well as the overall signal level.

POW-R, the acclaimed technique for transparent and smooth word-length reduction to 24bit, 20bit or 16bit.

All those standard features like 128 snapshots, POW-R dithering, MIDI Control, 24/96 operation, extensive metering etc.

Weiss Engineering will show the DNA1 96kHz/24-bit audio restoration and enhancement processor at the 119th AES Convention. The Gambit Series processor comprises a noise removal section followed by an ambience recovering and gain control section that offers real-time simultaneous denoiser, decrackler and declicker, in addition to the K-Stereo Ambience Processor.

The denoiser, developed in cooperation with the Pure Notes Company (UK), reduces all types of wideband and non-stationary noises, such as tape hiss or air conditioning hum, using a novel adaptive approach to noise reduction that does not require a spectral noise footprint. Three automatic modes, a manual mode and a semi-auto mode may be engaged depending on the level of fine-tuning necessary for the task.

COOL!

A week or so Cynthia Webster sent me my Zeroscillator - an Analogue Oscillator that is capable of all sorts of voltage controlled frequency modulation! Yay! Up until recently, FM of this calibre was the domain of purely digital processes. It takes a circuit of exceptional stability to let you do this sort of stuff in analog.

Here's a pic of it hanging out in my kitchen:

I re-did my studio (pics soon), and worked on a few nice lines with this module. It sounds pretty great (sounds soon).

Meanwhile, here's a nice artistic pic of the board (way more complex than you'd think):

There's this chap, Ken Stone, who makes synthesizer circuits that you can build Some people don't like soldering these kits, so Michael Ford decided to create a company called Metalbox to provide pre-made modules in Frac Rack format.

Michael Ford's modules are good value, and within driving distance to pick them up (Flint MI), making them even better value, so I ordered up a bunch of them.

Now, you may know that I'm ape about banana jacks (that's what Modcan and Serge use) vs. the mini-plugs (headphone sized) or 1/4" jacks that other synthesizers (and most audio equipment) use.

So it was very nice that Michael Ford offered, at NO EXTRA COST! to swap mini's for banana jacks. He only charged me a small bench fee and parts for certain modules he had to modify to properly work in the banana universe.

Here's a pic of one of his modules that he's converting for me, the Cynare Drum Simulator, and an MP3.

Cynare demo by Sam Ecoff

Here's a pic of his sequential switch, and some MP3's.

Ten oscillator linear FM
Switching audio sources

Here's a pic (somewhat blurry) of some modules he's converted to bananas so far:

Alternating Chimes
Random Drums

I can't wait till all the modules are converted! I'll post some fun tunes and pics of these things!